Experimenting with Premium High Protein Cat Food

djp64

I have two cats - obligatory photos included.
Both are rescue cases - Humbug, abandoned and ill treated whilst pregnant came to me as foster rescue case, had her kittens and never left. Minty had been hanging around in tree belt behind the house, extremely timid. Would leave food for him. One day found him in the food recyling wheelie bin trying to fish out rotting food. Put food down for him as he was painfully thin and he shredded me. He had been badly beaten - lots of wounds and it has taken a year to get him to trust us. He no longer attacks and cowers but is a very contented boy who loves to be on your lap. Both cats are neutered.
Both fed on a diet of pouches (Felix AGAIL, Whiskas Simply and Oh So Meaty, Hi Life), tins (Gourmet Solitaire tuna / shrimp and the like) and biscuits (Iams, Hills, Whiskas)
Humbug has not lost her street cat mentality and will eat for England. Always 'hungry' and asking for food. She is overweight. Minty is fine.

Experimented with feeding Humbug higher protein foods such as just Solitaire and HiLife Chicken / Tuna and a visible reduction in her 'hungriness'. Decided to go the whole hog and have ordered a range of higher protein foods both wet and dry. Thought it might be useful to document the results here for others considering the same. Meet the guinea pigs:


Key Diet Before Experiment
Felix AGAIL pouches - key ingredients 80% moisture, 13% protein, 3% fat, 2% ash (never got the ash bit - haven't ever seen a cat licking at the remains of a fire!)
Biscuits (standard) - key ingredients - 34% Protein, 8% fat, 7% ash.
Daily Consumption and Cost - @5 pouches between them and free fed biscuits. Average cost £2 per day

Day 1(20th November)
Animonda Carny (tin)- moisture 79%, 11.5% protein, 5.5% fat and 1.4% ash
Taste of the Wild (biscuits) 42% protein, 18% fat, no ash

Carny went down well. Smelled pretty good - could have eaten it as pate on toast! Comparing it to AGAIL the key ingredients are similar but detailed analysis and visual examination shows that the moisture in Carny appears to comes from the meat protein and not from gravy / jelly. Biscuits very popular - eaten like treats.

Just over 1 can of Carny consumed in total along with handful of biscuits. Total cost around £1.00

Will report again tomorrow. Would be good to hear if anyone has recommendations for other foods to try.

Debbie x

Browser123

Hello Debbie,

Having just taken in a hungry stray I am thinking about what to feed her. Did you have any success with your high protein diet?

coshboy

I don't know about high protein diets but I do know your cats look adorable!

krlyr

'Ash' isn't literally ash but is the term used for what is essentially the mineral part of the diet. It is what would be left as 'ash' if you were to burn the food and the protein, fat, etc. were to burn off
http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/choosing-dog-food/dog-food-ash/

It may be worth looking at other factors aside from solely the protein content too - bear in mind that protein doesn't equal meat, you will get protein in other ingredients too, such as grains and pulses (otherwise human vegetarians/vegans would really struggle with their diets)

I have found similar with my dogs when switching from commercial foods to a raw diet. It takes their stomaches a little while to adjust to the smaller meals but once settled on it they do seem a lot more satisfied with their meal as well as in good shape/health. And the mental and physical stimulation of eating large bones, meaty chunks, whole prey etc. is an added bonus.

stevenazhuo

djp64 wrote: »

I have two cats - obligatory photos included.
Both are rescue cases - Humbug, abandoned and ill treated whilst pregnant came to me as foster rescue case, had her kittens and never left. Minty had been hanging around in tree belt behind the house, extremely timid. Would leave food for him. One day found him in the food recyling wheelie bin trying to fish out rotting food. Put food down for him as he was painfully thin and he shredded me. He had been badly beaten - lots of wounds and it has taken a year to get him to trust us. He no longer attacks and cowers but is a very contented boy who loves to be on your lap. Both cats are neutered.
Both fed on a diet of pouches (Felix AGAIL, Whiskas Simply and Oh So Meaty, Hi Life), tins (Gourmet Solitaire tuna / shrimp and the like) and biscuits (Iams, Hills, Whiskas)
Humbug has not lost her street cat mentality and will eat for England. Always 'hungry' and asking for food. She is overweight. Minty is fine.

Experimented with feeding Humbug higher protein foods such as just Solitaire and HiLife Chicken / Tuna and a visible reduction in her 'hungriness'. Decided to go the whole hog and have ordered a range of higher protein foods both wet and dry. Thought it might be useful to document the results here for others considering the same. Meet the guinea pigs:


Key Diet Before Experiment
Felix AGAIL pouches - key ingredients 80% moisture, 13% protein, 3% fat, 2% ash (never got the ash bit - haven't ever seen a cat licking at the remains of a fire!)
Biscuits (standard) - key ingredients - 34% Protein, 8% fat, 7% ash.
Daily Consumption and Cost - @5 pouches between them and free fed biscuits. Average cost £2 per day

Day 1(20th November)
Animonda Carny (tin)- moisture 79%, 11.5% protein, 5.5% fat and 1.4% ash
Taste of the Wild (biscuits) 42% protein, 18% fat, no ash

Carny went down well. Smelled pretty good - could have eaten it as pate on toast! Comparing it to AGAIL the key ingredients are similar but detailed analysis and visual examination shows that the moisture in Carny appears to comes from the meat protein and not from gravy / jelly. Biscuits very popular - eaten like treats.

Just over 1 can of Carny consumed in total along with handful of biscuits. Total cost around £1.00

Will report again tomorrow. Would be good to hear if anyone has recommendations for other foods to try.

Debbie x

May be try to do like this
Proteins. Meat, poultry, fish, whey, eggs, cottage cheese, …
Veggies. Spinach, broccoli, salad, kale, cabbage, …
Fruits. Banana, orange, apple, pineapple, peers, ...
Fats. Olive oil, fish oil, real butter, nuts, flax seeds, …
Carbs. Brown rice, oats, whole grain pasta, quinoa, …

antw23uk

I'm another vote for the RAW diet. I get mine from Natural Instinct which takes the guess work out of feeding raw. Treats are chicken wings, necks and bone in rabbit for good measure :T

You will not find a healthier cat than a cat fed on a RAW food diet

antw23uk

stevenazhuo wrote: »

May be try to do like this
Proteins. Meat, poultry, fish, whey, eggs, cottage cheese, …
Veggies. Spinach, broccoli, salad, kale, cabbage, …
Fruits. Banana, orange, apple, pineapple, peers, ...
Fats. Olive oil, fish oil, real butter, nuts, flax seeds, …
Carbs. Brown rice, oats, whole grain pasta, quinoa, …

Why on earth are you suggesting veggies and fruit AND carbs :eek:
This is a cat .. it needs meat, bones, fur, feathers. RAW MEAT MEAT MEAT :T

krlyr

antw23uk wrote: »

Why on earth are you suggesting veggies and fruit AND carbs :eek:
This is a cat .. it needs meat, bones, fur, feathers. RAW MEAT MEAT MEAT :T

Spambot spamming on lots of health/diet threads if you check their posts