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?

I used to give mine Lidl wet food and Whiskas dry food. Unfortunately one of the cats started to have digestion issues. Vet recommended Royal Canin, which seems to have helped. So now we're stuck buying expensive food (even for the healthy one, as they share/swap food bowls).

@dementedpixie

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

Yes, I just read that in a review. I'll have to exclude it as I want a grain free/low grain food and I didn't realise this had those ratios.

[quote QueenOllie]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]][/quote]
Both like this, but the biscuits seemed too big and tough for the older cat. I was worried she's break a tooth...

@middleager they seem to break down fairly easily, mine has one tooth and stands at the cupboard looking hopeful for them

They do a kitten version which is smaller I think

My cat doesn't seem to have a preference as long as you don't feed him the same brand for more than a week. So he'll eat whiskas enthusiastically for a week or so, then turn his nose up at it so it's on to the next. He has several different kinds on rotation

A feline nutritionist once told me that dry food is the work of the devil, because it causes dehydration. Cats simply will not drink enough water to counter it. Also it encourages them to eat too much and can lead to obesity, whereas it is hard for them to eat too much wet food as it contains a lot of water so fills them up. The only good thing about dry food is it’s effect on keeping teeth clean, so a small portion a day is ok.

My cat has a small scoop of dry Purina One on a morning, and a tin of Thrive, Almo Nature, Encore or Cannagan on an afternoon. No pate - they have to feature juice, gravy or jelly or she turns her nose up.

I’ve tried all manner of high meat content dry food, but she either vomits or refuses it. Even when I’ve tried introducing it gradually by mixing it with the Purina. So she’s won that battle.

Interestingly, the nutritionist also told me to be wary of Science Plan and Royal Canin - vets recommend it because they get commission for selling it. As pps have already pointed out, it has a low meat content and is bulked up with grains, just like cheap supermarket brands.

[quote QueenOllie]@middleager they seem to break down fairly easily, mine has one tooth and stands at the cupboard looking hopeful for them [/quote]
Mine might just be a drama queen/noisy eater then!

Royal Canine is plugged by all the vets who have a vested interest but they contain grain which is just bulk, cat’s don’t need it. I buy Thrive, Applaws and Cosma Nature. Thrive is the best complete wet food in my opinion.

God they really give us the run around don't they?

I'm currently losing a battle of wills with a 3 month old kitten because she will only eat Felix AGAIL and I keep offering her carny or smilla, adult and kitten versions and she won't eat any of them.

Also won't touch dry food that's always available, so she pounces on the Felix and wolfs it down because she's starving in the morning.

Her litter mates eat the other food but as they're fostered rescues and have been a bit unwell I just want her to eat anything as they've not had a great start in life, so I give in and give her the Felix and she knows this as I can't see her not eat.

Our cat is the same as described by a pp. Food has to be rotated. He will eat a box of sachets but then refuse all favours if I buy it again. So I have to buy another type, then another and repeat until we're back to the first one.

Mine are such fuss pots I have to be flexible - when I buy 'decent' stuff they often turn their noses up - or I'll buy Felix and they'll eat it for a bit then it's a no go zone for a bit and I'll change again

They'll really only entertain fish flavours too - monkey cats

Well as I predicted further down the thread Ivycat has decided she doesn't like felix gravy lover anymore. Thankfully right at the end of the 80 sachets I bulk bought.

She has to have a very wet food as she won't touch jelly and she has a previous kidney injury so we need to make sure she is properly hydrated even though all her bloods keep coming back ok she could still have an element of damage there.

Time to browse zooplus I think!!

Fetch often has a decent selection too. I alternate depending on offers/Quidco cash back etc

Oh lord, ours massacres her own food.
She is 14 and showing no sign of slowing down her murderous ways.
We live rurally and her favourites are mouse, shrew, rat and the occasional small rabbit.
This really does seem to form the main part of her diet.
Also has Felix and Go cat etc and leftover roast meats/fish.

Our pair of Siamese thrive on the Lidl dry food. For treats, they occasionally get to share a wee Lidl tin of cat food pate. According to them, they're starved and should be fed the soft food all the time

This morning they turned their noses up at Applaws and the Cosma treats presented in various ways: bowls, on the floor, by hand....one cat likes to eat her food while sat in a cardboard box. As a result, a cardboard box (refreshed at regular intervals) is a perma feature of our kitchen. I was delighted when the Zooplus order came in a box that was the reused for Madam's dining purposes.

The other cat stupidly made the mistake of jumping in the box once. Cue hissing, fur flying. She won't be so cavalier again.

Going to order Thrive and IAMs in my next batch.

I was delighted when the Zooplus order came in a box that was the reused for Madam's dining purposes

Yes, the Zooplus boxes are great repurposed as beds, play centres, safe eating spaces or birthing and nursing boxes depending on what life stage your cat is at and his/her particular foibles.

We have one that's got holes cut in the sides and the lid has been taped back up so it's like a wendy house for kittens. I can't claim credit for that one, it was a donation that came with some kittens that came my way.

Wow this thread has made me question my choices, I buy Purina one wet sachets and Iams indoor dry food. 2 cats, 1 healthy but very lean, 1 chubby and overweight. I can't change to the diet/low calorie stuff as I worry about the lean cat then losing weight. Would a higher meat content help with the overweight issue without comprising the lean cat 🤔

mine have always had James Wellbeloved biscuits

Meat content is the key; the meat content of Felix/Whiskas etc is pretty low, and although cats often love it, it's a bit like feeding them on McDonalds - think how different a beef burger is to a steak in terms of meat quality.

I feed mine on Royal Canin biscuits and Feringa/Thrive wet food x1 a day.

One of my cats is eating Blink cat food - he ate Felix AGAIL for years happily but then he developed digestive issues and was looking really scraggy. Swapped him onto Blink and he is absolutely thriving.

We rarely see our cat, she has the cheapest fish flavour biscuits available all of the time. She supplements with rodents or birds and we supplement with cheap canned or reduced fish. Usually sardines or sprats, raw and whole. The price per kilo of some wet cat food and they may as well eat human food.

Mine is currently on Natures Menu Country Hunter, but only 3 of the 4 flavours meaning I have to buy individual boxes! He has 2 pouches a day and 2 small bowls of James Wellbeloved dry food, one at lunch and the other if when I get up during the night. I can't leave dry down for him as he doesn't understand the concept of self regulation!

Forgot - should have added that our two boys so supplement their diet with loads of meat. They are mouse catching machines

They have ice buckets of water distributed around the house that they drink from regularly. I seem to recall that Big Cats prefer not to drink where they eat (as they want to protect their kill) - and that certainly seems to be the case with our wee cats