Sharon asks…
What cheap alternative to Science Diet Cat food can I try?
My cat, a little over one years old has been using Science Diet Optimal Care food. He eats 1/4 cup in the morning, and 1/4 in the evening. Is there any alternative food brand I can buy that isn’t as expensive. I know science diet isn’t the best, but also it isn’t the most expensive either. Unfortunately , I’m high school senior who doesn’t have a job anymore. I just get money on the side from babysitting. I won’t stoop as low as grocery store brands, but anything under $30 from petco/petsmart is alright.
weight loss cardiff answers:
Science Diet, like all dry food is total CRAP. Please feed your cat some healthy, grain-free food like home-made or canned/wet food like Nature’s Variety Instinct. That’s what I feed my cats for 2 of the 4 meals a day that they get. The other two are homemade chicken and supplements that we grind up for them.
Bottom line, NOTHING will be cheaper than Science Diet, which is poision. Do the math.
And to Ailsa, yes, all “dried” food is crap. DO NOT feed it to your cats. If you can’t afford proper nutrition for your pets you shouldn’t have them. Seriously. You need to do what is best for them. And I am by no means “rich”, and I also live on a tight budget, but I am willing to make sacrifices for my pets.
Sandy asks…
Problems with Science Diet Dog food?
I am wondering if anyone else experienced problems with their pets after feeding them any of the Science Diet dog foods. About 9 months ago we got a choc. lab who we love lots and lots. However, he has the worst gas ever. We recently adopted a small collie mix, and we also feed her Science Diet. However, she has the same gas problem. They both eat different formula’s, but both are from Science Diet.
Any other dogs owners experience this same fate? We are switching products as soon as the bags are empty.
Edit:
These dogs were raised from puppies on only one type of food. There never was a begining transition from a different food, except for their mother’s milk.
weight loss cardiff answers:
Science diet, like most grocery brands, is a horrible kibble, and I would never feed it even if it was given to me. Good choice on switching.
There are 3 rules to follow when buying dog food. Just read the ingredients.
1: NO corn in the ingredients. Corn is a very cheap filler and dogs can’t digest it. Your dog simply has to eat more of the food to get the proper amount of nutrients.
2: NO wheat. Wheat is again a cheap filler, and is also the leading cause of dog allergies to food.
3: NO meat by-products. A meat by-product can technically be anything except feathers. Does a whole bunch of beaks and feet really sound nutritional.
Just read the ingredient labels, and follow the 3 simple rules above, and you will have a pretty good quality food.
William asks…
Making raw diet cat food.?
I have been trying to give my cat the raw diet food as descibed on site, http://www.catinfo.org/?link=makingcatfood for about a year. I follow the directions to a T, buying fresh chicken from a butcher, etc, and she turns her nose up at it every time, even when a small amount is mixed with her regular food. I even tried not adding any vitamins to see if that was a turn off. Nothing! She does, however, like the food from the can. I feed her Wellness brand but it’s getting sort of pricy for me. Guess she likes the taste and smell better. I tried putting some of that Grizzly Salmon Oil in the raw thinking the fishy smell would be an attraction and she hated that too. I would like her to be as healthy as possible eating a raw diet but maybe I’m not doing something right. The only thing I can think of is my grinder has carbon plates which have sort of a ‘metalic smell’ to them. Switch to stainless steel plates? Any ideas? Maybe if I could find out what they put in cat food to give it that yummy smell I would have some luck. Never saw such a fussy kitty. Obviously, she is VERY spoiled and my bank account is dwindling to try and figure it out! LOL Sure wish she could talk and tell me what to do!
Signed,
OWNER OF A SPOILED CAT
weight loss cardiff answers:
The diet at catinfo is balanced, as it was formulated by a vet who studies feline nutrition. Listen to her, and not “vet students’ or anyone who recommends dry food.
*sigh* I wish people would read more on feline nutrition before they start spouting what is “best”
Anyway. I used Dr. Lisa’s recipe (aka the one at catinfo) for several years. I started buying raw premade recently because I now have eight cats, and grinding that many bones each month was getting to me emotionally (yes, I’m a sap, but I couldn’t deal)
I started using it because I had a diabetic cat. She was elderly, and had been eating commercial food all her life. She ate the raw for a few weeks, then gave up. I don’t know why, but nothing I could do would get her to eat it again. All of my other cats and many of my fosters have really enjoyed raw.
You might have luck starting with just the basics. Buy some ground chicken, and feed just that. Yes, it is unbalanced, but you shouldn’t have to feed it for long. Try adding a little full raw in the ground chicken if she takes to it. Slowly increase raw to plain until the kitty is eating full raw.
Or you could try premade raw and see if she takes to that. Feline’s pride is closest to dr. Lisa’s recipe, but I don’t have that local, so I’m currently feeding Bravo. There are also premade recipes that don’t have chicken as the base. Maybe your kitty would prefer turkey, quail, beef, etc.
Personally, with eight cats I find raw to be more economical. I don’t feed nearly as much, because the quality of input is better, the quality of the output is better and thus we use less litter. I also believe that it helps their health, and thus I am spending less on medical bills.
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