What makes some cat foods and most grocery store cat food(famous ones( bad 4 ur cat? and what r the sidaffects

Question

ok I would never want to buy a food 4 my cat that would harm him in any way or cause him pain and would be an extra vet visit. so what makes certain brands bad other than filler foods( which I guess jus don't have much nutriton, like stuffing) I have a 4 month male orange tabby( do they need extra wet food so they don't get a uninary tract infection?) what are the side affects from feeding my cat well known cat brands u find in the grocery store like Friskies,iams,purina? stuff like that. will those foods harm my kitty and how? what makes Fedile cat food so good( from what I've read on other questions on here they say that's a real good one) and where would I find the "good" cat food?

Answer 1

Hi Tricia... Many cat dry foods contain high levels of carbohydrates such as corn, corn meal and soy and canned foods high levels of preservatives and byproducts. A cat can never feel satisfied because of the carbs so they keep eating more leading to obesity in our pets. Cats are obligate carnivores so a diet higher in animal proteins is more beneficial to keep them lean and healthy. Corn, corn meal and soy found in most commonly well known brands have no nutritional value as they are used as fillers to help bind the kibble together so they don't crumble in the packaging and corn is also used to fatten slaughter quicker as well.

Most cat food available on the market is sub-standard even though they spend a considerable amount of money on advertising. Royal Canin is one of the better affordable brands available in a pet store that doesn't contain the ingredients, corn, corn meal or soy all which are bad for a cats diet. These are in almost every commercial cat food products (Iams, Science Diet, Puria Friskies, etc) if you read the ingredient label. Here's a direct link for Royal Canin: http://www.royalcanin.us/catfood

There are higher premium quality foods generally found at smaller specialty pet stores, which also contains essential quality nutrients and no byproducts such as:
Innova EVO: http://www.naturapet.com/display.php?d=product-detail&pxsl=%2F%2Fproduct%5B%40id%3D%271255%27%5D
California Natural: http://www.naturapet.com/display.php?d=product-detail&pxsl=%2F%2Fproduct%5B%40id%3D%2772%27%5D
Nature's Variety Prairie: http://www.naturesvariety.com/content.lasso?page=1352
Wellness: http://www.oldmotherhubbard.com/cats/wellness_overview.html
Chicken Soup for the Cat Lover's Soul: http://www.chickensoupforthepetloverssoul.com/formulasnew.php?PL=4&S=Cats&FT=Dry%20Food

...and many more if you'd like to consider trying. Cats who eat the premium foods tend to not feel as hungry and their coats and overall health is also quite visibly noticeable.

Long-term medical care will keep your cat healthier in the long range rather than when a cat eats sub-standard food. Just like humans if we eat junk food all the time eventually we will have health problems which will require expensive medical care too.

Answer 2

That's really interesting. Cats can get worms if the mice have fleas but clearly a frozen mouse shouldn't be an issue for that. I think the only real concern is whether or not kitty would actually eat a mouse. Mine only treat them like toys and don't even seem to realize they could food. So I think the idea of grinding them up makes a lot of sense. If you heat them up be careful not to inadvertently cook them. The way I heat up cold cat food is to rest the bowl on a larger container of room temperature water. I think you could consider feeding some poultry and rabbit in additional to the mice meat. But feeding mice makes a lot of sense. I think you should probably also try to find a different vet. You should find someone who is in favor of raw diets and can help guide you through it or at the very least, be supportive of it.

Answer 3

Watch the fat content of the food. Also if it is mostly fillers like the cheaper brands then your cat will not be getting enough protien.

The iams and science diet are the most nutrious for your cats. Friskies has fat and fillers, both of which are not the best for a growing kitten. Be sure that what ever brand you buy, is designed for kittens. Kittens require different nutrients than do full grown cats.

Answer 4

You might read some of the articles I suggested in another recent post by Dr. Jean Hovfe at www.littlebigcat.com to start educating yourself about food for your little guy.

You will mostly find the better goods in small, owner-operated pet stores in your area. Though I have been getting Natural Balance at our local discount Pet Store and their food is excellent.

Stuffing is a great way to put it! All the inexpensive grocery stores use corn as about 2/3 of their food. Corn is not a nutritionous food for cats who need quality protein meat in their food. Cats in a corn field are there for the mice, not the corn!

"Well-known" brands are well-known because of advertising and the money goes for the TV ads not for the ingredients in the foods. Corn is cheap. Did you know that the $4 box of corn flakes you buy to eat has 14 cents worth of corn in it?

Answer 5

I use to feed my cat Science diet, but apparently he didnt like the taste, so I switched to friskies then he just got fat, like really fat and it made his bowls really stink. My vet had suggested Iams, he's still a little chunky but hasnt gained any wieght and he really likes the taste. I would suggest to Try for stuff with more natural ingredients and vegtables. I've also heard purina is pretty good, i feed that to my dogs.

Answer 6

here's a good guide for you maybe you can print it. first, it has to be kitten food, and the rest, here you go:
crude protein min. 33%
crude fat min 23%
crude fiber max 3%
moisture max 10%
ash max 10 %
calcium min .9%
phosphorous min .7%
vitamin E min 500IU/kg
taurine min .10%
ascorbic acid (vitamin C) min 75 mg/kg
DHA min .1%
dha and ascorbic acid are not requirements, there just good to have. there's a lot of food out there, and the most expensive isn't always the best. this is just a good guideline to follow and enjoy your new baby!!

Answer 7

usually the cheaper they are the worse they are for your cats you need to look for the ones with the main ingredient of meat not the fillers and by products and corn

Answer 8

i would talk to your veterinarian. i went through that with my cat...and they put her on a science diet dry cat food. plus read the bags of food and what they specialize in...overweight, outside formula, hairball formula..i myself would go with science diet.