Cat food... again

rustypixel

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I know this has been discussed in this forum and believe me, I have red everything that I could about kitten/cat nutrition. But the fact is that I have so much information floating around in my head that it's all a jumble up in there that's not making sense at the moment. I'm looking to pick up my kittens in about a month and seeing that I took a day off, I would like to do some shopping for them today One of those things being cat food. What I would appreciate is if I could be given a list, both wet and dry, of some of the higher quality, higher end foods that I can go and check out in stores. I would like to feed wet as a majority of their diet and supplement with some dry of the same or different brand. I looked into Orijen and have heard a lot of good about it, but I don't believe they offer a wet variety. So my request is simple, please throw some names my way so I can get to the stores today and start the shopping. I don't mind spending a little more for the kittens.

Thanks to all for any replies and suggestions.
 

yosemite

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I think the first thing to say is read the labels. You want to avoid foods with by-products and a lot of grains.

I personally feed Orijen dry and Merrick's wet. Merricks is pretty pricey here in Canada ($1.69 per 5.5 ounce can) but it's what our 2 like and I tried so many they didn't like. I feed 1/2 can of wet morning and night with 1/4 cup Orijen for free-feeding during the day. You may actually have to try several different kinds before you'll find one your cat will eat. I must have tried about 10 different canned foods before I found Merricks. I bought 2 of each kind of food that had no by-products or fillers (I read all the labels). The pet store where I bought them agreed that they would take back any unopen cans in exchange for whatever my cats decided they would eat.

I would suggest you continue feeding whatever the cat has been eating and gradually change over the dry to Orijen or whatever you decide to go with. The usual changeover should take about 1 week to 10 days with you gradually adding more and more of the new food until at the end of the time period you are completely on the new food. This is more of an issue with dry food rather than wet. An abrupt change of food can cause tummy upset and diarrhea in cats. We've been luckier than most in that regard as I've changed abruptly with no issues with Bijou and Mika.

As for food suggestions, Sharky (our in-house food guru) has many posts where she has made food suggestions. Some that come to my mind right away are: Felidae, Merricks, Natural Balance, and Nutro. I believe Sharky has named some others, but again, read the labels. Look for foods with no by-products for a start and not a lot of grains/fillers. Stay away from Fancy Feast - not a quality product, just a tasty treat.
 
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rustypixel

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Thanks for the reply and the suggestions, Yosemite. I have been reading a ton of information and material and while I'm aware of th importance of the labels, I'm more of a backward thinker (I guess) and like to have a handfull of products to research and work my way up and out from there. I appreciate the reccomendations that you have suggested and will definitely be looking for those in my store runs today. I have been suggested to look into the Innova EVO brand and I'd like to know what are the general thoughts of this brand of wet food.

Again, thanks for the input as it is greatly appreciated. My Blackberry is with me so I'll be checking this forum from the road!


Originally Posted by Yosemite

I think the first thing to say is read the labels. You want to avoid foods with by-products and a lot of grains.

I personally feed Orijen dry and Merrick's wet. Merricks is pretty pricey here in Canada ($1.69 per 5.5 ounce can) but it's what our 2 like and I tried so many they didn't like. I feed 1/2 can of wet morning and night with 1/4 cup Orijen for free-feeding during the day. You may actually have to try several different kinds before you'll find one your cat will eat. I must have tried about 10 different canned foods before I found Merricks. I bought 2 of each kind of food that had no by-products or fillers (I read all the labels). The pet store where I bought them agreed that they would take back any unopen cans in exchange for whatever my cats decided they would eat.

I would suggest you continue feeding whatever the cat has been eating and gradually change over the dry to Orijen or whatever you decide to go with. The usual changeover should take about 1 week to 10 days with you gradually adding more and more of the new food until at the end of the time period you are completely on the new food. This is more of an issue with dry food rather than wet. An abrupt change of food can cause tummy upset and diarrhea in cats. We've been luckier than most in that regard as I've changed abruptly with no issues with Bijou and Mika.

As for food suggestions, Sharky (our in-house food guru) has many posts where she has made food suggestions. Some that come to my mind right away are: Felidae, Merricks, Natural Balance, and Nutro. I believe Sharky has named some others, but again, read the labels. Look for foods with no by-products for a start and not a lot of grains/fillers. Stay away from Fancy Feast - not a quality product, just a tasty treat.
 

bars

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I think in this time we can not trust any cat food, they all made with checmicals and trash...and SOLT! then cat got that kidney / something desease , animals are not eating solt in the nature, why it's in the food? to kick off the bad smell from it?
maybe just cook for pets?... no sure
 

sharky

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Originally Posted by Bars

I think in this time we can not trust any cat food, they all made with checmicals and trash...and SOLT! then cat got that kidney / something desease , animals are not eating solt in the nature, why it's in the food? to kick off the bad smell from it?
maybe just cook for pets?... no sure
You need to do the some real research cause from your post you are ill informed ...

Yes you can cook for cats or do raw but for many that is not a viable option...


To the OP

Evo is a great food but I send it with a warning : Only 50% of cats who try it can handle the richness

Yosemite covered the stardard ones ...

You may want to look at Wellness( has many grain free ) , Weurva( spelling??)( has grain free) , Eagle pack ( has grains), Evo has 95% meats which seem to be better tolerated, Solid Gold ( has grains) ... I am missing some but someone will surely note them
 

yosemite

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Originally Posted by Bars

I think in this time we can not trust any cat food, they all made with checmicals and trash...and SOLT! then cat got that kidney / something desease , animals are not eating solt in the nature, why it's in the food? to kick off the bad smell from it?
maybe just cook for pets?... no sure
Well, it's not that bad, really.
As I said, read the labels. Cooking for pets is an option, but one has to ensure they add the other ingredients that cats need such as taurine and added vitamins, etc., so it's not for everyone.

There are some great foods out there. Sharky (our food guru) should be along to give you some info on Evo but I think if you do a quick search on this forum, you'll find she already has posted about most, if not all, of the better foods and her information is complete.
 
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rustypixel

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I just wanted to thank everyone for posting and for their suggestions. I was able to go to a few places and get some needed items, but none of what I purchased was food. It looks as if I'll be ordering their food online as not many in my area carry any of what I want. I do appreciate the suggestions of the higher quality foods and will concentrate my final research on those brands.

Thanks again!
 
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