Applaws dry

[DowntonCrabby]

Good Evening kitty lovers,

I’m looking for advice re Applaws dry cat food.

We moved our puss onto it at the start of the year after a lifetime of whiskas pouches and a weekly tin of tuna/mackerel bits of cheese/chicken/ham, scrambled egg, milky tea and on a couple of occasions a sneaky lap of my g&t!

Anyway, she’s pretty much accepted the change, albeit with less enthusiasm for eating maybe, we alternated applaws/whiskas then cut down to now just having a pouch maybe once a week as a treat she still pesters us for additional treats (see above)

She’s around 14, we think, we’ve had her for 11 years, were told around 3 at the time and the vet agreed. Our DD13 is determined she has to live to be a very old lady so I’d like to think we’re doing everything possible to maintain her health. I honestly didn’t know how shite some of the more well known brands were until late last year when I stated to research.

Anyway, she’s been on he chicken and salmon Applaws 80% meat/fish and 20% veg/extracts. She’s ok on it but a bit “meh” and I do feel she has lost some weight, she’s always been a very petite, slim cat.

I looked into buying the ocean fish flavour this time as she’s always preferred fish flavoured food but it’s 50/50 with the fish/veg split.

Should we stick to the chicken flavour? Would changing to the 50/50 be choosing an inferior product health wise? Or should we be considering something different altogether? Should we be supplementing with a fish oil at all?

I’m really determined to do what’s best for her health and to have her around for a long time to come. She’s been our only pet as a family and we all adore her, she lets anyone tickle her tummy and would let us walk about all day holding her like an actual baby if we had the time!

Any advice most welcome. 🐱

[dementedpixie]

Mine like thrive dry food which is 90% meat.

[dementedpixie]

They do a salmon and herring one which is 70% fish

[dementedpixie]

Lilys Kitchen also does a 70% fish dry food

[DowntonCrabby]

Thank you @dementedpixie I’ll check out those flavours.

[Ollivander84]

Try wild freedom off zooplus. My cat eats applaws, Lily's kitchen dry etc but not with any real enthusiam
I opened the wild freedom, he shoved his head in the bag, refused to eat any wet food and cried at the cupboard for it
It's like cat crack

[ImAGoofyGoober]

What about maybe adding a tin of the applaws as a treat? It might be the extra she needs to plump up.

[Archfarchnad]

Ooh Olivander, snap with the Wild Freedom, but ours is wet. We got 12 cans delivered from bitiba recently and so far he loves them - and he's normally horribly fussy. Lord knows what causes that level of enthusiasm.

OP, I'd say the only problem with relying on Applaws dry without wet food is that it might lead to dehydration and ultimately to crystals - cats not being the best at drinking from their water bowls - so we've found a mix of wet and dry grain-free foods to be best.

[Ollivander84]

I keep meaning to try the wet but I am concerned he may grow thumbs and learn to open the tins. He refused to eat anything else except the wild freedom dry, even turned down roast chicken

[Ski37]

Following with interest- I’m on a mission for the perfect dry cat food! In the previous 12 months I’ve gradually changed from James wellbeloved to Applaws and am now trying Thrive dry food .
I definitely noticed an improvement in his general condition on moving to Applaws from James Wellbeloved but decided to try Thrive as it has an even higher meat content. It’s been introduced gradually but what I have noticed so far is my cat seems to be hungrier on Thrive.... I can’t tell if it’s 1) because it’s so tasty he wants to eat it all in one go and then wants more so is impatient for his next feed , 2) it isn’t filling enough so he wants more as he isn’t getting enough and is still hungry or 3) whether it’s given him so much more energy he’s out doing his regular catty things with more enthusiasm and is just generally hungrier 😬
I’ve a feeling it’s a combination of 1 and 3 .... he’s never been overly food orientated .
I’m now on the first full bag of thrive following the gradual introduction so I’ll keep you updated!

[viccat]

For a senior cat I would recommend more good quality wet food rather than dry - kidney problems often surface around that age and dry food isn't great for an an older cat's kidneys.

You should also ask your vet about senior blood & urine tests at least annually at that age.

[Littlegoth]

My cat eats chicken applaws biscuits, and we supplement with tins occasionally. She loves it

[DowntonCrabby]

Thank you all, I have a few of the above mentioned companies sending out some samples of both wet and dry foods.

I’m keen to keep her on dry as much as possible with a tin thrown in maybe very few days as suggested, I’m not concerned about her water intake, she’s always been very good at drinking, she quite happily drinks from a bowl inside (we keep it in the bathroom- she won’t drink water kept near her food) she doesn’t like to go out in the rain but begs to get out after rainfall and goes straight to a neighbours bird bath for a big drink.

Thank you @viccat I’ll ask the vet about the tests, they never offer anything beyond teeth check and her jabs routinely so might be something I actually have to pursue.

Interesting you say about condition @ski37 we’ve definitely noticed a difference in her fur since moving to the applaws.

Thank you all- from me and Miss Cindy

[AnnaMagnani]

Am trying out various wet foods from Zooplus for my older cat. She is a lot keener than the kittens are and the wet foods were originally bought for them!

I refuse to pay Thrive/Applaws/Lily's Kitchen prices and thankfully there has been a lot of choice.

Animonda Carny has been a big hit but goodness the farts the cat produces afterwards are something else

There are a lot of grain-free, high meat content foods to pick from on Zooplus. My cats also love the Cosmas Snackies treats instead of Thrive which are a bargain - they come running when we shake the tube.