Many cats will face some type of dental problems, especially felines at an advanced age. This is why it’s essential to brush your cat’s teeth regularly and to take it for professional teeth cleaning at least once a year.
Furthermore, your cat’s diet is also an important factor affecting its dental health. With time passing, it’s normal for your cat’s teeth to become bad and weak.
If your cat loves eating dry food, this could become an issue, since its teeth may be too weak to chew the crunchy food well.
Luckily, there are still some options available to not deprive your feline friend of its favorite dry food.
The following are the seven best soft dry foods for cats with bad teeth.
Top 3 Picks For Best Soft Dry Food For Cats With Bad Teeth
1. Budget Pick: IAMS PROACTIVE HEALTH Healthy Senior Dry Cat Food
- Affordable pet food of high-quality
- Support healthy teeth, strong muscles, and healthy hearts in senior cats
- Real chicken as #1 ingredient
2. Premium Pick: Royal Canin Feline Care Nutrition Dental Care
- Tooth brushing effect
- Reduces dental plaque formation
- Easy to digest
3. Best Pick: Purina ONE Natural Dry Cat Food
- High protein level
- Delivers balanced nutrition and dental health
- Easy to digest
7 Best Soft Dry Food For Cats With Bad Teeth
1. Hill's Science Diet Dry Cat Food
- Plaque and tartar control
- Fiber technology cleans teeth
- Supports skin and coat health
- USA-made, vet recommended
Pros:
- Reduces tartar and plaque buildup
- Promotes a healthy cat coat
- Easily digestible food
Cons:
- The pellets are a bit large
Hill’s Science dry food reduces tartar buildup and plaque in cats. This makes it a great choice for cats of all ages, and especially for senior felines.
Not only does this cat food enhance your cat’s dental health, but it also freshens its breath, so you can say goodbye to unpleasant feline breath!
We love to see chicken as a number one ingredient in Hill’s Science kibble. Also, this food is rich in omega-6 fatty acids and vitamin E, which is excellent for your cat’s coat health.
This manufacturer uses interlocking fiber technology to clean and scrub cat teeth. Hill’s Science doesn't use any preservatives, flavors, or artificial colors in their products.
One potential drawback worth mentioning is that the kibble pellets are a bit larger than you may expect. Of course, you can easily solve this by cutting them into smaller pieces and making things easier for your kitty.
2. IAMS PROACTIVE HEALTH Healthy Senior Dry Cat Food
- 100% nutrition, antioxidants
- Supports digestion, prebiotics
- Promotes skin and coat health
- Supports heart health
Pros:
- Affordable product
- Supports dental health, strong bones, and healthy joints in senior cats
- Supports a cat’s healthy immune system
Cons:
- Small kibble size
IAMS PROACTIVE HEALTH food is our budget pick on this list. It’s an affordable product that has great qualities and supports a cat’s dental health, strong bones, and its overall immune system.
Chicken is the first ingredient in this food. It also contains essential nutrients like phosphorus and calcium, beneficial for your cat’s healthy joints.
Another crucial component of IAMS PROACTIVE HEALTH CAT FOOD is L-carnitine. As PetMD explains, this nutrient plays a vital role as a fatty acid transporter and is essential for cellular energy production in cats.
This kibble is crunchy enough to reduce plaque buildup in your cat. At the same time, it’s soft enough for it to easily chew and digest it, even if its teeth aren’t in perfect condition.
3. Nulo Freestyle Cat Food
- Turkey & duck, high protein
- Low carb, grain-free
- Supports digestion, metabolism, immunity
- Made in USA, no artificial ingredients
Pros:
- 83% of protein from animal sources
- Small disk shape
- Promotes digestive health
Cons:
- According to some customer reviews, the package is poor
Nulo Freestyle Cat Food is rich in animal-based proteins. There aren’t any flavorings or artificial preservatives in this food.
Nulo pet food comes in small, bite-sized pieces, making it a good choice for cats with bad teeth. Nulo Freestyle supports healthy gut flora and digestion in cats.
The leading ingredient in this kibble is deboned chicken, followed by other animal-sourced proteins such as chicken meal, turkey meal, and deboned cod.
This food is also corn, grain, soy, gluten, and wheat-free. It’s manufactured in Austin, Texas.
Instead of using ingredients like tapioca or potatoes, Nulo focuses on healthy ingredients like red lentils and yellow peas. This way, it promotes energy and power in your cat.
4. Purina ONE Natural Dry Cat Food
- Real salmon, high protein
- Vitamins A & E for eyes
- No artificial flavors or preservatives
- Prebiotic fiber for digestion
- Made in USA, omega-6 for coat
Pros:
- Real salmon as #1 ingredient
- Promotes strong teeth in cats
- Easily digestible
Cons:
- Soft fish pieces have a rubbery texture, so it’s necessary to be careful for the cat to chew and swallow them properly
Purina ONE Natural dry cat food is our best pick on this list. This means that it offers the best balance of price and quality.
Purina pet food has real salmon as the main ingredient. It has a tender texture, making it easier for cats with dental problems to chew and digest it.
This product also features vitamins A and E, as well as carrots and peas, promoting eye health in cats. It contains natural prebiotic fiber for cat gut health.
It’s also rich in protein, supporting your cat’s strong muscles and healthy heart. Furthermore, it features omega-6 fatty acids for your cat’s healthy skin and shiny coat.
Purina pet food offers the perfect balance of a crunchy, but soft kibble.
5. Royal Canin Feline Care Nutrition Dental Care
- Dental care for cats
- Reduces plaque formation
- Supports oral health
- Tooth-brushing kibble
- Complete balanced nutrition
Pros:
- Reduces plaque formation
- Tooth brushing effect
- Balanced nutritional formula
Cons:
- High price
Royal Canin Feline Care Nutrition Dental Care is the premium pick on this list. This product is pricier than all others listed here, but this high price comes with good reasons.
This food features precise nutrients for strong and healthy teeth in cats. The chicken meal is its main ingredient, followed by rice, corn gluten meal, ground corn, and chicken fat.
Royal Canin kibble stimulates a tooth-brushing effect, reducing plaque formation on teeth. Therefore, while your cat is chewing this cat food, it’s supporting its dental hygiene at the same time.
Regular use of this food also reduces dental plaque formation.
Teeth brushing and the usage of cat toothpaste are essential for your cat’s dental health. By giving your cat Royal Canin food together with this, you’re certainly doing the best possible things for their teeth and gum.
6. Solid Gold High Protein Dry Cat Food
- Grain-free, high protein
- Alaskan Pollock and salmon
- Prebiotics and probiotics for digestion
- Supports coat and immune health
- Includes vitamins and Omega fatty acids
Pros:
- High in protein
- Rich in fiber
- Promotes gut health
Cons:
- Potatoes among the first five ingredients
Solid Gold pet food is high in protein and gluten and grain-free. It supports dental and immune health, as well as gut and coat health in felines.
Chicken meal is the number one ingredient here, followed by potatoes, canola oil, and peas.
This cat food is low in carbohydrates and rich in fiber, promoting healthy digestion.
The high protein percentage supports healthy muscles and metabolism even in senior cats.
Omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids in the list of ingredients is something that we always love to see.
This receipt has no wheat, soy, or any other artificial preservatives.
7. Wellness Natural Pet Food
- Grain-free, weight control
- Supports joints, skin, coat, and digestion
- Variety of wet and dry food options
- Made in USA, non-GMO
Pros:
- Provides balanced nutrition
- Cleans a cat’s teeth and mouth
- Assists in weight control
Cons:
- May not be the best choice for picky eaters
The last product on our list, the Wellness Natural Pet Food, provides cats with balanced nutrition. This is one of the most essential things when it comes to your pet’s health.
This cat food supports strong teeth, as well as healthy eyes, skin, and coat in cats.
Wellness Natural is a crunchy and easily digestible kibble that helps keep a cat’s teeth clean. Calcium and phosphorus are beneficial ingredients in this food for healthy teeth and gums.
The primary ingredients in Wellness Natural food are deboned chicken and chicken meal, with peas also among the top five.
Catster explains how peas are rich in fiber, protein, and antioxidants. Antioxidants like vitamins E and C help in decreasing inflammation in a cat’s body. Fiber improves a cat’s digestion, while protein is essential in a cat’s diet.
Wellness Natural Pet Food is a great option if your cat has weight issues, which is a common problem with indoor cats. This cat food is rich in fiber and L-carnitine, which assist in weight control.
Furthermore, Wellness Natural features chondroitin and glucosamine for healthy joints and hips.
What To Look For In Soft Dry Food For Cats With Bad Teeth?
You’re aware you need to take good care of your cat’s teeth and help it digest its food more easily.
But, you’re unsure of what exactly to look for in a dry food ideal for cats with bad teeth. Here are a couple of basic pieces of advice.
First of all, your cat’s kibble should be high in protein. Protein is equally important for both kittens and senior cats.
So, despite the high probability that your cat will have poor teeth as it grows old, protein is still a must with its dry food. Animal protein keeps your cat strong and healthy and provides it with enough energy for its everyday activities.
Of course, you should always choose food that doesn’t have any artificial additives. All-natural meals are the most beneficial for your cat’s teeth, as well as for its overall health.
Dry food that comes in smaller fragments is a better choice for cats with bad teeth. Also, their food should be easily digestible to avoid any kind of stomach issues in your cat.
Conclusion
Young cats are likely to be able to eat dry cat food without any problem. However, as they grow old, most of them will have weak teeth and dry food could become challenging for them to eat.
Although dental issues are more common in senior cats, some young cats could develop them, too.
Cat nutrition is an essential factor in a cat's dental health. Even if your cat has poor teeth, it still shouldn’t give up on eating dry food.
These seven soft dry foods for cats with bad teeth are excellent options and highly recommended.
The most important thing here is that the dry food is high in protein, easily digestible, and that your cat doesn’t have a problem chewing it.
I hope you’ve found your favorite that fits with your budget and your feline friend’s preferences.
