FirstMate cat food quality?

bellaluna777

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I have noticed the most recent batches of Firstmate for the past year are different in color, smell(burned potato), and texture:


I wrote to First Mate and got the following lame answer back:

"As you may know, FirstMate is committed to using natural ingredients without the addition of palatability enhancers, artificial coloring or binders.  As you will notice in your own grocery market, ingredients will vary in shape, colour, consistency and size.  This is true for the ingredients used in our pet food production as well.  What you have been experiencing in our products is commonly referred to as natural variation.  Although each batch is the same nutritionally, you may note changes in the texture, smell and colour.   Normally this variation is very minimal and goes unnoticed but more dramatic variation can sometimes occur. "Natural variation is typically viewed as an extremely positive feature within our industry as more and more customers strive to obtain natural products. " 

Anybody's thoughts?
 
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mingking

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The first cans I bought had the same look to them: circle in the middle. I thought it odd but maybe it was just the way they make it. I bought another can recently and it didn't have the circle in it.

I'm mainly just commenting in hopes someone else will see this thread and have a more educated opinion than me. I'm not too concerned since I feel like it's a good food... the potatoes are a off-putting, for sure, and it's why I didn't buy it for a while even though I was eyeing it for a long time.

There aren't many reviews for this canned food too - not sure if it's because it's Canadian or if it's a relatively new food.
 
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bellaluna777

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It's not thaaaaat new, however, being Canadian it doesn't get mentioned too much south of the boarder. According to Dr. Lisa Pierson, canned cat food should be OK as long as the carb count is below 10%, Firstmate is 6.8%. It's the best I could find - no guar gum, xanthan gum, carrageenan, sunflower oil, fish or clay as fillers. The top of the top for canned for me would be Tiki cat Chicken in Consome, but it is not carried in Canada - only the fish flavors. I am almost driving across the boarder to buy it!!! Tiki cat is zero carbs, zero thickeners and FREE RANGE chicken vs. First Mate's free run chicken.  Protein in Tiki cat is much higher too, 15 - 18% while Firstmate is 11%. 
 

mingking

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I've driven across to border to PetCo to look for Tiki Cat but it wasn't there!!! Off topic, but where do you plan to drive to get Tiki Cat? I am so desperate to try it!
 

felineempathy

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I do think First Mate is a great quality cat food.  There is some down here in Washington State at a chain of pet stores called Mud Bay.  It's a pet store with vets as the managers and they only pick the most natural pet products for their stores.

I did get cans of chicken and turkey to try out with my cat as part of my rotation.  She liked it at first but started showing dislike after a while.  I noticed it was hard for her to eat.  The texture of the food isn't like the usual pate and is more mushy and moist.  I myself didn't really like the smell either (don't know if that bothered the cat).

I still think it's a good quality food though, judging from the ingredients and analysis. 
 

bonepicker

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It's not thaaaaat new, however, being Canadian it doesn't get mentioned too much south of the boarder. According to Dr. Lisa Pierson, canned cat food should be OK as long as the carb count is below 10%, Firstmate is 6.8%. It's the best I could find - no guar gum, xanthan gum, carrageenan, sunflower oil, fish or clay as fillers. The top of the top for canned for me would be Tiki cat Chicken in Consome, but it is not carried in Canada - only the fish flavors. I am almost driving across the boarder to buy it!!! Tiki cat is zero carbs, zero thickeners and FREE RANGE chicken vs. First Mate's free run chicken.  Protein in Tiki cat is much higher too, 15 - 18% while Firstmate is 11%. 
Don't any online delivery pet food companies have it?
 
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bellaluna777

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Yeah, I'll let you know when I get a chance to drive down to the US to buy some Tiki cat Chicken in Consome
 
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bellaluna777

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Yes, but the shipping is more expensive than the actual cat food :(
 

remmiebrandt

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I wrote to First Mate and got the following lame answer back:

"As you may know, FirstMate is committed to using natural ingredients without the addition of palatability enhancers, artificial coloring or binders.  As you will notice in your own grocery market, ingredients will vary in shape, colour, consistency and size.  This is true for the ingredients used in our pet food production as well.  What you have been experiencing in our products is commonly referred to as natural variation.  Although each batch is the same nutritionally, you may note changes in the texture, smell and colour.   Normally this variation is very minimal and goes unnoticed but more dramatic variation can sometimes occur. "Natural variation is typically viewed as an extremely positive feature within our industry as more and more customers strive to obtain natural products. " 

Anybody's thoughts?
I wouldn't buy it anymore. That vague mambo jumbo makes me suspect. IF the food is going bad or the ingredients are no longer nutritious I would expect it to turn different colors - have you ever seen fresh food turn colors? I haven't. If you use the same recipee to mix a batch of cookies - unless you burn them - they will always look the same. If they can't guarantee consistency then they must be changing the formulations - a little more vitamin D, maybe a little less taurine - who knows?  I would be worried it was stored in a really hot warehouse for too long  - maybe one of the machines was broken. I'd wait a long while before buying such expensive food again and hope the next time I try it - they've gotten the consistency back again. Natural products only turn color when they are going bad - the bacteria is what does it. My 2 cents.
 

remmiebrandt

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Well we got some too online and not only does ours have holes in it like that - missing half the food content - but it has these blackish specs all throughout it - I can't tell if its mold or what it is but there is no parsley or spinach or anything like that listed in the ingredients and it didn't used to have potatoe in it either so I guess it is now less turkey. Mine is going back to the store - I won't let the cats eat it - not that they would. I put it out from the can and they sniffed and ran away. I don't get what the heck is happening to the pet food industry - are they all nuts?
 

remmiebrandt

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Well we got some too online and not only does ours have holes in it like that - missing half the food content - but it has these blackish specs all throughout it - I can't tell if its mold or what it is but there is no parsley or spinach or anything like that listed in the ingredients and it didn't used to have potatoe in it either so I guess it is now less turkey. Mine is going back to the store - I won't let the cats eat it - not that they would. I put it out from the can and they sniffed and ran away. I don't get what the heck is happening to the pet food industry - are they all nuts?
Should have listened to my own advice but the place I usually order from just started carrying it so I figured I'd add it to my cart.
 
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bellaluna777

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It was giving one of my cats the runs and so I switched them to raw. I still am giving it to one of my senior CKD cats, but looking for another brand. Quality has been bad for a long long time..........I see now some yellow discoloration.............not good!!!
 

gronberg

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you can buy Tiki Cat canned food at Tail Blazers in Canada
 

kittymomma1122

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Sault St. Marie Michigan has a local owned pet store that carries Tiki. I do not know how close you are to there. I live 5 hours from there so I only get there when we are on vacation. Our vacation spot is 2 hours from there. I order online in US. Just recently a local pet store is placing special orders and they will get my Tiki. They also order me cases of Weruva. I like to shop local if possible.
 

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guilly

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Hi everyone

I have recently switched to first mate food after trying others with no luck. The quality compared to other ones seemed good. There is a lot of liquid so I do feel like there should be a bit more food in the can. The potato was a concern, however, only having 2 main ingredients with a small % of potatoe I was ok with this. The lesser of the evils I suppose. There is also a small amount of kale in it which I have noticed from time to time. I have no idea of any benefits to cats eating kale.......

I have also wanted to try tiki cat and found it on amazon but it was expensive and risky to buy a whole case without trying it first. I find it very difficult to find a food that has everything it should have and not putting in things that are not meant for cats to eat. I also just had a bad experience with wild calling having very large sharp chunks of bone in it. Without going raw I don't have many other options. First mate has a lot of great features, which have already been mentioned.

I look forward to any other suggestions or input :rub:

Thanks everyone!
 
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bellaluna777

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I gave up. Firstmate sent me this long e-mail justifying the inconsistency in their quality. Since then I have switched to commercial raw and haven't looked back
 

pushylady

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My cats don't like it much. I would like it to use it more because of the price and the fact that it's Canadian, but it's a waste if they won't eat it.
 

labryadae

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I just recently switched to First Mate, looking for a good food.

I had bought and fed about 3 cases of the Wild Tuna to my 3 cats - when the 4th case suddenly changed in consistency.

It used to be rather firm, but now was very mushy.

One cat wouldn't even try it.

The other two ate it, but after about 2 weeks (mixed meals occasionally with First mate salmon and kibble - my oldest started throwing up bile 6-8 times a day and sequestered herself in a quiet and dark room - this went on for 3-4 days and I was getting ready to take her to the vet.

Then, they other cat started getting sick - she NEVER throws up!

So I stopped feeding them the wild tuna - and within 24 hours they stopped being sick, and the oldest came out from the room ready to join the world again.

I am very suspicious of the food.

My next step is to file a complaint via the Contact Us - but based on history here - it seems like they won't care much.

Even if they don't admit any known problems - if they fix it is the most important thing.

I won't buy wild tuna for a very long time, and am again on the hunt for a better food.

Regarding Tiki - isn't that the one made in Thailand? (Or am I thinking of something else?)

Where does you confidence come from that they won't change their manufacturing policies?
 
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