Sheba wet food for cats

[garypen]

I decided to give this brand a try, even though it is a Mars brand, and their other pet foods are kinda typical of crappy grain and by-product filled supermarket junk. They make it themselves, apparently, so no Menu/ANI issues. And, the ingredients list looked great for the two varieties I chose:

Chicken Breast Dinner
Water, Chicken Breast, Tapioca Starch, Guar Gum.
Guaranteed Analysis:
Crude Protein, Min. 13.0%
Crude Fat, Min. 0.3%
Crude Fiber, Max 0.4%
Moisture, Max. 85.0%

Chicken and Duck Dinner
Water, Chicken Breast, Duck Breast, Tapioca Starch, Guar Gum.
Guaranteed Analysis:
Crude Protein, Min. 11.0%
Crude Fat, Min. 0.3%
Crude Fiber, Max. 0.4%
Moisture, Max. 85.0%

FYI - This is not a complete balanced food. It is good as a treat or adjunct to an otherwise balanced diet. It seems to me to be a good way to get water and protein into your cats' bodies. ( I wonder why they don't fortify it with vitamins, minerals, and taurine to make it a complete balanced diet?)

Review:
It looks great. It is basically shredded bits of chicken, or chicken and duck, in sauce. Period. Smells good too. (I'm guessing the fish varieties aren't as pleasant.) Unfortunately, one of my cats wasn't interested at all. And, she's the one that's always begging for food. (She regularly eats, and loves, a couple of Merrick varieties.) OTOH, the other cat, who usually only eats a small amount of wet food at one sitting, but likes to nibble all day on dry, absolutely loved Sheba! He ate his and part of the serving I put out for his girlfriend!

I certainly think it's worth a shot, if you are trying to get your cat to add a little wet food to his/her diet. But, I can't guarantee success. My feeling is that cats that already like table scraps, home cooked, and human food in general, will like it. Cats who prefer cat food may not be so thrilled.

You can order a free "can" (more like a little plastic bowl) by going to their website and filling out the form: http://www.sheba.com  Click on "Complimentary Entree"

It is a little pricey. Where I bought it, it was .95 for 2.8oz can (vs. .85 for a 5.5oz can of Merrick.) Also, it is made in Thailand, which may be opening another can of worms. (not literally, I hope.)

[Ellie]

I too have tried Sheba and my cat loved it.  She begs for it and it is so hard to give her tough love.  I am a natural push over.  I agree that the ingredient list looks wonderful and when I opened the can, I actually thought it looked like human food.  She prefers the chicken and chicken/duck dinners too.  I am a little concerned about the Thailand issue, but I read in one post somewhere that Thailand has very clean facilities?!?!  Not sure how believable that one is--guess about as believable as the US has clean facilities.

[garypen]

Thailand has had a few problems in the area of pet food manufacturing, as well. At least one was Mars-specific. However, it was an instance of Mars dropping a manufacurer for not meeting their standards. Maybe that's a good sign?

All I know is Lucky gobbled it up, and was obviously enjoyiong it more than any other wet food I've ever seen him eat. And, he's fine so far. Of course, Lucy didn't touch a drop of it. And, she's the one who's always hungry.

Since they both need to like it, it is not a viable alternative for me. But, maybe our experiences will help in case others wanna give it a shot.

[Geff]

I just started feeding this tonight. Looking for any info on problems. I noticed that the PFL states that Mars has had some recalls & to check their web site. The Sheba site says there have been no recalls?

[kaffe]

There are now two kinds of the Sheba variety - the first one, which is manufactured in Thailand has limited ingredients, i.e., no added vitamin-mineral mix.  The second type has "Mars" stamped on the lid and this type has vitamins and minerals added - I'm not sure where this type is manufactured though.  I have fed the first type to my cast as treats and encountered no problems.  The cats love it - various "flavors." 

[dodipayne]

My cats will only eat Sheba cat food, but it is not on the shelves anymore at the supermarkets.  I called Mars Manufacturer and was told they have discontinued the product.  It was too expensive to make and was not the best seller because of the expense.  They told me to try Whiskers.  I have tryed everything, including Fancy Feast, etc.  The try to bury it with their dry food and even water and walk away.  Don't know what to do now.

[Bonkers]

Hello dodipayne!

The only thing you can really do is keep trying various canned foods untill you come across one that they like.  I am really not familiar with the Sheba brand but if I remember correctly the food consisted mostly of chunks of meat in a little sauce.

I would try to find a similar product, such as Wellness Pouches, Avoderm Select Cuts and I believe Blue Buffalo also makes a chunky canned food. I am sure there are other similar ones out there, the trick is finding one your kitties will like.

[dodipayne]

Bonkers, thanks for the info.  I don't think I have ever seen those brands in the stores.  I tried Whiskas tuna this morning.  One cat smelled it and wouldn't touch it, the other ate less than 1/2 can, but immediately started vomiting, four times on carpet.  It looked and smelled so bad, I can hardly stand to make them eat such stuff.  They sat there begging for something else to eat.  I'm thinking about trying to find the ingredients and cooking a batch myself, that will be such a job. 

[Bonkers]

dodi

Most of the brands that I have mentioned  are sold in big box pet stores like Petsmart, PetSupplies Plus or PetCo. Others may be found at smaller pet specialty stores.

[robfdavis1971]

dodi, Have you tried the new Iams with Prebiotics? My cats eat it - it is a new formula and they enjoy it. One of my cats had a vomit episode because she is sensitive and this was new for her...the others ate w/out any issues. The next day she had no problem eating it and she begs me to open the can! It smells good too. I only feed 1 x 3 oz can for all 5 cats. Rest of day they get kibble with freeze-dried raw shredded on top of it from Stella and Chewys.

[GreyGhost]

Bonkers listed some good choices. I would like to add Nature's Variety has a grain free, with grain, and a homestyle (chunky) variety of canned cat foods. They have many flavors and seem to feed well especially the grain free.

The other brand that seems to feed well Tiki Cat. They also have several different flavors.

I know if you go to Nature's Variety website you can sign up and get coupons.

Hope this helps.

[dodipayne]

Thanks to everyone that has given me info on the choice of cat food.  I ordered online 15 cases of Sheba, so many flavers were out of stock, but I got most of what they like, this will last me for 1 yr and 3 mo.  Had to pay more plus $50 shipping.  The expiration date isn't until 2012.  In the meantime I will try some of these brands to try and get them used to it and hopefully they will like one or the other.

[GreyGhost]

Your Welcome. We are always glad to help. Glad you found some online and glad to hear you'll be trying others. Always good to have a back up.

[dodipayne]

Do you know what stores carry Tiki Cat food?  I found it on the internet but only to order online.  It really sounds great, but mostly fish.  I would like to buy a couple of cans and try it first before ordering.

[Bonkers]

dodi

I would contact the company as to where it may be purchased.

There is a thread on the PFLF regarding Tiki cat food.

 It may be found here:

http://thepetfoodlist.com/forums/index.php?topic=85.0