Do you have a video where you recommend the best freeze dried options for dogs and cats? I really love how you sent in the food to be analyzed at a lab!
Thanks so much for sharing!! I got sucked into his infomercial and was super disappointed when he said "this is affordable". But way more expensive than almost any food i've found!
Thank you Mallory for reviewing this brand! First purchased Dr. Marty's Nature's Feast to transition them off kibble. I used to free feed them kibble and one wet food meal a day. I've only been learning about pet food since earlier this year. And learned that kibble isn't good for them because of the high carbs, dehydration caused by kibble and degraded nutrients due to ultra processing. Cats especially need low carb wet food because they are obligate carnivores and need mostly protein and fat and that it's best for them to get most of their hydration from their food. All that said, decided to get them off kibble. But I knew they wouldn't accept that change all at once. So I decided to use Dr. Marty's freeze dried unhydrated temporarily as a "kibble substitute". Only fed them very small snacks about twice a day. It was a good choice because of some similarities. 1. Has similar texture. 2. Has more carbs than most freeze dried. These are things my cats were used to from the kibble. The transition was successful. Now feed them two wet food meals a day. I rotate. And sometimes use Dr. Marty's, rehydrated now. I thought I had read or seen something about their sourcing. I want to see things such as wild caught, pasture raised, 100% grass fed, at least cage free, at least non-gmo veggies and fruits, organic even better. But I couldn't find it anywhere on the site. So I sent an email to them asking about that. It's been 4 days. Given that today is Sunday, I'll give them another day, but I expected a response sooner. I found another freeze dried that they like that has more protein and fats and less carbs. Also a lot of info on that brand's site. So will be phasing out Dr. Marty's or perhaps will use occasionally if they answer and their sourcing matches my criteria. Both sourcing and transparency are among my top priorities. Customer service is also important to me. So far, I really don't know about their sourcing and not very transparent on their site. If anyone seeing this has more info on that, I'd very much appreciate! In conclusion, it was great for the transition. And it's better than a lot of pet foods. But I have high standards and my criteria must be met or I'll just use up what I have and not buy again. I apologize about this comment being so long. Thank you for reading. And again, thank you Mallory for the review!
I thought about getting this food for my cats a couple months ago after I watched his infomercial, then I saw the price 😬 Your review makes me feel better about not choosing to go with this food . Thanks for all your hard work 😊
My mother bought me $300 of this stuff for my two new 10 month olds, as she was emotionally played by this guys youtube videos - probably the same video/commercial you are talking about! Nearly $300 for one months food and treats for 2 cats is ridiculous imo! Ive yet to open and feed the cats any yet, as I'm still tempted to send it back and get her money back even though it was a gift. I didnt ask for it - and I dont like the idea of her being ripped off like this. The advertising by playing on emotions didnt work on me like it did her. I feed them well already, and it cost me half what this stuff costs - and that includes actual fresh raw meats.
Hey Mallory! I'm curious what you and the kitties think about Chewy's brand American Journey. It's affordable and the ingredients seem great, but is it too good to be true?
I had no idea you guys had a RU-vid channel. I love everything you do for cats! My cat is 19 and your website helped me so much find good food for her kidneys! Please don’t stop :)
@@Christabellaluxx tons of love and cuddles! Since her kidney problems she now eats royal canin. Before that she loved Sheba, dr elseys, and blue buffalo :)
I JUST took my cat to vet today she's only 12 and was told she has kidney failure..... He said there's this REALLY expensive good that I could get her but it's $36 for 12 oz or something outrageous like that but I'm willing to do anything to help my cat and her health for as long as I possibly can.... What advice were you given about your cats kidneys if you don't mind?? Because my vet wasn't very helpful and acted as if she wasn't worth it
Our senior Miniature Schnauzer, who is a picky eater, loves this food. It’s a little pricey but he seems to have more energy with this food added to his diet. Hopefully, this food will help extend his life as a happier, healthy family member.
The problem with pet food corporations is that they concentrate more on quantity THAN ON QUALITY in order to make their shareholders happy every quarterly AT THE EXPENSE OF YOUR PET'S LIFE AND HEALTH AND LONGEVITY. The same can be said for human food companies and supplements companies. Especially in this day and era of illegal and criminal forced corporate takeover-acquisitions of privately owned family owned corporations so that they can kill these privately owned small family owned corporations by destroying the original quality of their products-services while maintaining the false image that the original owners are still in charge and in full control of production QUALITY CONTROLS-TESTS. The worst thing that can happen is that they illegal and criminally forced corporate takeover-acquisitions of these small to medium size family owned private pet food corporations and human food corporations and supplements corporations for pets and humans and SHUT THEM DOWN-LIQUIDATE SCRAP THEM ALL with the help of your EVIL LOCAL POLITICIANS AND STATE POLITICIANS AND FEDERAL POLITICIANS AND THE POLITICIANS IN THE WHITE HOUSE!
Thanks for the concise review. I feel less guilty for skipping the infomercials now. I watch ads for most channels I subscribe to because I want to support them, but I do not have the time for infomercials that are four times longer than the video.
Very enlightening review! I've always wondered about the validity of this Dr's claims. That's really next level that you did a lab test too!!! When will you review Orijen?
@@AllAboutCatsYT I've been able to make several educated decisions with products for my furbabies thanks to you. I even watch the reviews on things I don't necessarily need, just so I can be on top of the subject when I need it or help someone else. I must note the drastic volume difference between intro and main video, but that's the only gripe!
I wanted to thank you for the recent review of kitty litter. We had been using Fresh Step and were happy with it but it was a little dusty. We tried Slide in the past did not like it at all--the litter started to smell after about 5 days even with frequent cleaning. Based on your recommendation, we purchased Dr. Elsey's Precious Cat Ultra Clumping Clay Cat Litter and we LOVE IT! So much less dust. No smell after well over a week of use. And as an added benefit, it is so easy to clean. It doesn't seem to stick to the sides of the pans as much as the Fresh Step. Basically, Dr. Elsey's Precious Cat Ultra Clumping Clay Cat Litter is a winner in my testing too!
Thanks for this review. I had seen an advertisement on one of dr. Sarahs videos and was curious. Almost made the purchase. It’s funny how advertisers will sneak themselves into your thoughts like that. I trust you guys and they know it. Thanks for your honesty.
Your food reviews have been so helpful! Adopted my 4 yo cat recently, his diarrhea didn't get better even after trying various wet food brands. I'm thinking about homemade cat food, though not comfortable with handling raw. Could you make a video about homecooked cat food and the optimal supplements?
Usually cats have bad poops because you give such different types of foods. Jackson galaxy has a video on how to convert cats from dry to wet. Hope that helps
My vet recommends "Dust Free" cat litter as some cats will develop bladder infections like my cat did do to me initially using "Fresh Step" I now use Arm & Hammer Dust Free my bella hasn't had any issues since switching.
My cat has stomatis and I'm desperately trying to fix him naturally. My cats haven't been liking it but since I grinded it and my sick cat has an easier time eating it mixed with water and right now I'm praying that it helps my kitten .
Thank you for his review. I had been feeding my cat this food, which he loved, till their food sources changed (I called the company to see why the nuggets went from chocolate brown to sandy beige, was told depends on where food is sourced). Now my cat won’t eat it. Good thing they have a solid refund policy.
@@Phil_Melone I now feed him Weruva canned, switching daily between Nine Livers, and Paw Lickin’ Chicken. (I tried some of the other flavors, but he seems to like these.) I get them at either PetCo or my local pet store, Healthy Pet. No bad stuff in their food.
Did you determine the nutritional value beyond the % breakdown of composition? Synthetic vitamins are no bueno, based on cheap pet food that are mostly carb/grain based
Hey, have you considered doing a video on Dr. Elsey's clean protein? After you best cat food video I switched him from friskies dry cat food to a mixture of Dr. Elsey's and Ziwi peak air-dried, depending on how much I want to spend. He likes dry cat food a lot and I weight it on a small food scale. Thanks!
Good friskis is one of worst cat foods brands my cats had relly bad reaction to it 🙀they were throwing up a lot 🙀one of relly good brands is concept for life is relly good cat food and my cats dont have no problems whit this food 🐾 🐾 You find it on zooplus 🐾 stay safe 😻
I knew of dr marty but never knew he was a celebrity vet… that makes me very suspicious. While i do appreciate integrative medicine in veterinarians, i do believe that there should be a balance between science based evidence and holistic/integrative knowledge. Unfortunately, it will be anecdotal evidence, but i have found that when veterinarians consider both sides, your cat could greatly benefit from it. I feed my cats raw because i truly believe, despite lack of scientific evidence, it makes the MOST sense for cats, and i have seen a great difference in my cat. She was healthy to begin with, but on dry food she started to get a lot of dandruff and dull coat, and within a month of fully raw, she has a shiny coat w no dandruff. I truly believe the raw diet will help your cat live longer
@@GamingKittie786 hi there! Sorry ive been meaning to respond to your comment. What i did personally is feed wet food and introduced freeze dried raw food (rehydrated raw food) to let my cat get used to the texture. She liked it for a bit and abandoned it. Then i tried freeze dried raw and i was lucky she took to it. I slowly transitioned from the freeze dried to frozen and slowly transitioned away the wet food. The Facebook group Feline Nutrition is the #1 thing that helped me
I started my cat on Dr Marty's, and the change was truly impressive. Her coat, her overall health & happiness, all markedly improved. Plus, she really loves it, she will choose it over Tuna. She licks the bowl clean and just has a really satisfied look on her face afterward. Other brands are mostly corn-based, but break up the ingredients into several corn groups to disguise the fact that the number one ingredient in them is corn. CATS WERE NOT MEANT TO EAT CORN as the primary ingredient in their food. I give her 1/2 cup DrM with 1/4 cup water, so a 12 oz bag lasts a few weeks. She doesn't seem put off by the limited variety, she simply loves it! The narrator's seem to put a big emphasis on allergy-stricken cats, I myself have never had such an animal, and I had a lot. Her "score" doesn't mean much to me, as I've had nothing short of excellent results with Nature's Feast, so much so that I'm convinced it is the BEST thing you can feed a cat, and I've tried them all. "My" score: 10/10.
So that’s the guy whose ad I keep having to skip over here on RU-vid😂. Sounded gimmicky and I didn’t even know what he was promoting until now. Well, since I have to be able to feed myself so in turn I can feed my kittens, guess this isn’t the one for me💸💸💸. Thanks for the thorough analysis!
I wished I did more research before ordering 😩 I figured there would be a product review on RU-vid and found your video. Now I regret buying. It will be a one time purchase after seeing this. Thanks for this video.
@@Ace8845678 Honestly my cat didn't take to it. Maybe it's because I started him off with cans of fresh Tuna & Salmon. He's gotten used to eating good 😆 I tried mixing it in with the Dr. Marty's but he'll spit it out or eat around it. I just went back to feeding him what I started off with which was the natural balance kibbles mixed with the fresh Tuna & Salmon. I still have the bag of Dr. Marty's unsure if I'm going to return it, or use it as reserve when he runs out, or just give it away. I know cats and dogs can sometimes be finicky and you have to whean them into a new diet but I just didn't want to force him after several attempts.
Hey Malory, very informative! But yeah, tho the ingredients are top notch, the price is absurd! Do you have any similar quality substitute alternatives that you could recommend?
@@amymorris2341 true, ive bought some really good foods, and some of them the cat was barely eating so I had to mix it with food he would eat like fancy feast, etc. Like you said w.e makes them happy and healthy and they love it, then thats all that matters, if God forbid my cat dies then I can just get another cat, millions of cats need homes anyeays
@@NIkki-ox1ej Its nice that u have that mindset that u can just go get another cat and take care of him/her. What we feed our beloved pets is everything. Education is key. Read ingredients lists and stay awsy from bad ingredients like corn, wheat, corn & wheat gluten,soy & more.
Thanks so much! I ordered Dr Marty’s food and didn’t realize how expensive it was until I received it and was in shock! Glad to know it’s really not that good either and I am returning it. Thanks for the tips on less expensive freeze dried too
@@debbieshomes6984 Yes. Now mixing it with wet food. But the little rascal eats around it. He is 14 pds and only 6 months old. Part Maine Coon. Next is the eat it or starve portion of the program. Lol It doesn't look or smell very good.
Dr. Marty’s is the only freeze-dried food my cats like. We just use it as a topper, not their main food. I wasn’t aware of all the advertising and health claims, but I guess this video is a little older so maybe those ads aren’t running anymore. The food comes in three varieties now and my cats really enjoy it mixed in with their regular food. It often goes on sale at our local pet store so the price is not unreasonable.
Still running "ads" on Facebook. They're around 40 minutes long. A lot of good information, but it's a 40 minute long ad! I get the same impression on Dr. Marty's website. Not anywhere near as much info there as the 40 minute talk, mostly about selling. That said, my cats like it and it's better than most pet foods in the marketplace. I would say it's OK. Emailed requesting information about the sourcing of the ingredients. Haven't received an answer yet. Will give them til tomorrow. If I don't hear back or if answers are vague, Dr. Marty's will be out of the rotation after using what I have left.
We hope to do a video on this soon! For now, you might appreciate this article from the All About Cats website: allaboutcats.com/best-cat-food-diabetic-cats
REALLY enjoyed your video! Definitely felt it was balanced and informative - THANK YOU! As an owner of 6 wonderful rescue kitties ranging from age 5 to 10, what is the best bang for your buck recommendation? I'm not poor but not rich either. Hope to hear from you! - Tom
Heya Tom, sorry about the late reply! You might appreciate our video on the best budget food: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-rBLRdbv3JHI.html&
@@AllAboutCatsYT No problem my friend! I actually followed your videos to find this one a couple of weeks ago. VERY HELPFUL! I have started making "wet food" by par boiling chicken thigh cutlets from the grocery store. Is it better to cut them up raw or is par boiling ok? Thanks again Mallory!
@@TimeIdle they say that about tuna and Mercury. What they don’t know is the amount of mercury in tuna is parts per million. Not an issue. I don’t know what in salmon could possibly be detrimental to their health.
I supplement my dog's diet with Dr Marty's dog food, so decided to try this stuff when i recently acquired a cat. He wouldn't touch the stuff, dry or rehydrated, alone or mixed with kibble, wet food, or even raw food. He ate around it. He's not even that picky an eater, and at the time even less so became I'd just picked him up from where i found him half starved at a rest area and he was still in that starvation mindset and would inhale 2 small cans of wet high calorie food in about 30 seconds and then literally climb up my body meowing his little head off and demanding more. Maybe i got a bad bag or something, but for that price, i wasn't about to try again. My dog seems to like it just fine, so i usually add a handful to his dinner so as to not waste it.
I have to say! I think the food is excellent when I gave it to my cat she loved it and seemed so much happier and healthier on it her poop was so much better and his probiotic is outstanding! My cat is not well right now so I’m paying the extra price for his food! I’m sure I can return it if she doesn’t eat it. And it is expensive and hard to keep up with but I use it as a kibble and when you order one bag through the checkout process he offers 3 more bags for $74 not bad and a discount on the probiotic I paid $25 instead of $75 and hopefully she will feel much better I have a feeling she will!!
I saw this video and I was very interested to see how I could get different sources how to feed my baby kitten she recently got hurt and she doesn't eat any cat food if you could please help me I highly appreciate
Stumbled upon your videos (and have found them enlightening). I’m trying to boil them down to an affordable diet solution, and am a bit flummoxed by all the choices. Our cat refuses to eat anything but chicken kibble (and a bit of ripe banana). Refuses ALL WET, canned cat food;, INCLUDING: fish (raw, cooked, dried, canned etc,), chicken (canned or fresh), Turkey (canned or fresh). We’ve recently settled on Organix chicken kibble (which she likes, and seems well sourced, at least) ). Given her proclivities, can you recommend the healthiest choice food that doesn’t break the bank? ($1 or $2 a day). Thank you, you’re the best!
Hey Mike, thanks for the comment, and sorry it's taken me a while to get back to you! There are a lot of decent dry food options available that should suit her needs and your budget. Organix is decent, and you can also consider Open Farm. Their foods do contain fish, but they have a Homestead Turkey and Chicken recipe that seems to be primarily chicken-based. I think you'd find it affordable, and it also is from a brand that pays a lot of attention to sourcing, so I think it could compete well with Organix in that regard.
Also I was going to send the extra bags back since they didn't love it and missed the cut off so the fact that my sick cat will eat it finally .I can only hope it helps
I only buy stuff on sale. Between buy one get one 50% off and curbside discount of 25% at local petsupplyplus, I got six 5.5 Oz bags for 55$. So roughly 1.67$ per ounce. At 5$ an ounce no way I'll stick to stella and chewy and freshpet products. But with the sale definitely recommend.
Its very expensive for my cats and dog thanks for all your videos appreciate you very much went on the website it is still very expensive your amazing for all your cat and dog food videos grateful for your videos Glad find your channel wasn’t happy was with the food thanks you
I have this in my 8 cats rotation, but it isn't their favorite. Some of them will eat it and some won't. There's other Freeze Dried cat foods they like much better.
Hi Mallory, Is there a food that you do recommend that isn't so expensive? I just watched his sales video and it just made me feel awful about what I'm feeding them but this is way too expensive for me to afford. Please help. Thank you! (If you aren't allowed to recommend one I understand)
We use this for both of our pets (one dog, one cat). Our animals have responded amazingly. Our cat has actually changed his entire personality. Our dog can literally throw our patio furniture around the yard now! (LOL). Our cat is a PTSD cat and our dog is a medical dog. They have never been better but I am curious about the alternative you suggested. Has anyone had these types of results?
Any kind of fresh, species-appropriate diet seems to have the ability to greatly improve an animal's health, so I would suspect that this change is not attributable to any secret ingredient in the Dr. Marty food but just the fact that it's a fresh, wholesome food.
Stomatitis is not *treated* by diet, but a soft, easy-to-eat food will help him feel more comfortable. I'd recommend taking your cat to a vet, as they can help you get appropriate medications. Treating stomatitis is relatively straightforward, and most cats do very well with it.
I just bought Dr. Marty's for my cat as the ingredients sound perfect. My cat will be 2 in May and weighs 9 pounds. He absolutely loves this food and will knock it off the counter to get to it. I ha e mixed it with Purina Natural kibble or Tiny Tiger from Chewy. He usually picks Dr. Marty's out and prefers it to the regular kibble. The color is good, a light beige. The chicken toppers are cream color. Can people try this? I'm curious as it seems human grade.
Mallory, I used to see him on Martha Stewart's Show. Dr Marty isn't a scam. But my cat 🐈 😻 totally loves it. I only get it through auto ship since 2022. I've seen several of your videos. Generally like your videos. I pay $30.98 monthly for 12 oz. I only give my cat 1/4 cup with her 1/4 Wysong a day. And half a can of Tiki Cat Seafood.
I had a bad experience trying to order a trial Dr Marty's Cat-order got processed for Dog and they had difficulty processing the refund. I've been happy with Darwin's Cat, frozen shipped. It's just a pity it costs so much to ship frozen.
I ordered Dr Marty's Nature's Feast Poultry Formula. First impressions of the size of the bag, the appearance of the food, and the price was not looking good, it was not looking good. As she said, this bag would not last a week serving a cup to a cup and half a day. Keep in mind this is two years after her review. I don't think any improvements have been made. The food itself had the appearance of little sausage-shaped bits that were puffy and lightweight. I would like it to be puffier and fiber-filled Cheerios. If you have seen the kitty litter that is log-packed sawdust, that's the appearance and the color is anemic. I was very disappointed in the "Nutritional Facts" as there weren't any. Just four, are listed...Protein, Fat, Fiber, and moisture. The calories, vitamins, minerals etc were nowhere to be found. It had one note on calories, but it did not clarify the serving size, etc. I did not expect to get my calculator out and figure this out. For such a "healthy" alternative, I was losing hope. The ultimate test was the taste test. My young adult kitty sniffed it and would not touch it. I tried several times, when she was hungry, or as a treat, and even adding water. Nope, nada, nein! That sealed the deal. This is going back. I wish I could post photos...you would know exactly what I'm saying.
Thank You for this review. On his AD he claims how preservatives in OTHER cat foods are so bad BUT he FAILS to say his product (cat food) has THIS PRESERVATIVE: I RESEARCH ADs. Dr. Marty's Cat food DOES have PRESERVATIVES (he does NOT disclose that in his own ad. He only says how preservatives are bad in OTHER pet foods. so that is false advertising, ! The PRESERVATIVE this contains is "Mixed Tocopherols (preservative)". : What are the risks of tocopherol? In supplement form, however, high doses of vitamin E might increase the risk of bleeding (by reducing the blood's ability to form clots after a cut or injury) and of serious bleeding in the brain (known as hemorrhagic stroke).
Thanks for your effort! It was really interesting. I don't know that Dr, because I don't live in the USA, but I usually distrust companies which make those kind of magical claims, until I go to the data and facts like you do 😊 I know it could be really difficult, but could you maybe review Beutenah freezed dried food for cats? It's a German company I think, and it is the only freezed dried food I can access where I live. Thank you very much!
Hi, I commented on the last video about the PetsBest pet insurance information included in your online guide. I think you have a mistake about the plan offering unlimited coverage. I have that pet insurance and have unlimited coverage. I notice that you haven’t changed it in your guide or responded to my comment. Any reason why? Thanks
Hi Lula, thanks for pointing that out. I got about a week behind on responding to comments and am just now working through all of them. I see the mistake you're referring to, and I'll make sure that it's corrected. Sorry about that.
On price: Go to a local, independent pet food store. Mine sells it currently at $32 a bag with every tenth bag free. Still too expensive as their sole food source, but at least I can afford to make it a quarter of their food (considering I can't afford pet insurance let alone a vet for the little monsters that adopted me.)
Found it on a BOGO sale at Pet Supplies Plus. Buy one, get second at half price. Was already also on sale. So ended up paying around $21 for a 12 oz bag. A couple of weeks later on sale again and received a coupon for 25% off entire purchase, so cost $20 for same size bag. On the Dr. Marty's site, a big deal is made about getting 50% off. 50% off a $60 (rounded) 12 oz bag?! Still around $30! Even the regular price for it at Pet Supplies plus is lower. Very fortunate PS+ is nearby. Also, please note, whenever I go into Dr. Marty's website, I get the impression that it's mostly about selling, with very little information about the ingredients. Not impressed!
I was just at a website earlier that read: So far there hasn't been any recalls, but of course that isn't much to go on. Do remember that cats can get diabetes just like humans. Also remember never ever give your cat chocolate.
Yep!!! I thought I heard more about the ingredient sourcing in his 40 minute "ad" on FB. But nothing on website about ingredient sourcing. Emailed 4 days ago requesting that information. My cats like it and think it's better than most foods in the marketplace. I'd say it's OK. But one more day, and if I don't receive an answer or vague, Dr. Marty's is out of the rotation after using up what I have. My cats like their other foods, too, and all of those other brands are very transparent, so don't need it.
by the way, im still noticing that audio issue although i find that maybe it doesn’t happen with every video, only like every other video which is weird. but for example this one is very quiet. just wanted to let you know!
Thanks for mentioning this. It's frustrating since, as you said, it doesn't seem to affect every video, and I'm not sure what's causing it. I may have to get a new microphone to ensure that the audio quality is consistent across all videos. Again, I appreciate you mentioning this and continuing to watch. :)
If a cat is starving maybe, maybe it will eat it. Then again maybe not. I also tried it wet, no help. $37.00 price tag is like a cat coughing up a hairball. I'm going to crush and see if the birds will eat it. Or chum the water for Cat fish.
Who doesn't.... He developed the food after losing his cat zots, from bladder issues, when he was fresh out of vet school..he also switched to a healthy diet himself and figured out....I need to look into my cats diet. He's spot on. We feed our cats protein rich no grain foods and they have no health issues unlike my daughter's cats who have bladder issues, dandruff, shedding and are overweight. She buys expensive food that's first ingredient is gmo corn. Fail. Cats need protein. Watch his 40 min video. He's an expert. For decades. This video is layman at best. Someone always bashes someone else's hard work and life long research in the field, their life's work, after 5 mins of Google searching.
They seem to do it relatively often-wildcats as well as domesticated outdoor cats will steal and eat eggs from nests. Here's a video of one eating eggs straight out of a wood pigeon's nest: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-dcylALXkHSs.html
At this rate it seems I can’t trust any cat food. Every single one has people for it and against it. I keep getting contradicting information from vets, nutritionists and RU-vidrs who do independent research. It’s like I might as well just go let my cat hunt for it’s own food like nature intended. But even THAT has a whole debate (talking about raw food diet, not letting a cat go hunt. Obviously I wouldn’t let my cat outside unsupervised, but that’s not the point I’m trying to make.) So where does that leave me? All I want is for my cat to eat healthy, live longer, yet it doesn’t cost a whole arm and leg. It looks to me like that’s impossible. At this rate it’s more like “which food kills your cat the slowest”.
Hi there! I think you're experiencing the overwhelm that comes with really diving into research, which is a good sign. It means you're starting see the pieces, and the next step is to put them together. If you stick with it, I trust that you'll come out on the other side feeling at least a bit clearer than you do now. I won't promise complete clarity, because I've been researching cat food, nutrition, and cats in general almost every day for the last four years, and I'm still not certain about all of this. And I know other similarly-invested people who are either uncertain or have defaulted to an ideology rather than continuing to probe for the truth. So no, you won't necessarily know all of the answers. But with time, I think you will start having more confidence in what you do know. Regarding your last point, I don't think it's quite that grim! You can kind of think of it in the opposite way, too. Almost every food is pretty decent-we do have regulatory authorities and standards that require manufacturers to produce foods that will keep your cat alive, and from the "best" to the "worst" products on the market, you'll find cats eating them and thriving. That more optimistic perspective aside, I feel the same confusion. Most vets and nutritionists will basically tell you that the only thing that matters is that the food meets the nutrition requirements established by AAFCO (verified through feeding trials), and that only nutrients, not ingredients, matter. The "alternative" crowd tends to focus more on digestibility as a result of species-appropriateness, but the problem here is that we don't really have enough research to know if this has any benefits to cats. But since it is possible to get a food that meets the demands of the "alternative" crowd while also fulfilling those requirements in terms of expert formulation and having passed feeding trials, I would try to look for something that sits somewhere at that junction. For instance, Purina True Nature might be a good option: www.chewy.com/purina-pro-plan-true-nature-classic/dp/129799? Again, it's not perfect, but imperfection doesn't mean it'll kill your cat. Many of the best things in life aren't perfect. My diet isn't flawless, for instance, but because I'm following certain basic guidelines and keeping up a healthy lifestyle in other areas, I see no reason to expect a life foreshortened by diet-related illness. I think if we view our cats how we view ourselves, we can step out of that sort of orthorexia and focus on a more peaceful approach to giving them the best we can each day.
Many, if not most, of the foods recommended on this channel are available at PetSmart and Petco, so if you have those stores in your area, you may be able to find them there. Other than that, we have also recommended Fancy Feast and Kirkland cat food as budget options, which you can find at most groceries/big box stores and Costco Wholesale stores, respectively.
Dr. Marty’s ad begins by putting down other approaches and products, goes on to tell me I’m killing my cat, and talks for long long minutes before getting into what he has to offer. I use feline natural and Ziwi, wet and freeze dry respectively, both fron NZ. I eschew con artists. Later for you, Marty!
That is one of the points Dr. Marty makes in his infomercial, making your own food for your cat. The food he puts out is the best he can do for bagged food, but he even prefers to make his own for his cats.
We have tried every freeze dried cat food on the market at one time or another. Our cat will eat some at first and walk away from others. No matter how careful we are with preparation and careful introduction the cat always seems to look ill after eating freeze dried food. Many times they will simply throw it up. We had to stay with canned wet food until we found her favorite. My Perfect Pet Tobies Turkey. This is a frozen, lightly cooked product. Please consider a review.
