Food Choices Are Overwhelming...

[bathedinshadow]

So my cat has been having some constipation issues (which I posted a different thread about), and I started reading about food more and its impacts (no pun intended). And then I started reading about everything else food related. I rescued her when she was 7 and she ate dry food. I had a really hard time getting her to eat wet food to start with. So once I got her on something she would eat, I just kept her on it. Now after reading, I've come to determine a few things that I think are really important to me, for her.

No:
*Guar gum
*Carrageenan
*Fish
*Xanthan Gum - I've read this is bad, but it seems to be in almost all food I look at.

Want:
*High protein (http://catinfo.org/docs/CatFoodProteinFatCarbPhosphorusChart.pdf)
*Cruelty free
*Rotating foods

After looking through the chart and eliminating the majority of them due to them not being cruelty free, there are so few options. But I have a few question for you all.

I've read through many of the threads here and I see that many of you simply switch from food to food daily, if not every meal. Have you had any issues with this? I know going from dry food to wet should be done gradually, but does that not matter with wet food? Are you switching from different proteins as well? Is that important?

I didn't know how she would take to new food, I bought some weruva peking duken today to see if she would even eat non-pate (as she wouldn't when I took her off dry food years ago), and she lapped it right up. I know Weruva is a lower calorie food. Which is somewhat concerning for me since she doesn't eat a ton. She's at a healthy consistent weight, and always has been. I just want to keep it that way. I also live in Canada, and many brands aren't really available up here. I went to 3 different pet food stores today, and they all pretty much have the same stuff. With Weruva being the only brand that seems to match all my needs.

I have a lot of limitations to food choices here, I know. Just wondering if anybody has some suggestions that meet my needs that I haven't found. I know raw food is the ideal way, but to be frank... I struggle to prepare food for myself. I'm a very lazy food person. Salad and sandwiches are about as far as I go. Also, I'm a very strict vegetarian, and literally never handle meat beyond opening a can of cat food. I would do it for her if I had to, but I just don't think I'm really up for it. I feel a bit guilty for that.

 

[Vega's Dad]

I'm in Canada, too. Boreal's new formulas are gum and carrageenan free. Now sure about cruelty. ..
borealpetfood.com

 

[ginjaninja]

I am searching for the same thing you are, I stumbled across this article recently that might help:

Today’s best cat foods–reviews of canned and raw options

 

[abyeb]

How does this look?

Instinct by Nature's Variety Grain-Free Chicken Formula Canned Cat Food

 

[ginjaninja]

How does this look?

Instinct by Nature's Variety Grain-Free Chicken Formula Canned Cat Food

That's the same one I was looking into except in Turkey; I have a sneaking suspicion my Oliver is sensitive to chicken.

 

[lisahe]

I am searching for the same thing you are, I stumbled across this article recently that might help:

Today’s best cat foods–reviews of canned and raw options

I think her criteria and choices are very good ones! That blog is an excellent place to start.

 

[bathedinshadow]

I'm in Canada, too. Boreal's new formulas are gum and carrageenan free. Now sure about cruelty. ..
borealpetfood.com

Thanks, I'll have to look into that. It's not listed on the cat info spreadsheet, so I'd need to actually contact them to find the numbers for protein/fat/carb levels.

How does this look?

Instinct by Nature's Variety Grain-Free Chicken Formula Canned Cat Food

I looked at that. The levels all seem to meet what I'm looking at. But one ingredient that seems odd to me is the
montmorillonite clay. I read up on it and it's an absorbent. I've just not seen this ingredient in any of the other foods I've looked at. Which is all I've been doing this weekend. Pretty exciting two days off, wouldn't you say!? Considering my kitty has some hard stool issues, I'm not sure clay sounds like a good idea? Otherwise it seems good.

 

[bathedinshadow]

Just a follow up question about food rotation. Should I really focus on getting different proteins? I plan on alternating 4 if I can find that many she likes that meet what I'm looking for. But the majority of foods that meet the values I'm looking for, seem to be chicken. Or of chicken in them in addition to another protein. And even more difficult is finding a variety of brands. Weruva seems to offer the most choices.

What about agar agar as well? I've read this is similar to Carrageenan. But sometimes it's hard to filter through the internet for reliable information.

 

[thehistorian]

How does this look?

Instinct by Nature's Variety Grain-Free Chicken Formula Canned Cat Food

I would not. There is peas in it. My favorite higher end wet food for my babies is Nutro Natural Choice. Check out the ingredients. Meat, meat, and meat. Oh, and some vitamins. They love the Nutro chicken and turkey pates.

Nutro Senior Soft Loaf Chicken Recipe Grain-Free Canned Cat Food, 3-oz, case of 24

It is a bit pricey, but I alternate it with Fancy Feast Classics so I do not run through it too fast.

 

[lisahe]

I would not. There is peas in it. My favorite higher end wet food for my babies is Nutro Natural Choice. Check out the ingredients. Meat, meat, and meat. Oh, and some vitamins. They love the Nutro chicken and turkey pates.

Nutro Senior Soft Loaf Chicken Recipe Grain-Free Canned Cat Food, 3-oz, case of 24

It is a bit pricey, but I alternate it with Fancy Feast Classics so I do not run through it too fast.

Nutro Natural Choice is pretty decent food and many kinds -- minced chicken, sliced turkey, and chunky chicken among them -- don't have carrageenan. Our cats love them. (Which means I can't feed them often because one cat eats them too fast and then vomits!) I, too, prefer Nutro over the Instinct foods, which I don't like because of the peas and carrots (which can be picked out but why pay high food prices to pick out vegetables!?) and for the clay.

As for your other ingredient questions, B bathedinshadow , the clay is something I've never quite understood or felt comfortable with, either. It's in a few kinds of food -- and I fed Primal freeze-dried raw foods for a long time -- and I've read positive things about it but, I don't know, there's something about the idea of it that I just don't like. (To be honest, I've never asked our vet about it.) Instinct has its place and is a popular food with people whose cats have digestive issues but our cats don't like it much anyway, which makes the whole point moot! As for agar agar, I avoid that along with carrageenan. It's another case of not being sure but erring on the side of caution. Beyond that, I just don't think cat food needs thickeners; I've also cut back on gums for our cats. A lot of these decisions are predicated by the fact that the cats have moderately sensitive digestive systems. The bulk of of their food is homemade cooked and commercial raw, with canned food a few times a week. Their preference for homemade and raw food has made my decisions all the easier! In the end, a combination of cat preferences and human attempts to feel comfortable with foods is what's most important.

 

[ginjaninja]

Thanks, I'll have to look into that. It's not listed on the cat info spreadsheet, so I'd need to actually contact them to find the numbers for protein/fat/carb levels.



I looked at that. The levels all seem to meet what I'm looking at. But one ingredient that seems odd to me is the
montmorillonite clay. I read up on it and it's an absorbent. I've just not seen this ingredient in any of the other foods I've looked at. Which is all I've been doing this weekend. Pretty exciting two days off, wouldn't you say!? Considering my kitty has some hard stool issues, I'm not sure clay sounds like a good idea? Otherwise it seems good.

I've read that montmorillonite clay is essentially the same thing as bentonite clay which is used to optimize ph levels and detoxify.

 

[bathedinshadow]

Thanks for all the responses. I've gotten her onto Weruva chicken & Duck currently. She really liked it for the first few days, but seems to be losing interest in it a bit. She's such a finicky eater. I have a really hard time with her because she only eats tiny bits at a time. And I don't want to leave wet food out all the time (currently investigating the effectiveness of the feeders with the ice blocks in them - though she dislikes cold food), but I'm left with no other option unless I quit my job and devote my entire life to spoon feeding her every hour on the hour. But then of course, I need a job to pay for such a thing.

Who knew food could be so stressful. I've contacted a few companies that the catinfo site didn't have listed. They seem promising, but then again, so do many of them... and then I find out they have 30% protein.