Best Dry Food? If Orijen's Bad Then Idk What's Good

[lerrpurr]

Hi everyone!
Was choosing a food brand to switch to from Guabi Natural, which is kinda ok, but I think I could afford something better now. I'm looking at the ingredients and picking those with the biggest amount of meat and grain-free. At first I thought GO! was a good option, then heard a few bad feedback, and the phosphoric acid, so and so... Then I thought of Orijen because I liked the inredient list the most of all, but here I found some really sad comments about a different formula, lawsiut etc. So now I'm confused because if such seemingly credible (and not very cheap) brand isn't really that good, then what do I feed my poor kitty?
So Farmina seems legit but I'm afraid it's a little exprensive for me. Grandorf doesn't seem much different from Guabi, neither does NOW. And Dr.Elsey's apparently doesn't exist where I live. Are Primordial or AATU any better? What else could you advice?
Desperately need ideas, would appreciate any opinions
Sorry if my English isn't so good

 

[Uncled]

Don't confuse expensive with quality when it comes to pet food,they are slick at marketing food to people first and foremost. I don't feed dry food to my cats just wet pate style canned food is that an option for you?

 

[Kieka]

Where are you (in a general geographic sense)? Orijen and Acana have different formulas in the US and Canada. Many different brands have different formulas that vary by country. So what someone says about a specific brand in a specific country might not apply in a different country. We have some members who live in areas where heir best option is Royal Canine but others live in areas where that is seen as gimmicky and a poor choice.

In general, if you are looking for dry food finding one that had minimal carbs is the goal. But making it shelf stable means there will be some carbs by default most of the time. Wet food is a better option, even if you can only do one or two wet meals a day with dry at other times it is better for your cat then just dry.

 

[lerrpurr]

Uncled
Yup, I've sure heard that wet food is better, but unfortunately it's 2-3 times as expensive as dry food.

Where are you (in a general geographic sense)? Orijen and Acana have different formulas in the US and Canada. Many different brands have different formulas that vary by country. So what someone says about a specific brand in a specific country might not apply in a different country. We have some members who live in areas where heir best option is Royal Canine but others live in areas where that is seen as gimmicky and a poor choice.

That I didn't know! I'm from Europe but we have the Canadian Orijen. Is it the "bad" one? Or not?

Wet food is a better option, even if you can only do one or two wet meals a day with dry at other times it is better for your cat then just dry.

This is also new information to me, I'll take it into consideration, thank you.

 

[She's a witch]

if you're in EU, you probably have access to zooplus, and can browse through that site to check if you find something better than Orijen (if I remember correctly, it has lots of peas or/and lentils which imo makes it a bad choice for a cat). People often buy Purizon as it's somewhat similar to Orijen but way cheaper, but I heard people complain it makes cats fat if free fed.
The only European dry food I feel comfortable mentioning is Power of Nature, but you can only buy it from local pet stores or directly from their German site but with the international shipping fee:
Natural Cat

I don't feed dry food, it is cheaper but my cats health is not worth the risk (plus, it's possible I'd spend these money saved on food on the vet care to heal their kidneys, so I'd rather spend more on proper nutrition). You can find some option and offers on zooplus for good quality wet food such as Feringa, Grau, Granata PEt, Catz FInefood, Macs, ANimonda Carny.

 

[cheesycats]

I’m not familiar with what all you have in your area, but orijen is pretty low carb for a dry food. That’s what you wanna look for if you’re feeding dry. Email some companies you’re interested in and see if they will share the carb content of their foods with you to get a good feel for how quality their food is. As for wet a good wet you can at least include a little bit of in their diet is fancy feast classics or pates. I think those are pretty far spread so you might have them in your country and they are mostly meat and hardly any carb and affordable as well.

 

[MissClouseau]

Then I thought of Orijen because I liked the inredient list the most of all, but here I found some really sad comments about a different formula, lawsiut etc.

There are lawsuits and valid concerns about every popular food and food brand. At the end of the day, cats kind of choose their own food and what is the best (or less bad) depends. Like my cat's dry food has been Acana imported from Canada, which is from the same company as Orijen, I have my own concerns about their food but every time I tried a different dry food, it didn't work well for my cat at all. And she doesn't even accept a wet-only diet even if I could afford it, so...

Btw they talk about peas, lentils, etc and they might very well be bad I don't know but contrary to how this gets only talked about grain-free foods, quite a few grainy foods from big brands like Hill's also have these ingredients.

Also it's better to add some wet food into his diet. I could recommend this: Chicken | Naturea . Mine got bored of it recently, her current favorite is this: Purina Pro Plan Delicate 24 x 85g

 

[lerrpurr]

Thanks to everybody for the replies!
I'm a little confused about mixing dry and wet food though, especially of different brands. Wouldn't that destabilize the balanced diet? I mean, we know that it's bad to mix different dry food brands or dry+raw food because each dry food series provides a certain diet with balanced protein, carbs and fats. If I try to add some wet food, how should I do that?..

Btw they talk about peas, lentils, etc and they might very well be bad I don't know but contrary to how this gets only talked about grain-free foods, quite a few grainy foods from big brands like Hill's also have these ingredients.

From what I've seen every holistic food has beans and/or potatoes in it. Cheaper ones have rice and corn. Not sure what's worse for cats. I've kinda considered beans to be better, like for humans, but maybe it doesn't work the same way for cats.

 

[MissClouseau]

Thanks to everybody for the replies!
I'm a little confused about mixing dry and wet food though, especially of different brands. Wouldn't that destabilize the balanced diet? I mean, we know that it's bad to mix different dry food brands or dry+raw food because each dry food series provides a certain diet with balanced protein, carbs and fats. If I try to add some wet food, how should I do that?..



From what I've seen every holistic food has beans and/or potatoes in it. Cheaper ones have rice and corn. Not sure what's worse for cats. I've kinda considered beans to be better, like for humans, but maybe it doesn't work the same way for cats.

When my Hima got only one 80-85grams wet food I gave half of the can in the morning, the other in the evening. The rest was dry food — free fed but she never overate. Now she gets 2 cans of wet food a day in 4 meals im total. She still eats a little dry food at night.

 

[She's a witch]

Thanks to everybody for the replies!
I'm a little confused about mixing dry and wet food though, especially of different brands. Wouldn't that destabilize the balanced diet? I mean, we know that it's bad to mix different dry food brands or dry+raw food because each dry food series provides a certain diet with balanced protein, carbs and fats. If I try to add some wet food, how should I do that?..



From what I've seen every holistic food has beans and/or potatoes in it. Cheaper ones have rice and corn. Not sure what's worse for cats. I've kinda considered beans to be better, like for humans, but maybe it doesn't work the same way for cats.

I’m not sure to what holistic food you’re referring to, but the brands of wet food I suggested have only meat, no fillers At all, and I personally stick to that. Power of nature dry has minimal addition of fillers as well. Cats are carnivores and either grains or beans are there only because they’re cheaper than meat.

IF you feed both dry and wet, you don’t do this in one meal, but in a separate meals, ideally few hours after/before dry (you can mix it temporarily when transitioning but it’s not a good idea to do this all the time). Wet food is generally easier on cats stomach and brands can be changed, in fact lots of people rotate different brands/flavors/styles to ensure variety. Imagine you’re only given dry bread to eat But of course every change should be introduced gradually, you’ll see how your cat reacts to it. Good luck!

 

[Azazel]

Thanks to everybody for the replies!
I'm a little confused about mixing dry and wet food though, especially of different brands. Wouldn't that destabilize the balanced diet? I mean, we know that it's bad to mix different dry food brands or dry+raw food because each dry food series provides a certain diet with balanced protein, carbs and fats. If I try to add some wet food, how should I do that?..



From what I've seen every holistic food has beans and/or potatoes in it. Cheaper ones have rice and corn. Not sure what's worse for cats. I've kinda considered beans to be better, like for humans, but maybe it doesn't work the same way for cats.

It’s not bad to mix dry food brands or raw and dry. These are myths from the Internet or pet food companies.

Beans would cause most cats stomach upset. They’re obligate carnivores -not made for eating legumes, veggies, or fruits.

They’re also not meant to eat over-processed dry food, but that’s a story for another time.

 

[Luc]

Hello there,

just confirming that Farmina is very expensive and very legit. The amount of meat/fish is much higher than other brands, it has a better quality too as their cooking process is different.

Zooplus is good in Europe but sometimes you might be able to find cheaper retailers. Zooplus offers the standard prices and a fast delivery.

Orijen regardless of USA or Canadian still ranks as a premium cat food ( like Farmina ).

My 2 cents: it does not matter if you buy dry food or wet food as long as it is quality food. I'd rather buy premium cat food for my cats hoping to save money and headaches with expensive trips to the vet after years of feeding them unhealthy food.

Dry food is a new option for cats, if you could avoid it, it is not a bad idea, but if you give it to them you should give them the best you can afford. In my case I am forced to give dry food because one of my rescue cats only eats dry food after having being in shelters for years. And believe me I tried to make the switch from dry to wet but since it did not work out I give her the best dry food I can find.

My cats love Farmina but they are also get excited with Orijen, the best part is that they are healthy and happy. Generally speaking try to avoid all the mass production brands you always see on tv.

Hope this webiste will give you a starting point for your research:

CatFoodDB - Cat Food Reviews to help you find the best cat food for your cat

 

[Azazel]

My 2 cents: it does not matter if you buy dry food or wet food as long as it is quality food. I'd rather buy premium cat food for my cats hoping to save money and headaches with expensive trips to the vet after years of feeding them unhealthy food.

It matters immensely actually in terms of water intake and animal protein. Both Farmina and Orijen are high in carbs and low in animal protein. The values need to be calculated as a percentage of calories, and last I checked, both were high in carbs and low in protein.

 

[MissClouseau]

Orijen foods are 75-90% animal products. That’s more than Farmina’s. cc: Luc

 

[lerrpurr]

It matters immensely actually in terms of water intake and animal protein. Both Farmina and Orijen are high in carbs and low in animal protein. The values need to be calculated as a percentage of calories, and last I checked, both were high in carbs and low in protein.

This is stated on the Orijen package:
Calorie distribution
Metabolizable energy is 4060 kcal/kg (463 kcal per 8oz. cup) with 39% from protein, 17% from vegetables and fruit, and 44% from fat.

Again, please pardon my ignorance, but what protein percentage is considered high? From what I could google 39% was a decent number, but I can't know for sure of course

 

[Kat0121]

This is stated on the Orijen package:
Calorie distribution
Metabolizable energy is 4060 kcal/kg (463 kcal per 8oz. cup) with 39% from protein, 17% from vegetables and fruit, and 44% from fat.

Again, please pardon my ignorance, but what protein percentage is considered high? From what I could google 39% was a decent number, but I can't know for sure of course

For a high end brand, that's not that high a percentage. I switched mine over to Dr. Elsey's and this is their numbers. You want numbers closer to this especially if you're spending that kind of money on it. I used to feed Orijen cat & kitten so I know it's pricey. Dr. Elsey's is too (more so than Orijen) but my cats like it much better and their numbers are better. Amazon sells DE here. They might there too.

Chicken Recipe | Dr. Elsey's

 

[lerrpurr]

Kat0121
Thank you for clarification!
Unfortunately couldn't fine Dr Elsey's for sale at my place, they only want to sell us cat litter... But gonna keep the numbers in mind!

 

[Azazel]

The numbers on the bag can be misleading for several reasons - they are minimums and maximums, not exact values, they don’t remove moisture (although there isn’t a lot of moisture in dry food), and they don’t tell you the amount of protein/fat/carb as a percentage of calories. Rather, it’s provided as a percentage of weight. This can be deceiving because fat is more calorically dense than protein. Probably the biggest problem with labels however is that they don’t tell you the amount of carbs in the food which is usually shockingly high in kibble. I’m not sure which flavor or Orijen you feed, but here’s how you would calculate it for the cat and kitten. Surprisingly, Orijen does state the carb amount on the label (which is good).

Protein: 40x3.5=140
Fat: 20x8.5=170
Carbs: 19x3.5=66.5

Total=376.5

percentage of each:
Protein: 140/376.5=37%
Fat: 170/376.5=45%
Carbs: 18%

Ideal numbers for cats would be protein over 50%, fat 30-40% and carbs under 5%.

Looks like Orijen is indeed higher in protein and lower in carbs than other dry foods. But that’s not saying much since dry foods are a low standard to compare with in the first place.

Also don’t forget that it’s dry. Which is a big negative point. Over processed dry food lacking in moisture is inherently inappropriate for obligate carnivores. Doesn’t matter how much protein they pump into it. It’s lacking moisture. On top of that, since there is poor regulation in the pet food industry, we really don’t know where the ingredients come from and we also don’t know if all that protein is actually animal-based or if it’s plant based. All these facts are true for every single dry food on the market and so I really would hesitate using the phrase “high quality” with any of them.

 

[lerrpurr]

Okay, at this point I can swear that I didn't put as much mental effort in getting my bachelor degree as I do now choosing food brand for my cat (who literally enjoys eating cotton swabs and fixing foam...)

So, Orijen seems to win when it comes to protein and carbs ratio. But what still concerns me is a noticeable amount of fish in it, and as I could learn so far it's still controversial whether those heavy metals in ocean food are slowly ruining our health. I was actually ready to try AATU which at least doesn't have that much fish, but it appears to have about as equal percentage of carbs and protein (~34).
That leaves me wondering, if I simplify and shorten all the thoughts on this, which is better: high carbs or poisoning metals, haha. Which I doubt to ever find the answer to
(I didn't forget about the wet food though!)

Still it was a lot of useful information, thanks to everyone for your opinions so far!! The topic surely can be useful to a lot of people despite my personal concerns

 

[Azazel]

Okay, at this point I can swear that I didn't put as much mental effort in getting my bachelor degree as I do now choosing food brand for my cat (who literally enjoys eating cotton swabs and fixing foam...)

So, Orijen seems to win when it comes to protein and carbs ratio. But what still concerns me is a noticeable amount of fish in it, and as I could learn so far it's still controversial whether those heavy metals in ocean food are slowly ruining our health. I was actually ready to try AATU which at least doesn't have that much fish, but it appears to have about as equal percentage of carbs and protein (~34).
That leaves me wondering, if I simplify and shorten all the thoughts on this, which is better: high carbs or poisoning metals, haha. Which I doubt to ever find the answer to
(I didn't forget about the wet food though!)

Still it was a lot of useful information, thanks to everyone for your opinions so far!! The topic surely can be useful to a lot of people despite my personal concerns

I wouldn’t say it wins when it comes to protein and carb amounts. I would never feed anything that high in carbs. It just wins against other dry foods. That’s a very very low bar to beat though.

And yes, researching cat food sucks. Because they all suck in one way or another. That’s why I moved to making my own food. You either have to accept the suck or make your own.