Okay, what’s the consensus on freeze dried?
http://www.stellaandchewys.com/cat-products.php
I called the Feline’s Pride people and they were very helpful. Shipping to CO is just over $50 for 20#, which brings price per pound up to about $7. They also said that there were a couple people in my area that used the product and we could combine shipping to save $$.
Don’t mean to highjack the thread but I’m curious as to why so many seem to be against fish in their cats’ diet? What’s wrong with fish?
Seems to me fish is a good source of high quality protein, not to mention the omega 3s. Is beef really considered a more suitable protein for a small carnivore?
My kitties like B.G. canned cat food (Before Grain).
They have single ingredient chicken and turkey.
[QUOTE=rcloisonne;5670111]
Don’t mean to highjack the thread but I’m curious as to why so many seem to be against fish in their cats’ diet? What’s wrong with fish?
Seems to me fish is a good source of high quality protein, not to mention the omega 3s. Is beef really considered a more suitable protein for a small carnivore?[/QUOTE]
I have a cat that cannot tolerate fish due to allergies/IBD. I wouldn’t work so hard to avoid it otherwise, although I do believe there’s some evidence fish can set off urinary issues.
[QUOTE=Simkie;5669661]
CGPL, how do you feed the stuff from Hare Today? If I were to use the Ground Chicken, Bones, Organs, do I have to supplement with anything? [/QUOTE]
Nope. That has the appropriate bone/organ/meat ratio and vitamins, for chicken. The big difference is that canned is nutritionally complete on a “by meal” basis while you have to vary the raw diet some to cover what each protein source might be lacking, or supplement. I feed a lot of rabbit, which is low in Taurine, so I supplement that a couple times a week if I’m not balancing it with high Taurine meats like heart and chicken thighs.
[QUOTE=Simkie;5669867]
I did find a couple raw cat foods without all the extra crap:
The Rad stuff is expensive at ~$9/pound, but the Feline’s Pride stuff looks better, although they have a cart/checkout process that does not allow me to see final shipping charges without entering in my CC number (grrr…)[/QUOTE]
The pre-made raw I started with (found locally) was crazy expensive and often appeared to be thawed and refrozen a couple times. Every process raw goes through, including grinding and freezing, degrades some of the nutrients so I was never sure if my cats got everything they needed out of it. They seem to prefer what I get from Hare Today, anyway.
[QUOTE=Simkie;5669927]Okay, what’s the consensus on freeze dried?
http://www.stellaandchewys.com/cat-products.php
I called the Feline’s Pride people and they were very helpful. Shipping to CO is just over $50 for 20#, which brings price per pound up to about $7. They also said that there were a couple people in my area that used the product and we could combine shipping to save $$.[/QUOTE]
I got some dehydrated meat, thinking I could use it for sitters, but my cats wouldn’t touch it. Even as a treat. Going back to processing, I’m not sure it ends up at nutritious as it started either.
I 'd have to go back and look at receipts but it seems like I always pay around $20 for shipping to NoVa from HT, no matter how much I buy. If you set up an account, it will give you shipping charges and you can save your cart. Tracy is usually there to answer the phone or email and very easy to deal with, too.
PS – A good way to start without diving in head first is to pick up good quality chicken (breast or thigh) at the grocery story and lay some on a plate beside their regular meal. As long as they are still getting canned, you don’t need to worry about bones or organs.
If they don’t touch it, try chopping and adding to the canned. If they take to it right away, that’s half the battle and you can start phasing out the canned.
I hit up my local fancy pet store this weekend and came away with the following items:
Before Grain Chicken
Canine Caviar Chicken
RadCat Chicken Raw
Stella and Chewy’s Dehydrated Chicken
The Canine Caviar has not impressed the meows. It looked promising, as three of the four were eating right away, but they left perhaps 3/4 of the can the first night and nearly all of it the second night. Next!
The BG has been much better received and just might be the answer to my EVO issue. Yay! I will pick up more tonight.
The first few nuggets Stella and Chewy’s I rehydrated and offered were eaten overnight, but subsequent offerings have been refused. It’s also HORRIBLY expensive–guessing about $20/day to feed my four. (Feeding instructions on the package are quite vague, so we’d have to play with serving sizes a bit to figure out what’s right, so it’s hard to nail down a $/day amount.)
The raw RadCat has been thawing in the fridge and we’ll give it a go tonight.
CGPL, what, exactly, do you mean when you say:
That has the appropriate bone/organ/meat ratio and vitamins, for chicken.
With my allergy/IBD cat, I really cannot play around with swapping protein sources. Would I be okay feeding the hare today chicken grind all the time, or do they assume you swap? Just want to make sure I understand 100% 
Just like you wouldn’t be healthy on a diet of only chicken and salad, there has to be some variation with raw or supplementation. Any protein will be rich in some nutrients and low others so you do need find at least one other complimentary source. Didn’t you say turkey was okay? That may be enough or you could find raw is tolerated better than canned so you have more options. It’s fine to start off with chicken and stick to that for weeks, though.
I feed roughly 50% rabbit, 25% chicken and 25% quail with up to 50% canned thrown in when I’m having a really bad week. That is only a recent thing after months of 100% raw. If the BG works for you, a great compromise might be to feed that one meal and raw chicken the other, or mix them at all meals. You’d get most of the benefits of raw and not have to worry so much that they are getting everything they need. It also makes the transition waaaaay less stressful and easy to go back to canned if raw doesn’t work for you.
Whatever you decide, take it really slow. I pushed too hard in the beginning, overwhelmed the cats and got frustrated. Once I let them switch at their own pace, it all fell into place.
I second Before Grain.
I wish they had a rabbit offering.
The Rad Cat raw was a success for two of the cats, but the other two were not impressed–and, of course, the picky, pain in the ass cat was one that was not impressed.
I’m not sure if we’re going to pursue raw or just stick with the Before Grain, but I am happy that I’ve found something the cats like well enough!
I’m glad you found something that works.
Talking about raw has inspired me to go back to it 100%. Princess Cat is not happy she doesn’t get special treatment. :lol:
Just a follow up on this, as I know there are some people here who feed EVO and might have been looking for something different:
The Before Grain stuff ROCKS. My cats LOVE IT and they are eating SO WELL. They are all excited to be fed and eat right away, which they did not do with the EVO. My picky pain in the ass cat is hoovering it, gaining weight, and is off of sub q fluids and her appetite stimulant. We thought her on and off inappetance was due to very low grade renal disease–I did not think it was just that she DID. NOT. LIKE. the EVO. She is much happier now (and so are we!)
I may still explore raw, but I’m far less anxious about it now, as the cats are doing really well on the Before Grain!
That’s great!
I came across Wysong Au Jus the other day and, even though it’s not a complete food, it sounds like it could be a healthy-ish occasional snack.
My old guy thinks those Wellness pouches are to die for but he only laps up the gravy. If I can get my hands on the Wysong, I’m hoping it will feed his juice addiction and be something to mix into their not-so-favorite raw meals.
The rest of their line seemed mediocre, though.
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