Canned Food - Which Stinks Less

Hi guys/gals,

I am venturing into the cat world and would like to get off to a good start.  Ideally I'd like an adult male, from my local shelter. 

I live in an apartment ~ 750 square feet.   My primary concern is STINK factor. 

Thus far, I've researched requirements, i.e. scratching post, cat perch, some toys, litter box, carry crate, food/water dish and so on. 

Through reading here, I agree that a wet diet is ideal, so canned it is.   Yet I'd like help picking food ingredients that don't contribute to powerful STINK. 

Take a look at Innova (not EVO) listed below.  The price isn't bad, a little more than the Feline Feast 'Beef flavored' pate, but has some grains and starch....

Innova[emoji]174[/emoji] Low Fat Adult Canned Cat Food

• 
  Ingredients:  Turkey, Turkey Broth, Chicken Broth, Chicken, Chicken Meal, Brown Rice, Salmon, Herring, Potatoes, Carrots, Natural Flavors, Whole Eggs, Carrageenan, Apples, Alfalfa Sprouts, Guam Gum, Sodium Phosphate, Skim Milk, L-ascorbyl-2-polyphosphate, Choline Chloride, Cranberries, Inulin, Potassium Chloride, Taurine, Sunflower Oil, Herring Oil, DL Methionine, Beta Carotene, Vitamins/Minerals
  
  Guaranteed Analysis:
• Crude Protein (min) 9 %
• Crude Fat (min) 4 %
• Crude Fat (max) 6 %
• Crude Fiber (max) 1.5 %
• Moisture (max) 78 %
• Linoleic Acid (Omega-6 Fatty Acid) (min) 0.88 %
• Vitamin E (min) 50 IU/kg
• Taurine (min) 0.08 %
• Magnesium (max) 0.025 %
• Omega-3 Fatty Acids (min) 0.12 %
• Total Microorganisms (min) 90000000 CFU/lb

Is the brown rice, potatoes, or salmon/herring a problem?  I noticed they're further down the list.  The price isn't bad for a 13 oz. can / 2 days worth. I did come across some Feline Feast cans including Turkey & Giblets, Liver & Chicken, Beef Flavored Pate that have no grains/starch/glutens, but do have artificial flavors and meat by products.  

Please note: I'm in Canada, so I don't have access to Feline Feast - Classic.   Please help me choose a less stinky option  

Marc

First, thank you for considering an adult cat from the shelter! When I got these 3 (at the same time), I knew I wanted adults because I would have a better idea of their personalities. And I just wanted to be past all the kitten antics.

The Fancy Feast varieties you mentioned in the other thread are fine. Meat by products don't bother me and actually cats need organs too (I'm a raw feeder). I'll caution you about many low fat recipes: most are higher carb which cats don't need. Cats need more fat in their diet than we do.

Check out www.catinfo.org, it's a lot of information written by a vet. She's got a canned food list that is high protein and low carb. While her focus is on diabetes, urinary issues, and obesity, that list is ideal for any healthy cat.

Why would they include milk products in adult cat food? And the vegetables are not necessary either. 

I cant speak for comparison, but I feed my cat Fancy Feast. It makes for somewhat stinky poops, but with the litter I use that smell dissipates fairly quickly. If I had room in my bathrooms, I'd put them in there and it wouldn't be much different than anyone else in the house going in there for that purpose. 

I suppose you're talking about the cat odor, not the odor of the food? If you are talking about the food, foods without fish smell better (I actually think Evo 95% chicken/turkey smells like something I would like to spread on crackers :lol3.

For the cat pee smell, of course make sure he's neutered (unneutered toms have terrible-smelling urine, even if they don't spray), and the wet food also dilutes the urine so it doesn't smell as strong. And proper litterbox maintenance is a big factor too. For poop smell, the fewer plant ingredients, the better, because it will be more completely digested. Keeping the digestive system healthy with probiotics and enzymes would help.

The Fancy Feast flavors you mentioned ARE from the Classic line, so that's what we're talking about when we say FF Classics. It's best to keep a good variety in his diet---just like for humans, eating one kind of food all the time just isn't optimal.

Thanks for the tips, I'll go have a read on the catinfo site, re: canned food list. 

Re: Classic varieties of Feline Feast, perhaps the packaging is different in the U.S. 

In Canada, none of the Feline Feast cans have the word 'Classic' at the bottom.  But, based on no grain/glutens/starch, I think it's the same thing.   Damn it, I want 'Classic' on it! 

I'll likely shop for all the supplies in Petsmart/Walmart this weekend and prep. the apartment for a neutered beast.

The good news is, Black Friday sales are in Canada too this year, so a good time to grab some supplies.

Thanks for the cautionary note on a source of the Super Poop Stink....I'll steer clear of plant materials in cat food.  

I think the main decision I have to make is where to place the litter box.  Carpeted areas are off limits so I've heard.  That rules out the living area and bedroom. That leaves coat closet, small storage closet, bathroom under sink, kitchen under sink (nasty), kitchen far corner.    Hmm, I'll figure it out.

Do those hooded litter boxes help? 

Marc999 said:

I think the main decision I have to make is where to place the litter box.  Carpeted areas are off limits so I've heard.  That rules out the living area and bedroom. That leaves coat closet, small storage closet, bathroom under sink, kitchen under sink (nasty), kitchen far corner.    Hmm, I'll figure it out.

Do those hooded litter boxes help? 

Click to expand...

I have mine in a carpeted area. You can buy one of those mats to put in front of the box so that it captures kitty's tracking litter. 

Living area and bedroom though.... ew. No to kitchen too, since that's where you make food.

I have mine in a small storage closet with sliding doors so it doesn't impede traffic. It's open all the time obviously. Previously it was in the coat closet, but it had less privacy and I had to share the smell. lol.

Hooded litter boxes I'm not a fan of. It's more of a convenience to the owner at the expense of kitty. Kitties have noses 50x stronger than ours, and hooded litter boxes are going to trap all that poopy smell. Coupled with the fact that cats a notoriously fastidious creatures, it's a big risk for inappropriate pooping. Would YOU want to use a bathroom that doesn't have a window and you only flush it occasionally instead of everytime you use it?

The best solution to litter box smell is to scoop it diligently - at least once a day, preferably twice. Scooping regularly is going to do so much more than scented litter, hooded boxes, automatic scoopers, etc. These are all conveniences for the human, not the kitty.

One caveat though: Some cats DO like hooded boxes. You have to find out which one your new cat prefers. Buy a hooded box because kitty wants it, not because you think it will smell better.

You may want to opt for a litter box that at least has a high guard/shield. I bought somewhat cheap ones at Walmart that have a very low guard, and my kitty digs and throws litter all over the place. I'm going to see about constructing something to deal with that.

We have one on hardwoods and another upstairs on carpet. I also put small rugs in front of each to help catch the litter he tracks out. But I just sweep around the one downstairs every morning and I vacuum in front of the one upstairs (which he uses much less frequently) once or twice a week, depending on how much gets thrown out. I don't have any issues with having one on the carpet.

I have my boxes in my bed room and living room. So far I have had no stink issues, but I also feed a super low carb diet (raw.) All open boxes too filled with unscented litter. I've also found that a HEPA filter does help with the "cat smell" (not really a smell but moreso the feeling of dander in the air for me due to allergies.) I've had multiple people come to the apartment (I live in a tiny NYC apartment) and have been told they didn't even notice the litter boxes until they saw one of my cats jump into it. I also have large litter mats to capture the litter but also vacuum the apartment everyday. Scooping twice a day helps a lot.

I personally don't like the idea of placing them in closets - I feel like depending on how you place the litter box it's just mimicking a hooded box - which again, I am not a fan of. It all depends on personal preference I suppose.