Cheap cat biscuits vs treats.

[Mark]

I wouldn't use it as food but thought the Whiskas dry looks interesting with all the diffeent shapes and colours

[Tiggy's Mum]

I have also filled a couple of empty Temptations boxes and they are just as well received. I was trying to convince an elderly couple who were talking about the Temptations not being on offer any more. They said they bought lots of packs when they were on offer for 65p. I told them to buy a box of Whiskas which would give them about 50 packs for £2 - they didn't seem convinced though 

I think I'll try that, the boys get through loads of temptations/dreamies

[Mark]

Well I bought a 950g box of Whiskas dry in Sainbury's (on offer for £2)  to give to the 2 tortie girls that are always after food. I have also filled a couple of empty Temptations boxes and they are just as well received. I was trying to convince an elderly couple who were talking about the Temptations not being on offer any more. They said they bought lots of packs when they were on offer for 65p. I told them to buy a box of Whiskas which would give them about 50 packs for £2 - they didn't seem convinced though 

[Shirley]

What a brilliant idea, Trigger!! The other day i had 4 boxes of pouches open cos they both seem to have gone off the same flavours!     

[Kay and Penny]

I'm beginning to think every town needs a large swap bucket, where we can drop off the food our cats are no longer eating and hopefully pick up someone else's cats' rejects

[Mark]

I wish they were all as easy to please as Kylie - Give her Hill's and she is happy but doesn't seem to be losing any weight on a mix of Hill's mature light and wet food. She goes mad for Hill's k/d dry for some reason, unlike the CRF kitties who aren't interested  - Sharon gave me an opened bag of k/d yesterday that was donated and though it would go off as there are no cats in with CRF right now (I did give Caroline a carrier bag of uneaten Whikas senior Tuna & Poultry flavours which none of mine will touch - also the Tesco "Just Nature" lamb pate that Clapton was happy to eat until I invested in a full tray of the stuff and he decided he didn't like it any more 

[Kay and Penny]

I know - but Go Cat seems to have lost its allure now anyway

I am beginning to think the secret with him is to keep offering different varieties - whilst Tiffany and Tosker don't want anything other than their RC Fit 32, he seems to want different tastes all the time

I shall get in a range of small bags from Zooplus and stop giving up on them so easily

in the past I have bought a new food, he has gobbled it up, so I have then bought a larger size, which goes to waste - in future I shall stick to the smallest size, and assume he will come back to them all in time - having different foods doesn't seem to upset his digestion, as long as there is no dairy in them

[Mark]

I have more or less given up on wet senior food as they have just stopped eating it - most of it ends up down the toilet. I am just giving them adult - not ideal but they eat it.

[Desley (booktigger)]

Trigger, if he is on the thin side, senior food is the worst thing to feed, as it has less calories, i only ever feed senior food to cats who can afford to lose a bit of weight, or who need their weight maintaining.

[Mark]

It is probably what caused Alice's runny bum the other day as well. I have stopped giving it to her and she is fine now  - I don't want them to get too used to it anyway.

[Kay and Penny]

I've found a downside to Go Cat - in Trigger's litter tray

it's never  so much

[Millys Mum]

Taz is one of those lightweight cats too, he would however eat and eat if i were to let him, bad side to that is he gets vile diarrhoea and no weight gain 
I was told by a vet when he was about 1yr that if i got him to 3kg id be doing well, hes now nearing 4 and weighs in at 4.2kg  but still too thin

One RC bix i had success with when milly got poorly was the RC vet care range for senior cats, its starting to be sold in vets now so you may be able to get a sample of it, or contact RC direct and see if they can help, normally are pretty good

{link removed to supplier as they have let down rescue cats and Purrs will not support them}

I didnt try the foil trays as i think it was Kate that said they were quite rubbery and not very tasty 

[Kay and Penny]

I do keep hyperT in mind, MM, but he has been light ever since I have had him at 13 weeks - he is nearly 9 now - but he displays none of the symptoms

he has also only ever eaten just sufficient for his needs and no more and that is basically why he is thin - that and his genes, I suppose - Russian Blues are not supposed to be stocky

he ate 30gms of Go-Cat yesterday, which is far more than he would ever eat of RC or JWB - I suspect it won't last though - I have the RC Exigent waiting in the wings

[Millys Mum]

I think I may be misinterpreting - the box says cereal (min.4% rice) but as total cereals must surely be more than 4%, rice can't be all of it

chicken in brown pellets, carrots in orange,  green veggies in green and rice in white - doesn't mean there isn't artifical colourants too though

Cereals will mean rice, wheat, soya and other bits and bobs left over from milling various grains, they only say rice 4% as if they want to claim a flavour it has to be a minimum of 4% said flavour to declare it on the bag.
Will also have 'contains permitted EC additives' written somewhere, if you were to mash 1g carrot into 99g cereal it wouldnt colour the resulting product to an acceptable level so the green orange etc is added to appeal the buyer 

but I am beginning to wonder if we are being persuaded to pay more than we need for very little gain

Most dry foods are made cheaply with poor quality grains, its the colourants and other chemicals in cheaper brands that bother me which is why the little dry i do feed i pay more for and recommend others to try.

compared to Royal Canin Exigent, there seems to be little difference - main one is that RC lists poultry protein before vegetable protein, and that is reversed on the Go-Cat - overall protein is 1% higher in the RC

Its not the listed protein that really counts but the source of it, the go cat protein isnt made up from as much meat as premium brands so isnt as easy for the cat to process.

If trigger is really lacking weight on him have you considered his thyroid, not all hyper t cats are text book and have the ravenous appetite normally associated with the problem

[Mark]

According to their website they also sell 2.5kg bags but I can't find anywhere that sells it. Might be worth asking them for a sample?

[Kay and Penny]

I know what would happen if I bought 15kgs of a food never offered before

I have given up trying anything new unless I can try a sample first, or at least buy a very small bag

I hardly ever get to finish a bag bigger than 2kg, and that is rare too

[Mark]

It is a minefield but I saw this one - although it still has cereals as the first ingredient, the other ingredients are pretty impressive and at around £18 for 15kg - cheaper than other cheap foods.

http://www.pet-foodshop.co.uk/proddetail.asp?prod=17907&cat=158 

Wheat, Poultry Meat Meal (22%), Whole Maize, Rice, Poultry Fat, Fish Meal, Prairie Meal, Brewers Yeast, Beet Pulp, Poultry Digest, Whole Linseed, Minerals & Vitamins with antioxidants BHA & BHT. NO artificial colourants or flavours.
http://www.alphafeeds.com/category.php?cat=Cat

[Mark]

RC are one of the worst for making ingredients clear - I would feed Arden Grange if mine would eat it. I was a fan of Orijen & Applaws/Encore dry but I'm concerned about the phosophorus levels in them -  around 2.7%  - probably due to the high meat content but I'm not happy about giving it to older cats.

I think you are right about the difference in price not being in line with the difference in Quality. A pet shop in Faversham sells one they call "Premium" - they sell it loose and it is about £1.50 a kg. I should ask for the ingredients as it smells good. They also sell a Purina food that is a grade up from Go-cat called Omega tasty - also very cheap and has omega oils added but I can't find an ingredient list and Purina don't even have the product on their website  - it is £17 for 10kg

[Kay and Penny]

compared to Royal Canin Exigent, there seems to be little difference - main one is that RC lists poultry protein before vegetable protein, and that is reversed on the Go-Cat - overall protein is 1% higher in the RC

as Go-Cat is senior food comparisons are difficult - but I am beginning to wonder if we are being persuaded to pay more than we need for very little gain

[Mark]

It isn't really clear - OCado is good for checking ingredients but they don't give much info here http://www.ocado.com/webshop/product/Purina-GoCat-Senior-7-Chicken-Carrot--Rice/41356011

[Kay and Penny]

I think I may be misinterpreting - the box says cereal (min.4% rice) but as total cereals must surely be more than 4%, rice can't be all of it

chicken in brown pellets, carrots in orange,  green veggies in green and rice in white - doesn't mean there isn't artifical colourants too though

but bottom line is if my Trigger, who is a nearly 9 and too thin, will eat more senior Go-Cat than the premium foods, then Go-Cat is what he shall have, supplemented by as much good stuff as I can get him to eat

[Mark]

I will let them have it if it doesn't have wheat - even Hill's & RC have it?

The colourings trouble me though 

[Kay and Penny]

I bought a box of Go-Cat senior today, and it isn't as bad as I thought it might be - protein 32% and only rice as a cereal

and Trigger has already eaten a great  deal more of it than his usual Royal Canin

and as he has a lambs kidney and piece of coley each day, I think a lower protein dry food is probably OK for him

[Gillian Harvey]

I don't want them eating it as a meal though  - just the colour scares me 

Tell me about it - neighbours cat threw up all over the path up to my front door - I could see all the colours of Go Cat 

One good thing is they are low phosphorus but this is probably due to lack of meat in them 

Highly likely LOL! 

[Mark]

I might try this Go Cat trick with Trigger, especially as a couple of treats seems to wake up his appetite, and he goes looking for something more substantial

That is the thing, if you can kick-start their appetite, there is a good chance of getting them to eat something decent afterwards? 

I don't want them eating it as a meal though  - just the colour scares me 

I will try a box of indoor or senior the next time although I don't suppose they are very different. One good thing is they are low phosphorus but this is probably due to lack of meat in them 

[Mark]

Or you just get all the freebie sample bages of food. Doesn't cost a penny then 

The only problem is those are usually 1/2 decent food so probably wouldn't have the same effect  

[Mark]

After I posted, Just before I went to College, I went upstairs to check on Clapton who has also been lying low for the last few days. I wafted a bowl of RC wet under his nose while he was on the bed and there was no reaction. I then wafted a (small) dish of go-cat and he was down like lightning. It really is maccy D for kitties 

[hOrZa]

whiskers kitten dry makes great treats, my lot go mad for them, although the 3 lads go mad for everything

[Kay and Penny]

I might try this Go Cat trick with Trigger, especially as a couple of treats seems to wake up his appetite, and he goes looking for something more substantial

[Fire Fox]

I look at the price per kilo of treats in Pets at Home and I walk away! Noah has Value prawns for his treats which I reckon are healthier and cheaper than most treats. I am on a low income so I'd rather spend my kitty budget on a decent insurance policy and quality toys to keep him active.

[Den]

Or you just get all the freebie sample bages of food. Doesn't cost a penny then 

[clarenmax]

You know cats will always love their 'junk food' 

[Mark]

I have thought for a long time that a lot of treats, like temptations are not much more than an expensive way of buying go-cat. I bought a small box yesterday to give the visitors that come begging for food every day (I am ordering some Hills for them so this is just a stop-gap) - Out of curiosity, I gave my lot a few as treats and they went crazy for them  - even Willow who has been off her food for the last few days hoovered them up. As the vet said food is better than the correct food, I will give her a few to keep her eating but won't make a habit of it.

So in other words, for under £1, you can buy a years worth of treats