Comparing Wet Foods

[Animal Freak]

Hello, everyone! I have three cats and I've come to realize that they're not on the best diet. Well, I knew it wasn't the best, but I didn't know just how poor it was. And with one cat overweight and one underweight, I think it's time for a change. The problem is that it isn't cheap.

Right now they're on Friskies wet and the boys are on Purina One Urinary Tract Support (and sometimes Hairball Control) and Ember is on True Instinct grain free. I think I'm going to leave the dry food for the time being since it gets a bit costly and I think it would be a bit much to change both at one time. That being said, I would be open to recommendations if there are any better foods around the same price range as what they're already on.

But at the moment my main priority is the wet food. I've been doing some research, but there's a lot to consider. I want to avoid fillers, grains, artificial stuff, etc. Ember really needs to lose a bit of weight and I'm hoping something better will get Frost's attention. He hasn't been eating well.

So far I think the two I'm considering are Nature's Variety Instinct and Weruva. I like that Instinct is at PetSmart, so I know I have access to it though I'm thinking about just ordering their food. They also seem to have a large variety of things and I was even considering in getting some of their toppers? I want to do a little more research in that, but it seemed interesting.

However, I've heard good things about Weruva too and I read that where they get their meat from ensures the ethical treatment of the animals, which is definitely a plus for me. This one I do not know of a store where I can buy it, but I can order it.

Also, I was wondering if it would be okay to rotate foods. Some time on the higher quality food and then some time on the Friskies? Perhaps use a little of the toppers with the Friskies?

If you have any opinions on the matter, please let me know! I'm still open to other options too, but I can't afford anything too expensive.

 

[applemommy]

What dry food are you feeding? I think you'd have better luck changing the dry food for your overweight cat. It definitely can get costly switching to a more expensive brand of dry food but there are brands that have high protein which means your cat won't be eating as much kibble so it could potentially even out. Dry food is usually the main source of carbs many cats intake so you may actually want to cut down on the dry and increase the wet food intake.

You'll have better luck finding Weruva at a local natural pet food store. I haven't really seen Weruva at the big chain pet stores. They may be one of those brands that prefers to stock their products at smaller local stores. (Fromm, Rawz, etc. does this too) as well as online.

Rotating foods is a good idea. A lot of people rotate their more expensive cans with Friskies to cut down on costs.

Weruva and Instinct are great and I would also look into Tiki Cat After Dark, American Journey and Rawz.

 

[abyeb]

You can definitely rotate the wet foods. Lots of cat owners like to do this so their kitties get some variety and don’t get bored of one type of food.

 

[Furballsmom]

Perhaps use a little of the toppers with the Friskies?

Great thinking.
Another item that many people have had great results with is bonito flakes. Mackerel goes over very well in this house, and also for your underweight buddy a little bit of raw egg yolk (the white of the egg needs to be cooked) might help.

Only Natural Pet allows orders of smaller quantities so if they have something you're interested in trying, you don't end up with a case that your cat won't touch.

I try and rotate through the menu as much as I can since I'm trying to avoid menadione except that happens to be in one of the standby foods the Big Guy will eat...

In case this helps you - the last update was Nov 2017 Pet Food Guide

 

[lisahe]

Nature's Variety and Weruva are both very decent brands. Do check the calories on the Weruva, though, since their foods are often fairly low-calorie: this can be (literally) a plus or a minus depending on how much you want your individual cats to eat!

Another decent brand that PetSmart sells is Nutro Natural Choice, which our cats love. Lots of picky cats seem to eat them very consistently. These are fairly high-calorie foods, which we find helpful for bedtime snacks. Many Nutro foods (including the minced chicken, chunky chicken, and sliced turkey that we feed) don't have carrageenan. Nutro had some supply issues in recent months but things seem to be returning to normal. My local PetSmart also sells some Wellness Core foods, though not the ones I buy: kitten food (our "adult" cats love it) and turkey/duck. Wellness Core ingredients vary and I avoid the ones with potato (carby, empty calories one of our cats can't eat anyway).

As others have already noted, rotating foods is generally fine, though there are a few cats that can't seem to handle anything more than very gradual changes in food.

Since others mentioned toppers, too, I'll add that our picky cat will eat just about anything with Pure Bites chicken treat dust on it. She also loves egg yolk powder, which is allegedly good for motility and hairball prevention, too.

Anyway, good luck!

 

[duckpond]

I feed quite a bit of weruva, and tiki cat after dark. I think instinct is a good food, i have tried to feed it several times, but my guys are not fans. mine also like against the grain, Fussie cat super premium, and the american journey minced foods that you can get from chewy, this may be their favorite right now and its a good price.. They also like some fancy feast, the classics and the grilled flavors.

I think high protein, moderate fat, and low carb is the way to go. helps skinny cats, and fat cats both

I feed two wet meals per day, and then keep Dr. Elseys Dry, chicken out all the time. It is very high protein and low carb, a little goes a long way.

I keep pure bites freeze dried chicken treats around all the time. My cats do like it sprinkled on their foods

 

[lisahe]

I think high protein, moderate fat, and low carb is the way to go. helps skinny cats, and fat cats both

I agree! I think this is the very most important thing!

 

[Animal Freak]

What dry food are you feeding? I think you'd have better luck changing the dry food for your overweight cat. It definitely can get costly switching to a more expensive brand of dry food but there are brands that have high protein which means your cat won't be eating as much kibble so it could potentially even out. Dry food is usually the main source of carbs many cats intake so you may actually want to cut down on the dry and increase the wet food intake.

You'll have better luck finding Weruva at a local natural pet food store. I haven't really seen Weruva at the big chain pet stores. They may be one of those brands that prefers to stock their products at smaller local stores. (Fromm, Rawz, etc. does this too) as well as online.

Rotating foods is a good idea. A lot of people rotate their more expensive cans with Friskies to cut down on costs.

Weruva and Instinct are great and I would also look into Tiki Cat After Dark, American Journey and Rawz.

The boys are being fed Purina One Urinary Tract Support. Ember is one Purina True Instinct grain-free. I would like to increase the amount of wet food they're getting and had intended to, but now I've decided to change foods entirely which is going to be more expensive... Well, I'm still figuring things out. I'm considering changing their dry food to something better, but it would have to be around the same price as Purina.

Unfortunately, there's not really much around me. It's a very small town surrounded by slightly larger towns. So I'm not sure that there are any natural pet food stores nearby. We're probably going to start ordering online though so it should be fine.

I do like the Tiki Cat After Dark. I think I'm between that and the Weruva. I'm considering putting both into rotation as well as Friskies.

You can definitely rotate the wet foods. Lots of cat owners like to do this so their kitties get some variety and don’t get bored of one type of food.

I think I'm going to do that. I wonder if Frost isn't bored with something, but I'm not sure what. They don't get wet food in the morning and he eats very little, if at all then. He gets a mix of dry and wet in the evening and he'll usually eat a little, but not much.

Great thinking.
Another item that many people have had great results with is bonito flakes. Mackerel goes over very well in this house, and also for your underweight buddy a little bit of raw egg yolk (the white of the egg needs to be cooked) might help.

Only Natural Pet allows orders of smaller quantities so if they have something you're interested in trying, you don't end up with a case that your cat won't touch.

I try and rotate through the menu as much as I can since I'm trying to avoid menadione except that happens to be in one of the standby foods the Big Guy will eat...

In case this helps you - the last update was Nov 2017 Pet Food Guide

Thanks! I was hoping I could balance it out with price and nutrition some way. The bonito flakes seem like they could be interesting. I'll have to keep raw egg yolks in mind! I really have no clue why he won't eat. Fortunately, I don't think he's lost anymore weight, but he's still not eating much.

The could be helpful. We've ended up with food they didn't like before, so that's definitely good to know.

Thanks for the link. It has some interesting information.

Nature's Variety and Weruva are both very decent brands. Do check the calories on the Weruva, though, since their foods are often fairly low-calorie: this can be (literally) a plus or a minus depending on how much you want your individual cats to eat!

Another decent brand that PetSmart sells is Nutro Natural Choice, which our cats love. Lots of picky cats seem to eat them very consistently. These are fairly high-calorie foods, which we find helpful for bedtime snacks. Many Nutro foods (including the minced chicken, chunky chicken, and sliced turkey that we feed) don't have carrageenan. Nutro had some supply issues in recent months but things seem to be returning to normal. My local PetSmart also sells some Wellness Core foods, though not the ones I buy: kitten food (our "adult" cats love it) and turkey/duck. Wellness Core ingredients vary and I avoid the ones with potato (carby, empty calories one of our cats can't eat anyway).

As others have already noted, rotating foods is generally fine, though there are a few cats that can't seem to handle anything more than very gradual changes in food.

Since others mentioned toppers, too, I'll add that our picky cat will eat just about anything with Pure Bites chicken treat dust on it. She also loves egg yolk powder, which is allegedly good for motility and hairball prevention, too.

Anyway, good luck!

I'll definitely keep the calories in mind. I've been making a list of all the foods I'm looking at and I added protein, fats, and calories to it so I could remember.

I'll have to keep Nutro Natural Choice in mind. I do think we'll be ordering food from now on, but it's always good to know that there's a decent option available in a store too. I've been trying to find foods without potatoes in it, but it's hard! A lot of them have something in them.

I plan to start slow with rotating foods though they have had their food changed before and did fine. They don't seem to be particularly sensitive cats which is fortunate.

Another interesting thing to keep in mind! Pure Bites seem like they could be good to have. If egg yolk powder actually helps with hairballs, that would be fantastic. Ash has those quite frequently.

I feed quite a bit of weruva, and tiki cat after dark. I think instinct is a good food, i have tried to feed it several times, but my guys are not fans. mine also like against the grain, Fussie cat super premium, and the american journey minced foods that you can get from chewy, this may be their favorite right now and its a good price.. They also like some fancy feast, the classics and the grilled flavors.

I think high protein, moderate fat, and low carb is the way to go. helps skinny cats, and fat cats both

I feed two wet meals per day, and then keep Dr. Elseys Dry, chicken out all the time. It is very high protein and low carb, a little goes a long way.

I keep pure bites freeze dried chicken treats around all the time. My cats do like it sprinkled on their foods

Weruva and Tiki Cat After Dark both seem like good foods. I think I'm going to use one, if not both. The American Journey might be good to keep in mind too.

I've been trying to find low carb foods, but what do you think would be considered moderate fat? I'm not really good at paying attention to all these percentages and whatnot.

I was wondering if having dry out all day would be a good idea. I'm not sure because Ember is overweight and sometimes she eats to fast and makes herself sick. But she does have feral blood and feral instincts, so I wonder if perhaps having a constant food source would make her feel better. On the other hand, she could way too much and put on weight, not to mention the other two. I'd have to get it where the dog couldn't have access to it too.

I might get some to try for my own cats.

 

[Animal Freak]

So how much do you all feed your cats? Would more frequent, smaller meals be better? I think the maximum I could do it three though. I was wondering if leaving dry food out all day would help or hurt my overweight cat. I don't know what causes her to eat. Sometimes she eats too much, too fast and makes herself sick. But could having a constant food source make her feel better?

And for those of you who rotate foods, how often do you do so? Do you have to do a transition every time you switch foods?

Also, I think I am going to look for a different dry food, but it would have be close to the same amount as Purina. It doesn't have to be great, but better. I think lowering the carbs would be for the best. So if you have any suggestions, I'd be happy to hear them. Or even if you could give recommendations on what to look for when it comes to protein, fat, and carbs, that would be greatly appreciated.

Sorry I'm asking so many questions. I just really want to get them on a better diet and doing the research has only made me more desperate to do so. However, I'm not really in the situation where I can spend a fortune on food so I have to figure out how to do this while spending the least amount of money.

 

[Furballsmom]

When is the last time Frost has been to a vet?
You're in a bit of a bad spot, free feeding might help Frost but I don't believe it would be good for your overweight kitty.

I'm feeding as much as he'll eat - he's 13 and healthy, but needs to maintain his weight with a major issue of losing his favorite food to a recipe change so my situation in that regard is a little different I think, from yours. He gets am and pm canned, treats and kibble during the day and kibble overnight.

I don't have any schedule regarding menu rotation - it's mostly based on whether he's in the mood

Concerning transitioning, I'm accidentally fortunate, I think. duckpond can talk about this more, but I've apparently been utilizing ingredients, carbs et al that are somewhat similar without realizing that I was doing a good thing there. He's not having much tummy trouble.

 

[himawari]

So how much do you all feed your cats? Would more frequent, smaller meals be better? I think the maximum I could do it three though. I was wondering if leaving dry food out all day would help or hurt my overweight cat. I don't know what causes her to eat. Sometimes she eats too much, too fast and makes herself sick. But could having a constant food source make her feel better?

And for those of you who rotate foods, how often do you do so? Do you have to do a transition every time you switch foods?

I think smaller, frequent meals are better that huge ones or twice a day. What I normally do is feed my cat 4/5 times a day -- after waking up, before leaving the house, after arriving, before going to bed. Sometimes I leave food for him to eat while I'm gone or I'm sleeping. But all those meals are measured and small.

I think leaving dry food will most likely hurt your already overweight cat because most dry foods are incredibly high in carbs. How much of dry food do you feed?

I do rotate foods. I never really transition like so many articles say I should. The most I've transitioned is 3 days because it was raw food. I try to keep in mind what he's had so that he can get new proteins/brands at least every other day 'cause I wouldn't want to bore him with his meals. Lately he's been refusing his raw food and has reverted back to being a kibble addict /sigh

 

[Minxxy]

So how much do you all feed your cats? Would more frequent, smaller meals be better? I think the maximum I could do it three though. I was wondering if leaving dry food out all day would help or hurt my overweight cat. I don't know what causes her to eat. Sometimes she eats too much, too fast and makes herself sick. But could having a constant food source make her feel better?

And for those of you who rotate foods, how often do you do so? Do you have to do a transition every time you switch foods?

Also, I think I am going to look for a different dry food, but it would have be close to the same amount as Purina. It doesn't have to be great, but better. I think lowering the carbs would be for the best. So if you have any suggestions, I'd be happy to hear them. Or even if you could give recommendations on what to look for when it comes to protein, fat, and carbs, that would be greatly appreciated.

Sorry I'm asking so many questions. I just really want to get them on a better diet and doing the research has only made me more desperate to do so. However, I'm not really in the situation where I can spend a fortune on food so I have to figure out how to do this while spending the least amount of money.

If you're looking for something comparable to Purina One you may take a look at Pro Plan Focus Weight Management . It has 46% protein and only 8% fat so the carbs would be a bit lower than the Purina One .
Purina Pro Plan Focus Adult Weight Management Chicken & Rice Formula Dry Cat Food

For my cats I feed two wet meals . Friskies morning and night . For lunch they each get 1/4 cup of high protein low carb kibble . We do not rotate foods . Our cats are too picky for that ..

 

[duckpond]

The boys are being fed Purina One Urinary Tract Support. Ember is one Purina True Instinct grain-free. I would like to increase the amount of wet food they're getting and had intended to, but now I've decided to change foods entirely which is going to be more expensive... Well, I'm still figuring things out. I'm considering changing their dry food to something better, but it would have to be around the same price as Purina.

Unfortunately, there's not really much around me. It's a very small town surrounded by slightly larger towns. So I'm not sure that there are any natural pet food stores nearby. We're probably going to start ordering online though so it should be fine.

I do like the Tiki Cat After Dark. I think I'm between that and the Weruva. I'm considering putting both into rotation as well as Friskies.




I think I'm going to do that. I wonder if Frost isn't bored with something, but I'm not sure what. They don't get wet food in the morning and he eats very little, if at all then. He gets a mix of dry and wet in the evening and he'll usually eat a little, but not much.




Thanks! I was hoping I could balance it out with price and nutrition some way. The bonito flakes seem like they could be interesting. I'll have to keep raw egg yolks in mind! I really have no clue why he won't eat. Fortunately, I don't think he's lost anymore weight, but he's still not eating much.

The could be helpful. We've ended up with food they didn't like before, so that's definitely good to know.

Thanks for the link. It has some interesting information.




I'll definitely keep the calories in mind. I've been making a list of all the foods I'm looking at and I added protein, fats, and calories to it so I could remember.

I'll have to keep Nutro Natural Choice in mind. I do think we'll be ordering food from now on, but it's always good to know that there's a decent option available in a store too. I've been trying to find foods without potatoes in it, but it's hard! A lot of them have something in them.

I plan to start slow with rotating foods though they have had their food changed before and did fine. They don't seem to be particularly sensitive cats which is fortunate.

Another interesting thing to keep in mind! Pure Bites seem like they could be good to have. If egg yolk powder actually helps with hairballs, that would be fantastic. Ash has those quite frequently.




Weruva and Tiki Cat After Dark both seem like good foods. I think I'm going to use one, if not both. The American Journey might be good to keep in mind too.

I've been trying to find low carb foods, but what do you think would be considered moderate fat? I'm not really good at paying attention to all these percentages and whatnot.

I was wondering if having dry out all day would be a good idea. I'm not sure because Ember is overweight and sometimes she eats to fast and makes herself sick. But she does have feral blood and feral instincts, so I wonder if perhaps having a constant food source would make her feel better. On the other hand, she could way too much and put on weight, not to mention the other two. I'd have to get it where the dog couldn't have access to it too.

I might get some to try for my own cats.

I like wet foods, for the moisture. Some are also very high protein, and low carb, but not all wet foods are, you still need to watch. For moderate fat it should be between 20 to 40 % of the calories. protein over 50%. thats what i shoot for anyway. Not every food, or every meal will hit those numbers, but most do.

I like Tiki and most weruva, Almo nature complete foods, fussie cat supper premium chicken and liver, and chicken and beef, for the protein, fat and carb count. American journey is one of my Almost there, just not quite as good as tiki and weruva with the numbers, but not bad at all. There are others as well, but those are my go too foods. Tiki and weruva are also quite low in calories, and some in fat. Cats do need some fat, so i dont worry about that as much as the carbs. I do throw in another food now and again for variety, such as Earthborn, or fancy feast, and against the grain.

The Only dry i will feed is Dr. Elseys chicken. the protein is high, and the carbs are lower than 5%. I do free feed. i feed the low calorie wet foods 2 times a day, for the moisture. and leave Elseys out at all times, as the cats dont get enough calories from the wet i feed. my cats did over eat on Elseys the first week or two, new yummie food but then they tapered off, and just nibble as needed now. As long as i stick to the wet food with high protein, low carbs and calories for moisture, and only dr. elseys kibble we do not have a weight problem, a barf problem, or stinky litter boxes.

I have not tried young again cat food, i keep thinking i will at sometime. but my guys are good with elseys right now. I do like the philosophy of young again, about free feeding. However I do still like a wet food in the diet. i feed wet in the kitchen, social time. i keep dry in two bowls in two different bedrooms. Young again is probably the only other dry i would try right now, for free feeding, especially with an over weight cat. This is just how we do it at my house

Introducing Your CAT to YA

i also like her chart for easy comparisions of wet food
http://catinfo.org/docs/CatFoodProteinFatCarbPhosphorusChart.pdf

 

[lisahe]

So how much do you all feed your cats? Would more frequent, smaller meals be better? I think the maximum I could do it three though. I was wondering if leaving dry food out all day would help or hurt my overweight cat. I don't know what causes her to eat. Sometimes she eats too much, too fast and makes herself sick. But could having a constant food source make her feel better?

Given what you say about your overweight cat, I'd very strongly suggest feeding several small meals a day, with only timed feeding and nothing left out during the day. We feed five small meals a day because one of our cats will eat too much, too fast, and then barf. Five meals is easy because I work at home but when I'm traveling, my husband feeds the cats four meals a day, about like H himawari does. Timed feedings, on a fairly predictable schedule (our cats can tell time!), have pretty much gotten rid of that problem and eliminated begging, too. Our cats are rescues who were horribly underfed when we adopted them and Edwina still has food anxiety four years later.

There's something else that goes along with timed feedings in our case -- it sounds like you might have a similar situation. We separate our two cats at mealtime because Ireland, our other cat, is such a slow eater; she's slender but not quite underweight. Separating cats for meals sounds more difficult than it is: once we got past the first few days, the cats got used to it. Two or three years later, they're both less stressed while they eat. Edwina eats slower and isn't waiting to chase Ireland away from her food, and Ireland eats a little faster, probably because she's no longer looking around furtively and worrying about Edwina attacking her food!

And potato, ugh! I think chickpeas are the latest wave, though. I went to buy cat food yesterday and couldn't believe how many foods now have chickpeas.

 

[sunflower7]

For dry look into Farmina and Fussie cat. I mix them with some Beyond.

For cans, dry different textures. only recently do I see my cats ALL like minced and bits way better then pate. So I moved them to whole earth farms and wellness along with some friskies, earthborn, beyond and nulo. Oddly WEruva gave 2 of the 3 diarrehea. and I feed now 3-4 times a day instead of 2. cats all losing a bit, with 80% wet and 20% dry...

Good luck

 

[Furballsmom]

For dry look into Farmina and Fussie cat. I mix them with some Beyond.

Not to say that other people don't do this as well, but this is the first I'm seeing mention of someone else doing this... I was pretty much thinking I was the only 'odd' one who mixes kibbles LOL

 

[Minxxy]

Not to say that other people don't do this as well, but this is the first I'm seeing mention of someone else doing this... I was pretty much thinking I was the only 'odd' one who mixes kibbles LOL

I don't mix the dry foods .The main kibble is Dr Elseys . I also have Rawz Dehydrated Chicken & Turkey that I use for a topper . They seem to like it that way ..

 

[Animal Freak]

When is the last time Frost has been to a vet?
You're in a bit of a bad spot, free feeding might help Frost but I don't believe it would be good for your overweight kitty.

I'm feeding as much as he'll eat - he's 13 and healthy, but needs to maintain his weight with a major issue of losing his favorite food to a recipe change so my situation in that regard is a little different I think, from yours. He gets am and pm canned, treats and kibble during the day and kibble overnight.

I don't have any schedule regarding menu rotation - it's mostly based on whether he's in the mood

Concerning transitioning, I'm accidentally fortunate, I think. duckpond can talk about this more, but I've apparently been utilizing ingredients, carbs et al that are somewhat similar without realizing that I was doing a good thing there. He's not having much tummy trouble.

I don't remember exactly when we took him, but we did bring Frost to the vet after he stopped eating. They looked him over and did blood work and said he was fine. And he acts fine in every other way. He hasn't lost a ton of weight either. It was about a pound, but I don't think he's lost much, if any, weight since then. It is hard with the two of them. What I do to help one thing can hurt the other.

Yeah, I don't think I could give my cats as much as they wanted. Well, I would probably give Frost as much as he wanted if I ever saw him actually eat all his food. I don't really know how much he eats because he goes and cleans out the other two's bowls and will pick at his own a little.

I think smaller, frequent meals are better that huge ones or twice a day. What I normally do is feed my cat 4/5 times a day -- after waking up, before leaving the house, after arriving, before going to bed. Sometimes I leave food for him to eat while I'm gone or I'm sleeping. But all those meals are measured and small.

I think leaving dry food will most likely hurt your already overweight cat because most dry foods are incredibly high in carbs. How much of dry food do you feed?

I do rotate foods. I never really transition like so many articles say I should. The most I've transitioned is 3 days because it was raw food. I try to keep in mind what he's had so that he can get new proteins/brands at least every other day 'cause I wouldn't want to bore him with his meals. Lately he's been refusing his raw food and has reverted back to being a kibble addict /sigh

I think I'll try breaking up their meals, but I'm not sure exactly how I'm going to go about it just yet. I could manage at least three, possibly four meals, but I don't have much time in the morning. I get up at 6:30 and leave at 7:30. Then I'm back at 3:00, so I could feed them then and again later.

I kind of figured that. I'm not sure the exact amount of dry they're getting since I've altered it multiple times and they end up eating each others food. If I had to guess, Frost probably gets a cup (that he doesn't eat) and the other two a bit less. Frost doesn't eat much so I decreased the amount of wet he gets and managed to get the other two to have no dry for that meal. I'm probably going to increase the amount of wet they get though.

I think my cats will be able to manage rotations all right. They don't usually have a problem, but I'm going to take it slow to begin with. They'll be changing quality of food too, so I don't want that to upset them.

If you're looking for something comparable to Purina One you may take a look at Pro Plan Focus Weight Management . It has 46% protein and only 8% fat so the carbs would be a bit lower than the Purina One .
Purina Pro Plan Focus Adult Weight Management Chicken & Rice Formula Dry Cat Food

For my cats I feed two wet meals . Friskies morning and night . For lunch they each get 1/4 cup of high protein low carb kibble . We do not rotate foods . Our cats are too picky for that ..

All right, thanks! It's been put into consideration.

I guess we'll see if my cats are picky though I don't think we'll rotate much. We'll get them on a better food and rotate with Friskies for a while. Maybe add another brand or two.

I like wet foods, for the moisture. Some are also very high protein, and low carb, but not all wet foods are, you still need to watch. For moderate fat it should be between 20 to 40 % of the calories. protein over 50%. thats what i shoot for anyway. Not every food, or every meal will hit those numbers, but most do.

I like Tiki and most weruva, Almo nature complete foods, fussie cat supper premium chicken and liver, and chicken and beef, for the protein, fat and carb count. American journey is one of my Almost there, just not quite as good as tiki and weruva with the numbers, but not bad at all. There are others as well, but those are my go too foods. Tiki and weruva are also quite low in calories, and some in fat. Cats do need some fat, so i dont worry about that as much as the carbs. I do throw in another food now and again for variety, such as Earthborn, or fancy feast, and against the grain.

The Only dry i will feed is Dr. Elseys chicken. the protein is high, and the carbs are lower than 5%. I do free feed. i feed the low calorie wet foods 2 times a day, for the moisture. and leave Elseys out at all times, as the cats dont get enough calories from the wet i feed. my cats did over eat on Elseys the first week or two, new yummie food but then they tapered off, and just nibble as needed now. As long as i stick to the wet food with high protein, low carbs and calories for moisture, and only dr. elseys kibble we do not have a weight problem, a barf problem, or stinky litter boxes.

I have not tried young again cat food, i keep thinking i will at sometime. but my guys are good with elseys right now. I do like the philosophy of young again, about free feeding. However I do still like a wet food in the diet. i feed wet in the kitchen, social time. i keep dry in two bowls in two different bedrooms. Young again is probably the only other dry i would try right now, for free feeding, especially with an over weight cat. This is just how we do it at my house

Introducing Your CAT to YA

i also like her chart for easy comparisions of wet food
http://catinfo.org/docs/CatFoodProteinFatCarbPhosphorusChart.pdf

I think I might go with Tiki myself and possibly Weruva. Those two have come up a lot and seem like pretty good foods. I'll keep the others in mind in case those two don't go over well though.

How long does Dr. Elsey's last you? It's come up quite a bit in my search, but it's not cheap by any means.

I don't think I'll be free feeding since Ember is already overweight. It's a nice idea, especially for Frost, but I'm afraid she'll feel the need to try to eat it all at once and make herself sick. I don't know where I'd be the bowls either. The dog will eat their food and my room is the only room she's not allowed in, but I can't guarantee she can't get in there since she's around the same size as the cats.

Thanks for the links!

Given what you say about your overweight cat, I'd very strongly suggest feeding several small meals a day, with only timed feeding and nothing left out during the day. We feed five small meals a day because one of our cats will eat too much, too fast, and then barf. Five meals is easy because I work at home but when I'm traveling, my husband feeds the cats four meals a day, about like H himawari does. Timed feedings, on a fairly predictable schedule (our cats can tell time!), have pretty much gotten rid of that problem and eliminated begging, too. Our cats are rescues who were horribly underfed when we adopted them and Edwina still has food anxiety four years later.

There's something else that goes along with timed feedings in our case -- it sounds like you might have a similar situation. We separate our two cats at mealtime because Ireland, our other cat, is such a slow eater; she's slender but not quite underweight. Separating cats for meals sounds more difficult than it is: once we got past the first few days, the cats got used to it. Two or three years later, they're both less stressed while they eat. Edwina eats slower and isn't waiting to chase Ireland away from her food, and Ireland eats a little faster, probably because she's no longer looking around furtively and worrying about Edwina attacking her food!

And potato, ugh! I think chickpeas are the latest wave, though. I went to buy cat food yesterday and couldn't believe how many foods now have chickpeas.

I think I will break up their meals, but it'll only be three, maybe four meals. I'm still working on figuring it out though. I'm not sure how to transition them from two meals to three or more.

I have considered separating them. Ember eats in my room now, but I don't shut the door. It has helped though. I've found she isn't quite as tempted to leave her own to eat the others and will usually finish her own off which means Frost can't get to it. It takes him a bit longer to work his way in there too. However, my problem is that they tend to leave some food. Frost in particular, but Ash too and sometimes Ember. So I'd have to lock them up in separate spaces for quite some time for them to finish their food and even that's iffy. Frost isn't being kicked out of his own food bowl or anything, he's just not eating it. He'll walk away, wait until my back is turned, and go eat someone else's. The other two will do it too, but the difference is they eat theirs first. Sometimes I wonder if I switched them if they'd end up at the right bowls.

I have seen a lot of chickpeas. And just plain peas. But still a lot of potatoes.

For dry look into Farmina and Fussie cat. I mix them with some Beyond.

For cans, dry different textures. only recently do I see my cats ALL like minced and bits way better then pate. So I moved them to whole earth farms and wellness along with some friskies, earthborn, beyond and nulo. Oddly WEruva gave 2 of the 3 diarrehea. and I feed now 3-4 times a day instead of 2. cats all losing a bit, with 80% wet and 20% dry...

Good luck

All right, thanks! Those foods have been put on my consideration list and I'll keep the advice in mind.

 

[Furballsmom]

he goes and cleans out the other two's bowls and will pick at his own a little.

What a goof - hang in there with this guy!!

 

[zoocat]

Not to say that other people don't do this as well, but this is the first I'm seeing mention of someone else doing this... I was pretty much thinking I was the only 'odd' one who mixes kibbles LOL

I’m one that does mix kibble for both my inside boys and my “formerly/semi” ferals. For inside guys I’m mixing Dr Elseys Chicken and Farmina Boar and Apple —one of my boys LOVES the Farmina but only tolerates the Dr Elseys—the other will eat anything dry! For the outside kitties the current mix is Beyond Chicken and Crave Chicken. No digestive problems with doing it and I think they get a mixture of good but different ingredients.