Budget

ashekitty · Mar 6, 2017

I was hoping to get help from other budget savvy cat parents. I need to know what the best WET cat foods are that I can afford in my price range. I currently feed Sheba but I have heard there are better brands for the same price. I have done some hunting online but I also wanted other people's input.

Here is my budget (no wiggle room)
35 American dollars a month for one cat. She is 10 lbs and is low/moderately active.

I also want to know the names of brands that are better than budget brands to rotate in when I have the extra money.

Thank you so much!

LTS3 · Mar 7, 2017

Have you seen these TCS threads?

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/308964/healthy-but-affordable-canned-food

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/272192/affordable-canned-food

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/327692/cheapest-most-affordable-grain-free-or-healthiest-canned-food

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/330459/...conomical-way-to-buy-friskies-canned-cat-food

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/306956/new-affordable-petsmart-brand-d

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/292890/4health-now-has-affordable-grain-free-wet-food

The best one is the one your cat will eat and you can afford

Sheba is fine as is Fancy Feast Classic / Gourmet and Friskies pates. Store generic brand may be ok but read the label. Wal Mart's Special Kitty brand is similar to Fancy Feast and cost even less. Chain pet stores usually have their own generic brand.

Buying 5.5 oz cans and larger saves money over time as does buying food by the case. Chain pet stores often don't sell food by the case but independent pet stores often do.

For the occasional splurge, try Weruva or Soulistic (both are made by the same company), Tiki Cat, Nature's Variety Instinct, Wellness, Merrick, Hounds and Gatos. Do you have any independent pet stores in the area? You'll find the high end brands there. Petco sells Soulistic and some Nature's Variety. Most brands can be bought online though there may be a shipping cost.

Kat0121 · Mar 7, 2017

LTS3 said:
Have you seen these TCS threads?

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/308964/healthy-but-affordable-canned-food

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/272192/affordable-canned-food

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/327692/cheapest-most-affordable-grain-free-or-healthiest-canned-food

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/330459/...conomical-way-to-buy-friskies-canned-cat-food

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/306956/new-affordable-petsmart-brand-d

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/292890/4health-now-has-affordable-grain-free-wet-food

The best one is the one your cat will eat and you can afford

Sheba is fine as is Fancy Feast Classic / Gourmet and Friskies pates. Store generic brand may be ok but read the label. Wal Mart's Special Kitty brand is similar to Fancy Feast and cost even less. Chain pet stores usually have their own generic brand.

Buying 5.5 oz cans and larger saves money over time as does buying food by the case. Chain pet stores often don't sell food by the case but independent pet stores often do.

For the occasional splurge, try Weruva or Soulistic (both are made by the same company), Tiki Cat, Nature's Variety Instinct, Wellness, Merrick, Hounds and Gatos. Do you have any independent pet stores in the area? You'll find the high end brands there. Petco sells Soulistic and some Nature's Variety. Most brands can be bought online though there may be a shipping cost.

I can't agree more about that!

I also recommend using services such as Petco or Petsmart's repeat delivery program. They give you a lower price than what you'd pay in store for multi packs of food. I use Petco's and they give you PALS rewards for every dollar spent. $100.00 spent is $5 earned. Every penny helps. I also use Ebates. If you order online, Petco, Petsmart and Walmart all use Ebates. Go to Ebates.com, look for the store name and shop using the link they give you. The percentage you get back fluctuates but they just had triple the usual amount this past weekend. I placed an order for pickup at Petsmart for dog food, cat food and litter. They were offering 12% cash back. I got back almost $8.00. They pay you quarterly and will send it to your Paypal if you have one. I think you can also get a check if you want but I'm not sure. They send mine to my PP and I can have it sent to my bank account from there.

Petsmart will let you order online and pick up in store to avoid shipping costs. Not all items are available for this though.

I also get cat food with my Amazon subscribe and save. I LOVE THIS SERVICE. I have about 35 things on my list and once a month I go through it. I skip what I don't need and leave on what I do. Up to 5 items gives you 5% off everything. More than 5 is 15%. Free shipping as well. Non Prime items are 3-5 days. Prime items are 2 days for members. You do NOT have to be a Prime member to use this service. Many, many things are S&S eligible. I get cat food, dog food and treats for both this way- along with lots of other things.

If you do go with the Sheba, Friskies and Fancy Feast, try to stick to the pates on all. There is nothing wrong with these foods. My cats like them and they have a spot in our rotation. Right now Petsmart has the 32 can pack of the Friskies poultry pates for $13.99. This works out to .44 cents per can which is better than Wal Mart by me. I try to avoid fish based foods.

ashekitty · Mar 7, 2017

LTS3 said:
Have you seen these TCS threads?

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/308964/healthy-but-affordable-canned-food
http://www.thecatsite.com/t/272192/affordable-canned-food
http://www.thecatsite.com/t/327692/cheapest-most-affordable-grain-free-or-healthiest-canned-food
http://www.thecatsite.com/t/330459/...conomical-way-to-buy-friskies-canned-cat-food
http://www.thecatsite.com/t/306956/new-affordable-petsmart-brand-d
http://www.thecatsite.com/t/292890/4health-now-has-affordable-grain-free-wet-food

The best one is the one your cat will eat and you can afford Sheba is fine as is Fancy Feast Classic / Gourmet and Friskies pates. Store generic brand may be ok but read the label. Wal Mart's Special Kitty brand is similar to Fancy Feast and cost even less. Chain pet stores usually have their own generic brand.

Buying 5.5 oz cans and larger saves money over time as does buying food by the case. Chain pet stores often don't sell food by the case but independent pet stores often do.

For the occasional splurge, try Weruva or Soulistic (both are made by the same company), Tiki Cat, Nature's Variety Instinct, Wellness, Merrick, Hounds and Gatos. Do you have any independent pet stores in the area? You'll find the high end brands there. Petco sells Soulistic and some Nature's Variety. Most brands can be bought online though there may be a shipping cost.

Thank you so much for the threads! I will look into them. We have a Pet Food Express near us, which sells the higher end brands.

I will also look into the Weruva and Soulistic. Thank you for your help!

ashekitty · Mar 7, 2017

Kat0121 said:
I can't agree more about that!

I also recommend using services such as Petco or Petsmart's repeat delivery program. They give you a lower price than what you'd pay in store for multi packs of food. I use Petco's and they give you PALS rewards for every dollar spent. $100.00 spent is $5 earned. Every penny helps. I also use Ebates. If you order online, Petco, Petsmart and Walmart all use Ebates. Go to Ebates.com, look for the store name and shop using the link they give you. The percentage you get back fluctuates but they just had triple the usual amount this past weekend. I placed an order for pickup at Petsmart for dog food, cat food and litter. They were offering 12% cash back. I got back almost $8.00. They pay you quarterly and will send it to your Paypal if you have one. I think you can also get a check if you want but I'm not sure. They send mine to my PP and I can have it sent to my bank account from there.

Petsmart will let you order online and pick up in store to avoid shipping costs. Not all items are available for this though.

I also get cat food with my Amazon subscribe and save. I LOVE THIS SERVICE. I have about 35 things on my list and once a month I go through it. I skip what I don't need and leave on what I do. Up to 5 items gives you 5% off everything. More than 5 is 15%. Free shipping as well. Non Prime items are 3-5 days. Prime items are 2 days for members. You do NOT have to be a Prime member to use this service. Many, many things are S&S eligible. I get cat food, dog food and treats for both this way- along with lots of other things.

If you do go with the Sheba, Friskies and Fancy Feast, try to stick to the pates on all. There is nothing wrong with these foods. My cats like them and they have a spot in our rotation. Right now Petsmart has the 32 can pack of the Friskies poultry pates for $13.99. This works out to .44 cents per can which is better than Wal Mart by me. I try to avoid fish based foods.

Wow I didn't know about that! I do have a petco near me, so I will sign up for the rewards program. I also love Amanzon so that is something to look into. Thanks for your help!

dorimon · Mar 7, 2017

Kat0121 said:
I also get cat food with my Amazon subscribe and save. I LOVE THIS SERVICE. I have about 35 things on my list and once a month I go through it. I skip what I don't need and leave on what I do. Up to 5 items gives you 5% off everything. More than 5 is 15%. Free shipping as well. Non Prime items are 3-5 days. Prime items are 2 days for members. You do NOT have to be a Prime member to use this service. Many, many things are S&S eligible. I get cat food, dog food and treats for both this way- along with lots of other things.

Just FYI, many items no longer qualify for the 15% discount. Some items have 0% off if you have <5 items, and 5-10% off if you have 5+ items on your S&S delivery.

These discount is shown on the product page.

Also, subscribing does not lock in the current price... for the recurring deliveries that follow, you'll be charged whatever the price is at that time.

artiemom · Mar 7, 2017

I do buy a lot of stuff from Chewy.com .. They are owned by Amazon, but have incredible customer service.. they are delivered right to my apartment building.. I get my food delivered and just pick up the litter at the store.

Yes, the rewards card from Petco does come in handy.., reminds me, I have a 5 dollar refund from them. I need to use it by tomorrow.

It is $5 off every $100 spent... not much but better than nothing, especially when you buy on sale.

If you buy Fancy Feast, get the pate.. they have more pure-er ingredients.. better for you kitty..

ashekitty · Mar 7, 2017

Artiemom said:
I do buy a lot of stuff from Chewy.com .. They are owned by Amazon, but have incredible customer service.. they are delivered right to my apartment building.. I get my food delivered and just pick up the litter at the store.

Yes, the rewards card from Petco does come in handy.., reminds me, I have a 5 dollar refund from them. I need to use it by tomorrow.
It is $5 off every $100 spent... not much but better than nothing, especially when you buy on sale.

If you buy Fancy Feast, get the pate.. they have more pure-er ingredients.. better for you kitty..

Are the shipping cost reasonable on chewy?

Willowy · Mar 7, 2017

Ashekitty said:
Are the shipping cost reasonable on chewy?

If you order more than $49 (easy to do---just order 2 months' worth at a time) you get free shipping.

dorimon · Mar 7, 2017

Artiemom said:
I do buy a lot of stuff from Chewy.com .. They are owned by Amazon, but have incredible customer service.. they are delivered right to my apartment building.. I get my food delivered and just pick up the litter at the store.

Chewy actually isn't owned by Amazon -- they are big competitors to one another! This article about Chewy and its founder (published just earlier this year) is an interesting read: https://www.forbes.com/sites/susanadams/2017/01/10/the-man-who-found-gold-in-dog-food/

Kat0121 · Mar 7, 2017

dorimon said:
Just FYI, many items no longer qualify for the 15% discount. Some items have 0% off if you have <5 items, and 5-10% off if you have 5+ items on your S&S delivery. These discount is shown on the product page.

Also, subscribing does not lock in the current price... for the recurring deliveries that follow, you'll be charged whatever the price is at that time.

Yes. The prices do fluctuate. They always email me if the price on something from my list has gone up or down.

I've never had anything not be 15%. I always have 5 or more items.

dorimon said:
Chewy actually isn't owned by Amazon -- they are big competitors to one another! This article about Chewy and its founder (published just earlier this year) is an interesting read: https://www.forbes.com/sites/susanadams/2017/01/10/the-man-who-found-gold-in-dog-food/

Correct. Amazon owns Wag.com

dorimon · Mar 8, 2017

Kat0121 said:
This was a recent change. My point was just to be careful, because Amazon can change/remove the extra S&S discount at their discretion.

Kat0121 · Mar 8, 2017

dorimon said:
This was a recent change. My point was just to be careful, because Amazon can change/remove the extra S&S discount at their discretion.

That's odd. The 3 ounce cans of the LID turkey qualify for the 15%. I have them on my list.

Yes- they do take things off the S&S list. I get emails sometimes letting me know that something on my list is no longer S&S eligible. They usually offer a substitute that is eligible.

dorimon · Mar 8, 2017

Kat0121 said:
That's odd. The 3 ounce cans of the LID turkey qualify for the 15%. I have them on my list.

Yes- they do take things off the S&S list. I get emails sometimes letting me know that something on my list is no longer S&S eligible. They usually offer a substitute that is eligible.

Yea, just keep checking like you already have been. They have been decreasing the discount on more and more items lately, and they don't notify you when the S&S discount decreases, though the new price should be reflected in your e-mail notification before shipment.

Kat0121 · Mar 8, 2017

dorimon said:
Yea, just keep checking like you already have been. They have been decreasing the discount on more and more items lately, and they don't notify you when the S&S discount decreases, though the new price should be reflected in your e-mail notification before shipment.

That's not a big surprise. When I first started using S&S, it was 20% for 5 or more items. You can't beat their customer service though. I had ordered a case of NV Pride lamb with my last S&S. They sent rabbit. The diva sisters don't like rabbit. I did an online chat with them and they sent me out a case of lamb the same day. They did not expect me to return the rabbit.

destinyz12 · Mar 8, 2017

An added bonus to signing up for the petco rewards- they send out a lot of good discount coupons, especially during the holiday season (Nov-Jan)such as $5 off of 25 or more, $15 off of 50 or more, ect. so I loaded up on food during that time period and I'm still stocked from then, now in March, lol.

thegreystalker · Mar 8, 2017

I agree that Friskies Poultry Platter is a good choice. Look for it in the 13oz cans. Sheba cans are also good. In my opinion Sheba is a bit of an upgrade over Fancy Feast, but both are quite suitable. I have had success with recipes from Natural Value, a organic products company out of the Bay area, I believe. You can find Natural Value cat foods online at jet.com for a bargain price. I like their ingredients. If you have no reservations about giving fish or Shrimp (or caregeenan) to your cat, NV food contains chunks of Sardine or Shrimp meat. As for the other flavors, my cat loves the NV Beef and NV Turkey, also. A 24-can (3 oz) case of NV cost me 16 bucks. A step or two up the ladder, at least at my house, is Purina Pro Plan True Nature. The TN pates are corn free, wheat free and soy free AND AFFORDABLE. TN comes in 3oz and 5.5 oz cans.

ashekitty · Mar 11, 2017

TheGreyStalker said:
I agree that Friskies Poultry Platter is a good choice. Look for it in the 13oz cans. Sheba cans are also good. In my opinion Sheba is a bit of an upgrade over Fancy Feast, but both are quite suitable. I have had success with recipes from Natural Value, a organic products company out of the Bay area, I believe. You can find Natural Value cat foods online at jet.com for a bargain price. I like their ingredients. If you have no reservations about giving fish or Shrimp (or caregeenan) to your cat, NV food contains chunks of Sardine or Shrimp meat. As for the other flavors, my cat loves the NV Beef and NV Turkey, also. A 24-can (3 oz) case of NV cost me 16 bucks. A step or two up the ladder, at least at my house, is Purina Pro Plan True Nature. The TN pates are corn free, wheat free and soy free AND AFFORDABLE. TN comes in 3oz and 5.5 oz cans.

Thank you so much! I will look into those brands. My cat seems to eat anything I put in front of her, so that definitely helps when searching for cat foods.

ashekitty · Mar 11, 2017

destinyz12 said:
An added bonus to signing up for the petco rewards- they send out a lot of good discount coupons, especially during the holiday season (Nov-Jan)such as $5 off of 25 or more, $15 off of 50 or more, ect. so I loaded up on food during that time period and I'm still stocked from then, now in March, lol.

That sounds perfect! I will sign up!

Faire · Mar 12, 2017

dorimon said:
Yea, just keep checking like you already have been. They have been decreasing the discount on more and more items lately, and they don't notify you when the S&S discount decreases, though the new price should be reflected in your e-mail notification before shipment.

I didn't get an email before my S&S shipment last month for the first time. Luckily I checked Amazon a couple days before the last day things could be changed.

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