Royal Canin food change?

Hi all, I have a 5 year old cat with IBS and food allergies. He is allergic to chicken, beef, and fish. He is on the Royal Canin veterinarian diet, rabbit and pea (canned). I know this isn't the best diet for him, but his tummy does well on it, no throwing up or diarrhea.

I noticed the cans suddenly stopped saying "hypoallergenic" on them and the food is also slightly darker. The calories and protein content changed a little too. I called Royal Canin to make sure I was still getting the right food and was told that they can no longer say 'hypoallergenic' on their label and that the formula didn't change at all. Hard to believe since the protein and calories changed a little (granted not by much). She said when they change the name of a food they have to rerun the nutritional content.

Has anyone else noticed this or have any thoughts?

PrimeCat said:

 
Hi all, I have a 5 year old cat with IBS and food allergies. He is allergic to chicken, beef, and fish. He is on the Royal Canin veterinarian diet, rabbit and pea (canned). I know this isn't the best diet for him, but his tummy does well on it, no throwing up or diarrhea.

I noticed the cans suddenly stopped saying "hypoallergenic" on them and the food is also slightly darker. The calories and protein content changed a little too. I called Royal Canin to make sure I was still getting the right food and was told that they can no longer say 'hypoallergenic' on their label and that the formula didn't change at all. Hard to believe since the protein and calories changed a little (granted not by much). She said when they change the name of a food they have to rerun the nutritional content.

Has anyone else noticed this or have any thoughts?

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Hi and welcome to TCS 

I'm not sure about the change in color, but I believe that In order to call their food hypoallergenic they need to make sure that the entire line is perfectly clear of the last batch's remains to the point that it's 100% clean of any protein. So, while it may be the same formula it could very well contain traces of chicken, beef or fish from previous batches. With some cats, that can be enough to trigger an allergy. I would switch to a food that does guarantee "hypoallergenic" on the label.

Thank you Anne! I am going to try calling and asking Royal Canin that question. Hoping that's something they can answer.

I just called and am posting in case it helps others. So the standards by which the food was produced under the Hypoallergenic label will be the same with the new Selected Protein label. It will have the same 'hypoallergenic properties' as the food with the Hypoallergenic label. The food production wouldn't be altered in terms of having other proteins being able to possibly mix in at all. Royal Canin (and it sounded like other manufacturers too?) is undergoing reevaluations of their product names across the board because they can't specifically say that it will treat the allergy/disease, only that it will support in treating it.

Still freaks me out a little that the food is a little darker, but I'm going to feed him it and see how he does. I'd like to get him on a lower carb rabbit canned food, but his stomach is so sensitive, I don't like switching foods since he has been doing well on this.

My understanding of the removal of "hypoallergenic" from their labels was due to pet food labeling regulations. 

I know for a fact that their dry formulas have changed and I started a thread about it here. I no longer feed dry, but still offer the RC pea and rabbit canned to Sebastian as part of his rotation and have been keeping an eye out on the ingredient list each time I buy a new case. I was assured by a Royal Canin employee when I called that the canned formula would not change. Sure enough, the ingredients have changed slightly, although just the supplements I believe. I have both labels from the cans at home and can report back the differences later.

I don't think they're required to say the formula has changed unless it is to the main ingredients (I got this info from a By Nature rep when I inquired about a change to their canned food). I cannot find anything from the AAFCO or FDA where it states these rules, but my guess is that this information would not be readily available to the general consumer. Also, while the formula itself might not have changed significantly, their source for rabbit, for example, might have changed and thus altering the flavor.

Interesting. I have an old and new can with me too, I only looked at the first line of ingredients, didn't read all the way through.  The 2-3 cans that I fed him before realizing the name change (I saw 'rabbit and pea' on the box and fed him a few cans without realizing they no longer said 'hypoallergenic') seemed to go over well. He ate it fine and didn't seem to have any reaction to it. Maybe a different source of rabbit like you said.

I was reading the thread you linked to. Prime (my cat) won't eat dry at all. Actually he throws it up, even if I just give him a tiny bit. But he eats his hard treats just fine. Weirdo.

Exactly...

I picked up 12 cans of the RC Rabbit in the cans about 4 days ago and noticed right away when I opened the lid that it was darker in appearance and also not as soft in consistency. I then smelled it, it had between a  beef broth smell and also liver and when I offered it to Boo , who has IBD he wouldn't even give it a second glance. This is the rabbit he has been eating off and on for around 3 months.. besides Addiction Rabbit & blueberries. It will have to be taken back and I will have to get credit for it at my vet.

Did not notice that it no longer said "hypoallergenic".... Guess I wouldn't make a good detective huh?

Another thing , whether to be a little careful of or not with RC canned, it does contain Carregean (never can spell it). I have been reading alot about this .

Now from what I gather it can cause inflammation/ inflammatory diseases... HMM, you either have to deal with that ingredient or Guar gum in 90% of canned cat foods.

So, we will not be using RC Rabbit anymore for the simple fact Boo no longer finds it appealing .I never did try their dry Rabbit because it had soy in it and I gather they are either very soon or already have quit manufacturing the dry Rabbit and Duck, at least that is what I was told a while back from my vets office.

I guess they want everyone to buy their "hydrolyzed soy " that is $$$.

Agghh.. seems like there is hardly any good food for pets nowadays. The inflammation in his intestines is thick (last time we did an x-ray about a year ago) so that frustrates me that carageenan can cause inflammation. I want to change him to another rabbit food but it's hard to find one that won't be in contact with other proteins. Any suggestions?

Edit - just looked up the Addiction rabbit cat food you mentioned and it says it's hypoallergenic! I wonder if he would like it.. should try and order some of it.

Hi all.

Thanks for the posts.  My cats have eaten the Royal Canin Pea and Duck (PD) for years-they both have IBD.  My boy cat eats the dry PD.  My girl cat eats the canned PD. Since approximately May, I noticed that he has been itching, biting, scratching, vomiting and overgrooming himself.  He has also become very aggressive-attacking my girl cat and me. He's a very gentle cat-this is completely out of character.  Also, he has not been himself lately.  He runs out around meowing loudly and freaking out.  When he vomits, he throws up large amounts of food-a lot of which appears undigested. 

When my Vet indicated that he could be having a reaction to the food and recommended a possible change to the Rabbit formula, I found your posts and learned that they recently changed the dry formulas by adding soy.  I performed additional searches and found many complaints on the Consumer Affairs website, which concern me.  They include some similarities (at least one complaint is directed towards the PD).  I also found a complaint about the soy causing a number of problems.  Some of the complaints have alleged changes in the food in August and September.  

The canned PD has fluctuated quite a bit in consistency.  I have noticed my girl cat sneezing this week.  

I started researching possible alternatives and so far have not figured out a good solution in light of IBD and potential food allergies.  It seems like a lot of the foods have issues.  As much as I spend on food, I should not have to worry about sketchy behavior by the manufacturers.  It's very stressful.  These are my fur babies and that's why I have spent a lot of money on the RC-I thought I was giving them good food.  Now, I'm no longer sure and I don't know what to feed them. I'm going to do more research.  

I appreciate any advice. I have never made cat food at home.  I'm not completely against it-I just don't know anything about it.  It would be much easier to find a manufactured high quality, safe food (both canned and dry) that my cats will eat. Let's get to the bottom of this.  Thanks.  

It's very possible that your boy could be reacting to the soy or other changes made to the dry formula. Why doesn't he get wet food?

Diets for IBD kitties can really vary quite a bit based on what they can tolerate. There are a lot of success stories on homemade diets. If you're interested, I recommend that you first peruse the resource links at the top of the Raw & Home-Cooked Cat Food forum and then start a thread there if you would like to discuss further or need help with recipes.

You can also check out www.ibdkitties.net if you haven't already done so.

My cat has chronic pancreatitis (never really determined if that falls into the IBD category), and he does pretty well with premium canned and supplemented home-cooked.

I feed Royal Canin, not because of allergies but my cat only vet recommends it.  For years I swore by Science Diet, but they changed and the words out and so is the food.  I would think, that since the quality of Royal Canin is finally getting out that they would not change their product and ruin their reputation.  Time to call the Vet. and ask questions.  Its what she feeds her spoiled rotten patients and pets.

Thanks GoHolistic!  He prefers kibble.  He will take a few bites of the canned food and then walk away.  He's more of a grazer and prefers to eat multiple times a day.  My girl cat has lost most of her teeth.  I feed her the wet food because she cannot chew up the kibbles-this seems to aggravate her IBD. She sneaks a few when I'm not looking though! I have to keep a close eye on her.  

I'm very disappointed with RC tweaking the formula.  I feel like a lot of manufacturers are cutting corners--I don't want them doing it at the expense of my babies.  I don't know what to do.  

I hope everyone can find out what's going on and figure out a good solution.  I will look into Rayne and home cooked meals.  I would prefer not to have to make their meals, but I will do what I think is in their best interests.    

I just now saw this thread, Sweetie eats Royal Canin SO for urinary tract health because in the past he has had problems with crystals.  I recently bought a package of dry food and when I opened it to put it in the storage container I keep it in I noticed the smell of the food was different and actually didn't smell nearly as good as it usually does. When I read the ingredients list I noticed the formula was changed slightly, I haven't fed Sweetie any of this food yet but I will have to in a couple of days.

Prime Cat  do you have an 800 number for Royal Canin?

My cats get a variety of grain free foods in addition to freeze dries raw food which is soaked with warm water and then added to their grain free canned food. My furbabbies will not eat just one brand of canned food, so I always mix a can of tiki chicken in with the grain free canned food or another brand such as weruva paw lickin chicken., they like the variety and they don't know that i"m sneaking in the freeze dried raw. Stella and chewys freeze dried raw is one of the best freeze dried I have found,and haven't had any problems mixing it into their canned food. Just make sure you soak it in warm water t,before feeding it . I have two kitties on Royal canin , the wet food, they only get dry as a snack as per my vet, so all of my cats get the dry now as a snack only. I am currently mixing in some grain free canned food to the royal canin since I do not care for the ingredients in royal canin,but will continue to feed it as long as they want knowing that it is mixed with the other canned food. My vet says that dry food is a nono because cats dont drink enough water to compensate so I feed 95% wet food always.

PrimeCat said:

 
Agghh.. seems like there is hardly any good food for pets nowadays. The inflammation in his intestines is thick (last time we did an x-ray about a year ago) so that frustrates me that carageenan can cause inflammation. I want to change him to another rabbit food but it's hard to find one that won't be in contact with other proteins. Any suggestions?

Edit - just looked up the Addiction rabbit cat food you mentioned and it says it's hypoallergenic! I wonder if he would like it.. should try and order some of it.

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Just went through the same ordeal. Boo has IBD and it is simply crazy as to the choices out there and from well known reputable pet food manufacturers ! I have searched extensively and Boo was eating RC Rabbit in can and Addiction Rabbit & Blueberries in the can when he had his last flair up about two weeks ago.

The Addiction Rabbit was great, he took it immediately but after 2 1/2 months of RC and Addiction he flaired.

Addiction cans do have Guar Gum another potential allergen  and the RC Rabbit has Carraggeenan , known for potentially causing inflammation !

I am still looking but as of right now here is the very few choices that do not contain these ingredients.... Most of the TIKI CATS, FIRST MATE, NATURE'S Variety LID.... ZIWI PEAK is another I believe that is ok, FROMM but it has fish as well as NATURE'S LOGIC... Another thing we have to be careful of is KELP in Cat food, depending on how it is processed it can contain Carrageenan ( seaweed extract)..

I am so disgusted , is it becoming an impossibility to find a cat food that does not include all kinds of Herbs in their dry also ? I am not a fan of dry but....... Rosemary, Clove, Kelp, Guar Gum, Whey, Soy, Corn, corn gluten, wheat, barley, vegetable oil, xanthan gum and Carrageenan all can be allergens for cats with IBD and  cats  with allergies.

Blue Basics for instance, suppose to be for sensitive systems, simple ingredients, HAAAAA ! The turkey & Potato has several ingredients that I simply can not feed my cat with IBD .. All other potential canned foods have either fish in them / and / or Guar gum , carrageenan .... YUCK !

You can try the Addiction, perhaps the RC Rabbit was the culprit and if he remained on just the Addiction he might have been fine... You can order a few cans to see if it will be acceptable first at Only natural pet I believe if you can not obtain in a local pet store.... Wild Calling has rabbit in dry ( Boo hated Nature's Variety in dry and canned  Rabbit ) and I am not sure of the canned  it might contain at least Guar gum I am not sure.

As to date over a period of almost two years we have tried and have been successful up to 3 months : Natural Balance LID dry Duck & Pea with RC Hypoallergenic canned Duck , : Nature's Variety LID dry Turkey with NV LID Turkey Canned, : Nature's Variety LID Rabbit Dry (He didn't like it) with Addiction Rabbit and Blueberries and RC Rabbit canned..... He will not eat Venison in Canned, tried it ...

I have started over again with novel protein sources thinking that I should switch him over in maybe a month or two instead of waiting for that three month marker when he seemingly has a flair .I am in a bind right now since RC Duck canned has Carrageenan, same for the Rabbit RC in can, Nature's Variety LID Turkey in can I just recently tried and he wouldn't eat it this time either, fish flavors are out completely, can't find except for online chicken without these allergens, First Mate and Tiki which I am going to probably take a chance and order does seem to be a likely good choice.

Don't scold me please, but right at this present moment and for over a week now I did something I would have never of done, Boo is eating a dry by Purina, yes Purina, called Beyond one naturals Chicken & Oatmeal. He has not thrown up and loves this dry food but I am looking to get him off of it very soon. His stools are back to normal also.  He has not had any type of grains or chicken for well over a year or so. he refuses to eat any canned that I have offered him like his Addiction rabbit, etc.. The Purina Beyond one in the cans can not be offered because of the Guar gum, fish, etc....

Is this a good choice ?, maybe not but he was not eating anything I offered him over a week ago and vet said to try something different to get him to eat..... It is a tough battle when you have a cat with IBD, one day their up the next day their down, you have all kinds of cat food that you have spent $$ on and it  just sits there... Luckily I have a neighbor who feeds 5 strays so I can at least give it to her !!!

Thanks for the ideas @DonnaJean and @gladys!  It is so hard to figure this out.  When I do, I can only hope my cats will eat what I pick.  I will definitely try to buy a limited amount to see if they will eat it.  I will look into the raw to mix in with the wet food.  I’m trying to transition my boy to the RC canned PD so I can get him off the RC dry PD because it seems to be bothering him and making him vomit.  Poor little guy!  I think I need some kibbles to supplement the canned because he begs me for kibbles. 

I looked at the Nature’s Variety canned Rabbit.  I read that they get their rabbit from China though. I’m not sure if it’s true, but I don’t want to feed them anything from China.  I looked at the Wild Calling rabbit formulas.  Wild Calling states that the dry should be used in rotation-probably meaning that it does not have enough nutritional value alone.  I will look into the other foods listed by @DonnaJean and @GoHolistic.  Thanks for all the suggestions! It’s so difficult when they throw in all the extra bad ingredients.  I’m unsure what’s going on with the canned formulas as well based on what people have reported. 

@PanamaPatti—I was surprised that my Vet did not know about the formula changes to RC.  It is supposed to be the best.  However, the dry food (at least) seems to be bothering my boy.  For the price, I don’t think it should contain soy.  It’s also marketed towards cats with IBD and allergies.  I don’t think it’s appropriate. 

@Lorie D., the number for Royal Canin is (800) 592-6687 (Technical Services).  Please keep us posted.   

ForrestMeows said:

 
Thanks for the ideas @DonnaJean and @gladys!  It is so hard to figure this out.  When I do, I can only hope my cats will eat what I pick.  I will definitely try to buy a limited amount to see if they will eat it.  I will look into the raw to mix in with the wet food.  I’m trying to transition my boy to the RC canned PD so I can get him off the RC dry PD because it seems to be bothering him and making him vomit.  Poor little guy!  I think I need some kibbles to supplement the canned because he begs me for kibbles. 

I looked at the Nature’s Variety canned Rabbit.  I read that they get their rabbit from China though. I’m not sure if it’s true, but I don’t want to feed them anything from China.  I looked at the Wild Calling rabbit formulas.  Wild Calling states that the dry should be used in rotation-probably meaning that it does not have enough nutritional value alone.  I will look into the other foods listed by @DonnaJean and @GoHolistic.  Thanks for all the suggestions! It’s so difficult when they throw in all the extra bad ingredients.  I’m unsure what’s going on with the canned formulas as well based on what people have reported. 

@PanamaPatti—I was surprised that my Vet did not know about the formula changes to RC.  It is supposed to be the best.  However, the dry food (at least) seems to be bothering my boy.  For the price, I don’t think it should contain soy.  It’s also marketed towards cats with IBD and allergies.  I don’t think it’s appropriate. 

@Lorie D., the number for Royal Canin is (800) 592-6687 (Technical Services).  Please keep us posted. 

 

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I never tried the RC Dry Rabbit only because I was skeptical about the "hydrolyzed Soy protein" in it... As I review the ingredients in the RC dry I see it also has some other ingredients that could raise a red flag for cats with IBD / allergies... Vegetable oil, Rosemary extract. Coconut oil, we never know what our fur babies will react to.

The RC rabbit canned, Vegetable oil, carrageenan  might not agree with cats who have IBD... So I am assuming that the RC Duck in the can also has the same ingredients...

I agree I don't think that RC is doing a great job gearing toward animals with IBD/ Allergies and it does not appear appropriate for IBD cats.

Wild calling, as long as your cat is eating some other canned there  should  be no issue with feeding a little of the Wild Calling Rabbit dry. There are a few pet manufacturers like Wysong that also state" to be used in rotation"..

I actually have an unopened bag of Wild Calling Rabbit in dry( I purchased it right before he had this last flair) and plan on using it in a month or so. I will probably try to locate another type of Rabbit in canned since Addiction Rabbit wore out it's welcome with Boo and he turns his nose up at it since his last flair a few weeks ago.

If these pet food manufacturers would only get a clue and quit advertising and promoting some of their pet foods as "limited ingredients", "sensitive stomach/ skin", "appropriate for cats with sensitivities and allergies" and quit putting all these "not appropriate" ingredients in their cat foods we would feel a lot more comfortable in purchasing and feeding our special needs babies...

Like I had stated it looks like for canned Tiki Cat, First Mate, Nature's Variety LID and I think Ziwi Peak  are the only ones so far that I can find that do not have some of the questionable ingredients that IBD cats probably should stay away from.

Please dear order Hounds and Gatos Rabbit right now !!!!! Pet 360 sells it and pet food direct too. It does not have caranengan and I like to mix it with tiki cat or soulistic chicken that U can get at petco. Yes it is sadthat these companies add all this crap to the food. Also try the Stella and Chewys freeze dried raw ,but soak in warm not hot water and mix into the canned food. None of my cats have refused it and it is so good for them. Good Luck dear and God Bless U !!!!

I dont like addiction because they add too many fruits and veggies to their food. Hounds and Gatos rabbit and chicken are my best choices so far, although I like Wild calling,and they have a large variety, but I am concerned because they add brewers yeast to their canned food. Have You heard any negs about this food ? I he\ave fed it to my cats and they love it, but I'm still concerned about the brewers yeast they add. Even though i never feed just one kind of cat food, I always mix something else in with it I feed the royal canin dry to all the cats BUT only as a snack !!!!!! So a few morsals twice a day ONLY!!!!! In the wild, cats do not eat dry kibble. They are carnivores and are primarily meat eaters. My ibm kitty is doing very well on this canned diet and the diarhea is gone, and her stools are formed.

gladys said:

Please dear order Hounds and Gatos Rabbit right now !!!!! Pet 360 sells it and pet food direct too. It does not have caranengan and I like to mix it with tiki cat or soulistic chicken that U can get at petco. Yes it is sadthat these companies add all this crap to the food. Also try the Stella and Chewys freeze dried raw ,but soak in warm not hot water and mix into the canned food. None of my cats have refused it and it is so good for them. Good Luck dear and God Bless U !!!!

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Does your cat have Inflammatory Bowel Disease ? If so, if this is working out that is wonderful. Hounds & Gatos canned I checked out and it does however contain many "gums" which I believe can be a trigger for cats with IBD.

Stella & Chewy's, I did try that about a year ago, however I did not mix it in with other canned foods. My IBD cat would not eat it and my normal cat did but did get somewhat constipated from it......

I think for Chicken choices in canned First mate and Tiki Cat are somewhat safe, Turkey, First mate and possibly Nature's Variety Instinct LID, Rabbit, possibly Addiction  and in dry Wild Calling Rabbit Burrow, Duck, Natural balance Duck & Pea LID Dry, their Canned is a no go...so Duck in canned, RC has their Duck but the Vegetable oil, carrageenan is a very possible irritant for cats with IBD...

For Venison, Boo won't eat it in canned and picked at it in dry... I did try Cavair New Zealand Venison in dry but it didn't work out so great and canned I have tried many brands but he won't eat it.

I think "we" need to start contacting some of these pet food manufacturers and give them some of our opinions and suggestions, can't hurt ...