STRUVITE CRYSTALS DIET for 9 yo overweight indoor Tonkinese:

[Shulie]

VERY GOOD!! I think I'm getting closer and closer to putting together a definitive healthy diet for my furbaby He's been crystal free for the past 3 weeks and I want to keep him that way FOREVER, plus losing some weight in the process wouldn't hurt either

THANKS FOR ALL THE INFO!!

[Shulie]

BESIDES KEEPING THE CARBS LOW, WHAT ABOUT THE PHOSPHORUS % FOR OVERALL GOOD HEALTH?

[mel_t]

BESIDES KEEPING THE CARBS LOW, WHAT ABOUT THE PHOSPHORUS % FOR OVERALL GOOD HEALTH?

sorry, I didn't see this until now.  I'm not too sure on phosphorus, but I've only really heard it mentioned much in relation to kidney failure, so I think it's not too big an issue in cats without kidney failure? 

[jenny]

http://www.maxshouse.com/Clinical_Nutrition/key_nutritional_factors.htm#Key%20nutritional%20factors%20for%20adult%20cats%20at%20maintenance

In one survey among pet owners, renal disease was the second most common cause of non-accidental death in cats; its prevalence increases with age.  Excess dietary phosphorus is not considered a cause of renal damage but accelerates the progression of renal disease toward failure and death.  High levels of dietary phosphorus (1.2 to 1.8% DM) lower creatinine clearance values and possibly reduce renal function in young, healthy cats.  Phosphorus reduction is advised in the early nutritional management of renal disease in cats to decrease the renal excretory workload and avoid phosphorus retention.  Cats with renal insufficiency are often not diagnosed until three-fourths or more of kidney function has been lost and older cats have an increased prevalence of kidney disease. Generalized phosphorus reduction may slow progression of renal disease in cats with subclinical or undiagnosed disease.

I've been a little nervous myself about using high phosphorus foods on a continous basis.