[Chestersmom]

First off I would like to introduce me and my kitty baby. I adopted Chester, a Maine coon mix, a few months ago. I have tried him on different foods that include Iams ( I got this free when I got him), Nutro max, Chicken soup which I had to have shipped, and now I am trying Natural balance. I just started him on it today. I was wondering if this was any good. I really haven't seen someone say anything about it. By the way it is the cal reduced because he is a little overweight. Here is their list of some of their ingredients starting from the beginning:

Brown rice, chicken meal, chicken, oat fiber, lamb meal, oatmeal, potatoes, duck, natural flavor, fish meal, carrots, canola oil, brewers yeast, skim milk, and so on.

Can someone please tell me what they think. Oh by the way I loved chicken soup, but Chester had a hard time with the shapes and wasn't able to eat it without tiny pieces being left in his bowl. He had some of the natural balance today and loved it! They were round so he was able to eat much better. Sorry for the long post! I would really like to know your opinions. Thanks so much again!

Jennifer

 

[Strawberries]

Jennifer I am no expert at all and I will be interested to read the replies you get.

 

[TAsunder]

Brown rice as the first ingredient is not good. You always want protein as the first ingredient. Otherwise those ingredients are pretty good.

 

[drjean]

In dry food, there will always be a high grain content. If a meat like "chicken" is listed as the first ingredient in a dry food, it is a marketing ploy to cover up a less-than-ideal food. Pedigree is the glaring example here. Brown rice is certainly a whole lot better than corn, and listing it first shows that at least they're honest.

You might want to read my article on selecting a good commercial pet food, for info on what exactly the ingredients are and how to know what's a good food and what to stay away from. It's in our library, http://www.littlebigcat.com/index.php?action=library

Cheers,
Dr. Jean

 

[Sol]

I personally wouldn't feed my cats food that't based on grains and different kinds of meat meals. Dr.Jeans article is very good.

 

[TAsunder]

I'm confused by your post, drjean. You say that using chicken as the first ingredient is a ploy, but then in your article you say that a named meat or meat meal should be listed first in a good food.

 

[Chestersmom]

Thank you all for your responses. The food that I am feeding him is low calorie. Should I just switch him to the regular? This is the ingredient list for the regular:

Chicken, chicken meal, brown rice, duck, lamb meal, potatoes, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols, vitamin E, and rosemary extract), canola oil, oatmeal, fish meal, brewers yeast, dried skim milk, natural flavor, dried eggs, flaxseed oil, kelp, garlic, dl-methionine, glucosamine hydrochloride, cranberry powder, grapeseed oil, lecithin, parsley flakes, tomato pomace, taurine, zinc sulfate, vitamin E supplement, niacin, vitamin B12 supplement, vitamin A acetate, riboflavin, thiamine mononitrate, vitamin D3 supplement, biotin, vitamin C supplement, yucca schidigera extract, folic acid, copper sulfate, manganous oxide, menadione sodium bisulfite complex (a source of vitamin K activity), pyridoxine hydrochloride, ethylene dihydriodide, sodium selenite

I also feed him a little of their canned food. These are their first six ingredients:Chicken, chicken broth, chicken liver, duck, salmon, carrots

I just want to feed him the best that I can afford. My dog is currently on Nutro puppy, but I would also like to switch him to this brand. Your opinions really help me with my decision. Thank you all in advance. So sorry by the way for the long post. Jennifer

 

[AngelZoo]

If your looking for help with weightloss, a good canned food would be your best bet, as it's calorie content is far less then any dry foods.

If you can only feed dry food however, I would mention Chicken Soup for the Cat Lovers Soul - Light. It only has 302 kcals/per cup which is good for a non perscription dry food, and here is the jist of the ingredient listing for you.
"Chicken, salmon, chicken meal, whole grain brown rice, oatmeal, whole grain white rice..."

Now, Natural Balance canned foods are also good, and possibly a better option for your weight loss plan, and wet food is generally better for your cat. Out of their 4 cans, the better of them are the Natural Balance Ultra, and Natural Balance Ocean Fish.

Make sure you monitor your cats weight closely so you can tell if you are making any progress on said food.

 

[drjean]

I'm confused by your post, drjean. You say that using chicken as the first ingredient is a ploy, but then in your article you say that a named meat or meat meal should be listed first in a good food.

In dry food, a named meat meal should be the first ingredient. In wet food, it should be a named meat. "Chicken" as an ingredient in dry food is deliberately misleading and solely done for marketing purposes. Ingredients are listed by weight. Chicken, at 70% water content, is heavy. A little bit of chicken, therefore, will weigh more than a meal or grain, and rise to the top of the list by virtue of the water.

Cheers,
Dr. Jean

 

[Aimee]

I like Natural Balance pet foods a lot. IMHO, they're of great quality. My cats are on the Chicken Soup dry currently, but we've used the NB dry before, both dogs and cats, and really liked the results.