Chicken & brown rice dry cat food

[Davis]

Well, after much struggle and research, I have decided that this is the dry food I'm going to supplement my cat's diet with until I find something better, although I do plan to do some rotating with at least one other dry food (not sure what yet).  For now, this food is the most simple, without all the veggie ingredients (wish they would do the same with Evo), and has a decent balance compared to other dry foods.  Input from Gary, please?   I want to switch to a mostly wet diet soon, but I still have not figured out the best thing to do in that area.  To make matters worse, my cat only likes dry food and will starve himself if he doesn't get it. 

The ONLY reason I'm willing to buy from Natura (who uses Menu for their canned products) is because they have promised to severe their relationship with Menu as soon as possible (and in the mean time have one of their own employees on site in that plant).  If this does not happen within a reasonable period of time, then I will no longer purchase their products.  But at least they are making an effort to take a stand, reassure the public, and make the change. 

[Geff]

I made a similar decision today, though (unfortunately) the severing with Menu didn't play into it much. I'm getting pretty desperate to find anything other then gerber baby food & Royal Canin that my cat can eat! We've been on Felidae Chicken & rice for about a week & he's showing signs of obvious allergic reaction to something in the food.

He's had 2 feedings from a sampler bag; so far so good. If this one doesn't work I'm going to be at a loss. As I've posted in the blogs, I originally had decided to not use any company at all related to Menu, but with my Cat's allergys I'm running out of options.

I can't find any mention on the internet anywhere of death or major fatalities from Natura.

[chaoslady]

hello,i just read your post and i would suggest trying the natural balance.i have a 14yr old cat with a very sensitive stomach.this food is the only kind he has not thrown up.he has been on it now for 5years and it has nothing but good ingredients.they have different types to try,so one might work for your kittys.petco stores carries there brand.there web site also has great info.good luck and i hope this is of some help.www.natural balance.net

[Davis]

hello,i just read your post and i would suggest trying the natural balance.

Thanks for the suggestion!  It certainly is not a bad food, but I think many of us have already researched all the foods available, including the one you suggest, and have exhaused our options.  I (and I'm sure others) have decided on this California Natural for very specific reasons.  For me, the protein/carb ratio is more favorable, as well as the other factors I mentioned above.  Maybe later I will learn something new and change my mind.  There is a thread for the Natural Balance, and you might want to post your positive comments there so that no one will miss them, which would be really helpful to those that are interested in that particular food.  I hope your kitty lives a long and happy life!

[Geff]

It's been so long since we changed foods that I'd forgotten how food sensitive my guy is. His initial reaction to the Cal Natural Chicken & Rice seems to be to have very low energy. I've run into this with other foods in the past. Problem is if this one doesn't work, short of going back to Royal Cannin with their wheat gluten & closed communication style I'm going to be at a loss. I'm going to give this another day or 2, but I know my cat pretty well & while he definately liked the flavor, his energy level didn't look good. He did perk right up after I got him to eat some gerber (took a couple tries, though to get him interested).

[Davis]

Don't give up yet Geff.  It could be something else that is making your cat lethargic.  My cat's energy levels change from time to time even when he is on the same food.  I would give it some time.  Keep adding in the Gerber and other safe treats.  Rotation is ultimately the only way to prevent the buildup of certain potentially toxic substances, as well as increasing overall nutrients.  When we feed only one food day after day, and year after year, whatever is in that particular food (and we never can be sure), will become concentrated in the cat's system, and the variety of beneficial substances will be more limited (true of all species).  I only wish I would have understood this before.  I'll be trying the Cal Natural in a couple of days and will report back.

If this food still isn't working after you've given it a fair amount of time, then we will put our heads together and figure something else out.  Even if he's sensitive, I'm sure we can come up with something that will work.  Cat's are creatures of habit, and sometimes this is the true problem. Anything out of their normal routine stresses them and they sulk.  Sometimes we just need to help them adapt to changes by not giving up to soon.  I'm going through this with my cat right now.  And a lot of extra attention and affection helps too.

[Geff]

Hi Davis - Thanks for the kind thoughts! Don't know if you've read the blogs, but I've partially chronicled Sylvester's journey through the myriad of non-recall pet foods there, it's been a challenge at best! His energy does seem better today.

On varying foods, I've heard differing opinions; on the one side I've read similar to what you mention, on the other my vet's receptionist claims that changing foods can cause diahreeah, & I've read online that we should not do sudded changes (he's probably tried almost 10 foods since the recall started).

It's been an unpleasent learning experience. Hopefully it will result in a longer happier life for my fur guy.

[garypen]

I've had good experience with Cal Natural Dry Chicken and Rice. My older cat took to it right away. My young one preferred the Royal Canin. But, now that it's gone, she eats the CalNat just fine. Seems to enjoy it quite a bit actually.

It has a good ingredient list, with fewer than average number of ingredients, which helps to avoid allergies or other adverse reactions. It smells great, very robust and meaty aroma. It has relatively low carbs for a dry food. And, the kibble seems to be just the right size and texture, so they chew it, which is good for the teeth. Plus, it's cheaper than Royal Canin, Science Diet, or just about any of the super premium holistic formulas I've seen.

The CEO of Natura has said they will be opening their own cannery, and dropping menu foods, as well as having a Natura employee on site at Menu until then. (Of course, I'm not going to buy ANY canned food made by menu. But, that commitment has made me feel better about buying their dry food.)

And, finally, it's a local company to me. So, if something happens to my cats from their food, I can personally go over there, and kick the CEO's ass.

Ingredients:
http://www.californianaturalpet.com/products/default.asp?id=72

Natura CEO's announcement concerning canned foods:
http://www.naturapetcare.com/

[Geff]

He's doing better on it tonight. Energy is back to normal. It's too early to tell for sure, but one possible HUGE bonus is that his entire life his spine has been hypersensitive, to the point where his second vet wanted to put him on Prozac. So far on the Cal Natural, for the first time in his life i can pet his back without him compulsively licking!

Circumstantial eveidence years ago pointed to Hills Science diet as the culprit for his uti's that finally required an amputation of his male organ. It would really be eye opening if his spinal condition (which the vets call epilepsy) was caused by what I've been feeding him. Throughout his life it's varied from moderate to obviously painful for him; in retrospect I think it may have varied based on food.

Up until this crisis I selected food based on what the teenager at the local pet food store suggested & that didn't make him obviously sick.......

Some of the foods he's eaten in the past include Hills, Nutro, Eukenuba, Purina & for the last few years Royal Canin. I'm certain there were others that I don't remember. All have been dry.

[garypen]

Maybe his spinal problem was irritated by a food allergy or intolerance. Cal Natural is apparently designed specifically to avoid such allergies and intollerences.

[catmom5]

Hi,
I'm new to this but thought I'd share my experiences.  My 11 year old cat was one of the earlier victims of the food recall, going into acute renal failure the end of  November.  She had been eating Nutro Natural Choice, Purina One (wet) and some pouches and cans to "whet" her appetite.  Now that she has survived her ordeal, I wanted to find something other than the Eukanuba prescription diet she was given.  We have started Cal Natural and all five of my guys seem to like it really well. I chose it for a lot of reasons~ not Menu Foods and the assurance that they will pull their wet foods from MF, ingredients seem better than some others, and the phosphorus level is lower, which is important for my renal kitty.  For what it's worth . . .
Catmom5

[Geff]

Catmom, good luck with the renal kitty. These stories just break my heart. I'm glad your fur friend survived & I feel so grateful that mine wasn't affected. For years all his vets suggested switching to wet food. I'm so glad i didn't; as i bought from regular pet stores i likely would have been using one of the contaminated brands.

I can't believe that I'm still seeing Iams in stores.

[Davis]

Hi Davis - Thanks for the kind thoughts! Don't know if you've read the blogs, but I've partially chronicled Sylvester's journey through the myriad of non-recall pet foods there, it's been a challenge at best! His energy does seem better today.

On varying foods, I've heard differing opinions; on the one side I've read similar to what you mention, on the other my vet's receptionist claims that changing foods can cause diahreeah, & I've read online that we should not do sudded changes (he's probably tried almost 10 foods since the recall started).

It's been an unpleasent learning experience. Hopefully it will result in a longer happier life for my fur guy.

Hi Geff,

Yes, I've read the blog and do recall some of the difficulties you've had, but not with perfect clarity since that blog got so long that it was difficult to keep all the stories straight.  Sounds like you've been through quite an ordeal.

I understand what you're saying about the problems associated with changing foods, but let me explain what I mean when I refer to a rotation diet.  I'm talking about finding a few foods that the pet does well on, then sticking with them and rotating them on a regular basis.  Because it would be a consistent thing, the pet's system would adjust to this consistent rotation of agreeable foods, eventually eliminating the problems associated with food changes. 

For example, you might have 2 or 3 dry foods that your cat tolerates really well.  You would rotate these every few days.  And you might also have 2 or 3 wet foods that the cat tolerates well, whether canned, raw, or homemade, etc.  You would do the same with these.  So in one day, your cat would eat both wet portions and dry portions containing a variety of agreeable ingredients.  In a couple of days, you would switch to another wet and dry, and so on.  Plus you could add favorite treats here and there, such as Gerber, etc.  This would serve to both minimize the buildup of toxins, plus add lots of nutrient variety.  You might want to select foods that vary a bit in ingredients, such as a chicken based dry, and then also other tolerable dry foods with other types of meats and ingredients, such as turkey, duck, salmon, liver, egg, etc.  Ditto for the wet.  See what I mean?  It won't be easy for any of us to find the right combo, but I believe that with enough patience it can be done.  Obviously you've been trying lots of foods, with some frustration, I'm sure.  At least you have some idea what works for your guy and what doesn't, so you've already accomplished a lot in the process of elimination.  Good luck!   

[Davis]

It would really be eye opening if his spinal condition (which the vets call epilepsy) was caused by what I've been feeding him. Throughout his life it's varied from moderate to obviously painful for him; in retrospect I think it may have varied based on food.

Wow, my cat has a very similar problem.  His back (spine area) sometimes jerks and twitches, even when he's just laying around, as if insects are crawling in his fur.  It can be quite intense at times.  He doesn't always lick or pick at it, but I can tell it's very uncomfortable for him.  He has also recently started having occasional mild seizure episodes (it really struck me when you said epilepsy in connection with the spine irritation) of incoordination, confusion, and odd movements.  I've been very worried, although this has recently decreased dramatically and he has gotten 90% better since I changed his food a few weeks ago.  Not absolutely sure if there was a connection or not.

[Geff]

It would really be eye opening if his spinal condition (which the vets call epilepsy) was caused by what I've been feeding him. Throughout his life it's varied from moderate to obviously painful for him; in retrospect I think it may have varied based on food.

Wow, my cat has a very similar problem.  His back (spine area) sometimes jerks and twitches, even when he's just laying around, as if insects are crawling in his fur.  It can be quite intense at times.  He doesn't always lick or pick at it, but I can tell it's very uncomfortable for him.  He has also recently started having occasional mild seizure episodes (it really struck me when you said epilepsy in connection with the spine irritation) of incoordination, confusion, and odd movements.  I've been very worried, although this has recently decreased dramatically and he has gotten 90% better since I changed his food a few weeks ago.  Not absolutely sure if there was a connection or not.

Sylvester has been dealing with the sensitive spine/epilepsy issues all his life (10 1/2 years). I've been told by vets it's not dangerous as long as it doesn't become painful for the cat (which at one time it did for Sylvester, the pain APPEARED to be also linked to a uti episode) & is reasonably moderate. The only time mine jerks at all is when he's sleeping, his little paws move in rhythm. He's never had a full blown epileptic fit. His second vet wanted to put him on Prozac, which I refused (his current vet says refusing the prozac was the correct decision.). In Sylvester's case the symptoms are mostly: almost instant licking when his spine is touched & a very sensitive tail (although the tail thing seems pleasurable to him). Additionally i believe that needles entering him anywhere there is a nerve that connects to his spine are extremely painful.

I haven't studied this, the above is just my perception from years of dealing with this.  Again, so far this seems to be gone with the Cal Natural! With my guy, I'm afraid to say anything definite until he's been on it for a couple weeks, but SO FAR I'm very happy with the Cal Natural.

I strongly suspect I have an extremely allergic cat, I'm only really seeing how extreme it is now. His vets have pretty much missed this also.