Top 5 Best High Protein Cat Foods for 2022

What are the Advantages of a High Protein Diet for Cats?

A high-protein, low-carb diet most closely mimics the feline’s natural diet in the wild, and countless cat companions have observed that their furry friends prefer a diet rich in meat. But veterinary medicine backs up what cat lovers already knew: that a high protein diet is ideal for cats.

A high protein diet may help reduce the risk of feline diabetes. It’s also known to lessen the chances of obesity in your cat. Since about half of all domestic cats are obese, a high protein diet can be a critical step in making the overall feline population healthier.

Are There Disadvantages to High Protein Cat Food?

In most cases, a high protein cat food can benefit your pet, but some veterinarians warn that a diet with excessive protein can be dangerous to kittens and senior cats. A healthy adult cat is at little danger of suffering from excessive protein, but kittens may have a higher need for carbohydrates to fuel their growth.

Senior cats can be at risk of developing kidney disease, and since the kidney is the organ that filters out excessive protein, it may be possible to give your old friend too much. Companions of senior cats may want to get their kidneys checked a couple of times a year; most veterinarians agree that the quality of protein (meat and animal) is more important than the quantity.

If your cat already has a kidney condition, diabetes, or obesity, you’ll want to work closely with your veterinarian to make sure that any dietary transition is safe for your furry friend.

How to Choose the Best High Protein Low Carb Cat Food

Protein is essential for cats, but it’s also crucial that they get the majority of it from an animal source. Cats cannot metabolize plant-based proteins as dogs can, and their bodies usually convert these proteins into glucose (sugar). This can cause weight problems and diabetes.

While we know that humans benefit from a well-balanced, well-rounded diet, the fact is that our feline friends usually do best with a pretty monolithic meal plan. Cats eat meat, and they have little use for fruits and veggies.

High Protein Canned Cat Food vs. High Protein Dry Cat Food

The process of turning meat into dry kibble requires a certain amount of filler. When you make meatballs at home, you usually need to add something like bread crumbs to help the meat hold together. Likewise, making dry cat food from meat usually requires some filler.

Cheap dry cat foods will typically use grains as an affordable and efficient packing, but these grains don’t provide much actual nutrition to your cat. They can be a source of fiber, but felines can’t digest grains, and some grains convert to glucose (sugar) and cause weight or metabolism problems.

All of these high protein foods contain no grain, but the dry foods will still need some sort of filler. In place of grain, they might use potato, pea, sweet potato, or other fruits and veggies. Since some filler is expected in dry cat food, this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it’s important to remember that none of these ingredients are actually edible food for your cat.

Because Canned cat food has less of a need for binding agents and fillers, it’s often presumed to be the most nutritious option. cat food, like dry cat food, can be healthy or it can be junk food.

The high protein cat food on this list has a good nutritional profile, but some canned cat foods contain fillers as well. A high-quality dry cat food beats a cheap canned cat food every time, so it’s essential to read labels and be selective with both.

Canned cat food includes a much higher moisture content than dry cat food. In many cases, your dry kibble eater will naturally drink more water to compensate for the lack of moisture in the dried food. However, if your cat is showing signs of dehydration or you’ve been advised by your veterinarian to watch out for it, Canned cat food will often give your kitty more moisture than they’ll willingly take in from water.

How You Should Choose a High Protein Cat Food

First, ask your veterinarian. Your cat may have unique or unexpected medical needs that require a special diet or a particular type of food, so it’s essential to check with your vet. This is especially important if your cat has a weight or metabolism problem, or if he has a history of problems with diarrhea, constipation, or kidney/liver issues.

Once you’ve got the all clear from your cat’s doctor, you’ll want to try a small amount of the new food. Nutrients only work if you can get them INTO your cat! If your cat turns their nose up at the new menu, their diet won’t improve, and cats can sometimes have unique or particular tastes, especially when it comes to food they aren’t familiar with.

If you like the nutrition, your vet signs off on the change, and your cat gives two paws up, you can start to switch your cat over to the new food. If you’re switching from one dry food to another dry food, it’s usually best to do it gradually. Add about one part new food to three parts old food for the first few days or week; then, increase the new food to half the total ration. Once your cat adjusts to that, you’ll do ¾ new food and ¼ old food. Gradual replacement is the best way to prevent digestive upset.

If you’re switching from one wet food to another wet food, you’ll want to make the replacement slowly, too. Start by changing one feeding every 3-4 days with the new food, then gradually increase the frequency of the new food until your kitty has made the full switch.

While a change to your cat’s diet can often cause temporary digestive problems, if the tummy trouble persists, contact your veterinarian to make sure the new food isn’t what’s causing it.

How We Chose the Best High Protein Cat Foods on This List

We wanted to look for high protein cat food, dry and wet, that would be readily available in most stores and were not prohibitively expensive. We’re looking at these high protein cat foods based on the following factors:

• Nutritional value
• Protein content
• Protein to carbohydrate ratio
• The prevalence of plant-based proteins – this can distort the reported protein content, as cats can’t process plant proteins
• The amount of fillers, binders, and non-nutritional ingredients
• Grains and starches
• Extras (probiotics, Omega 3 and Omega 6 content, manufacturing process, etc.)