Help in choosing food for ferals

richr

TCS Member
Thread starter
Kitten
Joined
Apr 23, 2015
Messages
8
Purraise
1
Hi guys,

I'm currently feeding, in my backyard, 3 TNR'ed young ferals which might be about 8 months old, a young mother I've been trying to catch in vain and about 2 to 3 others that come by regularly. The 3 young cats are my main concern especially because one of them is a special one, very friendly, vocal and "pet-able". I have 2 rescues at home and my son with asthma is a bit allergic so I've been dying inside because he's been bullied and I can't take him in. I have to say that he's been doing much better these past weeks since he's staying in and around the backyard. Maybe he figured out that the colonies nearby are not for him.

Anyway, I've been feeding them Friskies (and some variety of dry food from Petco) because of the affordable price at BJ's but I'm concerned that it's not the right food for them especially as young as they are.

I'm posting a link to the different cat food products available at BJ's so that maybe you guys could help me figure out if there is a better choice among them.

http://www.bjs.com/pet/refine.more.131008.2001299.1.251

Hope to find some suggestions even if it's not actually from BJ's.

Thanks,

Richard.
 

ondine

TCS Member
Veteran
Joined
Nov 20, 2008
Messages
5,312
Purraise
780
Location
Burlington, North Carolina
If you have a Tractor Supply nearby, their Four Health is good and not too expensive.  It is what I feed my outside guys.

Anything without by-products and grains is best.

Thank you for taking care of these kitties.  They are a lucky group!
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #3

richr

TCS Member
Thread starter
Kitten
Joined
Apr 23, 2015
Messages
8
Purraise
1
Thanks for the reply, Ondine. There doesn't seem to be any Tractor Supply stores in NY and they don't ship their cat food.

I just realized that the BJ's link provided does not even have their two main brands which are Friskies and Fancy Feast.

It's crazy how difficult everything about taking care of feral cats is. There could be 10 organisations dedicated to cats around the neighborhood and none of them are able to help because they are swamped with the ones they already have. Feral cats are also never part of their program except for TNR.
 

ondine

TCS Member
Veteran
Joined
Nov 20, 2008
Messages
5,312
Purraise
780
Location
Burlington, North Carolina
It's crazy how difficult everything about taking care of feral cats is. There could be 10 organisations dedicated to cats around the neighborhood and none of them are able to help because they are swamped with the ones they already have. Feral cats are also never part of their program except for TNR.
Unfortunately, too true.  So many people think of cats as disposable and leave it to compassionate people like you to clean things up.  Whatever food you provide is more than they are getting and with TNR, your colony should stabilize and thrive.

Providing them with food and shelter is going above and beyond and you are to be commended for that!  A lot of us go it alone - most of our rescues here feel ferals are better off euthanized, so there is not a lot of support for that work.  Fortunately, our city does have a TNR ordinance and does support it.  We are the only town in our county that does not actively hunt and kill ferals cats.  So sad ...

BTW - the Earyth's Pride doesn't look too bad.  Just read the labels and make sure real chicken or turkey is the first ingrediant.  Try to avoid fillers - grains, by-products, etc.  Good luck!

.
 
Last edited:
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #5

richr

TCS Member
Thread starter
Kitten
Joined
Apr 23, 2015
Messages
8
Purraise
1
I'm always wondering if these organizations become more like profitable businesses than how they started or is it that the problem is so big that it would take 100 instead of 10 of them in a community. I don't know. It's just discouraging to me.

The Earth Pride seem to be dry food which, even the very best of them, are said to be very bad for cats. Also, from the comments and lack of availability, it seems like it's being discontinued by the brand. It's never the crappy ones...

Thanks a lot for your help.
 

ondine

TCS Member
Veteran
Joined
Nov 20, 2008
Messages
5,312
Purraise
780
Location
Burlington, North Carolina
Yes, any wet food is really better then dry.  Most feral caregivers use dry for economics and because they can leave it out, unlike wet food.

As to the organizations - just like everything else, there may be people in it for less-than-admirable reasons (i.e. money) but it is heart breaking work none-the-less.
 
Top