Any Thoughts On This Food?

orange&white

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Aug 22, 2008
Messages
8,420
Purraise
9,669
Location
Texas
It looks all right, for dry food. Lots of meat products high in the list, and the carby junk food can't really be avoided in any kibble. If I fed kibble, I'd consider it as part of a rotation of 3-4 brands.

General Mills is buying Blue Buffalo. This will be their first pet food product. The deal is supposed to happen sometime this year. I'd try to get away from feeding only BB products exclusively. The buyout will likely result in formula changes with cheaper ingredients and more profit.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #22

tabbysia

TCS Member
Thread starter
Super Cat
Joined
Jun 27, 2013
Messages
987
Purraise
510
Location
Texas
Thanks for all of the input everyone. It is interesting how a few of you have said that cats need a high protein food. When I was discussing with my vet the Blue Wilderness kitten food (which I have been weaning the cats off and slowly replacing with Solid Gold), she said that the Blue Wilderness is "way too high in protein" and that "cats don't need all of that protein." That's why I went with Solid Gold and didn't simply pick up a bag of the adult Wilderness instead. She has been a vet for about 30 years, so maybe she is just "old school" when it comes to cat nutrition.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #23

tabbysia

TCS Member
Thread starter
Super Cat
Joined
Jun 27, 2013
Messages
987
Purraise
510
Location
Texas
Also would a General Mills buyout of Blue Buffalo be worse than Solid Gold being associated with Diamond pet foods?
 

Neo_23

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Sep 2, 2017
Messages
1,878
Purraise
1,498
Thanks for all of the input everyone. It is interesting how a few of you have said that cats need a high protein food. When I was discussing with my vet the Blue Wilderness kitten food (which I have been weaning the cats off and slowly replacing with Solid Gold), she said that the Blue Wilderness is "way too high in protein" and that "cats don't need all of that protein." That's why I went with Solid Gold and didn't simply pick up a bag of the adult Wilderness instead. She has been a vet for about 30 years, so maybe she is just "old school" when it comes to cat nutrition.
I would say that she simply doesn't know much about cat nutrition. Most vets get maybe one course in feline nutrition in vet school and it's usually sponsored by Hills or Royal Canin. And then they spend the rest of their career touting these brands.

The typical composition of a mouse that a cat would eat in the wild is 50+% protein, 40% fat, less than 10% carbs. The reason why cats need animal-based protein is because they lack the ability to build essential amino acids themselves. They need to obtain this from other animals.

When you feed them this dry food you are basically feeding an obligate carnivore a diet made up of mostly vegetables/carbs.

I don't know where some vets get this weird notion that cats don't need protein. It's ridiculous.

I also wouldn't worry about getting "too much protein" from either Solid Gold or Blue Buffalo. Both of these foods are very low protein and full of starchy carby goodness.
 
Last edited:

cheesycats

TCS Member
Alpha Cat
Joined
Jan 29, 2017
Messages
549
Purraise
686
Location
Indiana
Yeah I would consider changing vets this vet doesn’t seem to know much about cats at all from the sounds of it. Maybe try and find a cat only practice or a holistic vet in your area. Someone who actually knows what a cat should be eating.
Cats need high moisture and high protein. They are obligate carnivore. Those are the facts. The facts your vet seems to be choosing to overlook.
 

duckpond

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Dec 13, 2017
Messages
3,905
Purraise
4,346
Also would a General Mills buyout of Blue Buffalo be worse than Solid Gold being associated with Diamond pet foods?
I think we will have to wait and see what General mills does with Blue. But i dont have a problem with Diamond, at least not more than most other MFG, yes they have had recalls, but Blue has had quite a few too. So i dont really see a difference on the MFG company. I personally will not feed Blue or solid gold because of some of the ingredients, and the high carbs. But that my opinion :)
 

10009891

TCS Member
Alpha Cat
Joined
Nov 14, 2017
Messages
545
Purraise
207
Vets are way off about cat food. They say kibble is best because it cleans off tartar from cats teeth, sharpens teeth, and strengthens their jaws. Vets are only good at prescribing medication and performing surgeries on cats. Nothing else.
 

EmmiTemmi

TCS Member
Alpha Cat
Joined
Sep 16, 2017
Messages
399
Purraise
481
Location
Wisconsin
They say kibble is best because it cleans off tartar from cats teeth, sharpens teeth, and strengthens their jaws.
Someone on this site once said there was a video by a vet or vet school showing how kibble only grazes the tips of the teeth when chewed, removing the tartar there, but up near the gum line isn't touched/scraped by the kibble, so it doesn't really help with plaque/tartar up there. Any idea where that video is or who posted about it? I feel like that could be a great resource for changing people's minds about the 'dry is good for teeth' point of view. Or any other scientific article/video showing that kibble doesn't help clean teeth would be cool too.
 

orange&white

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Aug 22, 2008
Messages
8,420
Purraise
9,669
Location
Texas
Someone on this site once said there was a video by a vet or vet school showing how kibble only grazes the tips of the teeth when chewed, removing the tartar there, but up near the gum line isn't touched/scraped by the kibble, so it doesn't really help with plaque/tartar up there. Any idea where that video is or who posted about it? I feel like that could be a great resource for changing people's minds about the 'dry is good for teeth' point of view. Or any other scientific article/video showing that kibble doesn't help clean teeth would be cool too.
I remember seeing an article linked here quite often about why kibble doesn't clean teeth, but I can't find it quickly.

Seems like it should be old-fashioned common sense though. If we eat pretzels or granola, or and other dry/hard foods, do our teeth feel smooth and clean or filmy?

Canned food doesn't clean a cat's teeth either, but for vet's to claim that kibble cleans teeth is a nonsense reason to feed a cat dry food.
 

EmmiTemmi

TCS Member
Alpha Cat
Joined
Sep 16, 2017
Messages
399
Purraise
481
Location
Wisconsin
I remember seeing an article linked here quite often about why kibble doesn't clean teeth, but I can't find it quickly.

Seems like it should be old-fashioned common sense though. If we eat pretzels or granola, or and other dry/hard foods, do our teeth feel smooth and clean or filmy?

Canned food doesn't clean a cat's teeth either, but for vet's to claim that kibble cleans teeth is a nonsense reason to feed a cat dry food.
Was it this article?

Does Dry Food Clean the Teeth? | Little Big Cat

It even mentions pretzels like you! :p It's one of my favorite web articles just because it pulls from several scientific articles and sources. I'm sure some of the info could be cherry picked/biased, since I haven't had a chance to read through the full articles that she pulls quotes from, but I still like it.
 

cheesycats

TCS Member
Alpha Cat
Joined
Jan 29, 2017
Messages
549
Purraise
686
Location
Indiana
Canned food doesn't clean a cat's teeth either, but for vet's to claim that kibble cleans teeth is a nonsense reason to feed a cat dry food.
You know id be tempted to say wet food is healthier for teeth than dry really. Since wet food increases saliva production and more saliva means less chance to build bacteria then wet food must be better right? Zymox toothpaste for cats and dogs works around this theory and basically keeps the mouth hydrated so it isn’t dry and able to build up as much bacteria. I’ve used and recommend zymox products. They are a good company and seem to be hitting the mark with a lot of their products.
 
Top