Natural Balance Ultra vs. Ultra Indoor

misty8723

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My cats are indoor cats. Is there an avantage to giving them Natural Balance Ultra Indoor as opposed to the regular Natural Balance Ultra?

Ultra

Chicken Meal, Chicken, Brown Rice, Salmon Meal, Barley, Oatmeal, Chicken Fat (Preserved With Natural Mixed Tocopherols), Potatoes, Carrots, Lamb Meal, Canola Oil, Natural Flavor, Dried Egg, Brewers Yeast, Duck, Potassium Chloride, Whole Ground Flaxseed, Choline Chloride, Taurine, Natural Mixed Tocopherols, Spinach, Parsley Flakes, Cranberries, L-Lysine, L-Carnitine, Yucca Schidigera Extract, Dried Kelp, Zinc Proteinate, Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin, Manganese Proteinate, Copper Proteinate, Zinc Sulfate, Manganese Sulfate, Copper Sulfate, Thiamine Mononitrate (Vitamin B-1), Vitamin A Supplement, Biotin, Potassium Iodide, Calcium Pantothenate, Riboflavin (Vitamin B-2), Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B-6), Vitamin B-12 Supplement, Manganous Oxide, Sodium Selenite, Vitamin D-3 Supplement, Folic Acid.


Indoor Ultra

Chicken Meal, Brown Rice, Oatmeal, Salmon Meal, Oat Fiber, Pea Fiber, Natural flavor, Alfalfa Meal, Chicken Fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid), Dried Egg Product, Dried Potatoes, Potato Protein, Salmon Oil, Flaxseed Meal, Brewers Dried Yeast, Vegetable Pomace (carrots, celery, beets, parsley, lettuce, watercress and spinach), Sodium Chloride, Potassium Chloride, Fructooligosaccharides, Taurine, Yucca Shidigera Extract, dl-methionine, Lecithin, Vitamins (vitamin E supplement, niacin supplement, d-calcium pantothenate, vitamin B12 supplement, vitamin A acetate, vitamin D3 supplement, biotin, riboflavin, thiamine mononitrate, pyridoxine hydrochloride, menadione sodium metabisulfite [source of vitamin K activity], folic acid), Choline Chloride, Minerals (ferrous sulfate, zinc oxide, manganous oxide, copper sulfate, sodium selenite, cobalt carbonate, ethylenediamine dihydriodide), Iron Amino Acid Chelate, Manganese Amino Acid Chelate, Zinc Amino Acid Chelate, Copper Amino Acid Chelate, Cobalt Amino Acid Chelate, L-Carnitine, Mixed Tocopherols and Citric Acid (preservatives), Kelp Meal, Cranberries, Parsley Flakes, Lysine, Dried Spinach, Rosemary Extract.
 

Willowy

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What are the protein, fat, fiber, etc. levels?

Indoor formulas are usually lower in fat and higher in fiber. The fiber can be good for cats who have hairball or constipation problems, but my cats have never done well on lower fat foods.
 

gloriajh

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I guess you know about this link for canned: http://binkyspage.tripod.com/CanFoodNew.html or CatInfo.org ?

This excerpt is from catinfo.com:

Marketing labels such as "natural", or "premium", or "veterinarian recommended" are not necessarily indicative of high quality so please be careful not to fall into that trap.

"Indoor only" is another meaningless marketing gimmick. This label originally started out in the dry food market but it has now made its way to canned food labels. Keep in mind that cats did not stop being obligate carnivores just because we put a roof over their heads.
You didn't say the NB was kibble or canned, so I am guessing you are referring to kibble.
 
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misty8723

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Originally Posted by GloriaJH

I guess you know about this link for canned: http://binkyspage.tripod.com/CanFoodNew.html or CatInfo.org ?

This excerpt is from catinfo.com:

You didn't say the NB was kibble or canned, so I am guessing you are referring to kibble.
Kibble, yes. I feed them mainly canned, but put a little kibble down at night. I'm switching to Natural Balance because I was giving them California Natural and don't want to give them that any more. I just don't know if there really is an advantage to going with indoor over regular.
 
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misty8723

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Originally Posted by Willowy

What are the protein, fat, fiber, etc. levels?

Indoor formulas are usually lower in fat and higher in fiber. The fiber can be good for cats who have hairball or constipation problems, but my cats have never done well on lower fat foods.
Indoor Ultra
GUARANTEED ANALYSIS
Protein minimum 30%
Fat minimum 14%
Fiber maximum 8%
Moisture maximum 10%
Taurine minimum 0.12%
Omega-3 Fatty Acids* minimum 0.4%
Omega-6 Fatty Acids* minimum 2.5%

Regular Ultra
GUARANTEED ANALYSIS
Protein minimum 34%
Fat minimum 18%
Fiber maximum 3%
Moisture maximum 10%
Taurine minimum 0.16%
Omega-3 Fatty Acids* minimum 0.5%
Omega-6 Fatty Acids* minimum 3%
 

sharky

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Originally Posted by GloriaJH

I guess you know about this link for canned: http://binkyspage.tripod.com/CanFoodNew.html or CatInfo.org ?

This excerpt is from catinfo.com:

You didn't say the NB was kibble or canned, so I am guessing you are referring to kibble.
very much agree ... I recommend using indoor at times... Ie senior cats with younger ones needing a lower protein and higher fiber or instead of "light" or weight control formulas as the indoor usually have less extras and carbs in comparison
 

ducman69

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Regular Ultra looks like a better quality formula than the indoor variety IMO.


Not only is the protein higher, but you can see from the order of ingredients, it appears to be more meat and less plant protein.

Even if a cat were getting a little chunky, from what I have read, its better just to provide a few less kibble to reduce the caloric intake.
 
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misty8723

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Thanks, all. I was leaning toward the regular but thought I should ask the experts.
 
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