Nature's Variety - Worry free, affordable raw?

[mschauer]

I knew they had completed AAFCO feeding trials, I didn't know that somewhere along the way they had implemented a pasteurization process for their raw products:

http://www.naturesvariety.com/learning/raw/QandA

Your pet was biologically designed to eat raw food – it’s the diet that he or she will thrive on. Dogs and cats have unique physiochemical adaptations that reduce the chance of developing food-borne bacterial disease.

That said, Nature's Variety takes extra care to ensure that our Instinct Raw Frozen Diets are free of pathogenic bacteria. We utilize a state-of-the-art manufacturing process called High Pressure Pasteurization (HPP). In essence, HPP uses water pressure to kill harmful bacteria. In addition to this safety step, our manufacturing facility utilizes many other quality and safety protocols to ensure that our foods are nothing short of superior – from farm to bowl. We even enforce a strict "test and hold" protocol to ensure that all Raw Diets leaving our facilities are free of harmful bacteria like Salmonella and E Coli. Click here to learn more about HPP and our food safety protocols.

The "click here link":
http://http://www.naturesvariety.com...ng/raw/quality

So, certified complete and balanced and free of harmful bacteria.The price has always been pretty good. A little more than homemade but not grossly so like so many premade raw products are.

I used NV raw some time ago. The kitties liked it but I decided I didn't want even the small amount of fruits and veggies it contains. I've since come to understand the benefits of those fruits and veggies. I might have to give NV another try.

 

[minka]

Originally Posted by mschauer

I used NV raw some time ago. The kitties liked it but I decided I didn't want even the small amount of fruits and veggies it contains. I've since come to understand the benefits of those fruits and veggies. I might have to give NV another try.

What benefits? Cats can't properly digest fruits and veggies.

Not to try to sway you from feeding NV because it is a great food, I'd just like to know where you heard that fruits and veggies are beneficial?

 

[mschauer]

Originally Posted by Minka

What benefits? Cats can't properly digest fruits and veggies.

Not to try to sway you from feeding NV because it is a great food, I'd just like to know where you heard that fruits and veggies are beneficial?

Cats have *limited* not non-existent ability to metabolize fruits and vegetables. Light cooking (blanching) makes them much more digestible. That makes them a valuable natural source of minerals and vitamins.

 

[auntie crazy]

Originally Posted by mschauer

Cats have *limited* not non-existent ability to metabolize fruits and vegetables. Light cooking (blanching) makes them much more digestible. That makes them a valuable natural source of minerals and vitamins.

How so? In my understanding, there's nothing a cat could possibly get from any fruit or vegetable that isn't more readily obtained in a more easily and thoroughly digestible form in meat.

Historically, I've pretty much ignored any discussion around cooking for cats because it didn't (and doesn't) make a lick of sense to me... however, I've begun investigating it recently and I'm rather amazed at how many proponents there are of both cooking meat and feeding fruits and vegetables, and I would like to understand the rationale behind the thinking, if I can.

Which is why I'm interested in your thoughts, Mschauer (although, from what I can see, NV doesn't cook the fruits and vegetables they use in their formulas).

Thanks!

AC

P.S. A lot of what I see on NV's site is fairly impressive. I love this blurb on their raw feeding page:

At Nature's Variety, we believe natural is best – and a raw (uncooked) diet is as natural as you can get! Since raw diets provide nutrition the way nature intended, they are truly "the gold standard" of nutrition for your special pets. Cooking food causes proteins to denature, and many become distorted or damaged, essentially destroying their biochemical identity. We believe raw diets are superior to cooked diets because the proteins, vitamins, and minerals are more intact and more bio-available, meaning they are available for your pet to utilize and benefit from. Additionally, raw meat is about 60-70% moisture, and is an excellent source of dietary water. Adequate water intake is considered by many veterinarians to be the first line of defense against kidney and urinary disease.

And this, if true, would be a big selling point if I were a commercial feeder:

When we say 100% natural, we mean just that! We do not use synthetic vitamins or minerals in our Raw Frozen Diets. Every ingredient is real, fresh, and thoughtfully included to create a complete and balanced diet.

 

[mschauer]

Whether cats derive benefit from eating fruits and vegetables has absolutely nothing to do with the point of this thread which was to inform that there is a commercial raw food available that has none of the common "negatives" associated with feeding a raw diet. That is, it is certified complete and balanced and it has been pastuerized to kill harmful bacteria.

As to the other, when I have time I'll start another thread for discussion.

OK?

 

[minka]

Originally Posted by mschauer

Cats have *limited* not non-existent ability to metabolize fruits and vegetables. Light cooking (blanching) makes them much more digestible. That makes them a valuable natural source of minerals and vitamins.

I never said it was non-existant. I said they couldn't do it properly because they lack the right enzymes.

Originally Posted by mschauer

Whether cats derive benefit from eating fruits and vegetables has absolutely nothing to do with the point of this thread which was to inform that there is a commercial raw food available that has none of the common "negatives" associated with feeding a raw diet. That is, it is certified complete and balanced and it has been pastuerized to kill harmful bacteria.

As to the other, when I have time I'll start another thread for discussion.

OK?

If you didn't want to talk about the relationship between veggies and cats, you shouldn't have brought it up here:

Originally Posted by mschauer

I used NV raw some time ago. The kitties liked it but I decided I didn't want even the small amount of fruits and veggies it contains. I've since come to understand the benefits of those fruits and veggies. I might have to give NV another try.

I think NV is a great choice for commercial raw, and if they are trying a new way to ensure their food is bacteria free, then good on 'em.

 

[goingpostal]

How much is NV usually? I steer clear of commercial raw for most part because it is really expensive, especially if I were ordering in frozen! I order some freeze dried raw stella and chewies for my ferrets to get them some variety I can't otherwise and while they like it quite a bit re-hydrated or plain the cat isn't a fan, I had to mix in large amounts of canned to get her to eat it. Tried afs and ziwipeak as well. Not sure if she would go for frozen but would be a better option than the occasional canned I feed.

 

[mschauer]

Originally Posted by GoingPostal

How much is NV usually? I steer clear of commercial raw for most part because it is really expensive, especially if I were ordering in frozen! I order some freeze dried raw stella and chewies for my ferrets to get them some variety I can't otherwise and while they like it quite a bit re-hydrated or plain the cat isn't a fan, I had to mix in large amounts of canned to get her to eat it. Tried afs and ziwipeak as well. Not sure if she would go for frozen but would be a better option than the occasional canned I feed.

Where I would get it :

chick & turkey: $3.77/lb
beef 3.93
lamb 4.13
venison 4.13
organic chick 4.83
rabbit 5.33

I should probably add that I can buy it locally. NV is probably the most widely distributed of the commercial raw products. You have a good chance of finding it locally. I'm pretty sure their web site has a store locator.

 

[otto]

Did they start the pasteurization after last year's recall?

http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm203612.htm

 

[mschauer]

Originally Posted by otto

Did they start the pasteurization after last year's recall?

http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm203612.htm

From that link (my added bold):

Nature's Variety now uses High Pressure Pasteurization on their Raw Frozen Diets as a unique process to kill pathogenic bacteria through high-pressure, water-based technology. Having incorporated this state-of-the-art technology on a portion of their raw product offerings in late 2009, Nature's Variety was able to confidently implement the process universally on all Raw Frozen Diets after the 2/11/10 recall in order to enhance food safety. Nature's Variety also utilizes a test and hold protocol to ensure that all High Pressure Pasteurized Raw Frozen Diets test negative for harmful bacteria before being released for sale.

"Nature's Variety believes replacing all raw frozen chicken products on the market with new raw frozen chicken products that use High Pressure Pasteurization is an important and responsible step in order to reinforce consumer confidence and trust," stated Reed Howlett, CEO of Nature's Variety. "By recalling all raw frozen chicken products with ‘Best If Used By' dates on or before 2/5/11, we can provide our pet parents with new raw frozen chicken products that have been processed through High Pressure Pasteurization. Adopting High Pressure Pasteurization is an important step to ensure that our products meet the strictest quality and food safety standards."

 

[mschauer]

Originally Posted by Minka

If you didn't want to talk about the relationship between veggies and cats, you shouldn't have brought it up here:

Sorry if I sounded snippy. I'm pretty tired of the endless debating associated with raw feeding. Considering how few solid, meaningful facts there are to base such debates on it is really pretty pointless.

I'll just leave it at this: There is much with regards to conventional wisdom (ie, internet chatter) in the raw feeding community that I disagree with. In fact, I disagree with conventional wisdom with regards to many feline nutrition issues. Over the years I have developed my own standards and practices that make me comfortable with the hows and whys of feeding raw to my cats but I really have no interest in trying to convince others to accept those standards and practices.

 

[auntie crazy]

It's crazy how misunderstood is feline nutrition / digestive physiology.

I've been exploring the manufacturing practices of the pet food industry and what those practices mean in terms of the identity, source, and quality of the ingredients that make up commercial pet foods. In the process, I've come across a whole slew of folks whose knowledge of the pet food industry I respect, but who quite clearly haven't done their due diligence when it comes to feline nutrition and what it means to be an "obligate" carnivore.

If even those who spend their lives trying to make changes in the pet food industry that'll result in healthier foods for our cats can't understand what "obligate" means, why in heaven's name anyone could expect the industry itself to understand is beyond me.

And that this confusion among "the experts" has resulted in confusion among those who home-prepare their cat's food is nothing but a natural and completely understandable progression.

Hopefully, this will begin to change when the Feline Nutrition Education Society kicks off their Feline Nutrition Certification program.

AC

 

[mschauer]

Originally Posted by Auntie Crazy

And that this confusion among "the experts" has resulted in confusion among those who home-prepare their cat's food is nothing but a natural and completely understandable progression.
AC

I assure you I am not the least bit "confused".

 

[misssara]

Um, back to what this topic was about.
I'm new here and have been looking at NV for my kitten, I actually ordered it through amazon for a good price. I ordered the canned instinct.
I think raw meat makes a lot of sense. They say they add vegetables to increase fiber, by the way.

I know canned probably isn't as good as fresh, but I'm vegan, and really want to keep handling meat to a minimum.

 

[mschauer]

Originally Posted by misssara

Um, back to what this topic was about.
I'm new here and have been looking at NV for my kitten, I actually ordered it through amazon for a good price. I ordered the canned instinct.
I think raw meat makes a lot of sense. They say they add vegetables to increase fiber, by the way.

I know canned probably isn't as good as fresh, but I'm vegan, and really want to keep handling meat to a minimum.

I think their canned products are pretty good but this thread is actually about the raw products.

I hope your kitties like the canned! Mine aren't too fond of it but every kitty is different.

 

[misssara]

so the canned food is cooked?

 

[mschauer]

Originally Posted by misssara

so the canned food is cooked?

Yup. Canned is always cooked and otherwise heavily processed. Raw is only available in frozen or freeze dried form.

 

[misssara]

Originally Posted by mschauer

Yup. Canned is always cooked and otherwise heavily processed. Raw is only available in frozen or freeze dried form.

damn.

 

[mschauer]

Originally Posted by misssara

damn.

Well, on the up side, their processed foods are generally considered to be some of the better ones!

 

[runtellthat]

Originally Posted by mschauer

Where I would get it :

chick & turkey: $3.77/lb
beef 3.93
lamb 4.13
venison 4.13
organic chick 4.83
rabbit 5.33

I should probably add that I can buy it locally. NV is probably the most widely distributed of the commercial raw products. You have a good chance of finding it locally. I'm pretty sure their web site has a store locator.

What???????????????? Are you sure about these prices? I was at a chain store in my area last night (Pet Food Express in San Francisco) and a 6 pound bag of NV Instinct Chicken patties (dog/cat food) was $35, which is $5.83/lb, which I thought was ridiculously high for a commercial brand at a chain compared with prices I've seen for some local brands (including some that make their's fresh daily!). I am trying to adopt out some foster kittens I have that had diarrhea for MONTHS until they started on raw food...if I could find $3.77/lb raw chicken feed I might even keep em myself, and I'd definitely have a much easier time trying to convince others.