Tapioca?

[sarah430]

Hello,

I've been researching wet cat foods for my two ~ 9 month old kitties.  Previously I had one cat and I honestly didn't put that much thought into what I fed him.  For wet he got either fancy feast or Sheba.  With my two, I've been taking a stronger interest in what I feed them.  For inexpensive brands, Fancy Feast and Sheb don't look too bad.  However Fancy Feast has wheat gluten and soy so I think I want to avoid that.  Sheba looks better but I see that some of their varieties have tapioca - mainly the gravy types which is what my kitties prefer.   They seem to only be able to eat the pate by licking it until it's all mushed down in their bowls and I end up throwing out part of it.

Anyway, I want to do right by them but also not break the bank.  How bad is tapioca?  Any other suggestions for inexpensive wet food that doesn't have a lot of non-meat fillers?

Thank you!

 

[tuffsmom]

I feed Fancy Feast Classic pate: chicken, beef and turkey with giblets. Soy and wheat gluten are not listed as an ingredient in these. My cat has been on FF 2 years and is very healthy.

 

[sarah430]

I feed Fancy Feast Classic pate: chicken, beef and turkey with giblets. Soy and wheat gluten are not listed as an ingredient in these. My cat has been on FF 2 years and is very healthy.

Thanks good to know if I decide to give pate another try.  I'm sure your cats are very healthy.   Soy and wheat gluten are in the other varieties.

Still wondering about tapioca if anyone has any insights.

 

[LTS3]

Here's al ist of the gluten-free FancyFeast: http://www.felinediabetes.com/glutenfree.htm

These TCS threads have other suggestions:

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/310250/new-brands-of-canned-cat-foods-including-gluten-and-wheat-free

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/129579/list-of-foods-with-no-by-products-wheat-gluten-or-both

Tapioca starch is used as a thickener for the gravy in canned foods. It's not a bad ingredient, IMO.

Pride by Instinct is one brand that doesn't have gluten or soy in the canned. Tiki Cat is another. Both brands are a bit pricey, though, and you won't find either at a chain pet store like PetSmart. The pate / shred line of Soulistic doesn't have tapioca, gluten. or soy. It's just shreds of meat in jelly. Petco sells Soulistic. It's basically the more affordable version of Weruva and made by the same company.

You may find this helpful: http://www.thecatsite.com/a/what-makes-the-best-canned-cat-food Basically the brand(s) your cat likes to eat and you can afford is the best one to feed

There have been threads on TCS about affordable foods. You may want to take a read and see what other brands might fit into your budget and meets your criteria of no gluten or soy.

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/308964/healthy-but-affordable-canned-food

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/327692/cheapest-most-affordable-grain-free-or-healthiest-canned-food

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/306956/new-affordable-petsmart-brand-d

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/292890/4health-now-has-affordable-grain-free-wet-food

 

[lisahe]

I generally avoid tapioca because it raises the carbohydrate level of foods: cats need meat protein, not carbs. That said, I feed an occasional pouch of Weruva or Soulistic chicken shreds with pumpkin -- which has tapioca -- because the cats love it. I drain most of the gravy to lower the carbs; that's fine for an occasional treat but I wouldn't do it regularly because the nutrients added to the food are likely in the gravy.

All that said, I'd sooner feed more tapioca than any wheat or corn. Or potatoes or peas. If you're concerned about carbs, there are charts available online that show the carb levels of various foods. They're here: http://catinfo.org/docs/CatFoodProteinFatCarbPhosphorusChart.pdf

 

[destinyz12]

@LisaHE  -The Soulistic and Weruva cans are much lower in carbs than the pouches if you're looking to eliminate carbs without having to necessarily drain all the gravy out.  

 

[lisahe]

 
@LisaHE  -The Soulistic and Weruva cans are much lower in carbs than the pouches if you're looking to eliminate carbs without having to necessarily drain all the gravy out.  

Thank you, destinyz12, yes, they happily eat some of the Weruva Cats in the Kitchen cans, which don't have tapioca! But they really love that chicken/pumpkin food in the pouch, hence the occasional treat! (They're not big on the lower carb Soulistic cans... they used to like the pate/shred chicken but then decided they didn't. They are cats for sure!)

 

[sarah430]

I generally avoid tapioca because it raises the carbohydrate level of foods: cats need meat protein, not carbs. That said, I feed an occasional pouch of Weruva or Soulistic chicken shreds with pumpkin -- which has tapioca -- because the cats love it. I drain most of the gravy to lower the carbs; that's fine for an occasional treat but I wouldn't do it regularly because the nutrients added to the food are likely in the gravy.

All that said, I'd sooner feed more tapioca than any wheat or corn. Or potatoes or peas. If you're concerned about carbs, there are charts available online that show the carb levels of various foods. They're here: http://catinfo.org/docs/CatFoodProteinFatCarbPhosphorusChart.pdf

Thank you! That's what I was looking for.

Also appreciate all the other responses.