Why is Whiskas Bad?

[rarepuss]

Originally Posted by Jalapeno

Is Royal Canin an okay brand for cats? I recently changed from Nutro to RC because of availability of cat food in 10kg sacks.

I feed ROYAL CANIN #27 to my indoor-only cat Marsh, along with one 3oz can of wet food - FANCY FEAST roasted turkey feast (only this flavor, no other). He seems to be doing great. It's not cheap, and not terribly expensive, just the right mix

 

[vegansoprano]

Canned food is absolutely essential for cats' long-term urinary tract health. Cats as a species originated in the desert and are therefore biologically designed to get most of their needed water from their food. Dry cat food provides pretty much zero water, and cats do not have an adequate thirst mechanism to compensate. Over time, this places stress on the urinary system, which is already the Achilles heel of the species as a whole. This is why kidney disease and urinary stones are so common.

Additionally, if your cat ever needs a special diet for any reason (e.g. diabetes, kidney disease, etc), canned food will almost certainly play a key role in this diet. If your cat is not accustomed to eating canned food already, you will probably have a very difficult time transitioning him to the new food. This will be a huge, preventable hassle.

I'm not against dry food, but it definitely should not be fed exclusively and I definitely don't think it does anything substantial for their teeth because they don't grind it against their teeth. It would be pretty much like saying that eating pretzels is good for your teeth.

 

[myfirstragdoll]

I give my Raggie Kitten , Hershey ,Wellness Kitten and Wellness Wet, Iams Wet and Science Diet wet. Wellness is expensive. But so was Hershey LOL as my hubby says you bought an expensive cat might as well feed him good food!

Lisa

 

[pat]

Originally Posted by MyFirstRagdoll

I give my Raggie Kitten , Hershey ,Wellness Kitten and Wellness Wet, Iams Wet and Science Diet wet. Wellness is expensive. But so was Hershey LOL as my hubby says you bought an expensive cat might as well feed him good food!

Lisa

Lisa,
Did you decide you were not concerned about the issue of garlic in Wellness, or are you unaware of the view that this may cause a health issue? If you were unaware,I'll post some articles for you that explain why I won't feed anything with garlic. If it's your choice, I accept that

 

[kathryn41]

My guys like the proplan wet and the Authority wet the best of them all. They also have a blend of Hills c/d, Authority, Proplan and Royal Canin dry (senior/hairball/indoor formulas:-)). They get canned morning and evening and have dried down to nibble on during the day.
Kathryn

 

[myfirstragdoll]

Originally Posted by Pat & Alix

Lisa,
Did you decide you were not concerned about the issue of garlic in Wellness, or are you unaware of the view that this may cause a health issue? If you were unaware,I'll post some articles for you that explain why I won't feed anything with garlic. If it's your choice, I accept that

I don't know

about the garlic issues.. Please post them.

Lisa

 

[pat]

Lisa,
Here are 2 articles on this topic...it is still something that gets debated, with some feeling it would take a huge amount of garlic to cause a problem or that some brands/versions of garlic are safe, to those who simply believe that the health benefits it can have for humans, it can have for cats and do not believe it is harmful at all.

From a health list I am on for cats with chronic kidney failure, who admittedly are not in the same condition as healthier cats, anecdotally, at least one member has seen first hand that the sensitivity of cats to garlic can vary greatly on an individual basis - to the point of a little, just a few times, was enough to almost cause death due to the resulting anemia.

MY belief, after reading these 2 articles and the personal experiences of others on the health list, is that since onion, garlic and chives are all in the same family, and contain theosulfates - which can cause Heinz Body Anemia, I am avoiding all 3. No one argues the toxicity of onions, but some continue to believe use of garlic is safe. I think it's like playing Russian Roulette and will not. It does not matter to me that some 'big names' in cat food continue to use it, it doesn't mean they are correct!

Article 1

Article 2

 

[sharky]

Originally Posted by Pat & Alix

Lisa,
Here are 2 articles on this topic...it is still something that gets debated, with some feeling it would take a huge amount of garlic to cause a problem or that some brands/versions of garlic are safe, to those who simply believe that the health benefits it can have for humans, it can have for cats and do not believe it is harmful at all.

From a health list I am on for cats with chronic kidney failure, who admittedly are not in the same condition as healthier cats, anecdotally, at least one member has seen first hand that the sensitivity of cats to garlic can vary greatly on an individual basis - to the point of a little, just a few times, was enough to almost cause death due to the resulting anemia.

MY belief, after reading these 2 articles and the personal experiences of others on the health list, is that since onion, garlic and chives are all in the same family, and contain theosulfates - which can cause Heinz Body Anemia, I am avoiding all 3. No one argues the toxicity of onions, but some continue to believe use of garlic is safe. I think it's like playing Russian Roulette and will not. It does not matter to me that some 'big names' in cat food continue to use it, it doesn't mean they are correct!

Article 1

Article 2

Thank you .. I hadnt read the label that carefully on the wellness( bought the tiny cans and couldnt see) ... this mom wont buy it any more...

 

[myfirstragdoll]

I've read on the wellness cans of food that I have and garlic isn't on them. But the Dry food it is..

Lisa

 

[amy-dhh]

So I ended up with the Natural Balance catfood... now lets hope he likes it!

Of course, I couldn't get out of there without also getting Cosmo a scratching post/perch, a fuzz ball toy and 2 catnip toys. Let me tell ya, FatCatInc. makes some of the most wacky looking toys, but I've had so much success with them! He LOVES the little mouse I got him.

 

[sooz123]

AKK! Lisa, I just read my wet can and it has it. A little less than half-way down the ingredient list.

Dag Nab it. I'm trying to find something high end for wet food and go Purina One for dry. The Wellness took away the awful stinky poo that Science Diet gave him (someone else said Wellness did that for them, too). Now what? Grrrrrr

While we're on the subject, I've seen some people post poor ratings for Science Diet while others swear by it. What're the thoughts on that, too? Our breeder used it but I've read it's no better than the grocer's cheap stuff. She swore by it and even insulted me for switching him to Wellness (we're in a fight anyway... she's really testing my patience).

 

[myfirstragdoll]

I've used a mix of science diet and wellness.. I'm going to wait to that is most of the way gone.. Then i'm going to Chicken soup for the kitten lovers soul.. I know some breeders that use this and they love it. I've not had any problems with science diet my breeder uses it.. but i've heard it's not very good food also.... IT's hard to pick a good food....

Lisa

 

[aussie_dog]

Originally Posted by Jalapeno

Is Royal Canin an okay brand for cats? I recently changed from Nutro to RC because of availability of cat food in 10kg sacks.

Royal Canin is a good food, it's one of the premium brands. I recently switched to the Indoor formula of Royal Canin for the cats, and put my dog on Sensible Choice (which is owned by Royal Canin). I want to put my cats on Sensible Choice too, but my Petsmart doesn't sell it (bummer, but maybe in the future...)

 

[amy-dhh]

Looks like the Natural Balance food is a success -- he seems to like it very much.

Interesting how *I* reacted to it... it's an awful dull brownish color and I was like "ew" when I saw it. Goes to show that fancy colorful cat food isn't always the healthiest or best tasting to a cat when we, as stupid humans, get all caught up with how it looks

 

[sharky]

Originally Posted by ComeresMom

Looks like the Natural Balance food is a success -- he seems to like it very much.

Interesting how *I* reacted to it... it's an awful dull brownish color and I was like "ew" when I saw it. Goes to show that fancy colorful cat food isn't always the healthiest or best tasting to a cat when we, as stupid humans, get all caught up with how it looks

You are mixing the NB with the old food?? Glad the "kid" likes it

it is good food ...

 

[amy-dhh]

Not mixing. I'll keep the old food around for a while to make sure he keeps eating the NB and his system adjusts okay to it... but for the most part I guess it will become garbage. I may hold onto the Fancy Feast for an occassional treat. I haven't been feeding him the Kit N Kaboodle/Fancy Feast mix for that long, so I hope his adjustment is easy.

I have to say too, the food he was getting in foster care looked EXACTLY like the NB, so maybe he's already got a "taste" for it.

 

[vegansoprano]

As far as "junk food" goes, Fancy Feast isn't all that bad. There are even some flavors that are byproduct-free.

One thing you'll appreciate once your guy is off the Kit n Kaboodle is the fact that you will no longer be cleaning technicolor hairballs off the carpet! The stuff without all the artificial dyes is soooo much easier to clean up!

 

[esrgirl]

I got a free sample of the Fancy Feast dry catfood with my kitty litter and I've been giving it to my cats as a treat. It doesn't look nearly as bad as some of the other grocery store brands- pretty much like Iams. I feed the kitten Nutro Natural Choice kitten food- as much as she wants, and a pouch of Natural Choice wet food each day. My adult cat eats Natural Choice Weight Management dry every day and a wet pouch a few times a week.

 

[myfirstragdoll]

My Hershey Loves fancy feast wet, I only give it to him as a treat every couple days.. I try not to give him Bi-poduct things..

Lisa