Evo dry food

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bgenick

Member Since 2014
What do people think about the Evo dry food? It is supposed to be 8% of nutritional value from carbs. Some say if you must feed a diabetic dry food, this is the best one.

I feed my cat primarily low carb Fancy Feast. But he has lost SO much weight--down from 12 lbs. to 8--and is SO hungry all the time, I have been leaving a handful of Evo out for him between meals. I can't be home mid-day to open a can.

(Don't worry, he is being well treated and monitored by excellent vets.)
 
It's a good food and as low in carbs as some canned foods. You just want to make sure that there's always plenty of fresh water available.
 
Smokey and my 2 civvies had digestive issues with EVO. But all cats are different. I had to remove all dry food from Smokey.
 
Try catsicles! ....you mix about 40/60 water/canned food and put into ice cube trays or little containers. I like the little containers yo-go salad dressing comes in, or the tiny Tupperware type with lids. Put in freezer and pop a couple of catsicles out before you leave. They thaw within a couple hours. I typically fed 2 breakfasts, one when we first got up, another an hour or so later or on the way out the door. If you leave an extra fresh serving plus a couple catsicles...thats 3-4 feedings through the day. Feeding mini meals spread out over the day are best for diabetics and easier on their pancreas. Until your kitty is regulated, he literally is starving as his body is unable to process the nutrients in the food properly. This is a time especially you want to feef often,....as much as he wants really. The appetite will taper off as he regulates.
I'd try to stick with low carb canned if at all possible. Some people feed freeze dried raw in addition to satisfy the crunchies for their kitties. It's meant to be reconstituted, but yu don't have to...it really satisfies some kitties. Also freeze dried chicken is great for treats...much more economical in the dog section as bags are bigger. I also boil chicken breast and cut them into small pieces for treats....mine love it.
 
Evo dry made Squallie's BG rise appreciably, I finally pretty much cut out all dry food for him, but ECID (Every Cat Is Different) and I know lots of others have had very good luck with Evo dry. I keep Young Again Zero Carb dry on hand for special treats, etc.
 
Are you home testing? What are his BG numbers like? Do you use the FDMB spreadsheet? If he's still ravenous, his BG isn't regulated. What dose does he get of which insulin? He may need an increase in insulin to help regulate his numbers and his appetite.

ETA, my cat did well on Evo but if I could have gotten her to eat wet, I would have preferred that. She was a kibble addict.
 
From my local pet food store, they said that EVO dry is no longer safe for diabetic cats. The carbs are over 10% now. I had noticed that my cat's numbers were much higher in the morning than they were in the evening, and since I was giving him a bit of EVO at night, I was wondering if there might be a connection. It was only like 2 tablespoons! As soon as I pulled that from his diet (and boy, was he unhappy!), his numbers got low enough to stop the insulin. The raw catsicles work well, and I give him a small amount of Stella and Chewy's without rehydrating it. Most of the S and Ch's are rehydrated, but the small amount that I leave dry seems to help satisfy his craving for crunchies, and makes it safer to leave out when I can't be home. Just make sure you leave water right next to it so your kitty has easy access to fresh clean water. I work all day too and am often out of the house for 12 hours at a time. If I'm going to be gone longer than that, I try to swing by the house to feed them, or I have a neighbor who comes over to feed them. Total pain, for sure, but it's better than the alternative.
 
From my local pet food store, they said that EVO dry is no longer safe for diabetic cats. The carbs are over 10% now. I had noticed that my cat's numbers were much higher in the morning than they were in the evening, and since I was giving him a bit of EVO at night, I was wondering if there might be a connection. It was only like 2 tablespoons! As soon as I pulled that from his diet (and boy, was he unhappy!), his numbers got low enough to stop the insulin. The raw catsicles work well, and I give him a small amount of Stella and Chewy's without rehydrating it. Most of the S and Ch's are rehydrated, but the small amount that I leave dry seems to help satisfy his craving for crunchies, and makes it safer to leave out when I can't be home. Just make sure you leave water right next to it so your kitty has easy access to fresh clean water. I work all day too and am often out of the house for 12 hours at a time. If I'm going to be gone longer than that, I try to swing by the house to feed them, or I have a neighbor who comes over to feed them. Total pain, for sure, but it's better than the alternative.
I know I read somewhere that the %carbs in Evo dry turkey was something like 18%, I just can't remember where I read it. It definitely made Squall's BG rise, a good bit. It took me forever to figure out what was causing the rise, because the Evo was supposed to be so low-carb.
 
I was just in comtact with Evo the other day, and was told that the MAX carb amount is 12%, but the nutritional carb amount is 8.41%. As with any low carb diets, fiber in the food counteracts the carbs, thus leaving the actual carb amount lower. If you're at all familiar with the Atkins Diet, that's the basis of that info. Example: one slice of bread may have 15 carbs, but also has 4 grams of fiber, thus leaving the bread with 11 carbs. Due to my husband being a diet controlled "diabetic", we learned this from a dietician. I guess I don't see why it wouldn't be the same for cats.

Since I've been feeding mostly wet food these days, I find that ALL 6 of my cats are RAVENOUSLY HUNGRY all the time. I can't walk into the kitchen without them all milling around my feet and pawing at my legs or the door where the cans are kept. They wake me up between 4:00 and 4:30 EVERYDAY because they're hungry, and that's with giving them a bedtime snack at 9:00, the snack is 1/2 of their normal feeding amount which is being given 3 times a day! I'm currently giving Goof the Evo canned with some crushed Evo dry sprinkled on top to get him to eat it, he won't touch the Friskies done this way. The others are getting Friskies (but that stuff smells so awful) with some Evo dry mixed in.

I've read the labels on so many cans and the low carb varieties ingredients scare me to death. Just what are meat, chicken or fish "by-products"? Then, the second ingredient is water or broth, which isn't at all filling and has no nutritional value. But with 6 cats And a black lab, I'd have to get a second job to feed the $3.50 a can stuff or the Young Again food.
 
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And that is why I'm feeding Friskies to 15 cats, by-products (non-muscle meat items) and all.


When I'm doing what we call the "feeding frenzy" for our 6 cats, an OLD song keeps coming to mind, "You Can't Roller Skate In A Buffalo Herd". I can't BEGIN TO IMAGINE what it's like feeding more than twice that many! :nailbiting::nailbiting::nailbiting:
 
There are
2 in a huge kennel in the basement (Bits & Smudge, the semi-ferals),
2 outside the kennel in the basement (Jazzy & Echo, the 2 guests),
5 who stay mostly on the 2nd floor (Pip, Fizz, Moppet, Gigi, & Blaze)
1 who stays in the kitchen (Tux)
And the others go between the 1st and 2nd floor (Street, Jojo, Julius, Cita, & Precious).
 
What do people think about the Evo dry food? It is supposed to be 8% of nutritional value from carbs. Some say if you must feed a diabetic dry food, this is the best one.

I feed my cat primarily low carb Fancy Feast. But he has lost SO much weight--down from 12 lbs. to 8--and is SO hungry all the time, I have been leaving a handful of Evo out for him between meals. I can't be home mid-day to open a can.

(Don't worry, he is being well treated and monitored by excellent vets.)
Edgar liked Evo, but his numbers were consistently high with it. But I have a frigging HUGE bag of it left over if you're interested?! :) That said, now Edgar's on Young Again Mature Zero Carb (he's CKD as well as diabetic) and his numbers are now consistently NORMAL. His SS is a few days out of date, but yeah most of the time I can't even shoot because he's in normal ranges. I also let him totally free-feed on the YA, as they recommend.

As for crunchies and treats... well, he refuses wet so all his stuff is crunchies. But for treats, boy oh boy he LOVES dehydrated lamb lung. Yums.
 
Evo raised Murphy's numbers too I'm tryng Young Again but he keeps getting sick, developing food aversions, so I am going slowly I did a post on Evo a few weeks ago, and several people chimed in that it made their cats numbers jump
 
Evo dry is great choice ( the only other low carb) for those of us who simply couldn't afford Young Again. I have 6 cats, $129 for 25 lbs (zero carb) wouldn't fit my budget at all. Their low carb formula is only 3 carbs less then Evo and still $109 for 25 lbs. I also noticed in the guaranteed analysis, the carbs they list as " digestible", I'm not sure what that means as I've never seen it listed that way on any other food.
 
At Goofs last vet visit, there was a change in kidney function, it had depreciated. A diet too high in protein and not enough carbs can cause this in humans and in animals. Cats in nature do consume some carbohydrates. They eat grass, they eat the bones, entrails, fur and feathers from their prey, all of which contain some carbs. Goof has been on 99% wet food for the last 4-5 months, his numbers recently started to climb, but he's had no more dry than usual, which amounts to about 10 kernels per feeding.
 
Cats won't eat as much of YAZC food then the EVO so it my wind up costing you the same or a little less money according to the YA company . We don't free feed them the hard food so I haven't been able to prove their statement , we give them about 3 -4 tablespoons a day (24 hours) between their regular wet food feeding.
 
Cats won't eat as much of YAZC food then the EVO so it my wind up costing you the same or a little less money according to the YA company . We don't free feed them the hard food so I haven't been able to prove their statement , we give them about 3 -4 tablespoons a day (24 hours) between their regular wet food feeding.
Edgar's numbers are great on YA, but his weight has dropped quite a bit. Since he doesn't need to lose weight, I'm concerned. He definitely doesn't eat much on YA. I gave him some Stella and Chewys tonight to supplement his caloric intake since the bugger refuses full wet. I'm trying the free-feeding as per YA instructions, but I think he's getting bored of the food? Is that possible? He's always been one to reject "stale" food.
 
Could very well be. Maybe just put down 1/2 cup at a time? My cats don't get enough of it to get tired of it so you may be on to something.
Good luck to you and Edgar ❤️
 
EVO has too high carbs for a diabetic cat. Try Wysong Epigen Fish.

I have tried 3 flavors of Wysong Epigen

In terms of taste:
Venisen > Chicken > Fish

In terms of carbs:
Venisen > Fish = Chicken

But the chicken and the 90 may give your cat the runs. I sometimes just mix the chicken and the fish version (half and half) and that's a good compromise between the runs and taste.
I probably won't buy any more of the chicken though.
 
Edgar's numbers are great on YA, but his weight has dropped quite a bit. Since he doesn't need to lose weight, I'm concerned. He definitely doesn't eat much on YA. I gave him some Stella and Chewys tonight to supplement his caloric intake since the bugger refuses full wet. I'm trying the free-feeding as per YA instructions, but I think he's getting bored of the food? Is that possible? He's always been one to reject "stale" food.

@vexedgirl - You need to watch Edgar very carefully. I had a friend feeding YA and one of his cats did the same thing, started losing weight and not eating much of it like in the beginning. He hit a point where he pretty much wasn't eating any of it, poor boy ended up at vet with high liver levels. Vet said if he did not start eating he was going to be in trouble with his liver, fatty liver I am guessing. Apparently on the food he was not getting the amount of calories his body needed and losing weight because of it. My friends changed the food, he finally started eating more and putting on weight again. His liver values picked back up also. It is weird because 2 other cats in the house was eating it also with no issues what so ever. That just proves the ECID phrase.

Oh I also tried feeding this food, Frodo's BG was not good on it and 3 of my 7 cats kept diarrhea from it. So away it went.
 
EVO has too high carbs for a diabetic cat. Try Wysong Epigen Fish.

I have tried 3 flavors of Wysong Epigen

In terms of taste:
Venisen > Chicken > Fish

In terms of carbs:
Venisen > Fish = Chicken

But the chicken and the 90 may give your cat the runs. I sometimes just mix the chicken and the fish version (half and half) and that's a good compromise between the runs and taste.
I probably won't buy any more of the chicken though.


It's recommended that the carbs stay at 10% or less, Evo is 8.4. The bag says 12 because they have to list the MAXIMUM amount of carbs, but the dietary fiber in the food lessens the actual carb content to the 8.4
 
@vexedgirl - You need to watch Edgar very carefully. I had a friend feeding YA and one of his cats did the same thing, started losing weight and not eating much of it like in the beginning. He hit a point where he pretty much wasn't eating any of it, poor boy ended up at vet with high liver levels. Vet said if he did not start eating he was going to be in trouble with his liver, fatty liver I am guessing. Apparently on the food he was not getting the amount of calories his body needed and losing weight because of it. My friends changed the food, he finally started eating more and putting on weight again. His liver values picked back up also. It is weird because 2 other cats in the house was eating it also with no issues what so ever. That just proves the ECID phrase.

Oh I also tried feeding this food, Frodo's BG was not good on it and 3 of my 7 cats kept diarrhea from it. So away it went.
Thanks for the advice. I have started supplementing with Stella and Chewys at "mealtimes." His numbers are staying in the good range (although I have to admit I've missed a couple monitor times the last few days due to unexpected schedule issues). Anyway, I'm keeping a mostly close eye on him. My other cat has small cell lymphoma right now, so there's lots of caretaking going on in this house!
 
It's recommended that the carbs stay at 10% or less, Evo is 8.4. The bag says 12 because they have to list the MAXIMUM amount of carbs, but the dietary fiber in the food lessens the actual carb content to the 8.4

That's still higher than young again or Wysong Epigen. Might try it since I can always give it to my other cat.
 
That's still higher than young again or Wysong Epigen. Might try it since I can always give it to my other cat.

A few carbs less, yeah. but, I have 6 cats, that puts the ultra pricey stuff out of my budget. Sure they eat a little bit less, but not significantly enough to fit my pet food budget.
 
So, the problem with dry cat foods is that while some may be lower in carbs, they may not necessarily be lower glycemic. Even the lower carb dry foods tend to be higher glycemic because of the way they are processed--the meats are still highly rendered, and there is some sort of binding agent to hold the food together. That's why you see some diabetic cats (like mine) that can eat canned foods at 8, 9, 10% carbs, but you give them a few pieces of EVO dry or YA, and their BG will go up. I know we focus on carbohydrate levels here because typically, low carb=low glycemic with canned foods, but that's not necessarily true with the lower carb dry foods.

The other problem with dry food is the moisture content. Cats evolved in the desert and do not have thirst mechanisms the way people and dogs do--they only start drinking after they are already dehydrated. They need to get moisture from their food. There have been studies that show cats never make up for the loss of moisture in their food at the water dish--the urine output of cats eating dry food is more highly concentrated and significantly less than those eating canned, signaling chronic dehydration. Chronic dehydration is a known contributor to Urinary Tract Disease and Kidney Disease.

The byproducts in canned food are typically not the same as the byproducts in dry food--since they aren't being rendered at high temperatures, they are things like internal organs that people don't want to eat, as opposed to meat unfit for consumption that must be rendered at high temperatures that goes into dry food (even the kinds without byproducts, btw).

Smaller, more frequent meals of canned food works really well with most cats. Both of my cats are incredibly food crazy--but as long as I feed them at least 4 times a day (which is a really good number of meals for diabetic cats), they are just fine (and do not run around the house crying and acting hungry). For those meals when I'm not home (mid-day) or in bed, I freeze food and put it in autofeeders, and they do great. If you have a cat that isn't going to sit and gnaw at the frozen nugget of food like mine do, then you may not even need an autofeeder--you can just leave it out and the cat will eat it when it thaws. If your cat is losing weight (in a bad way, i mean--some weight loss can always be expected with most overweight cats when you take away the dry), increase the amount of canned food you're feeding at meal times. For example, I recently adopted a younger cat who we started feeding 1 5.5 oz can of food per day (1/4 can at each meal). We discovered that wasn't enough food for him because he was still growing a bit--so we increased it to 1 and 1/3 can of food a day (1/3 can for each meal). His growth spurt stopped, and he settled into what is now his adult size, and started to gain a little extra weight, so we reduced his food to 1 and 1/6 cans a day (1/3 can twice a day, 1/4 can twice a day). You can adjust the amount of food you're feeding up or down to encourage or prevent weight loss.
 
Edgar liked Evo, but his numbers were consistently high with it. But I have a frigging HUGE bag of it left over if you're interested?! :) That said, now Edgar's on Young Again Mature Zero Carb (he's CKD as well as diabetic) and his numbers are now consistently NORMAL. His SS is a few days out of date, but yeah most of the time I can't even shoot because he's in normal ranges. I also let him totally free-feed on the YA, as they recommend.

As for crunchies and treats... well, he refuses wet so all his stuff is crunchies. But for treats, boy oh boy he LOVES dehydrated lamb lung. Yums.
Mine seems to be doing well on it. It is not his main food that is low carb fancy feast. But afterward give some evo dry. He has gained half pound after months of losing. He was on way too high a dose of insulin is main factor tho.
 
It's recommended that the carbs stay at 10% or less, Evo is 8.4. The bag says 12 because they have to list the MAXIMUM amount of carbs, but the dietary fiber in the food lessens the actual carb content to the 8.4
Hi! My cat has,been diabetic for a year...in remission 2x...always fed 95% wet, with 1/2 scoop Purina DM dry before i go to bed...that dry is too much $$$. So you are saying EVO is ok? Looking for new low carb dry....thanks!
 
Hi.

My boy Caspian, who was diagnosed at the end of May, refuses all food except for EVO dry. It's what he's had his entire life. He will not eat wet food, and I've probably tried them all at this point. He absolutely refuses. The only thing he showed some interest in was Fussie Cat, but now he doesn't even want that. He will eat baby food as a supplement. All of that being said, we are having a hard time getting him regulated. His numbers are still high. We just switched to Lantus from Pro Zinc and are hoping for better results. We keep food out for him at all times due to his weight loss. He needs to eat. He doesn't have a ravenous appetite; in fact, he's actually on an appetite stimulant right now. Thankfully, he's gaining some weight back.

Although Evo isn't the best choice in the world, it's the only thing my boy will eat. I'm just grateful it is one of the "better" foods. He refused the Young Again. He's the most finicky cat I've ever known. It's highly frustrating. I guess my point is that every cat really is different and we can only do what we can do. If I could get my boy to eat wet food, I would be happy. I worry he won't ever become regulated and I really hope it's not from his food. This whole experience is breaking my heart all over again. I do everything I can for my boy. I lost my soul cat, Darius, to diabetes in 2011. I never thought I would be going through this again.

I wish all of your kitties well.

-Tammie
 
Hi , I am interested in the Evo kibble as well . I do feed mostly Fancy Feast Classic but I have to sprinkle a bit of kibble on top for them to eat it and I was looking for a very low carb healthy kibble . I used this dry matter carb calculator http://fnae.org/carbcalorie.html . I entered the Guaranteed Analysis #'s and if I did it correctly it says 7.34 % carbs . I am not sure if this is right . The numbers I got from the Evo website are 50% protein , 22% fat , 2.5% fiber , 10% moisture , 8.16% ash
 
I wouldn't mind trying the Young Again Zero carb, but with 6 cats and a Black Lab it's
simply NOT in my budget. ( Which will be getting even leaner due to my having to
retire in 6 weeks at 55 due to health issues) I hope the insulin change will work for
you.
 
Hi , I am interested in the Evo kibble as well . I do feed mostly Fancy Feast Classic but I have to sprinkle a bit of kibble on top for them to eat it and I was looking for a very low carb healthy kibble . I used this dry matter carb calculator http://fnae.org/carbcalorie.html . I entered the Guaranteed Analysis #'s and if I did it correctly it says 7.34 % carbs . I am not sure if this is right . The numbers I got from the Evo website are 50% protein , 22% fat , 2.5% fiber , 10% moisture , 8.16% ash


According to the rep I spoke to on the phone a couple of weeks ago, the actual carbs are 8.41
 
Hi.

My boy Caspian, who was diagnosed at the end of May, refuses all food except for EVO dry. It's what he's had his entire life. He will not eat wet food, and I've probably tried them all at this point. He absolutely refuses. The only thing he showed some interest in was Fussie Cat, but now he doesn't even want that. He will eat baby food as a supplement. All of that being said, we are having a hard time getting him regulated. His numbers are still high. We just switched to Lantus from Pro Zinc and are hoping for better results. We keep food out for him at all times due to his weight loss. He needs to eat. He doesn't have a ravenous appetite; in fact, he's actually on an appetite stimulant right now. Thankfully, he's gaining some weight back.

Although Evo isn't the best choice in the world, it's the only thing my boy will eat. I'm just grateful it is one of the "better" foods. He refused the Young Again. He's the most finicky cat I've ever known. It's highly frustrating. I guess my point is that every cat really is different and we can only do what we can do. If I could get my boy to eat wet food, I would be happy. I worry he won't ever become regulated and I really hope it's not from his food. This whole experience is breaking my heart all over again. I do everything I can for my boy. I lost my soul cat, Darius, to diabetes in 2011. I never thought I would be going through this again.

I wish all of your kitties well.

-Tammie


I am sorry you are having a difficult time with your sweet kitty . I hope it gets better soon . I am sorry I don't know much about diabetes . My boy Philippe is not diabetic but he is very overweight at 19 pounds . I joined this forum in hopes of learning what I can and hopefully prevent him from getting it ..
My cats refused to eat the Young Again as well ..
 
While Evo is fairly low carb, I think it is still high calorie, so watch his intake. One of mine(a civie) will eat all I give him then try to take it from the others and he's been gaining weight. I'm trying to get him to eat the wet, large cans of 9 Lives or Special Kitty are fairly cheap. In the meantime I have started feeding them Natures Variety Instinct Kibble, chicken flavor which is 12% carbs., a bit high for sugar cats, but a bit lower in calories for my civies. My sugar kitty gets only the wet.
 
While Evo is fairly low carb, I think it is still high calorie, so watch his intake. One of mine(a civie) will eat all I give him then try to take it from the others and he's been gaining weight. I'm trying to get him to eat the wet, large cans of 9 Lives or Special Kitty are fairly cheap. In the meantime I have started feeding them Natures Variety Instinct Kibble, chicken flavor which is 12% carbs., a bit high for sugar cats, but a bit lower in calories for my civies. My sugar kitty gets only the wet.

Great advice , thank you .. I only give about 1 tbs of kibble as a topper twice a day on their Fancy Feast . Hopefully he will still lose weight . My vet said Philippe should lose at least 3 lbs ..
 
Hi all, I know this is an oooold thread, but I wanted to give an update.

I've been free-feeding Edgar the YA Zero Mature. Sometimes he gets some Stella and Chewys too.
His numbers have been WONDERFUL. Lantus dose is down to 1u, and half the time he doesn't even need it.
Interestingly, on the odd occasion when he'll find an old piece of Evo kibble laying around, his numbers immediately shoot way up. They're easily brought back down, though.

As for his weight, it has stabilized, just like the YA instructions said it would. At first it went down, but then it went back up again and he's a perfect weight. Not only that, but his neuropathy has improved SO much that he's able to jump up on the couch again without assistance.

Also, I'm still working on the same 8-lb bag that I bought back in the beginning of SEPTEMBER. I just now reordered for the first time. And I wouldn't even have to do that if it weren't for my other cat sneaking his food.

So, all in all, I would HIGHLY recommend YA. It seems expensive at first, but because they need to eat so little of it, it ends up actually being cheaper. Wow I sound like a sales rep. Anyway, considering that Edgar's numbers went crazypants when on the Evo, I couldn't be happier. :)

Also, just FYI, his spreadsheet has not been updated in forever. Whoopsie.
 
Hi all, I know this is an oooold thread, but I wanted to give an update.

I've been free-feeding Edgar the YA Zero Mature. Sometimes he gets some Stella and Chewys too.
His numbers have been WONDERFUL. Lantus dose is down to 1u, and half the time he doesn't even need it.
Interestingly, on the odd occasion when he'll find an old piece of Evo kibble laying around, his numbers immediately shoot way up. They're easily brought back down, though.

As for his weight, it has stabilized, just like the YA instructions said it would. At first it went down, but then it went back up again and he's a perfect weight. Not only that, but his neuropathy has improved SO much that he's able to jump up on the couch again without assistance.

Also, I'm still working on the same 8-lb bag that I bought back in the beginning of SEPTEMBER. I just now reordered for the first time. And I wouldn't even have to do that if it weren't for my other cat sneaking his food.

So, all in all, I would HIGHLY recommend YA. It seems expensive at first, but because they need to eat so little of it, it ends up actually being cheaper. Wow I sound like a sales rep. Anyway, considering that Edgar's numbers went crazypants when on the Evo, I couldn't be happier. :)

Also, just FYI, his spreadsheet has not been updated in forever. Whoopsie.


Wow , that is awesome . I am glad it is working for him ..
 
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