Science Diet J/D cat food

j/d® Feline - Dry

My grandmothers vet are telling her that she NEEDS to get this for cat Goldie (see below thread) for her arthritis. I know that like one or two of the rX foods are somewhat good for different issues (like bladder/kidney ones) but is this food a gimic like all the rest?

Thanks!

I would say that yes, it's a gimmick. Even if it weren't, any benefits it gives for arthritis pain would not be worth the problems such a low quality food could cause. There is NO meat in that food, some organs, no muscle meat.

If it'll make her feel any better she could try glucosamine and condroitin supplements instead. Also remind her that if the cat is overweight dropping the extra pounds will help a ton with joint pain.

The only thing in that food that may help her arthritis is the Omega-3 fatty acids. You can easily get these separately and use them as a supplement to a high quality cat food. I also recommend a joint supplement made for cats. I have a 16-year-old cat with arthritis as well, and she is on Cosequin, which is basically a mixture of glucosemine & chondrotin.

I don't understand why some of these Science Diet foods even require a prescription. You would think that a food endorsed by thousands of vets would have a little more pride in the ingredients they use.

Joint diets are typically high calorie, which is not good for joints, and in order to get enough joint nutrients from it the cat would have to eat a lot. I'd personally stick to a high quality cat food and add in something like Glycoflex and an omega 3 supplement (like fish oil...probably won't be hard to get a cat to eat food with fish oil squirted on it . Joint diets are typically pure gimmick.