Feline CKD Food Lists

These are lists of low phosphorus cat foods - not necessarily "good" foods. Some are very high quality foods; some aren't. Most are not prescription foods. Please don't ask for us to recommend foods for a specific cat. Besides CKD, some cats might have specific needs or restrictions e.g. food sensitivities. However, the "Starter List" is the best list to start with (North America) - these are some decent foods more or less. Some less than desirable foods are on the "Miscellaneous" list. Others have warnings e.g. for high sodium, high carbs, or certain ingredients.

For cats with kidney disease, aim for foods low in phosphorus. Personally, I would feed low carb wet (or at least not dry) foods with "high quality" protein, which for cats means MEAT, not "corn gluten meal," rice, wheat, etc. Cats are obligate carnivores - they must eat meat. Higher carb foods are less likely to contain much meat. But...more meat generally means more phosphorus (but it depends).

The main thing is to keep your cat eating!. Many cats with kidney disease have appetite issues and lose weight, so it's important to keep them eating. Some cats just aren't going to eat the lowest phosphorus foods. Many cats hate the prescription diets - they are low in protein, high in carbs, the opposite of an obligate carnivore's natural diet. But...some cats hate the Weruva foods too. Every cat is different. Just do your best to find some low phosphorus foods that they will eat well. Use the lists as your guide.

Disclaimer: I assume all the information on the lists is accurate at the time of last update, but mistakes can happen, and foods can change (so numbers might change) without notice. By viewing the food lists, you agree not to hold me or anyone on the Feline CKD Facebook Group responsible for any errors or out-of-date information.

Unless you live outside of North America, start with the short Starter List if you are new to CKD and overwhelmed. Otherwise, the Main List is the most important list that contains many food choices.

There are several food lists in this folder (mostly canned foods, mostly for North America unless noted)

First of all, each food list is a PDF file. Some people claim they "can't zoom in" on the lists so can't read them on their phone. I can zoom in just fine on my Android phone...but everyone has a different setup on their phone, and I have no idea how your phone is set up or what app you are using to view PDF files on your phone. My phone has a PDF viewer app on it - when I tap on the link to one of the lists (PDF file), it downloads the list's PDF file to my phone, then I can open it and view, zoom in as much as I want to. You may need to DOWNLOAD the PDF document to your phone first if you are having trouble zooming. Again...I can't know how you are trying to view the PDF files - I have no idea how your phone is set up, only how mine is set up.

Consider printing the lists out if you have access to a printer! Or at least print out the lists you are interested in. The Main List is repeated twice in the same file (once sorted alphabetically, once sorted by phosphorus).

You may be confused that numbers on these lists look nothing like what you see on a can of food or on a dry food bag. Those numbers are "guaranteed analysis" - minimums and maximums, mostly on the the label as an FDA requirement, not really to be so useful to the consumer. The numbers on the food lists use information from the food manufacturers. (phosphorus is rarely on a food label - you have to get this information from the manufacturer). Sometimes detailed nutrient info is on the company's website e.g. Weruva; sometimes you have to contact them to ask for it. All of the information on these lists comes from the food companies.

Also, those percentages that you do see on the bag or on the can are given "as fed" - meaning, the percentages are diluted by whatever water is in the food. These "as fed" numbers have to be adjusted to remove the moisture that is diluting them. They will look nothing like what you see on these food lists. (If you look at a bag of dry food and see that the protein looks like it's a lot higher than in wet food, why is that? Because wet food has a lot of water in it, diluting the percentages. THAT's WHY! Dry food is not higher in protein than wet food, just less diluted by water.) These food lists show percentages that are either on a Dry Matter Basis (DMB) or Metabolizable Energy (ME) Profile, on a calorie basis (based on the calories fed), so we can compare all foods on the same basis.

Here's an example of what's important on the lists. Phosphorus is usually most important for CKD cats. Choose foods with the lowest phosphorus number you can! Some people care about the protein, carbs, sodium, etc.

Each food list is a PDF document you can download to your device and print out if you like.

(North America) Comprehensive list of low phos wet foods MOST IMPORTANT LIST after Starter List. (updated May 01, 2024)

Feeding Guide and Misc. info plus all food lists (very long) (updated May 01, 2024)

Moderate phosphorus canned foods to try if you have no luck with the Main List foods! (updated May 01, 2024)

Low phosphorus, low carb foods suitable for diabetic cats with CKD (updated May 01, 2024)

Low Phosphorus Dry foods (excluding renal prescription foods) (updated May 01, 2024)

Mostly renal foods, usually not recommended due to low protein (updated May 01, 2024)

Foods with few ingredients that are the least high in phosphorus (updated May 01, 2024)

Low phosphorus foods possibly to avoid (case by case basis) (updated May 01, 2024)

List of all 138 Weruva wet foods showing phos and protein levels (updated May 01, 2024)

List of all Soulistic foods (made by Weurva exclusively for Petco) (updated Dec 19, 2021)

List of low phos foods possibly available in other parts of the world. (updated May 01, 2024)

Feline CKD Low Phosphorus Food Lists