Odd question, and I don't know where to post it.

Discussion in 'Feline Health - (Welcome & Main Forum)' started by Kathleen Einwich, Jan 4, 2019.

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  1. Kathleen Einwich

    Kathleen Einwich Member

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    Nov 3, 2018
    Earlier today I was putting out my prescriptions, which include a pill for thyroid. I have noticed through the years that my cats were interested in the various pills and tried to protect them while I put them out and took them.

    This morning my diabetic cat Bet got to the pills while I was looking elsewhere and he actually got the thyroid pill in his mouth and tried to eat it. I got it out before he did.

    I know these pills are made from pig thyroids. First question: why should a cat want to eat that? If cats like, um, pork, why don't they make cat food from pork?

    Just wondering. Bet's appetite is not that great lately, and he really wanted that pill!
    TIA,
    Kathy
     
  2. Tina and Boozle

    Tina and Boozle Member

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    Nov 1, 2013
    They do make it from pork. :) I have no clue about the first question.
     
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  3. HereKittyKittyKitty

    HereKittyKittyKitty Member

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    Aug 23, 2016
    Unless the thyroid pill was WP, it has dextrose (sweetener) in it. Every cat I've ever known liked sweet-tasting food (fruit or anything that could be snitched)
     
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  4. Kathleen Einwich

    Kathleen Einwich Member

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    Nov 3, 2018
    Thank you for your reply.

    I've never seen any cat food labeled as having pork in it, but then I've never looked that closely. Do you know whose brand or type might contain pork? I am beginning to look into other foods that Bet might like more than the FF classic pates. I find too much of them left behind after I feed them, even feeding half-cans. Bet was always fed the same canned and dry food all of his 14 years - 9 Lives chicken and a special dry dog food - and misses it. I would appreciate anything you might have to suggest.
    Kathy
     
  5. Kathleen Einwich

    Kathleen Einwich Member

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    Nov 3, 2018
    Interesting. It's a prescription. I looked up WP thyroid. Wow. Bet is very fussy about his food and has never shown any interest in anything sweet, and has never eaten people food - which made the snatch of my pill all the more odd. I've read that some gelcaps are made from pork, hence his interest in the one pill I take that is a gelcap.

    Thanks for your information.
     
  6. Squeaky and KT (GA)

    Squeaky and KT (GA) Well-Known Member

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    Jul 19, 2011
    Pork has a higher salt content than other meats thus isn't used for cat food nearly as often. Dakota loves pork too...when I fix a pork loin, he'll dance and holler his head off until I give him his bite too. If I forget, he'll be up grabbing one of our plates off our trays. I don't use a lot of spices when I cook due to hubby's medical condition so I don't hesitate to give it to Dakota.
     
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  7. Tina and Boozle

    Tina and Boozle Member

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    Nov 1, 2013
    Sorry. I don't have any specific suggestions. You can check out the food chart in the sticky in this forum. The pork options are a little high in carbs, but there are a ton of listings to look through. And maybe you can find something close to what you are feeding, nurtrition-wise.

    Boozle was trying to eat my zipper on my sleeping bag last night. Could be he wants it because it tastes good. May be because he just finds it interesting and it playing with it.
     
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  8. Kathleen Einwich

    Kathleen Einwich Member

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    Nov 3, 2018
    What a big help! Just when I was wondering whether to buy some pork and cook it for Bet...adding to the ridiculous expense of having a diabetic cat. That makes a lot of sense, though. Thanks so much for your help in solving this weird mystery. Maybe I could make him some every once in a while when he gets super fussy. That should be fun to watch.
    Kathy
     
  9. Sandi&Maxine&Whispy(GA)

    Sandi&Maxine&Whispy(GA) Well-Known Member

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    Oct 2, 2015
    Although Prescription Diet is bashed here repeatedly, we did use https://www.hillspet.com/cat-food/pd-md-feline-canned for a while when rotating through foods to find a protein that didn't upset Whisper's IBD, and we thought we'd try that because of the pork. Also, if you are willing to do raw (the smell of raw pork almost made me vomit), we tried this for a while too: https://primalpetfoods.com/products/raw-frozen-feline-pork-formula#variant=36371560146

    He liked the taste of both, but they didn't agree with him. I understand that is not your issue, just fyi.

    Good luck.
     
  10. Kathleen Einwich

    Kathleen Einwich Member

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    Thank you. I might get some and to try it.
     
  11. Tina and Boozle

    Tina and Boozle Member

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    I can't stand the smell of raw pork either.
     
  12. Kathleen Einwich

    Kathleen Einwich Member

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    I found a dog food-oriented store in Slidell, LA (about 20 miles away) that carries that brand. They are looking into ordering a package for me next week. Anything for Bet... I hesitate to try the Hill's because Bet is still terribly skinny though it looks good. This should be...fun? Thanks so much for your recommendations.
     
  13. Squalliesmom

    Squalliesmom Well-Known Member

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    Jun 26, 2015
    I used to feed Hound & Gatos Pork canned cat food occasionally. All my cats loved it. I got mine from Chewy.com.
     
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  14. Kathleen Einwich

    Kathleen Einwich Member

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    Nov 3, 2018
    Thank you. I'll check it out. I buy all of my cat supplies, food, litter, etc from Chewy.
     
  15. HereKittyKittyKitty

    HereKittyKittyKitty Member

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    Aug 23, 2016
    My cat got dry food until he was diagnosed. We went through a very short time with prescription... IIRC it was about a week... Then we went to 9 Lives and he went into remission... Then we got cans of 9 Lives with mold! So now he's on ff pates. He gets 3 different non-fish pâtés a day... As the cans are opened throughout the day, I leave them out until the next a.m. and he pretty much grazes all the way through 3 whole cans in 24 hours. Since there are 6 flavors of non-fish pâtés, he gets the same menu every other day. I think it's a combination of variety and always available that works to keep him interested/eating and his BG down.

    FWIW, I used to feed kitty Orijen Regional Red dog treats, which has wild boar (and other red meats), but with the possible hm contamination issue, switched to something else (Pure Bites). The cat also liked the beef treats and the wild boar treats, but the single ingredient wild boar treats made his poop and the box stink worse than a pig feed lot!!!
     
    Last edited: Jan 9, 2019
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  16. Dusty Bones

    Dusty Bones Member

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    Oct 20, 2013
    I always wondered the same thing because my cats love pork when I cook it. Seems like a good lean protein for cat or dog food.
     
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  17. HereKittyKittyKitty

    HereKittyKittyKitty Member

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    Orijen uses wild boar in some of their cat and dog foods. Fromm uses pork in some of their products, too.
     
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