Help me come up with a rotation of can food to feed my 4 month old kitten

I just adopted a 4 month old kitten from the shelter and have started to research food for her.  She is the only pet we have in our household at this time. 

I am concerned about pet food choice because both of my previous cat's developed renal failure which ultimately caused their death.  The first, our Persian, was 14 when he died, but our Burmese cat was only 8 years old when she died from the renal failure.  I was feeding them Nutro food for an extended period of time and their food was included in their recalls.  After my recent research, I have found that the dry food which I was primarily feeding them likely contributed to their kidney disease as well.  So, now I am trying to figure out what food I can feed my kitten.  I am thinking I should rotate through several different brands, to  both offer a more varied diet and limit potential health issues from any pet food formulation issues/recalls.   Our kitten came home with a bag of Science Diet Dry Kitten food which she has barely touched since I started feeding her some Trader Joes Chicken and Turkey Can food.   Budget is an issue, but I am willing to include higher priced brands in rotation.  From what I have read on line the Trader Joes food seems like a pretty decent food.  Brands I have been looking at Wellness, Evo, Honest Kitchen.  I want to make sure what I am feeding is suitable for a kitten.

So, what can foods would you rotate though that would be suitable for a kitten?

Another question.  Do you think the 12 ounce cans are suitable for a family with only one cat?  I am thinking our kitten may not be able to eat a whole 12 oz can before it gets funky. 

And, the kitten is a quite healthy 4 pounds. 
 

How much does your kitten eat daily? I know kittens that age usually eat a lot, so the 12oz cans may be economical for you right now. I have no prblems keeping cans in the fridge for up to 3 days. I would think that your cat would go through that amount in that time assuming she will eat the same food for that long and that she doesn't mind cold food. You could try warming the food with a little warm water if she does mind.

Yes, wet food is definitely better for cats than dry. Look for high animal protein/moderate fat/little to no carbs/no grains. Limit fish ingredients to once a week. There are foods at all price points that fit this that you could put into rotation. Rotation is good for the reasons you mentioned plus prevention of allergies and addiction to one food.

In addition to the brands you mentioned, I also like Hound & Gatos and Tiki. Tiki right now only has chicken for non-fish flavors, but they are coming out with more non-fish flavors this. I like both of these brands because they are also carrageenan free. Fancy Feast classics and Friskies pates are also ok for the price point. While they both have meat by-products, they do have a named meat high on the ingredient list.

I think you'd be fine with the 12 oz cans because a 4 month old kitten should eat quite a bit right now .  I agree that I would look for a low carb food, but not sure I would necessarily look for low fat, since kittens need plenty of protein and fat to grow big and strong.  Here is a canned food chart that lists tons of canned foods with the amount of protein, fat, carbs and even phosphorus.  Unfortunately, I have yet to figure out what order this list is actually in   http://catinfo.org/docs/FoodChartPhosphorus9-22-12.pdf

All the brands you are looking at are good, and even SOME Fancy Feasts and Friskies fall into the category of grain free.  Just certain of them, mind you. 

And Honest Kitchen is actually dehydrated raw, I believe. 

Ok, from my original list I have Trader Joes, Wellness, Evo, and Honest Kitchen. What about these additional brands:  Avoderm, Nature's Variety, Merrick, Halo, Califonia Natural, Natural Balance. 

What flavors do you all stick with:  Chicken, Turkey, Duck?  What about beef?

I will check out Tiki cat food.  I know my local Health Food store carries it.  And, it looks like some of the Fancy Feast classic pates and some Friskies are ok? 

I feel like a complete cat newbie after researching all these food options, even though I have had cats in my life for over 25 years.  I haven't really researched feline nutrition for the last 15 years.  I will now be keeping up with it all, in light of all the recent food recalls and our previous experiences with our prior cats.

mrsgreenjeens said:

I  Unfortunately, I have yet to figure out what order this list is actually in

  http://catinfo.org/docs/FoodChartPhosphorus9-22-12.pdf

Click to expand...

It is sorted from least amount of phosphorus to most amount per 100 calories.

wimama said:

Ok, from my original list I have Trader Joes, Wellness, Evo, and Honest Kitchen. What about these additional brands:  Avoderm, Nature's Variety, Merrick, Halo, Califonia Natural, Natural Balance. 

What flavors do you all stick with:  Chicken, Turkey, Duck?  What about beef?

I will check out Tiki cat food.  I know my local Health Food store carries it.  And, it looks like some of the Fancy Feast classic pates and some Friskies are ok? 

I feel like a complete cat newbie after researching all these food options, even though I have had cats in my life for over 25 years.  I haven't really researched feline nutrition for the last 15 years.  I will now be keeping up with it all, in light of all the recent food recalls and our previous experiences with our prior cats.

Click to expand...

Not all of the new ones you've listed are grain free (for instance, California Naturals has Brown Rice in it), but it's all in what you want. Nature's Variety Instinct is good, IMHO, Merrick is good (smells good enough that I've often been tempted to eat it . 

I, personally, would NOT feed a kitten Tiki.  Way too low in fat and calories, again, IMHO. 

As far as feeding beef, my cats like it...especially raw

I have two Main Coon kittens (16 weeks) and they're on a rotation of Nature's Variety Instinct canned (Chicken, Rabbit, Duck) with free fed Pro Plan kitten dry.I rotate flavors on a can-by-can basis and they eat it up no problems. However, I have two kittens so I'm going through 1 can/day which means they're getting a new flavor almost every day.

Many years ago, Nutro was involved in some recalls and these were all before my time as I've worked for Nutro for the last 5 years and I am very impressed with the strides they have made to ensure the quality, safety, and performance of their foods.  For example, the food goes through 600 safety checks a day.  Here is a quote from their website " We partnered with other pet food manufacturers and ingredient suppliers from the American Feed Industry Association to create an independent, third-party certification program focused exclusively on pet food manufacturing safety. This program is called The Assured & Approved Pet Food Manufacturing Facility Certification Program."

So with this dedication to improving the food our pets eat, I would ask you consider giving Nutro another chance.  They have a great line of natural choice cat food cans that are all grain free. These also have 4 textures too so not only do you spice up the variety of proteins used but you give the cats a texture variety too. The Max line has a nice variety of flavors too.

NutroBricca

Nutro Pet Nutrition Specialist

http://www.nutro.com/pet-food-quality-safety/natural-pet-food-safety-and-quality.aspx
 

NutroBricca said:

Many years ago, Nutro was involved in some recalls and these were all before my time as I've worked for Nutro for the last 5 years and I am very impressed with the strides they have made to ensure the quality, safety, and performance of their foods.  For example, the food goes through 600 safety checks a day.  Here is a quote from their website " We partnered with other pet food manufacturers and ingredient suppliers from the American Feed Industry Association to create an independent, third-party certification program focused exclusively on pet food manufacturing safety. This program is called The Assured & Approved Pet Food Manufacturing Facility Certification Program."

So with this dedication to improving the food our pets eat, I would ask you consider giving Nutro another chance.  They have a great line of natural choice cat food cans that are all grain free. These also have 4 textures too so not only do you spice up the variety of proteins used but you give the cats a texture variety too. The Max line has a nice variety of flavors too.

NutroBricca

Nutro Pet Nutrition Specialist

http://www.nutro.com/pet-food-quality-safety/natural-pet-food-safety-and-quality.aspx
 

Click to expand...

While I find it comforting that your company has put in place multiple safety checks, I will never again feed Nutro pet food.  Why would I support a company that I believe contributed to the early onset of kidney failure my cat suffered from?  Nutro is not an option for us.

I am still just as confused as ever on options.  We have tried Trader Joes Chicken and Turkey, Wellness chicken and beef?, and some Merrick foods.