Hi, I have a senior cat who has been eating Hills Prescription r/d and Purina OM. I would like to switch her to one of the grain free foods and am considering Taste of the Wild or EVO Weight Management (my cat has tasted both and liked each of them.) Her vet would like her to continue using what she is now using but said I could try it, I showed her the sample package of Taste of the Wild. My female calico cat is about 13 years old, weighted 10 lbs in April and moves easily and quickly when she chooses. Do you have any suggestions about the choice of food for her? Is there much testing done on these foods? Do many vets recommend these foods? Are there problems with mercury in the salmon or other fish foods, especially since the oil spill? Thank you!

Hi Sandra,

As long as your veterinarian is ok with you trying a new food then Taste of the Wild and Innova Evo Weight Management will be excellent choices. Both foods will have the same concept as the prescription diets in that they have higher protein and lower fat contents. This will enable pets to lose weight as they are not getting high amounts of carbohydrates and are running on the fat and protein that they are taking in.

Innova and Taste of the Wild will have higher fat contents than prescription diets so you will want to be careful with feeding amounts as pets gain weight if they are being fed too much. Also prescription diets have a much higher fiber content than over the counter foods (2-4 times higher). This increase in fiber content will cause the pet to feel full over a longer period of time, which may help to curb their appetite.

I would recommend slowly transitioning the new food in over a 10-14 days and watching how the cats do over a month or two. Make sure they are digesting it well, that their weight is doing ok, skin and coat is healthy and they want to eat it. I recommend watching over a longer period of time because many animals will take to new food quickly and lose interest just as quickly.

As for the quality of the foods goes, all are tested to ensure that they are delivering the nutrition that an animal needs on a daily basis. The foods have no fillers, by-products or preservatives and many will use human quality ingredients.

I cannot speak to how many vets recommend the foods, but we do have customers that come in based on a veterinary recommendation, so there are vets out there that are recommending the foods.

Hope this helps and good luck!

"The Chuck"
Chuck & Don's Pet Food Outlet