Cat Food Ratings by Brand

Hi Everyone,

When I was looking for a healthier food for my 3 year old boy Mittens, I came across this website.  I hope this will helps some people.                 http://asksusanpeters.net/cat_food_rating.html

I have seen that list before. I don't happen to agree with the analysis or ratings. One of the top 2 cat foods according to this list is a dry food with a high carb load from rice, barley, oatmeal and peas (which this list cites as positives!). Cats have no nutritional need for carbs. I much prefer this list: http://www.catinfo.org/docs/FoodChartPublic9-22-12.pdf  It provides a protein/fat/carb breakdown and lets you make choices that fit your budget.

Hi vball91, 

I was given this website by a vet tech.  So I switched from Purina One to Natural Balance Alpha and and also N B reduced calorie canned.  Is this brand ok? Can you please tell me which one has the high carbs?  I want to make sure I don't buy that brand.  Any suggestions will be appreciated?  Thanks!

You can learn about the best food for your cats via the home page of the website vball91 provided: http://www.catinfo.org The site is written by a vet, Dr. Lisa Pierson.

The food chart in the link vball91 provided gives a breakdown of foods based on their average nutritional analysis. The most important columns are the center columns, where the food is shown on a Dry Matter Basis. She doesn't get into ingredients, but finding low carbohydrate foods is a good starting point.

Almost all dry food is much higher in calories and carbohydrates than any wet food. Natural balance wet food isn't a bad brand.
Do look at the site vBall provided. It's the best one out there in my opinion.
Look at the column labeled "C" for carbohydrates; look for the lowest number. And for "P" (protein) look for the highest number.
I'm personally not a fan of any low calorie food, wet or dry; it typically has more carbohydrates and additives than non-diet food. Which is kind of ironic since cats have no need for carbohydrates.
This is an article about choosing the right food for your cat.

Here is the protein/fat/carb breakdown for the NB reduced calorie canned food from the catinfo.org site, on a dry matter basis: Protein 39% Fat 29% Carbs 22%. The NB Dry food will be even higher in carbs. Compare that to something like Merrick Cowboy Cookout at Protein 62% Fat 21% Carbs 6%.

As a general rule, dry food is way too high in carbs as well as not providing the moisture a cat needs. Cats are geared toward getting their moisture from food. Dry foods at around 10% do not provide that. Canned food at around 80% does. Most cats do not drink enough water to make up for the lack of moisture in dry foods which can cause a chronic mild dehydration which is hard on the kidneys. In addition, sufficient moisture is necessary to keep the urinary system flushed out and healthy.

It is good to learn to read ingredient lists. Here are the ingredients of the NB Reduced Calorie canned. I've highlighted in bold all of the ingredients that an obligate carnivore does not need and really just serve as cheap filler ingredients (as opposed to meat which is more expensive).

Chicken, Chicken Broth, Chicken Liver, Salmon, Ground Brown Rice, Carrots, Duck, Pea Fiber, Natural Flavor, Dicalcium Phosphate, Potassium Chloride, Taurine, Sodium Chloride, Dried Cranberries, Yucca Schidigera Extract, Parsley, Carrageenan Gum, Calcium Carbonate, Choline Chloride, Zinc Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Vitamin E Supplement, Copper Sulfate, Manganese Sulfate, Niacin supplement, Sodium Selenite, Thiamine Mononitrate, Calcium Pantothenate, Calcium Iodate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B6), Riboflavin, Vitamin A Supplement, Folic Acid, Biotin, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement
 

Thank you vball91,Ritz and LDG for the info.  I wish I knew about this list before.  I had just purchased Wellness Turkey canned food from Tractor Supply on sale and was surprised  to see how it was rated "poor" on Susan Peters list.  After seeing the Cat Food Analysis list you gave, Wellness seems like a much better choice with low carbs compare to the Natural Balance turkey canned food. 

I try to feed Mittens, my mini-coon, mostly canned food, although he is very picky, so I do have to put a little crunchy NB Alpha Grainfree on top of his wet food.  When I found my kitty he was around six months old and would not touch canned food. 

Thank you everybody for your time and great advise.  Here's picture of my abandoned kitty, I found in the woods on a walking trail, who followed me for a mile back to our van. 

Aww, what a cute kitty. I must admit that I have a fondness for tabbies though. Thanks for rescuing him. And yes, the Wellness grain frees are good foods. And don't worry about using the dry food as "toppers" for the canned food. A lot of us have had to do that for our picky eaters.