Can someone tell me about Wellness?

It is what I am currently feeding the crew... It seems ok... only one (isis) is finicky about it but shell eat the wellness dry..and if hungry enough the wet.. What do the cat food experts say about it??

I'm sure a lot of people would consider it an excellent food and use it if it didn't have garlic in it.

That is the only thing I've ever seen anyone object about regarding Wellness.

I've been feeding my babies Wellness canned food for several years, alternating it with a couple of other high quality canned foods like Petguard.

I know some people are unhappy about garlic being included. The garlic added is a very small amount (the 17th ingredient listed of 19). Still, to be on the safe side, I've spoken with 4 vets about this - 2 conventional, 2 holistic. All agreed I shouldn't be concerned about it. My cats have been doing fine, and all are at different life stages.

The canned Wellness is also grain-free which is a nice change from so many cat food makers (even high quality ones)who feel compelled to add things such as rice to their food. Cats need lots of protein, not lots of carbs.

For every vet that approves of garlic, there is one that does not. You'll have to make up your own mind.

Here are the articles that led me to my conclusion that it is not safe..I will not feed it, I will not sell products containing it.

http://www.aspca.org/site/PageServer...c_publications - scroll to the August 2005 article entitled Allium Species Poisoning in Dogs and Cats. This is a pdf document, so you will need to have adobe acrobat's free reader installed.

http://www.felinefuture.com/nutrition/garlic.php

http://www.peteducation.com/article....articleid=2414

The decision I reached is based on the fact that there are no studies that show that the form of the garlic, the kind of garlic makes any difference..and all they can say for sure, is that there is a variable response - meaning for some cats, a very little amount can be quite harmful, for others, obviously, they are eating tiny amounts regularly with no apparent damage.

It's a decision to consider, along with knowing the signs of what to watch for (it can cause Heinz Body Anemia).

It's funny, this forum is the only place I see anyone getting upset over the small quantities of garlic found in some otherwise excellent foods. And on top of that, everyone seems to reccomend foods that are much higher in grain content, simply because they don't have garlic... (Like Nutro and Chicken Soup), which are foods I consider far inferior.

Wellness is an excellent food. I fed it happily for quite a long time, and only switched off it onto raw when I decided to take that plunge.

Originally Posted by vanillasugar

It's funny, this forum is the only place I see anyone getting upset over the small quantities of garlic found in some otherwise excellent foods. And on top of that, everyone seems to reccomend foods that are much higher in grain content, simply because they don't have garlic... (Like Nutro and Chicken Soup), which are foods I consider far inferior.

Wellness is an excellent food. I fed it happily for quite a long time, and only switched off it onto raw when I decided to take that plunge.

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That might be because of the folks here, including me, who have cats with crf...for which the issue is very serious as crf kitties are already prone to anemia. Or you could say, this forum is on top of such issues that deserve discussion

I think if you look over all my past posts, or others here, you'll find that I personally prefer lower carbs, better quality proteins...but if budget is an issue, I have recommended lines such as Nutro Natural Choice (from when I was the nutrition advisor here).

Originally Posted by Pat & Alix

That might be because of the folks here, including me, who have cats with crf...for which the issue is very serious as crf kitties are already prone to anemia. Or you could say, this forum is on top of such issues that deserve discussion

I think if you look over all my past posts, or others here, you'll find that I personally prefer lower carbs, better quality proteins...but if budget is an issue, I have recommended lines such as Nutro Natural Choice (from when I was the nutrition advisor here).

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I understand the connection with CRF, but still feel that for a perfectly healthy cat, it's silly to rule out such a good food by one (minor) ingredient. On this I suppose we just disagree

In terms of reccomendation, you may have in the past reccomended foods like Nutro in situations where budget was an issue, but I see it reccomended DAILY on this forum as one of the premium foods (as well as the Meow Mix pouches... don't even get me started on those!) And I don't understand why foods like this (with far inferior ingredients) are being reccomended so often, when foods like Wellness are ruled out due to one minor fault that won't affect most healthy cats in the least. Infact, IMO the health risks are higher by feeding a food higher in grains, or in sub-par ingredients, than by feeding a tiny quantity of garlic.

I try to recomend what will work for the cat and the owners budget( yes I like raw best but it aint feasible for all) .... Wellness is never touched by my three and the garlic ( I have two vets who say no one of whom has a masters in animal nutrition) I dont see the need to recommend it ... Yes I do have a CRF kitty but My healthy one doesnt get it either ... I do like how the wellness cans read other than garlic but the dry has never made me go YIPPY( okay the more I learn the less any dry food looks evan decent)... Many brands make a above average product that will keep kitty happy and healthy for about 1.00 a day ... Why should someone only get recommedations for food s that run 3-4$ a day when they cant spend that???

I have to consider this a controversial issue because many holistic vets, Dr Pitcairn for example, do support the use of garlic in small quantities. I occasionally feed Wellness Chicken and Lobster which is one of Rosie's favorites and my cats have been fine.

Whether it's true or not, I read somewhere once that the N-propyl disulphide is something that builds up in the cats body rather than being sloughed off. If that's the case then it's a matter of cumulative effects over time.

I've always figured that just in case it's true, I'd rather avoid use of garlic, (same plant family as onion), that could cause that problem.

Originally Posted by tru

Whether it's true or not, I read somewhere once that the N-propyl disulphide is something that builds up in the cats body rather than being sloughed off. If that's the case then it's a matter of cumulative effects over time.

I've always figured that just in case it's true, I'd rather avoid use of garlic, (same plant family as onion), that could cause that problem.

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Exactly my thoughts

I am uncomfortable with garlic in pet foods, whether store-boughten or home-made. There was actually a letter written into Dog Facny (on page 61) asking about garlic in dog(or pet) foods. Then again, I am paranoid.

It was mentioned once that the amount of garlic that is lethal varies from one pet to another. While I realize that the amount is so small in Wellness, what if that small amount is actually enough to kill one of my babies? (again, I'm paranoid).

White Cat Lover, Garlic is not harmful to dogs... infact there are many benefits to feeding garlic to dogs as a small addition to their diet. I find the "Fancy" magazines to be sub-par oftentimes in their research.

I think it is an excellent food, but my adorable fur monster would actually pick it out of her bowl kibble by kibble and eat the other ( I was mixing it in slowly so not to upset her tummy) and leave a pile of Wellness uneaten. She seemed to like the wet food, but would only really eat it up if it was mixed with Fancy Feast. And thus began the hunt for a premium food she would eat.

If your cat will eat it, I think it is a good food. I have not decided how I feel about the garlic - if it is for flavor it didn't help in my case.

My only experience with Wellness is with my IBD cat who THRIVES on it. I keep it in his rotation. In fact, he is only getting Wellness chx (the wet int he orange can) and Evanger's new Turkey and Squash. My other two have had Wellness when I was trying out wet foods and neither cared much for it, so they eat Evanger's exclusively for theri wet.