It’s the most epic debate of all time, and it’s not on the political debate stage – it’s in the cat food aisle at your local grocery store. Wet vs dry, which food is better for your Maine Coon?
The truth is that both kinds of food are readily sold for a solid reason: they are effective.
This article will discuss in detail how both types of food can be beneficial for your Maine Coon, while also pointing out their cons. It will also focus on how you can choose the best kind of food for Maine Coons, whether it’s dry or wet.
So, grab a hot drink and get ready to dive deep into the topic (and maybe let Mr Whiskers join in and have a say on the topic too).
Contents
Why Dry Food Might Be Good for Maine Cats？
Sold in bulk quantities, dry food is arguably the most popular type of food for pets. For some Maine Coons specifically, it can prove to be a great choice. Let’s take a look into why that’s so:
Budget-friendly
The formidable Maine Coon cat, hailed as the XL size in the feline realm, boasts a substantial appetite. Depending on their size, Maine Coons may necessitate anywhere from 200 to a staggering 700 daily calories.
Given their above-average consumption compared to typical domestic cats, providing sustenance for them can strain the budget, particularly if you have multiple Maine Coons. After all, our ability to nourish our pets aligns with our financial constraints, doesn’t it?
Due to this, dry food is often favored for larger Maine Coons with heightened daily caloric needs – it’s a more economical choice. However, caution is imperative in selecting dry food, ensuring it meets all your cat’s nutritional requirements. Dry food often harbors subpar ingredients, with only a handful of brands presenting well-balanced, nutritious formulations. Further details on this will follow.
Carbs for Maine Coons
Dry food can be a source of energy for active breeds like Maine Coons with the added carbohydrates present in it. And yes, cats do need carbs, as many studies conclude – they just shouldn’t be fed excessive amounts of it.
While carbs may do more harm than good for most indoor cats, this may not be the case for your Maine Coon. If your cat is super energetic and still in its playful kitten phase, it could actually benefit from the carbs present in dry food.
This is especially the case for outgoing Maine Coons, or those who are allowed to roam outdoors on their own. Your cat needs extra energy to explore, run, and hunt.
Moreover, Maine Coons are generally larger and more active, so carbs in dry foods aren’t all that bad for them. However, the key here is ensuring these carbs are ‘good carbs’ and aren’t present in excessive amounts. Otherwise, they definitely won’t help.
On the Go Meals
With their sociable, playful personalities comes an undeniable knack for the outdoors. If your Maine Coon also loves going on adventures, hikes, and walks – as many do – dry food is your best friend on the go.
For one, it’s super easy to feed – just open the bag, put out some kibble, and reseal it. No washing, no clean up required. Two, it’s not messy like wet food, making it super convenient for outdoor use.
So for those of you who are often road traveling and exploring with your extroverted feline, you’ll find dry food to be far easier to feed.
Why Dry Food May Not Be Great For Coon Felines？
There are instances where dry food isn’t the best option forMaine Coons specifically. It’s necessary to take the following factors into account before choosing dry food as the main diet for your cat:
Reduced Hydration
Where most felines couldn’t care less about drinking water, many Maine Coon owners claim that their cat loves drinking it.
Now, I can’t say for sure whether this love for drinking water stems from their hereditary affinity with water or something else. This does, however, make dry food a less favorable option for them.
The diminished moisture content not only fails to align with their flavor preferences but also gives rise to numerous health concerns, mirroring the impact on other felines. It can result in severe kidney and bladder issues, both of which carry significant health risks. Extended reliance on dry food stands as a primary factor behind feline urinary tract problems.
If your Maine Coon is susceptible to urinary tract infections or contends with kidney issues, relying primarily on kibble for sustenance should be avoided, and incorporating wet food becomes imperative.
Weight Management Issues
As mentioned earlier, dry food contains carbohydrates, a crucial component of their diet. However, it can start exerting a negative influence on Maine Coons after a certain age. Once your cat surpasses 12 months, its metabolism decelerates, signaling a need to curtail carb intake.
Excessive carb consumption could lead to obesity, triggering various health issues like arthritis. Given the substantial size that Maine Coons often acquire with age, they are predisposed to joint ailments. Maine Coons with hip dysplasia, a prevalent genetic condition in this breed, are especially vulnerable to adverse effects from such diets.
This is why solely relying on dry food once your Maine Coon starts to get old isn’t a great idea. Since dry food is calorie-dense, it can make it really hard to manage their weight as they grow old and less active.
Younger Maine Coons who are less active and tend to be couch potatoes should also avoid too much dry food.
Kibble Might Be Too Small For Maine Coons
Most dry food comes in the form of really small-sized kibble. This may not be a problem for most cats, but many larger Maine Coons often tend to swallow small kibble whole without chewing much.
This not only leads to improper digestion but also prevents your cat from absorbing and making use of essential nutrients. Pay close attention if your Maine Coons are also larger in size – if you notice them swallowing food whole, it’s time to switch to something else, or opt for wet food.
How to Choose the Right Dry Food for Gentle Giant？
If you choose dry food for your Maine Coon, keep certain things in mind while hunting for the best kind.
Maine Coons need plenty of protein to grow their large, strong muscles. This growth continues till they’re 4-5 years old, so a high-protein diet is necessary. Dry food often has less protein than what’s required, so be sure to check the back panel when buying one.
It needs to be made with one or two proteins, such as fish, chicken, or turkey. The main source of meat should never be listed as ‘meal’ or made with by-products.
Apart from proteins, dry food should not have carbohydrates derived from very starchy stuff like white rice or corn.
Look for brands that use vegetables like carrots, peas, and chicory root to source carbs, which are beneficial for high-energy Maine Coons. For overweight Maine Coons, consider opting for grain-free and low-fat dry food, otherwise, it may lead to obesity.
Speaking of which, we’ve also recommended the best dry food for Maine Coons right here on our website.
Why Wet Food is Good for Maine Coons？
Recommended by vets around the world, wet food is a great way to fulfill your Maine Coon’s nutritional needs. Here’s why:
High Protein Content
Maine Coons need more protein than the average cat, as their body continues to grow well into adulthood. For instance, an average adult cat needs about 26-30% of protein in their diet daily, but for Maine Coons, this number is often 40%.
For this reason, wet food is often the best choice for them as it promotes lean body mass. It fulfills their daily nutritional requirements far better than most dry foods, which need other ingredients like corn to bind the kibble together. Wet food doesn’t usually consist of such ‘fillers’, so your cat can achieve a high-protein diet through it.
Extra Hydration
Not all Maine Coons like drinking water, which is why wet food is a great way to keep them hydrated. With over 80% water content, it’s the ideal choice for cats suffering from urinary blockages, as dry food can often cause this. This is especially the case for older Maine Coons who tend to suffer from kidney conditions.
While you may be spending extra bucks on wet food, you will be saving on huge vet bills that might result from feeding dry food for too long without proper hydration.
Great for Weight Management
Large Maine Coons are often more prone to becoming overweight, thanks to their big appetites and their pleas for more portions. This is why wet food is such a great option for weight management.
Since a majority of it is water, it keeps cats full without having to consume too many calories. It also has far fewer carbohydrates, so less active Maine Coons will greatly benefit from a protein-rich, low-carb wet food.
Preferred by Maine Coons
Ever seen a cat go crazy for those jellied wet foods? Well, Maine Coons are no different. Even the pickiest eaters will lap that stuff up like it’s their last meal ever. The truth is that most cats love wet foods and prefer them over dry foods. It has a strong scent, and most can be warmed up to produce even more tempting aromas.
Many Maine Coons are quite fussy eaters, and they also tend to have an irritated gut due to the additives and artificial flavorings present in dry food. So if you’ve got a Maine Coon that simply won’t accept most foods, you can definitely find some luck with wet foods.
Why Wet Food Can Be Difficult for Coonie Breed Owners？
Wet food is great for Maine Coons, and all cats for that matter. But it does pose some challenges for the owners:
It’s Pricey
For most, the main problem with wet food is the cost. Generally, wet food-only diets can cost up to $150 per month for one cat, and for Maine Coons and their black-hole-sized appetites, this number can go far higher. It’s no wonder pet parents often resort to dry food.
Hard To Serve Overweight Cats
It’s often advised to serve overweight Maine Coons many small portions of food throughout the day. This is quite inconvenient with wet foods, as you may need to wash food bowls more than once a day. Moreover, calculating calories with wet food and measuring out precise amounts isn’t as easy, and neither is the storing part.
How to Choose the Best Wet Food？
Not all wet foods are good enough – some are made with by-products or meat derivatives, which certainly don’t provide enough protein for Maine Coon cats. So start by looking for a real meat source in the wet food, such as chicken.
Next, note the value of crude protein listed on the labeling. It should be at least 10% and no less than that. Maine Coons actually need more protein content than that, so the higher the value, the better.
Of course, cats need a good amount of fat too, and wet foods should generally have fat content between 2-10%. For big, high-energy Maine Coons, the higher the value within this range, the better it’ll be for your cat’s daily activities.
For overweight Maine Coons, this value should be at a minimum. No matter what the case, ensure that the fat is derived from animals, and not sources such as sunflower seed oil.
Exploring further, we’ve also recommended the best wet food for Maine Coons right here on our website.
So.. Which Food Should You Choose?
To be honest, nothing works quite like wet food, as it provides all-rounded benefits for Maine Coons. High in protein for growth? Check. High in fat for energy? Check. Lots of water? Check. You really can’t beat that.
A majority of Maine Coon owners feed some, if not a lot, of wet food to their cats to promote shiny, smooth coats and avoid obesity as they get older.
However, feeding only wet food isn’t within everyone’s budget, which is why you can definitely go with dry food as well. You’ll just have to make sure it’s a high-quality dry food – one that doesn’t use cheap fillers and uses good sources of protein.
Even if you choose to rely mostly on dry food, you should definitely supplement with wet food every other day to keep up with your Maine Coon’s protein and hydration needs. A bit of both kinds of food is often the best way to go for most Maine Coons (and their owners).
