The Introduction to Rad Cat Frozen Raw

[mrsgreenjeens]

Yay that Mazy is keeping the turkey down so far (this evening).  And  BOO that Radcat may be discontinuing lamb.  It's the only thing my Stinkpot will eat.  I'm going to be in serious trouble here

.  When I say serious trouble, I truly mean it.  Today we were late getting home, so I opened up a can of Weruva to get them fed quickly, and that little Stinker even walked away from that, and on most days, even with the Radcat lately I have to practically beg him to eat. 

 

[otto]

Thanks, Sally! Mazy just cleaned her dish of 1/3 of an ounce of Rad Cat raw turkey, with only a very tiny dusting of crumbs! And kept it down again!

I am sorry to hear about Stinker. I hope there isn't something going on with him. Some cats do self regulate, as in taking a day off from eating now and then, do you think that's what he's doing? Tolly was like that and I never ever got used to it, and always fretted myself sick on those days.

And now, Queen Eva is the same way. Every five or six days she decides she doesn't want to eat. I try so hard not to worry, reminding myself over and over that she always does this! :lol3:

 

[ldg]

Tonight's update: Mazy cat ate her 1/6 of turkey with every sign of enjoyment (still dusting it, but with only half a kibble smashed into crumbs) and kept it down. A half hour later she had .75 ounces of canned food, I'll give her the rest of her raw turkey later.

I heard the Rad Cat Lamb is being discontinued, and I haven't even tried that yet. I really wanted the lamb, for a different protein for her

Where did you hear this? So odd! They only have three proteins! I can't imagine why they'd drop it. :dk:

 

[otto]

Where did you hear this? So odd! They only have three proteins! I can't imagine why they'd drop it. :dk:

I had e mailed the only store within 200 miles of me that carries Rad Cat asking about their prices and what they had available, as I will be up that way on Friday, and want to stock up. They told me they had some 16 oz chubs of lamb on sale for $5.33, and that it was so cheap because it was being discontinued. Maybe they meant only that they will no longer be carrying it, I don't know.

I immediately sent an e mail to Rad Cat asking if it is true, but have not heard back yet. I have 3 eight ounce chubs, but was planning on getting more. The store doesn't have any chicken either, only the 8 ounce size of Turkey. I thought for sure Albany would have more sources for me, but I was wrong. SIGH.

 

[ldg]

Chubs? Did you mean tubs, or perhaps the store was referring to a different brand?

Oh gotcha. Sounds to me like the store was going to stop carrying it. I find it difficult to believe Rad Cat would discontinue it. But please keep us posted!

 

[otto]

Chubs? Did you mean tubs, or perhaps the store was referring to a different brand?
Oh gotcha. Sounds to me like the store was going to stop carrying it. I find it difficult to believe Rad Cat would discontinue it. But please keep us posted!

I thought that's what Rad Cat called their containers, chubs? No? I must be thinking of one of the other brands then. I haven't found any other brand of frozen raw I am willing to feed my cats. Too many fruits and veggies, or way way way out of my price range. What is a "chub" anyway. :lol3:

I hope they still have some Lamb left when I get there. It won't be until Friday evening.

 

[princessesme]

Yes, please keep us posted, but it sounds like it might just be that store. I just placed an order with Only Natural Pet and talked to their Customer Service, who hadn't said anything about any meats being discontinued. We just discussed how good of a product they have.

 

[otto]

Response from Rad Cat:

No, it's not true that we are discontinuing the lamb. I have to ask: Where did you hear this? If someone has some misinformation, I would like to be able to address it. I don't want folks having undue stress!!

 

[ldg]

Great news!

As to this....

I thought that's what Rad Cat called their containers, chubs? No? I must be thinking of one of the other brands then. I haven't found any other brand of frozen raw I am willing to feed my cats. Too many fruits and veggies, or way way way out of my price range. What is a "chub" anyway. :lol3:

A chub is meat packed into a plastic package, like a large sausage.

And have you looked at Hare-Today? I know you don't want bone-in foods, but they have plenty of "just meat" ground options, and you can add your own calcium supplement, like eggshell - which is VERY affordable, and the Alnutrin, which doesn't add much to the cost on a per-pound-of-food basis. In fact... Alnutrin makes a supplement with calcium in it. So you could order either Hare Today or Bravo "just meat" ground proteins, and add the Alnutrin with calcium. No fruits, no veggies, no bone.

 

[otto]

Great news!
As to this....
A chub is meat packed into a plastic package, like a large sausage.
And have you looked at Hare-Today? I know you don't want bone-in foods, but they have plenty of "just meat" ground options, and you can add your own calcium supplement, like eggshell - which is VERY affordable, and the Alnutrin, which doesn't add much to the cost on a per-pound-of-food basis. In fact... Alnutrin makes a supplement with calcium in it. So you could order either Hare Today or Bravo "just meat" ground proteins, and add the Alnutrin with calcium. No fruits, no veggies, no bone.

Thanks Laurie. If I'm going to add supplements I might as well grind my own. :lol3: I just can't afford the frozen food shipping charges.

So, this Alnutrin. That would make a home grind of just muscle meat "complete" ? Or would I still need to follow a muscle/organ ratio and add the Alnutrin. Since the raw is only going to be 15 % of their diet, I am not too too worried about it being perfectly balanced but I would like them to get some nutrition.

Along this line though....I've never understood the point of feeding plain raw meat and adding supplements to make up for the lack of balance. It seems not much different than just feeding a commercial canned product. So what is the benefit of it?

 

[ldg]

Are you asking seriously? The benefit of feeding meat with the Call of the Wild supplement is that you are still feeding raw meat, which still has all of its nutrition in it. :lol3: It’s not cooked.

IMO, still superior to most commercial raw, canned or dry food. The “addition” is ½ a teaspoon for 1.5 ounces of meat, a ratio of “other stuff” I think is quite different than any commercial canned food, and most commercial raw foods.

Lazlo doesn’t like organs, so I primarily use this for him. And he’s clearly reaping the same benefits as the other kitties. After chemo, he’s on a high protein, almost no-carb diet, and his coat is thick and just as soft as all the other kitties that aren’t using the COTW; he’s experienced the same increase in his energy (in him, it seems more, but he was sick and underwent chemo, so it’s not a good measuring stick from the “where he was” point), etc.

And yeah, I forgot about the organs. Those would need to be included in the right ratio. :nod:

Here’s the site for Alnutrin products, which you can read up on there and purchase via the e-shop. http://www.knowwhatyoufeed.com/shop_online.html

I was just thinking of your comments that you really didn’t want to prepare food. :lol3: The HT costs so much less than the Rad Cat, and the shipping adds about $1 per pound to the cost, which would still be significantly less than the Rad Cat. Just a thought, no biggies if it’s not something you want to pursue.

 

[otto]

Yes, it was a serious question and thank you for answering it with your view point. I am not done learning about raw feeding, so I still have a lot of questions, and would like to continue to bring them to this forum, as long as there is no one trying to make me feel stupid asking them. I don't appreciate a belittling attitude. Not that anyone will succeed in "making me feel stupid" as I have enough sense of self to not care about those kinds of opinions. You don't learn if you don't ask, but no one wants to be harassed with unhelpful opinions when she is asking for information.

But I am not getting this supplement thing. Disregarding the cost issue for now, how is adding a commercial supplement to raw muscle meat only, better than buying commercial raw that already has all the organs and stuff needed in it? I thought supplements were not as bioavailable (if that is the right word) to cats as the real thing.

I want to understand all this, and so will keep asking until I do.

 

[otto]

Are you asking seriously? The benefit of feeding meat with the Call of the Wild supplement is that you are still feeding raw meat, which still has all of its nutrition in it. :lol3: It’s not cooked.
IMO, still superior to most commercial raw, canned or dry food. The “addition” is ½ a teaspoon for 1.5 ounces of meat, a ratio of “other stuff” I think is quite different than any commercial canned food, and most commercial raw foods.
Lazlo doesn’t like organs, so I primarily use this for him. And he’s clearly reaping the same benefits as the other kitties. After chemo, he’s on a high protein, almost no-carb diet, and his coat is thick and just as soft as all the other kitties that aren’t using the COTW; he’s experienced the same increase in his energy (in him, it seems more, but he was sick and underwent chemo, so it’s not a good measuring stick from the “where he was” point), etc.
And yeah, I forgot about the organs. Those would need to be included in the right ratio. :nod:
Here’s the site for Alnutrin products, which you can read up on there and purchase via the e-shop. http://www.knowwhatyoufeed.com/shop_online.html
I was just thinking of your comments that you really didn’t want to prepare food. :lol3: The HT costs so much less than the Rad Cat, and the shipping adds about $1 per pound to the cost, which would still be significantly less than the Rad Cat. Just a thought, no biggies if it’s not something you want to pursue.

After reading your reply a few more times I have more questions. I know I should just stop trying to think tonight as I am very tired, but I'm afraid I will forget my questions if I don't ask them when they occur to me. :lol3:

I'm really confused. You have mentioned two different supplements here? Alnutrin and Call of the Wild? What's the difference?

And while the Hare Today may be cheaper, that is not adding in the cost of the supplements needed, don't forget. I would have to sit down and do the math of course. I couldn't find an actual shipping rate quote on the HT site. The Rad Cast cost me $43.99 total to ship four pounds.

And one more, for now, I can't get past the fact that, using a supplement, you are facing the same risks as with anything you purchase. You have to take it on faith that these supplements contain what they say they contain. That seems no different, to me, than feeding commercial products.

 

[ldg]

I'm really sorry that question seemed belittling. I really wasn't so sure you were being serious, because, well, the food is still raw, and it's not made from garbage, which even most of the best canned cat foods are. It's still meat that we could eat. I wouldn't want to eat canned cat food. Maybe Weruva.

I understand your concern about the fruits/veggies and such. It was one of the things I didn't love about Nature's Variety frozen raw food. But it was what was available to me locally. Like you, I had freezer space issuse. So I had to start with something available here. I also wanted to start with one of the pathogen-free guaranteed foods.

My thinking was that even though it has that looooooong list of supplements, many of which I'm not in love with, it's limited to 5% of the food. The rest was raw meat, bones, and organs. It's also manufactured in a USDA facility - so human grade, not pet food grade. As I know you're aware, that in and of itself is a big difference over canned food.

So for people who want raw, but want easy, I have no problem with the concept of buying your own meat and adding a supplement. With this method, to make your own, you don't need to put in any investment - either in terms of time learning, or equipment. But you can lower your cost to feed your cat a lot, control (most) of what you feed kitty - and still have the benefits of raw.

The bottom line is that you shop for the meat yourself, you're feeding it raw, and you're buying meat you could eat yourself. That's my take on it.

As an aside, I'm not a "meat purist." I prefer herbal treatment to western meds where possible. I think our cats can benefit from non-meat based things.


Of course, please keep asking questions.

 

[carolina]

After reading your reply a few more times I have more questions. I know I should just stop trying to think tonight as I am very tired, but I'm afraid I will forget my questions if I don't ask them when they occur to me. :lol3:
I'm really confused. You have mentioned two different supplements here? Alnutrin and Call of the Wild? What's the difference?
You have 2 Alnutrins - with and without Calcium. Alnutrin has to be added to meat/organ/bone; while alnutrin + Calcium can be added to meat and organs only.
Call of the Wild will balance Muscle meat, and make it 100% balanced and complete, without the need of organs or bone. HOWEVER, it contains a bit of plant matter - that can be viewed by some as a downside.
And while the Hare Today may be cheaper, that is not adding in the cost of the supplements needed, don't forget. I would have to sit down and do the math of course. I couldn't find an actual shipping rate quote on the HT site. The Rad Cast cost me $43.99 total to ship four pounds. Hare Today is much, much cheaper with the shipping and supplements. Supplements add about $1/lb, and so does shipping. Pork is $2.99/lb - all together is $4.99, for example - it goes from there.
And one more, for now, I can't get past the fact that, using a supplement, you are facing the same risks as with anything you purchase. You have to take it on faith that these supplements contain what they say they contain. That seems no different, to me, than feeding commercial products. Well, yes, you need to have faith.... But you still have fresh meat, not cooked, and as much control over what you feed. Commercial raw is supplemented too.... At least a lot of them are. Here is the link for the Company that makes Alnutrin - it has their history, all ingredients, etc. It is a good Company. http://knowwhatyoufeed.com/shop_online.html Call of the Wild is made by Wysong - you can find all the info in their site

 

[ldg]

Oh - Call of the Wild is one of the supplements designed to make just meat "nutritionally complete." I know there are others - someone feeding raw in the forum here is using a different one. I think it's Jim Peterford? COTW is made by Wysong. I use it for Lazlo. I worked for a few months to get him to eat all his liver and kidney. :lol3: But he REALLY didn't like them, and at this stage in his life, I didn't want to keep trying to "force" it. But I do want him eating raw, and I liked the solution. This is COTW: http://www.wysong.net/products/cotw-dog-cat-supplement.php I'd worry about the carrots and rosemary extract... if the amount required wasn't so little.

Alnutrin, I'm not positive, but I'm pretty sure it's designed by Dr. Pierson. This is the supplement with directions (and yes, it suggests liver): http://www.knowwhatyoufeed.com/alnutrin_with_calcium.html - edited to add - I never read that history! I'm still under the impression the site is in some way associated with Dr. Pierson. Carolina, if you see this - do you know? I wonder why I think that....

As to the observation, "I can't get past the fact that, using a supplement, you are facing the same risks as with anything you purchase. You have to take it on faith that these supplements contain what they say they contain. That seems no different, to me, than feeding commercial products," ...but you're taking the same leap of faith when purchasing Rad Cat - or any commercial raw. :dk:

Unless you make it yourself, that leap of faith is there, isn't it? And even then, if you use any supplements, there's a leap of faith in the quality of what you choose to purchase... :dk:

 

[otto]

Thank you Laurie and Carolina. Digesting the info.......

 

[Willowy]

The benefit being that it's real fresh meat, not the castoffs and waste from the human food supply. You have more control over ingredients. Raw meat has more natural enzymes than cooked foods. And it's probably cheaper than the human-grade canned foods! :lol3:

Oops, I didn't see the whole second page! Well, that's my take on it anyway .

 

[otto]

All useful feedback is welcome and appreciated, including repeats.

 

[ritz]

I'll just add one thing, and more for people who are just beginning to research commercial raw and have a cat who has allergies:  it is sometimes difficult to find a commercial raw that is truly single source protein.  That is, for example, meat + organs + bone + liver ALL come from the same animal.  Some commercial raw mix and match.  Not a bad thing--unless you have a cat who is allergic to, say, chicken, and read that while the meat is lamb, the liver is from chickens.

And sometimes it is cheaper in the long run to order meat from, for example, Hare-Today.  I spent 40 minutes and $8 breaking down a rabbit and only got four servings.  I think Hare-Today would have been cheaper, on a per serving basis.

I use to feed commercial raw but switched to frankenprey because it is (usually) cheaper.  And I have better control over the amount of bone (Ritz loves bone, bone doesn't love Ritz).

Keep asking questions; the only 'dumb' question is the one that is not asked.