Both wet and dry products can be nutritionally complete, Meredith, if they are high-quality pet foods appropriate for your pet's life stage and nutritional requirements. Wet food contains higher protein levels, decreased carbohydrate levels and a higher water content—up to 78 percent, compared to 10 percent in dry food. However, dry foods can safely be left out all day without spoiling. When it comes down to it, water is the most important nutrient. So whether you feed your pet wet or dry food, fresh water should be made available all day.
Since water intake is particularly important for cats with constipation, diabetes, kidney disease and tendencies toward crystal formation, feeding a diet high in water can be especially beneficial for cats with these conditions. In addition, increased protein levels may be beneficial for overweight and diabetic cats. However, it is generally acceptable for a pet without any of these health concerns to primarily eat dry food.
Please remember that in addition to feeding your feline a high-quality food, kittens, adults and mature cats all have different nutritional requirements. Therefore, it is important to feed your pet a diet intended for his/her life stage.
You can learn more about feeding kittens and adult cats from our Top 10 Nutrition Tips for Kittensand our Top 10 Tips for Feeding Your Adult Cat.