Alternative to Iams catfood

rev_henry

spike7451 wrote: »

Try this range;
http://www.petsathome.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Search?freeText=purely&x=34&y=14&storeId=10551&catalogId=10601&langId=-1
The one below is big thumb sized pieces of fish in jelly!! Daisy loves it & will scoff the whole tin in one!And,it smells like fish too.
http://www.petsathome.com/shop/purely-adult-sardine-cutlets-in-jelly-tin-156gm-14733

I wouldn't buy from Pets at Home though. Their ethical record is just as bad, insomuch as their treatment behind the scenes of the animals they sell.

Fire_Fox

Sunnyday wrote: »

Ok having spent a while reading even more about this i`m coming around to the chicken wing idea, is it the whole wing that is fed or just the tips?

Are they easily available to source and freeze in bulk as i don`t shop too often but don`t have masses of storage either, DH and i have just had a discussion about feeding small whole fish (sprats) too, and the debate led us through a bit of a weird discussion there, a bit unexpected really but i have lots of things going around in my head atm now.

All of it is helpful though and as our cat was semi wild when we got her from the rescue i think that out of all our animals she would adapt the best.

Keep the ideas coming - my poor brain hasn`t done as much work as this for a long time

Thanks

SD

We cross posted!

I buy Value/ Smartprice chicken wings in 1kg packs from the supermarket, then cut them into thirds - not really ethical but you can't easily get free range wings. Some cats will eat the wing tips but Noah only like the other two meaty bits, and needs the skin removing or slitting open to reveal the meat. I freeze all the little portions on a baking tray and then chuck into a bag loose, I think I got about twenty pieces last time so 9p each. :money:

I bought whole sprats when on offer in Morrisons - Noah was not impressed even tho he loves fish! Morrisons also sell diced heart really cheap and in a small quantity which doesn't take much storing. I don't think you will regret trying raw as a treat if your cat is a bit wild: Noah runs off with his wings or rabbit pieces and then just purrs as he munches. It's sooooo cute.

Fire_Fox

rev_henry wrote: »

I wouldn't buy from Pets at Home though. Their ethical record is just as bad, insomuch as their treatment behind the scenes of the animals they sell.

Please elaborate and feel free to post links.

Sunnyday

OOH i like the chicken carcass idea BUT could she have this cooked rather than raw?

I`m thinking rubber chicken then pressure cooked or slow cooked carcass for stock and then the remains for the cat - or is this not a good idea?

The chicken would go even further than it does now and if push came to shove i wonder if a cooked carcass would grind up in the food processor.

SD

Fire_Fox

Definitely no cooked bones never ever, cooked bones go soft and splinter. I suppose if you ground them up it would be the same as cat food ... but then the cat wouldn't be getting the teeth cleaning benefit! Also you would lose the benefits of the nutritious enzymes in the meat and marrow in the bone. Cooking also destroys Taurine an essential amino acid - I think you would really only be left with minerals no protein.

I have debated buying whole chicken and removing the breasts and legs for human consumption then feeding the carcass raw to Noah, but I am really not eating any meat at present. Ask a local butcher if he has any chicken carcasses or necks to get rid of, they have to pay to have it taken away professionally. FREE is really Old Style! :money:

spike7451

Fire_Fox wrote: »

Please elaborate and feel free to post links.

Yes,please.
I have friends who work in the local P@H here & they are animal lovers.They donate to the ASSISI where I got Daisy on a regular basis.

cyberbob

Sunnyday wrote: »

Ok having spent a while reading even more about this i`m coming around to the chicken wing idea, is it the whole wing that is fed or just the tips?

If the reason you wish to boycott animal IAMS is animal welfare issues you need to insure that if you do the Chicken wing route that they are Free Range. Otherwise you are just endorsing cruelty in a different way. Its the same if you start feeding other alternatives such as Tuna caught in unethical ways.

As For Iams there testing policies are very similar to a lot of other companies. Hills for example. So trying to find one who doesn't test there foods in a similar way is very difficult

http://www.iamstruth.com/iamstruth/en_US/jhtmls/home/IT_Home_Page.jhtml?li=en_US&pti=HP

http://www.hillspet.co.uk/Adult/About-Hills/Animal-Welfare.aspx

You can find statements like this on most manufacturers of pet food including James wellbeloved, Almo nature and others. The only way if you disagree with the commercial foods is to make your own foods. Then really IMO you should be sourcing the meat from ethical sources. Cheap chicken wings from various sources wont be freerange.

I try to feed my animals without endorsing cruelty of other animals. It is incredible difficult and can be expensive but whats the point of making a stand on one form of cruelty then endorsing cruelty of another animal by the new diet you have chosen. Its a mine field and once you start looking at it your feeding options get severely limited

Sunnyday

Thanks Fire Fox,

i`ve decided that i will definitely try the smart price wings and also sprats when i can find any.

How many pieces of wing does Noah eat per day? I am just wondering how much to feed her, she will still carry on with the meat for a while as we have an absolutely huge stock in as we always buy on offer and in bulk.

I won`t feed the chicken carcass cooked unless i do grind it and maybe she would like some mixed in with a tin of tuna or something as a change, not as a meal on its own but as a mineral supplement then IYKWIM.

We don`t have a traditional butchers nearby any more - it closed a while back but there is a market butcher that i could ask for bits and pieces , he tends to charge for absolutely everything but as long as its pence rather than pounds thats ok

It would be interesting to see if they actually have bits like this as i did wonder if they bought chicken in the big pre jointed bags or not so i`ll probably learn something else there

SD

Sunnyday

Thanks for pointing that out Cyber Bob,

i do know that somewhere i`m going to have to compromise and i need to find a medium that i`m comfortable with, its going to be difficult but if i can start somewhere and work my way through to the more ethical way then i`ll be happier.

Hopefully the cat will be in agreement with what i`m doing and won`t turn up her nose put her tail in the air and walk away :eek:

Even harder than the cat will be when i get around to the dogs, the manufacturer or their food is on the list that Fire Fox posted earlier in the thread and whilst they don`t eat it for every meal this will eventually be phased out too.

SD

Edit - I do make dogfood for the dogs but they don`t eat it every day, i make it every few weeks and freeze it. When i make it depends on how much freezer space i have.

spike7451

Sunnyday wrote: »

Thanks Fire Fox,

i`ve decided that i will definitely try the smart price wings and also sprats when i can find any.

How many pieces of wing does Noah eat per day? I am just wondering how much to feed her, she will still carry on with the meat for a while as we have an absolutely huge stock in as we always buy on offer and in bulk.

I won`t feed the chicken carcass cooked unless i do grind it and maybe she would like some mixed in with a tin of tuna or something as a change, not as a meal on its own but as a mineral supplement then IYKWIM.

We don`t have a traditional butchers nearby any more - it closed a while back but there is a market butcher that i could ask for bits and pieces , he tends to charge for absolutely everything but as long as its pence rather than pounds thats ok

It would be interesting to see if they actually have bits like this as i did wonder if they bought chicken in the big pre jointed bags or not so i`ll probably learn something else there

SD

Sainsbury's sell big 2.5Kg bags of frozen chicken portions in their basics range for aroung £4!(They're very good value!I use them in curries ect.Wings,legs,thights,drumsticks all in the one bag)