Looking for the best cat food for a sensitive stomach?
Kitties, just like people, can get tummy troubles from time to time, caused by things like hairballs, issues with their food, and more. While a stomach issue can sometimes only be fixed by a trip to the vet, there’s also a possibility that changing your cat’s diet can make a difference too.
If you’re noticing problems like constipation, lethargy, or vomiting, call a vet first to make sure your fluffball is fit and healthy. Once you get the go ahead, you can then start trying your cats on some of the most effective sensitive stomach cat food and cat food for diarrhea.
The Best Cat Food for a Sensitive Stomach : Buyer’s Guide
If your kitty is showing signs of a sensitive stomach, then the first thing you need to do is speak to a doctor. If your cat is vomiting hairballs or foods more than once a month and is losing weight at the same time, then there’s a good chance that something else is going on.
Signs of stomach sensitivity may include:
What Causes Tummy Problems for Cats
Remember, stomach issues can come from a range of different sources, including:
What is The Best Food For a Cat With a Sensitive Stomach?
The best foods for a kitty with stomach problems will be highly-digestible products with little to no fat, lots of protein, and even an extra dose of fiber.
You might even see some extra carbohydrates in these cat foods.
Many foods for gastro issues come with additives that improve intestinal health, such as omega 3 fatty acids, soluble fiber, and increased amounts of antioxidants and vitamins.
They will usually avoid common ingredients that can be problematic for some cats, like lactose and gluten too.
Get 30% off and FREE shipping on cat food!
U.S.A. only
To Find out why we recommend chewy.com, click here
If you’re unsure exactly what your kitty needs or you’re worried that they may have an allergy to certain foods, then your vet might recommend using a hypoallergenic meal. This means that you choose a food that has minimal ingredients in it. Some studies show that certain foods, like beef and chicken, are more likely to cause allergies than fish.
The most common hypoallergenic diets for cats are:
Diets with limited ingredients often contain only a single source of protein and a single source of carbohydrate. These diets aren’t totally regulated however, so keep that in mind when you’re shopping for the best food options.
For cats that are even more picky with their food, then vets might suggest prescription diets that come with novel animal proteins with only a single-source protein. These foods are carefully produced in a facility that eliminates the risk of cross-contamination.
If your vet recommends a hydrolyzed protein diet, then they may need to give you a prescription. These meals break the proteins in a food down to a size that’s more likely to be absorbed. There are a few options out there in this area, but it’s worth noting that these foods are quite expensive.
Changing Your Cat’s Food : Give them the best food for cat with sensitive stomach
Remember, when you’re switching Mr Snowball to a new type of food, it’s important to be cautious. Switching foods too quickly can cause problems like vomiting and GI upset just by changing what your kitty is used to. With that in mind, it might be helpful to combine the old food and new food for a while, until your kitty gets used to it. After all your aim is to provide the best cat food for cats with sensitive stomach like your furball.
One point worth noting is that if you’re noticing GI problems in your cat, they may be caused by problems with the kind of food you’re feeding, rather than whether it’s hypoallergenic or not. For instance, if your cat has stomach sensitivities on dry food, it might help to switch them to a wet food with more moisture. Avoid feeding your cat:
Just because you consider yourself to be a master chef doesn’t mean you should take the risk of making your cat’s food from scratch – unless you have vet guidance.
The Top 12 Best Cat Foods for a Sensitive Stomach
Since different cats have unique needs, we’ve created our list of the best cat foods for a sensitive stomach based on the requirements of every kind of cat, from seniors, to kittens, and beyond.
Let’s get started. Here are some of the top choices on the market.
1. Best Cat Food for Sensitive Stomach: Purina ONE Sensitive Stomach
Purina ONE sensitive systems is a dedicated all-in-one dry cat food, made for moggies with stomach issues. The product is made with real turkey as the main ingredient, and there are no excess grains to act as filler in the food.
The best thing about this food is how easy it is to digest; the formula has been carefully chosen to move through your kitty’s stomach as easily as possible which makes it our pick as best dry cat food for sensitive stomach cats.
On top of that, you also get an extra dose of protein with every helping and a bunch of vitamins and minerals that are sensational for sensitive skin too! You can buy your bags in anything from 3.5 lb. to 22 lb. options.
On the downside, some people will find that this kibble does make your cat’s litter tray stink. You’re probably going to have to commit to scooping the litter immediately!
2. Best Wet Cat Food for a Sensitive Stomach: Hill’s Science Diet Adult Sensitive
For some kitties with sensitive stomachs, the decision to switch from dry to wet food can be enough to make a huge difference. It’s a lot harder for kibble to move through your cat’s digestive tract, particularly if they don’t get a lot of water in their diet.
Hill’s Science offers some of the best wet food around for sensitive stomachs, with clinically proven antioxidants and absolutely no artificial colors or preservatives. It's an easy top pick as best wet cat food for sensitive stomach kitties.
This canned food comes with nutrition that’s ideally chosen for skin and digestive health, with an extra dose of omega 6 and vitamin E for sensitive stomachs.
No products found.
Pros:
Cons:
3. Best Canned Food for Sensitive Stomach: Hill’s Science Diet Sensitive Stomach and Skin
Hill’s Science is always a top choice if you’re looking for vet-recommended foods for your furry friends. This excellent food is brimming with delicious vitamins and minerals to help support your cat.
For instance, the sensitive stomach and skin formula comes with prebiotic fiber that helps to support your kitty’s natural gut biome.
There’s omega 6 and vitamin E to support sensitive skin, and the natural ingredients throughout the kibble come with absolutely no excess grain. This number one vet-recommended formula is even available in a wide selection of sizes to suit your needs.
On the downside, it can be quite expensive, and finding the right flavor for your cat is often tough.
4. Best Food for Kittens with a Sensitive Stomach: Purina Kitten Chow Nurturing Formula
Kittens have much smaller stomachs than their grown cat counterparts, which can mean they need even more help with digestion. The Purina Kitten Chow kibble is one of the best cat foods for sensitive stomachs designed to target the needs of kittens.
This product comes with real chicken built-in, as well as essential nutrients, specifically for growing cats. There’s DHA to help with vision and brain development. Additionally, this Purina mixture provides 100% complete and balanced nutrition for kittens too.
However, the downside for this product is that it does smell absolutely terrible!
5. Best Food for Indoor Cats with a Sensitive Stomach: Blue Buffalo Basics Limited Ingredient
Sometimes, indoor cats have more issues with their stomachs because they don’t get the dose of fiber that they would be able to access from hunting their prey in the great outdoors. If you have an indoor cat, then Blue Buffalo Basics could be a great choice.
This simple cat food is made with real meat, to give your cat the protein hat they need. Plus, the limited ingredient means that there’s less of a chance that something will interact badly with your cat.
The Blue Buffalo food also comes with “LifeSource bits,” which include antioxidants, minerals, and vitamins for great health.
This cat food is totally grain-free, but it can be a problem for cats that need help getting extra moisture, as it doesn’t mix well with wet food.
Additionally, some cats find the LifeSource bits harder to digest.
6. Best Prescription Food for Cats with a Sensitive Stomach: Hill’s Prescription Diet Digestive Care
If you take your cat to the vet when you notice them having stomach troubles (which you should), they may suggest a prescription diet. That’s where options like Hill’s Prescription Diet I/D can come in handy. These tinned foods are excellent for improving nutrient absorption in the digestive tract.
Although Hill’s Prescription Diet is a little more expensive than some of the other options out there, it was developed by veterinarians and nutritionists, so you know it’s going to deliver great results. On the downside, you may find that the boxes arrive dented.
What’s more, this food can be quite challenging to get.
7. Best Dry Food for a Sensitive Stomach: Iams Proactive Health Sensitive Stomach
Dry food can be an excellent option for our feline friends who like to spend their days grazing on their food, rather than eating it all at once.
Iams Proactive Health sensitive stomach is excellent for delivering strong muscles and healthy skin, as well as giving your cats more energy for play.
This fantastic food comes with highly digestible proteins included, which is great for good long-term digestive health. Additionally, the fiber included in the meal comes with beet pulp and prebiotics that help your cat to absorb the nutrients that they eat. There are even antioxidants included for your cat’s immune system.
Unfortunately, like some other sensitive stomach foods, Iams kibble can make the smell from your cat’s litterbox difficult to handle.
No products found.
Pros:
Cons:
Page [tcb_pagination_current_page] of [tcb_pagination_total_pages]
8. Royal Canin Feline Health Sensitive Digestion
Another top choice for the best cat food for a sensitive stomach is Royal Canin Feline Health. This is another dry kibble option, formulated for adult cats with problems in their digestive tract.
The solution supports quicker and more efficient digestion, with excellent highly digestible proteins.
There’s a higher concentration of nutrients within this food, even at small serving sizes, which means that even if your kitty doesn’t eat a lot, they’ll still get what they need. Royal Canin also offers an accompanying wet cat food formula.
Just keep in mind that there are a lot more calories in this food than some other products, so you may need to reduce the amount you give your pets.
9. Halo Natural Dry Food Sensitive Stomach
Halo Natural is one of the best cat food for a sensitive stomach options on the market for one key reason – it has a great natural formula.
This product comes with whole fish, or meat included, and it’s super digestible, providing easier access to more bioavailable nutrients.
There are refined whole grains and proteins included in the mix to encourage kitty digestion. What’s more, when you buy from Halo, you know that you’re supporting farmers and ranchers who are responsible in looking after their stock.
The biggest downside is how expensive this product is. It’s really difficult to get hold of if you’re low on income.
Additionally, the bags aren’t always delivered in great condition.
10. Diamond Premium Recipe Maintenance Complete and Balanced
If you’re looking for a luxurious food to give your cat, but you don’t want to spend a fortune on each meal, then Diamond Premium could be a good choice.
This dry food is mixed with carefully chosen levels of protein and fat to support the ideal body type for your active cat.
The premium food comes with 30% protein and 15% fat, as well as extra fiber for digestive health. On top of that, you also get antioxidants for supporting the immune system, and omega fatty acids at guaranteed levels for healthy skin and a shiny coat.
The downside is that not all cats seem to like the flavor of this food. Additionally, although the kibble is dry, it smells as much as wet food.
11. Royal Canin Digest Sensitive Thin Slices in Gravy
Royal Canin doesn’t just offer one of the best cat foods for sensitive stomachs in dry form; it also has a wet food alternative too. The “sensitive” mixture includes slices of meat in gravy, designed to be easy for your kitty to chew and digest. The product is specially designed for cats aged over a year with sensitive stomachs.
This formula comes with highly digestible proteins to help kitties absorb their nutrients better while reducing potential stool smell. What’s more, the product is great for maintaining an ideal weight, because the nutrition is designed to deliver exactly what your cat needs.
If you prefer to give your cat a mixture of wet and dry food, combine this with the Royal Canin Kibble.
Just keep in mind that this is quite an expensive product, and it’s also very difficult to find in a lot of stores – including on Amazon.
No products found.
Pros:
Cons:
12. Lucy Pet Formulas for Life – Sensitive Stomach and Skin
Lucy pet formulas for life has an excellent dry kibble solution to offer kitties that have trouble with both their tummies and their skin. This carefully formulated kibble is great for gut health, digestive health, and sensitive stomachs.
What’s more, the grain-free formula means you’re not paying for filler.
With antioxidants for natural immunity, a healthy amount of omega 3 acids for healthy skin and coat, and plenty of package sizes to choose from, this is great all-round food.
The problem is that it is costly. Despite being vet-approved and designed for cats in all breeds and stages of life, Lucy’s kibble isn’t ideal for those on a budget.
Additionally, you might find that switching your cat onto this food too quickly could cause diarrhea, as it comes with a massive change in vitamins and minerals compared to other foods.
Finishing Thoughts
There are a lot of great foods out there if you want to help your kitty overcome his or her problems with a sensitive stomach. As humans, we know how painful it can be to suffer with things like constipation or allergies, so the last thing we want to do is see our cats suffering the same thing.
My favorite option when it comes to the best cat foods for a sensitive stomach is the Purina ONE sensitive systems mixture. This dry cat food is excellent for letting your kitty graze throughout the day. It comes in a range of sizes, for an affordable price, and includes all the nourishment that your moggy needs. There’s even extra support for sensitive skin. How can you go wrong?
Are you having a problem getting your Kitty's dinner?


Get 30% off and FREE shipping on cat food!
U.S.A. only
To Find out why we recommend chewy.com, click here