Wellness Kitty Food

I have been considering switching my kitties food to Wellness Complete Health Adult Salmon, Salmon Meal and Deboned Turkey Cat Food. It is really expensive, but I feel it may be worth it.

Ingredients:
Ingredients
Salmon, Salmon Meal, Whitefish Meal, Rice, Ground Barley, Ground Rice, Chicken Fat (preserved with Mixed Tocopherols, a natural source of Vitamin E), Deboned Turkey, Natural Chicken Flavor, Natural Fish Flavor, Cranberries, Olive Oil, Chicory Root Extract, Cranberry Extract Powder, Cranberry Fiber, Flaxseed, Potassium Chloride, Vitamins (Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin, Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C), Thiamine Mononitrate, Calcium Pantothenate, Riboflavin, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Beta-Carotene, Vitamin A Supplement, Vitamin D-3 Supplement, Folic Acid, Biotin, Vitamin B-12 Supplement), Choline Chloride, Minerals (Zinc Proteinate, Zinc Sulfate, Iron Proteinate, Ferrous Sulfate, Copper Sulfate, Copper Proteinate, Manganese Proteinate, Manganese Sulfate, Calcium Iodate, Sodium Selenite), Yucca Schidigera Extract, Dried Kelp, Glucosamine Hydrochloride, Chondroitin Sulfate, Lactobacillus Plantarum, Enterococcus Faecium, lactobacillus Casei, lactobacillus Acidophilus, Taurine, Rosemary Extract


Guaranteed Analysis
Protein (min.) 36.0%, Fat (min.) 18.0%, Fiber (max.) 3.0%, Moisture (max.) 11.0%, Ash (max.) 6.5%, Magnesium (max.) 0.098%, Vitamin E (min.) 300IU, Taurine (min.) 0.20%, Omega 6* (min.) 4.25%, Omega 3* (min.) .80%, Total Micro-Organisms* 80,000,000 CFU/lb. *Not recognized as an essential nutrient by the AAFCO Cat Food Nutrient Profiles.

Is this the best for my cats, or is there something better out there? I would like for the ingredients to be all natural, and even organic if possible I eat well, why shouldn't my cats?

Has anyone ever used this brand? Recommend? Issues? Let me know

My cats ate a lot more of it than other high end foods - and IMO it was too $$ for the quality. They were eating almost 2x as much of that as the previous food they were on, and it was 2x the price!

What are they eating right now?

they have been eating meow mix for a while. Their daddy likes meow mix because it is pretty cheap. I would rather get them something that is full of good stuff with the least amount of fillers. I noticed their bag is getting a little low, but I have enough to transition to a new diet if I can find some good wholesome stuff that won't break my bank.

Also, any wetfood that is good for them would be helpful
I usually give them each a can a couple of times a week. They like them a lot. I give them fancy feast usually. I gave Socks "Special Kitty" when he was sick.

I feed Taste of The Wild, and it's a good value for being grain free, and my cats all have amazing coats with it. Plus less poop, lol.

Try Now! Naturals or Go! Naturals by Petcurean. The former is grainfree. It's pricey but you don't have to feed as much and the bag claims the food is minimally processed. My cats love it!

I've read other threads and other posters have suggested Taste of the Wild is reasonably priced.

Other brands that I know of:
Nature's Variety Prairie and Instinct (2 separate types of food)
Chicken Soup for the Cat Lovers' Soul (or the Cat's Soul?)
Orijen
Innova
Natural Balance

Out of the above 5 choices, I would choose the Nature's Variety formulas, Orijen or Innova - my cats liked the Nature's Variety dry and canned and they did like Orijen - I used to feed my dog Innova - I trust Natura, who makes Innova. More than Hill's that's for sure!

Canned food is the best, next to raw, for cats as they need the moisture. Plus, it's less grainy than kibble. Especially important for male cats and their urinary health. you can do half kibble and half canned if money is an issue. F

Awesome! Thank you for the suggestions I get paid in about 20 minutes, haha I will take a look around and see what I can get for them. I never thought about the wet food being better, but you have a good point I thought cans were more for snacks, and they weren't that good for them!

Originally Posted by MaineCoons

Awesome! Thank you for the suggestions

I get paid in about 20 minutes, haha

I will take a look around and see what I can get for them. I never thought about the wet food being better, but you have a good point

I thought cans were more for snacks, and they weren't that good for them!

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Don't forget that most pet food stores will give you sample sizes of different food. (At least privately owned ones) Or you can send away for free samples.

Good idea!
I have never sent out for kitty food samples. I did with my birds though
I'm going to look for samples now!

I have requested samples from Natures Variety Prairie food. That really looked like the best I like the ingredients in it. I am hoping they won't mind sending me free samples. I also asked them generally how long their bags last as I have three very hungry mouths to feed!

I am hoping they won't mind sending me samples

I e-mailed Wellness and asked them to send me samples of their CORE, Chicken, and Salmon dry foods to see which one my kitty would like. I got the samples within a week. I'm sure any other of the better quality pet food companies you're looking at will gladly send you some samples and you can see what works for your kitty.

I personally feed my kitty mostly wet food since it is so very good for them. Only leave dry out for them to nibble on between meals.

I would choose Taste of the wild for grain free .... Price is good and quality is good...

I personally do Not trust Natura much but they do make some good stuff with the EVO line

Examples in my house: EVO gave everyone the runs for way to long after switch. Core was another stool issue, Instict NO one would eat ( the dog would not eat the cat formula ), Taste all did okay on ( ph issues stayed), Orijen All did well till the PH gave into uti , Acana they love and I use as treats, Seregetti another one no one would touch

Originally Posted by MaineCoons

I have requested samples from Natures Variety Prairie food. That really looked like the best

I like the ingredients in it. I am hoping they won't mind sending me free samples. I also asked them generally how long their bags last as I have three very hungry mouths to feed!

I am hoping they won't mind sending me samples

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I feed 5 cats free feed plus some canned and 15 pounds lasts me about a month.

Thank you for all the input!
I did not get free samples from Natural Variety, which mad me sad.. but they did send me a coupon for a buy 1 get 1 free (buy any size bag and get a 4 lb bag free) soo, I am going to try it, as there is a nice local petshop in my town that sells their product

I will see if Wellness will send me a couple of cans too. I will go with whatever my kitties prefer. They will eat basically anything

@ Kluchetta - Do you schedule feedings. or free feed? Mine are little fuzzy food eating machines.. but that also could be because their diet is currently Meow Mix?

Originally Posted by MaineCoons

Thank you for all the input!
I did not get free samples from Natural Variety, which mad me sad.. but they did send me a coupon for a buy 1 get 1 free (buy any size bag and get a 4 lb bag free) soo, I am going to try it, as there is a nice local petshop in my town that sells their product

I will see if Wellness will send me a couple of cans too. I will go with whatever my kitties prefer. They will eat basically anything

@ Kluchetta - Do you schedule feedings. or free feed? Mine are little fuzzy food eating machines.. but that also could be because their diet is currently Meow Mix?

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Well, I free feed the dry - I have an automatic feeder that dispenses a couple cups 3 times a day, and it never runs out. As far as the canned food, I pretty much feed all five whenever Tigger (the 20 year old) wants to eat. Which can be as many as 4 - 5 times a day, unfortunately. She is insatiable, and that is on the good food, LOL. She wouldn't even get full on Fancy Feast!

My cats each eat a small can of fancy feast in like 2 minutes
I think I might get a couple of those food dispensers. I might have to get three of them, so they don't fight over food They don't like taking turns. I also think I am going to start giving them wet food daily. and maybe twice daily. I just want them to be healthy and happy!

Originally Posted by kluchetta

I feed Taste of The Wild, and it's a good value for being grain free, and my cats all have amazing coats with it. Plus less poop, lol.

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I second TOTW!

I'm a Wellness fan. My last cat would only pick at food (especially canned, though she was also rather picky about kibble) until I found Wellness -- she would also vomit her food pretty often. Once we started Wellness, the vomiting all but ended and there was never any effort to get her to eat her canned food.

My current two also seem to have a pretty strong preference for Wellness. Well, one will eat almost anything, but the other not at all. They don't, though, care for the chicken. -- ?

I've had a couple of friends who had cats with occasional vomiting issues who tried Wellness and the problem much improved after shifting to Wellness.

I don't like to free feed. One, I don't want my cats to become overweight. Mind you, some cats do well on free feeding and don't become overweight. However, I like to know how much each cat is eating so if one stops or eats significantly less, I know there's a problem. Also, if I have to take them to the vet, I can say he ate 1/4 cup of whatever.

I would say you'd have to decide based on your cats. If your cats eat everything in sight, then no, I would go with scheduled feeding. Or, alternatively, you can measure it out and don't keep refilling the bowl.