Questions about commercial raw - Page 3

Apparently this offer is with a subscription for home delivery..... However, even so, their food is SUPER affordable, and so is shipping, usually $0.99/lb.... I am going to see about placing an order for their Turkey, as I am paying $8.99/lb and $1.49 would definitely be a bargain!

Thanks.  Fascinating that they include Catnip as an ingredient.  A natural source of fiber, too.

I use catnip (plus mackerel and sometimes a pinch of Friskies) as bait when I am trying to trap cats (TNR).  Definitely intices the cats to investigate further, literally.

Hum....... hope I am allowed to do this......

Here you go everyone!

You're allowed I guess :) !

NV frequently gives coupons, sign up for them on their web site.

Some retailers get trial size bags of their raw food.  It's about 12 ounces.  Sometimes you need a coupon, sometimes if the manager/sales person notices that you are looking at the NV, they'll offer it to you for free.

 

Thank you, Carolina for this one: http://www.pawnaturaw.com/

A company with an environmental focus, certified organic manufacturing facility, and all meats cruelty-free and pasture-fed/grass fed/vegetarian fed (poultry). Most of the cat dinners are single-source proteins; the dinners (for cats; marketed cats & dogs) are all 95:5 meat/bones/organs to other stuff. Most include liver and gizzards or liver and kidney, not just liver.

They also have very affordable shipping as they have retailers where they ship from nationwide, and if you buy from Amazon, they have free expedite shipping, and second day air shipping free with Prime, or next day for $3.99 Unfortunately, from Amazon, your choices are limited..... Turkey, chicken, etc. They have chicken necks, gizzards, etc as well for treats. If you want to make you own food, they also sell the large rolls of ground meat.

Here is how you can buy from Amazon: Paw Naturaw at Amazon

Found one that's also Vegetable and Fruit free, but unfortunately not many proteins.... Just Chicken, Turkey, Beef and Lamb - all single protein, which is nice. They do not use bone, or bone meal though But, meat all AAFCO guidelines - they use straight calcium. Price is excellent and shipping is decent too Nature's Menu

And yet another vegetable and fruit free.... this is FANCY stuff - GREAT formula - They use Whole prey - i.e.: Whole Turkey, or Whole Chicken, Whole Rabbit, always free range, and never mix proteins..... Down side.... quite $$$ - I also love that they use 3 organs in their formula too.... Pretty good stuff it seems.... The rabbit is pretty tempting.... Looking for a great Veggie/fruit free rabbit! Here you go: http://www.fegnion.com/Raw_Fed_Cats_Nutritional_Contents.html

EDIT: The shipping and handling is already included in the price.... so it is a bit more than Rad Cat.... but - Rad Cat has not Rabbit, so I placed an order I will update with the kitties feedback

This one is in Canada - also vegetable and Fruit free - beautiful formulas, use Whole carcasses for all their foods, and have plenty of choices:
Beef Patties
Chicken Patties
Lamb Patties
Duck Patties
Rabbit Patties
Bison Patties
Elk Patties
Quail Patties
http://www.carnivora.ca/html/featured_products/fresh_frozen_products/index.cfm

Somehow I missed this !!!!!!!!!!!! Thank you . This is great to know. All of the information both you and Carolina are digging up in this thread is just so incredibly appreciated!!

THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

WOW - thank's Carolina. I am just catching up in this thread this morning as you can see. I really appreciate the research you are doing - so kind Thanks for the info. I have a lot of reading to catch up on with these link's too.

OK, got another one. This distributor contacted Jim (our pet store guy) TODAY, about an hour before we went in. It's called OC Raw Dog, and they have three feline formulas. Their feline formula is 95% meat, 5% other stuff, with SOME fruit and veggies, but not the long list of them like with S&C and NV. Their chicken formula includes liver & gizzard (in addition to heart) for the organs, and their beef formula includes tripe (in addition to the liver & heart). I emailed them about the bone content, and I got a reply from the President/CEO in like half an hour. Here's the response:

Bone content (the percentage of bone in the meat/bone/organs part of the food, not as a total % of the food):

Feline Chicken & Produce = 8%-10%

Feline Beef & Produce = 5%-8%

Feline Fish & Produce = 3%-5%

http://www.ocrawdog.com/

Just a reminder, in case you guys aren't aware.... from the perspective of raw feeding, hearts, lungs and gizzards are all considered part of the meat percentage, while liver, kidney, spleen, and other "secreting" organs are considered part of the organ percentage.

 

AC

Thanks, AC. I did NOT know that about gizzards.

For anyone interested in a comprehensive overview and comparison of commercial raw foods, AC started a spreadsheet that I finished putting together.

If I may say so myself, it is an EXCELLENT resource for people shopping for commercial raw foods. It lists each manufacturer and formula, ingredients, guaranteed analysis, and identifies quickly and easily whether it is a single-source protein food, what organs are in it, whether it is organic, the source of meats (where available), whether red meats are grass or pasture-fed/raised, if the food is "complete and balanced" as per AAFCO (generally on an as-fed basis), and has other notes and info on the foods/manufacturers.

It's a printable excel spreadsheet. If anyone needs it in PDF format, just PM me or AC.

It is downloadable from the Raw Feeding page at CatCentric.org: scroll down to "Special Features."

Oh Laurie - I can't, again , thank you enough for this spreadsheet. It has been invaluable to me these last days during my introduction to the commercial raw diet's available to the consumer. Just an outstanding effort and I SOOOOO appreciate your generosity in preparing this for everyone interested. Many, many thanks - you never cease to amaze me. I have printed out the 25 page spreadsheet and have more than once or twice a day had to refer to the facts and overview of all products available. I would HIGHLY recommend this to anyone transitioning their cats to raw. You have taken out all of the time required to research and resource these brands - saving many hours of searching.

The reason I offered to do the spreadsheet when AC mentioned it was that I needed to do the work anyway... and she didn't. So it just made sense. But it is a great resource for anyone wanting to shop commercial raw foods.

The only thing I want to add to that - and I may have already mentioned it here - is that the one thing I learned from that research is that with commercial raw, it's perhaps more important to rotate not just proteins, but manufacturers. The formulas are all so different. Personally, I'd try to avoid any of them with more than 5% "other stuff" in them. But no matter the choice - it's still healthier than the cooked alternatives.

Wow, this thread is full of great information! One of my cats does not like Nature's Variety. I tried a few different meats but he just looks at me like I am crazy (all cat owners know this look!) They all love Nature's Menu, Primal, and Fresh is Best. The favorites seem to be turkey and rabbit. I get these brands at a holistic vet clinic near my house. Primal rabbit is the most expensive and Nature's Menu turkey is the least -about $11 for 3 pounds.

Don't know - but I just introduced the lamb, and it it GREAT meat. Really fresh, really great stuff - kids did well in it here. It is no BS type of meat - there is meat, and meat and meat, and nothing else - great stuff!
Now......Something else for you to consider - Cheap shipping and very high quality.... huge Variety, is Hare Today..... The price is very very low too.....
The only thing you need to do is to add the supplement (they sell their own and it is quite good actually) to it. The meat comes ready, fine ground.
Here is the Pork, for example: $2.99/lb; Turkey, $2.79/lb, Goat, $3.95/lb..... You get the idea.... They have many many types of meat.... all, USDA, pasture fed.... good stuff

You will really like their meat - right when you get it, you will see the difference - you can see right away that it is 100% meat and nothing else (well, there is supplements) - but no veggies, fruits, etc. I LOVE that about them. All the brands I feed mine are 100% meat - I do not feed anything with fruits and veggies, so I am very very glad I found them and very impressed with their quality - and oh so glad the kitties are as impressed!
Pricing is great too
PS - The patties defrost faster than NV - If you put them overnight in the fridge, they will be good to serve in the am

I did get the goat from hare today as I wanted another dark meat besides lamb, and Hope can not deal with beef....
I also got quail, pheasant and rabbit. I will definitely get pork next time AWESOME prices..... and I think they will love-it!

Good luck, and I hope your kids love it love it!!
Oh, and IMHO they fit the freezer quite nicely, as the patties are smaller and are laying horizontally - they take less space than NV patties, I find - you will see

Definitely - that's my issue too..... For Bugsy bone free foods are way better.... in fact, for cats with IBD, that is thought to be generally better as it is easier to be digested by a compromised digestive system.... So at least 1/2 of his meats will be Rad Cat and Nature's Menu for that very reason..... My hope is that Hare Today's bones are tiny..... NV were too big for my taste.....
I have rabbit defrosting right now to mix the supplements - will start transitioning them tomorrow. Will post it here and in my thread what I notice about the bones.... They say it is "Finely ground" But you never know exactly what that means, until you see it

This is pretty much a copy of what I entered in my thread, but I wanted to enter in here too -

Ok - just mixed the "batch" of Hare Today rabbit for our intro..... Gotta say.... WOW!
Let me put it this way..... I don't think there is a lot rabbit on NV patties..... Hare Today's meat is bright pink I mean..... it looks sooooo fresh.... sooooo meaty..... and sooooo pink Nothing like the Whitish patty from NV Rabbit - IMHO there is a lot of pork in it

So.... back to Hare Today - Very very easy to mix the supplements (the meat comes ground Muscle/bone/organs, but you have to mix the supplements in). You defrost the little 1lb chub.... It takes a bit over one hour under cold water.... Then you mix one measuring spoon of supplement with about 1/3 cup of water (the instructions call for in between 1/4 and 1/2 per pound - so I averaged out) - mix it well, and mix it into the meat.

What I did was I separated what I needed for tomorrow, which is only about 4.5oz and put that in the fridge. In a second container I put 9oz - that is going to be used on day 2 of my intro - it is back in the freezer. And the rest in a 3rd container also in the freezer..... One pound is not enough for the whole intro.... So I will definitely need to mix some more around day 3, but it's alright.... It only takes a few minutes to prepare

The meat is gorgeous, I mean - GORGEOUS. Rad Cat is fresh... But this puts the "F" on Fresh!

I can barely see the bones in it - there IS bones, but they are small.... way smaller than NV, at least the pieces I found. This is definitely finely ground. I will see better tomorrow when I feed them by what is left in the plate

I gave a little bit in my finger for both Bugsy and Hope, and they both liked it a whole lot...... let's hope they will like it tomorrow when it is mixed in their food

I will be posting my reviews and their likings and how they do on it in my thread. I am hoping Lucky will do well on it..... Would be great to have another protein to rotate Will keep all posted

Let us know!!!!

OK - news on the Hare-Today meat/bone/organs ratios. The information is in the FAQs: https://www.hare-today.com/faq.php



Can't really beat "as nature intended."