Topic: What dry food is the best? (Read 3868 times)

Team Svartalfheims · « **Reply #31 on:** July 10, 2007, 11:14:09 AM »

Hills and RC both now do neutered cat foods so that might be worth trying as it's designed for their metabolism and calorie needs.

Mark · « **Reply #30 on:** July 10, 2007, 11:09:53 AM »

Thanks Lynn, maybe I can gradually wean her onto the rd - She obviously like the smell of hills. I will try to get a sample bag as I have so many different foods in the house that end up being fed to hedgies as she won't touch them.

CurlyCatz · « **Reply #29 on:** July 10, 2007, 11:07:32 AM »

I think thats the thing to watch with hills, they are prone to weight issues. You could try getting a handful of the hills RD and put a couple of kibbles in with the light to see if she notices, I'd have sent you a wee bag if i had any left but my big boys weight isnt too bad just now so they are back onto their normal variety of food.
Fraser and Seb never had any probs with the r/d at all, altho they arent exactly fussy cats (with the exception of that RC ) Seb doesnt overly care for dried but he wolfs down r/d.

Hills used to do sample bags of their foods, might be worth a try to see if they still do them.

Mark · « **Reply #28 on:** July 10, 2007, 10:59:22 AM »

Kylie has Hills light and is very healthy on it but I can't say it controls her weight very well. I have tried the other light foods but she won't eat them.

CurlyCatz · « **Reply #27 on:** July 10, 2007, 10:55:01 AM »

Cody gets hills maintenence light, I've always been quite happy with hills tbh. We had a 10kg bag of Royal Canin but i have to say all 3 of my cats did not like it at all. The problem with some of the other good brands is getting it, no where around me stocks many of the different premium brands and i've yet to find anywhere to sells it at a competative price and delivers FOC..which is understandable due to weight, whereas when i'm in my local town i can pop into the vets and pick up my hills.

Go Cat also do "complete" dried food but it did used to be complimentary..there are many much better types on the market but many many cats do just fine on it.

Desley (booktigger) · « **Reply #26 on:** July 10, 2007, 08:04:38 AM »

My Ginger (toothless) struggled with the duck and rice JWB, he could manage the turkey and rice with no probs though, and sulked if he didn't get his supper biccies!!

Gwen · « **Reply #25 on:** July 09, 2007, 20:46:28 PM »

Quote from: Tiggy's Mum - Helen on July 09, 2007, 19:37:33 PM

Quote from: Millys Mum on July 09, 2007, 18:40:49 PM
The other flavour i had was duck, triangles i think... not huge like brekkies tho. Thought id mention it as i know you have a gummy cat

The duck ones are suitable for toothless ginger cats, Tiggy only had her fangs left and managed to 'force' the Duck & Rice JWB down

Must be a thing about Ginger cats lol My Ging has only 1 tooth left at the top and one at the bottom,poor baby

Ging says its about time they invented false teef for cats

Tiggy's Mum · « **Reply #24 on:** July 09, 2007, 19:37:33 PM »

Quote from: Millys Mum on July 09, 2007, 18:40:49 PM

The other flavour i had was duck, triangles i think... not huge like brekkies tho. Thought id mention it as i know you have a gummy cat

The duck ones are suitable for toothless ginger cats, Tiggy only had her fangs left and managed to 'force' the Duck & Rice JWB down

Gwen · « **Reply #23 on:** July 09, 2007, 18:42:53 PM »

Quote from: Millys Mum on July 09, 2007, 18:40:49 PM

The other flavour i had was duck, triangles i think... not huge like brekkies tho. Thought id mention it as i know you have a gummy cat

Ging gives you a headbutt for remembering him

Millys Mum · « **Reply #22 on:** July 09, 2007, 18:40:49 PM »

The other flavour i had was duck, triangles i think... not huge like brekkies tho. Thought id mention it as i know you have a gummy cat

Gwen · « **Reply #21 on:** July 09, 2007, 18:37:46 PM »

Quote from: Millys Mum on July 09, 2007, 17:34:40 PM

Gwen, if you want round smooth biscuits then the JWB turkey is just that.

Thanks for the tip

So I take it the other varieties aren't as smooth and round? lol Oh the trouble we have with out wee furry ones

reneemaaa · « **Reply #20 on:** July 09, 2007, 17:47:41 PM »

Mine have James Wellbeloved. I was told that they don't experiment on animals, as, I believe, some of the cat companies do/did. My two seem to adore it.

Team Svartalfheims · « **Reply #19 on:** July 09, 2007, 17:45:42 PM »

Mine only have Royal Canin and Hills dry and also have wet foods a few times a week as well as some raw meat (steak, mice, chicks etc and the occasional rabbit). Hills and RC do a huge variety of foods between them for all so there's something for every type of cat whether it's indoor only, in and out, only out etc, prone to hairballs, sensitive tummy etc.

At the end of the day though premium food is only any good if your cat will eat it. If they won't then all you can do is feed the best they'll eat.

Millys Mum · « **Reply #18 on:** July 09, 2007, 17:34:40 PM »

Gwen, if you want round smooth biscuits then the JWB turkey is just that.

Bazsmum · « **Reply #17 on:** July 09, 2007, 14:09:33 PM »

Depending on what ingredients are good/bad i think at the end of the day your cat will decide.....mine have a variety and what a couple like a couple dont etc! The fuss-pots lol!

Michelle (furbabystar) · « **Reply #16 on:** July 09, 2007, 13:56:44 PM »

Quote from: ccmacey on July 08, 2007, 16:27:30 PM

I thought Go-cat was a complimentary food, can you just feed them this if they have a dry only diet?

It is CC but it is not a good quality food.
It is over coloured and over flavoured and should really only be used as a treat

However, saying that alot of people use it and have no problems with it

Gwen · « **Reply #15 on:** July 09, 2007, 13:53:33 PM »

Thank you guys for all the advice

I am going to try them on some James Wellbeloved I think since they have a good variety of flavours for them to try so wish me luck that they'll like it

I must admit that Ging has now and then been sick and biscuits have some up but I always put it down to him eating his food too quickly,guess its the poor quality of the food that was making him sick

Susanne (urbantigers) · « **Reply #14 on:** July 08, 2007, 22:32:01 PM »

That's true but the amt in the stomach of prey would be very small and would not make up more than about 5% of their diet. The amount in commercial pet foods tends to be considerably higher, and in some dry foods can be as high as 60%. Cereals and veg are used in cat foods because they're cheaper than meat.

Reynard · « **Reply #13 on:** July 08, 2007, 22:01:29 PM »

Quote from: Nick (Peanut & Boo) on July 08, 2007, 10:27:56 AM

I have to say I find it extraordinary that cat food manufacturers put vegetables and rice and wheat products into cat food ? Cats would never eat these foods in the wild. Cats are predominantly meat eaters.

True - but only to a point...

Have you ever thought about what a cat's natural food is? Mice and birds. When cats eat their prey whole, they will also eat the stomach contents of the prey (I've seen Madam Pearl do that often enough), which would include seeds, fruits, vegetables and grains. So putting a certain amount of vegetable matter in cat food is sort of sensible IMHO.

Linda (Bengalbabe) · « **Reply #12 on:** July 08, 2007, 19:02:47 PM »

Like Suzanne I dont feed lots of dry however the bengals do enjoy small amounts. Most popular is JWB and RC followed by Purina Pro Plan and Hills.

Mine enjoy a wet diet supplemented by a dinner of either white fish or chicken (cooked). Ocasionally I do feed a little raw but this is very much a treat and not a common occurance.

Susanne (urbantigers) · « **Reply #11 on:** July 08, 2007, 17:03:55 PM »

I feed Mosi Orijen (from zooplus) which is a grain free dry food. It's going down very well. He doesn't get much dry though (and Jaffa none at all) but what he gets is orijen or james wellbeloved. He has had hi life in the past. I think most of the mid to high range foods are pretty similar - royal canin, hills, purina pro plan, pets at home own brand etc - but it's worth reading ingredients labels to see what's in them. I consider James wellbeloved to be a bit above average as the grain included is rice and I'm not keen on corn in cat food. Personally, what I look for in a dry food is a high percentage meat, a low percentage grain (and preferably no corn) and no artificial colours and preservatives.

Debbie · « **Reply #10 on:** July 08, 2007, 16:53:40 PM »

I give Sam Purina One for his dry food. He has this in a bowl that is out all the time and so he can munch on as much/little as he likes. He is fine with only one flavour all the time but that's probably because he gets wet food for his regular meals in a variety of flavours. I read somewhere that male cats are more prone to kidney probs if they are fed just dry food all the time, cant remember where it was and how true it is but to be on the safe side I''ll continue to give him both.

ccmacey · « **Reply #9 on:** July 08, 2007, 16:27:30 PM »

I thought Go-cat was a complimentary food, can you just feed them this if they have a dry only diet?

I buy Go-cat and Whiskers and my cats like them. Macey would sometimes throw up after eating Go-cat, I think the biscuits are quite big and she not chewing them properly.

Michelle (furbabystar) · « **Reply #8 on:** July 08, 2007, 14:50:54 PM »

Mine have Purina One.

If used correctly the more expensive dry foods should last.

Think you need to have a shop about and try different ones, see what is going to be affordable for you

Millys Mum · « **Reply #7 on:** July 08, 2007, 13:00:29 PM »

Quote

Toby's always has a bit of an issue with the cheaper crunchies - the cheaper they are the further he projectile vomits them

You should meet Milly on Whiskas!

She would give a leg for some Go Cat.

Nick (Peanut & Boo) · « **Reply #6 on:** July 08, 2007, 10:27:56 AM »

I also have two cats a male and a female and they live totally differant lives . Peanut is out all night popping in to frantically eat throughout the night whilst Lardass sleeps on the bed all night . During the day roles reverse as Lardass tears around the place eating continuously while Peanut is desperately trying to get some kip
I fill their double biscuit tray and it is kept full for them to browse whenever they want it. Peanut will only eat Iams and Lardass will only eat go cat even though both biscuits are next to each other in the db bowl ! So I alternate the flavours every week or two and they seem to appreciate it.Occasionally I try Hills or Science etc

I have to say I find it extraordinary that cat food manufacturers put vegetables and rice and wheat products into cat food ? Cats would never eat these foods in the wild. Cats are predominantly meat eaters. Their digestive systems have evolved to that diet. I have thought long and hard about the food issue and done some considerable research and I decided a few years ago to feed my cats a high percentage of natural foods as apposed to the tinned and sachet stuff. Its expensive naturally but I believe far more natural and healthy . They still get a sachet or tray of wet food every day and their biscuit but I supplement this 3-4 times a week with tuna, salmon, white fish, sardines, mackrel, prawns, chicken breast and finely chopped lean beef ie sirloin /rump steak (can't stand the stuff myself lol)

If I could find a source of natural food for cats I would use it but I think its only available mail order. I don't believe that I am giving my cats `treats' I am convinced that I am giving them a healthy balanced diet with less additives colouring and preservative agents and far less bulking foods ie rice wheat and veg
sorry Gwen I went a bit off topic there but cat feed is a very important concern to me.

Reynard · « **Reply #5 on:** July 07, 2007, 23:28:48 PM »

I've recently (in the last four months) switched from Go-cat to better quality dried food. Toby's always has a bit of an issue with the cheaper crunchies - the cheaper they are the further he projectile vomits them. He's been fine on Go-cat for the most part, but I'd wake up every now and again to piles of sicked up biscuits, and when my local Tesco had a supply issue with the Go-cat, I bought some Olli and some Balance and I've not looked back. And Toby's not been sick since.

Though I'm lucky that my two are far less fussy with dried food as opposed to wet - to keep them interested I chop and change brands and flavours with no issues whatsoever. But with only the two cats I tend to buy the small i.e. 300 or 400 g bags as they also have wet food.

They've just finished a bag of JWB with duck and I've opened a bag of Perfect Fit Active which they seem to be keen on. Olli also goes down well, as does the Tesco's Balance, Iams and Royal Canin.

I've also found that they eat less of the premium crunchies than the Go-cat as they have a better nutritional value to them, so in the end, it works out only slightly more expensive in the long run.

Rosella moggy · « **Reply #4 on:** July 07, 2007, 23:16:46 PM »

Mine love GoCat so I mix a little in with the other dry food i.e. James Wellbelloved, Royal Canin or Science Plan. I know the consensus is that you shouldn't change their diet but that's what we do and they seem OK. They also get fed various wet foods too. Basically whatever they will eat. They are so faddy. They seem to go off foods every few months so I now just alternate.

bren · « **Reply #3 on:** July 07, 2007, 22:34:32 PM »

I use proplan for mine they thrive on it.

Millys Mum · « **Reply #2 on:** July 07, 2007, 19:48:59 PM »

James wellbeloved have several flavours, i think they are a better brand because they use rice instead of misc grain. The range are cheaper than PAH.
Royal Canin make loads of different types of food, they are pricer tho.

Gwen · « **Reply #1 on:** July 07, 2007, 19:35:49 PM »

As some of you know I feed my cats go-cat,I am aware that its not the most nutritional of foods and want to better their diet,obviously within budget but I find with other brands they don't have the variety as my cats get bored if they eat the same dry for over a week. Anybody know of a good dry which also has a variety of flavours?

Thanks

Author Topic: What dry food is the best? (Read 3868 times)

ccmacey