Food recommendations needed please

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Gatsbys Servant
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Food recommendations needed please

Post by Gatsbys Servant »

Hello all! I'm Britt and I'm new to the forum. I own a wonderful long haired boy called Gatsby. He is 4 years old and I got him from Cats Protection in November. He is an indoor cat and perfectly behaved. When I first got him he was eating Felix (because Cats Protection rely on donations so only feed what is donated). However knowing how it isn't a brilliant quality, I swapped him to Applaws. He gets a tin of Applaws wet in the morning and a small amount of Applaws biscuits in the evening.

Over the last few days I have noticed that his fur seems to have gone dull and very static. I have to brush him regularly because he sheds in handfuls. I have read this could be food related and so I am hoping you guys may be able to make some recommendations or offer some advice please? Is there a good that is better than Applaws?

Thanks in advance

Britt and Gatsby
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Ruth B
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Re: Food recommendations needed please

Post by Ruth B »

Welcome to the forum and congratulations on your new addition.

First I will say that Felix isn't a bad cat food, mine get Felix As Good as It Looks and Gourmet Gold with Purina One for dried food, and they have thrived on it.

My main concern for Gatsby is that Applaws isn't a complete cat food it is a complementary cat food so he might not be getting all the vitamins and mineral that he needs. Short term this shouldn't have cause a problem, however if a cat is deprived of certain vitamins that they can only get from some meat products it can lead to serious side effects including blindness. You need to get him onto a cat food that is sold as a complete one as soon as possible.

I can't really recommend any as I say I use Felix and Gourmet Gold myself, however some things to look for are a high protein content, between 11 and 15% for a wet cat food. Look in the nutritional information not the general description, many brands will list meat content, not all meat is protein and not all meat is good quality. Some will also list specific meats such as 4% beef, but this won't be the total meat content just the beef amount, the rest will be made up of other types of meat including mechanically reclaimed meat (which while technically is still meat isn't exactly the best quality). Try and keep away from any that list cereals in their ingredient, wheat particularly can be a problem, but rice seem fine. Most vegetables give no benefit to cats they are just used as a bulking agent or to entice gullible owners into thinking they are buying something a bit special, pumpkin however can be useful for a cat with bowel problems.

Others will be on with recommendations, and it is the type of question that when you ask half a dozen people you end up with at least 8 answers. In the end you can buy the most expensive cat food around only to find the cat in question turns his nose up at it and prefers the cheap supermarket own brand. The best cat food can be the one they will eat.
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Kay
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Re: Food recommendations needed please

Post by Kay »

just to add to Ruth's good advice, Applaws is expensive for what it is - I would suggest you have a look at Zooplus' site where a lot of top quality complete cat foods are listed - Grau, AnimondaCarny and Bozita are just three, and you will find sample packs to try out on your boy

http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/cats/cann ... od_pouches
Gatsbys Servant
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Re: Food recommendations needed please

Post by Gatsbys Servant »

Thank you for your replies. I hope I didn't offend with my comments about Felix! I have just been led to believe it does not have as high meat content as some others. However if Applaws is only complimentary (despite the website saying that the dry kibble is complete) then I wonder if this is his problem...
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Ruth B
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Re: Food recommendations needed please

Post by Ruth B »

I didn't know that Applaws dry food was sold as complete, I had only really looked into the wet food.

I don't think any of us really take offence at things, we are all here to make sure we do what is best for out furbabies and we never stop learning from others.

As I mentioned reading the labels of cat food is a nightmare and trying to work out which ones are good would probably take some type of masters degree, I'm sure some of the companies do it just to confuse us owners.
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Re: Food recommendations needed please

Post by fjm »

I agree - find a complete cat food with a high meat content that is readily available, he likes and you can afford. The occasional tin of complementary food as a treat is fine, but think of it like pizza - nice occasionally, not wise to try and live on it!

As a general rule I would limit dried food to ocasional treats, too. Cats get most of their fluids through their food, and often don't drink enough to compensate for eating dried food, which can lead to urinary and other issues. In addition the manufacturing process for most kibble requires a lot of carbohydrate in the recipe, and high levels of carbohydrates have been linked to an increased risk of diabetes.

I cook for mine, based on meats from Durham Animal Feeds, but there are plenty of good commercial foods out there. Read the label - don't be fooled by "grain free" if the grain has been replaced by potato or other vegetable matter, or by the common trick of listing "meat and meat derivatives" as the first, and therefore largest, ingredient, and then listing several very similar cereal and vegetable components. And buy in small quantities till you know he will eat it - cats are notorious for changing their minds after a few days!
Gatsbys Servant
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Re: Food recommendations needed please

Post by Gatsbys Servant »

Goodness FJM! I won't be telling the boy you cook for yours...he will be wanting to move in with you!

Looking at the ingredients on the dry Applaws although there is no grain I think it has been replaced with vegetable stuffs which I didn't realise they use instead.

He does seem to prefer wet food so I will look for a complete wet food instead for him. Someone suggested the Purely Holistic food from P@H so I may have a look at the ingredients. Guess I know what I'm doing this afternoon!
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Re: Food recommendations needed please

Post by Lilith »

Lol no, we won't be offended :D

I feed my guys on all sorts - from Felix to Gourmet with tins of Encore (which isn't complete) in reserve for treats/illness, tuna in water, and titbits of meat and fish - and whatever they decide to grab from my plate. I tried Applaws dry and they didn't care for it at all' they prefer Purina One and Perfect Fit.

I'm wondering though, could Gatsby's shedding be seasonal? One of mine, who's elderly, spends most of her time in an igloo and a few days ago I was ashamed ... I caught her out of her igloo and though she has a short Siamesey type coat, were her britches matted! This was soon put right with a few grooming sessions (which she likes.) I assumed it was a combination of central heating and the onset of spring. Her father (they were ferals before they moved in with me) was the same, had to watch him for matting at certain times of the year - he was shorthaired too, but I can imagine it's a good deal more dramatic when they're longhaired.

With all best wishes to you and the Great Gatsby :)
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Re: Food recommendations needed please

Post by Gatsbys Servant »

I am hoping it is seasonal. Thankfully he loves being groomed and will lay the for hours. But I literally get piles of fur out of him. As in 4 or 5 handfuls! :o His fur is so long and thick it makes him look like a lion!

Based on everything you guys have said I think I'm going to see how he gets on with a complete wet food :D
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Re: Food recommendations needed please

Post by alanc »

You are not the first to not know Applaws wet is not complete - I believe it is low in Taurine (info from one of our regular correspondents on here, but I can't remember who and can't find the thread). If you can afford Applaws wet, then I would recommend Thrive, Canagan or Lily's Kitchen, all of which are complete and cost about the same. Tilly recommends the first two, but is ambivalent about the third, sometimes liking it and sometimes not. Gourmet Gold pate is a slightly cheaper wet food that Tilly also likes.
PS Tilly considers that rescue cats should have as good food as she gets, hence she regularly changes her mind about what she wants to eat so the cat rescue gets her rejects.
Gatsbys Servant
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Re: Food recommendations needed please

Post by Gatsbys Servant »

This is my problem...i so desperately want to give him the home he hasn't had. I want him to know he is loved and to have the best I can afford for him. I like the look of Thrive. Thank you.
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Jan
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Re: Food recommendations needed please

Post by Jan »

Based on my experience with our cat Blackie who is a Felix in jelly junkie, I can definitely recommend Thrive. Its the only other food that he hasn't 'gone off' :roll: I've actually had a tiny taste of it myself - and lived to tell the tale!
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Lilith
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Re: Food recommendations needed please

Post by Lilith »

Ewww! You never? :o :shock:

Mind you I once tasted Metacam after a very brash young vet told me to squirt it down a cat's throat ... ugghhhh!!! The cat never noticed it in tuna though :D

ps Thrive saver packs at Zooplus ... my lot may be sampling that too ...
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Jan
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Re: Food recommendations needed please

Post by Jan »

Indeed I did. Blackie thinks its the next best thing to the chicken we eat. He was unwell at the end of October - vomiting + completely off his food. So out came the Thrive but he wouldn't touch that either ... that's when I knew he was feeling very unwell and a visit to the vets was needed.

Blackie doesn't seem to mind Metacam mixed in his food - though its only 2.5ml. With his temperament I wouldn't attempt to put it down his throat!

Thanks for the heads-up on cost of Thrive at Zooplus ... it isn't cheap by any means.
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Re: Food recommendations needed please

Post by alanc »

It was after her bout of Pancreatitis 2+ years ago that I started giving Tilly Thrive to tempt her into eating again. Worked very well, but she now expects it always and turns her regal nose up at cheaper food (although she will eat Gourmet Gold if given a tin of Thrive first).
Britt - I suspect Gatsby already knows how much you love him and is very glad to have landed on his paws - pampering for the rest of his life!
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Lilith
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Re: Food recommendations needed please

Post by Lilith »

Oh shucks, I just ordered some ... :o :shock: :D
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Re: Food recommendations needed please

Post by Gatsbys Servant »

Thank you so much for all your recommendations guys. Certainly some food for thought. Boom Boom! Alanc I hope you are right. :D
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Re: Food recommendations needed please

Post by Franlow »

I find this conversation quite amusing, cats are obligate carnivores. This means their digestive system is set up to eat meat 100%, no veg, grains, goji berries, or, all the other rubbish that cat food manufacturers tell us they need. Cats have been domesticated for 10,000 years. For 9,950, they ate raw meat - as in whatever they could catch, then the pet food manufacturers decided we are far too lazy to feed our cats raw meat, we must have food in cans. They then told us we must have food in non recyclable plastic / foil pouches, because we are too stupid / lazy / horrified by having a tin of cat food in our fridges. Why would they do this??? Because the petfood industry is worth squillions of pounds every year. Without all the non recyclable waste that goes to landfill. Think about it 10 million cats, 2 pouches per day minimum - that is 20 million pouches EVERY DAY, 140 MILLION per week, 600 MILLION PER MONTH and that is a conservative estimate.
Read the ingredients on a box of Felix as good as it looks doubly delicious. I have the senior version here
Tuna
Meat and animal derivatives, vegetable protein extracts, fish and fish derivatives(Tuna 4%), minerals, derivatives of vegetable origin, VARIOUS SUGARS then all the additives
Why do they put vegetables / vegetable protein / Sugar in cat food? They cannot digest it, they are not designed to digest it. It is because they are far cheaper than meat.
No wonder there is an obesity epidemic in our pets. No wonder our cats have such poor teeth
Thrive is 70% meat - which means 30% of stuff they cannot digest & should not be eating, BUT, it is probably the best of a bad lot. Before you all get huffy with me, I'm not making this up & I am not knocking anybodies choice of feeding their cats, but, the oP asked for the best cat food & Biologically raw is best. We use Purrform which is minced & complete, which comes in 100% recyclable packaging. I will put my hand up to being lazy, I don't make my own raw food, which would be even cheaper. So, that is my reccomendation
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Re: Food recommendations needed please

Post by Mollycat »

Cats also didn't have veterinary care or chemicals to kill fleas ticks and internal parasites, and yet somehow managed to survive. And before you come back with the life expectancy of a feral cat being 5 years, that statistic is from birth and so includes the third to half of kittens that don't make it to weaning, skewing the figures dramatically. A normal life expectancy is more like 10-12 on reaching adulthood.

It's not entirely true that they ate only raw meat until 50 years ago or that their digestive systems haven't adapted. The cat domesticated itself, probably attracted to human settlements and the easy picking of rodents found there, and very likely started to include some cooked meat around that time - what self respecting cat would turn up its nose at some thrown away bone with a little meat left on it? Plus, our ancestors would have quickly figured out that cats who are fed a little stick around more and kill more rodents than cats that have to range more to find variety in their diet.

The domestic cat's gut has lengthened to deal with these changes from 5ft 9000 years ago to 7ft now, that adaptation didn't take place over the last 50 generations. Grains and dairy products are not part of a wild cat's diet and some can't take them, but most can and do very well. As for nutrition, prepared cat foods don't just take a sack of grain and grind it up to add it to the mix, it's usually nutrients extracted from the grains. Various sugars doesn't mean a teaspoon of Tate & Lyle, sugars are present in most plants, milks and meats - glucose is a sugar and it's kind of important. And offal is a vital part of a cat's nutritional needs. Biologically the best food for a cat 9000 years ago was unquestionably raw but that's not necessarily fully true now, it's just one option.

I agree those ingredients are not the best but we're not killing our cats by giving them prepared foods and the proof is that cats easily live to 15 and older in our care. Felix is at least nutritionally balanced and Applaws isn't, and raw feeding requires either care and knowledge to prepare or buying ready prepared with all the risks of contamination and questionable freshness that go with it. I used to be on a forum where if you didn't have a pedigree and didn't feed it raw and keep it indoors you were hounded like you were a serial killer. We're not like that here. I'm very conscious of the possible risk of prepared cat foods, especially fish flavoured, as my cat has just been treated for hyperthyroidism, and I have histamine intolerance so I know all about avoiding canned and pre-prepared foods and what they can do to us never mind animals.

Finally pet ownership isn't eco friendly, I believe someone came up with the statistic that a medium size dog has a bigger carbon footprint than a small-ish SUV. I guess we make choices and 'saving the planet' isn't always the highest priority making those choices, otherwise we'd all give up our cars and tun off the heating in our homes. Besides, open cans should never be left in the fridge and for most cats cans just mean waste while pouches actually get eaten, so in some ways less impact on the planet.
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Re: Food recommendations needed please

Post by alanc »

Thrive, Catagan and Gourmet Gold all come in small one serving tins which are recyclable. They don't contain grain, either.
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