Topic: KITTEN FOOD ALERT !!! (Read 12542 times)

Inky · « **Reply #68 on:** November 24, 2007, 18:21:20 PM »

I nearly panicked at the thought of this as I feed Hi-Life and have just bought a load of Applaws but I feed it as a complimentary food anyway (ie 1 pouch or tin alongside a bowl of kibble for variety) so my kittens are safe. Thank goodness for that - but, it is an important lesson isn't it - read the label! I confess I rarely do, so will certainly be doing so now!

Desley (booktigger) · « **Reply #67 on:** November 23, 2007, 23:21:06 PM »

HiLife do do kitten wet, I have to say i have never checked it (only one place round here sell it), but what is sold in teh supermarket is the same packaging as the complimentary adult, although I know they sell tins through their online supplier, just never looked at that either. HiLife is a tricky brand as they make both, but they were on the safe list. IT does tell you to feed a range of food, but doubt people would check that to be honest.

Millys Mum · « **Reply #66 on:** November 23, 2007, 14:22:38 PM »

Quote from: Yvonne on November 23, 2007, 14:18:38 PM

This is all sounding very technical - I just feed mine on Whiskas wet and dry

Its a case of mislabeling which has led to the death of a kitten

If a food isnt complete it should say so in huge letters with a warning not to feed it as an only food.

Good luck with NM customer services, it took me 5 attempts to get an answer out of them about their food testing policy!

Yvonne · « **Reply #65 on:** November 23, 2007, 14:18:38 PM »

This is all sounding very technical - I just feed mine on Whiskas wet and dry

Susanne (urbantigers) · « **Reply #64 on:** November 23, 2007, 14:09:55 PM »

I don't know the calcium phosphorus ratio but I did find out the phosphorus content of NM (1.5 - dry matter analysis).

Gillian Harvey · « **Reply #63 on:** November 23, 2007, 13:15:08 PM »

Quote from: Susanne (urbantigers) on November 23, 2007, 08:11:42 AM

luxury foods that are more likely to be complementary (but not all - natures menu is complete, for example).

Did we ever get a breakdown of NM's calc/phos ratios etc, because it doesnt say on the packs? - I know someone emailed them, but can't remember if they got a reply. I know it says complete, but I'd still like to know those ratios.

Millys Mum · « **Reply #62 on:** November 23, 2007, 11:55:55 AM »

Itl be in there Mark, if they wrote amino acids on the list most people wouldnt understand

Mark · « **Reply #61 on:** November 23, 2007, 08:19:17 AM »

One thing that worries me with supermarket food (all clapton will eat) is there is never any mention of added taurine which I know is destroyed in processing.

Susanne (urbantigers) · « **Reply #60 on:** November 23, 2007, 08:11:42 AM »

I always read the ingredients list to check for added vitamins and minerals. If there's nothing added then it's a complementary food, imo, regardless of what the label says.

Whiskas causes smelly poos and a lot of wind around here so is on the banned list

I'm pretty certain it's a complete food though. Most of the bog standard long standing brands such as whiskas and felix are complete foods. It's mainly the newer, high meat content, luxury foods that are more likely to be complementary (but not all - natures menu is complete, for example).

Mark · « **Reply #59 on:** November 22, 2007, 23:58:35 PM »

Quote from: bluecat on November 22, 2007, 23:52:08 PM

More Clear labeling should apply to all cat foods i always check but find it hard to find sometimes i have never noticed wiskas poches say complete are they ?

Whiskas are complete. TBH, rom things I have read & heard, Whiskas is pretty good food (wet that is!)

Team Svartalfheims · « **Reply #58 on:** November 22, 2007, 23:55:20 PM »

Gillian can you pm me about the food as well if you have a spare minute please.

bluecat · « **Reply #57 on:** November 22, 2007, 23:52:08 PM »

More Clear labeling should apply to all cat foods i always check but find it hard to find sometimes i have never noticed wiskas poches say complete are they ?

Susanne (urbantigers) · « **Reply #56 on:** November 22, 2007, 11:45:40 AM »

I suppose it would be good if it was the food because then you know what you're dealing with and have (hopefully) caught it early.

I think what's worrying about this is that there are so many of these complementary foods containing shredded chicken and no added nutrients around these days. They are marketed as being natural and healthy, and would be fine if it was just one or 2 brands, but there are so many now that I think there are probably a lot of owners who don't realise that complementary foods should only make up a small part of the diet and are over feeding these types of food, unaware of the potential problems.

Gillian Harvey · « **Reply #55 on:** November 22, 2007, 11:20:37 AM »

Quote from: Susanne (urbantigers) on November 22, 2007, 08:24:08 AM

It's hard to believe that it could be a nutritional deficiency when you have been feeding her a variety of foods. Did the breeder tell you what food was involved, Gillian? I know you can't say here, but if you could pm me I'd appreciate it.

I think it might be a possibility Susanne - I have been feeding a variety, BUT these past two weeks or so I've been feeding quite a lot of applaws, some NM and some complete biscuits, so I'm thinking I may have upset the balance and she was maybe having too much of the high phos/meat foods and not enough of the complete, which is especially crucial with a growing kitten isnt it?

Quote from: Millys Mum on November 22, 2007, 10:19:44 AM

I think NM is complete as it lists ingredients the same way as felix does.
Cant the vet test for vitamin and mineral deficiencies? Worth aking about it to put your mind at rest

They did a full blood profile which will show if calc and phos are way out of balance, so hoping I'll know today. I'll pm you both about the food.

Millys Mum · « **Reply #54 on:** November 22, 2007, 10:19:44 AM »

Quote

I know you can't say here, but if you could pm me I'd appreciate it.

Me too.

I think NM is complete as it lists ingredients the same way as felix does.
Cant the vet test for vitamin and mineral deficiencies? Worth aking about it to put your mind at rest

Susanne (urbantigers) · « **Reply #53 on:** November 22, 2007, 08:24:08 AM »

It's hard to believe that it could be a nutritional deficiency when you have been feeding her a variety of foods. Did the breeder tell you what food was involved, Gillian? I know you can't say here, but if you could pm me I'd appreciate it.

Gillian Harvey · « **Reply #52 on:** November 21, 2007, 23:05:19 PM »

I've just spoken to the breeder whose kitten it was that died - her kitten was displaying the same symptoms of weakness in the back legs as Gwyn - could it possibly be something as simple as a nutritional deficiency that Gwyn has? After speaking to this breeder, I'm getting more and more convinced it could be - you prob think I'm clutching at straws, and maybe I am - but in the absence of other signs (apart from the eye lesions, obviously thats something not quite right) just the weakness in the legs - I desparately hope its something like this.

Susanne (urbantigers) · « **Reply #51 on:** November 21, 2007, 20:20:36 PM »

I obviously don't have any NM kitten food in, but the adult states that it's complete and does list added minerals and sugars in the ingredients, so I think you're safe with NM kitten. Mosi had that (with some complete dry) when he was little and he's grown up just fine.

My money is on almo nature kitten or the newish hi life one in a can (the one that's shredded meat in a gravy) - although I'm not sure that comes in kitten. Thinking about foods that are sold/pushed at cat shows.

Gillian Harvey · « **Reply #50 on:** November 21, 2007, 19:56:46 PM »

Quote from: lynn on November 21, 2007, 18:25:34 PM

i dont think you need to worry about food at all gillian as you wont have exclusively fed one type of food.

It IS something else i've thought about though. She was having NM kitten food, applaws plus some complete biscuits and fresh raw such as turkey, beef and chicken, and fresh cooked, usually chicken. The breeder was already feeding her a mix of things and also included raw. NM is supposed to be complete is says so on the pack, hope its right.

CurlyCatz · « **Reply #49 on:** November 21, 2007, 18:25:34 PM »

i dont think you need to worry about food at all gillian as you wont have exclusively fed one type of food.

Gill (sneakiefeline) · « **Reply #48 on:** November 21, 2007, 18:18:22 PM »

As its Gwyn who is ill I am sure if you pm ela she will tell you

Millys Mum · « **Reply #47 on:** November 21, 2007, 16:13:38 PM »

I dont think its Applaws but get the impression its along similar lines such as Almo Nature. I doubt anyone would be brave enough to name names incase they get their butt sued

Gillian Harvey · « **Reply #46 on:** November 20, 2007, 23:14:05 PM »

Is there any update on this? I'd like to know which food the kitten was being fed.

Susanne (urbantigers) · « **Reply #45 on:** November 10, 2007, 18:22:56 PM »

It appears that the food in question was marketed as a complete food (not sure whether that means it said complete on the labelling or whether it was just not made clear it was a complementary food) when it is, in fact, a complementary food. Fine to feed alongside complete foods, but inadequate as the sole diet. My rule of thumb is to look at the ingredients on the back - if there are no added vitamins or minerals, the food is unlikely to be complete, regardless of what the packaging says. Processing tends to destroy a lot of nutrients which is why they are added back in to complete foods.

blackcat · « **Reply #44 on:** November 10, 2007, 12:59:58 PM »

It seems that a lot of people have been feeding gourmet cat food to their cats on the assumption that it was a complete food as it was labeled kitten food. However the food in question is complementary (treat food) and does not provide a full nutritional balance. The particular brand, which remains nameless is also marketted heavily at cat shows so a lot of breeders are using it on the assumption it is a quality balanced diet. There is an organisation that registers pet food manufacturers and which has labelling standards for their members, a list of which are on their website.
Some foreign foods are not compliant with these standards so beware.

I guess the moral of the story is to read the labels before you feed it as a regular diet. And if in doubt, don't feed it regularly.

Gill (sneakiefeline) · « **Reply #43 on:** November 10, 2007, 12:54:49 PM »

i havent read this thread before as i do not have kittens but after reading it i find the whole situation very confusing and wonder if someone can sumerise the situation on one post please.

it seems to me

that an unknown type of kitten food has been fed to a kitten who has as a result died, apart from the percentage of ca to phos and that this unknown food is going to have its labelling changed but presumably will not get on the shelves untill the rest is sold, so there is no recall, i havent really understood anything else.

seems to me that there is a trade descriptions act violation here and department of trade should be advised.

blackcat · « **Reply #42 on:** November 10, 2007, 12:42:25 PM »

Mine get complementary foods only for Christmas and birthdays. So they know it is a special day

Team Svartalfheims · « **Reply #41 on:** November 10, 2007, 12:26:08 PM »

"The most ideal Ca:P ratio in the cat's diet is 1.1:1, but cats can easily tolerate up to 2:1. Any more Calcium in the diet would cause an over-saturation in the body, and can result in Calcium deposits in soft tissue such as Oxalate stones- especially in the presence of Ascorbic acid (vitamin C)"

Taken from http://www.felinefuture.com/nutrition/bonesandcalcium.php

Millys Mum · « **Reply #40 on:** November 09, 2007, 18:52:57 PM »

Me neither, i scraped through it at school. Im sure the mathmaticians will be along soon

Gillian Harvey · « **Reply #39 on:** November 09, 2007, 18:10:41 PM »

Quote from: Millys Mum on November 09, 2007, 16:13:04 PM

I looked at ingredients/nutritional analysis of applaws and the kitten has extra ingredients in it such as liver and egg.

Is the Ca:PO4 ratio 2:1??

Kitten Applaws has 77.1mg Ca and 180.7mg PO4
Adult Applaws has 4.9mg Ca and 164mg PO4

Ideal is Calcium:Phosphorus ratio of 1.1:1 - so that looks to me that even the kitten applaws doesnt have sufficient calcium to phos, but maths was never my strong point LOL!

Millys Mum · « **Reply #38 on:** November 09, 2007, 16:13:04 PM »

I looked at ingredients/nutritional analysis of applaws and the kitten has extra ingredients in it such as liver and egg.

Is the Ca:PO4 ratio 2:1??

Kitten Applaws has 77.1mg Ca and 180.7mg PO4
Adult Applaws has 4.9mg Ca and 164mg PO4

Desley (booktigger) · « **Reply #37 on:** November 08, 2007, 22:06:07 PM »

Wonder why their kitten food is complete, but not the adult food?
I have to say, when Lynn posted this this morning, i checked the only cat food i had nearby, whcih was HiLife Essentials - their complete range, and there is no PFMA thing on it, although they are on the website.

Team Svartalfheims · « **Reply #36 on:** November 08, 2007, 17:38:17 PM »

Have spoken to Applaws about this and they have reconfirmed that Applaws Kitten Food IS complete but adult varieties are complementary and should be fed alongside a complete diet.

Mark · « **Reply #35 on:** November 08, 2007, 15:44:19 PM »

I also think MPM etc should have a bold warning ton the website stating clearly what complementary means. I won't feed any complementary food, except chicken & fish as a treat

CurlyCatz · « **Reply #34 on:** November 08, 2007, 14:39:01 PM »

go cat used to be only complimentary but i noticed myself that they produced a complete variety a couple of years ago. I am not sure if you get both now as i just buy complete if i am buying at all.

Ela · « **Reply #33 on:** November 08, 2007, 14:33:26 PM »

Quote

Yes I have box of go cat and it says complete, I thought these were complementry?

There you go, you learn something every day.

ccmacey · « **Reply #32 on:** November 08, 2007, 14:25:33 PM »

Yes I have box of go cat and it says complete, I thought these were complementry?

CurlyCatz · « **Reply #31 on:** November 08, 2007, 14:14:46 PM »

Yes thats true gillian, its the brands registered with the pfma that have "proper" labelling so if it says complete then safe to assume they are not lying. They of course also have complimentary variations in there also but will be labelled as such.

CC masterfoods who i think to whiskas are listed on their 50 brands so i presume though, however i do have a bag of whiskas adult supposedly complete here for the big boys and i couldnt find a "pfma" label or mark anywhere on the bag

Dawn F · « **Reply #30 on:** November 08, 2007, 14:06:25 PM »

mine have almo nature or similar at weekends but they always have hills down as well so that's ok isn't it??

Gillian Harvey · « **Reply #29 on:** November 08, 2007, 14:03:34 PM »

Quote from: ccmacey on November 08, 2007, 13:53:58 PM

Right so its just complamentry foods that are affected? All complete foods are ok?

Complimentary foods havent been 'affected' by anything - the problem with them, is that they don't contain all the necessary nutrients required by cats, so they shouldnt be fed exclusively, they are perfectly fine to be fed alongside complete foods. Complete foods supply all the necessary nutrients.

Author Topic: KITTEN FOOD ALERT !!! (Read 12542 times)

ccmacey