Dietary management is the cornerstone of feline chronic kidney disease care, and evidence-based nutritional strategies significantly slow progression and maintain quality of life.
Dietary management of feline CKD requires balancing the evidence-based benefits of nutrient restriction against the welfare cost of forcing cats to eat diets they find unpalatable. Cats that completely refuse renal diets and become anorexic have worse welfare outcomes than cats eating adequate quantities of non-prescription food. The welfare-optimal approach involves gradual dietary transition, palatable formulation selection, and honest reassessment when transition is causing excessive stress. Advances in renal diet palatability are improving compliance, but owner commitment and cat cooperation remain limiting factors. The relationship between dietary management and quality of life must be evaluated for each individual cat rather than applying rigid dietary prescriptions.