Hypoallergenic food for cats and kittens: features, types and subtleties of choice

If a cat has diarrhea, she begins to eat poorly, without appetite, she is often sick, perhaps because of food allergies. Symptoms such as lethargy after eating, reluctance to eat, tarnishing and lack of shine, redness and itching of the skin also apply to it. If at least one of the above signs is present, the cat needs nutritional adjustment.

Before changing anything, contact your veterinarian to have the animal take tests and identify what causes it to be allergic. After this, together with the veterinarian, draw up a cat nutrition plan, deciding on the appropriate food for her cat. Of course, this should be a hypoallergenic food.

Hypoallergenic food for cats was invented and developed in order to minimize the negative reaction to food from the digestive tract of the pet. Often their formulas contain a small amount of basic components. They are selected in accordance with requirements such as:

• lack of the most common allergens;
• high digestibility;
• nutritional value;
• high quality raw materials.

To date, it has not been established why cats and cats have a food allergy, although dietetic experts conduct a large number of studies on this issue. It was only possible to establish that certain types of proteins in animal food can cause allergies to them. These are, for example, foods such as soy, corn, wheat, beef, pork and chicken.

It is in this, and not in violations of the immune system of cats, that lies the reason for the total allergic reaction to chicken and pork meat.

It is important to remember that the very concept of “hypoallergenic food” is rather arbitrary, because, for example, if the composition does not contain gluten, but is based on animal protein and has a hypoallergenic mark, then your cat may suffer from it if it is allergic to animal protein. It should be said not so much about the hypoallergenicity of the composition, but about the basis on which it is developed, what components are contained in its formula and how useful and safe it is for the pet.

Buying a pack of dry mix marked “hypoallergenic” in economy class does not guarantee that allergy symptoms will disappear immediately, nor does super-premium food. It is not enough just to purchase food that says “hypoallergenic” so that the cat turns into a healthy and joyful one. Like humans, cats have any allergy - an individual thing. Therefore, you need to select food carefully, taking into account the condition of the animal, excluding what causes a negative reaction. This component should not be part of the feed.

Finished feed is conditionally divided into the following groups.

• Gluten free. Too many cats do not tolerate gluten (vegetable protein). There are mixtures in which vegetable protein is completely absent - there is neither wheat, nor corn, nor other grains. Either gluten has been replaced with rice (both white and brown), oats or millet.
• No animal protein. The recipe for such feed does not include chicken, beef, pork. Duck, fish, lamb, rabbit meat may be present due to the fact that they are easily digestible and low allergenic. There are also options with one type of protein (a variety of meat), the so-called mono-protein feed.
• With cat intolerance to lactose, as well as products such as eggs and yeast, you need to choose food that is marked “with a limited number of components” on a pack. Such formulations contain a minimum amount of ingredients and are designed to eliminate all allergens.

There is high competition on the cat food market, so manufacturing companies have to continuously work to expand the range, including introducing hypoallergenic feed into it. Of course, the composition and quality of the final result are different for different companies, however, there are leaders whose products are better than others.

• Royal canin - A company from France with a solid reputation in the domestic market too. This manufacturer has two different hypoallergenic foods: Hypoallergenic DR25 and Anallergenic. And here we are not talking about the successful idea of ​​marketers, but about two completely different recipes. The first was developed on a soy protein hydrolyzate and rice, as well as on prebiotics and substances that improve the quality of the skin.

• Pro plan - food included in the lineup, which has dietary and medicinal properties. It contains only one protein - hydrolyzed soy, as well as highly refined carbohydrates in the form of rice starch. This food is recommended for 8 to 10 weeks.

• Hill's Prescription diet z / d - therapeutic cat food from the manufacturer, which is known throughout the world. It is aimed precisely at reducing allergic reactions in the gastrointestinal tract and the skin of the animal. The main ingredient in the feed is rice with the addition of animal protein processed by hydrolysis. Thus, the response of the immune system to food is minimized.

• 1st Choice - manufacturer from Canada. Its Hypoallergenic food is suitable for cats with intolerance to traditional protein. The product includes duck meat and sweet potato, there are no cereals at all.

• Farmina ultrahypo - Italian food included in the veterinary series. The basis of this composition is a combination of a protein hydrolyzate of fish and purified rice starch. Fish oil is responsible for the “supply” of lipids. In addition, the formula is enhanced by natural antioxidants, prebiotics, chelated minerals and vitamins for cats.

• Bosch tiernahrung - manufacturer from Germany. In addition to the usual formulas, Sensitive has been developed for animals suffering from food intolerance. The mixture contains poultry, lamb, rice, potato protein and sorghum. There is no chemistry and cannot be - that is the policy of the company. In addition, cereals are absent in the feed.

• Another Italian manufacturer - Monge Vetsolution, in the line of which there is a super-premium hypoallergenic diet food Dermatosis. It is 100% gluten free and grain free. The composition is based on hydrolyzed salmon protein, as well as some tapioca, potatoes and lyophilized chicken protein.

• Acana - A manufacturer from Canada, whose products are characterized by high-quality components in the recipe. Their mixtures are suitable for cats with gluten intolerance, because they are completely grainless. Components such as lamb, duck, turkey, fish and chicken are responsible for animal protein. The recipe is complemented by a chicken egg. If the cat has intolerance to chicken or eggs, then a mixture based on Acana Pacifica fish is recommended for it.

• Acana Orijen - feed line from a previous Canadian producer. They lack cereals and potatoes, that is, they are suitable for animals that respond to gluten. In addition, they increased the meat component.

• German feed Leonardo developed by Bewital. If the cat reacts negatively to cereals, a composition based on amaranth and chia seeds with the addition of poultry and fish is suitable for her. There is a composition based on meat (lamb) and rice, it is intended for cats older than a year.

• Pronature holistic - Canadian feed, which consists solely of natural ingredients produced or grown organically. The ingredients do not include wheat grains, soy protein, corn and, of course, “chemistry”. So that food is better absorbed without creating problems for the gastrointestinal tract, there are formulas based on salmon and brown rice, duck with orange, turkey with cranberries, white fish with wild rice.

• Czech company Brit care declares the entire product line as hypoallergenic, since there are no wheat, soy and corn in the composition, but rice is present. There is also a grainless Sensitive digestion forage, based on it - lamb, salmon, dried potatoes.

• Canagan - Products of very high quality production in the UK. All feed lines do not contain grain. There are recipes based on duck, venison and rabbit, and there are recipes based on salmon, herring and trout.

• Now fresh - Another Canadian line. The composition contains exclusively fresh meat, nothing dehydrated. For those cats whose digestive system is particularly sensitive, a recipe is proposed that includes trout and potatoes.

• Go! - “brother” of Now Fresh feed, they are produced by one company. The brand offers a line of recipes for cats with the highest sensitivity of the digestive tract. It includes recipes with absolutely no grain, but with lots of healthy meat and fish protein.

First of all, when choosing a feed, you should focus on the individual characteristics of your pet, its age and the advice of a veterinarian. For example, Pronature food is best for kittens, as they contain everything that a growing body needs.When choosing between dry and wet food, you need to know that each of them has its own advantages and disadvantages.

Consider the advantages of dry food:

• cares for teeth, helps to avoid dental problems, for example, the development of tartar;
• profitability, since it is stored for a long time and is not subject to damage;
• strengthens the jaw muscles.

There are also disadvantages:

• high carbohydrate foods, and cats need a lot of protein;
• cats that have been eating wet food for a long time are difficult to adapt to assimilation of dry food;
• many foods contain cereals, which causes allergies, carefully study the composition.

As for wet food, there are the following advantages:

• contains the necessary amount of proteins and fats, which contributes to the shine of the coat and the liveliness of the character of the animal;
• three quarters of it consists of water, that is, the product is almost liquid, in the process of feeding the cat receives a sufficient amount of water;
• prevents overeating: it is with wet mixtures that animals eat more quickly;
• it smells delicious and looks attractive.

Cons of wet mixtures are as follows:

• cost more than dry feed;
• subject to quick spoilage;
• cause the formation of plaque and stone, as a result - bad breath.

Of course, you need to study the reviews of veterinarians on the Internet before purchasing food. Moreover, for allergic cats, when compiling a diet, the opinion of the observing veterinarian who knows all the features of the animal should be taken into account without fail.

If your cat shows signs of allergy, change not only the feed. Think, perhaps, the point is in the delicacy with which you spoil it, study its composition. It is important to analyze everything that the animal regularly eats, and if necessary, completely change the entire diet - from sweets to mixtures.

For an overview of medical food for cats with food allergies, see below.