buying cat food in bulk

[hales]

thanks everyone!  looks like i have some mega research to do now!

[Kay and Penny]

the birds would probably have eaten it, fur and all

everything my cats turn their noses up at goes inside next door's chickens, and they love it (especially anything containing chicken )

[Mark]

Taking of going off - I bought a 3kg bag of Purina one a while ago - mine wouldn't eat it so I kept it in the garden to feed the tortie sisters, Justin & Jeremy (apparently the owner thinks they are boys) that come here to eat every day. Last week, I forgot to seal it and it rained. The food has grown a fur coat  - so about 2kg went in the bin today - they had to make do with Kylie & Alice's senior light today even though they are lean 3 year olds 

[Kay and Penny]

it's all a bit of a lottery, isn't it?

big bags work out cheaper, but if some of it goes uneaten it wasn't really cheaper necessarily

I never buy a bigger size than 2kg as there is always the very real danger one or more will go off it, before it goes off

[Mark]

Hill's adult 2kg bags are half price ATM on Vet UK which only works out a tad more expensive per kilo than buying a 20kg bag. (From memory, a 2kg bag is £6.20 at 1/2 price and a 20kg bag is about £59  I don't like to have a bag open for more than 3 or 4 weeks and even less in the summer as I think it loses its smell and probably its taste.

They were 1/2 price at Coombes yesterday but I checked today and think the offer has ended.

[Millys Mum]

I bulk buy for my lot, have 9 mouths currently, but buy smaller bags when on offer, 10kg doesnt stay fresh forever and i get bored serving the same thing over and over 

There was some good bargins this week, jwb 2kg was on bogof and hills 2kg bags are bogof (or 50% off with vet uk) for all of december

Pouches get stockpiled whenever offers come up, keep an eye on our bargains section as they get posted in there 

I shop with viovet, vet uk and pah online and very occasionally zooplus because their packaging (or lack of!) drives me mad

Lol julie, me and my mum sniff boxes of food before purchase, god knows what store camera staff think 

[Pinkbear (Julie)]

Can I just advice against buying TOOO many pouches at once. We at CP get a pallet of pouches sent to us from HQ. It's a very conciderable amount of course (six months supply) but we almost always lose some of it as the pouches go bad. There's a term for it I think... but they blow up with gas and in some cases burst. A nice surprise when you get to the bottom box and the smell hits you! 

If you're looking for savings it's often worth popping into a farm animal feed suppliers. They do sometimes have Felix or Whiskas and usually do a discount for bulk purchases. 

[Fire Fox]

I am fairly hardcore member of the Moneysavingexpert forums so I did some research into value-for-money wet and dry foods!  Not sure what your budget is or meat content you are after so here is a selection:
Jollyes Lifestage ~£2 per kilo 26% chicken
Burns chicken and rice ~£3.60 per kilo 36% chicken
Pets at Home Purely ~£3.40 per kilo 40% meat
Fish4Cats ~£3.90 per kilo 70% fish
You might also consider Hills when it's on BOGOF (normally £5 per kilo) depending on the variety ~50% meat.

I also notice that you are feeding pouches, which can be quite an expensive way to supply wet food when you are a multi-cat household. Some of the best value are:
Feline Fayre large 400g tins 70% fish (currently 49p Asda, ~£1.20 per kilo)
Feline Fayre pouches 60% fish (£1.90 for eight, ~£2.75 per kilo)
Pets at Home Purely medium 156g tins 50% fish (44p or £2.75 per kilo)
Bozita 360g tetrapacks and large 400g tins ~90% meat (online <£1 each, from £2.20 per kilo)

The final option is to add in some raw meat if you cats will take to it - some people are getting meaty bones and offal free from a friendly butcher, or Value frozen chicken portions are only £1.40 per kilo! 

[Tiggy's Mum]

You could try places like VetUK, Zooplus and A Coombs (links at the bottom of the page for the latter two). 

Alternatively you could stock up when the offers are on - Pets at Home are doing BOGOF on the 2kg of Royal Canin for one day only tomorrow (online only) Offer is available on orders placed after 9am on the 08.12.09 and before 9am on the 09.12.09.

[hales]

right ok.
thanks for the advice

[Den]

Well you can get Arden Grange 15kg for £41.88 delivered.

But really around the £40-£50 mark for 10-15kg is around about normal.

[hales]

i cant remember the brand but i know it was £40 something pound a bag.
we feed meat pouches as well as dry food so want the best value for money really

[Den]

Can I ask what the 10Kg food is and how much ..

[hales]

we have decided to try and bulk buy our cat food. what with the three cats here plus the ones we feed at the door!
 the biggest bag we can get at PAH is 10kg.  it doesnt seem good value really.
does anyone know of anywhere we can bulk buy at reasonable prices.