A Cat Food Guide For Kidney Disease
If your cat is diagnosed with Kidney disease, a change of diet is usually required. That can be a daunting task since cats can be very fussy eaters. Low phosphorus is key in foods for Kidney disease. Unfortunately, many brands don’t list phosphorus levels. Royal Canaan and Hills are a couple of the main brands that vets prescribe for cats with kidney disease. The problem is many cats don’t like this food. Are there any alternatives? I fed my cat Weruva which does contain lower phosphorus levels.
I always used Tanya’s Comprehensive guide. It’s very detailed and contains lots of information about Feline Kidney disease. Indicated below is an excerpt listing various cat foods and nutritional information.
- Hi-Tor Neo
- Dave’s Pet Food Restricted Diet Protein Phosphorus This food contains alfalfa, presumably because it is thought that alfalfa may support the kidneys. However, alfalfa contains a natural anticoagulant which may increase the risk of bleeding. The Veterinary Support Personnel Network states that alfalfa is toxic to cats. This food also contains parsley and dandelion, which are diuretics and thus not recommended for CKD cats. It is also not clear if this food has increased amounts of essential fatty acids, which are recommended for CKD cats.
- Forza10 Renal Active Contains some questionable ingredients such as dandelion (diuretic) and cranberries, neither of which is recommended for CKD cats.
Here are lists of the composition of the various diets available on a dry matter analysis basis (the calories are as fed):
| US Canned Therapeutic Kidney Foods | |||||||
| Phos | Prot | Sod | Fat | Carbs | Cals per oz | Obtained | |
| Purina Pro Plan Veterinary Diets NF Kidney Function Advanced Care | 0.39 | 27.77 | 0.34 | 22.00 | 37.20 | 30.00 | 10 Jun-18 |
| Dave’s Pet Food Restricted Diet Protein-Phosphorus Chicken Lickin’ Good For Cats | 0.39 | 29.00 | na | 27.00 | na | 30.55 | 01-Dec-16 |
| Purina Pro Plan Veterinary Diets NF Kidney Function Early Care | 0.43 | 38.67 | 0.39 | 19.10 | 31.24 | 29.45 | 10 Jun 18 |
| Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Renal Support Diet | 0.44 | 34.21 | 0.49 | 34.21 | 22.24 | 32.33 | 01-Dec-16 |
| Hill’s Prescription Diet k/d with Tuna | 0.45 | 29.00 | 0.24 | 22.10 | 41.70 | 30.91 | 09-Jan-17 |
| CliniCare RF Feline Liquid Diet | 0.46 | 27.94 | 0.27 | 29.77 | 27.57 | 29.63 | 15-Oct-15 |
| Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Renal Support E (pâté) | 0.46 | 33.59 | 0.25 | 29.59 | 27.32 | 29.48 | 01-Dec-16 |
| Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Renal LP Modified (pâté) | 0.47 | 32.75 | 0.30 | 41.83 | 27.53 | 35.33 | 24 -Feb-15 |
| Hill’s Prescription Diet k/d + Mobility Chicken & Vegetable Stew | 0.48 | 29.60 | 0.24 | 24.90 | 37.90 | 23.45 | 22 Apr 17 |
| Hill’s Prescription Diet k/d with Chicken | 0.49 | 30.00 | 0.24 | 23.00 | 38.90 | 32.18 | 09-Jan-17 |
| Hill’s Prescription Diet k/d Chicken & Vegetable Stew | 0.49 | 30.00 | 0.23 | 24.60 | 38.00 | 26.90 | 09-Jan-17 |
| Hill’s Prescription Diet k/d Vegetable & Tuna Stew | 0.49 | 30.00 | 0.24 | 24.80 | 34.76 | 26.55 | 09-Jan-17 |
| Purina Pro Plan Veterinary Diets NF KidneyFunction Advanced Care | 0.39 | 27.77 | 0.34 | 22.00 | 37.20 | 30.00 | 10 Jun-18 |
| Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Renal Support T | 0.51 | 31.64 | 0.51 | 28.81 | 30.23 | 27.33 | 01-Dec-16 |
| Rayne Clinical Nutrition Adult Health RSS | 0.51 | 53.59 | 0.74 | 21.34 | 20.13 | 26.57 | 12-Jan-17 |
| Iams Veterinary Formula Renal Plus¹ | 0.58 | 32.70 | 0.37 | 22.96 | na | na | 16-May-14 |
| Hill’s Prescription Diet k/d Early Support Chicken, Vegetable & Rice Stew | 0.59 | 39.10 | 0.27 | 24.10 | 34.50 | 27.24 | 03 May 18 |
| Hill’s Prescription Diet g/d Aging Care | 0.60 | 34.60 | 0.24 | 20.00 | 39.10 | 30.36 | 09-Jan-17 |
| Hi-Tor Veterinary Select Neo | 0.72 | 36.54 | 0.43 | 43.18 | na | na | 24-July-14 |
| Blue Natural Veterinary Diet KM Kidney + Mobility Support | 0.77 | 28.57 | 0.38 | 19.78 | na | na | 02-Nov-16 |
| Darwins Intelligent Design Kidney Support Raw² | 0.50 | 48.00 | na | 38.00 | 7.00 | na | 14-Jan-17 |
| ¹ Discontinued with effect from 1 January 2017 | |||||||
| ² Levels are minimums. Unable to provide any DMA figures or numbers I can crunch | |||||||
| THERAPEUTIC KIDNEY DIETS: DRY | |||||||
| Phos | Prot | Sod | Fat | Carb | Cals per kg | Obtained | |
| Purina Pro Plan Veterinary Diets NF KidneyFunction Advanced Care | 0.38 | 30.42 | 0.31 | 18.29 | 41.77 | 4085 | 10-Jun-18 |
| Purina Pro Plan Veterinary Diets NF Early Stage | 0.41 | 38.91 | 0.31 | 15.24 | 36.38 | 4041 | 10 Jun 18 |
| Iams Veterinary Formula Renal Plus¹ | 0.42 | 32.01 | 0.39 | 25.48 | na | na | 16-Jun-14 |
| Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Renal Support S | 0.44 | 25.78 | 0.44 | 22.60 | 41.36 | 4061 | 1-Dec-16 |
| Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Renal Support A | 0.45 | 24.14 | 0.37 | 17.84 | 46.18 | 3790 | 1-Dec-16 |
| Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Renal Support F | 0.46 | 27.13 | 0.41 | 17.73 | 43.41 | 3811 | 1-Dec-16 |
| Hill’s Prescription Diet k/d + Mobility | 0.51 | 28.80 | 0.27 | 22.10 | 42.70 | 4162 | 22 Apr 17 |
| Hill’s Prescription Diet k/d | 0.51 | 30.10 | 0.25 | 23.10 | 40.50 | 4329 | 14-Jan-17 |
| Hill’s Prescription Diet k/d with Ocean Fish | 0.52 | 29.90 | 0.25 | 23.30 | 40.20 | 4235 | 14-Jan-17 |
| Forza 10 Renal Active | 0.54 | 30.11 | 0.16 | 21.43 | na | na | 5-Nov-16 |
| Hill’s Prescription Diet k/d Early Support Chicken | 0.56 | 34.00 | 0.25 | 21.00 | 38.40 | 4203 | 03 May 18 |
| Hill’s Prescription Diet g/d Early Cardiac-Healthy Aging | 0.60 | 33.30 | 0.30 | 19.10 | 41.00 | 3916 | 14-Jan-17 |
| Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Multifunction Renal Support + Hydrolyzed Proteinᵌ | 0.70 | 29.35 | na | 19.57 | na | 3958 | 5-Nov-16 |
| ¹ Discontinued with effect from 1 January 2017 | |||||||
| ᵌ The fat level is a minimum | |||||||
Remember, your pets count!
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