A little help choosing a kibble to feed alongside wet food please?

I've had the baby on purina kitten chow, and Matt on friskies dry, for the last little while, but I wondered with their bags running dry about picking up something that I can feed them both. it's only a suppliment feeding, as a late-night snack as I put them to bed, and treats when the kids want to hang out with them. I want to make a choice that will be good for kitten to grow on, and not too fattening for Matt.

Here are a few that I looked at:

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3081993&lmdn=Food+Center&f=PAD/psNotAvailInCA/No

blue wilderness

http://www.petsmart.com/product/ind...=24348711244&device=c&f=PAD/psNotAvailInCA/No

blue wilderness kitten grain free

I'm not completely sold on the grain-free concept of cat feeding though......it seems to me like the carb-free craze, I know too many are bad, and definitely corn is not very digestable, but I'm not sure about going completely grain-free......

http://www.petsmart.com/product/ind...=24348711244&device=c&f=PAD/psNotAvailInCA/No

Royal canin kitten spay/neuter

This one has a lower fat count for post-neuter kittens, and might be better with Matt on it also, but has the higher protein, and L-lisene. 

Matts mom said:

I'm not completely sold on the grain-free concept of cat feeding though......it seems to me like the carb-free craze, I know too many are bad, and definitely corn is not very digestable, but I'm not sure about going completely grain-free......

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Cats are not like humans though in that cats are obligate carnivores who MUST get their nutrition from animal sources. Grains and also all starchy vegetables are not species-appropriate ingredients for cats. It's not a "craze" when it comes to cats. It's about feeding the cats what they are biologically evolved to eat. Carbs are not it.

As Dr. Hodgkins, D.V. M., Esq. explains in her book, "Your Cat: simple new secrets to a longer, stronger life," (and one of the leading authorities on feline diabetes), on p. 6:

"In the liver, protein amino acids are processed into glucose (sugars) and sent into the bloodstream to supply the body's need for this energy nutrient. In a meat-eating species like the cat, accustomed to little dietary carbohydrate in its evolutionary environment, the liver will manufacture the great majority of the animal's needed glucose, which is the primary energy supply for the animal's brain. Because there is little glucose in a high-meat diet, this is an essential task for an obligatory carnivore. The liver of omnivores, including people and dogs, have multiple enzyme systems for handling dietary carbohydrate; the cat has only one such enzyme system, with limited capacity to deal with high carbohydrate consumption."
 

Here are some more vets' opinions on dry food in general and carbs in particular.

http://www.catinfo.org/

http://www.littlebigcat.com/nutrition/why-dry-food-is-bad-for-cats-and-dogs/

http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2012/02/17/dry-food-wrong-for-cats.aspx

http://endocrinevet.blogspot.com/2011/11/optimal-protein-requirements-for-older.html

While I wouldn't recommend any dry food in a cat's diet at all, if you must feed some dry, the best dry foods I know of are Wysong Epigen 90, Young Again Zero Carb and Ziwipeak.

The very most basic things to look for in a dry food are no food coloring (buh-bye dry Friskies! :tongue2, meat as the first ingredient, and no by-product meal. Any variety of Blue should be fine. I'm not really a fan of Royal Canin (I think it's overpriced for the quality), but it's not the worst. Cats don't actually get fat from fat, so while a low-fat food might have fewer calories, it's not a reliable way to help a cat not gain weight.

Evo's Turkey and Chicken for Cats and Kittens is a good food as far as kibble goes.

Willowy said:

The very most basic things to look for in a dry food are no food coloring (buh-bye dry Friskies!

), meat as the first ingredient, and no by-product meal. Any variety of Blue should be fine. I'm not really a fan of Royal Canin (I think it's overpriced for the quality), but it's not the worst. Cats don't actually get fat from fat, so while a low-fat food might have fewer calories, it's not a reliable way to help a cat not gain weight.

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I had Matt on a food before that I though was good(meat was first and everything) but it stuck to his teeth, so I pulled him off when I put him on wet. He was on Royal Canin's dental for awhile, too over winter, but after 2 large bags, we went back to wet because the summer heat dehydrates him and I always add water. Now I keep him on 80% wet with a little kibble. I feed both cats the same amount so I figured I'd feed them the same food too, if I can find one good for cats and kittens. I liked the Blue, because I can recognize the ingredients lol.  

I think I know where I might find EVO, so I'll take a look at that, too...thanks peaches08

Thankyou Vball91, for giving me that information, I'll definitely give it a good read before buying more food.

TOTW(Taste of the Wild) is a very affordable grain-free food that has worked really well with my cat. I do mainly wet but I feed TOTW as a supplemental food. 

I'm not completely sold on the grain-free concept of cat feeding though......it seems to me like the carb-free craze, I know too many are bad, and definitely corn is not very digestable, but I'm not sure about going completely grain-free......

Why not? The only animal built to actually thrive on grains are certain types of birds. The vast majority of animals(especially carnivorous animals like cats) will fare better without them. 

I won't buy anything manufactured by Diamond, and Natura products (EVO, California Natural, etc.) are still not back on the shelves since their mass recall (at least not in my area). So, I've eliminated them, too.

I still give my cats some kibble (although I'm gradually increasing the canned %) and I feel that the less ingredients there are the better. Caesar gets Nature's Variety Limited Ingredient Diet Turkey (it is turkey meal, which some will debate) because he has a sensitive tummy. Boo, for the most part, will eat whatever I give him, so he alternates between the Nature's Variety and whatever else I'm trying to use up. Sebastian is on a special diet. They ALL liked the Merrick Purrfect Bistro Adult Chicken when I tried it a couple months ago, but since only one cat would be able to eat it, I decided not to continue to buy it. The ingredients aren't  bad and it is affordable.

Jorjor said:

 
TOTW(Taste of the Wild) is a very affordable grain-free food that has worked really well with my cat. I do mainly wet but I feed TOTW as a supplemental food. 

I'm not completely sold on the grain-free concept of cat feeding though......it seems to me like the carb-free craze, I know too many are bad, and definitely corn is not very digestable, but I'm not sure about going completely grain-free......

Why not? The only animal built to actually thrive on grains are certain types of birds. The vast majority of animals(especially carnivorous animals like cats) will fare better without them. 

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to be honest, it's because I've not been able to do any solid research. advocates of grain-free tend to push raw or wet only diets, and I find that on an attempt to learn more about grain-free I'm reading about the evils of kibble. I understand that cats are carnavores, and of course I would prefer a meat-based diet for my cats...but they also chew grass, preferring the grass with seed-tops on it.....isn't that grain? I'm not arguing, I'm just trying to educate myself on a subject which so far in my experience seems to not have anyone clearly explaining the position. I had heard rumors that grain free diets could cause urinary issues in neutered males. These are unconfirmed so far, but with a sensitive, neutered male in the house, it's a concern.

Grain-free dry foods, yes. The potatoes/whatever binders used in grain-free kibbles can have a bad effect on some cats. But grain-free wet foods are fine.

Grains are not species-appropriate for kitties. But I see no harm in having them rotate their brands and types of food. Perhaps you could give them what you normally do along side some grain free alternatives?

Well if your interested in those specific foods you listed PetCo has the Blue Wilderness for kittens in a 5lb bag for 5$ cheaper then PetSmart

http://www.petco.com/product/123153...Grain-Free-Kitten-Food.aspx?CoreCat=LookAhead

They also have the Royal Canin for spayed kittens 3$ cheaper @Petco (also same size as petsmart 2.5ilbs)

http://www.petco.com/product/120159/Royal-Canin-Kitten-SpayedNeutered-Dry-Food.aspx

You could also take the "Blue Test" and upon completion you can get a 5$ off coupon for their kibble. &If you go with petco a 5lb bag will come out to 14$! So you could test try it with your kitties without spending much.

The dry kibble I like to feed my kitten is Wellness Core, its grain free and has more protein then regular wellness I believe.

Willowy said:

Grain-free dry foods, yes. The potatoes/whatever binders used in grain-free kibbles can have a bad effect on some cats. But grain-free wet foods are fine.

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so grain-free wet is good, for sure...that would be EVO, california naturals and Merrik type quality, correct? I seem to recall some of those being grain free, but then he started refusing the more expensive foods and we dropped back to friskies wet and watch the labels to avoid corn and gluten.

He still likes the California Naturals, but only the salmon and whitefish flavors. won't touch EVO at all anymore....

One thing I always wondered about, is why there's different kibbles for adult and kitten stages, but wet food is good for them at all life stages? Does this mean that a kitten food at a 80-20 wet-dry ratio would not be appropriate for an adult/vice-verca?

What IS the difference between kitten and adult kibble anyway?

And if I did get a grain-free kibble to go with the wet food, would this be a good thing?