Are fancy cat foods worth the money?

[RainyDaze4]

My kitten is nearly old enough to start eating ‘Adult’ food so am thinking about which brand/type to start feeding her as there’s obviously so much choice.

I’m not interested in raw food etc. I’m talking about your normal cat food you can buy in pet shops and supermarkets but even so, I’m bombarded with all the usual Whiskas, Felix, then you’ve got Sheba, Gourmet, Lily’s Kitchen and on to the fanciest looking ones like Royal Canin, Hills, James something etc.

I’m sure there’ll be some people waxing lyrical about how rubbish Whiskas and Felix is but my kitten has thrived on these normal brands!

Does buying a fancy cat food brand make a difference or are they all the same really?

What do you feed your cat?

My two refuse all the natural, very high content meat ones and will only eat Felix ...the ordinary one, because As Good As it Looks is apparently unacceptable 😹
Harrington’s biscuits are a bit healthy and go down well, they like those.

Our Applaws arrived yesterday (chicken and duck) and our Ragdoll loves it!

Our samples arrived yesterday.
Verdict so far:

Wild Freedom Adult Tray Mixed Trial Pack - they both really like this wet food. Meaty. Bit smelly.

James Wellbeloved Adult Cat Grain Free - Turkey - They both like this

Royal Canin Exigent Fussy Cats - Savour Sensation - Both cats LOVE this!

Applaws Grain-Free Cat Food (2 flavours) - One won't touch this, other thinks it's only alright!

Wild Freedom Adult Cold River - Salmon - They really like these but quite hard/big for the older girl to crunch

Cosma Snackies Mixed Trial Packs - 4 Varieties - we'd rather be plonked in a bath or walked on leads

More trials and tribulations to come as they sample some other brands next time on Zooplus.

It might take time with the cosma snackies as they are quite dry so they don't get the flavour until they chew them. One of mine was hesitant with them to start with

What was wet food and what was dry?

CBA to RTFT so I don't know if this has been mentioned - the only important thing to remember with cat food is that cheap dry food is positively dangerous for male cats. There is a direct correlation between cheap dry food and urinary crystals/blocked bladders in male cats (something to do with magnesium content). By cheap I mean Whiskas, Go Cat, Supermarket own etc. If you have a male cat don't feed cheap dry food - better foods are of course generally better - but it's the avoiding the cheap dry stuff that could save your male cat's life.

We’re on a mix of dry Jameswellbeloved Turkey Dental Care, and diet food (both not the highest protein but fairly good quality and her fur is soft and shiny), and half a wet tin from Thrive, Applaws etc, which is very good quality and pure protein. We get a variety of foods and she’s not picky.

We have three month old kittens that were raised on fresh chicken. The only things I could get them to eat at the beginning were Thrive or Encore - because it’s basically cooked meat in broth. But it’s very expensive - £1 a tin or pouch. I have tried and tried and tried to get them onto something a bit cheaper. Not whiskas cheap but at least something like Lily’s Kitchen range.

@dementedpixie

What was wet food and what was dry?

All food was dry except for Wild Freedom Adult Tray Mixed Trial Pack -

My theory is that if they have a quality dry food then they might need less wet food and one won't seem hungry all the time...

The Royal canin tends not to have a lot of meat and lots of grains.

So what's a good quality dry food brand, please? He is now on Go Cat dry food but I want to wean him onto a better quality dry food and just give Whiskas wet food.

Mine likes thrive dry and encore dry.

Definitely not, you can tell the difference based on what they eat. I initially started my two on cheap stuff, their tummies were always upset (different breeds, different litters obviously) and their poop stank. Changed to better quality cat food and it all changed. The meat content in the cheap stuff is shocking, I don’t feed mine the best of the best but it’s not bad - 65% as opposed to something like 3%

Mine don’t generally mind, as long as we mix it up (so don’t keep buying the same type).

My baby always had Lily's kitchen because Felix etc always gave her the massive shits. She's always had a problem with her digestion but in the end the only food that settled her stomach and stopped the ultra stinky poos was the renal diet which they can have even if they haven't got renal problems. I get all mine on zooplus online.

Mine is on grain free kitten food (for extra weight gain) so usually nature's menu, or something off zooplus. Also gets grain free dry which is down 24/7 but his best mate mostly eats that

He's just out of vet hospital and refused all food and persuaded the vets to syringe feed him with chicken soup. Then would only eat if they cuddled him

Oh and this is like cat crack
https://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/cats/drycatfood/wildfreedom/adult/649066?zootopiarec=true&cn=initial&si=3&pn=webpdp&pr=container1&strategy=31963529&rk=1-4&slot=4&pi=649066&rri=80c51fff-70e3-4f52-a2b3-7a00c399d06f

Cats are obligate carnivores, so meat content is really the key. And don't be fooled by "meat by-products" as these are parts that are normally discarded (tendons, brain matter, etc.).

I'm not sure if it's available in the UK but our vet favors Wellness brand foods, so that's what we buy. They're not cheap but very high meat content.

My two cats aren't fussy they will literally eat anything. I have them on Iams senior in bulk from amazon subscribe and save but if I run out before the next bag arrives they will happily eat the shops own brand/whiskas/go cat in between does make me wonder why I spend on the Iams tbh lol

Things my cat, the best cat in the whole world ate until he died aged 22:

Whiskas but only the ones in gravy
Chips
Sweet Thai chilli crisps
Curry
Crab sticks
Chocolate sauce
Steak (spoilt)
Vics Vaporub licked off DS5s back
Soapy foot spa water mmmmmm.

I absolutely trawled zooplus one night into the hunt for a more decent quality food (meat content) than whiskas/felix etc and chances smilla as it was on offer at the time. Reasonably priced, large 800g tina available so ideal for multi cat households. My two indoor kitties love it and a tin goes a long way, they would still prefer whiskas or other shite but they will eat the smilla and I find I was able to drop a meal as the smilla was filling them up better. It's a pate type consistency and one particular variety has actual poultry hearts and meaty bits. Comparing to whiskas 4% meat this is approx 50%, so not the best in the world but a considerable amount better. Their poop isnt as vile either. In saying that, all my childhood cats were fed whiskas, felix, go cat, Aldi own brand etc and lived long lives but as an adult cat owner to my two babies I wanted to spend as much as I could reasonably afford to do my best by them. Currently feed them Smilla wet 5.30 in the morning and 6.30/7/whenever I'm shouted at for food at night, I come home from lunch and give them a few pieces of cooked chicken so I am able to eat my own lunch in piece, plus a lickilix on a warm day, cat stick from Aldi treat before bed. I leave some nuts out while I go to work Smilla also, a porridge scoop between two and refill once more during the day, perhaps another scoop if will be out of the house for longer. girl cat would live on dry food boy cat picks but waaaay prefers his wet food. They have both just turned one.

Mine loves Purina - all the dry varieties (in rotation). Coat is so healthy too, people comment on it! Have tried other brands but he always wants to go back to Purina!

If your cat doesn't eat the new (higher meat content) food at first, do you leave it out until he eats it? Will he eat it eventually when he gets hungry?

@dementedpixie and @QueenOllie
@dementedpixie

My cat usually eats about 3 Whiskas 1+ pouches a day but has only eaten about 1 today as he's refused the Zooplus food.

@dementedpixie and @QueenOllie thank you for the recommendations.

It's weird, my cat's poop doesn't smell much when he is on the cheap brands but stank really badly today, when he had the posh food.

Mine don't seem to mind what dry food they have but can be fussy with wet. I have made quite a few donations to the basket in tesco that takes pet food donations

I can't bear all the waste with pouches so mine has tins. Tesco or Sainsburys are her favourites
She will eat any dried food.
She is the least fussy eater I've ever had