Wellness cat food?

jlphilli

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Hey all! I am new to the forum so just for an intro--I am a graduate student at NCSU studying companion animal nutrition, so I am always interested in helping others if you have any questions


Ok, now MY question--has anybody had any luck with Wellness cat food, particularly the Kitten formula? I just got a kitten (about 2 months old) that looves the food. However, I have heard mixed reviews on it. Some people "claim" it gave their cat urinary crystals, but the ash content and the calcium/phosphorus ratio are in perfectly good measurements (even the target urine pH is ideal). Anybody?
 

denice

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I fed my cats Wellness when they were kittens. My cats are now three and almost three now and I have heard that the company has went through some changes since then so I don't know about the quality now. I hadn't heard about the urinary crystals but some people won't use a food that contains garlic which Wellness does. I guess it has had the same effect as onion on some cats.
 

apric0t

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Wellness is a great food. Don't listen to them. It's a high quality food for your kitten. So don't worry!
 
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jlphilli

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I know they re-formulated the dog food formulas, and got a new marketing manager which made them stop baking the food and start extruding it in addition to a "gung-ho" marketing scheme... but not the cat food formulas weren't changed except for the baking/extruding thing (which isn't bad). I don't think the quality has necessarily gone downhill since most of the ingredients would be hard to find in low quality.

But do you think you would say your cats did "well" on it? what food do you feed now?
 

mybabies

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Wellness DID and maybe does have grain in some of the canned food. I thought they took it all out but am not positive!
 

denice

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They have five varieties of canned food that are grain free. I don't remember which ones I saw a sign above the Wellness the last time I was in the pet store. I thought about it because I have a sensitive cat that I am trying on a grain free diet but I went ahead and got the EVO instead. My cats did fine on the kitten formula and the ingredients look good to me except for the garlic if your someone which prefers to stay away from it.
 
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jlphilli

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I think garlic is fine in small amounts...it can actually work as a flea-repellent if given in the right quantities. Plus, it is so far down the list I believe it is only in microgram amounts (but I am not positive). I too saw the grain-free canned formulas which look pretty good.

I would be careful with the EVO...my friend has a cat that had been eating it for about 4 months and lost a LOT of weight and developed kidney problems. They changed their food and he gained weight (in a good way) and his urinary discomfort from the kidney problems subsided. I would also be careful because while it has the right idea, there isn't enough moisture in the food (unless you added water to it) for your cat to completely "rid itself" of the ash content (which is close to 9%!
) Also, according to the National Research Council, cats should have no more than 1% calcium or phosphorus while the EVO has well over that (can cause urinary issues). Just something to think about


However, the EVO canned is excellent (it has enough moisture for it to be digested easier)
 

pat

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Originally Posted by jlphilli

I think garlic is fine in small amounts...
What leads you to that conclusion? Can you cite any studies showing in what amount or form it is safe? I have not heard of any from the folks who are better at research article searching than I am.

I love that you are studying animal nutrition, please take this issue that is important to me to heart, and take a peak at this article:
http://www.aspca.org/site/PageServer...c_publications scroll down to August 2005 Toxicology Brief titled:Allium Species Poisoning in Dogs and cats. It is a pdf file, so anyone following the link will need Adobe Acrobat's free Reader installed.

Another article I find informative is this: http://www.peteducation.com/article....articleid=2414

I simply have not yet been persuaded that the form of the garlic used, or type of garlic makes a bit of difference in it's potential effect on a cat, and since it is a very individual response (some cats do eat garlic obviously in brands such as mentioned in this thread, and do not develop Heinz Body Anemia, other cats however do.) I choose not to risk it.

It is a topic that comes up frequently on the very active support list I am on for owners of cats suffering from Chronic Renal Failure, and indeed, nutrition, is a favorite topic there as well.
 

sharky

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After Pat gave me those links I discussed this with many vet s both conventional and homeopathic and all but one said to avoid garlic ... Due to not knowing at what leval it would be toxic... Wellness has some good formulas but for the price and time to go to the one pet store that carries it I find many better options
 
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jlphilli

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I understand that it is toxic at the levels listed in the articles (as little as 10 g/kg)....however, the amount in pet foods are thousandths of that-in microgram amounts (aka they couldn't consume enough in a lifetime to even amount to that one dose mentioned). I understand your obvious concern for this, but I assure you the amount in most pet foods that contain garlic would hardly hurt a flea (no punn intended)


Note also (in the first article) under the title "Differential diagnosis"...it says similar effects can be seen with the ingestion of dl-methionine, zinc, and copper (all in every single pet food available). The key is that none of these nutrients are in excess, therefore they could not cause toxicity.
 

pat

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Originally Posted by jlphilli

I understand that it is toxic at the levels listed in the articles (as little as 10 g/kg)....however, the amount in pet foods are thousandths of that-in microgram amounts (aka they couldn't consume enough in a lifetime to even amount to that one dose mentioned). I understand your obvious concern for this, but I assure you the amount in most pet foods that contain garlic would hardly hurt a flea (no punn intended)
I am sorry but the "I assure you" just isn't enough. The key point I've come across is that the sensitivity, to me this means the amount it would take for a negative reaction to occur, varies widely.

I try not to refer to anecdotal, but the list I am includes more than one member with a cat that died after very tiny, few portions. It is simply not a substance I feel confident is safe. So I choose not to support those companies that include it in their treats, supplements and foods. Not until there are published studies showing when, if ever, it is safe (amount to use etc.). I understand the damage can be cummulative, and for some cats, reversible if consumption is ceased...but the fact that there truly are enough mentions of cats becoming ill is enough for me. The "it's in too small amounts to hurt" isn't something I can agree with.

But I thank you for reading the articles, and just hope you will keep this as a point of interest in your studies, and later, in your practice. I have more links on this topic if you would like
 

ryanjay

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I had a lot of good results with thier dry food. The wet food I had some of my cats reject-and I know around that same time others were having issues with cat rejecting(this was 3? years ago). I can no longer get the big cans within a reasonable price so haven't used it since sept. Also on sie note old mother hubbard is thier "cheaper" food and cats also stopped eatign that so not sure if they redid thier whole line or what. My cats still won't eat omh but all will eat some wellness. RJ
 

sharky

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Originally Posted by jlphilli

I understand that it is toxic at the levels listed in the articles (as little as 10 g/kg)....however, the amount in pet foods are thousandths of that-in microgram amounts (aka they couldn't consume enough in a lifetime to even amount to that one dose mentioned). I understand your obvious concern for this, but I assure you the amount in most pet foods that contain garlic would hardly hurt a flea (no punn intended)


Note also (in the first article) under the title "Differential diagnosis"...it says similar effects can be seen with the ingestion of dl-methionine, zinc, and copper (all in every single pet food available). The key is that none of these nutrients are in excess, therefore they could not cause toxicity.
I hardly think it is a small amount and yes anything can cause issue in excess but garlic mentioned to my vet and the vet who also is an accupucturist nearly spun my head at the no dont feed any to you animals ///
 

pat

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Sharky,

Thanks for sharing that. I'm glad you discussed this with your vets. Despite what articles or anecdotes I can share, I think it's best to get your vet's opinion
 
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