Cat Food Options

[milopixie]

Ok this may have been done to death, if so let me know

I've been researching the top-quality foods and I'm trying to figure out the best food to feed Milo & Pixie. My only problem is that they go through food soooo fast. I have been blessed with totally non-picky cats with iron cast stomachs. They'll both eat any food I give them and they don't tend to get any digestive problems when switching food (Milo a tiny bit). Also I look for foods that say suitable for all development stages since I don't want Pixie eating kitten food and getting any bigger. So what I'm looking for is the highest quality food for the best price ($$ is an issue, so I want to get the best value for my $). So nutritionally speaking what is the best food? Also should they be going through the top quality food slower than say Cat Chow? Thanks!

 

[sharky]

Originally Posted by milopixie

Ok this may have been done to death, if so let me know

I've been researching the top-quality foods and I'm trying to figure out the best food to feed Milo & Pixie. My only problem is that they go through food soooo fast. I have been blessed with totally non-picky cats with iron cast stomachs. They'll both eat any food I give them and they don't tend to get any digestive problems when switching food (Milo a tiny bit). Also I look for foods that say suitable for all development stages since I don't want Pixie eating kitten food and getting any bigger. So what I'm looking for is the highest quality food for the best price ($$ is an issue, so I want to get the best value for my $). So nutritionally speaking what is the best food? Also should they be going through the top quality food slower than say Cat Chow? Thanks!

Yes they should eat less of a premium food .... My oldest like max cat by nutro, though at her age I am switching her to wet only ... I have heard that costco makes good food for little $$ ... My suggestion is go to a feed store they are the least expensive on premium foods in my area .... example 6lb bag of senior max cat is 11.99-16.99 in pet store s and 8.99-10.99 in feed stores in my area ... How old is Pixie?? if she is over six months she can eat adult food..

Hope this helps

 

[milopixie]

Pixie is 2 and Milo is just about 6 months, that's why I look for the all developmental stages food. It's virtually impossible to feed them different foods bc they'll just eat whatever's out there. I try not to do kitten food, bc Pix has a tendency to gain weight and the last thing I want is for her to be overweight.

 

[roxy_loves_cj]

When I was still at home and money got tight, mom would mix our premium brand food with something slightly cheaper that she got at the super market (on of the better brands there, like say iams, prochoice, or whatever) to make it go a little further but not having to switch the cats completly off their food. This way when pay day came around she could go back to their normal food with out worring about tummy aches. This might help you be able to feed them premium food, and make it go a bit further.

 

[starlie]

Originally Posted by milopixie

Ok this may have been done to death, if so let me know

I've been researching the top-quality foods and I'm trying to figure out the best food to feed Milo & Pixie. My only problem is that they go through food soooo fast. I have been blessed with totally non-picky cats with iron cast stomachs. They'll both eat any food I give them and they don't tend to get any digestive problems when switching food (Milo a tiny bit). Also I look for foods that say suitable for all development stages since I don't want Pixie eating kitten food and getting any bigger. So what I'm looking for is the highest quality food for the best price ($$ is an issue, so I want to get the best value for my $). So nutritionally speaking what is the best food? Also should they be going through the top quality food slower than say Cat Chow? Thanks!

Almost all of the premium brands are formulated for "all life stages" which means it will be okay for both of your cats to eat it. Also, with premium food, they end up eating less, which actually saves you money in the long end. The premium brands I would suggest are Innova, Felidae, Chicken Soup for the Cat Lover's Soul and Natural Balance.

 

[milopixie]

Originally Posted by starlie

Almost all of the premium brands are formulated for "all life stages" which means it will be okay for both of your cats to eat it. Also, with premium food, they end up eating less, which actually saves you money in the long end. The premium brands I would suggest are Innova, Felidae, Chicken Soup for the Cat Lover's Soul and Natural Balance.

We've tried Innova and they tore through that bag. I just bought Felidae bc it seemed to be a slightly better value for the price per pound and they love that stuff too. Maybe I am just feeding them too much? The pkg says a 1/4 cup for each 5 pounds. Pixie's about 12 or 13 lbs. and Milo is probably up to about 8 or 8.5 by now. That would be what about a cup a day? I just worry that Milo is eating all the food and Pix isn't getting as much so I feed them a little more than that. What to do, what to do??? Any ideas on how I can train them to only eat out of their own bowls?

 

[catlover7731]

I have the pickiest eaters that there are. Innova is a really good food, so is Californian natural, Felidae, Wellness, Wysong, Eagle pack. My cats wont eat anything I want them to eat. My female will only eat Fancy feast canned cat food, and is not to thrilled with the Innova dry I feed them. My male eats innova canned and dry but there are days he will turn up his nose at the innova. I have tried everything else sold in my area. Wysong is very expensive ,a nd so is Wellness. Do you feed wet? Maybe feeding some wet and dry will help with them not eating so much? Good luck with your search. Catlover7731.

 

[milopixie]

They also get a half a can of wet food at night usually about a half hour b4 I go to sleep and again they'll eat anything I put in front of them. Milo usually scarfs that down. I don't worry about him overeating too much since he is still a growing baby. I just want the food to last a little longer (which would be easier if he wasn't such a greedy eater, lol) I guess I am feeding them too much

 

[pat]

Originally Posted by milopixie

Ok this may have been done to death, if so let me know

I've been researching the top-quality foods and I'm trying to figure out the best food to feed Milo & Pixie. My only problem is that they go through food soooo fast. I have been blessed with totally non-picky cats with iron cast stomachs. They'll both eat any food I give them and they don't tend to get any digestive problems when switching food (Milo a tiny bit). Also I look for foods that say suitable for all development stages since I don't want Pixie eating kitten food and getting any bigger. So what I'm looking for is the highest quality food for the best price ($$ is an issue, so I want to get the best value for my $). So nutritionally speaking what is the best food? Also should they be going through the top quality food slower than say Cat Chow? Thanks!

Here are two great threads on this topic:
Comprehensive Food Poll
and this thread

My basic advice, is to find the best quality food you can sensibly affort...a food that does not have heavy use of grains - using wheat or soy flour plus corn in the same formula for example, that does not use by-products and/or animal/poultry digest - especially not as one of the main/first listed ingredients, no garlic, no artificial colors or flavorings, NO sugars, no preservatives that may be harmful such as BHA/BHT or ethoxyquin. I also prefer personally..simple. My "if I could have what I really want" canned food for example, would be meats or poultry or seafood, supplemented as necessary with minerals and vitamins, and that's it...no fruits, few if any veggies, a fiber source. Oddly enough, the closest I've found was Active Life...a food many wish would get back into production!

Re dry cat food...to have a short and simple ingredients list - such as California Natural Chicken and Rice.

Some brands I respect:
PetGuard, Felidae, Natural Balance (some, not all their formulas), Nutro Natural Choice Complete Care, Chicken Soup for the Cat Lovers Soul, California Natural Chicken and Rice.

 

[cloud_shade]

Pat, can I ask your opinion on Merrick?

 

[pat]

Originally Posted by cloud_shade

Pat, can I ask your opinion on Merrick?

Yup...but I'll answer tomorrow...my eyes are closing!

 

[alisa]

My kittens LOVE Nutro Natural Choice Complete care. I also think that because its a better quality, it fills them up pretty quickly. (3 months old).

 

[pat]

Originally Posted by cloud_shade

Pat, can I ask your opinion on Merrick?

I know that some of the members here have cats that adore this line of foods, and I love the lack of ick factor in them

My only, only hesitation, is just that they are full of veggies and fruits, and I wonder if all of it is quite necessary? I think their "recipes" are creative, and I know from my crf list that these 3: Grammy's Pot Pie, Thanksgiving Day Dinner, and Cowboy Cookout, all have a phosphorus of just .8 of .81 which is nice (I try to find foods with a phos under 1 for Patrick). I like that all of the flavors have an ash content of under 2 as well.

So.....I'd give them a try and see if your cat likes all the assorted ingredients or not

 

[nano]

Originally Posted by milopixie

Ok this may have been done to death, if so let me know

I've been researching the top-quality foods and I'm trying to figure out the best food to feed Milo & Pixie. My only problem is that they go through food soooo fast. I have been blessed with totally non-picky cats with iron cast stomachs. They'll both eat any food I give them and they don't tend to get any digestive problems when switching food (Milo a tiny bit). Also I look for foods that say suitable for all development stages since I don't want Pixie eating kitten food and getting any bigger. So what I'm looking for is the highest quality food for the best price ($$ is an issue, so I want to get the best value for my $). So nutritionally speaking what is the best food? Also should they be going through the top quality food slower than say Cat Chow? Thanks!

Cats eat less volume of the higher quality foods.

Here is something to consider: Feeding your pet quality foods over the course of a lifetime is one of the most effective things you can do to reduce the number of unplanned vet visits. I am a new cat owner, but historically my pets have rarely needed to go to the vet except for annual physical/shots. They are usually strong enough from eating quality food to fight off minor nuisance issues. So before you balk at $25-50 a year in higher food costs, factor in the total cost of owning a cat and how expensive those non-routine vet visits can be.

To get down to the bottom line, you probably pay about $1.00 a lb for Purina Cat Chow. For about $1.50 a lb, you could get Nutro Complete which is of significantly higher quality. I would go with Nutro Complete for Nano but due to other factors (not related to finances) I am using Authority (the Petsmart generic). Authority is about $1.00 a lb.

So I'd recommend you go with Nutro Complete and if that's not feasible at least switch to Authority. Both brands have Kitten, Adult and Senior varieties. Cat Chow isn't horrible but you can do significantly better without much more effort or money.

 

[xocats]

I went through a crazy time trying to find a food that was good for my 2 kitties & fit my pocketbook too.

My boy Dexter, tends to be overweight, with a sensitive tummy...his sister Sadie, leans toward being slightly underweight. We went through a lot of brands until we settled on Nutro Natural Choice Complete Care...Weight Control. They eat the dry and once a day they share a packet wet food....same brand. They have been on this diet for about 3 years now and are thriving.

I agree with some of the other posts...sometimes what seems to be a more expensive brand, when you figure out how much less they need to eat, to get complete nutrition & feel satisfied, feeding your furbabies a good brand is not much more expensive.

 

[lakeriedog]

My kitties are mainly eating Wellness, because they seem to like it best. Every now and then I buy one small bag of some of the other high quality foods like the Chicken Soup or Organix to give them some variety.

If you can, definitely feed the higher quality foods. One thing that I do to save money is to purchase the larger bags. I get the 12 lb bags and store it in an air-tight container to keep it fresh. I just keep the bowls full all of the time, but I think we go through about two cups a day.

As for the cost, I have three kitties and feed two neighborhood strays. We go through about 15-18 lbs. a month and that costs about $45.00 a month or $1.50 a day. It costs me less than the price of a cup of Starbucks everyday to feed my kitties.

 

[milopixie]

It really is worth the extra price for the better food, I know. So now I'm doing a trial and error to see what lasts the longest. So far Felidae is beating out the Innova and like I said they will eat anything.

Thanks for all the input!