Reviews of the Top 10 Diabetic Cat Foods in Canada for 2023

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It can be disheartening to learn that your cat has diabetes, but with careful management, the condition won’t be fatal. The right nutrition for your cat is a vital component of this management. In Canada, there are fortunately several options for diabetic cat food. These evaluations will provide you with a summary of the greatest options and assist you in selecting the ideal one for your cat.

In 2023, a Quick Comparison of Our Favorites

1. Royal Canin Feline Glycobalance — Best Overall

Main ingredients	Chicken by-product meal, barley, wheat gluten, corn gluten meal
Protein content	44%
Fat content	10%
Calories	320 kcal/cup

We believe that Royal Canin Feline Glycobalance is the best overall diabetic cat food in Canada. It comes as no surprise that Royal Canin, which is famed for its veterinary products, offers a meal designed expressly to reduce blood sugar rises in diabetic felines. To support glucose levels and minimize swings, this snack includes fiber and prebiotics. It is safe to feed your diabetic cat because to its low carbohydrate content and reduced starch content. Additionally, it is rich in antioxidants to strengthen your cat’s immune system and high in protein to promote the preservation of muscle mass.

The cost of giving veterinarian food is the largest drawback because specialist foods can be pricey. To maintain your cat’s health and activity level, though, might be worthwhile. Some cats’ delicate stomachs make switching diets challenging. This cuisine occasionally leads to nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea.

2. Ziwi Peak Air-Dried Mackerel and Lamb — Best Value

Main ingredients	Mackerel, lamb, lamb heart, lamb tripe
Protein content	43%
Fat content	25%
Calories	273 kcal/cup

The best diabetic cat food in Canada for the money is Ziwi Peak Air-Dried Mackerel and Lamb, according to our research. To retain all of the nutritional value of the original components and stop pathogenic microorganisms, this kibble is air-dried from raw materials. It’s been created with a high protein and low carbohydrate content to exactly suit the demands of your diabetic cat.

To preserve your cat’s general health while controlling their diabetes, this cat food contains meat, bone, organs, and fish in about 96% of the components. Additionally, it doesn’t contain any hormones, antibiotics, or additional carbohydrates that might make it challenging to keep good blood glucose levels.

Not all cats are amenable to this meal, as with any novel food. The Ziwi Peak dish uses fish as the main protein source, thus the cuisine does have a strong fishy smell. This may make it appealing to your carnivorous cat, but it might not be to you. If the smell bothers you, you can choose a protein that is less irritating.

3. Friskies Classic Pate Classic Country Dinner — Premium Choice

Main ingredients	Meat by-products, water, chicken, poultry by-products, rice
Protein content	10%
Fat content	5%
Calories	182 kcal/com

Friskies Classic Pate is the top diabetic cat food choice in Canada. Although feeding wet food to cats tends to be more expensive than feeding them dry food, wet food is also more cat-friendly. The Friskies Classic Country Dinner taste is a fantastic choice if you have a cat who rejects low-carb kibble. Although Friskies sells wet food in a variety of flavors, the majority of them include too many carbohydrates for cats that have diabetes. With only 10% carbohydrates, the Classic Country Dinner is the perfect amount. You can feed it exclusively or use it as a topping to make other food more appetizing because it provides complete nutrition.

Although Friskies wet food is OK for diabetic cats, it still contains more carbohydrates than commercial diabetic feeds, so you’ll need to alter your cat’s medicine or insulin as necessary.

4. Hill’s Prescription Diet M/D Glucosupport

Main ingredients	Chicken by-product meal, corn gluten meal, chicken, chicken fat
Protein content	45%
Fat content	17.50%
Calories	463 kcal/cup

Doctor’s Hill’s Prescription Diet A diabetic cat meal is available from Glucosupport that is intended to prevent lean muscle loss and diabetes-related weight loss. This food contains carnitine to help your cat better utilize glucose and maintain stable blood sugar levels. This specific diet also seeks to stop fat from building up in the liver and worsening your cat’s existing health issues.

Many diabetic cat owners claim that this meal enabled their cats to completely stop needing insulin, but individual results may vary. While this food is excellent for managing diabetes and keeping your cat healthy, it will take some time for your cat to get used to eating it. Most cats don’t find it especially enticing, so they have to gradually acquire a taste for it. To avoid introducing this food too quickly, be cautious to do so.

5. Purina Veterinary Diets DM Dietetic Management — Vet’s Choice

Main ingredients	Poultry by-product meal, soy protein isolate, corn gluten meal, soy flour
Protein content	51%
Fat content	15%
Calories	592 kcal/cup

Purina Veterinary Diets DM Dietetic Management is the cat food that our veterinarian recommends for diabetic cats. As opposed to huge kibble, this meal comes in pellet shape, which is simpler for cats to consume. It offers high protein levels for the general health of your cat while also meeting all the low-carb specifications of diabetic cat food. When fed a high-protein diet, Purina Veterinary Diets also promotes urinary health and protects your cat from forming urinary crystals. The nutritional composition is balanced by antioxidants, which also help your cat’s immune system work properly.

The ability to feed it to kittens is one advantage this food has over others on this list. The majority of diabetic-friendly meals for cats are only intended for adults. Although a diagnosis of diabetes in a kitten is uncommon, it is helpful to know that there is a diabetic food that will also aid in their growth and development.

Since this is a veterinary diet, a prescription from a doctor is needed to buy it. Additionally, this raises the price of the meal. This diet contains a lot of soy, and while feeding soy to cats poses no health risks, some owners choose to avoid soy products because of the natural hormones they contain.

6. Purina Fancy Feast Gourmet Naturals

Main ingredients	Fish broth, trout, wheat gluten, turkey
Protein content	11%
Fat content	2%
Calories	66 kcal/can

For diabetic cats, Fancy Feast Gourmet Naturals offers a wet food option with fish as the first component. When compared to other wet foods, this food is incredibly inexpensive and provides a balanced diet, allowing you to feed it entirely. This food’s 9% carbohydrate content makes it safe for preserving normal blood glucose levels.

The cuisine from Fancy Feast Gourmet Naturals has a higher fat level than most other selections, which is a drawback. You’ll need to make up for this by watching your cat’s daily calorie consumption closely. The additional calories and fat may, however, be just what you need to help your cat maintain a healthy body mass because many diabetic cats are underweight.

7. Farmina Natural Chicken and Ancestral Low-Grain Formula

Main ingredients	Boneless chicken, dehydrated chicken, whole spelt, whole oats
Protein content	36%
Fat content	20%
Calories	388 kcal/cup

The diabetic-friendly cat food Farmina Natural Chicken and Ancestral Low-Grain Formula has 94% of its protein from animal sources. This will satisfy the taste buds of your young carnivore and benefit their general health. This diet gives your cat the chance to lose the additional weight while preserving their lean muscle mass if they are overweight.

Farmina uses cold infusion technology to create its cat food rather than over-processing the kibble. This preserves the original nutritious profile of the ingredients, just like freeze-drying does. This dish has a low glycemic index. Although it contains some grains, it is low in grains, which reduces the amount of carbohydrates and prevents blood sugar increases right after eating.

Picky cats don’t seem to be particularly drawn to this meal. Cats take some time to become used to the flavor of low-carb chow, as they do with many other low-carb options. Additionally, the kibble has a greasy texture, which may contribute to cats’ dislike of it.

8. Orijen Original Cat

Main ingredients	Chicken, turkey, whole mackerel, turkey giblets
Protein content	40%
Fat content	20%
Calories	515 kcal/cup

Your cat’s craving for meat will be satiated with Orijen Original Cat Food without causing significant changes in blood sugar levels. 90% of the protein in this dish comes from meat, which is sourced from sustainable sources. The abundance of fish contains omega fatty acids that are good for the skin and coat, and the extra taurine is good for the heart. Orijen food has the added benefit of being suitable for cats of all ages, so you may give it to kittens, adults, and elderly cats.

One major drawback of Orijen Original is its price. This cuisine is not a specific diet food, although it is priced similarly to high-end prescription foods. The presence of big kibbles is another drawback. This might make chewing challenging for kittens who are little or elderly cats who have dental problems.

9. Instinct Original Canned Cat Food

Main ingredients	Chicken, chicken broth, chicken liver, egg product
Protein content	10%
Fat content	7.50%
Calories	131 kcal/can

To support your cat’s maintenance of lean body mass and to satiate their carnivorous tendencies, Instinct Original Canned Cat Food obtains 95% of its protein sources from genuine meat. Diabetic cats can eat this recipe because it only has 4% carbs. Being wet food, it also aids in keeping your cat hydrated.

This diet, which has 37 calories per ounce, is best given to overweight cats that need to gain lean muscle mass. Cats who are overweight should avoid it. Given that the food has a pâté texture, there are frequently differences in texture between cans, which can be annoying if you have a picky cat.

10. Nulo Freestyle Wet Cat Food

Main ingredients	Turkey, turkey broth, duck broth, turkey liver
Protein content	10%
Fat content	3.50%
Calories	77 kcal/can

Nulo Freestyle Wet Cat Food is a wet food solution for diabetic cats. To support the growth of lean muscular mass, this diet is loaded with turkey and duck protein. Less than 5% of the calories in Nulo food come from carbohydrates, and it contains 82% moisture to keep your cat hydrated. In addition to having additional probiotics to benefit your cat’s digestive tract, Nulo Freestyle has a low glycemic index.

The cost of Nulo Freestyle is its main drawback. Being at the higher end of the price spectrum, wet food is already less economical than kibble.

Choosing the Best Diabetic Cat Food in Canada: A Buyer’s Guide

There’s a good chance that you’re feeling a little overwhelmed about how to treat your cat’s diabetes if it was just recently discovered that it has the disease. Your cat can live a long, healthy life with the right diet. The first step in the procedure is determining the best cat food. Then, you must consistently feed them at the same time, with the same amount of food, every day. Here are a few things to think about while buying cat food.

Wet Food

There is ongoing discussion about whether wet or dry food is better for cats. Wet foods are frequently advised for diabetic cats since they are typically lower in carbohydrates, are favored by fussy cats, and are simple to portion control. Wet food keeps your cat hydrated because it often contains 75% or more water.

The issue with feeding only wet food is that it’s frequently too expensive. Since wet food is more expensive than kibble, many people do not have this alternative. As long as your cat’s overall consumption is constant, mixing the two is acceptable. Dry foods with minimal carbohydrate content are also widely available.

Meat Protein

Due to their inherent carnivorous nature, cats require meat to survive. animal should be the first element in any food you give your cat, with the majority of the protein coming from animal sources.

Low Carbohydrate Content

Your cat may have trouble controlling their blood sugar if they have diabetes. High-carbohydrate diets make your cat need more insulin since carbohydrates in food naturally raise blood sugar levels. In the end, you want your cat to require the least amount of insulin to keep their blood sugar stable, so you should also provide them low-carbohydrate food.

Calories

With relation to your cat’s weight, the number of calories in their food matters. Diabetic cat meals are frequently high in calories since many diabetic cats are underweight or struggle to maintain their weight. You must carefully watch your cat’s calorie consumption if you want to help them lose weight gradually.

Things to Look Out For in Cat Food for Diabetics

Gravy and Sauces

Even though gravy and sauce are frequently added to cat feeds to increase their palatability, these components are a reliable sign that starch was included in the composition. Carbohydrate content is high in starch.

Prescription Foods

There are absolutely adequate options despite some veterinarians’ recommendations that diabetic cats exclusively eat prescription food. They won’t be very helpful, though, if your cat won’t eat them or won’t tolerate them. Commercial cat meals with the ideal protein-to-carbohydrate ratio for diabetic cats are widely available.

Transitioning to a New Food

You can gradually switch your cat’s food over a few days if insulin hasn’t been begun for them. You must ascertain whether your cat’s new diet has affected their blood sugar levels afterward in order to change any prescriptions.

Consult your veterinarian about how to include glucose testing at home if your cat is already taking insulin. It is advisable to discuss changing your cat’s food with your veterinarian, as well as how to alter your cat’s medication while you make the changeover, because diabetic cats are susceptible to hypoglycemia and other adverse effects.

Conclusion

You may hopefully use these reviews to learn more about the diabetic cat food options in Canada. As a whole, Royal Canin Feline Glycobalance is the best meal. This prescription food includes all the attributes required to manage your cat’s illness and is created specifically for managing feline diabetes. The Ziwi Peak Air-Dried Mackerel and Lamb cat food is the most cost-effective option for diabetic cats. This moist cuisine is the least expensive option, tastes good, and has few carbohydrates.

Friskies Classic Pate Classic Country Dinner is our top pick. This delectable alternative is simple to locate and aids in everyday blood sugar management. As a dry kibble alternative, we also suggest Hill’s Prescription Diet M/D Glucosupport. Another prescription food choice intended to control blood sugar levels, several owners have reported using this diet to entirely wean their cats off insulin. Purina Veterinary Diets DM Dietetic Management is the preferred brand by our veterinarian. It’s a secure alternative to feeding large kibble to diabetic cats at any stage of life and is simple for cats to chew.