[cookie]

started feeding my cat iams, read on here thats not the best food but its a step up from the cheaper stuff my girlfriend was buying her, anyways this iams cat food stinks, and now my cat's litter box seems to smell more...I"m also using special kitty scoopable litter, would switching to Felidae be better for odor? how about switching to a diff litter?

thanks for any suggestions

 

[Jeanie]

There are many good cat foods on the market. Iams changed hands, and is no longer one of the best. I have heard other people say it causes a bad odor in the feces.

 

[Zalensia]

well before i use to come here, i used to feed my kittens iams, didnt really think anything about it, but like you say thier litter boxes were very stinky, and this was with clean litter every day, i came here and i saw other posts about iams, i think the ring said something about it, so i changed foods, i now use jameswelbeloved kitten food. Well i must say what a huge difference!

i dunno if u are in the uk or not, i know some of the foods we have usa/ etc doesnt, and the ones they do we dont. But the 3 foods i would stay clear of are:- iams/eukanoba (they are the same company) plus iams does animal testing....
and i wouldnt use science plan either, i use to think it was great until i actually took time to read the ingredients, and well in the chicken and turkey flavour i looked at there is no actual meat in it! its all animal fats, chicken/turkey meal/derivatives (beak, bone feathers etc etc) not one bit of meat. Now i know jameswelbeloved has some meat in it, i havent really had a chance to look at other brands in such detail.

 

[andazzo]

I am a marketing rep from PetsMart, just to give you a little background. The reason your cat's poop stinks is because the food it is eating is filled with preservatives, additives, and fillers. You need to understand that cat food can be expensive, but buying cheap cat food is actually more expensive than buying the premium cat food. The cheap cat foods like friskies, cat chow, and whiskas are full of unhealthy fillers. Your cat cannot digest these fillers and poops them out. And by pooping out a lot of the food they are eating they are not be sufficiently nourished. This leads to your cat having to eat more food in order to be full. This is where the money factor comes in. You have to spend twice as much on food to get them the proper diet, because they eat through it so fast. It's better just to buy one bag of premium cat food, than two bags of cheap food. And on a positive note your cat will be healthier, and it won't poop as much and as stinky. There are many high quality cat foods out there, some of which can be hard to find. But if you live by a Petsmart try either Nutro, Authority, Science Diet, Pro Plan, or Eukanuba. They aren't super expensive, and plus Petsmart prices them below regular retail value.

 

[Zalensia]

we allow this sort of selling now?

sorry if this is not my place to be saying this but i come to these forums to read peoples opinions, stories and of course to see kitty pictures!

not some head office goof from petsmart trying to sell his company.

 

[Jeanie]

To be fair to our new member, Petsmart is probably going to make just as much money, regardless of the brand of catfood people buy. It's quite possible that she has studied the matter, because I have heard the same thing from many other cat lovers. I hope our new member is a fellow cat lover just sharing knowledge with us.

 

[Zalensia]

just as a point to add to mr petsmart about cookie buying cheap foods, s/he did say they were using iams, everywhere i have been that is one of the more expensive foods, including in petsmart, or is it just over-priced bad food?

 

[Jeanie]

Unless the price has changed in the last five years, it is a high priced cat food. My cats wouldn't eat it, and I had several coupons for free bags when it first came out. Since then, according to Jessica, a member who works as a vet tech, the company has changed hands, and it is not as good as it was when first introduced.

 

[andazzo]

What is your problem? I was merely giving my two cents about what I know about cat food. I don't even work for PetsMart, I work for a marketing company that represents PetsMart. I'm not trying to sell any certain brand..but since I work in PetsMart stores the ones that I named I'm familiar with. You need to lose the attitude seriously. And just because a product is overpriced doesn't mean it's good. If you have beef with them, take it up with them. I joined these forums to talk about cats too, not be harassed and looked down upon by someone who doesn't even know what they're talking about.

 

[Zalensia]

I am a marketing rep from PetsMart

that usually gives people the impression that you work from someone not different companies who represent them...

 

[AngelZoo]

ROTFL!!!

:lol: :lol: :lol:

Being a rep for PetSmart means nothing, real knowledge is what we care about here, others of us do not flaunt our connections or whom we work for in an attempt to persuade people that we know best.

Besides, you left out the BEST food (ingredient wise) that PetSmart has to offer, it's called Blue, for cats and dogs.
I guess PetSmart has been a little behind on sending out new informational liturature... that's a shame, ask em about it, I'm sure you'd find it to be an impressive food Andazzo.

Cookie dear, here are some good foods, I work for no one, and these are not based on my personal like of them, but scientific facts.
I truely hope you are able to find some food out there availible to you which your cats like, and don't have problems with coming out the other end!

Top Brands of USA (in no real order):
Felidae (the best dry kibble on the market)
Solid Gold
Chicken Soup for the Cat Lovers Soul
Innova
Pinnacle
TimberWolf Organics
Wellness
Natural Balance
Blue
Natures Variety
Evolve
Holistic Blend

Other ok brands some which might be more widly availible for you:
Authority
Nutro Natural
Pro Plan
Bil-Jac
Natures Recipie
Royal Canin
Sensible Choice
Wysong


If you find some other food avalible to you which you would like to try but not sure on it, simply post the brand name here and/or the ingredients as well and we'll all help you out to decide and of said foods health advantages/disadvantages.

Zalzina Do you happen to have aim, or msn etc. I'd be interested in talking with you about foods you have over in the UK

 

[Zalensia]

hehe, its funny you should ask that, as i was reading through your list i was going to say how its a shame i cant get such info about britsh cat foods, the only ones in your list that i have seen in our shops are royal canin and pro plan.

MSN- [email protected] (snJude)
AIM- MrsBola33
ICQ- 126724451
Yahoo- Judithz_TA (i dont use yahoo so much)

and as angelzoo said id much prefer the opinions of people who use these different foods, and not a marketing company.

 

[Jeanie]

Please be polite to one another. We can offer our opinions in a polite way. It would be a shame to delete an informative thread. Each of us has a different opinion. We are pet owners, not animal nutritionists. However, some have studied a specific subject more because it is necessary to their jobs or because they are very much interested in a specific part of animal care. Respect is due to ALL of our members. Thanks for cooperating.

 

[AngelZoo]

Zal:

I'm always approched by people from the UK needing to know about foods over there and I basically just have to give a big "I'm sorry I can't help you."

LOL.

My aim is:

AsukaKattzu

Lets chat sometime, I'm sure there's some good info we could both learn from eachother

 

[Cthulhu]

others of us do not flaunt our connections or whom we work for in an attempt to persuade people that we know best.

I am not sure I agree with that, Angel, as we've discussed before. If you believe knowledge about cats is only attainable through working in a vet's office then none of us should be here. I appreciate hearing from someone like andazzo but I give his/her remarks no more or less merit than yours or anyone else's. Good to hear some dialogue about the subject of endorsement and "best interests" though.

 

[AngelZoo]

Cthulhu: ROTFL :lol:
All of what I have learned about companion animal nutrition comes from no vet, comes from no job or position I have ever held.

All I'm saying is people are easily influenced to buy products recommended by a "trained professional" or "highered help" in some cases it's the same. There is no point to using such an association to back up your opinions or training.
I could go out and tell all the customers coming into our practice to feed their cats milk and human tuna for the rest of their lives because it's the best for them, and I bet you a good 90% or more of them would believe me and follow through with out question.
But I'm sure the majority of us here know the above statement is completely false.

No matter what level of knowledge and individual has on nutrition or where they were taught such matters. I will always encourage people to study more, from other sources, I will always enjoy speaking with others either of like mind or opposite teachings of animal nutrition.
But either working for a vet, or a pet store or what have you, does not make a difference on if you are wrong or right, or if your knowledge is valid.

All I'm saying is that it is not necessary to try and represent yourself with association, because you are lacking full belief of your own studies. Instead of presenting us with facts, you throw out a name of familiarity to make your story widely accepted.