Why you Should not Feed your Cat Iams (or any other cheap food)

 While I was debating on my decision of switching my veterinarian, I made my decision swiftly when upon asking him a good food to feed my feline friend, he recommended Iams. Working at a veterinarian hospital as vet techs and staff, we all knew that Iams was one of the worst foods available for pets. However, we also knew about how "behind closed doors" veterinarians were pushed to sell Iams, Eukanuba and Science Diet pet foods.

Iams may be perceived as a good company producing healthy cat food from what is perceived from its commercials or simply by looking at a package's promises. A good cat food generally will be determined not from what the company advertises but from what is found on the label. A label tells the truth or at least gets the closest to the truth. Learning to effectively read a cat food label and list of ingredients is fundamental.

While Iams may look like a healthy cat food from the exterior, the truth is that as many other cat foods sold at supermarkets, Iams is full of fillers. Forget about the shiny coat, healthy teeth and healthy heart Iams promises, most of these benefits simply derive from feeding any dry crunchy diet found at any store.

What makes Iams food particularly unhealthy is its content. Iams cat food is full of fillers. Fillers are simply products used to save money. Fillers allow cat food producers to use less meat because fillers will make up the most part of the kibble. Fillers are unnecessary to cats, simply think that most fillers derive from corn. Cats have lived without corn throughout their history so there is no reason why cats need corn now.

The carbohydrate levels derived from corn and grain fillers have been associated with the onset of feline diabetes, not to mention food allergies derived from such fillers. Cats need only 5 simple nutrients (besides water) to live healthy: protein, taurine, vitamins, minerals and fatty acids. Carbohydrates, preservatives, flavorings, colorings, binders are not at all necessary and rather harmful.

The second biggest flaw of Iams is that it contains meat byproducts. This term means that the actual meat used is meat that has been found to be inappropriate for human consumption, ie meat from diseased or dead animals, spoiled etc. This meat derives straight from the rendering industry.

Good cat food should show actual meat types in the label such as chicken, lamb or fish. Anything stating meat in general or worse meat by products should be perceived as very likely containing meat byproducts deriving from the rendering plant.

The pros from Iams are that is contains Omega 3 Fatty Acids which help cats get glossy shinier coats. The healthy heart promised derives from the presence of Taurine, however Taurine has been added to most cat foods nowadays (even though it is not mentioned)  because Taurine deficiencies have been related to causing blindness and heart problems in cats. Good dental health derives from the simple fact of chewing any dry kibble.

While Iams is not the worst cat food available on the market, it can be categorized as mid-grade, not the worse but a far cry from the best. There are many better foods with no meat by products and no fillers. More and more pet owners and nutritionists advocate that proper foods are the key to a cat's health and longevity. I would recommend all feline lovers to do their homework well when it comes to choosing a good diet for their cat. While the best cat foods may be costly, truth is "you get what you paid for" and owners investing in high quality cat food will save money in the long run. Chances are therefore, that if cat owners do their math well,  two plus two will make four, meaning in other words that healthy cats are the ultimate results of healthy diets.