What is the best cat food?

[dogsgalore]

I was looking for cat food and I want to know which kind is the best. I've heard that ground corn is not good for dogs and isn't put in Natural Choice brands but it is put in Natural Choice cat food. Is it okay for cats? Any advice would be appreciated. :)

[TDG]

unlike dogs, cats are obligate carnivores, so they [b]need[/b] meat in their diet to stay healthy and are much more likely to be affected by a poor quality food than dogs.

for dry foods to be extruded, the food mix has to have a grain content of about 50% for the manufacturing process to even work, otherwise the extruder gets clogged up. so you can be pretty sure that the top-quality foods have about 50% meat content, while cheaper types of food may just have 12-15%.

corn is not a bad ingredient in itself (not even for dogs!) but is one of the least digestible grains, rice is the most digestible, and neither should be the main source of protein in a quality food for cats [b]or[/b] dogs.

3 other things you should be concerned about in a cat food is ash level, magnesium level and phosphorus level. feeding a food high in phosphorus can lead to damaged kidneys and kidney failure, high ash/magnesium levels are bad for the urinary tract.

natural balance, innova, felidae and wellness are top-quality cat foods, only to name a few. i used to feed my cats nutro and i can only say the change has been dramatic since i switched them to innova, plus their poop doesn't smell as bad and there is less "material" to clean up from the litterboxes.

[briards]

well my cat has tried all brands of foods (well nearly all) she never tolerated proper food even like cooked chicken..if u try to give her anything 'natural' she just ignores it so ive got a weird cat
she also picked pauches of whiskas and kitekat and dried friskies and royal (she wont eat dried whiskas nor ktiekat for example)

thats about all she eats

[Aonir]

I feed my cats Wellness Cat Food.. There is also Felidae for cats. But I'm sticking to the same brand for both cats and dogs ;)

[alicat613]

Felidae is great but my cats didn't like it.
I feed Natural Balance and Wellness (Salmon formula and Chicken formula). My cats like variety, and since they won't do raw, this is the best I can do!

[wolfsoul]

After I move out, my cat will be on Foundations. It's a very high quality food, made by Petcurean. :) It's also not as expensive as some foods.

[Pokey318]

Both of my cats have been on Wellness since November and have done very well. Less hairballs and shedding. They are almost 8 years old and long haired. One has asthma and hasn't had an attack since the change in food. Before Wellness they were eating Science Diet hairball formula.

[DogPaddle]

I struggled for years to get Mroo to put on weight. She was often around 5lbs and would whine if picked up - not enough padding. She just hated to eat and often threwup. Eventually I tried Solid Golds cat food and she threwup less and picked up some weight, better coat and happier. When I put the boys on Canidae I tried Felidae for the girls - score. No throwing up, up to 6 1/2 lbs, gorgous coat and a much happier kitty. Oh the litter box is a touch better too. Felidae (and Canidae) are excellent foods and when you look at how little you need to feed, they are an excellent price as well.

[bk_blue]

I wouldn't have a clue what a "good" cat food is. IMO, a good cat food is one that Lily will eat!!! And even that depends on her mood!!! :roll: :lol: She does, however, have a fetish for Whiskas Cravers dry food... naturally, because they only come in tiny packs at AUD$3 a pop and she goes through several packets a week (none of the big boxes of cat food for HER. :lol: :roll: ). Also Fancy Feast, but only the tiny, expensive sachets, not the tins. :roll: :wink: We tried her on some high-end cat food and she refused to touch it. Even Brodie (next door's cat who eats anything) wouldn't eat it. :D Lily does like raw meat (salmon mince, cooked chicken, etc). She has also taken to dragging Lizie's unfinished bones around the backyard while Lizie (my sister's border collie) watches forlornly- Lizie, who is about ten times the size of Lily, is scared of her.