Nature's variety instinct Limited ingredient formula. What do you think?

Well I am still working on the raw conversion, but am leaving on vacation in a week. My parents are taking care of the cats and dog and don't want to feed raw. They are also gone for 12 or so hours a day on some of the days, so a little long to go between meals. Anyways, as some of my posts have stated, Kattie is going nuts with the allergies. I'm thinking it is atopic, but am not completely ruling out food allergies. The doc said to cut out any foods with fish in it to start, fish oil is ok as it doesn't have the fish protein. what I have done so far is get rid of all the Friskies and Fancy Feast in case she is allergic to wheat gluten. I only fed those once in while when the cats were being fussy but no more. When I'm not feeding raw, I have decided to just go grain free with Kattie. Oscar is fine and will finish off the foods I'm not feeding her, then his diet will be the same as hers.

Now I feed a very limited amount of dry.like an 1/8 of a cup per cat a day and the rest is canned or raw. When at my parents they will have to eat more dry, but still get their wet meals. My question is what do you guys  think of the Natures Variety Instinct Limited Ingredient food? It is the Turkey meal formula so gets rid of chicken as an allergen. I bought it for Kattie and she seems to like it. I am still giving Oscar the orijen and wellness food til it is gone. I also have California Naturals Chicken and Brown rice. This one seems like it will defeat the purpose of being allergen free as it has grain and chicken, but is touted as being for allergies. None of the food will go to waste as I will feed Oscar it til it is gone but I want to know what would be better for Kattie while I'm gone. She will still get EVO and Wellness and BG canned. All grain free and I am not giving any fish ones. There are so many potential allergens it is mind boggling. I will not put her on Science Diet or Royal Canin if at all possible. When I get back she is going to go majority raw will the occassional canned meal. Again I know dry is bad but I need something in the interim till I can convert to raw completely.

Here are the ingredients for each of the potential dry foods

Nature's Variety Instinct turkey formula:
Turkey Meal, Tapioca, Canola Oil (preserved with Mixed Tocopherols and Citric Acid), Peas, Natural Flavor, Montmorillonite Clay, Coconut Oil, Potassium Chloride, Choline Chloride, Salt, DL-Methionine, Vitamins (Vitamin A Supplement, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin Supplement, d-Calcium Pantothenate, L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate, Thiamine Mononitrate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin Supplement, Folic Acid, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement), Minerals (Zinc Proteinate, Iron Proteinate, Copper Proteinate, Manganese Proteinate, Ethylenediamine Dihydriodide, Sodium Selenite), Taurine, Green Tea Extract, Rosemary Extract.

It seems a little too simple and I don't like the canola oil but it is 40% protein I believe. I also don't like that it is 3.5 % fiber, because of her constipation issues, but she has done ok on higher fiber foods as long as She eats canned.

Here is Ca Naturals:

• Chicken
• Chicken Meal
• Brown Rice
• Rice
• Chicken Fat (Preserved with Natural Mixed Tocopherols and Citric Acid)
• Natural Flavors
• Sunflower Oil (Preserved with Natural Mixed Tocopherols and Citric Acid)
• Flaxseed
• Vitamins (Vitamin E Supplement, Betaine Hydrochloride, Niacin Supplement, Vitamin A Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate, Calcium Pantothenate, Riboflavin Supplement, Beta-Carotene, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Biotin, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Folic Acid)
• Potassium Chloride
• Minerals (Calcium Carbonate, Zinc Proteinate, Iron Proteinate, Copper Proteinate, Manganese Proteinate, Calcium Iodate)
• Taurine
• DL-Methionine
• Rosemary Extract

Again it is Chicken and Brown rice which I am thinking of doing an elimination, but not sure it is chicken that is even causing the problem.

I am still going to feed a majority of canned but need the dry for the periods inbetween canned meals.

Actually meal is fine as long as it is a named meal ie Turkey meal or chicken meal. It is actually the turkey or chicken dehydrated of its water content so is actually higher proportionally in protein content. So if you have a food with deboned turkey but backed up with turkey meal then maybe another meat meal then the starch like potatoes or grain if you go that way, you can be sure that the food has plenty of protein and not just potatoes. You see if a food has something like deboned chicken then potatoes or peas or rice, you'll think " Hey great it has deboned chicken which is good right?" Well in reality, that deboned chicken is inclusive of it's water content so when they make the kibble and remove the water from the chicken, it is going to end up farther down on the ingredient list, so in reality the potato or rice will be the first ingredient. I actually don't mind the turkey meal or chicken meal at all as I know the source of the meal and it isn't the bad stuff, just dehydrated chicken or turkey. If it said poultry meal or beef meal, that is when you need to be worried.

Anyways, sorry for going on about that. I was the go to nutrition guru at work and have always tried to pick good foods for my pets. They have always been on premium dry and canned foods. It's just frrustrating with kattie's allergies. She may not even be allergic to foods, but I'm going to try the LTD diet again. I hate them as I feel they are too limited but i want to cover all bases. CA naturals worked for my dog when he was bad, and then switching to Acana, he's been great. Kattie will get on raw eventually it is just going to take a bit before I can do that 100%. until then, I'm looking for the most hypoallergenic diet possible to just rule out a few more things.
 

Emily, she's looking for a decent dry food to feed temporarily. I don't think one exists that doesn't have "meal."

I definitely think the NV LID is superior to the CA Natural. I haven't looked at the guaranteed analysis and calculated the carbs (on a dry matter basis, which is what matters), and I'll do that for you tomorrow. (I'm on the phone and it's a PIA :lol3: )

I don't know what your budget is, but Wysong has a Carb-free, starch-free dry food, Epigen 90. Unfortunately, it's very expensive.

And just another thought, though also an expensive option, Stella and Chewy's makes a freeze dried raw that looks like large kibbles. It's meant to be rehydrated, but it can be fed dry temporarily, or as food left out for long hours between meals (in measured amount). It's also pathogen-free guaranteed, so even if your parents have to mix water in for a meal, they might not object. It looks and smells just like canned food.

Just brain storming!

Oh! The NV has coconut oil, which has helped both dogs and days with atopical allergy issues. I don't know if it's the right kind, or if it's enough, but thought I'd mention that. Those who use it for their animals with environmental allergies give one tablespoon a day of extra virgin, cold pressed coconut oil from fresh coconut, not dried chopra. I know Nutiva brand is this type. I tried it with Chumley. He lined it, and just ate it. :lol3: We saw his holistic vet for the first time just shortly after I got it, and she had a whole different regimen (that worked), so I really don't have experience to impart.

Emily's objection to meal, I believe, is that it is rendered. A named meal is clearly superior than "meat meal," but can still have diseased animals that weren't fit for human consumption as opposed to just being the garbage from animals used for human food production.

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/245614/...by-products-meal-or-rather-not-think-about-it

We discussed the "meal" subject at some length in this thread, if you're interested (when you have time).

Ahh thanks Laurie!

As it is I'm running low in the budget lol. I bought a bunch of raw and grain free cans the last few days, then her vet visits which hopefully i will get some reimbursement from the insurance company. I did buy the Nature's Variety LID on sort of a whim as I had a coupon plus my pet store was having a sale on all Nature's Variety products. I looked to see if they had freeze dried raw and they were all out . Anyways, I also looked at there new rawboost formulas and they looked ok  for a normal cat but had chicken meal and i believe herring meal in their fomula so a no go on that. I also tried Stella and Chewys in the past for them as i got it for my dog as a treat and Kattie wouldn't touch it the weirdo lol. I would be curious to the carb content on this food though as I am trying to keep carbs lower on both my cats as they tend to gain weight. Anyways, thanks so much. Hopefully this food is good. I opened it and it looks ok and Kattie likes it. I can return it though as i still have the receipt. That reminds me I have to return the probiotic treats I got as no one will touch them. Expensive buggers at 15 bucks lol...
 

Ahh yes I forgot the rendered part. I hope by picking the more premium brands that they would have a little more integrity in what they put in their foods but then again it is a business in the end. I am not too put off by the meal part as long as it is named and prefer it to back up something like just plain chicken or turkey ect. just so I know that there is a good amount of meat. I remember whenn switching my dog off Natura products I went to Merricks and tried a few of their varieties designed for rotational feeding. Well stay away from Cowboy Cookout!  Man I didn't look at the ingredients and I beleive it was beef then oats or potatoes or something, but doing a double check of the ingredients I figured that the oats were technically the first ingredient. His coat got really bad and flaky on that. I switched to Acana Pacifica and he is great again. They have whole meats and meals but i am pretty confident that all the ingredients are decent. My dog does great on it and I really like the company. If I had it my way, I'd feed everyone raw, but in my situation right now I don't think that is feasible.(Apartment freezer and feeding a 55 pound dog and two cats requires a ton of meat lol)

Well, dogs aren't obligate carnivores, so just feeding the two cats raw would cut down the cost. But I hear ya on the freezer space. :lol3: We live in an RV. Our entire fridge/freezer is 7 cubic feet! The freezer holds maybe 25 pounds of stuff? Not much. We had to buy a small chest freezer from craigslist (cost $35!).

Anyway... I'm surprised. Assuming ash is 7% (typical in dry food), the carbs in the NV LID are 23.9%!

...but the California Natural (assuming ash is 7%) is 32.8% carbs.


You could also consider the Innova PRIME grain-free chicken & turkey formula. There's no fish: http://www.innovapet.com/products/1745

Ingredients

Chicken
Chicken Meal
Peas
Turkey
Flaxseed
Pea Fiber
Menhaden Oil (Preserved with Mixed Tocopherols, a Source of Vitamin E)
Natural Flavors
Dried Chicory Root Extract
Apples
Potassium Chloride
Taurine
Carrots
Pumpkin
Vitamins (Betaine Hydrochloride, Niacin Supplement, Vitamin A Supplement, Calcium Pantothenate, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin Supplement, Beta Carotene, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Biotin, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Folic Acid)
Cranberries
Alfalfa Sprouts
Minerals (Zinc Proteinate, Calcium Carbonate, Iron Proteinate, Copper Proteinate, Manganese Proteinate, Calcium Iodate)
DL-Methionine
Cottage Cheese
Direct Fed Microbials (Dried Lactobacillus acidophilus Fermentation Product, Dried Lactobacillus casei Fermentation Product, Dried Enterococcus faecium Fermentation Product)
Vitamin E Supplement
Rosemary Extract

It's 19.4% carbs.

Though as you'll be feeding it for just a short period of time, the limited ingredients of the NV LID probably make more sense than the lower carbs of the Innova PRIME.

Thanks!

I can't find the ash  content any where on the food. Kinda concerning but she doesn't eat it exclusively and she has no history of UTI or kidney issues. I guess i will stick with the NV for now although the Blue freedom looks tempting as I feed my dog the canned version of that. I am going crazy with Kattie though. Got to get into that holistic vet.