Is Anyone Else Struggling to Get Enough Catfood with the Current Supply Shortages we are Encountering?

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vince

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Was out running errands this morning and decided to try a different Kroger's (they have perhaps a half-dozen stores around here). Got the last case of "brand X" wet food on the shelf which, along with what I had, should keep the cats fed until maybe, Christmas. I guess this is going to be like last year's toilet paper shortage--buy what you can whenever you can get it.
 

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Hmm, I guess I am seeing some slight shortages now. Chewy has my usual food marked as "unavailable" but I got the order anyway (they put some aside for autoship orders). And Amazon doesn't have my dry food. Hopefully just this month.
I'm not worried about any of this. If push comes to shove, we can always get meat from the store, cook it, and feed it to the cats. It may not be as nutritious as cat food, but it will do in a pinch. A few veggies thrown in will help too.
Not to be a downer, but if there were severe supply issues for pet food there would probably be supply issues with human-grade meat too. Unless you raise your own meat animals, that probably can't be counted on.
 
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Whenallhellbreakslose

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TardisDance TardisDance Thank you. It does look just like Fancy Feast. Glad to hear the smell is much better than FF. That looks like a good alternative to it. I am glad you got the Black Friday discount. I looked it up on Chewie's--A case of Tiny Tiger 24 can variety pk with gravy is under $16.00 while a similar case of Fancy Feast is priced at $18.00. That's a savings of over $2. Good, an alternative where you save a few bucks. Thanks for letting us know about this. It is appreciated.

W Willowy I agree we don't know the extent of these supply shortages. We can't just assume that other shortages, even shortages of meat couldn't be possible. I was looking on line for a list of affected goods and came across this article a few weeks old. In regards to groceries the following were listed as affected by the shortages:
  • Evaporated milk
  • Cooking oil
  • Tofu
  • Turkeys
  • Bottled water
  • Carbonated drinks
  • Canned products
  • Bread
  • Liquor
The article mentioned other things like Storage containers, rubber, Nitrogen Fertilizer to name a few. It also mentioned the Labor shortage and blood shortages. Anyway here is the article.

10 Things That Are in Short Supply in November

We need to keep watch. I do agree with the member you were replying to about being resourceful and making your own cats food, but your point is a legitimate concern. We can never be too careful.

V vince 😂 Spam is one item I really wouldn't care if it was in short supply or disappered for good. But everybody in the state of Hawaii would lose there minds. They totally love spam! So for there sakes I hope it is in ample supply.
I am glad you got the last case of cat food at Kroger's. I hope the shelves are better stocked the next time you go there. I am keeping my fingers crossed for you.🤞🙂
 

vince

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I do like Spam, but in moderation, of course. I think you caught on that I made the posting in jest.

There's usually a can of the stuff in the cabinet just for emergencies when I have no other meat in the house. If there was some way to leach all that salt out of it, it would be much tastier. Haven't found any appealing recipes for it, so it's pretty much confined to sandwiches or breakfast meat.
Hormel Spam.jpg

Pretty awful dish, typical of Hormel's efforts to sell us on it during the war. :barfgreen:

I'm told that the British got a lot of it during the war, too.

During the '60s, we got it in hot lunches at school. It came as USDA food packages. The cooks couldn't quite figure out what to do with it. The head cook came up with some kind of orange sauce and they called it "ham" (no "truth in advertising" there). Most of it went down the garbage disposer. I only think they tried serving it a couple of times.

Anyway, back to cat food shortages...
 
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I do like Spam, but in moderation, of course. I think you caught on that I made the posting in jest.

There's usually a can of the stuff in the cabinet just for emergencies when I have no other meat in the house. If there was some way to leach all that salt out of it, it would be much tastier. Haven't found any appealing recipes for it, so it's pretty much confined to sandwiches or breakfast meat.
View attachment 403540
Pretty awful dish, typical of Hormel's efforts to sell us on it during the war. :barfgreen:

I'm told that the British got a lot of it during the war, too.

During the '60s, we got it in hot lunches at school. It came as USDA food packages. The cooks couldn't quite figure out what to do with it. The head cook came up with some kind of orange sauce and they called it "ham" (no "truth in advertising" there). Most of it went down the garbage disposer. I only think they tried serving it a couple of times.

Anyway, back to cat food shortages...
I can't handle Spam at all. The last time I ate it-- I tossed my cookies. I just don't get it. Thanks for sharing the image. I guess it was popular in the 50's and 60's over here. Now it is something people have in their houses in case of Emergency.

Well, keep us posted here if things are getting better or worse in your neck of the woods with the cat food. I hope things improve and winter goes fast. I get very nervous for all the ferals I feed. You never know what Mother Nature will throw your way. I hope and pray it isn't too brutal this year. 🙏
 

vince

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I haven't exhausted all my resources yet as far as cat food goes. I'm certain my kitties won't starve, but I did notice some soft stools today. I think all the changes in their diet the past few weeks have caused them some problems. It would be nice to get back to their regular food, which they ate for several years with no ill effect.

The big problem is that everything left around here seems to be those little single-serving cans, about a couple ounces each. I'll go broke dishing those out to my cats. It's the regular-sized cans in quantities that they're out of. I usually buy 32- or 24-packs.
 
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I haven't exhausted all my resources yet as far as cat food goes. I'm certain my kitties won't starve, but I did notice some soft stools today. I think all the changes in their diet the past few weeks have caused them some problems. It would be nice to get back to their regular food, which they ate for several years with no ill effect.

The big problem is that everything left around here seems to be those little single-serving cans, about a couple ounces each. I'll go broke dishing those out to my cats. It's the regular-sized cans in quantities that they're out of. I usually buy 32- or 24-packs.
Same here. I was stuck with this Meow Mix cups a few weeks ago which goes like water with all the outdoor kitties I feed. I would seriously go broke if that was all I could get. Sorry, that your kitties are experiencing a change in there bms due to the other cat food you have no choice to feed them. I hope they feel better and you can keep getting a hold of the food they are accustomed to. 🙂
 

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Went out this morning to Tractor Supply to see if they had any canned cat food. Apparently, they've been getting some shipments in. While there wasn't a huge variety, I was able to get a couple large packs of their usual brands which, with the food already here, should feed my piglets until about mid-January.

I do think I'll have to put my clowder on dry food for a day or two until their gastric issues stop. They'll probably love that. :mad:
 
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Went out this morning to Tractor Supply to see if they had any canned cat food. Apparently, they've been getting some shipments in. While there wasn't a huge variety, I was able to get a couple large packs of their usual brands which, with the food already here, should feed my piglets until about mid-January.

I do think I'll have to put my clowder on dry food for a day or two until their gastric issues stop. They'll probably love that. :mad:
Glad to hear you got some more cat food and that you will be set to mid January.

Hopefully the dry food will rebalance them and they will be back to normal. I use probiotics when this happens with the kitties I take care if. Here is the brand I have been using. PET ULTIMATES Probiotics Cat Supplement, 1.55-oz jar - Chewy.com. It helps. 🙂
 

vince

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I had been feeding them leftover Thanksgiving ham to use it up and to stretch out the remaining wet food longer, as well as to make space in the freezer. I think it just had too much grease in it and it gave 'em the runs. I actually started yesterday with the dry, and they're already improving. Will see about something probiotic if it doesn't completely clear up by the weekend.
 
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I had been feeding them leftover Thanksgiving ham to use it up and to stretch out the remaining wet food longer, as well as to make space in the freezer. I think it just had too much grease in it and it gave 'em the runs. I actually started yesterday with the dry, and they're already improving. Will see about something probiotic if it doesn't completely clear up by the weekend.
V vince That could be the problem right there. I hope they are back to normal now.

Well, I am happy to report that I went to my local Pet store(which is a National Chain) and they were decently stocked. I was able to get flavors of Friskies I wasn't able to get for months like Salmon and Beef in gravy which the cats love. I hope everyone else is doing well. Hang in there.🙂
 

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Last week, I visited the Pet Store I normally buy cat food from. In normal times, it was a very well stocked National chain Pet Store. However, last week it looked like this.
View attachment 401704
I also went to BJ's Wholesale (which is very much like a Costco's). The pet food aisle was completely empty of nearly all the canned wet food, I had to buy Meow Mix that comes in cups which goes way too quick.

I feed a lot of outdoor cats, so I rely on the cheaper cat food like Friskies and Nine Lives. All the supermarkets by me are barely stocked with this food anymore. I am getting worried. I am on a tight budget and I have had another cat feeder dump her cats on me.😕 I have confronted her in the past and we had a major falling out. Now I have to worry that at any time she will dump the rest of her cats on me.😱 This is a stressful situation to begin with. The food shortages is the latest challenge to deal with.

I like to ask the members her on TCS, especially those who have a lot of cats to feed whether they are your cats or you take care of community cats. How has the shortages been in your area? Is it mostly the cheaper cat food that is in short supply or have you noticed other brands? I haven't notice a problem with the dry food yet, but is their a shortage of dry cat food in your area?

What have you been doing to deal with these shortage problems? Have you been buying more online? Have you been buying tuna or sardines, or are using something else as a subitute for cat food? How has the kitties you feed been handling the changes?


I also like to discuss winter feeding of outdoor cats. I am very worried over this and need to figure out how to stretch things out. I am feeding a lot more cats than last year and to say it is a challenge is putting it mildly.

I would like to hear from you. Thank you in advance for taking the time to reply to this thread. 🙂
 
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Whenallhellbreakslose

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I am sorry, but I can't see your reply. Repost if you are able to. Thank you. 🙂
 
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Whenallhellbreakslose

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FYI, I saw that Amazon has a 40% off subscription for their new Kitzy brand of cat food. It’s for a case of 12 of the 12.5 oz. cans. It may be a good option for feeding a bunch of ferals at once - certainly easier to pop open just one can! It should come out to 17.99 before tax.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08SQSYPK9/?tag=thecatsite
Thank you so much for posting this. I will check it out. I hope others out there see this as well.

Well have a good weekend. Thanks once again. 🙂
 
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