Does anyone feed Flint River Ranch?

I dunno about their dog food, maybe it's better, but their cat food seems to contain basically the same kinds of ingredients as the pet foods you don't want to feed them. :/

Check out the ingredients list of the cat and kitten food:
Chicken Meal, Ground Yellow Corn, Lamb Meal, Corn Gluten Meal, Chicken Fat (Preserved with Mixed Tocopherols and Ascorbic Acid), Ground Whole Wheat, Inactive Dried Brewer's Yeast, Fish Meal, Corn Germ Meal, Salt, Dried Beet Pulp, Dehydrated Cheese, Lecithin, D-Activated Animal Sterol (Source of Vitamin D3), Vitamin A Acetate, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin Supplement, Riboflavin, Calcium Pantothenate, Choline Chloride, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Folic Acid, Biotin, Thiamine Mononitrate, Inositol, DL-Methionine, Manganese, Dehydrated Kelp, Zinc Sulphate, Copper Sulphate, Cobalt Sulphate, Ferrous Sulphate, Taurine, Calcium Iodate, Sodium Selenite, Dried Whey.

I also have a hard time trusting the nutritional knowhow of any company that tries to make this claim:
"Corn is more readily digested in felines than in canines and supplies important diet benefits to cats and kittens. Corn is a nutritionally superior grain compared with others used in pet foods because it contains a balance of nutrients not found in other grains."

It sounds like they're basically trying to come up with a convincing argument as to why they've packed their cat food with a nutritionally useless, cheap, high-sugar filler. Everything I've ever read about cat nutrition suggests it is not more readily digested in felines than in canines (I would think the opposite is true), and is in fact the source of allergies and food intolerances for a lot of cats. It's used in pet food (and human food) so much because it's very cheap, so it's a cheap way to boost nutritional values on the label without having to add more of the expensive, higher-quality ingredients like real meat. Brewer's yeast is another one of those cheap filler ingredients (and another common allergen) used to boost protein values without having to add more meat.

Some foods you may want to look into are Wellness, Merrick, and Blue Buffalo Wilderness. They'll probably provide more of what you're looking for.

Raw diets are another option. My cats were originally on the above-mentioned grain-free wet foods, and then I eventually put them on a premade raw (Primal) to try to resolve digestive issues in one (which were only improved slightly by the grain-free wet) and the results were amazing. If you want to talk dramatic quality of life changes, just wow. Any of my initial skepticism over "how much better could raw really be than grain-free canned?" went away after seeing the results for myself.

Not a food I recommend ... mostly cause it is hard to find and IMHO = to the "premium" grocery brands like Iams

What stores can you shop?

Corn germ meal is not corn nor is corn gluten they are fractions of ,.... one is a form of fiber( not one I like) and one is a protein ( very good at providing UTI balance in a dry )....


Corn is 30-50% digestible in BOTH cats and dogs... though I have read a study claiming 99% digestibility in a dog ( not for a second do I believe that one )

Corn germ would be near 0

Corn gluten is 66-76% which actually makes it more than most fish , nearly equal to some wheat and potato

Brewers yeast is NOT a cheap additive ... but a HIGHLY allergenic vitamin and mineral supplement.. In an inactive form it is slightly less likely to cause a reaction in a prone animal

Can you elaborate on this? Why do you not consider it a cheap additive?

Brewer's yeast is an excellent source of vitamin B, which is good for coat, skin, and eyes. You may be thinking of the fact that many cats are allergic to brewer's yeast, which is why it would not be common in foods, but as a supplement.

Actually, from looking at the ingredients, it's about mid-grade. . .of course, if your dog has sensitivities and is doing well on that food, there's no reason to change. But there are better foods out there, and most of them cost less. FRR is very expensive for the quality.

Is there a Tractor Supply Co in the area? They have a pretty good selection. Some independent feed stores have the good foods, too.

There are online pet food sites you can order any brand from if it really is hard to get decent foods locally. www.petfooddirect is one I've used.

The canned foods I've fed in the past are Wellness, Blue Buffalo Wilderness, and Merrick. The first two are available at Petsmart I believe. The latter I can only find at Petco or small local stores.

These days I feed them mostly Primal, which is a premade raw. It's usually small local stores that carry that. They have a store locator on their website.

Wellness is IMHO getting to high$$ for the quality in both dry and canned... Merrick I now avoid at all costs

I like Primal and so did the cats but it is very hard to get here( distribution issues I have addressed them, used to consult for a local pet store)...Last I checked the store s that had it ( about 8 $ a lb)...


Petsmart

Authority- decent for the $$
Nutro - ever changing dry some of the wet still is very solid
Blue ( the Wilderness is their no grain and since the reformulation my cats enjoy it ) ... the other IMHO have too much grain for the price
Wellness( the amount varies by location some do not have but a 2.5 ft inlin of it )
By nature - wet is $$ but good ... dry IMHO is a grainy for the $$
Innova/Evo - very sporadic locations have it .. Evo is the no grain and the wet is very good