diet and immune system

My little cat Charlotte died a few days ago having endured through her
life hyperthyroidism, weakened kidneys, IBD probably due to both food
allergy to tuna and years of neomercazole possibly resulting in
lymphoma of her gut, and ultimately liver failure. A few years ago our
cat Harvey died of various cancers and he too had a bad reaction to the
thyroid medicine--all his cancers may have had lymphoma in his gut as
the originator. I know that cats eventually die of something but I want
to learn from the deaths of my cats for my current and future cats.

I have been reading up on the contribution of food to the illness in
cats and am convinced of that argument. The discussion on this subject
in this newsgroup goes back a few years. What is the current thinking?
Are commercial foods still as bad as they were? What exactly are the
harmful ingredients that are causing modern cats to experience so many
common illnesses such as cancers, hyperthyroidism, IBD and the like?

I want my cats to have the healthiest diet possible to allow them to
live the longest and to help them avoid the common diseases that seem
to come from a weakened immune system. As a vegetarian I do not like
the idea of having to buy and cook fresh meat for them but I would do
that if that was the only way to reach my goal. I know that many people
subscribe to the idea that raw meat is best for cats but I can't accept
that since raw foods can carry disease.

I live in the UK. Can anyone suggest the best tinned food to buy? How
does Yarrah compare with Denes? What ingredients on the label should
influence whether I buy or don't buy a brand of cat food? James
Wellbeloved dry food purports to be wholesome and beneficial--any
opinion on that claim?

If the most natural food for a cat is a mouse, how come none of the
food producers make a cat food with the same levels of protein,
carbohydrates, etc that are found in a mouse?

Thanks for your input.

Zoe

Zoe,
The arguments you have accepted are prcisely the same as the
following paragraph.

"My father ate green peas as a child. He died of colon cancer at age
34, therefore green peas cause colon cancer."

While the first two segments of the argument are true, they do not make
the third segment "therefore green peas cause colon cancer" true.
Review the arguments you have accepted and look closely - in every case
they rely precisely upon this very same faulty logic.

As for mouse food - it apparently doesn't have much consumer appeal.
Prescription Diet c/d first formulated in the late 1950's was precisely
the same nutrient values as mouse carcasses. Since the 1950's we have
learned a lot aboout feline nutrition. Those feral cats that ate only
mice had much shorter life spans than owned cats do today. Todays cats
live far longer than they did in 1950, owing in part to better
nutrition, better veterinary care, and better medical solutions to
various disease issues.

All living things must eventually expire. Over the past fifty years we
have eliminated many of the common causes of death in cats. Rancid
foods used to be huge killer of cats in the 1950's. Trauma - hit by car
- etc has declined tremendously over the past 20 years as pet owners
keep cats inside far more than they used to. As we eliminate common
causes of death other causes must necessarily increase. The use of
higher levels of antioxidant vitamins introduced in some commercial cat
foods ten years ago will likley increase longevity once again. Talk to
your veterinary surgeon and seek thier advice on what types and brands
of food they recommend.

Zoe wrote:
My little cat Charlotte died a few days ago having endured through her
life hyperthyroidism, weakened kidneys, IBD probably due to both food
allergy to tuna and years of neomercazole possibly resulting in
lymphoma of her gut, and ultimately liver failure.

Zoe, I am so sorry for your loss of Charlotte

I want my cats to have the healthiest diet possible to allow them to
live the longest and to help them avoid the common diseases that seem
to come from a weakened immune system. As a vegetarian I do not like
the idea of having to buy and cook fresh meat for them but I would do
that if that was the only way to reach my goal. I know that many people
subscribe to the idea that raw meat is best for cats but I can't accept
that since raw foods can carry disease.

I did a lot of reading and research after my last cat passed away, and
I decided I wanted to try a raw food diet. I started my present cats
on it when they were about 3 months old, and they are now 5 1/2 years.
They have been doing great on their homemade raw diet, although
sometimes I wish they didn't have so much energy, lol. It's something
that I wanted to do for my cats and something I believe is the most
beneficial to them. Having said that, I don't recommend it for people
who are interested in the convenience of commercial food. Making a
homemade diet isn't rocket science, but it does take some work. As far
as disease from raw meat, yes, for people eating raw meat can be
dangerous. But cats have a different, and much shorter, digestive
tract than we do. They are carnivores and were meant to eat a raw meat
based diet. One needs to handle the meat in a safe manner, just like
you would do when making your own food. I belong to a list that has
about 1,000 members, and I don't recall hearing about cats getting sick
from raw meat. The problems I see are problems that the cat had before
starting on the raw diet, or ones that aren't diet related.

Just wanted to give you another view. Again, I am sorry for your loss.

Lauren

See my cats: http://tinyurl.com/76tg8

"Steve Crane" wrote in message
oups.com...


As for mouse food - it apparently doesn't have much consumer appeal.
Prescription Diet c/d first formulated in the late 1950's was precisely
the same nutrient values as mouse carcasses. Since the 1950's we have
learned a lot aboout feline nutrition.


I sure hope so! Many cats developed feline central retinal degeneration and
went blind, and many others developed dilated cardiomyopathy and died from
the original c/d as a result of the lack of taurine. Hill's finially wised
up in 1987-- only took them almost 40 years.


Those feral cats that ate only
mice had much shorter life spans than owned cats do today.


LOL! You're doing the same thing you accused the OP of! "My father ate
green peas as a child. He died of colon cancer at age 34, therefore green
peas cause colon cancer." "Those feral cats that ate only
mice had much shorter life spans"--- Feral cats live shorter lives than
pet cats due to environmental hazzards, exposure, illnes and lack of medical
care, predators, cars, psychos-- not because they eat mice-- unless the mice
ate poison. Cats evolved and survived on mice for millions of years!

You come out with some real silly **** sometimes.

Phil P. wrote:
"Steve Crane" wrote in message
oups.com...


As for mouse food - it apparently doesn't have much consumer appeal.
Prescription Diet c/d first formulated in the late 1950's was precisely
the same nutrient values as mouse carcasses. Since the 1950's we have
learned a lot aboout feline nutrition.


I sure hope so! Many cats developed feline central retinal degeneration and
went blind, and many others developed dilated cardiomyopathy and died from
the original c/d as a result of the lack of taurine. Hill's finially wised
up in 1987-- only took them almost 40 years.

What kind of cheap shot is this? Hill's was the ONLY company that
pulled all feline foods off the market and replaced them with elevated
taurine foods. Nobody else bothered to do that. And before you spout
off, no other company had higher levels of taurine at the time either.

Phil P. wrote:
"Steve Crane" wrote in message
oups.com...


As for mouse food - it apparently doesn't have much consumer appeal.
Prescription Diet c/d first formulated in the late 1950's was precisely
the same nutrient values as mouse carcasses. Since the 1950's we have
learned a lot aboout feline nutrition.


I sure hope so! Many cats developed feline central retinal degeneration and
went blind, and many others developed dilated cardiomyopathy and died from
the original c/d as a result of the lack of taurine. Hill's finially wised
up in 1987-- only took them almost 40 years.

Thanks to this Dr. Pion, it seems. This is a rather long article, but
well worth the read:

http://www.catnutrition.org/diabetes.htm#_ftn2

"Steve Crane" wrote in message
ups.com...

Phil P. wrote:
"Steve Crane" wrote in message
oups.com...


As for mouse food - it apparently doesn't have much consumer appeal.
Prescription Diet c/d first formulated in the late 1950's was
precisely
the same nutrient values as mouse carcasses. Since the 1950's we have
learned a lot aboout feline nutrition.


I sure hope so! Many cats developed feline central retinal degeneration
and
went blind, and many others developed dilated cardiomyopathy and died
from
the original c/d as a result of the lack of taurine. Hill's finially
wised
up in 1987-- only took them almost 40 years.

What kind of cheap shot is this?


What cheap shot? Hey- you brought up the first formulation of c/d as
"precisely the same nutrient values as mouse carcasses"-- which of course it
wasn't since mouse contains taurine and the original c/d didn't- and many
cats went blind or died because of it. You can't possibly deny that *fact*.


Hill's was the ONLY company that
pulled all feline foods off the market and replaced them with elevated
taurine foods.


Ex post facto-- after many cats went blind or died. Of course Hill's pulled
c/d from the market and reformulated it- they had no choice!



Nobody else bothered to do that. And before you spout
off, no other company had higher levels of taurine at the time either.


Ex post facto-- after many cats paid for Hill's' mistake with their eyes or
lives.