Low Carb Mid-price Dry Food?

[_spadekitty]

Hello!

So, my cat eats a mostly wet food diet. I am currently feeding him a few different brands of wet food (Lotus and Wellness mostly), and Acana dry food for snacks.

I want to start leaving dry food out for him to graze on through out the day, that way he gets all the calories he needs while keeping his wet food diet budget friendly.

I'm looking for a low carb dry food, doesn't have to be grain-free (but I'd prefer it to be), with NO POULTRY. He has poultry allergies and I usually feed him pork/beef/venison/fish proteins.

Hes not terribly picky, so give me ideas! Price wise, maybe $20-25 tops for a larger bag?

 

[Kieka]

Natural Balance LID Venison is the only I know in that price range that is poultry free. I do Natures Variety LID Rabbit but its $38 for the large bag.

 

[_spadekitty]

Natural Balance LID Venison is the only I know in that price range that is poultry free. I do Natures Variety LID Rabbit but its $38 for the large bag.

He was eating that at one point, he likes it but it made his poop smell horrible!
How big is the bag you buy? I'm a little hesitant to expose him to anymore proteins, since he already has an allergy to poultry

 

[Kieka]

My guys have poultry problems (one with chicken and one with turkey). Its a 10 pound bag and for my three with one wet snack a day they go through about 12 pounds a month; my current reorder is once every 3 weeks but I am still playing with the frequency to find what works.

What I like is that the meat is the first ingredient where the Natural Balance has peas first.

Natures Variety : Rabbit Meal, Peas, Tapioca, Canola Oil (preserved with Mixed Tocopherols and Citric Acid), Rabbit, Natural Flavor, Coconut Oil, Montmorillonite Clay, Taurine, Choline Chloride, Potassium Chloride, Vitamins (Vitamin E Supplement, L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate, Niacin Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin A Supplement, Riboflavin Supplement, Menadione Sodium Bisulfite Complex, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Folic Acid, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Biotin), DL-Methionine, Minerals (Zinc Proteinate, Iron Proteinate, Copper Proteinate, Manganese Proteinate, Sodium Selenite, Ethylenediamine Dihydriodide), Freeze Dried Rabbit, Salt, Pumpkinseeds, Rosemary Extract.

Natural Balance: Dried Green Peas, Venison, Pea Protein, Venison Meal, Canola Oil (Preserved with Mixed Tocopherols), Brewers Dried Yeast, Natural Flavor, Salmon Oil, Flaxseeds, Salt, Potassium Chloride, DL-Methionine, Choline Chloride, Minerals (Zinc Amino Acid Chelate, Zinc Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Iron Amino Acid Chelate, Copper Sulfate, Copper Amino Acid Chelate, Sodium Selenite, Manganese Sulfate, Manganese Amino Acid Chelate, Calcium Iodate), Taurine, Vitamins (Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin, Thiamine Mononitrate, D-Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin A Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin Supplement, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Folic Acid, Vitamin D3 Supplement) Mixed Tocopherols (Preservative), Citric Acid (Preservative), Rosemary Extract.

It also is 35% protein where the Natural Balance is only 27%. With the peas first and pea protein third I worry that Natural Balance is using pea protein to boost their protein so actual animal protein is lower.

It's a little more cost wise but I personally refuse to go under 30% protein, anything that meat isn't first and want minimal fish on top of the no poultry so Nature's Variety is the best I have personally found to fit that bill that I can afford. It is borderline high price point for me but I won't give on the some criteria so I make it work.

 

[yeva2292]

Are you ok with a fish-heavy dry food?

Merrick's Backcountry Pacific Catch recipe has the following ingredients:
Deboned Salmon, Salmon Meal (Source of Omega-3 Fatty Acids), Whitefish Meal, Potatoes, Peas, Natural Flavor, Potato Protein, Sweet Potatoes, Pork Fat (Preserved with Mixed Tocopherols), Whitefish, Trout, Dried Yeast Culture, Salt, Organic Dried Alfalfa Meal, Choline Chloride, Minerals (Iron Amino Acid Complex, Zinc Amino Acid Complex, Sodium Selenite, Manganese Amino Acid Complex, Copper Amino Acid Complex, Potassium Iodide, Cobalt Proteinate, Cobalt Carbonate), Phosphoric Acid, Taurine, Yucca Schidigera Extract, Vitamins (Vitamin E Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Vitamin A Acetate, D-Calcium Pantothenate, Niacin, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin Supplement, Biotin, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Folic Acid, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride), Dried Bacillus Coagulans Fermentation Product, Dried Lactobacillus Plantarum Fermentation Product, Dried Lactobacillus Casei Fermentation Product, Dried Enterococcus Faecium Fermentation Product, Dried Lactobacillus Acidophilus Fermentation Product.

Crude protein (min.) 41.00 %
Crude fat (min.) 14.00 %
Crude fiber (max.) 4.00 %
Moisture (max.) 11.00 %
Calcium (min.) 1.00%
Phosphorus (min.) 0.80%
Taurine 0.20%
Omega-6 fatty acid (min.) 3.00%
Omega-3 fatty acid (min.) 0.30%
Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA)* (min.) 0.05%
Bacillus coagulans* (min.) 90,000,000 cfu/lb

The 10lb bag is $32.99, but you could start with the 6lb ($20.51) and see how long it lasts you.

Alternatively, Merrick has a "Limited Ingredient Diet Grain-Free Real Salmon Recipe Dry Cat Food", that costs $29.99 for 12lb, but it has less protein ~ 32%

 

[yeva2292]

Canidae's Pure Ocean/Stream/Sea are also all poultry free. They are fish based with ~32% protein. They cost $28.50 per 10lb bag.

 

[_spadekitty]

Canidae's Pure Ocean/Stream/Sea are also all poultry free. They are fish based with ~32% protein. They cost $28.50 per 10lb bag.

Okay, thanks for the suggestions! Since he has a poultry allergy he already eats a somewhat heavily fish based diet. Hes on Lotus Pork Pate and Wellness Beef and Salmon right now as a lot of the other options at the pet store either have poultry, are low quality, or too pricey for me.
I might try it out though. He LOVES salmon