Feeding Cats in Their Golden Years: Insights from our Latest Study  

A recent study from researchers at Waltham Petcare Science Institute, carried out in collaboration with Royal Canin, provides much-needed insights 
 

'Twenty-Four-Hour Feeding Patterns of In-Home Healthy Aging Cats Fed Wet, Dry or a Combination of Wet and Dry Diets Ad Libitum' published in Animals Special Issue on Nutrition, Physiology and Metabolism of Companion Animals scientifically supports feeding guidelines for senior cat owners.  
 

Dr Scott McGrane, Senior Research Manager, and senior author of the study, says: 'Our study aims to strengthen the growing body of research on senior cat nutrition.  
 

'The data we've gathered – from 134 healthy cats aged seven and above – is crucial for enhancing our understanding of this understudied group. It offers clear recommendations that could improve the health of aging cats.' 

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Our findings: calorie requirements, urinary tract health and eating habits  

Most calories were consumed from all-dry food. When fed all-wet food, the cats consumed the least calories and may fall short of their daily recommended maintenance energy requirements.  
 

We observed that cats drunk significantly less water on an all-wet diet but still had a higher overall water intake – combining water drunk and water from food – compared with an all-dry diet.  
 

Because older cats have a higher risk of lower urinary tract diseases, our findings suggest feeding a mix of wet and dry food to benefit from wet food's advantage regarding urinary tract health and dry food's higher caloric density. 
 

We also discovered that aging cats consumed about six small meals of dry food, or seven small meals of wet or mixed diets, over a 24-hour period.  

Going forward: our recommendations for senior cat nutrition 
 

Our findings show that the feeding guidelines for healthy aging cats over seven years should recommend several small meals per day, using a combination of wet and dry diets. This should satisfy the aging cat's grazing behaviour, balance calorie intake, and help support urinary tract health benefits.  
 

At the Waltham Petcare Science Institute, we're committed to ensuring that pets of every age get the care and consideration they need. It's all part of our mission to build A BETTER WORLD FOR PETS™. 

Source: Waltham Petcare Science Institute

References 
Lumbis, R. H. (2018). Nourishing Dogs and Cats Through Their Twilight Years. Veterinary Nurse, 9, 75–82.  

Montoya, M., Morrison, J. A., Arrignon, F., Spofford, N., Charles, H., Hours, M. A., & Biourge, V. (2023). Life Expectancy Tables for Dogs and Cats Derived from Clinical Data. Frontiers in Veterinary Science, 10, 1082102. https://doi.org/10.3389/fvets.2023.1082102