Raw -- $100/month for two cats?

[haedcase]

Hello,

I'm looking to change up my cats' diet a bit. I've been feeding them Hare Today for several months now, and I am happy with it, but I have some new commitments now that make it very difficult to set the time aside to make the food. I really want to look into a commercial raw again, but I'm having a hard time finding a brand that will keep me within budget. I'm currently spending $80-$100 per month to feed two cats, including shipping.

I tried Darwin's cheap trial a while back, but at the time I didn't stick with them. Their estimate would put me at about $140 a month, and I emailed them to see if I could adjust what they send to lower it, but I have yet to receive a reply. In the meantime, I'm exploring other options. I would prefer to be able to customize my own order anyway instead of having them choose it, even if I can work with them. I would also prefer to give me cats at least some rabbit instead of just poultry.

If I calculated right, all the other brands would be well over budget, but I'm not sure if there's some brands out there I may have missed. So, basically, are there any brands out there I may not have seen that would allow me to stay at around $100 a month after shipping?

If it helps, one cat is 14 lbs and the other is 12. I was feeding them each 4oz a day of Hare Today, though I've been experimenting with raising it to 6 as they always acted hungry.

 

[boosmommy]

I feed mine Blue Ridge Beef kitten mix and it works out to $40 per month for one. She gets 4.5 oz per day. Only sold through distributors. You can check out their website. It's complete food.

 

[haedcase]

If beef is their only flavor, I don't think it will work. One of mine can't seem to tolerate red meat (or, seemingly, any kind of "unique" meat). She does best on poultry/rabbit.

 

[haedcase]

Couldn't figure out how to edit the post...

I looked at their site. They do have other varieties, but the closest store that might have it is 22 miles away. I will keep it in mind, and I'll do some more research on it to see if it would be a viable option. It's a drive, but at least it would be nice not to have to worry about a package sitting in the hot Florida sun while I wait to get off work.

 

[sophie1]

I completely understand your pain...I also have many demands on my time.  You just have to figure out how to manage it, because unfortunately there are NO easy commercial raw options that will let you stay under your $100/month budget.

I found that making very small batches more frequently is better for me than trying to carve out several hours for a marathon foodmaking session.  I've got my sessions down to 15 minutes which means I can do it on weeknights, even when I'm working for 10-12 hour days.  Here's the method:

- Put 2-3 lbs of frozen food in a stainless steel pot or bowl (which you will also use to do your mixing) to defrost about 48 hours in advance

- Get out the freezing jars and line them up on the counter

- In one jar, add a bit of water and put the fish oil capsules in to soak.

- Crack egg(s) into another jar (I don't bother cooking it).  Count out the supplements into a jar lid.  Open capsules into the jar with the egg.

- Take out food from fridge and cut off the packaging.  Break up meat with fingers.

- Squeeze the fish oil out of the dissolving capsules.  Take a moment to wash/wipe off hands.  Pour contents of the fish oil jar into the egg jar.  Shake.  Pour mixture onto the meat.

- Add more water to the mixing jar.  Shake.  Pour onto meat.

- Let meat sit for a few minutes while you clean up or do other chores and get out the jar labels.  I use round colored dots.

- Mix up food and fill up jars.  Note that you'll fill the jars you used for mixing supplements.  Close and label.  Put all but one into freezer.  One goes into the fridge for immediate feeding.

- Wash the pot/bowl and wipe the counter.  I spray with vinegar and use a paper towel.

DONE!

Another option for you is to buy Nature Variety 5 lb chicken chubs for dogs, if you can find a local store willing to order it for you.  It's got everything except taurine and fish oil, and it should fit within your budget.  Buy when you have a day off, partially defrost in the kitchen sink then cut into chunks and bag them. Mix in taurine when serving.  The drawback is that it's only one protein, but it will reduce the number of HT grind mixing sessions.

I was also lucky enough to find a local poultry market that sells meat/bone/organ grinds in the correct ratios with chicken, turkey, rabbit, and duck in 5 oz patties, for a wonderfully low price.  It's not supplemented but definitely an improvement on the Nature Variety food.  It's worth checking to see if you've got something like this available locally.

Good luck!

 

[missmimz]

I think that if this is a time vs money thing you have to figure out how to make the time to mix up the food yourself if you can't up your budget. Anything you buy pre-made will always cost more. Your other option would be to feed partial canned, but that could vary in price as well.

I agree with the comment above that making smaller batches is significantly less time consuming. I typically only make 2lbs at a time and it doesn't take me long at all. 

 

[kittyluv387]

I feed primal frozen raw for only one of my cats because he has digestion issues and its too expensive to feed 2 cats commercial raw. My 7 month old eats 4 ounces of raw and almost 3 ounces of high quality canned everyday. This comes out to over $100/month for just one cat. Price varies depending on the flavor i get. So yea i cant imagine feeding 2 cats raw for $100! From producer, wholesale to retailer these foods get priced for over 30 percent profit for all of them im guessing (i saw the computer screen when the retailer was ordering for me, selling me something that cost them $20 from wholesale and selling it to me for over $30)...so its not gonna cheap.

 

[abbyntim]

 
I completely understand your pain...I also have many demands on my time.  You just have to figure out how to manage it, because unfortunately there are NO easy commercial raw options that will let you stay under your $100/month budget.

I agree with this. I feed two cats mostly commercial raw, some homemade raw, and some canned, and I have no idea how much I spend per month (I am afraid to add it up), though I suspect it's around $200 per month. I am gradually increasing the amount of homemade raw in an effort to cut costs and I am also able to mix up three pounds of food and package it in half an hour or less (and I bet I could speed that up using some of @sophie1's tips).

 

[bella 2710]

I'm Just wondering if you have small local butchers in America, or is it just supermarkets that sell meat?

 

[silverpersian]

Have you considered mypetcarnivore? You can feed two cats for $35-$75 a month (not including shipping). The least expensive option is chicken, the most expensive is rabbit. If you order once a month and add the shipping costs, you should still be able to stay under $100 a month.

 

[kittyluv387]

Have you considered mypetcarnivore? You can feed two cats for $35-$75 a month (not including shipping). The least expensive option is chicken, the most expensive is rabbit. If you order once a month and add the shipping costs, you should still be able to stay under $100 a month.

Do you personally use my pet carnivore? They are really well priced. The website doesnt talk about adding extra supplements like taurine or omega 3. I may start a new thread about this.

 

[silverpersian]

I do. I purchase from them very regularly and have been for almost two years. I have not had a single bad experience. The customer service is great and the quality is consistently good.

 

[crazy4strays]

I'm Just wondering if you have small local butchers in America, or is it just supermarkets that sell meat?

We do have butcher shops in America. I drove by one in my town yesterday.