Help - My Cat Food Brand (royal Canin) Seems To Contain Sugar

[Amryta]

Hi all,

I am a proud cat parent of two lovely three year old cats, that i adopted last year.

My cats have been eating largely Royal Canin with some boiled chicken / Tiki Cat.

I know that Royal Canin is not a great cat food brand, but where I live, it's the best one (the tiki cat is usually imported) - the other brands available locally being Whiskas, meow mix, Sheba etc.

I have noticed that Royal Canin ( wet pouches in gravy - intense beauty / instinctive) seems to contain various sugars. Atleast the ones sold in my country contain sugars, I know the one sold in the US do not.

I have tried contacting the Royal Canin country office several times, in vain.

Now I'm no feline nutrition expert, but I do know that cat and sugar is not a good combination.

So my question to you is - could anyone please explain what are typically the sugars added to cat food? And would it be safe to continue giving my cats Royal Canin? Esp. from the point of view of long term feline health and longevity.

Thanks in advance.

Cheers.

 

[Columbine]

I'm in the UK, and the Royal Canin pouches here contains 'various sugars' too (as do a number of other brands). I'm not clear why they add sugar to cat food - the only thing I can think of is that it helps with caramelising the meat, making the finished cat food a more appetising (to us) colour without having to use added colourings. It's the last ingredient on the list, meaning that it's only present in tiny amounts. No, it's not ideal, but it can be hard to find a cat food that IS, especially if your options are limited.

My personal opinion is that Royal Canin is pretty similar to Whiskas, Sheba etc, but that doesn't make it an intrinsically bad food. My childhood cats all grew up and lived long, healthy lives eating Whiskas, Felix, and other similar brands. Sure, knowing what I know now, I prefer to feed grain free, low carb, no sugar etc foods, but if my finances changed I'd feed the 'lower end' brands without stressing about it. Equally, if I had an ultra fussy cat (as indeed I used to), and the only thing he'd eat were foods that happened to contain sugars (or grains or vegetable by products) you can bet I'd feed it and be happy. The first rule in feeding is to feed your cat the food it will happily eat. The best food in the world does no good from inside the tin!
A Scientific Take On Cat Nutrition By Dr. Rachel Boltz
How To Choose The Right Food For Your Cat
What Makes The Best Canned Cat Food?

Where are you based? Someone may know of other online stockists that would give you access to a wider variety of foods without high import costs

I've been reading your other thread. Have you spoken to a vet about Sera's fussiness? It's always a good idea to make sure that things like appetite changes don't have a medical cause

 

[Amryta]

Hi,

Thank you so much for your reply.

I live in India, and typically order Royal Canin Instinctive, Orijen treats and Tiki Catfrom Amazon US (all this is mostly for Sera - due to her fussiness, though Leo (Sera's brother) gets his share of Orijen and Tiki Cat). However with shipping and import duties, I end up paying more than twice the actual price So it would be wonderful if somebody could introduce a stockist with lower shipping / import costs.

Regarding Sera's fussiness, yes we did a complete blood work (incl. kidney and liver profile), her kidney values were slightly elevated, so the Vet had put her on medication for 21 days, post which her values returned to normal. I also checked with her previous owner, and he mentioned that Sera's always been fussy, and before she came to me, she was almost exclusively on a diet of Meow Mix Tuna pouches for almost a year. (that's all she ate! and puked a lot!)

I agree with you that the best cat food is the one the cat will happily eat, however in Sera's case, she constantly wants change, new flavours, something exciting in her food bowl to keep her interested. So at the moment, she gets RC Instinctive cans, with Tiki Cat seafood as a topping. I worry sometimes because she constantly seeks variety, so I end up giving her a new flavour every 5th day - not sure if such frequent rotation is okay for her? Although the base remains largely constant - Royal Canin.

Her brother on the other hand is such a good non-fussy eater, he's on the Indian RC Pouches + Boiled chicken.

I had another query, I recently picked up Animonda's Milk Cups on a trip to Germany, and both Sera and Leo loved them (though I understand they are not lactose free, they get just half a cup (about 7 gms) each day.
I am keenly looking for a stockist who could supply Milkies to India, Amazon UK and Germany do not unfortunately ship to India. So please let me know in case anyone here is aware of the same.

Thanks again for writing in.

Cheers!

I'm in the UK, and the Royal Canin pouches here contains 'various sugars' too (as do a number of other brands). I'm not clear why they add sugar to cat food - the only thing I can think of is that it helps with caramelising the meat, making the finished cat food a more appetising (to us) colour without having to use added colourings. It's the last ingredient on the list, meaning that it's only present in tiny amounts. No, it's not ideal, but it can be hard to find a cat food that IS, especially if your options are limited.

My personal opinion is that Royal Canin is pretty similar to Whiskas, Sheba etc, but that doesn't make it an intrinsically bad food. My childhood cats all grew up and lived long, healthy lives eating Whiskas, Felix, and other similar brands. Sure, knowing what I know now, I prefer to feed grain free, low carb, no sugar etc foods, but if my finances changed I'd feed the 'lower end' brands without stressing about it. Equally, if I had an ultra fussy cat (as indeed I used to), and the only thing he'd eat were foods that happened to contain sugars (or grains or vegetable by products) you can bet I'd feed it and be happy. The first rule in feeding is to feed your cat the food it will happily eat. The best food in the world does no good from inside the tin!
A Scientific Take On Cat Nutrition By Dr. Rachel Boltz
How To Choose The Right Food For Your Cat
What Makes The Best Canned Cat Food?

Where are you based? Someone may know of other online stockists that would give you access to a wider variety of foods without high import costs

I've been reading your other thread. Have you spoken to a vet about Sera's fussiness? It's always a good idea to make sure that things like appetite changes don't have a medical cause

 

[Columbine]

I've just been trawling the internet for foods/suppliers, but sadly haven't turned up anything you're not already feeding There are a few India based suppliers that (between them) carry everything you mention apart from the Tiki Cat, but I'm not sure that they're any cheaper. You most likely already know of these sites, but I'll post them just in case
Food
m.petzy.com/Food_and_Treats-Cat
Cat Products India, Cat Food Online India
Buy Cat Food Pouches Online India | Cats Food at Best Price | Cats Food Pouches - Marshalls Pet Zone
Cat-Food
Buy Pet Food and Accessories from India's Leading Pet Supplies Store - Pets World

I've just had a thought about Sera's vomiting. Do you think it's possible she's allergic to tuna? (I'm looking at what you said about her previous home ). Maybe try keeping a food and vomiting log for a few weeks to see if there's a pattern. It may not help her fussiness at all, but it might help with her overall health and wellbeing. If there IS an allergic reaction, that may be exacerbating things - after all, you don't feel much like eating if you're nauseous, and cats are no different
thecatsite.com/ams/11-key-facts-about-food-allergies-in-cats.33851/

As for the fussiness/food rotation side of things, there's no harm at all in rotating wet foods fairly rapidly. It's only dry food where it can cause a problem. You don't necessarily have to rotate the foods themselves that fast though, as there are other tricks to keep a cat interested. I often use crumbled freeze dried treats as toppers, and that can work wonders. The Orijin treats you buy would be ideal. The dog ones should be perfectly fine too - I use pure meat cat and dog treats interchangeably with no problems - so that gives you a wider variety of flavours to play with.

Another good topper (and one that my girl goes crazy for) is pulverised kibble. I just put a little in a plastic bag and go to town with a rolling pin You could do the same thing with any favourite crunchy/kibble-style treats, too

I've no idea if you can get this, but Purina FortiFlora is a fantastic topper for fussy eaters. It's a single strain probiotic, but the carrier is animal digest (highly processed liver and other meats) - the same stuff that most kibbles are sprayed with to make them more appetising. Because you only want it for flavour, you don't need to use anything like the suggested dosage, and you don't need to worry so much about the use-by either - that primarily pertains to the probiotic strain being active. You might be able to get this via your vet, even if you can't find it for sale through other suppliers.

Finely grated strong cheese (think parmesan or other strong hard cheeses) can be a wonderful topper too, especially for cats that like dairy. On that subject, I've not been able to find the Milkies avaible outside of Europe. You could try offering a little goats milk (especially if you can get it raw) as an alternative. Many cats love it, and it's far more digestible than cows milk (as far as kitties are concerned, anyway ). I think it's because the lactose molecules are much smaller and therefore easier to break down.

When you boil the chicken for them, save the water. It's full of yummy chicken flavour, and can be used as a topper or just offered (when cooled) as a yummy alternative to water. I've yet to meet a cat (or dog) that doesn't love this!

There are some more topper ideas at the end of this article: https://thecatsite.com/ams/transiti...ew-type-of-food-canned-raw-or-homemade.31138/


Given the cat food supplier situation, have you thought about making your own? You do need ample freezer space for this to be really viable, but it might be another option. There are a ton of recipes here https://thecatsite.com/threads/cooked-recipes-thread.263751/, and here https://thecatsite.com/threads/raw-recipe-thread.272287/

I hope some of this helps

 

[Amryta]

Thank you for your excellent suggestions.

Yes It's possible that Sera is allergic to Tuna, so her tuna is kept at a minimum now.

Regarding making food more interesting for her, trust me I've tried Fortiflora, crushed kibble, cheese, fish oil, etc. None of them have worked beyond a day or two.

And Sera unfortunately seems to not like chicken too, i used to make bone broth for them, Leo had it regularly, Sera just had it the first 3-4 times and got bored of that too!!

I tried making food for them at home, but there are unfortunately limited fresh meats available in super markets here, chicken being the most popular, and Sera doesn't like chicken !!! Leo anyways gets boiled chicken with RC, and the occasional bone broth.

Once she tires of the present Orijen flavors, I can definitely try the orijen dog flavored treats - that's a great idea, thank you so much

BTW she's currently on RC instinctive tins. I am looking for another food brand which would be a mix of fish, poultry, with liver as a key ingredient. Do you know of any? Most brands I've come across are either chicken only, or fish only. I need to find a stand by brand, for when my fussy cat decides she's bored with Royal Canin. Please write back with suggestions.

Thank you so much for your help.

Cheers

I've just been trawling the internet for foods/suppliers, but sadly haven't turned up anything you're not already feeding There are a few India based suppliers that (between them) carry everything you mention apart from the Tiki Cat, but I'm not sure that they're any cheaper. You most likely already know of these sites, but I'll post them just in case
Food
m.petzy.com/Food_and_Treats-Cat
Cat Products India, Cat Food Online India
Buy Cat Food Pouches Online India | Cats Food at Best Price | Cats Food Pouches - Marshalls Pet Zone
Cat-Food
Buy Pet Food and Accessories from India's Leading Pet Supplies Store - Pets World

I've just had a thought about Sera's vomiting. Do you think it's possible she's allergic to tuna? (I'm looking at what you said about her previous home ). Maybe try keeping a food and vomiting log for a few weeks to see if there's a pattern. It may not help her fussiness at all, but it might help with her overall health and wellbeing. If there IS an allergic reaction, that may be exacerbating things - after all, you don't feel much like eating if you're nauseous, and cats are no different
thecatsite.com/ams/11-key-facts-about-food-allergies-in-cats.33851/

As for the fussiness/food rotation side of things, there's no harm at all in rotating wet foods fairly rapidly. It's only dry food where it can cause a problem. You don't necessarily have to rotate the foods themselves that fast though, as there are other tricks to keep a cat interested. I often use crumbled freeze dried treats as toppers, and that can work wonders. The Orijin treats you buy would be ideal. The dog ones should be perfectly fine too - I use pure meat cat and dog treats interchangeably with no problems - so that gives you a wider variety of flavours to play with.

Another good topper (and one that my girl goes crazy for) is pulverised kibble. I just put a little in a plastic bag and go to town with a rolling pin You could do the same thing with any favourite crunchy/kibble-style treats, too

I've no idea if you can get this, but Purina FortiFlora is a fantastic topper for fussy eaters. It's a single strain probiotic, but the carrier is animal digest (highly processed liver and other meats) - the same stuff that most kibbles are sprayed with to make them more appetising. Because you only want it for flavour, you don't need to use anything like the suggested dosage, and you don't need to worry so much about the use-by either - that primarily pertains to the probiotic strain being active. You might be able to get this via your vet, even if you can't find it for sale through other suppliers.

Finely grated strong cheese (think parmesan or other strong hard cheeses) can be a wonderful topper too, especially for cats that like dairy. On that subject, I've not been able to find the Milkies avaible outside of Europe. You could try offering a little goats milk (especially if you can get it raw) as an alternative. Many cats love it, and it's far more digestible than cows milk (as far as kitties are concerned, anyway ). I think it's because the lactose molecules are much smaller and therefore easier to break down.

When you boil the chicken for them, save the water. It's full of yummy chicken flavour, and can be used as a topper or just offered (when cooled) as a yummy alternative to water. I've yet to meet a cat (or dog) that doesn't love this!

There are some more topper ideas at the end of this article: Transitioning Your Cat From Kibble To A New Type Of Food (canned, Raw, Or Homemade)


Given the cat food supplier situation, have you thought about making your own? You do need ample freezer space for this to be really viable, but it might be another option. There are a ton of recipes here Cooked Recipes Thread, and here Raw Recipe Thread

I hope some of this helps

 

[Columbine]

I'm going through Amazon UK at the moment, looking for foods that will ship to India (I can't find any options on the Indian pet sites or Amazon India that aren't tuna or chicken based ).

So far:-

• Purina Gorumet Perle Country Medley
• James Wellbeloved (lamb or turkey flavours) James Wellbeloved Cat Food Adult Pouches
• Applaws Pate Country Selection
• Applaws Pate Chicken (not pure chicken so might still tempt Sera )
• Whiskas Mini Meals (haven't seen that variety on the Indian sites )
• Catz Finefood (one of my staple cat foods)

Some of these are pretty expensive, I know (I confess I looked more at whether they'd deliver to India than at the actual prices ) but they are at least some more options. All except the Purina and Whiskas are actually better quality than the RC food, too.

I found this paste really helpful with my old fussy boy M&C Nurish-UM Paste Vitamin & Mineral Supplement for Cats 70g: Amazon.co.uk: Pet Supplies It really seemed to help his appetite, as well as giving a caloric and nutritional boost.

Sorry for the mix of links, btw. For some reason this platform is reading some as a picture link and other as a text link Hope some of these are helpful

 

[StefanZ]

There are many sugars, and substances labelled sugars. The sugar we dont want is the usual table sugar. (added Fructose not good either unless natural in fruits). Glucose sugar, which is added sometimes, isnt dangerous at all. Its this sugar which is the ultimate energy carrier in our bodies, and everything is supposed to be digested into this sugar. The problem is, not all is digested as smoothly - sometimes it its turned into fat instead, for example, excess of fructose sugar, - or excess of table sugar. (table sugar is made of two molecules: one glucose, and one fructose - the body is made to take care of almost any amount of glucose, but just minor amounts of fructose. If there come fructose aplenty, it goes directly into fat).

Some sugar is a so called FOS - I dont remember at this moment what its it exactly, but its supposed to be healthy and useful. So FOS in cat food is really a plus.

Sugar can be also connected as bearer of coloring dyes. As Columbine mentioned. So perhaps no plus, but it isnt that bad as it sounds, and is there in just small amounts.

That said, its common they add much table sugar in human food. Which isnt good - its a main reason why so many humans gets fat. Its not impossible they do add table sugar into cheaper cat food brands, and this is of course even worse than giving it to humans...
So keep your eyes open, but you dont need to get alarmed every time you see: "added sugars", as long its apparent its just very minor amounts. OR glucose sugar which is OK. (glucose sugar is often added with tuna fish cans for cats).

 

[Amryta]

Thanks a lot for the detailed post. Your post has put some of my concerns to rest.

Unfortunately I'm not sure if there's any way to figure out what kind of sugars RC adds, I hope it's glucose. I wrote to them, but as anticipated, they haven't responded yet.

Cheers.

 

[Amryta]

I'm going through Amazon UK at the moment, looking for foods that will ship to India (I can't find any options on the Indian pet sites or Amazon India that aren't tuna or chicken based ).

So far:-

• Purina Gorumet Perle Country Medley
• James Wellbeloved (lamb or turkey flavours) James Wellbeloved Cat Food Adult Pouches
• Applaws Pate Country Selection
• Applaws Pate Chicken (not pure chicken so might still tempt Sera )
• Whiskas Mini Meals (haven't seen that variety on the Indian sites )
• Catz Finefood (one of my staple cat foods)

Some of these are pretty expensive, I know (I confess I looked more at whether they'd deliver to India than at the actual prices ) but they are at least some more options. All except the Purina and Whiskas are actually better quality than the RC food, too.

I found this paste really helpful with my old fussy boy M&C Nurish-UM Paste Vitamin & Mineral Supplement for Cats 70g: Amazon.co.uk: Pet Supplies It really seemed to help his appetite, as well as giving a caloric and nutritional boost.

Sorry for the mix of links, btw. For some reason this platform is reading some as a picture link and other as a text link Hope some of these are helpful

Thanks for your suggestions. I guess only Purina is available on Amazon US. Will give it a try. Also need some help pls with cat birthday cake recipes. Thanks.