helendann
Newbie
Posts: 18
Pets I own: Jemima - tortoiseshell cat, aged about 4
Mae - silver tabby cat, aged about 2
RIP Hamble, aged about 4, who came to us with Jemima, but died from FAT only a year after we adopted her
|
Post by helendann on Sept 23, 2015 13:58:54 GMT
Wondering what other people think of Science Plan food - the vet was very keen to get us to buy some the last time we visited, saying it is healthier and would be better for Mae's teeth and gums (she has problems in that area - had 1 or 2 teeth removed before we adopted her, and we're now putting a cat toothpaste on her paws to lick off every day and also sprinkling some PlaqueOff in her food once a day). We like to give a combination of wet and dry, currently Royal Canin dry (recommended by a friend, whose wife is a vet. nurse) and various high meat content wet foods, having been told off by the vet for giving her Sheba! I thought the Science Plan food seemed very expensive and am not convinced it's soooo much better than what we're feeding her now.
|
|
|
Post by smilesbetter on Sept 23, 2015 15:33:51 GMT
Haha, the vet probably sells Science Plan. In my opinion, Science Plan isn't a great food. It has quite a low meat content and a high grain content (although they make tons so maybe they have some that are better). A cat is a true carnivore, with an incredible body completely designed around hunting and eating meat - not grains or other plant matter. Now, I know you are only asking about SP... I used to work in a quiet pet shop so I've spent a lot of time reading the packaging, haha. There are a lot of wet foods with very high meat content, like Bozita (the tetra packs have 95% meat content), Granata Pet, Defu (which is also organic), O Felis, and Catz Finefood to name a few. Some of these actually also list exactly what the meat content is too which I find very good, e.g. 90% chicken (breast, bones, stomach, heart) etc. The best dry food we sold in the shop I worked in was definitely Granata Pet (possibly available on Zooplus) as it had a much higher meat content than the other stuff we had. That's not to say it was perfect, but if I had to feed my cats dry I'd most likely go with that. To be honest if I was going to feed my cats cat food, I'd probably feed O Felis or Granata Pet wet food as as far as I can remember, they list exactly what is in the food and seem to have a very high meat content. Bozita has a high meat content, but a customer made a few comments once about what that meat actually was and I think I would wanna look into it more before feeding. She really knew her stuff about cat food, but the one she ended up feeding is only available in the shop I worked in in Germany so won't be much help for you haha. I now feed all my cats raw, mainly due to Carlotta's inability to eat anything else (although I've found it to have had a great effect on my cats generally too, and the one who stays with my mum in particular does fantastic on raw) so apart from reading about what we sold at my old work and customer feedback, I can't really advise any more than that. The other cat forum members will be much more useful in this subject haha since they actually feed cat food to their cats!
|
|
helendann
Newbie
Posts: 18
Pets I own: Jemima - tortoiseshell cat, aged about 4
Mae - silver tabby cat, aged about 2
RIP Hamble, aged about 4, who came to us with Jemima, but died from FAT only a year after we adopted her
|
Post by helendann on Sept 23, 2015 16:22:58 GMT
Yeah, when I looked at the nutritional breakdown/meat content of SP I wasn't that impressed! And the fact that the vet had a whole stand of SP food in his consultation room made me a bit suspicious that he's getting some kind of incentive from the company to flog it...
Being a vegan, I'm perhaps a weird person to be a cat owner, but I know cats are carnivores and I respect that. Ideally I'd like to feed them raw organic meat, but I fear that's beyond my budget! But I know the big name cat food brands have a low meat content of around 4%; even Lily's Kitchen is only 8%; so we're aiming for wet food that has the highest meat content as possible, even though it's more expensive than the Felix/Whiskas type stuff, and using that in conjunction with dry - again maybe not the highest meat content, but Mae definitely prefers wet to dry - dry is just what she nibbles on when the wet runs out!!
|
|
|
Post by tonib on Sept 23, 2015 19:07:56 GMT
SP has a wide variety of food but its never been popular with our cats although we have fed Hills other brands in the past. Specifically their R/D & Metabolic veterinary diets with success. Like you we feed Royal Canin dry but the cats never liked the wet. We mix the dry with James Wellbeloved as we could never get Lexie to eat purely RC dry - she's been on JWB before we got her & has a sensitive stomach but she happily eats a mix & Roman has adapted to have JWB in his RC so we got round the issue that way. They all have wet as well as dry food, well Osiris won't touch dry with a barge pole (even cat treats are avoided!) He won't even eat some meat if I give it to him with a hand that has just handled dry!!. We feed Felix moist most of the time, maybe not the best but they eat it. We also feed Applaws (a complementary food) as a treat or medicine carrier. But we do feed others brands, Sheba, Almo Nature, Gourmet Gold for a change. To be honest I haven't always looked at the contents as much as I should, with 2 of the cats I'm more concerned that they eat, Penny with kidney issues, & Osiris who will sometimes go hungry (or possibly catch outside) rather than eat something he doesn't like/want! They didn't like Lily's Kitchen. I don't think it weird to be vegan & a cat owner - the cattery part of the rescue we got 3 of our cats from was managed by vegans & they did a lovely job
|
|
|
Post by smilesbetter on Sept 23, 2015 19:41:19 GMT
Well, if you are interested in raw feeding it doesn't need to be expensive. There is a website called Paleo Ridge which some of the dog owners on here use for raw food delivery which looks fantastic. I actually live in Germany in Berlin and am very lucky that there is many raw pet food butchers here, and even feeding them organic meat works out at less than 50€ a month for two cats and a medium sized dog which is way less than what I'd spend on normal pet food. It's not easy at first but well worth it I think. I adopted both my cats as adults (the dog had been weaned onto raw which is how I came across raw feeding really) and it took months to get them onto raw, but it has been wonderful to see how their jaw muscles have developed as they should have. Before they needed all their bones chopped, not they can eat chicken wings all by themselves.
My friend is a vegan and has been her entire life (she's from a few generations of vegans) and she grew up feeding raw meat to the family dogs, and she feeds my cats their raw meat when I'm away. My old colleague on the other hand had a friend (no idea what their eating preferences were btw) who fed his dog a vegan diet despite it having no health issue which would require that. In my opinion that's quite cruel, but when you look at the content of some dog foods I suppose a lot of people are feeding their pets virtually vegan diets - sometimes the meat content is genuinely only meat flavoured spray. Similarly I know some cat owners who are not vegan who will only feed dry because wet looks too much like meat - eh?! Haha!
There are some really good wet foods for cats out there anyway, if you are worried about the price I'd recommend Zooplus, they aren't too expensive in the UK and often do multi buy deals. Obviously still way more expensive than Sheba though unfortunately haha.
|
|
helendann
Newbie
Posts: 18
Pets I own: Jemima - tortoiseshell cat, aged about 4
Mae - silver tabby cat, aged about 2
RIP Hamble, aged about 4, who came to us with Jemima, but died from FAT only a year after we adopted her
|
Post by helendann on Sept 23, 2015 20:11:37 GMT
I shall probably experiment with a few brands and actual meat. We tried Mae with cooked organic meat, but she didn't seem to understand it!! We had a dog when I was a child, and for many years he ate only fish because of a health issue - my mum used to have to boil up coley every day, I still remember the awful smell of it! I'm happy to feed our pets whatever it is that is best for them. Oh, and smilesbetter I am hugely envious of where you live - we went on our family holiday to Berlin a couple of years ago - absolutely *adored* it! Would go back in a heartbeat!
|
|
|
Post by smilesbetter on Sept 23, 2015 21:02:36 GMT
Haha when I started mines on raw I had to sneak mins clue bits of meat into their normal food first and gradually increase it until one day Carlotta just pinched some of the dogs meat haha. It took months!
Haha urghhhh, wouldn't wanna have to cook fish every day haha, it really stinks out the kitchen!
Berlin is nice, I'm a bit of a country gal though so not ideal for me. The cats can't get outdoors here either which is a shame. I live in a really awesome area though. If you have a hobby or interest here there is somewhere nearby you can do it haha.
|
|
|
Post by migsy on Sept 24, 2015 22:47:03 GMT
Years ago I was given a free sample of this food by a vet for our new puppy.When we went back,the vet wasn't amused when I told him the puppy had taken each piece of food and placed it on the newspaper near the back door which was for his toilet training...showed what the puppy thought of it.Well,he was a Border Collie.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Oct 1, 2015 8:12:12 GMT
I got a small bag of Science Plan a few months ago as the vet had mentioned a tiny bit of plaque on Lily & Chilli's teeth (I was mortified!!!!) and started off by mixing a tiny portion in with their normal dry food (they get gourmet & sheba too) but they weren't impressed and ate their normal dry and left the SP After half the bag I gave up as they obviously hated it and gave it to my friend Linda who does cat rescue. Tried Lily's Kitchen a couple of weeks ago too as a treat and both turned their noses up.....and TBH it looked rather grey and unappetising to me too!
|
|
|
Post by munchkins on Oct 5, 2015 14:45:51 GMT
I think the vet is probably a carrier for science plan, when my munchkin got cystis a couple of years ago the vet told us to put her on royale caninie food for cystitis, which we brought from their as it was a prescription food, when we went back for more they told us they no longer deal with royale caninie they only deal with science plan! my munchkin wouldn't eat it, she's now on pets at home dry food for adults which has added cranberry for urine and wainrights wet food, she also has cystese tablet every day too,
|
|
|
Post by puddycats on Nov 5, 2015 18:24:19 GMT
Both Molly and Max were on Hill's Science Plan from 5 weeks (kitten food first of course) all their lives. They went onto the dry WD after they both put on a bit of weight (they both suffered from HCM and so not good to put on weight) at around the age of 6. Max developed the onset of kidney disease and so then he when onto dry KD. He died at 12 from the HCM but Molly lived until the grand old age of 18.5 years even with heart disease and hyperthyroidism. Science Plan certainly worked for my two. By the way I am vegan and have had cats all my life!
|
|
|
Post by smilesbetter on Nov 7, 2015 21:57:05 GMT
puddycats do you not wonder if the Science Plan caused the health issues in your two cats there though?
|
|
|
Post by tonib on Nov 8, 2015 12:01:57 GMT
puddycats, Max did well to go for another 6 years after the diagnosis of kidney disease, I just hope Penny can do the same, although she is at a slight disadvantage as she is 16 & just diagnosed. If it was 6 years she'd be 22! Although she doesn't have HCM she does have hyperthyroidism & as a rsult an increased heart rate (both also diagnosed this year). Molly was a lovely very elderly lady at 18.5 years
|
|
|
Post by Pawsforthought on Nov 9, 2015 11:19:08 GMT
Have you looked at Orijen cat food? They're one of the best cat (and dog) kibble manufacturers, I feel. To be totally honest, Royal Canin ain't great either. We feed raw to our dogs, and any future cats will be too, but if I had to feed kibble it would probably be Orijen (or Akela, but they don't do cat food.) I thought Almo Nature was quite good too, and Canagan are pretty good (which I got my parents and grandparents to feed their dogs, because it's quite easy to get hold of. I know Pets Corner do the cat food too.) You really do have to pay close attention to the ingredients. Orijen: "Fresh boneless chicken (20%), dehydrated chicken (15%), fresh chicken liver (4%), fresh whole herring (4%), fresh boneless turkey (4%), dehydrated turkey (4%), fresh turkey liver (3%), fresh whole eggs (3%), fresh walleye (3%), fresh whole salmon (3%), fresh chicken heart (3%), chicken cartilage (3%), dehydrated herring (3%), dehydrated salmon (3%), chicken liver oil (3%), chicken fat (2%), red lentils, green peas, green lentils, sun-cured alfalfa, dried kelp, pumpkin, butternut squash, spinach greens, carrots, apples, pears, cranberries, chicory root, dandelion root, chamomile, peppermint leaf, ginger root, caraway seeds, turmeric, rose hips, freeze-dried chicken liver, freeze-dried turkey liver, freeze-dried chicken, freeze-dried turkey." Royal Canin: "Dehydrated poultry protein, rice, maize, animal fats, hydrolysed animal proteins, maize gluten, wheat, vegetable protein isolate*, beet pulp, yeasts, fish oil, minerals, copra oil, soya oil, fructo-oligo-saccharides, hydrolysed yeast, hydrolysed crustaceans, marigold extract, hydrolysed cartilage." Science Plan: "Chicken (minimum Chicken 40%, Chicken and Turkey combined 53%): Chicken and turkey meal, ground maize, ground rice, maize gluten meal, cellulose, digest, animal fat, vegetable oil, potassium chloride, calcium carbonate, L-carnitine supplement, calcium sulphate, salt, DL-methionine, taurine, vitamins and trace elements. Naturally preserved with mixed tocopherols, citric acid and rosemary extract." Note all the natural ingredients in Orijen vs. the science lesson in the other two! As a rule, grains are best avoided in any pet's food, as they are indigestible and only bulk up food (and don't really have any value in the diet.) Royal Canin doesn't even give percentages, so I can't tell the meat content. Orijen is 80% meat. The chemicals added in SP and RC are not added to Orijen as it makes up a balanced diet with all needed chemicals, vitamins and minerals naturally present in its ingredients. But I'm not trying to sell Orijen, just to show the difference between these foods; there are a lot of alternatives to Orijen that are decent, as I said above, but you need to pay attention to the ingredients (don't be scared to be the judge, once you get your head around what to look for it's easy, even if you just go with your "lets find the most natural sounding food" head on.) If you have Facebook, I highly recommend you join the group "Rawfeeding Rebels." Even if you aren't ready to take the plunge anytime soon, it's a group full of people who would happily advise you on their recommended kibbles (people often have to feed kibble to their dogs/cats if they go on holiday, whether or not they take them with them, so most have their kibble of choice.) You may also find people have tips on how to feed raw inexpensively (some good processed foods are actually more expensive, for example Ziwipeak, which is probably THE best non-raw food I've seen.) Just being able to get your head around what comprises a good diet for a cat may help you choose kibbles in future. They're a really friendly group and not anti-kibble feeders like some raw groups are. Hope this helps (Ps. I hope no one who might feed those foods is offended by my post, it's my own opinion and not trying to lecture anyone about their kibble choices, just wanted to present the information (which I took from the kibble manufacturers' own websites,) to help people make their own decisions.)
|
|
|
Post by puddycats on Nov 9, 2015 16:38:12 GMT
puddycats do you not wonder if the Science Plan caused the health issues in your two cats there though? Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is hereditary - passed on by one or both parents, so nothing to do with food and kidney disease and hyperthyroidism is usually related to old age in cats - although they can get it younger. The fact that Max lived to 12 having severe heart disease and later the onset of kidney disease for another 6 years was brilliant in itself so Molly living with the disease plus hyperthyroidism and living to 18.5 years was just amazing. She surprised the vets I can tell you. So, as I say I have nothing but praise for Hill's Science Plan because it certainly didn't do her any harm.
|
|