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TCama
June 6, 2009 1:32 AM
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Just in case anyone is in the same boat as me ...

If you don't have the bag anymore, but still have food, the store might still give you your money back if you have a receipt as well. I did this with PetSmart and got a refund for the full price of the food.

My cat on the other hand doesn't quite like Blue Buffalo ... yet ...

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serreca
June 6, 2009 1:34 AM
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@TCama: Innova EVO. Best cat food on the market in my opinion. Grain-free, high protein, and my (picky) cats love it.

[www.naturapet.com]

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t0ph
June 6, 2009 4:14 AM
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@serreca: Thanks. I have been looking for an alternative food for my cat - she eats Purina and it upsets her stomach. I am going to give this a try.

Would you happen to know if I have to ease her onto new food or can I just switch it up one day?

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sinfonian94
June 6, 2009 8:58 AM
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@t0ph: Always a good idea to ease into a new food. My cat has an iron stomach, but many don't. At a minimum, you want to do it over a week. At least 2 days of 25% new food, 2 days of 50% new food, 2 days of 75% new food. Slower than that is OK.

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serreca
June 6, 2009 4:18 AM
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@t0ph: I'm not a vet or anything, but I love to read stuff about cats, and it seems like most experts recommend slowly mixing in the new food with the old. Like, for a week do 25% new food, 75% old, then the following week 50/50, and so forth.

With my cats, we did an immediate switch, though, and it didn't seem to adversely affect them. I hope yours will like the EVO.

As a side note, we actually mix the EVO with Innova Light Adult food, because one of our cats is on the portly side.

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Jim Topoleski
June 6, 2009 4:47 AM
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@serreca: It does depend on the cat. My female maine coon will actually get constipation from food switches, while my males (one a maine coon as well the other just a stray) have no problems with switches, and are not picky eaters in general.

Same with litter though, switching suddenly can be bad, and can result in a nice little present to step in and smell.

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subtlefrog
June 6, 2009 4:02 PM
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@Jim Topoleski @t0ph: my little cat used to get the runs if I even thought about switching his food too quickly. So yeah, definitely depends on the cat...

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Nate128
June 6, 2009 1:59 AM
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@serreca: Why does that food have \"whole, raw fruits and vegetables that contain health promoting phytochemicals and micronutrients\" in it? If I'm not mistaken cats are strictly carnivorous and don't need fruits and veggies to get nutrients (they all come from the meat they eat), and its also upsetting to their digestive system.

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amandakerik
June 6, 2009 5:02 PM
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@Nate128: Because in the wild when they kill and eat an animal one of the first things they consume are the soft areas - stomach and such. This includes the contents of the stomach and other digestive areas. Cats also eat grass from time to time to mimic this.

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mmmsoap
June 6, 2009 3:26 PM
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@Nate128: Yes, their strictly carnivorous, in that in the wild they only eat what they hunt.

However, just as all carnivores, there are nutrients they need from vegetable matter. In the wild, carnivores eat the stomach contents of their prey (usually herbivores) as well, getting those nutrients. Big cats can't digest grass, for example, but they can digest the partially-digested vegetation inside the antelope.

So our domestic kitties need the same nutrients, but with bagged food they don't get the whole \"experience.\" They need some veggies, but the veggies have to be pulverized/processed a bit to be accessible for their systems.

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sinfonian94
June 6, 2009 8:55 AM
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@Nate128: Here's a common pet food myth. Cats are not \"strictly\" carnivorous in the sense that they ONLY eat meat. They are carnivorous in the sense that they MUST have meat in their diet. They need it because they cannot synthesize Taurine from non meat sources. However, cats DO eat plants in the wild. It helps with digestion.
Remember.... Pet food marketing reps are trying to sell you THEIR food, and will tell you whatever it takes to buy ONLY THEIR FOOD. A marketing rep or a website run by people with no credentials is NOT an appropriate source of information.

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Jim Topoleski
June 6, 2009 3:00 AM
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@Nate128: you are mistaken. Cats are more carnivorous omnivores. They primarily eat meat, but have domesticated to the point where they do need some vegetable matter in their system.

Thats why you have to be VERY careful what plants you have in your house as they will eat them if they feel like it.

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missy070203
June 6, 2009 1:13 PM
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@Jim Topoleski: I have three cats and my youngest cat will eat any living thing I keep in the house.... potted plants, fresh flowers, my daughters gold fish..... he even got the hamster out of the cage once but I saved him....

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Jim Topoleski
June 6, 2009 2:02 PM
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@missy070203: yep our stray boy will eat plastic bags if I dont hide them fast enough after coming home. And he LOVES bread... he can go through a hotdog bun bag and eat a whole bun like its no ones business.

But flowers are his favorite after wet food.

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subtlefrog
June 6, 2009 4:05 PM
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@Jim Topoleski: Mine loved chick peas and tomato paste. If I opened a can of either, I HAD to give him some or there would be hell to pay. And despite his very delicate constitution, he never barfed from either of those. Almost anything else, and often on my bed, yes. But not from the chick peas or tomato paste.

He as a strange kitteh.

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edwardso
June 6, 2009 2:26 PM
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@Jim Topoleski: My cat loves plastic bags too, or any sort of crinkly plastic wrapping

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serreca
June 6, 2009 3:18 AM
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@Jim Topoleski: This is true. I have seen many cats eat grass.

Liked I said, I did tons of research when we first adopted our cats, on the best foods, and EVO came out on top in my opinion. It is more expensive than, say, Purina, but well worth it to me.

We also feed EVO Light to our dog.

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Nate128
June 6, 2009 4:50 AM
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@serreca: @Jim Topoleski: The reason cats eat grass (or attempt to eat houseplants) is because it triggers a regurgitation process that is used to remove obstructions such as hairballs from their system. Cats do not have any enzymes in their system to break down plant matter, and when fed a diet that includes plants it will either pass through the digestive system without being absorbed or will cause complications.

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sinfonian94
June 6, 2009 9:00 AM
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@Nate128: Not true. Cats can and do digest plant matter. I'd be interested in seeing your source for this information. I'll bet anything it isn't from any actual scientific veterinary research, but from a marketing rep.

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Nate128
June 6, 2009 4:25 PM
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@sinfonian94: From the encyclopedia of animal science:
[books.google.com]

But apparently I'm getting information from \"a marketing rep?\" Yes, I happen to have marketing reps in my fridge. I just pull them out, add water, and then they grow to full size and start feeding me information that I can post on a consumer blog. Good eye for that kind of thing!

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Jim Topoleski
June 7, 2009 1:12 AM
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@Nate128: If you had actually read what you posted, you would have realized the VERY first paragraph disputed your claims that they where strict carnivores by pointing out that while their ancestors where, domesticated cats have evolved away from that somewhat (which is what I stated at the very beginning)

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Nate128
June 7, 2009 2:27 AM
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@Jim Topoleski: And to just clarify, the the only point I'm disputing is that cats need vegetables in their system. In your words: \"domesticated to the point where they do need some vegetable...\" Please give me a scientific source that states that cats NEED vegetable matter in their system.

Here's another site: [felineinstincts.ca]
\"Biologists describe no feline species as omnivore (eating every kind of food). Likewise, no one has observed the behavior of eating plant matter in these cats. Particularly the African Wildcat's natural environment is not one that supports lush plant growths to encourage the eating of abundant vegetation. Of all 46 cat species known, the only one to take fruit as part of its diet is the Margay (Leopardus wiedi) from South America. I would like to add, however, that the Margay is somewhat of an exception in other areas of its behavior as well.\"

\"2. Cats have not adapted to be eating fruit and vegetables by means of their prey's stomach content

...We know from previous studies that an adult cat needs to eat an average of five mice or 140g of mouse per day to meet her daily caloric requirement. Dissections of wild mice have revealed that a single mouse stomach - always found to be full - weighs 2 grams. The contents varied seasonally from blackberries, to nuts, to greens. Therefore, the cat would - in my opinion 'accidentally' - ingest10 gram or 2 teaspoons of plant matter as part of her daily meal of mice. More often than not, however, cats skillfully avoid eating part or all of the digestive tract, leaving the evidence of your cat's 'Good Mousekeeping' at your doorstep. The images below demonstrate such 'evidence', left behind by my cats just at the inside of the cat door on our hardwood floor.\"

3. Cats do not rely on nutrients found in fruits and vegetables

The cat is classified as a true or obligate carnivore, evolved to exist on animal matter alone. The cat lives and thrives on an exclusive diet of mammal tissue, and does not rely on nutrients from plant source - not even vitamin C! Fact is that there are no nutrients essential to the cat in plant matter, which are not already provided in her animal matter diet - enzymes and antioxidants included.
Extraction of nutrients from plant matter requires bacterial fermentation of the cellulose based plant structure. The cat has a very simple digestive tract insufficient for bacterial fermentation. Food entering the cat's stomach is broken down by acids and enzymes produced by the cat, and the nutrients are absorbed in the small intestine. Indigestible proteins from bones, skin, and hair/feathers make the bulk of the cat's feces, which are evacuated after water has been reabsorbed by the large intestine. No need for fiber. Very simple! What a picture-perfect image of a predator, who simply absorbs other animals for its own survival.\"

There's more on the site, but you get the picture.

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trujunglist
June 8, 2009 11:58 PM
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@Nate128:

I saw a Wild Boyz that had a Margay in it (cue gay jokes from Wild Boyz) and it looked absolutely familiar... like, as in, it looked almost exactly like a house cat. It's the same size as a house cat and even appears to have some of the same demeanor as a regular house cat. That doesn't support your point very well, considering that the Margay is probably the closest to a house cat you can find in the wild.
Domesticated further, it would not surprise me one bit to see cats evolving to be able to take on some vegetable matter. Whether they actually get use out of it and if it hurts them otherwise is another question. You yourself can load up on vitamins, but you will end up pissing or shitting them out. I doubt it's much different for a cat that ingests something it doesn't really need. In the case of cat food, the vegetable matter is obviously pureed enough so that the complex fibers and what not within the vegetables are no longer hard to digest. My guess is it's similar to whenever a dog or kid or whatever eats dirt/something inedible. It just ends up getting passed. If your theory of \"cat food with veggie matter hurts them\" was true, then my cat that lived for 17 years is proof that you're completely full of shit.

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Nate128
June 17, 2009 6:44 AM
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@trujunglist: The discussion we're having is whether or not cats need vegetable matter in their system. Re-read what I posted. I never said that \"cat food with veggie matter hurts them\" (you quoted something that I never posted? Right on.), I said that plant matter in a cat's diet can cause complications. Why is it known that cats eat grass when they're not feeling well? Because the plant matter in the digestive system activates the regurgitation process. I've not saying that the cat food you buy at the store with plant matter in it is going to kill your cat. If you think that's what I'm saying, then you're the one \"completely full of shit.\"

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Nate128
June 7, 2009 2:18 AM
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@Jim Topoleski: I did read what I posted, thanks. Please tell me where it states that they \"evolved away from that somewhat\" as you say?

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edwardso
June 6, 2009 1:35 PM
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@sinfonian94: I read that they ate it because they like it but it doesn't digest properly so they throw it up

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serreca
June 6, 2009 2:05 AM
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@Nate128: Well, I don't have the money or time to feed a raw diet, which would be ideal, but the EVO is the best commercial cat food I've found on the market.

My cats are healthy, shiny, energetic, and playful, and love the food.

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arukian
June 6, 2009 2:11 AM
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For 2-3 months, I have been fighting some kind of skin disease on my 2 cats. At first, the vets thought it was ringworm... but when it kept getting worse (one of my cats seems to be chewing holes in herself) they started looking for other things. We have ruled out mites, fleas, feline Leukemia, FIV, the list goes on and on. I paid to have a skin biopsy done on one of my cats about a week ago and should have results in a few days. The vet says this should rule out a number of other things and may show if it is some kind of \"food allergy.\"
I feed my cats MaxCat... and while I'm not exactly happy about the recall, I'm yelling \"Eukreka\" right now because we might finally be able to figure out what caused the problem in the first place.
I've already contacted Nutro about my problem to see if they've heard of any similar cases. I'll update when I hear back from them.

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Glenn Gulley
June 6, 2009 3:28 AM
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@arukian:

Switch to a food that doesn't have corn in it. Nutro Max typically has wheat of some sort which is a common food allergen. Nutro Natural Choice is their higher end line and will use rice instead of wheat or corn. Much better for their skin. Vets tend to look internally first for skin issues instead of food related solutions, in my experience (in the industry) a change in diet clears up a vast majority of the skin issues. When you favorite tool is a hammer all problems look like nails...

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sinfonian94
June 6, 2009 9:03 AM
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@Glenn Gulley: However, corn is rarely an allergen. This is a common baseless allegation. Stats on corn digestibility and the rarity of it as an allergen are available in the Hand/Novotny Pocket Guide to Small Animal Clinical Nutrition. but hey... what do those vets know, anyway.

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Laura Northrup
June 6, 2009 2:30 PM
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@sinfonian94: My dog had terrible skin problems and is now off all wheat and corn as much as possible. Skin trouble has mostly cleared up. Go figure.

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babyruthless
June 6, 2009 3:41 PM
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@Laura Northrup: My parents' beagly mutt had ridiculous skin problems (i.e. no fur over 50% of her body, scabs everywhere, crustiness, constant itching--she was painful to look at). My parents were at wits end. They had been to doggie allergists, were giving shots (until Miss Bingo bit my mom during an injection session--that marked the end of the allergy shots, which had never been terribly effective).


After having tried many, many things (including a dog food switch to Eukanuba), they, on the advice of my mom's coworker, switched to Nutro Natural (the \"middle\" tier of Nutro food). It worked like a charm--she went from being this sad pile of icky dog that no one wanted to touch to a happy, vibrant doggie who lived out the rest of her years with just the occasional (very minor) skin flare up.


A couple of years ago, I got puppies, and they were starting to chew on their feet. We switched from the Puppy Chow the pound had started them on to Nutro Natural, and they stopped chewing pretty much immediately. We try not to give them corn, but they love popcorn so much (and we are not always the neatest popcorn eaters), and I have noticed that they get a little itchy when they have more than a little bit of corn. So maybe they're not allergic, but maybe they are, and it's worth it to me to feed them corn- and wheat-free food to avoid the heartaches of Miss Bingo, who was definitely allergic to corn/grass/human dander/everything imaginable, but removing corn seemed to do the trick.

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trujunglist
June 9, 2009 12:11 AM
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@Glenn Gulley:

I dunno what vet you go to, but every time I hear about a dog having skin problems, my first reaction is that it's an allergy to the food. Why? Because my dog went through the same thing and it took us a long time to find a food that wouldn't make him bald and rashy. Eventually we did find one, and he grew back his thick, beautiful, lion mane of a coat that he originally had.

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The_IT_Crone
June 6, 2009 3:01 AM
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@arukian: And maybe they will foot your vet bills.

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Illusio26
June 6, 2009 5:01 AM
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Our cats started randomly puking a month or so ago. We had no idea what it was, I just checked our bag and the expiration date is May 11 2010. This could explain what has been happening with them.

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greenunicorns
June 7, 2009 5:48 AM
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@darkjedi26:

After the lethal catfood (wiskas?) recall a few years ago, i decided it would be wise to always stay one large bag of catfood ahead of my cat. So, I buy a large-ish bag when i already have a large-ish bag waiting to be used up. Now, if there is a recall, the brand-new bag i have purchased will probably have been sitting in the closet for several weeks before I open it up, and any recall information will have reached me by the time I'm ready to open it up.

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existent80
June 6, 2009 5:09 AM
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I would recommend checking out Dr. Fox, who runs a syndicated column \"Animal Doctor\" at the Washington Post:
[www.washingtonpost.com]
he's got a lot to say about pet nutrition affecting animals' overall health, and advocates a cheap, homemade holistic recipe for cat and dog food at:
[www.twobitdog.com]

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qxrt
June 6, 2009 7:38 AM
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Wow, you didn't even need an excuse to post cats this time. Haha

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sinfonian94
June 6, 2009 9:12 AM
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Check out the blood red eyes on the kitty second from the left. Gotta love redeye from the camera.

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morlo
June 6, 2009 12:55 PM
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@sinfonian94: A better explanation would be that the camera is seeing infrared emissions from a demonic entity, since only one cat has red eyes

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Trai_Dep
June 6, 2009 11:47 PM
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@morlo: But this assumes that the other two kitties are absent of demonic possession, which we all know is an epistemological impossibility.

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edwardso
June 6, 2009 1:37 PM
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Shit, there goes the one food my cat loves. I've bought him all the best organic and natural foods but he loves his junk food, and occasionally the dogs (I've talked to the vet about it, as long as it's not the sole source of food he'll be ok)

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Yamunation
June 7, 2009 4:14 PM
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@edwardso:
It's one of the few brands my cat likes too, but I hadn't thought of Nutro as junk food. It's the only cheap brand that doesn't use meat by-products, which is why I buy it.

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twonewfs
June 6, 2009 9:00 PM
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@edwardso: Have you tried Chicken Soup for the Cat lover's Soul? Some of the premium firms, like Wellness (which my cats hate) or Eagle Pack have gone through changes in ownership - sometimes more than once. And my cats never liked Blue Buffalo, even when I was a BB rep and got free bags! Go figure.

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GildaKorn
June 6, 2009 7:57 PM
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@edwardso: You could still buy this same food, just not from the bad batch.

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The_IT_Crone
June 6, 2009 6:05 PM
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@edwardso: Wow, your cat eats dogs? That's hardcore!

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Trai_Dep
June 6, 2009 11:54 PM
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@The_IT_Crone: Finally, a worthwhile use for the Chihuahua!

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Emily Burt
June 6, 2009 2:36 PM
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Cats are obligate carnivores. They do not need plant matter in their diet. Just because they do eat something, doesn't mean it's good for them. And this information is not coming from pet food manufacturers, but rather from the veterinarians that I work with at a cat-only practice.

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LilBadKitty
June 8, 2009 1:23 AM
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@Emily Burt: Actually, the perfect cat food is mice. They're nutritionally perfect for their digestive systems. The cats do get a nominal amount of grain and grass from the stomachs of the mice.


Beef, chicken, fish, etc. would not be the normal diet of a domestic cat. It would be a bit tough for a 10 lb. cat - wild or domestic - to take down a cow. So if you really want to create a \"natural\" diet for your cat, start breeding your own mice.

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Jim Topoleski
June 7, 2009 1:40 AM
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@Emily Burt: That idea has been disputed by environmental scientists for ages now. Wild cats don't need it, but domesticated cats have at this point after centuries of domestication (in fact cats are at this point more domesticated than dogs) become dependent on a certain amount of vegetation in their diet.

I am sorry but your friends are wrong, as most veterinarians tend to be. Just because they study pet medicine does in no way mean they know pet dietary concerns. In fact you will find often they have no clue sadly and give people wrong information.

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AcceleratedDragon
June 7, 2009 5:30 AM
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@Jim Topoleski:
\"become dependent on a certain amount of vegetation in their diet.\"
Can you cite a source? (Not from a vegan cat food site please) Cats can create glucose from protein sources, and have NO NEED for grains or vegetation. If you feed a cat a 100% meat protein (fish, poultry, beef, etc) diet it will not be nutritionally lacking in any way.
A small amount of starch to hold a kibble's shape together is ok. Touting corn as an ingredient that's good for your cat isn't ok.
Yes, cats have been domesticated for thousands of years, but the modern pet food industry has only been around for less than 100 years. So cats weren't eating a kibble composed mostly of corn or wheat for only a short time.

\"they have no clue sadly and give people wrong information.\"
I think statement applies to you in this particular case.

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babyruthless
June 6, 2009 3:48 PM
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My parents' cat had disgusting intestinal issues that caused more than a few nasty out-of-litterbox events, bloody stool, the works. The vet postulated that she has celiac disease (or something similar--she is officially undiagnosed, because my mom prefers to go the \"so how would we treat that\" route and skip painful, expensive tests, especially when the Doc isn't trying to rule between possible diagnoses) and set her on a new diet. He prescribed cat food (I hadn't even know that there was such a thing), and tried all sorts of stuff before my parents found a raw chicken diet for the kitty. It involved, in short, grinding up a whole chicken (bones and all!), adding some extra livers and hearts (or taurine pills from GNC, because Red Bull has made chicken hearts a rare commodity--gross, huh?) and serving it. They hated the work, and ended up finding a supplement pack that they could add to ground turkey, and she loves it. Her tummy issues are resolved, and she's starting to gain weight (she is an old kitty--18 I think, and had gotten down to 6 pounds). She has pretty much 0 plant matter in her diet, except when she poaches off houseplants.

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wndbread
June 6, 2009 3:58 PM
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I found that one of the bags I had was within the window. Petsmart was great about it. I switched to Natural Balance (another good brand), which my cats love, and still has good content in it.

What really bothers me is the Vets that get paid to endorse Science Diet. Which doesn't have the best ingredients.

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melrd
August 28, 2009 1:57 PM
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Science Diet certainly does not have the best ingredients, it is full of bi-products (head, feet and intestines) instead of whole meat. The vet's will always endorse Science Diet because they help pay for their schooling

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sinfonian94
June 6, 2009 8:42 PM
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@wndbread: Vets don't get paid to endorse Science Diet. And Natural Balance is OK for adult animals, but I would NEVER feed it to kittens or puppies. Extremely low levels of fat and protein for developing animals. No large breed formulas, no lifestaging. Natural Balance looks really good... if you have no understanding of animal nutrition.

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twonewfs
June 6, 2009 9:01 PM
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@sinfonian94: Then - I've never understood why a vet would sell such a corn/cheap grain based food - unless they were getting some sort of kickback. What's the deal?

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HogwartsAlum
June 6, 2009 9:15 PM
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Whew, this isn't my kitty food.

I took Pig to the vet this morning to get her shots. She's not happy with me. She gets some hairballs and I try to brush her as much as I can. The vet said she looks pretty good and has lost a little weight (last time they said she was too fat). I had switched her to a low fat food called ProPac from Meow Mix. It stopped the vomiting too.

She gets some soft food three times a week too and likes that a lot. On days when she doesn't get it, she'll look at her food, then look at me and go, \"Mrraaauuuuwwww?\" like \"What the fracking hell?! Where's the fish stuff?? Crap!\"

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AlphaWolf
June 7, 2009 4:03 AM
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I will spend the rest of my life warning people to avoid avoid avoid Nutro. This is a marketing company, not a nutritional company. They stalled and stalled on this recall.

I spent a ton of money every year on vet bills before I switched to Wellness.

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nygenxer
June 7, 2009 9:23 AM
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About every six months there is a pet food recall and I post this solution.

It's simple: to keep your pets safe, keep enough food on hand that you can store it unopened, waiting at LEAST three months before you begin feeding it to your pets. Just tape the receipt to the bags or cans, store it and wait. This makes returns and identification easy.

Why does this work? Well, most recalls occur about 3 months after the contaminated food leaves the factory. Ergo, do not feed your pets food that is not at least three months old! If three or four months have gone by and great numbers of pets haven't gotten sick or died, you can be reasonably certain that the food you have is not poisonous.

Why three months? Three months is about the minimum amount of time necessary for the food to get to the stores, to be purchased, to be fed to Fluffy and for enough Fluffys to get sick and die for it to be noticed by enough vets to start the investigation that leads to a recall. This process from production to recall takes three months at a minimum. (Which is a LOT better than some human food recalls, strangely enough. I'm looking at you, year-old hamburger meat.)

You're basically letting other people's pets be your pet's food tester. Don't worry about moral quandary because there isn't one. I offer this advice to everyone. If everyone followed my advice, this strategy would not work. BUT, since most people will NOT follow this advice, it WILL work. So you and I and our furry buds get a moral \"get out of jail free\" card for letting someone else test food safety on their pet so you don't have to.

One final note: somebody, inexplicably, ALWAYS asks about expiration dates, as if I were advocating feeding old and spoiled food. To be honest, this kind of stupidity keeps me up at night worried at the thought that the world is so full of morons who vote, drive, reproduce, have access to firearms and are possibly employed in some capacity that can affect the rest of us. But enough about the Bush family. I digress.

So don't be that person and ask that stupid question. For God's sake, I am NOT advising feeding your pets expired food!

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Yamunation
June 7, 2009 4:12 PM
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@nygenxer:
Well, the 3-month rule is a good one to follow.

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korleone
June 7, 2009 8:48 PM
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Thanks Consumerist, You've done it again! We've been wondering why are cat has been loosing weight and vomiting. We were going to call the vet on Mon. We still intend to but at least we were able to switch her food.

Sick thing is, when we went to the store, all the Nutro on the shelf had these exp. dates on them. The store staff didn't seem to overly concerned either.

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Gustastic
June 8, 2009 3:04 AM
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[www.consumeraffairs.com]
Nutro has been going under since they were bought out. Stay away, stay far away.

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whuffo
June 8, 2009 12:10 PM
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I can't believe the amount of BS being spouted here. Before taking any of the advice that's been offered here, speak with your vet or do some serious research. Your cat can't choose what you buy for it to eat so it's your job to see to it that Kitty gets a good diet.

Cats are obligate carnivores. Look it up. Then look at the label on the back of your supermarket cat food and you might discover something.

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squinko
June 8, 2009 1:22 PM
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If you're looking for a good replacement brand for cats, try Solid Gold. I switched from Nutro to SG and it's actually cheaper to feed. Not only does is the unit price lower, but because of the nutritional value, I feed my cat less per day, so the bag lasts longer. It's a definite improvement because she's lost a lot of weight (she's been overweight since we adopted her), her coat looks great and she sheds much less than before. I've only been able to find Solid Gold at Petco, and the bag is either sparkly purple or sparkly gold, depending on the flavor.

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anduin
June 12, 2009 7:23 AM
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get science diet and purina food ! No poison in those and your kitty will love you. mines a white turkish angora, google it, yea he's that luxurious looking

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Anonymous
July 10, 2009 2:31 PM
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My cat got very sick from eating the recalled food (he had gone through an entire bag) before the recall was issued. We spend over $1,800 in vet bills to try to find out what was wrong with him. He went from 11 lbs down to 8.5 lbs and for a few days was throwing up constantly. Nutro's insurance company is willing to refund only PART of my bills unless they have something in writing from a Vet that says his illness was due to the food. WHAT??? Well, they will get the letter which will unfortunaly for them be published elsewhere. So, I am also telling everyone to STAY AWAY from Nutro. My cat has always loved this food and I've been a big promoter of it. Now we're trying to find a better, more trusted choice for him. Suggestions welcomed.

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Anonymous
July 20, 2009 4:53 PM
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My goodness I just started feeding my cats this food, and when i went to Pet Smart to get another bag and they did not have the kind I wanted and I inquired if they had any ,the lady said they had to take it off the shelf b/c it didn't have something in it that it was suppose to have, NOTHING about your cats could get sick, and if you have any throw it away. I just bought and opened a new bag this morning!!!! Now I find there was a recall, Is what is on the shelves ok now?I sure don't want or can afford a vet bill, I have 3 cats!

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k9nkatz
November 28, 2009 6:43 AM
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I'm Ticked!
My cats have been dealing with a skin issue and diarrhea and vomiting. I always have used Iams and why I finaly fell with the crowd saying how horrible Iams was and switched I don't know. Four Cats and several strays were switched to nurtro, I thought maybe a recent addition was the source although he's been here 8 months weve been nursing him back from near death, Now after the past two weeks of vets and internet research and My own skills as a retired AHT I find out the food we switched them to is recalled.

How could I have been so stupid.

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k9nkatz
November 28, 2009 6:44 AM
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I'm Ticked!
My cats have been dealing with a skin issue and diarrhea and vomiting. I always have used Iams and why I finaly fell with the crowd saying how horrible Iams was and switched I don't know. Four Cats and several strays were switched to nurtro, I thought maybe a recent addition was the source although he's been here 8 months weve been nursing him back from near death, Now after the past two weeks of vets and internet research and My own skills as a retired AHT I find out the food we switched them to is recalled.

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