Anyone have any advice to give feeding Bozita dry food?

I am currently trying to find a better quality dry cat foods as after spending over a year trying to convert my cat over to wet food I can now say I have successfully failed converting her.

So far the better quality cat foods I have found are:

• Acana
• Orijen
• Taste of the Wild

I am looking to try Cuddles on Bozita dry food next week and was wondering if anyone else has tried there cat(s) on this?

The reason why I am looking for better quality cat foods is because I have to make sure certain ingredients are included in the dry food including Taurine  and Omega 3 & 6 as Cuddles has a low end grade 2 form of HCM (Heart disease) and Atopy. She is currently on no medication for the HCM or Atopy as she isn't at the stage for medication for the HCM and her atopy has been stable for 4 months now and I am looking at things I can do that can help support and strengthen her heart and have read that omega 3 fatty acids are good for this and taurine.

All cat foods now have taurine, but if she has a need for extra you could use a supplement. It's water-soluble (excess comes out in the urine) so you'd have to go crazy with it in order to overdose.

Most commercial foods don't have a very good omega 6/omega 3 ratio, though. She won't eat canned food at all? Usually you can sneak some salmon oil into their canned food. Do you think she'd eat sardines? 1 sardine a week would provide a lot of omega 3s.

I'm not familiar with Bozita. . .I suppose it's a UK brand. Can you post an ingredient list?

Hi there, Bozita is actually a Swedish made cat food available on zooplus 

This is the content for the 

Bozita Katty Cat Food with Meat:

Continuation of Product Description:  
[*]Swedish meat makes Bozita Katty Cat Food unbelievably delicious and provides your cat with essential protein and amino acids.[*]Bozita Katty Cat Food allows your cat to maintain an optimal urine pH-balance in order to prevent kidney stones.[*]Taurine is a crucial substance for cats. Bozita Katty Cat Food provides your cat with a rich supply of this amino acid, for sharp eyesight, and a sound functioning heart.Bozity Katty Cat Food is produced under the supervision of Lantmännen Doggy AB in accordance with the strict food laws of Sweden. Doggy's over 100 years of experience with cat food and high quality Swedish raw ingredients ensures the healthy nourishment of your cat. No animal experiments were conducted in the making of this product.

Ingredients:
Whole grain wheat, dehydrated chicken, rice, flour, meat, fresh Swedish chicken, animal fat, chicken broth, molasses yeast, potassium chloride, sodium chloride.
Additives:
Nutritional dietary additives/kg:
Vitamin A 8000 IU, vitamin D3 800 IU, vitamin E 50 mg, methionine 1600 mg, taurine 600 mg, copper 8 mg (copper (II) sulphate-pentahydrate), manganese 6 mg (manganese –II & -III oxide), zinc 56 mg (zinc sulphate, monohydrate), iodine 0.4 mg (calcium iodate, monohydrate).
High-energy raw materials are protected by EU approved antioxidants. Contains all the vitamins and minerals your cat needs.

This is the

 Bozita Feline Indoor & Sterilised:

• For adult indoors cats with normal or low activity levels and those which have been sterilised
• Suitable for senior cats
• Complete cat food
• Gives your cat the appropriate amount energy it needs for its less active life style
• With cellulose fibres to reduce hairball formation
• With delicious, easy to digest chicken
• Balanced nutrients. With MacroGard, antioxidants and vitamins for a healthy immune system
• Swedish quality: Made in Sweden with premium ingredients and under strict quality control

Bozita Feline Indoor & Sterilised cat food has many functional advantages:

• MacroGard  a natural carbohydrate food additive made from yeast stimulates and strengthens your cat’s natural defences in all stages of its life
• Chicken  - fresh, delicious meat that's enjoyed by all cats
• Optimum balance of minerals  to keep kidneys and urinary tract healthy.
• L-carnitine  helps to burn fat and may encourage a healthy weight

Sweden – a country of breathtaking beauty and untouched nature which provides the best possible basis for fresh, healthy and high-quality ingredients. This love of nature is part of the philosophy behind every pack of Bozita Feline cat food. Bozita is produced in the historical province of Västergötland, a place which is very dear to all who love the countryside. All Bozita Feline varieties are made from top-quality meat mixed with healthy bran and grain. And each variety is of the same high quality, using only meat from animals which have been raised in the Swedish countryside in humane, species appropriate conditions. All ingredients used are of high, human-grade quality.
Bozita Quality - a piece of Sweden: 

• Ingredients exclusively of the highest quality
• Made from meat of human-grade quality
• Using fresh meat in the manufacturing process not only increases digestibility but also ensures high palatability and acceptance
• All ingredients are free from growth hormones (Lantmännen Doggy AB policy)
• No artificial flavour enhancers or colourings
• No artificial preservatives
• Use of carcass meal in feeding and food products has been prohibited since 1985
• No animal testing has taken place as part of this production

Ingredients:
Chicken (25% dehydrated chicken, 4% fresh Swedish chicken), wheat flour (baking quality), corn flour, meat meal, animal fat, rice, chicken stock, cellulose fibres, corn gluten, dehydrated Arctic fish, egg powder, molasses yeast, beet fibre, potassium chloride, dicalcium phosphate, yeast (ß-1.3/1.6-Glucan, 0.05%), %), L-carnitine (0.005%).

Additives:
Nutritional additives:
Vitamin A (10.000 IU/kg), vitamin D3 (1000 IU/kg), vitamin E (60 mg/kg), methionine (2000 mg/kg), taurine (1000 mg/kg), copper [copper-II-sulphate-pentahydrate] (10 mg/kg), manganese [manganese-II- & -III-oxide] (17 mg/kg), zinc [zinc sulphate, monohydrate](70 mg/kg), iodine [calcium iodate, monohydrate] (0.5 mg/kg), selenium [sodium selenite] (0.3 mg/kg).
Energy-rich ingredients are conserved with EU approved antioxidants.

This is the:

Bozita Feline Hair & Skin - Sensitive: 

• For long-haired cats and those with fur or skin problems
• Complete cat food
• Supports healthy skin and beautiful fur
• With delicious Arctic salmon, also suitable for cats with sensitive digestions
• Balanced mineral content to protect the kidneys and urinary tract
• Cellulose fibres help to reduce formation of hairballs
• Balanced recipe with MacroGard, antioxidants and vitamins for a healthy immune system
• Swedish quality: Made in Sweden with premium ingredients and under strict quality control

Bozita Feline Feline Hair & Skin - Sensitive cat food has many functional advantages:

• MacroGard  a natural carbohydrate food additive made from yeast stimulates and strengthens your cat’s natural defences in all stages of its life
• Arctic fish  is very tasty and enjoyed by all cats, even the choosiest.
• Natural omega 3 und omega 6 fatty acids  for healthy skin and shiny fur
• Cellulose fibres  aid natural expulsion of swallowed hair.

Sweden – a country of breathtaking beauty and untouched nature which provides the best possible basis for fresh, healthy and high-quality ingredients. This love of nature is part of the philosophy behind every pack of Bozita Feline cat food. Bozita is produced in the historical province of Västergötland, a place which is very dear to all who love the countryside. All Bozita Feline varieties are made from top-quality meat mixed with healthy bran and grain. And each variety is of the same high quality, using only meat from animals which have been raised in the Swedish countryside in humane, species appropriate conditions. All ingredients used are of high, human-grade quality.
Bozita Quality - a piece of Sweden: 

• Ingredients exclusively of the highest quality
• Made from meat of human-grade quality
• Using fresh meat in the manufacturing process not only increases digestibility but also ensures high palatability and acceptance
• All ingredients are free from growth hormones (Lantmännen Doggy AB policy)
• No artificial flavour enhancers or colourings
• No artificial preservatives
• Use of carcass meal in feeding and food products has been prohibited since 1985
• No animal testing has taken place as part of this production

http://Ingredients:
Dehydrated chicken, wheat flour (baking quality), corn flour, Scandinavian salmon (10%), animal fat, rice, meat meal, chicken stock, cellulose fibres, corn gluten, dehydrated Arctic fish, egg powder, molasses yeast, dicalcium phosphate, beet fibre, potassium chloride, yeast (ß-1.3/1.6-Glucan, 0.06%)
Additives:
Nutritional additives:
Vitamin A (12000 IU/kg), vitamin D3 (1200 IU/kg), vitamin E (70 mg/kg), methionine (2000 mg/kg), taurine (1000 mg/kg), copper [copper-II-sulphate-pentahydrate] (12 mg/kg), manganese [manganese-II- & -III-oxide] (8 mg/kg), zinc [zinc sulphate, monohydrate](84 mg/kg), iodine [calcium iodate, monohydrate] (0.6 mg/kg), selenium [sodium selenite] (0.3 mg/kg), vitamin B6 [pyridoxine hydrochloride] (7.2 mg/kg), vitamin B12 [cyanocobalamin] (0.04 mg/kg), pantothenic acid [calcium pantothenate] (17 mg/kg), folin [folic acid] (2.4 mg/kg), niacin [nicotinamide, nicotinic acid] (72 mg/kg), biotin [D-biotin] (0.2 mg/kg).
Energy-rich ingredients are conserved with EU approved antioxidants.

They also do a meat range but Cuddles wont touch the meat range. In relation to you question Cuddles won't eat fish full stop except a few of the dry food varieties and the only meat she will eat is junk food supermarket stuff, Sheba. I have tried everything else that is available to buy online for shipment to the UK and in the pet stores over here in the UK.

All cat foods now have taurine

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[color= rgb(24, 24, 24)]  This is incorrect as Whiskas and Go Cat dry foods don't have taurine in them as it they are a low grade dry foods [/color]

[color= rgb(24, 24, 24)]If I add Salmon oil to the Sheba she won't eat it at all, I have tried recently. I am not trying to keep her off the Sheba as it is a low grade wet food and again doesn't have taurine in it or omega 3 or 6.[/color]

Oh, here in the U.S. all cat foods with the AAFCO label must have taurine. I'm very suprised they don't have it there as Whiskas is also available in the U.S so you'd think the ingredients would be the same. Many of the Sheba flavors are "for supplemental/occasional feeding only" so don't have taurine. The ones made for daily feeding must have it. There's also a food here named GO! that's fairly high quality so even more confusion!

The Bozita foods have an awful lot of corn and wheat (and rice, and corn gluten. . .). I don't mind some grains but that's a LOT! Based on those ingredients, I wouldn't feed it to my cats. Orijen and Acana are high-quality, and TOTW is pretty good, too. There may still be some recalled bags floating around Europe, though, so I don't know if you want to risk it, even though salmonella was never found in any TOTW bags--they just recalled it because it was made in that facility. You can contact Orijen and Acana to ask about their omega 6/omega 3 content--they may have even more omega 3s than Bozita but just don't advertise it.

Hi Cuddles, welcome to TCS! How do you like hosting the Olympics right now?

What you need to look for are:

• No grains or glutens
• No meat or bone meal
• No kinds of byproducts
• No carrageenan
• No fruits or vegetables
• Fish oil, but not fish

If you can't find a dry food that matches all of these criteria, pick the closest match.

cuddlesmycat said:

I am currently trying to find a better quality dry cat foods as after spending over a year trying to convert my cat over to wet food I can now say I have successfully failed converting her.

Click to expand...

Hi there, cuddlesmycat! I'm just wondering what sorts of things you tried to get your kitty to eat more wet food. Perhaps we can help you find a better way.

can you get Nature's Variety? this might help the transition:

http://www.instinctpetfood.com/product/instinct-raw-boost-grain-free-kibble-cat-food-chicken

Detmut, some raw feeders complain about the 15 percent bone in it. (Laurie says it should be only 10 percent.) But I have to agree it is better than kibbles!

Hi Sugarcatmom,

I have tried various cat foods, here is a list of both the dry and wet foods and it is quite extensive and she won't eat any of them:

• Bozita (Pate and Chunks)
• Applaws
• Hills Science Plan (Cuddles wouldn't go near the wet food and the dry food on a low dosage made her put weight on)
• Gourmet Cat
• Kitecat 
• Purley
• Entire Sheba Range (She only likes the Chicken & Turkey Delicious Morsels)
• Felix (Upset her stomach and has a food intolerance to it)
• Whiskas Wet Food (Licks the juice off the meat and then leaves it)
• Whiskas Dry Food (Recently she won't eat it)
• Go Cat Dry Food (Recently she won't eat it)
• Pro Plan Dry Food (She won't eat this)
• Hills Natures Best Dry food (Available here: http://www.petsathome.com/shop/hill...cat-food-with-chicken-300gm-2kg-and-4kg-14925) - this made Cuddles put weight on
• Royal Canin (Cuddles won't touch both dry or wet food)
• Animonda Carny (Wet food) 
• Animonda Exotica (Wet food)
• Animonda Rafine (Wet food)
• Animonda Vom Feinsten (Wet food)
• Natures Menu Wet food (Raw food)
• Mac's (Wet food)
• Tiger (Wet food)
• Grau

After spending quite alot of money on these food trial over the last year or so (I think nearly 2 years) I gave up as it was very hard for me to get her to even go near the food. The normal routine would be for me to l;eave the food down and Cuddles would sniff it and walk away and not come near it again for the whole day and night, so I would have to resort to giving her dry food to make up for her not eating.

I am now looking at healthy dry foods preferably with no grains in them.

Regarding doing a raw food diet, this is to expensive in the UK and finding a good supplier is a nightmare.

Hi detmut,

Do these raw food suppliers deliver to the UK?

Don't they sell meat in the grocery stores there? I've never really understood the argument that raw meat is too hard to find. . .it's right there! And don't people eat stuff like kidney and tripe there? I don't know what the prices in your area are like though, so it may be too expensive. . .but ought to be available at least.

You certainly have gone through a ton of different foods--that's a lot of dedication! But maybe I'm a little confused. . .why do you want to switch from the Orijen and Acana?

Hi Willowy,

I am looking to add another variety of quality no grain food in with the Acana and Orijen to broaden the variety a little, possibly with taurine and omega 3 & 6.

Regarding raw, I have looked into this with great depth and I am not really keen on the idea of raw feeding.

If you're comfortable with using a Diamond product, TOTW could be good for your rotation. I'm not sure what foods are available there, so it's hard to make other suggestions. Just read the label--it should be quickly obvious whether the food is grain-free or not. Orijen and Acana have adequate amounts of taurine. If you want her to have more than that, maybe taurine powder could be added to her water. Like I said, omega 3s are tricky and kibbles don't have enough. The only thing I can think of, if she won't eat it mixed in her food, is to squirt fish oil into her mouth. . .but I bet she'd be plenty mad about that!

cuddlesmycat said:

After spending quite alot of money on these food trial over the last year or so (I think nearly 2 years) I gave up as it was very hard for me to get her to even go near the food. The normal routine would be for me to l;eave the food down and Cuddles would sniff it and walk away and not come near it again for the whole day and night, so I would have to resort to giving her dry food to make up for her not eating.

Click to expand...

Did you try pulverizing her favourite kibble and sprinkling it on top of the wet? Or doing the same thing with treats, freeze-dried meat, parmesan cheese, catnip, tuna juice, baby food, etc? Does she normally free-feed on dry food or does she get scheduled meals? Meal feeding can make a big difference when trying to convert a kibble addict.

There are lots more tips at these links that you may want to try (some refer to a raw diet but the principles are the same for canned):

http://www.catinfo.org/#Transitioning_Dry_Food_Addicts_to_Canned_Food_

http://feline-nutrition.org/nutrition/how-to-transition-your-cat-to-a-raw-diet

http://www.rawfedcats.org/practicalguide.htm

http://healthypets.mercola.com/site...nsition-your-cat-to-raw-food-diet-part-1.aspx

http://healthypets.mercola.com/site...nsition-your-cat-to-raw-food-diet-part-2.aspx

Although Bozita has some good ingredients, the fact that this food contains corn meal, and wheat flour is a huge problem. This stuff is PURE POISON to your cat. More than likely, your cat may be addicted to dry cat food like mine was. My cat would fish out all the dry cat food and leave the wet food. They spray "flavors and irresistible chemicals on this stuff". Cats are obligate carnivores and they CANNOT digest or absorb grain carbohydrates. WORSE, corn and wheat are now heavily GMO'd and have traces of formaldehyde used for extended storage and shipping. The issue with the GMO corn and wheat is that the molecules are too large for your cat's molecules to absorb. This leads to chronic inflammation. As a medical researcher, I have seen this issue in humans a well. These ingredients are highly inflammatory to your cat's system. They cause HCM, obesity, diabetes, kidney struyvite crystals, skin problems, digestion issues, etc. The cat gets addicted to the carbohydrate sugar in dry act food.

Google Dr. Elizabeth Hodgkins DVM and you will see what is involved. My cat was addicted to dry cat food. I paid a huge price.

A Saddle Thrombus resulted;  the cat went from normal to hind quarters paralyzed, in shock and cardiac arrest in less than 90 minutes. A horrible, horrible, violent death in mortal screeching pain right in front of the vet's office. The conclusion I have drawn form my research is that his death was - if not directly attributable to dry cat food, it was certainly hastened along by it. There are raw all natural canned and frozen foods that you can look into. Eliminate ALL grains from your cats diet. You have to use tough love to get them to switch as you will find in your research.

Bozitas wet food is good, but Bozitas dry - so so.

That is my comment...

The absence of hormones and antibiotics (forbidden in Sweden as overall, routine giving to meat animals) do gives a plus, like they wrote on the label.  And it is surely better than some other cheap brands.  But it is not to compare with the high end brands mentioned.