Recently I had Jackson Galaxy as my special guest on my live weekly radio show CAT CHAT® (on the Martha Stewart channel #110 of Sirius/XM satellite radio). We were discussing how he helps people overcome serious behavior issues in their cats by using treats to both entice and reward a cat for doing — or even trying to do — some desired behavior. Jackson stayed on the air with me for the whole hour because we were having such a good time answering peoples’ questions and helping solve their feline problems together.

One caller asked what sort of treats she should use for re-training her kitty. I said it needed to be a “high value” treat — one the cat would really make an effort to please you to get. I pointed put that an all-protein treat is preferable for cats since they are obligate carnivores and do best with real protein as their prize. I suggested that the person could use little bits of cheese or chicken but they are messy to deal with. I began to say there is a terrific line of pet treats made of freeze-dried real proteins, but before I could continue, Jackson Galaxy jumped in and said exactly what I was about to suggest: Halo Liv-a-Little freeze dried chicken, beef or salmon! “I love those Halo Liv-a-Littles,” Jackson said. ” I use them with all my cat behavior clients — on television and in real life.” He even went so far as to call out the brands he especially does not like (and we’re on the same page about that, too)!

I was so excited that of all the cat treat products available out there, someone whose life is all about cats like Jackson Galaxy would pick Halo Liv-a-Littles over all the others.

I was so delighted about the good nutrition advice he is giving his cat consulting clients, I offered to send him enough copies of THE CAT BIBLE to give to all the folks who were on the show in the first season (and maybe the folks at HALO will send him a few Liv-a-Littles to thank him for his good taste in cat treats!

I think you know by now how strongly feel about feeding cats only wet food, never dry, because they are obligate carnivores with digestive systems that struggle to deal with the highly processed carbohydrates of bagged food. Between my radio shows DOG TALK® (and Kitties, too!) and CAT CHAT® I thought I had heard every possible problem people have encountered in trying to get their cats off the dry kibble and onto wet, meat based food. And then I had someone call into CAT CHAT® (on Sirius/XM channel #110 live every Wednesday at 8 PM EST) with an entirely unique dilemma. She said her cat would only eat dog food — but a very good brand, Halo. I told her I agreed that Halo was a terrific kibble — and explained the coincidence that, in fact, Halo is the only bagged food I will feed my dogs as part of their meals. But then I began to explain that dry dog food is just as bad for her kitty as dry cat food when she interrupted me by saying, “No! My cat will only eat Halo canned dog food!” I asked whether she had tried the Halo canned cat food and of course she had — but the cat would only eat the dog’s dinner, which was Spot’s Stew in a can (the dog in question was a Chihuahua smaller than the cat!) After she explained that she had tried many premium canned cat foods — including the one Halo makes! — she gave up and divides the dog food between her Chi-chi and the kitty but was worried she was doing him some harm. I explained that while cats have a higher need for protein than dogs that she could sprinkle some Halo Dinner Party on the wet food to increase the protein content (it’s dehydrated pure chicken meat) or crumble some Halo Liv-a-Littles on top of the cat’s dog food, which is also pure dried meat. After that, I told her that the only missing element would be the taurine that pussycats need added to their foods — which Halo does in the cat version of their canned foods. Since the cat would not touch the cat food (which seems pretty nutty given that the products are made the same way) I recommended making certain that the cat gets her taurine by using a daily supplement like Platinum Performance, which supplies taurine (as well as some ingredients which can prevent joint issues and arthritis).

This nice lady was so happy to “get permission” from the Food Police (me!) to continue sharing the Halo canned stew between her kitty and the Chihuahua. I’d love to have a picture of that dinner scene!

–Tracie Hotchner

Rebecca from Virginia wrote me this excellent letter about what she thinks is best for her pets and I really admire her passion!

Maile

I first purchased The Cat Bible because I didn’t really know a whole lot about cats. I learned quite a bit from reading it but I continue to learn as I use it as a reference. It only made sense for me to purchase The Dog Bible. It too, is seeing the same amount of use. I would love signed book plates to put in them. My dog’s name is Kaia. My cat’s name is Maile. I’m attaching pictures of both my girls. Maile is sitting by her favorite screened window (I check her screen every day). Kaia is just being cute. She is beagle/ Austrailian Cattle Dog. She has a very beautiful story. But really when it comes down to it… don’t they all?  Keep up the good work of educating others. I have a problem that Animal Planet in a story titled Five Ways Your Cat Can Live Longer suggests feeding dry food to the cat. Despite all that we know about cats being obligate carnivores and the dry food manufacturing process and carbs. Additionally, I’ve had first hand experience with AAHA. They recommended a vet to me that had been disciplined by the state vet board in 2008 and his license was put on probation of JAN of this year. He was on probation when I went to go see him. The only way I figured this out is that something didn’t feel right during the visit. So I went home and did the research and found out this information. I emailed AAHA and brought it to their attention. They forwarded my complaint to the vet. I have not heard anything else from AAHA. The vet is still up on their website as an AAHA accredited hospital (there is only one vet at that location). Whose interests do they have in mind?  Whose interests do they have in mind? Those are only two discrepancies that I know of. You know people see Animal Planet and they think it’s the know all of pet care. They don’t think of Iam’s dry pet food paying the AP light bill so they have to give bad advice. As a social worker, I knew I had to question the government but AAHA? I can’t even figure out where their pay out is. So it’s up to writers like you to put science and facts out there so as consumers we can make informed decisions and give us a starting point for discussions with our vets. If reviewing your books on Amazon will help you and will get the word out… then I’m on it. Thanks for writing such great books.

I got this message from Billie and Mark, which they addressed to “Dr. Hotchner.” While I am humbled to be trusted by my listeners, I recommend that anyone with a troubling medical situation turn to the Official Second Opinion Vet of my radio shows, Dr. Donna Spector (link to her website is www.SpectorDVM.com).

Our 10-year-old male cat was diagnosed with diabetes last Monday. Since then we have been treating him with two units of Prozinc (protamine zinc) insulin. Last night Jack had difficulty walking and became extremely lethargic, from the literature that we have read we thought that he was hypoglycemia. So we started treating him with honey at around 2:00 AM when it appeared that he was worsening we took him to the emergency room. His glucose was 557, twelve hours later his glucose level 550. They are administering insulin via an intravenous drip.

He will spend tonight at the emergency facility and we will take him to our vet in the morning. If you were his Doctor, would you expect any improvement? I know that this is a difficult question not having seen Jack, but I would value your opinion.

I replied:

First of all, I am not a doctor, just a pet expert!

I am honored that you have sought my advice, but you need to turn not just to a veterinarian, but to one who is a board-certified veterinary internist — someone who has a big perspective and can work long distance with you and your own vet. Dr Donna Spector (CC’ed here) is the Official Second Opinion vet of both my radio shows and I recommend you contact her immediately to help you understand exactly what is going on with Jack and to make sure you know how to deal with it. It is so valuable to have a “veterinary detective” — which is how I think of internists! — who is aware of all the latest research and can support your own vet’s decisions or give you other ideas, too.

In your situation I would get in touch with her right away.

I can also urge you to go to my website www.TheCatBible.com to learn the dangers of feeding dry food, which is the only known cause of type II diabetes in cats. “Kitty crack” is a harmful and addictive product for obligate carnivores, who need canned meat only. My website has a printable list of Cat Chat approved flavors and brands.

Dr Elizabeth Hodgkins is the official Vet of Cat C hat and her book YOUR CAT is a valuable resource you should have on your shelf, too!

Good luck
Tracie

Catster.com often posts Daily Tips from me and whenever there is one about food, things heat up! (http://blogs.catster.com/cat_tip_of_the_day/2011/02/28/how-much-food-does-a-cat-really-need/#comments) I just LOVE when the feeding topic gets everybody energized! There are a few different issues raised here so first I urged everyone to go to my website TheCatBible.com and read some of the lengthy blogs and Q&A’s on the topic of cats being true obligate carnivores who should eat ONLY a meat-based diet with no more than 10% carbohydrate content. They also should NOT be grazing and eating continuously– their short digestive tracts and the fact that they are hunters whose bodies are built for feast and then rest is essential to feeding them correctly. The dry food industry has us all brain washed into thinking otherwise.

Once you create a “kitty crack” addict — they will have non-stop cravings for unhealthy carbs (dry food, any dry food) and need to be re-educated about having 2 satisfying wet meals a day. For TERRI who is a truck driver this can be a challenge — someone to come in and give a second wet meal would be great, but my website also has answers for this particular situation. For MIKE and other feral cat feeders, dry is usually the most economical and practical way to go. Those cats would starve otherwise. For CAROL and ROBIN who are feeding a huge family of cats, wet feeding requires large cans of food, paper plates (if you don’t want to wash 12 saucers!) and teaching patience at feeding time. Again, I suggested checking out the huge amount of free advice on my website, or calling into CAT CHAT® any Wednesday night so I can personally help solve individual situations. For BETH, I certainly accepted her apologies for having strong feelings against my advice, but it’s so important to me that everyone come to understand that cats cannot get fat on wet food fed in two meals a day. They will actually lose weight. It’s the constant snacking on highly processed carbs that their bodies are not designed to digest that causes obesity, diabetes, kidney problems and a host of others. TONI: It’s such a shame your cat was able to become an ex-kitty-crack user and then you got him back on it. BERNADETTE you are right about how well Maggie has trained you to give her Halo Liv-a-Littles! But that is really healthy for her because Liv-a-Littles are pure dehydrated chicken, beef or salmon and just the quality protein that a cats body really needs! The truth is that if she only eats protein snacks and wet foods, and no dry at all, she will eventually settle into the 8-10 lb. range and be very healthy. Many compulsive eating cats have gotten that way from carbohydrate addiction and once they get an all-protein diet, with only 2 meals a day, they eventually chill out. Remember that you can always use a fishing pole toy instead of giving a treat!

–Tracie Hotchner

I got this emphatic note in response to the column on pet nutrition that I was doing for Organic Spa magazine.

A friend of mine gave me your article Nutrition for Dogs from Organic Spa magazine to read. I’m extremely interested in canine nutrition.  I was startled to read in the article that you refer to dogs as omnivores. Dogs are carnivores and will always be carnivores no matter what we feed them. They are meant to eat primarily meat. I don’t understand why you would refer to them as omnivores.

Thank you for your time,
E. Henderson

Hello E. Henderson – from the tone of your note I have to guess you feed only raw food to your dog? Even perhaps the BARF (Bones And Raw Food) diet? While there are numerous controversial topics in pet nutrition, the insistence on designating dogs as obligate carnivores seems to come from those espousing an all raw meet diet as the only viable way to feed a dog. While I have read in a number of places that this controversy exists about how to categorize dogs as carnivores or omnivores, there is no logic or evidence of any such controversy. Dogs — like us — are carnivorous omnivores. They do very well on a variety of foods and food groups in their diets, unlike cats which are genuine obligate carnivores whose entire digestive system is designed only to ingest and digest meat. While I am one of the most visible and vocal critics of most bagged dog foods — and also an advocate for minimizing kibble and including more real meat or other protein source, along with vegetables — I would characterize dogs as omnivores, which is what they are. I raised your question with Dr. Elizabeth Hodgkins, who has a law degree in addition to being a premiere veterinarian, known for her work in the field of nutritional education and having attended the pet food recall hearings in Washington, D.C. Dr Elizabeth breeds and shows Ocicats, who are on a strictly raw food diet and she stated very clearly that dogs are carnivorous omnivores, period.  If you would like to hear that interview, it is on my new show DOG TALK® & CAT CHAT® which is podcast on the WOR 710 AM website. You can go to “schedules” then “weekend schedule” and scroll down to the page for my show — at the bottom is a place where you can listen right there.

I got this email from Stephen, and it contains several issues and misconceptions, which I need to straighten out:

My mom is the owner of a beautiful 11 year old, mostly white, longhair cat with a very bushy tail named Lulu. Unfortunately, Lulu has been allergic to something ever since we have her (a little over 7 years). Whether it’s the environment (she’s strictly a house cat and there are no other pets in the house) or food, I’m not sure. The vet refers to her problem as a “lick granuloma” because she’ll lick her hind leg until there’s a wound and will scratch other areas of her body and the malady responds to steroid treatment. Most recently she had a big wound on the side of her face and under her eye. We’ve tried antihistamines, antibiotics and corticosteroids (Prednisolone and currently, Triamcinolone). Our vet isn’t a fan of Depo Medrol shots because of the chance of an adverse reaction. He prefers pills because they’re removed from the bloodstream faster. He’d like to try Cyclosporine as that’s known to reduce the allergic reactions, but I have trouble giving her pills and I’m afraid of its effect on her kidneys.

We’ve tried to change her daily diet from Fancy Feast (only the wheat gluten free flavors) but she would rarely eat anything else other than cooked kosher chicken or Boar’s Head Low Sodium Turkey Breast (that’s how we used to administer her pills). The vet tried Hills or Royal Canin prescription rabbit (now discontinued) and she wouldn’t eat it.

I’ve read a lot about allergic cats and many seem to respond to rabbit protein or a raw food diet. Our vet isn’t too keen on raw food because of the chance of toxoplasmosis (also mentioned on the Cornell Vet School site), and since my mom is an elderly woman, the measuring of the meal (even if bought pre-frozen may be too much for her. She has enough trouble administering the correct dosage of Petromalt.

I know you recommend Weruva and about a month ago, a holistic pet food store I went to gave me a can of Paw Lickin’ Chicken. Well, Lulu just loved it. We switched her over from her Fancy Feast canned (only Gourmet Chicken or Turkey & Giblets) and Natural Balance Duck and Green Peas Dry diet to strictly Weruva Paw Lickin’ Chicken.

The problem is that since we made the switch, she’s been constipated. (She’s also currently taking 2 tabs of .5 mg Triamcinolone/day). Her last bowel movement was last Wednesday (approx. 5 days after her previous one and it was helped by Petromalt), and she hasn’t pooped since (today is Sunday or 4 days later). I’ve given her two doses of Petromalt since then. She urinates several times a day but doesn’t show any inclination to defecate nor does she strain. She’s not lethargic, seems very happy, drinks on occasion (but not as much since the switch to Weruva Paw Lickin’ Chicken), and has a good appetite (almost three cans per day). The vet said to continue with the Petromalt and doesn’t seem to think the Triam tabs are causing the constipation. I know there’s preservatives and a bunch of different proteins in the Fancy Feast, but is it possible that Fancy Feast along with the water she consumed after eating her Natural Balance Duck and Green Peas Dry Food was helping her regularity? Has anyone else mentioned constipation when switching to Weruva? There was one post about it on the Only Natural Pet Foods Store website.

I certainly had my work cut out for me with Stephen:

Well, well – your beautiful Lulu certainly has been put through the wringer, hasn’t she, poor dear? I am ever so glad you reached out to me Stephen, on Lulu’s and your mother’s behalf, because there are quite a number of things about which you have been misinformed or haven’t been encouraged to think for yourself, logically.

The first thing to do with any cat not feeling well is to get them off any dry food immediately and switch them to the highest quality, least processed food possible. Instead, the vet bombarded her with various drugs (all of which can cause digestive problems, just as with people). The allergy your cat presumably had was quite likely a bad REACTION to highly processed commercial carbohydrate-laden food. Fortunately, you have gotten to the right nutrition with your own good sense. If you read any of the Q&A’s on my website – or the many blogs on the subject – you will see how soon a cat’s physical appearance and health improves when she goes onto any wet food – but especially a high quality one like Weruva that has no hormones or antibiotics in the free-range chicken. You’ll also see that drinking a lot of water is not natural for a properly fed cat and many stop needing to drink altogether once they get off the “kitty crack” that was dehydrating them from the inside-out.

It’s too bad that Cornell has done so many cats the disservice of continuing to promote dry food only for them – despite all scientific facts showing they are obligate carnivores whose digestive systems were not designed to handle highly processed carbohydrates. It is also promoting foolishness to think that there is toxoplasmosis in the carefully prepared and frozen raw diets being sold to many satisfied feline owners. If anything, the food-borne risk of infection would be from salmonella, but companies like Feline’s Pride, Oma’s Pride, Nature’s Variety and many others have very clean track records. Wild Kitty brand had a moment where salmonella seemed to be in one of their batches and they discovered it, disclosed it and dealt with it without any harm to cats. Compare this to the ingredient disasters with commercial pet food and it is shameful. Really, that detractors of raw feeding of cats have managed to spread needless fear (raw food is considered the “gold standard” by great vets like the Official Vet of CAT CHAT®, Elizabeth Hodgkins, who also breeds and shows Ocicats, and many other highly educated and dedicated professional cat owners and breeders). The food comes in a frozen plastic container which your mother would keep in the refrigerator, using a spoon to put some on a small saucer for Lulu – the spoon gets rinsed and put in the dishwasher, as does the saucer after 15 minutes on the floor. The food doesn’t touch a surface or anyone’s hands. With the severe skin problems she has, a diet like this could turn her around fast.

Of course the Weruva is sensational food, too.

As for the constipation. keep in mind that when you stop giving an animal dry food which is made of indigestible plant fiber (which goes in one end and out the other) and highly processed carbohydrates, you change their bowel habits. As you yourself guessed, the body is now USING this high protein diet as the body was intended to – utilizing all of it. The definition of “constipation” is also misunderstood – people think it has to do with frequency, but the basic definition is of hard, dry stool and difficulty passing it or straining. You noticed yourself that Lulu seems happy and comfortable and has no problem defecating, albeit infrequently. This is yet another of the great benefits of getting a cat off kitty crack and onto wet food – less stool, smaller stool, less smelly stool.

And how about that professional opinion to keep giving her Petromalt?? In Lulu’s honor I did some up-to-date research on Petromalt and you will find one of my most recent a blogs on the topic. I have been saying for years that if a cat has hairballs or digestion that needs a little boost, the healthiest thing to give her is a natural substance – either a pat of butter or better yet, a few drops of Nordic Naturals omega-3 fish oil on her food or put on her leg for her to lick off.

The omega-3 fatty acids will also be of great help in healing her poor skin and maintaining its health going forward, as long as you avoid forever any dry food — think outside the bag and her body should have a chance to naturally get her straightened out. Needless to say, the sooner you can get off all those meds, the better her body can cope. Remember that chronic use of steroids (cortisone) requires a slow weaning off them.

Tracie

The Cat Bible by Tracie Hotchner

Tina in British Columbia had responded to an earlier blog that she couldn’t imagine how I could continue to crusade against dry cat food against all the opposition from cat lovers themselves. When I wrote her back that it was the shared conviction of people like her that inspired me, she wrote back once again as follows:

Thank you Tracie for responding to my reply: that was very nice of you. I guess being on the internet on different sites like Catster I get shot down a lot in the forum discussions, so that is what frustrates me. It just makes plain sense to me to feed our pets a species appropriate diet, not kitty krack!

I know though that I have helped a lot of cats in the last 2 years, so I’ll just keep on trying. Thank you for the signed bookplate you offer and my cats Shadow and Wilson look forward to getting it. Another question though is it all right for me to give your website link to people on Catster for nutrition info? Or to subscribe to your podcasts? Also it seems that I always get the question about the vets that I get my info from, they want credentials, and bios. I wonder where I can find this info? As they seem to think that I get this info from people that are not educated enough. Also I’ve just read the book Not Fit for a Dog, and it was excellent. I already have 3 people waiting to borrow it. I hope that maybe you will write another book too.

Dear Tina – Delighted to hear back from you and will be sending your autographed bookplate along with samples for some important additions to your kitties’ diets, like Nordic Naturals omega-3 fish oil and Platinum Performance joint supplement. It’s funny that you should have problems on the Catster forum because I write a daily tip for Catster that goes to those who’ve signed up for it, and I haven’t had a lot of resistance to ideas I’ve put out there, but I think forums in general can get sort of overheated and discouraging. OF COURSE send them to my website, there’s no better place for them to get the messages they need to hear! And the podcast of DOG TALK® often has cat-related guests and callers, so that’s a great resource, too. As far as skeptical vets or others who are threatened by novel nutritional theories (i.e. logical concepts about obligate carnivores that threaten what they learned to sell out of a bag in vet school) you can steer them to my book and to Dr. Elizabeth Hodgkins book YOUR CAT (she also was a co-author of Not Fit for a Dog.) On my website there is also a listing of cat nutrition-related websites like the one run by Dr. Lisa Pierson, a vet renowned for her championing of feline nutrition with her website www.catinfo.org. Another excellent site is www.catnutrition.org. These two and other sites can be accessed through www.felineoutreach.com.

Tracie

The Cat Bible