Newbie To Commercially Prepared Raw Food Meals Not Sure Where To Start :-)

[cheeser]

Halp! I'm at my wit's end, and an now willing to give commercially prepared, nutritionally complete raw food meals a shot for our kitty with FIV -- at least as a starting point. But I have absolutely no idea where to begin.

Buddy is now refusing to eat any canned food on his own, and I've been having to syringe feed him food and fluids more often that usual lately. But this morning in a moment of frustration, I gave him a spoonful of Oscar's Young Again LID Zero Mature kibble (which is supposed to be less than 1% carb), and Buddy practically inhaled every crumb before the morsels even hit the plate. So the good new is that he IS willing to eat. He's just not interested in any of the foods he's allowed to have re: his food allergies. So we thought maybe we need a drastic paradigm shift.

Buddy is allergic to chicken (which causes yeast infections to flare up), turkey (which makes him puke), and he can't have boned fish because of his history of urinary tract problems. There's also some question as to whether egg yolks and/or green lipped mussel could be causing him to scratch up his face something fierce, as sometimes his skin just dries out a bit from the a/c and gets itchy.

So what would y'all recommend as a starting point? The easier to prepare the better, as my hands are pretty full at the moment with life, the universe, and everything.

 

[molly92]

My first pick would probably be Primal for this situation. My cats love the pork flavor, which is not as expensive as their other novel proteins. However, pork is not one of their High Pressure Pasteurized recipes according to their FAQ (because pork does not carry the same pathogen risks as poultry). I feed it to my FIV positive kitty with no problems, but she is not symptomatic. Duck is HPP if you would rather go that route.

Ingredients: Duck, Duck Necks, Duck Wings, Duck Gizzards, Duck Livers, Organic Carrots, Organic Squash, Organic Kale, Organic Apples, Organic Broccoli, Blueberries, Cranberries, Organic Pumpkin Seeds, Organic Sunflower Seeds, Montmorillonite Clay, Organic Quinoa Sprout Powder, Organic Parsley, Taurine, Organic Apple Cider Vinegar, Salmon Oil, Organic Coconut Oil, Dried Organic Kelp, Alfalfa, Vitamin E Supplement.

You can get it in freeze dried or frozen, but frozen is usually cheaper. Freeze dried you have to rehydrate, frozen you have to let thaw, but the nuggets thaw pretty quickly I find. They come in nuggets that are all about the same size, so you can portion it out very easily.

They also have rabbit and venison versions. Technically they have pheasant too, but it's difficult to find. I tried to order it months ago and the warehouse was out of it the whole time.

Primal uses plant powders instead of vitamin packs for their supplements, hence the list of vegetables in the ingredients. People have different opinions about that. I will say my elderly kidney cat adored the pork so I fed that pretty much exclusively for a few months, and the vet was very pleased with how well she was doing.

However, I've since switched to Radcat for her, which she also loves, because it uses eggshell instead of bone which is even better for her kidney disease. It comes in frozen tubs that you thaw (which takes a lot longer to thaw than primal) and you spoon it out. I think they're the best pre-prepared raw option I've come across so far. They had a recall issue (no cats got sick, they were very responsible about it) so they are going to start using HPP on most of their recipes. But, their recipes do have egg yolk unfortunately!

This is their lamb recipe:
Lamb shoulder, lamb heart, water (sufficient for dry ingredient hydration), lamb liver, gelatin, organic dried egg yolk, organic dulse powder, eggshell powder, organic psyllium husk powder, vitamin E supplement, manganese gluconate.

Steve's quest line of food is an option that I have not tried yet, but they do absolutely no pasteurization because they believe the benefits of raw are best when everything is left intact. I honestly don't know if it would be worth the probably tiny risk of feeding it to an FIV positive cat. It very well might be, but I can understand being cautious about that-I am myself. The reason I bring it up is because their flavors might be great for your kitty's allergies. They have beef, pork, or emu.

Beef ingredients:
Ground Beef, Beef Hearts, Beef Kidney, Beef Liver, Raw Goat’s Milk, Ground Beef Bone, Flaxseed, Inulin, Dried Kelp, Chia Seeds, Organic Coconut Oil, Mixed Tocopherols, Ground Eggshell, Dicalcium Phosphate

Primal is probably the most widely available of the three, Radcat being a second, and Steve's being the hardest to find. If you want to go the Steve's route, I would try contacting them directly and ask what options they have near you, because they don't do a good job of marketing themselves (by design, actually, they are trying to keep costs low and make raw more affordable).

Actually now that I look at it, Stella and Chewy's might not be a bad option. My cats were never enthused about it, and Primal is a better quality brand in my opinion so I always went with Primal instead (Stella and Chewy's source some of their vitamins from China). But it is pretty common and easy to find.

Rabbit ingredients: Rabbit With Ground Bone, Olive Oil, Pumpkin Seed, Potassium Chloride, Sodium Phosphate Monobasic, Choline Chloride, Dried Pediococcus Acidilactici Fermentation Product, Dried Lactobacillus Acidophilus Fermentation Product, Dried Bifidobacterium Longum Fermentation Product, Taurine, Tocopherols (Preservative), Zinc Proteinate, Zinc Sulfate, Iron Sulfate, Iron Proteinate, Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin, Copper Sulfate, Copper Proteinate, Riboflavin, Manganese Sulfate, Sodium Selenite, Manganese Proteinate, Thiamine Mononitrate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Folic Acid, Calcium Iodate, Vitamin B12 Supplement

These are foods that I know about...there might be more out there as well of course!

 

[molly92]

Oh and Vital Essentials is one that I missed. I have absolutely no experience with this brand other than their treats, but the ingredients for their rabbit and duck entrees might be contenders.

Ingredients:
Finely ground duck with bone, duck heart, duck liver, duck gizzard, duck egg, duck blood, raw goat’s milk, water, egg shell membrane, herring oil, mixed tocopherols, d-alpha tocopherol

 

[Tobermory]

The best commercial raw, in my opinion, is Rad Cat which is frozen. But all flavors have egg yolk so it sounds like that’s out for Buddy. Stella & Chewy’s has both a frozen and a freeze dried rabbit which, from a quick read of the ingredients doesn’t have any of the “no” stuff you mention. Primal is another with both frozen and freeze dried proteins that might work for Buddy. Check out their websites to see ingredients for different flavors. I just ordered some Stella & Chewy’s freeze dried rabbit to use while I’m doing a “no poultry” test for Lily who is allergic to...something.

These would both be super easy options.

The next easiest would be to buy one of the Small Batch single protein frozen chubs that contain only meat, bones and organs and add your own supplements. I can tell you more about that if you’re interested. Again, I’m putting Lily on the rabbit for her test.

You could buy meat, grind it and add a premix which is very easy, but the two with which I’m familiar, Alnutrin and EZ Complete, both contain egg yolk powder, and EZ Complete has green lipped mussel and chicken liver, too.

You can also order proteins from Hare Today and add your own supplements. Super fresh stuff. A bit more complicated because you need to figure out how to balance the meat, bone and organs to get the 80/10/10 ratio you need.

Ask away if you’re confused! I found it a little overwhelming at first.

 

[cheeser]

Thanks oodles for all the helpful info, molly92 ! I'll look into all of it.

I saw some Primal freeze-dried nuggets available in pork, venison, rabbit, and duck when I was at one of the holistic pet stores this morning. But I kinda panicked when I saw the fruits and veggies listed, since I've seen how they can really drive up the carb content for some of the canned foods we've looked at. That's a big concern for us given Buddy's history of urinary tract problems. I did pick up a package of Vital Essentials treats since they're just protein stuff, and am going to moisten them with a little bit of goat milk and see how that goes. Baby steps.

To be perfectly honest, we're a little nervous about the whole concept of raw food since Buddy was FIV+ and already symptomatic when we took him in, and is almost always sick with some kind of bacterial, viral, and/or fungal infection of some kind. But we're willing to give it a shot if it will help him to be able to eat on his own on a more consistent basis. So we're going to try to work up our courage and take a leap of faith, and see how it goes.

Thanks again!

 

[cheeser]

Thanks so much for your help, Tobermory . I really appreciate it!

I may take you up on your very kind offer at a later date about learning how to add supplements and whatnot. My elderly dad isn't well at the moment, and there's a bunch of other stuff going on right now. So I thought I'd start with the most idiot-proof raw food options, and go from there. Honestly, I'm absolutely hopeless these days! Forget multi-tasking. Heck, I can't even just 'task' these days!

 

[LTS3]

Try NV Instinct frozen rabbit: Instinct® Raw Signature™ Frozen Medallions Real Rabbit Recipe | Instinct Pet Food It comes as Raw Bites, too.

I've never tried this brand but it may work for your cat: The Real Meat Company It's only available as air dried.

Which Vital Essentials treats did you get? The rabbit one is really hard and crunchy so I doubt soaking it in any liquid would soften it up.

 

[PushPurrCatPaws]

My cat Milly is a huge fan of Stella & Chewy's Frozen Raw 'Absolutely Rabbit'. I like it because it is pretty much an LID food, in my opinion, plus it has some probiotics in it. Each little nugget is about the size of a large puffy dinner mint. I warm up about 9-11 nuggets at approx. room temp for 10-15 minutes, slice the puffy nuggets in half, and serve. It is inhaled by my cat in 45 seconds flat. Pretty easy peasy. (My canned food meals for Milly are usually served 4-5 times a day at about 1-2 ounces each, so, similarly, I only serve about 9 raw nuggets for her per meal.)

Absolutely Rabbit - Stella & Chewy's Pet Food

ingredients: "Rabbit With Ground Bone, Olive Oil, Pumpkin Seed, Potassium Chloride, Sodium Phosphate Monobasic, Choline Chloride, Dried Pediococcus Acidilactici Fermentation Product, Dried Lactobacillus Acidophilus Fermentation Product, Dried Bifidobacterium Longum Fermentation Product, Taurine, Tocopherols (Preservative), Zinc Proteinate, Zinc Sulfate, Iron Sulfate, Iron Proteinate, Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin, Copper Sulfate, Copper Proteinate, Riboflavin, Manganese Sulfate, Sodium Selenite, Manganese Proteinate, Thiamine Mononitrate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Folic Acid, Calcium Iodate, Vitamin B12 Supplement"​

 

[Tobermory]

I saw some Primal freeze-dried nuggets available in pork, venison, rabbit, and duck when I was at one of the holistic pet stores this morning. But I kinda panicked when I saw the fruits and veggies listed, since I've seen how they can really drive up the carb content for some of the canned foods we've looked at.

The Primal freeze-dried pork and duck are higher...but less than 15%, if memory serves. And I think venison and rabbit are 0 carbs. I looked into all of that when I was looking for high protein low carbs for Max who was diabetic. But a quick check at catfooddb.com can tell you. Mine seem to like freeze-dried more than frozen but, of course, that’s so cat specific.

I know you’re worried about raw. If it helps, I took my 14-year-old girls to the vet this week for their health check up, their first visit since I started raw feeding. He said they didn’t look their age and were extremely healthy, and he was impressed with their clear eyes, clean teeth and healthy coats. He was fine with what I’ve been feeding them. I was very relieved.

I understand about the time commitment and stress of taking care of an elderly parent. I used to say that my mom was the child I never had.

 

[cheeser]

Try NV Instinct frozen rabbit: Instinct® Raw Signature™ Frozen Medallions Real Rabbit Recipe | Instinct Pet Food It comes as Raw Bites, too.

I've never tried this brand but it may work for your cat: The Real Meat Company It's only available as air dried.

Which Vital Essentials treats did you get? The rabbit one is really hard and crunchy so I doubt soaking it in any liquid would soften it up.

Cool! Thanks much!

Yes, drat it, I got the rabbit treats. It was the only thing that particular store had in stock that wasn't chicken or turkey. Maybe I can figure something out, or give them to Oscar. Fortunately, in most cases, what one cat won't eat, the other one will. Well, except if I buy a whole case of something, then suddenly no one wants it!

 

[cheeser]

My cat Milly is a huge fan of Stella & Chewy's Frozen Raw 'Absolutely Rabbit'. I like it because it is pretty much an LID food, in my opinion, plus it has some probiotics in it. Each little nugget is about the size of a large puffy dinner mint. I warm up about 9-11 nuggets at approx. room temp for 10-15 minutes, slice the puffy nuggets in half, and serve. It is inhaled by my cat in 45 seconds flat. Pretty easy peasy. (My canned food meals for Milly are usually served 4-5 times a day at about 1-2 ounces each, so, similarly, I only serve about 9 raw nuggets for her per meal.)

Absolutely Rabbit - Stella & Chewy's Pet Food

ingredients: "Rabbit With Ground Bone, Olive Oil, Pumpkin Seed, Potassium Chloride, Sodium Phosphate Monobasic, Choline Chloride, Dried Pediococcus Acidilactici Fermentation Product, Dried Lactobacillus Acidophilus Fermentation Product, Dried Bifidobacterium Longum Fermentation Product, Taurine, Tocopherols (Preservative), Zinc Proteinate, Zinc Sulfate, Iron Sulfate, Iron Proteinate, Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin, Copper Sulfate, Copper Proteinate, Riboflavin, Manganese Sulfate, Sodium Selenite, Manganese Proteinate, Thiamine Mononitrate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Folic Acid, Calcium Iodate, Vitamin B12 Supplement"​

Oh, my! I can't imagine Buddy scarfing down his dinner that quickly! It usually takes anywhere from 1 to 2-1/2 hours of following him all over creation to get each meal down the hatch. It's kinda like Green Eggs and Ham three times a day. He will not eat them here or there, he will not eat them anywhere...or something like that.

The Stella & Chewy nuggets sound easy enough that even I might be able to manage. Thanks bunches!

 

[LTS3]

You can probably smash the rabbit treats up into powder and use it to sprinkle over food.

Have you tried this brand of treats? Freeze Dried Treats - Northwest Naturals Leroy goes nuts for the bison liver. Emma just doesn't care for treats at all

 

[Tobermory]

Have you tried this brand of treats? Freeze Dried Treats - Northwest Naturals Leroy goes nuts for the bison liver. Emma just doesn't care for treats at all

Mine are big fans, too. Currently, they’re all enjoying the pork liver. In fact, Mocha eats 3/4 of her meal, steps back, and looks at me expectantly. I must put two small pieces of pork liver on her food. She then happily chows down on the rest. Cats and their rituals.

 

[cheeser]

The Primal freeze-dried pork and duck are higher...but less than 15%, if memory serves. And I think venison and rabbit are 0 carbs. I looked into all of that when I was looking for high protein low carbs for Max who was diabetic. But a quick check at catfooddb.com can tell you. Mine seem to like freeze-dried more than frozen but, of course, that’s so cat specific.

I know you’re worried about raw. If it helps, I took my 14-year-old girls to the vet this week for their health check up, their first visit since I started raw feeding. He said they didn’t look their age and were extremely healthy, and he was impressed with their clear eyes, clean teeth and healthy coats. He was fine with what I’ve been feeding them. I was very relieved.

I understand about the time commitment and stress of taking care of an elderly parent. I used to say that my mom was the child I never had.

Ah, okay. Thanks. That helps to put my mind at ease. Well, what's left of it, anyway.

 

[cheeser]

You can probably smash the rabbit treats up into powder and use it to sprinkle over food.

Have you tried this brand of treats? Freeze Dried Treats - Northwest Naturals Leroy goes nuts for the bison liver. Emma just doesn't care for treats at all

Ooh, magic pixie dust! I'll definitely give that a try with the rabbit treats.

And thanks for the heads up re: the Northwest Naturals treats. I've only seen the chicken and turkey ones in the stores. Yay! And they have pork liver, too. Can't have too many options.

 

[cheeser]

Mine are big fans, too. Currently, they’re all enjoying the pork liver. In fact, Mocha eats 3/4 of her meal, steps back, and looks at me expectantly. I must put two small pieces of pork liver on her food. She then happily chows down on the rest. Cats and their rituals.

Pork is one of the few proteins that Buddy has been somewhat enthusiastic about lately, so the pork liver treat might be right up his alley!

I know what you mean about cats and their rituals. About a year or so ago, I gave Buddy a couple of treats to help get the taste out of his mouth after giving him a rather vile tasting antibiotic. So, of course, he now expects a goodie after every dose of medication and/or his supplements.