Questions about commercial raw

LDG said:

Thanks for those! Darwin's looks great - and for anyone interested, though their regular order is a minimum of 20 pounds, they have an INTRODUCTORY OFFER of 10 pounds for $14.95 with FREE shipping! http://www.darwinspet.com/our-cat-food/

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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.

LDG said:

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.

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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 :bigthumb: 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 :dk: But, meat all AAFCO guidelines - they use straight calcium. Price is excellent and shipping is decent too :nod: 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 :nod: I will update with the kitties feedback :nod:

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

LDG said:

FYI, http://www.onlynaturalpet.com/cats/ seems to have some better prices for most of the commercial raw foods than PetFoodDirect.com.
And there is "free shipping" (apart from the $9.95 frozen surcharge for packing) for quite a number of commercial raw products. The coupon code is not being automatically applied, which is PIA, but I'm sure if you call them, it can be sorted.

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

Carolina said:

Hum....... hope I am allowed to do this......
Here you go everyone!

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

Carolina said:

Lauren, Their meats (NV's are USDA Meats, therefore fits all the standards for the human-grade USDA meats - including hormone-free poultry & Pork (hormone is prohibited in poultry and Pork)
In fact, I think that this is a perk we have in feeding raw - the meats are USDA meats/cuts, just like the ones we eat...... which is nice to know :nod: If I am not mistaken, Raw pet food can not be made otherwise.

All of the materials used in our raw diets and raw frozen bones are obtained from USDA-inspected facilities (or meet USDA requirements in the case of imports) and from animals that have passed ante- and post-mortem inspection. Our quality control and quality assurance programs include but are not limited to: Sanitation Standard Operating Procedures (SSOP’s), Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP’s), a Hazard Analysis & Critical Control Points (HACCP) program, regular lot segregation, and other industry best practices. That said, our manufacturing facilities are used to produce pet food rather than human food, and since this is not in line with the USDA's definition of human grade, our foods cannot be classified as being human grade.http://www.naturesvariety.com/learning/questions/5

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From the USDA:

NO HORMONES (pork or poultry):
Hormones are not allowed in raising hogs or poultry. Therefore, the claim "no hormones added" cannot be used on the labels of pork or poultry unless it is followed by a statement that says "Federal regulations prohibit the use of hormones."
http://www.fsis.usda.gov/Factsheets/Meat_&_Poultry_Labeling_Terms/index.asp

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On the link above you will also find some answers on labeling of the meat, according from the USDA

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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. :lol3: 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. :nod: 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 :lol3: , 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. :heart3: :sun:

:lol3: 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. :nod:

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. :nod: 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. :lol3:

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.

I didn't want to start a whole new thread about this. . .does anyone know what the "discount" is if you buy 60 pounds of Nature's Menu? I suppose I could contact them but I thought I'd ask here first.