I Just Ordered Darwin's...

buddybellamom

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Hi all, I am an on/off again visitor to this site, I keep chickening out of feeding raw (my own meat + a complete mix is what I want to do). I did just make a huge leap and order from Darwin's -- their introductory 10 lbs for $15. Does anyone use this? Please tell me your experiences.

Kit will accept Primal frozen nuggets, Primal Freeze dried. She loves when I sprinkle Honest Kitchen or Instinct Raw Boost mixers on her canned food. Getting pre-made frozen from another company I feel is a good next step. I also know someone who orders from Rad Cat and she's going to get me some of that.

So, eventually I will do my own meats + a product like EZ Complete, Alnutrin or TC Feline and I'd love to hear your experiences with all of those please.

Thanks!

theresa
 
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buddybellamom

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WOW, over 40 views and no one has anything to say about anything I asked? No one has used any of those things mentioned?

Okee dokee then.... :(
 

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Hi all, I am an on/off again visitor to this site, I keep chickening out of feeding raw (my own meat + a complete mix is what I want to do). I did just make a huge leap and order from Darwin's -- their introductory 10 lbs for $15. Does anyone use this? Please tell me your experiences.

Kit will accept Primal frozen nuggets, Primal Freeze dried. She loves when I sprinkle Honest Kitchen or Instinct Raw Boost mixers on her canned food. Getting pre-made frozen from another company I feel is a good next step. I also know someone who orders from Rad Cat and she's going to get me some of that.

So, eventually I will do my own meats + a product like EZ Complete, Alnutrin or TC Feline and I'd love to hear your experiences with all of those please.

Thanks!

theresa
I've never used Darwin's but I have used Primal and the Honest Kitchen and my cats always liked both stuff =) If you're goal is eventual own meat + appropriate supplements, I think you're on the right track.
Lots of people here use Hare Today (hare-today.com). If you're unfamiliar, their website is nice to look around on and there's some information on raw feeding and stuff. =)
I do use Alnutrin if we feed grinds, but I'll admit I've slacked on this only because we feed more chunks now than we did. We do keep grinds available and pre-mix them up (the ratios) and add alnutrin after thawing when we do need this. It's a really nice way to ensure a balanced meal and a really REALLY nice way to ensure all cats (in multiple house holds that have food hogs, thieves, etc.) get what they need in their diet. =)

Hope this was helpful!
 

Tobermory

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I’m sorry that I can’t help with Darwin’s. I’ve never tried it. I’ve experimented with Primal frozen, Northwest Naturals frozen, and Rad Cat as well as Smallbatch chubs and Hare Today grinds. The latter two are meat/bone/organs only to which you need to add supplements. I jumped right from feeding canned (Rawz, Soulistic, and Weruva) to homemade. I started with a sample of EZ Complete added to ground chicken thighs which they gobbled down, but then I decided to use individually purchased supplements. I’ve been doing that since December. I just sent off for a sample of Alnutrin with eggshell calcium to see if they like that. I don’t mind mixing my own supplements; I’m just looking to give them some variety.

Two of my three will eat anything I put in front of them. Wait. I take that back. One of the two who eats anything looked at Rad Cat venison like it was poison. Very odd. She has never refused anything else! The third refuses all commercial raw and has to be coaxed, with toppers, to eat Smallbatch and Hare Today grinds. She loves the locally purchased ground/chunked chicken thighs to which I add individual supplements.
 

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I’m sorry that I can’t help with Darwin’s. I’ve never tried it. I’ve experimented with Primal frozen, Northwest Naturals frozen, and Rad Cat as well as Smallbatch chubs and Hare Today grinds. The latter two are meat/bone/organs only to which you need to add supplements. I jumped right from feeding canned (Rawz, Soulistic, and Weruva) to homemade. I started with a sample of EZ Complete added to ground chicken thighs which they gobbled down, but then I decided to use individually purchased supplements. I’ve been doing that since December. I just sent off for a sample of Alnutrin with eggshell calcium to see if they like that. I don’t mind mixing my own supplements; I’m just looking to give them some variety.

Two of my three will eat anything I put in front of them. Wait. I take that back. One of the two who eats anything looked at Rad Cat venison like it was poison. Very odd. She has never refused anything else! The third refuses all commercial raw and has to be coaxed, with toppers, to eat Smallbatch and Hare Today grinds. She loves the locally purchased ground/chunked chicken thighs to which I add individual supplements.
I have a few that will eat some foods, but promptly bring them up. One boy brings up any kind of ungulate (beef, venison, elk, etc.) but is great with rabbit and poultry. I rarely feed fish, but he does OK on it.
One girl will eat anything rabbit related and then bring it up immediately.
My dogs could eat cardboard or clothes dryer lint and be glad about it, I swear, LOL
 

Tobermory

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I do use Alnutrin if we feed grinds, but I'll admit I've slacked on this only because we feed more chunks now than we did. We do keep grinds available and pre-mix them up (the ratios) and add alnutrin after thawing when we do need this. It's a really nice way to ensure a balanced meal and a really REALLY nice way to ensure all cats (in multiple house holds that have food hogs, thieves, etc.) get what they need in their diet. =)
1 bruce 1 1 bruce 1 Why don’t you use chunks with Alnutrin? Or do you use really big chunks? I do chunk up some chicken, but it’s probably the size of a marble...maybe two marbles. I’m getting an Alnutrin sample and thought I’d try it with small chunks.
 

Tobermory

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I have a few that will eat some foods, but promptly bring them up. One boy brings up any kind of ungulate (beef, venison, elk, etc.) but is great with rabbit and poultry. I rarely feed fish, but he does OK on it.
One girl will eat anything rabbit related and then bring it up immediately.
My dogs could eat cardboard or clothes dryer lint and be glad about it, I swear, LOL
Mocha scarfed down a Primal nugget in record time, got a startled look on her face, opened her mouth, and projectile vomited it at my feet.
 

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Mocha scarfed down a Primal nugget in record time, got a startled look on her face, opened her mouth, and projectile vomited it at my feet.
Oh no!
Mine got into a Primal freeze dried stash when I stupidly left our cabinet open. I came home to a lot of burpy, gassy cats and dogs with several shredded (and I mean SHREDDED) bags laying about.
I wish I had a video recorder. No one got sick or anything but that probably would have been very funny to witness. My cats are jerks and I love them for it.
 

Tobermory

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Oh no!
Mine got into a Primal freeze dried stash when I stupidly left our cabinet open. I came home to a lot of burpy, gassy cats and dogs with several shredded (and I mean SHREDDED) bags laying about.
I wish I had a video recorder. No one got sick or anything but that probably would have been very funny to witness. My cats are jerks and I love them for it.
Eh, she just ate too fast. Even after six months with me, she retains a bit of her shelter cat fear that the food will disappear if she doesn't inhale it.
 

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Eh, she just ate too fast. Even after six months with me, she retains a bit of her shelter cat fear that the food will disappear if she doesn't inhale it.
My former outdoorsy types still do this.
One of my girls was never really an outdoors cat or a shelter cat but I think has been the butt of so many thief attempts that she'll grab food from her bowl and rush off somewhere secluded to eat it.
My one boy is just a hog and thinks I won't notice a 14-15 pound cat jumping onto the counter, going flat, then slowly snaking his way towards my work place. Twice daily for a decade I've said "WHEN HAS THIS EVER WORKED" and twice daily for a decade he's all :doh2:
 

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I did just make a huge leap and order from Darwin's -- their introductory 10 lbs for $15. Does anyone use this? Please tell me your experiences.

Kit will accept Primal frozen nuggets, Primal Freeze dried. She loves when I sprinkle Honest Kitchen or Instinct Raw Boost mixers on her canned food. Getting pre-made frozen from another company I feel is a good next step. I also know someone who orders from Rad Cat and she's going to get me some of that.

So, eventually I will do my own meats + a product like EZ Complete, Alnutrin or TC Feline and I'd love to hear your experiences with all of those please.
OK!

So, a couple weeks ago I received the 10lbs for $15 introductory offer from Darwin's. I cancelled soon after, because I absolutely cannot afford the price on a grad stipend, but, if I had more of an income I would consider it. My cats LOVED it. Like, I don't know what magic sauce they use in their product, but even my picky boy, who takes 40+ minutes to finish his normal raw food, just hoovered it up. Wow. I do have my doubts about the company after details of the cleanliness of their facility came to light. But so far, my boys have loved it and had no issues (I will update this thread if I ever do find they have Darwin product related issues). But honestly, my cats love it. And it's not THE most expensive raw I've ever seen. It does have fairly low cal/oz (for the poultry products), so I end up feeding more than the recommended 2.5-3% of body weight. But other than that, I'm happy with it.

As far as Alnutrin, EZ Complete, and TCFeline go: I've been researching the stance of people online regarding those supplements. From what I've gathered EZ Complete is ranked #1, Alnutrin #2, and TCFeline #3. BUT, the only reasons given for EZ over Alnutrin were more 'natural' ingredients and I think 'natural' is a scam since it has no legal definition (yes, I'm super jaded about this, so take my opinion with a grain of salt, and I'm sure there's other reasons why people prefer EZ). Alnutrin (by my calculations) is around $600 per year cheaper than EZ (assuming $4/lb of meat because I live in a super expensive area), so that's why I favor Alnutrin above the others. Although I am currently working my way through a TCFeline bag, because I accidentally bought the large size instead of trial size, oh well. Switching back to Alnutrin w/ Eggshell Calcium (which I've tried, and my two cats have loved) after I finish the bag.

Also, my picky boy also loves Instinct Raw Boost Mixers on his food when he's reluctant. It's like a drug to him!
 
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