Natures Variety Instincts dry grain free question

Hi again, sorry to post this, I've searched for answers before posting.

I sent DH to get EVO dry cat food for Christian, who is having a hard time at night without some dry food to go to.

DH came home with Natures Variety Instinct Chicken Meal formula *sighs* as it was on sale and the EVO was only $50.00, so here is my question. Do I give Christian this dry food in small amounts through the night, or just not open it and return it?

He isn't a happy cat right now, he wakes me up to tell me he is hungry! He eats the low carb wet food through the day, but he wants his crunchy crunchies in the night. Period!

In my mind it is better to swtich him to this low carb than the high carb that he has been on with the Science Diet indoor dry cat food.

I don't plan on keeping him on dry, just trying to transition him. He hasn't even been on insulin an entire week.

I had to swtich him back to his friskies pate' today, as he has been having very loose stools on the EVO and Wellness canned foods.

I couldn't get a reading this morning, but hope this evening will be better. Last night he was up to 492!

Thank you for your patience, I'm sure you've all answered these questions before, I just couldn't find the threads that dealt with this particular food. (Now that it has been bought and is in the house.)

With much appreciation,
Theresa and Christian

 

I feed Nature's Variety raw and canned with no problem. Don't know the carb percent here of the dry. Looks like it may be a little higher than EVO but I think it is unlikely that your cat is going to be eating any more than a tablespoon or so. Cats love to nibble. How big was the bag? If the bag of dry is going to last for a year, I'd take it back. If you will use it in a month, keep it.

Lana

Natures Variety Instinct Chicken Meal formula
Calories = 491 per cup
Guaranteed Analysis
Crude Protein (min): 50.0%
Crude Fat (min): 22.0%
Crude Fiber (max): 2.8%
Moisture (max): 10.0%

 

Thanks so much Lana! It is a small bag, a month at least, if he insists on the nibble of kibble at night!

 

I would try feeding wet food at night instead and get rid of the dry, period. Even a small amount of dry food can keep BG high for a diabetic cat, even if it's a lower carb dry. Bandit can't have ANY type of dry, including the Wellness or the EVO, or it will shoot his BG up about 100 points (and even more if it's higher carb dry).

What many of us do at night is freeze portions of wet food, and then leave them out to thaw for the kitty to eat later. Bandit is a gobbler and will lick the frozen food until it thaws, so I freeze the food and put it in an auto feeder like this: http://www.amazon.com/Petself-Elect...9?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1313038421&sr=1-9. You can set the auto feeder to release the food any time during the night. Bandit eats at 7am, 1pm, 7pm and 1am, so the 1am feeding is via the feeder if I'm going to bed. If your cat is a grazer, not a gobbler, you can even just add some water to the regular food and leave it out. It'll be good for left out for 6 hours, and 12 hours if it's frozen.

Spacing out the feedings into smaller, more frequent feedings also helps. If I feed Bandit less than 4 times a day, he tries to rip the house apart. He does wonderfully with the spaced feedings, though.

 

The NV Instinct Chicken formula has 7% carbs. It's on the dry food chart under just "Others" and listed as "Nature's Variety Raw Instinct", http://binkyspage.tripod.com/dryfood.html The chart hasn't been updated to reflect the new name of the food. You can use this dry food to transition to canned food. I did that with my diabetic.

Well, you don't have to give in to your cat's demands :smile: If he really insists on crunchies, try a crunchy low carb treat instead. Poultry Crispies is one crunchy treat.

 

Thank you very much for all the excellent posts!

I gave him a very small amount last night, it was gone this morning. I do feed him 1/4 of a 5.5 can 4 times a day, and he gets baked chicken treats. Sometimes he is still hungry during the day, and I have given him a small amt of the wellness grain free 3 oz can. Just a tablespoon, keeps him happy.

I wasn't able to test him before my DH gave him some wet food this morning, but 2 hours later, just before his insulin, I was thrilled to see his BG had dropped 100 pts!!!! Yeah Christian! :RAHCAT

Thank you for the suggestion of freezing his food during the night, I would never have thought of that! I will try that this evening instead of dry food.

I really appreciate all of your help!
Theresa and Christian

 

I've tried the dry food too so I can keep my other cat full and happy as well as the diabetic one.

I just don't understand why even a low-carb, grain free dry food can drive numbers up from normal to ridiculously high.

Anyone know the answer?

 

Could you feed the non-diabetic canned food as well?

Dry food contains starches. Without a starch to hold the ingredients together, the food can't hold it's shape while it's cooked. Some starches are "better" than others but can still affect blood glucose levels.

And it's not just all about the carbs, as Dr. Lisa would say. Dry food has all sorts of negative impact on health. Http://www.catinfo.org has more info.

 

For my usual PSA on this issue:

Please keep in mind that it is *not* just about carbs!

Please take a long look ad Opie's pictures on my Urinary Tract Health page to see the suffering that feeding a water-depleted diet often causes.

Hopefully, civies will also be fed appropriately with regard to urinary tract health and carb load just as we strive to feed our diabetics.

Regarding dry at night, as others have mentioned, just put canned food out.

I put out A LOT of their homemade food before I go to bed bed with the threat of...."if you wake me up, I will ship you to Siberia". There is no need for dry food in order to sleep.

 

Thank you Dr. Lisa!!!!

I am taking the food back, he will be staying on the wet food, I have learned so much from your site, and can't thank you enough! I am happy to report that his +6 number today was 268!, while just last week he was in the mid 500's!!!!

I gave my vet the link to your site, as I am very concerned that she did not think it is possible to control his diabetes with diet!

I can't thank you enough for the link on your site to this awesome board!

Thank you, Thank you Dr. Lisa, and lots of thanks from my doing much better cat Christian!

 

Christian is very lucky to have you in his corner!

This board has been a god-send to me and my clients. Most of what I know about FD was learned here.....resulting in my ability to 'pay it forward' to other cats.

 

What is the best auto feeder? My cat has always been a grazer. Just dx with diabetes and he likes to eat at night.

 

Many use this one
https://www.amazon.com/PetSafe-5-Meal-Automatic-Pet-Feeder/dp/B000GEWHNS

 

In case you notice any spike in BG readings, the NV Instinct Chicken is 15% carbs per the manufacturer based on "as fed" values. It is not the same formula as the NV Raw Instinct listed on Binky's page.