I doubt any vet would recommend biscuits on their own as a healthy diet for pets.
What they will say is that biscuits are good as a treat or snack as part of a balanced diet. Hard ones are good for teeth and gum care, and broken into small pieces are perfect for dog training rewards.
And that is exactly why we need Choice to convince Gov to establish a knowledgeable but independent authority
Unless youâre a qualified animal nutritionist, it is extremely unlikely youâre going to be able to balance that at home. Off the top of my head there are nearly 30 vitamins and minerals listed as essential by the AAFCO. Too little or too much of any of them over an extended period can cause health issues.
This is a common thing I see. Do you think cats would have naturally eaten beef mince and sardines? If we presume cats havenât changed in thousands of years (they have) then youâd still have to be giving whole small prey.
Hi SusanCL and Peterchu, I have followed your discussion with interest. However, I feel I had to but in and say, that my particular cat will not touch sardines in any shape or form. He also does not like beef. By chance I found out (while cooking myself a lamb chop, that he loves lamb). While he ate chicken for a while, he has also given up on it. I am now trying to give him the low carb products I can find (including Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Diabetes) and for lunch he has some lamb. It is still very difficult to come up with a diet and his Diabetes is not under control.
Let us know how you go. And never be afraid to get a second opinion from a different vet if youâre not happy with how he is progressing 
I have had a few cats that as they got older started to get kidney problems, and that can lead to ketosis. Food that they normally liked tasted funny. And they turned off it.
Have you had your moggy tested for kidney disease?
But, apart from the above, I just have a good supply of good dry food in bowls, and lots of variety in tinned and fresh for dinner. If any cat decides they donât like something, then they can try something elseâŠthe next day.
Did you have it on biscuits or just the meat and jelly on its own?
Wouldnât know. The terms biscuits, and jelly, are not anything I associate with catfood.
Perhaps you may be able to add a dietary recommendation?
Thanks for all the comments. I gave the cat sardines out of a can (for humans) and I tried oil and water. He definitely does not like sardines. Today I made some spaghetti sauce and I gave him some of the fried mince (which he ate). So maybe he prefers the beef cooked. At the moment he gets Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Diabetic, Fancy Feast Pate (which is meant to be low in carbs), Dine Pure Tuna Whitefish etc. For lunch he has fresh meat. However, his BG is not coming down at all. As diabetic cats should have a low carb diet, maybe I am still feeding the wrong stuff.
I forgot to mention that Toby also hunts mice (and gets some) and anything else he finds.
Iâm not a vet, so I canât comment on what exactly is required for a special diet. The only thing I could suggest is if you distil his diet down to only one or two types of food it can be easier to pinpoint what does and doesnât work. Currently if there was something there not working for Toby, it would be hard to pinpoint what it was. Once youâve done that it gives you something to tell the vet youâve done and get advise
My little mog wonât eat anything except his dry food - Royal Canin Dental, one of the âveterinaryâ products. Iâve tried him on everything else I can think of; but he turns his pink nose up and simply waits for his scrabblies.
Very fussy boy.
But I have yet to see a cat turn up their nose at plain white tuna like Dine or Fancy Feast.
Put out some at breakfast, and leave it all day. Cats will revisit food bowls through the day to snack, and if that is all on offer, they will eat it.
Our dog had serious pancreatitis issues. The slightest bit of fat resulted in vomiting. The Vet prescribed a particular âHill Prescription Dietâ dry food specifically for dogs susceptible to pancreatitis. Problem solved.
I didnât know one could get a canned food like plain tuna ! - I have tried canned stuff, but itâs always been âin jellyâ or âin gravyâ ⊠which jelly or gravy he licks up, leaving the firm stuff.
Will seek it out and give it a burl, because Iâm not really happy with his eating nothing but scrabblies - even if the Dental is excellent for his gums âŠ
I would try a raw diet. you can either find a recipe for required additives and make yourself, or add a âcomplete mixâ from one of the suppliers - eg Raw Meow or buy as a âraw complete foodâ. You could also find recommendations on additives for diabetic cats. My only stipulation would be - for peace of mind - buy human grade meat. Many vets are completely opposed to raw diets citing risks of salmonella etc - I say âexactly how many cases of salmonella have you seen in cats eating human grade meat?â. Vets attend conferences and are often âwooedâ by pet food manufacturers to stock their products - some are wined and dined on overseas trips to see production facilities. I suggest you give raw a go and if it doesnât work then you can just stop. Good luck
The risk of salmonella isnât for the cat, itâs actually for the owner. Although cats of course can cope with raw meats usually, bacteria stay in their saliva which of course winds up on their fur. The owner pats the cat after itâs groomed itself and you now have the bacteria on your hands.
@whbaird has indicated their cat is diabetic. Correct me if Iâm wrong but I havenât seen a complete mix developed for diabetic cats. The risk here, especially with making your own, is what happens if you donât correctly balance the 30 odd vitamins and minerals required? The impact of vitamin deficiencies/excess occur over a long period of time and may not be entirely obvious until theyâre seriously impacting the animalâs quality of life. So I guess if youâre confident you can balance them all then go for it but very few people are.
Disclosure again; until recently I worked for a large pet and vet chain.
Hi, hope things are going better with your diabetic cat. My boy is over 10 years old, and also diabetic. I have him on a diet presently of Proudi Roo & Beef for cats, and a few Hills Prescription Diet m/d dry bikkies. I was feeding him Prime100 100% roo, but am no longer able to source that. The Proudi meat doesnât have veges etc added, but does have taurine added. I questioned my vet re the taurine & why I couldnât give my cat human grade roo. His answer was that in the âwildâ, when they kill-they eat the WHOLE animal, starting with organ meat, where they get good sources of taurine. Obviously, theyâre not getting the same if we just feed them human grade muscle meat. Roo is high in protein and low in fat-my boy had to lose weight as well. As recommended by my vet, he has the same thing every meal, approx 12 hours apart-so he gets fed about 7.30am & 7.30pm. I am very lucky, as he only needs slightly less than 1 unit of insulin, once a day. Vet is extremely happy with his progress, BG levels perfect.
Hi Shazz, I will look out for the Proudi Roo and Beef for cats. My cat will not touch Hills, but he gets a little bit of Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Diabetic dry food in addition to his cans. He ate the Royal Canin Wet food for Diabetic cats for a while and then he refused to eat a certain batch. I think they might have changed something. He likes raw lamb for lunch. Dine for breakfast and FF Pate in the evening. I was told to never let him starve and I therefore give him half cans, so that he can have little meals. I still feel that one should be able to rely on the Government to have regulations so that I can buy all cat food with confidence.
Completely agree-itâs very scary not really knowing what youâre giving them. I used to give him a variety of supermarket or pet shop food until he was diagnosed. I went down the roo road because Leo wouldnât have a bar of any of the prescription wet foods for diabetes/metabolism. Very occasionally, he gets raw chicken or beef from whatever Iâm preparing for dinner. Have managed to very slowly knock around 3kg off him. Heâs a healthy weight now, which helps with the diabetes. Have only seen Proudi at pet shops where I live-I buy from Pet Cafe. Itâs 90g frozen patties, with 12 to a box 
