Acana, TOTW, Applaws, Porta 21, or Granatapet for the second best Dry Food brand?

jenniator

TCS Member
Thread starter
Adult Cat
Joined
Dec 15, 2013
Messages
197
Purraise
35
Location
Netherlands
Hello,

I've been wanting to buy the best quality dry food for my cat Mew which is difficult since dry food isn't as good as wet. I feed him wet food during the morning, but I also let him graze on dry food during the day while we are gone. I really wanted to get Orijen since I've heard it's the best best of dry cat food available, but unfortunately me and my husband won't be able afford it for some time. So I thought to look for the second best brand of dry cat food. I've been looking at a lot of different dry food and I have found some which look like they are pretty good quality. They are Acana, Taste of The Wild, Applaws, Porta 21, and Granatapet. They are all Grain-Free with Applaws having the most meat content at 80%, however I know there is more to a good quality dry food than just the meat content.

I really want to give my baby a wonderful brand and quality because I want him to be the healthiest he can be. Most of his life he's lived on food such as Whiskas, Meow mix, and Royal Canin. At the time I didn't know anything about cat nutrition or the effects, so now I want to make sure I will give him good food to make sure he gets all the nutrition he needs. I would appreciate any advice and experience on the different brands. I listed the ingredients of each brand and a website with the ingredients below, so you can all see whats inside the food to help me determine which of them is the best. I appreciate the help since I am new with learning about nutrition for cats and I want to make sure I make the right decision this time.

Applaws Chicken& Salmon:

 Ingredients:
Dried Chicken Meal (min. 47%), dried salmon meal (min. 19%), dried potatoes (min. 4%), poultry oil (min. 8%, source of omega-6), poultry juice (min. 4%), salmon oil (min. 3%, source of omega-3), beet pulp (min. 3%), dried whole egg (min. 3%), brewers dried yeast, cellulose from plant fibres, minerals, sodium chloride, calcium carbonate, kelp, cranberries, DL methionine, potassium chloride, yucca extract, lemon extract, rosemary extract.
Additives:
Nutritional additives:
Vitamin A (26,852 IU/kg), vitamin D3 (1852 IU/kg), vitamin E [A-tocopherol] (593 mg/kg).
Trace elements:
Selenium in sodium selenite (0.13 mg/kg), iodine in calcium iodate water-free (1.75 mg/kg), iron in iron sulphate monohydrate (61 mg/kg), copper in coppper pentahydrate (9 mg/kg), manganese in manganese sulphate monohydrate (26 mg/kg), zinc in zinc sulphate monohydrate (140 mg/kg).
Technological additives:
Naturally sourced tocopherol extracts.

With natural, high levels of taurine.

http://www.applaws.co.uk/cat_dry.php

Acana Grasslands


Ingredients:
Lamb meat without bones, dried lamb meat, salmon jerky, Russet potatoes, herring, dried meat, dried chicken meat, sweet potato, duck meat boneless, salmon oil, chicken fat (naturally containing vitamin E), Zander boneless, dried chicken liver, alfalfa, whole eggs, pumpkin, spinach, turnip greens, tomatoes , carrots, apples, organic kelp, cranberries, blueberries, juniper berries, black currants, chicory root, licorice root, angelica, fenugreek, marigold flowers, sweet fennel, peppermint leaves, chamomile flowers, lavender, summer savory, rosemary, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Enterococcus faecium.

Botanical inclusions:
Juniper berries (300 mg/kg), licorice root (300 mg/kg), angelica (250 mg/kg), dandelion root (250 mg/kg), marigold (200 mg/kg), peppermint leaves (200 mg/kg).

Additives:
Nutritional additives:
Vitamin A (15,000 IU/kg), vitamin D3 (2000 IU/kg), vitamin E (400 IU/kg), vitamin K2 (2 mg/kg), vitamin C (83 mg/kg), vitamin B1 [thiamine] (50 mg/kg), vitamin B2 [riboflavin] (50 mg/kg), vitamin B3 [nicotine acid] (250 mg/kg), vitamin B5 [pantothenic acid] (40 mg/kg), vitamin B6 [pyridoxine] (26 mg/kg), vitamin B12 (500 mcg/kg), biotin (1 mg/kg), folic acid (3 mg/kg), choline (3000 mg/kg).

http://www.acana.com/products/regionals/grasslands-cat-kitten/

Taste of the Wild - Rocky Mountain Feline


Ingredients:
Chicken meal, peas, sweet potatoes, chicken fat, potato protein, roasted game, smoked salmon, natural flavor, ocean fish meal, DL-methionine, potassium chloride, choline chloride, taurine, dried chicory root, tomatoes, blueberries, raspberries, yucca schidigera extract, dried Enterococcus faecium fermentation product, dried Lactobacillus acidophilus fermentation product, dried Lactobacillus casei fermentation product, dried Lactobacillus plantarum fermentation product, dried Trichoderma longibrachiatum fermentation extract, high quality vitamins (Vitamin A, B1, B2, B6, B12, C, D, E), minerals (iron proteinate, zinc proteinate, copper proteinate, manganese proteinate, ferrous sulfate, zinc sulfate, copper sulfate, manganese sulfate), potassium iodide, manganese, biotin, calcium pantothenate, sodium selenite, folic acid.)

http://www.tasteofthewildpetfood.com/products/cats/dry_food/rocky_mountain_feline_formula/

Porta 21 Feline Finest Sensible


 Ingredients:
Ground chicken meat (64%), chicken meat (9.15%), chicken fat, dried potatoes, dried brewer's yeast, beet pulp (sugar removed), cellulose, MOS (mannan-oligosaccharides), FOS (fructo-oligosaccharide), dried cranberries, green tea extract.

Additives:
Nutritional dietary additives:
Vitamin A [retinyl acetate] (24.57 IU/kg), Vitamin C [ascorbyl monophosphate] (43.76 mg/kg), vitamin D3 [cholecalciferol] (1.706 IU/kg), vitamin E [alpha tocopherol acetate] (157.5 IU/kg), vitamin B1 [thiamine] (17.85 mg/kg), vitamin B2 [riboflavin] (12.75 mg/kg), vitamin B6 [pyridoxine] (5.78 mg/kg), vitamin B12 [cobalamine] (110.25 mg/kg), niacin (30.45 mg/kg), pantothenic acid (9.24 mg/kg), folic acid (1.63 mg/kg), biotin (325.5 mg/kg), choline chloride (240 mg/kg), calcium iodate (1.64 mg/kg), sodium selenite (0.53 mg/kg), ferrous sulphate monohydrate (321.36 mg/kg), iron amino acid chelate hydrate (21.33 mg/kg), copper sulphate pentahydrate (42.24 mg/kg), copper amino acid chelate hydrate (52.8 mg/kg), zinc chelate hydrate (355.73 mg/kg), zinc sulphate monohydrate (296.49 mg/kg), manganese sulphate monohydrate (116.95 mg/kg), DL-methionine (840 mg/kg), taurine (875.25 mg/kg).

Technological additives:
Contains EU-approved antioxidants: preserved with high tocopherol content extracts from natural sources (vitamin E) and L-ascorbic acid.

http://www.zooplus.com/shop/cats/dry_cat_food/porta_21/feline_finest/170966

 

GranataPet Duck


Composition:  

Duck meat (44%, dried and finely ground), potato flakes, poultry fat, pomegranate seeds (5%), salmon oil (1.5%), brewer’s yeast, whole beet pulp (sugar extracted), whole egg powder, carbonate feeding lime, lignocellulose, F.O.S. (fructoogligosaccarides), New Zealand green-lipped mussel (finely ground, naturally rich in glucosamine and chondroitin), yucca schidigera

Analytical Constituents:

Protein31%
Fat19%
Crude fibre4.0%
Crude ash5.4%

 

Nutritional Additives/kg:
Vitamin A19000 I.U.
Vitamin D31200 I.U.
Vitamin E120 mg
L-carnitine500 mg
Taurine1300 mg
Copper (as copper-(II)-sulphate, pentahydrate)15 mg
Zinc (as zinc oxide)113 mg
Iodine (as calcium iodate, hexahydrate)1.9 mg
Selenium (as sodium selenite)0.14 mg
http://www.happykittycompany.co.uk/collections/granatapet/products/granatapet-dry-adult-duck-2kg
 
Last edited:
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #2

jenniator

TCS Member
Thread starter
Adult Cat
Joined
Dec 15, 2013
Messages
197
Purraise
35
Location
Netherlands
Sorry for the super long list everyone. I've just been stressing out about trying to find the best dry food for Mew, especially since his current dry food of RC is almost gone. I've narrowed the list down to either Porta 21 Feline Finest Sensible or Applaws Chicken& Salmon. I am having a hard time deciding which one to go for though since they both have a high content of meat and are both are really good quality. I would love if anyone would give me their recommendation or opinion on which food I should go for :)
 

random gemini

TCS Member
Adult Cat
Joined
Feb 20, 2014
Messages
147
Purraise
17
Of the foods you mentioned, I would feed Taste of the Wild. I wouldn't call it the second best cat food on the market, but I would call it the best food in that price range. 

As far as the best food on the market, If you are feeding ONLY dry... then you should bite the bullet and feed Orijen Six Fish, not the other varieties. Six Fish is the most expensive of all of the cat foods I have priced. Orijen Six Fish has Omega 3 and Omega 6 fatty acids in it and it is the only cat food on the market with the appropriate amount of both of these. If you are feeding a canned food too, then TOTW should be fine for the occasional snack between wet food meals.

The two foods you mentioned being torn between, I wouldn't feed either of them. They both have cellulose in them, which is sawdust. No, I am not joking, you would actually be feeding your cat sawdust if you fed either of those foods. Those foods, IMO... are a waste of your money. 

Applaws makes no mention of the minerals in it being chelated. If the minerals are not chelated, then your cat is just going to poop them out, rather than his body being able to make use of them, so you are basically paying for filler if you're paying for a pet food that does not use chelated minerals. 
 

oneandahalfcats

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Dec 13, 2013
Messages
1,437
Purraise
179
Hi Jenniator,

I saw your new thread here but declined to respond as I am not familiar with the Applaws, Porta 21 or Granapet. We discussed the TOTW in another thread so you already have some idea about this from my comments there. What I can say is to echo Random Gemini's suggestion to go with the Orijen, but go with the Cat and Kitten rather than the 6-Fish which we discussed has a lot of fish in it.

I hope this bit can bring you closer to a decision, but ultimately this decision is yours to make. Best of luck and let us know how things go! ...;
 
Last edited:
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #5

jenniator

TCS Member
Thread starter
Adult Cat
Joined
Dec 15, 2013
Messages
197
Purraise
35
Location
Netherlands
 
Of the foods you mentioned, I would feed Taste of the Wild. I wouldn't call it the second best cat food on the market, but I would call it the best food in that price range. 

As far as the best food on the market, If you are feeding ONLY dry... then you should bite the bullet and feed Orijen Six Fish, not the other varieties. Six Fish is the most expensive of all of the cat foods I have priced. Orijen Six Fish has Omega 3 and Omega 6 fatty acids in it and it is the only cat food on the market with the appropriate amount of both of these. If you are feeding a canned food too, then TOTW should be fine for the occasional snack between wet food meals.

The two foods you mentioned being torn between, I wouldn't feed either of them. They both have cellulose in them, which is sawdust. No, I am not joking, you would actually be feeding your cat sawdust if you fed either of those foods. Those foods, IMO... are a waste of your money. 

Applaws makes no mention of the minerals in it being chelated. If the minerals are not chelated, then your cat is just going to poop them out, rather than his body being able to make use of them, so you are basically paying for filler if you're paying for a pet food that does not use chelated minerals. 
I do like TOTW, but I think that the Porta 21 and Applaws are better they have higher protein content and less vegetables than TOTW. So I think that the Porta 21 and Applaws are higher quality. I do agree that TOTW is affordable though. I would never only feed dry food since I know that dry food isn't the best for cats. I do feed Mew Catz Finefood and Animonda Carny wet food. Next month I will get more varieties for him like Garu, Granatapet, and the Bozita Tetra Paks. I do like to leave out dry food for him though so he can graze during the day while we are gone. I do really love the brand Orijen, but I would rather go for the Chicken one since I heard it isn't good for cats to eat too much fish.

I never have heard of cellulose being sawdust. I googled it, but I couldn't find anything bad about it. I did find this about it though:

Petfoods containing high levels of cellulose are typically intended for weight management, diabetes and hairball control, to name a few. In weight control diets, the virtual indigestibility of cellulose translates into negligible food energy contribution. On a gross energy basis, cellulose is fairly similar to starch (about 4 kcal/g), but the metabolizable energy (ME; useful energy) is virtually zero.

I didn't know the minerals in cat food could be chelated or that it was better if it was. Thank you for letting me know that.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #6

jenniator

TCS Member
Thread starter
Adult Cat
Joined
Dec 15, 2013
Messages
197
Purraise
35
Location
Netherlands
 
Hi Jenniator,

I saw your new thread here but declined to respond as I am not familiar with the Applaws, Porta 21 or Granapet. We discussed the TOTW in another thread so you already have some idea about this from my comments there. What I can say is to echo Random Gemini's suggestion to go with the Orijen, but go with the Cat and Kitten rather than the 6-Fish which we discussed has a lot of fish in it.

I hope this bit can bring you closer to a decision, but ultimately this decision is yours to make. Best of luck and let us know how things go! ...;
Hello again,

I know you aren't familiar with the brands Applaws, Porta 21 or Granapet. I do like TOTW and think it's a good brand, but I find Porta 21 and Applaws better since they have a higher meat content and less veggies. I really do want to go with the Orijen Chicken and Cat, but I can't for several months due to me and my husband's financial situation. So I thought I would get the next best quality dry food until we have enough money. I do like Acana a lot also, but I was talking to someone that had experience with Acana, Porta 21, and Applaws and they said that Arcana has significantly lower protein content and higher carbs than the other two. I do agree that the Orijen Fish has way to much fish in it. Thank you again for you're input!
 

oneandahalfcats

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Dec 13, 2013
Messages
1,437
Purraise
179
 
Hello again,

I know you aren't familiar with the brands Applaws, Porta 21 or Granapet. I do like TOTW and think it's a good brand, but I find Porta 21 and Applaws better since they have a higher meat content and less veggies. I really do want to go with the Orijen Chicken and Cat, but I can't for several months due to me and my husband's financial situation. So I thought I would get the next best quality dry food until we have enough money. I do like Acana a lot also, but I was talking to someone that had experience with Acana, Porta 21, and Applaws and they said that Arcana has significantly lower protein content and higher carbs than the other two. I do agree that the Orijen Fish has way to much fish in it. Thank you again for you're input!
Sounds like you are leaning towards the Applaws and Porta 21.You should go for it. I am inclined to agree that the Acana has a higher carb content and so for the money, itwould be more beneficial to hold out and go with the Orijen when you are able to.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #8

jenniator

TCS Member
Thread starter
Adult Cat
Joined
Dec 15, 2013
Messages
197
Purraise
35
Location
Netherlands
 
Sounds like you are leaning towards the Applaws and Porta 21.You should go for it. I am inclined to agree that the Acana has a higher carb content and so for the money, itwould be more beneficial to hold out and go with the Orijen when you are able to.
I am leaning more toward Applaws and Porta 21 I think since I've heard such good things about them. It's a difficult decision since I'm still learning about cat nutrition and I've only talked to one or two people that have experience with all three brands. That's why I would love more opinions from others. It really is stressful trying to find the best dry food beside Orijen. It is a smart idea to hold out for Orijen until we are able to get it, but it's not ideal since we wouldn't be getting it for several months and we would need something to give Mew during the day while we are gone.
 
Last edited:

oneandahalfcats

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Dec 13, 2013
Messages
1,437
Purraise
179
 
I am leaning more toward Applaws and Porta 21 I think since I've heard such good things about them. It's a difficult decision since I'm still learning about cat nutrition and I've only talked to one or two people that have experience with all three brands. That's why I would love more opinions from others. It really is stressful trying to find the best dry food beside Orijen. It is a smart idea to hold out for Orijen until we are able to get it, but it's not ideal since we wouldn't be getting it for several months and we would need something to give Mew during the day while we are gone.
Well, sometimes you just have to try things and see how it goes. There is no best or perfect food. What works well for one cat may result in a different experience for another. What I do when trying new foods is to go with a small bag size if possible and if this is well-received, go with the larger bag for next time.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #10

jenniator

TCS Member
Thread starter
Adult Cat
Joined
Dec 15, 2013
Messages
197
Purraise
35
Location
Netherlands
 
Well, sometimes you just have to try things and see how it goes. There is no best or perfect food. What works well for one cat may result in a different experience for another. What I do when trying new foods is to go with a small bag size if possible and if this is well-received, go with the larger bag for next time.
That's true, especially since each cat has a different taste. It's a smart idea to buy a small bag out first to try it. I was thinking about doing that, but unfortunately the Porta 21 Feline Finest Sensible - Grain Free only comes in a 10 kg bag which is strange because every other Porta 21 type has a 2 kg bag. But lucky Applaws does have a 400 grams bag available.
 

random gemini

TCS Member
Adult Cat
Joined
Feb 20, 2014
Messages
147
Purraise
17
There is not a lot of research out there on cat food as it pertains to pet food ingredients. However, in dog food, cellulose is considered a cheap filler ingredient. It is added to food, to increase the fiber content and to make the pet feel full, which it does do, but it is entirely undigestible. Even termites can't digest this stuff, without a special bacteria in their stomachs to digest it for them. Cellulose in a pet food can be sourced from any number of plant sources, the source is almost always unnamed and can include grains. Any pet food that contains cellulose should not be considered a grain free diet. 

There's no particular *harm* in feeding a pet food with cellulose, but I'm just wondering why you would do it when there are options out there that do not contain this cheap ingredient, that your cat can't digest anyway because he's an obligate carnivore, that may or may not (you will never know for sure) have grains in it, which could cause a food reaction in your pet. 

After years of owning pets with food allergies, I have found that this is one of those ingredients that is best left out of the foods that I feed. The ingredient listed on your bag is cellulose. In the United States we call it "powdered cellulose" and there is a plethora of research out there on it. 
 

oneandahalfcats

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Dec 13, 2013
Messages
1,437
Purraise
179
I don't think in this case, cellulose is being used as something to make pets feel fuller, but possibly as a form of digestive aid in lieu of psyllium that you will find in other dry diets. Psyllium and cellulose are both used to treat constipation/irregularity in humans. I wouldn't consider cellulose as sawdust but it is a fibrous naturally-occurring part of plants, and may be cheaper for the company than using psyllium. There are different forms of cellulose depending on the plant, and so I would expect that pet and human foods contain a human-grade source rather than that which may be used to make cardboard and paper for instance. 

Unless a pet needs fiber for some reason, I don't see the need for things like psyllium or cellulose in pet foods really. The amount of these ingredients may be too negligible to be of any real benefit in this respect.

Here is a link to some information about powdered cellulose. There is also a link to a PDF factsheet that talks about human-grade cellulose : http://powderedcellulose.com/what-is-powdered-cellulose/
 
Last edited:

random gemini

TCS Member
Adult Cat
Joined
Feb 20, 2014
Messages
147
Purraise
17
The concern I have with it, is that I have pets here who are horribly allergic to corn. One of my dogs, if she manages to get a mouthful of a corn product, will turn up with a hot spot within a day or so of eating the stuff. The other one will brew an ear infection within 24 hours of getting a mouthful of corn in pet food. The cellulose in pet food can come from multiple plant sources and these include leftovers from corn and wheat processing and I have also seen pine dust left over from processing listed as a possible ingredient. 

It's not harmful to me. In fact, it might even be good for me, but that is not true for my pets. 

All of this boils down to one simple fact: You will never know what is in powdered cellulose, or where it came from for sure, because the pet food manufacturer is not required to tell you. It should be treated exactly like unnamed animal meals, digests and by-products, when viewed on a label. 

 
 

oneandahalfcats

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Dec 13, 2013
Messages
1,437
Purraise
179
That's actually a very good point that cellulose can be found in many plants and therefore a potential problem for some allergies. Sorry to hear about the corn allergy. Wow. Pretty dramatic reactions!
 
Last edited:

random gemini

TCS Member
Adult Cat
Joined
Feb 20, 2014
Messages
147
Purraise
17
I don't know if reactions to grains in cats are that dramatic, but my dogs are rescued. The two girls with severe corn issues were fed corn in diets for years before I adopted them and as I understand it, these allergies and intolerances can build up in the system over time, so I'm seeing this after years of them being exposed to it. 

And like I said, in cats, these reactions may be entirely different, but I prefer to avoid them because of my experiences with my dogs. The whole premise behind feeding grain free isn't just about feeding food with more meat and more protein in it. It's to prevent these types of reactions from happening as well, which isn't something you can control if you have a mystery ingredient on the label. 
 

oneandahalfcats

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Dec 13, 2013
Messages
1,437
Purraise
179
 
I don't know if reactions to grains in cats are that dramatic, but my dogs are rescued. The two girls with severe corn issues were fed corn in diets for years before I adopted them and as I understand it, these allergies and intolerances can build up in the system over time, so I'm seeing this after years of them being exposed to it. 

And like I said, in cats, these reactions may be entirely different, but I prefer to avoid them because of my experiences with my dogs. The whole premise behind feeding grain free isn't just about feeding food with more meat and more protein in it. It's to prevent these types of reactions from happening as well, which isn't something you can control if you have a mystery ingredient on the label. 
I think it is the glutens that tend to generate more of a reaction in cats. Corn and Wheat as grains are really bad, cheap ingredients that are not readily digestible or of any benefit to cats, and you are wise to avoid them. While allergies are certainly a consideration, my concern with grain-based foods is with the potential for out of control weight gain and with this, diabetes, urinary tract infections and problems with dehydration. I am thankful that my cats have not experienced any of these things, and I want to keep it this way.
 
Top