#85 - Unsolicited Cat Advice

I’m both the best and worst customer at a pet store. I know exactly what I want, and what suppliers will have it, and I order in monthly amounts because my motivational bursts allow for me to optimize for efficiency in terms of lugging 12lbs of frozen raw meat up the DeKalb subway steps.

Anyway, went to pick up my cats food today and overheard a customer talking about her picky cat and how much money she’s wasted on trying new foods. And if there’s one thing about New York pet stores, they all have bonkers return policies that don’t align with the manufacturer’s guarantee, so this lady really is trying her best and losing $3+ per refused meal.

It would have been weirdly inappropriate for me to step in and offer tips and advice because that’s what the woman who was helping her’s job is. And hey, a lot of the advice was even solid! But wowowwow did I want to editorialize. (There may have been a way to do it but I know that I tend to overwhelm people with information and it like literally wasn’t my place.) I was in the industry for a short but super concentrated amount of time and now I have all of this information and I need somewhere to put it. So it’s going to be here!

A few disclaimers: I’m not trying to paint all vets in a bad light. I also very deeply believe that most people are doing and trying their absolute best to give their pets a quality life and are having to sift through nine layers of marketing bullshit to get to the truth. It’s weird that there are so many people giving conflicting information, but that’s because the pet industry is woefully underregulated and deeply corrupt! As are most industries in America but especially those related to livestock! Also, I’m really coming from a place of love and advice I wish more people knew, I don’t believe in shame as a motivating feeling and hope that none of the information causes anyone any panic or distress but rather explains some of the weirder parts of the industry that might not have been mentioned and/or explained.

Also there are downloadable guides and lists from my industry years of yore (and one’s I’ve made for friends getting new pets in recent years) at the end! Please feel more than free to share them with anyone they may be helpful to!!

#1 - Free Feeding

Cats don’t graze. It’s a myth. They are not good at portion control, they just don’t like the dry food that’s being left out all that much. Yes, they eat it, but it’s because it’s there and the only thing available.

Dry food (aka kibble) is mostly made through a cooking process called extrusion. The batch of ingredients is concocted and then squeezed into a high-pressure cooking environment where temperatures exceed 700 degrees. Tbh, not much of the nutrition survives the cook. The main source of nutrients in any dry food is contained in the vitamin pack that is sprayed onto the kibble after. The vitamins are contained in fat lipids, which erode within 18 months if kept in an air-tight container. Once exposed to air, they immediately start to degrade. This is why if you have a kibble keeper, it’s imperative to keep the kibble in the original bag and place that bag inside. Pouring the kibble into the container exposes all the individual pieces to air and the degradation process will begin. This is also why the bag that is purchased should be used within 30 days of opening—it may seem like a money saver to buy the biggest bag, but the food goes bad in that time.

Anyway, they’re not stopping because they’re full and they don’t have preternatural self-control. Having meal times will also help regulate their digestive system.

(I went on several food processing plant tours and one of the most terrifying pieces of information re: disease control was learning that if a batch of kibble tested positive for salmonella, listeria, any of the flagged bacteria, the company would just re-fire and cook the batch until those results stopped showing up. So. I’m glad they care about the “health & safety” of their product but the nutritional value is uhhhh, lacking.)

(If your vet is pushing Royal Canin, Purina Pro-Plan, or Hill’s Science Diet, just know that most vets do not receive nutrition-specific education AND a lot of vet schools actually just invite the “scientists” from these brands to schools for seminars. Like the human pharmaceutical industry, vets are told to recommend these foods and receive kickbacks for any purchases made. The “RX” prescription is honestly bullshit and the lack of regulation in the industry is what allows this to continue! Vets have answers for why corn being the first three ingredients is fine for your pet, and they may even genuinely believe them. Still, I like to think we can all agree that corn-based dry food for an obligate carnivore with a urinary issue isn’t the best medicine!)

#2 - Move! That! Water!

Cats don’t like water. They’re desert animals and evolved with an extremely high dehydration tolerance. We start to feel thirsty when we’re about 3% dehydrated. Cats feel thirsty at about 22%. At 25% dehydration, mammals can no longer survive.

So! The reason they don’t like still water is that stagnant pools in the wild are more likely to have disease. Running water is more appealing! But also, cats get most of their moisture from their food. Wet food and raw diets (or rehydrated freeze-dried raw) contain plenty of moisture, and you can in fact add water to kibble as long as the kibble is not left out for longer than 20 minutes (otherwise it’s prone to bacterial growth).

Drinking fountains are a great solution to this and bonus! provide some soothing ASMR vibes wherever you place it.

Cats also like their water clean. So clean those bowls and containers! Use filtered water if you want to!

Most of the major health issues cats face (UTIs, liver and kidney issues) are related to a lack of hydration and strain on the body. When they don’t have enough moisture, their bodies will draw moisture from their internal organs during the digestion process. Over time the damaged organs will no longer be able to function properly.

Urinary Crystals or Struvite Crystals are the other major health concern that tons of pet parents deal with (often unknowingly, but crystals are often the reason that cat’s start peeing outside their litter box—they associate the box with the pain they’re in while trying to pee). These are mostly formed from their urine becoming too alkaline due to improper ingredients being included in their foods. Cat’s on a proper PH diet have urine that is acidic enough to flush out their urethra’s so the crystals are less likely to form—but also if they do form the acidic urine helps break them down so they’re easier to pass.

#3 - Marketing myths

There’s no such thing as a "hairball” formula. At most, they add a tiny bit more fiber. Hairballs are natural, the best way to help cats is to de-shed them with a grooming tool. Once it’s formed, it’s gotta come out one end or the other, but the foods not actually helping all that much.

Kitten food is higher in fat and should be fed for up to a year. It’s a legit classification and is labeled in both dry and wet foods. A few raw companies have them but mostly you just want to feed way more or add raw goat milk if feeding a kitten solely raw food.

Senior food is just higher in fiber and everyone has a different definition of a “senior” cat. It’s a gimmick baby! Cats don’t do well on “low protein” diets. They are completely obligate carnivores, their body is built to digest protein. Cats are the only animal that convert protein to sucrose in their liver, anything else that causes sugar spikes (grain, potatoes, pea protein/shells/fiber) is all bullshit and is, in fact, what makes their shit stink.

The first thing people often notice when they move to higher quality wet or raw diets is the difference in the litter box. The poop itself is smaller and harder (and for dogs the harness of the poop also helps express their anal glands so there’s another gross fact for ya!) and it literally doesn’t smell. What is making the poop large and soft is the indigestibility of the food. Poop is a waste product. The larger the poop, the more filler in the food.

Living in New York is kind of a weird nightmare in that there’s dogshit all over the sidewalks and I literally cannot help but notice what’s going on in terms of color/consistency. I get that when a dog has loose stools there’s not much the owner can do with their little Earth Rated poop bag, but I genuinely have thought about putting signs up to help people figure out what’s happening with their dog. Because the answers are probably just…corn. And there’s so much that we can do to at least improve kibble with ingredients most people have in their fridge already! Dogs are even easier to help than cats because they’re less picky AND omnivores. Boil some kale! Blend up some carrots! Throw an egg on top (bonus points for including the shell!) and some unseasoned chicken breast and wow! Fresh foods are always beneficial to a mammals diet. If your vet ever comes at you with that bullshit ask what kibble is composed of. It’s food! It’s food. It’s all food. Fresh food with moisture and intact nutrients is always a boon!!!

#4 - Bowl Height

Stainless steel bowls are the best option because the material is better at not retaining bacteria. Bowls for cats should also be extremely shallow because otherwise its a sensory nightmare for their whiskers. Imagine trying to eat with someone poking you in the side of the face.

Not great!

Ceramic is better than plastic but I really recommend a one-time investment in steel. If a cat has acne on their chin, that’s due to the bowl!

#5 - Let’s Talk Litter Boxes

My general rule of thumb for litter boxes is 1 litter box/cat + 1. So if you have two cats, get three boxes. Cats want their own space and competition for the bathroom always causes tension.

Cats like to feel protected while going, so a corner where they don’t have to watch their back is great.

Please, I beg, scoop litter boxes every single day. Even twice a day! Cats are very clean animals and they will be happier when their bathroom is clean too. Their urine is loaded with ammonia, which isn’t great for them to be breathing in when they go back to the litter box, and also soaks into the plastic over time. I “deep clean” (wipe down the litter box with Skouts Honor cleaner) once a month and I replace the boxes themselves every year—if I had it in my budget I would probably do it every six months or so.

As for the litter itself, avoid clay. Not only is strip mining absolutely devastating to the environment, but the dust from clay litter also affects the cat’s lungs and can cause respiratory issues over time. Also, the dust gets kicked up when they pee, and it can infect their urethra.

Also please please for the love of all that is holy, do not use scented litter. Cats are extremely sensitive to scents (essential oils especially included) and it’s an unnecessary chemical. If the litter stinks so bad it feels necessary, I’m begging for an email so I can help figure out what’s happening in their digestion process that’s making it untenably smelly. The other solution is scooping more frequently!

My favorite litter is the SmartCat Wheatgrass clumping litter, but Worlds Best is also a good one. Most of the corn and wheat-based ones I’ve had decent luck with tbh. The “Multi-cat” formula for litter usually just means the bag has more clumping agent in it.

#6 - Picky Cat, Picky Cat, What Am I Feeding You?

Cats imprint on textures that they recognize as food when they’re kittens. So if you’ve got a kitten, feed it all types of foods—dry treats, semi-moist, freeze-dried raw, quail eggs, beef heart, and all possible proteins, and feed them in various places and out of different bowls. It will help them be easy eaters later in life.

For those of us who inherited our cats when they were older, introducing new foods is a bit more of a process.

First, you want to associate the smell of the new food with whatever they’re currently eating. For introducing raw, I generally recommend taking a little swipe of food (think fancy restaurant plating style of sauces) and putting it along the rim of the bowl, then give them their regular food. They’ll acclimate to the smell while they eat and associate that smell with food. Do that for two days, then put a tiny bit of the food at the bottom of the bowl. Cats are far less likely to stop eating once they start, so they may gobble down the new food without thinking too hard about it. Keep increasing the new food and decreasing the old food until they’ve fully transitioned!

You can always put the two foods in separate bowls next to each other and see what cats go for.

When I transitioned Weem to raw food she wanted it warmed up so I added a tiny bit of hot water. Cats like things “body temperature” because that’s what their kills would be in the wild. I don’t know how to make that fact less haunting!

The other thing to know about companies like Friskies is that they load their foods with appetite enhancers. If a cat refuses higher-quality wet food, check if the foods they’ll eat contain “brewers yeast” because that’s probably what’s helping entice them to the bowl. Brewers’ yeast is just spent grains from beer production, it’s technically a waste product that gets repurposed by the pet food industry but it’s not bad for them. The good news is you can replicate that enticement with Nutritional Yeast! The same effect, just sprinkle some right on top.

Other toppers I recommend to help picky cats get over their aversion to new foods/textures: freeze-dried treats that have been broken up or pulverized. Minnows, pork heart, shrimp, all good.

I once had a customer whos cat only liked mousse textured food so she bought a baby Magic Bullet cup and separate blender head to air-whip the food for the cat. Most cats don’t require that level of pampering but I truly will forever remember that customer’s dedication to figuring out what her cat wanted/needed and doing a slightly gross process twice a day to improve their nutrition.

I also just want to say that I found BooBoo outside and she had been eating straight trash and she has literally never refused food and is super willing to adapt to new textures and try whatever, so not all cats are picky and sometimes it really can be as easy as plopping it in a bowl!

#7 - They’re trying their best

There are many a-tale about BooBoo’s destructive tendencies, but one of the things I’ve really come to peace with re: our roommate situation is that she’s just an animal trying her best. She’s not just trying to fuck with me, her hunger cues got all out of whack when she was a stray and now she’s hungry. I have baby locks on my cabinets and under my sink because otherwise she’ll rip through packaging and knock the garbage over in search of leftovers. Recently I woke up from a nap to discover she had kicked the freezer open and fished two SmallBatch patties out of the bag and was licking them inside the freezer. Too smart! But I’m a human with opposable thumbs who tasked myself with her care, so it’s my responsibility to figure it out.

It is frustrating when our animals get picky or refuse foods that we’ve spent good money on. But they’re not trying to piss us off, they’re trying their best and we have to figure out how best to communicate with them. I genuinely believe that most people with pets are trying their best to provide, and the truth is there are very few places with comprehensive information about pet husbandry because it’s assumed we’ll learn it from our families or something. But the information we have about domestic animals is like a century old at most? We get new information all the time! In the 80s most cat foods lacked taurine (an amino acid that’s present in organ meat and that most mammals synthesize on their own) so cats were losing teeth and going blind pretty frequently. The industry is evolving, and there’s no reason that our understanding of care should remain stagnant because of misapplied pride.

Anyway, I love my cats, they’re my whole world in many many ways, and I’m going to cry if I get any sappier about them so I’m just going to bury my face in Goob’s fur for a second because it’s important that you know she’s been sitting on my arms while I try to type this up.

#8 - Guides & Lists & Things

I used to make shopping lists and explainers and there’s nowhere they exist anymore so I want to put them all here! These links will prompt you to “make a copy” of the document to your own Google Drive where you can edit it at will!

New Cat Shopping List & Brand Recommendations

Cat Litter Box Issues & products to help solve them

New Dog Shopping List & Explainer

Frozen Supplement Recommendations

Dog & Puppy Chew Guide

New York City - Dog Stress Reduce Advice

So, I hope this was helpful maybe even in just a tiny way to improve the quality of life for a pet out there. The happier they are, the happier we are!