4health cat food

[Hazel]

As some of you know, we recently got a baby ferret. He was an impulse buy and so that day we simply grabbed a bag of Walmart ferret food to get him started. Because of our cat’s food allergies, we spend a lot of money on her food and recently had to switch her to an even more expensive brand because her old stuff is being phased out. So when I said to Hubby that we have to find Bubbles a better food, he just rolled his eyes… After I told him that the only meat related ingredient in this food is chicken meal, he seemed a bit more open to the suggestion. So yesterday we went to Tractor Supply for litter and since I found out that ferrets are fine eating cat food, I decided to go through their selection. After working my way through two shelves full of junk (corn being the first ingredient), I stumbled upon 4health cat food.

Here are the ingredients (there are three different kinds of cat food, this is the list for the one we bought):

Ingredients:
Chicken, chicken meal, egg product, cracked pearled barley, ground rice, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols), salmon, potatoes, natural chicken flavor, flaxseed, sodium bisulfate, ocean fish meal, potassium chloride, DL-methionine, choline chloride, dried chicory root, taurine, dried kelp, carrots, peas, apples, tomatoes, blueberries, spinach, dried skim milk, cranberries, rosemary extract, parsley flake, yucca schidigera extract, dried Enterococcus faecium fermentation product, dried Lactobacillus acidophilus fermentation product, dried Lactobacillus casei fermentation product, dried Lactobacillus plantarum fermentation product, dried Trichoderma longibrachiatum fermentation extract, zinc proteinate, vitamin E supplement, niacin, manganese proteinate, copper proteinate, zinc sulfate, manganese sulfate, copper sulfate, thiamine mononitrate, vitamin A supplement, biotin, potassium iodide, calcium pantothenate, riboflavin, pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), vitamin B12 supplement, manganous oxide, sodium selenite, vitamin D supplement, folic acid.

It seems to be a good quality food and is very cheap compared to other dry food of the same quality. Even some of the corn based foods are more expensive. We payed $22 for the 18lbs bag.

I looked it up online and from what I can tell this food is not very well known because it’s exclusive to Tractor Supply, so I thought I would tell you guys about it. If any of you feed your cat dry food and you have a Tractor Supply store near you, this might be something to consider . 4health also offers dog food, by the way.

 

Poor Lily, she thinks it’s for her .

 

[Sindri]

I remember when I was choosing food for my ferrets it had to be high is protein and high in fat. I looked up some info and what I read said look for 30% protein and at least 20% fat on the product label. The ingredients sound good. Meat being the first ingredient is always good. It sounds like a great cat food for sure. So check the percentages on the packages as well as ingredients. I wish I could remember the brand I used but I cant. I do have a tractor supply by me and have purchased stuff from there. I think I will try that cat food. My persian cat Puss is currently eating Purina Naturals indoor cat food. He tends to throw up a lot and always has. He doesn’t throw it up like other cat foods I have tried. I think its because it doesn’t have dyes in it. I will definitely pick up a bag of this for my cats and see how it goes.

[Hazel]

Awesome, I’m glad you like it! This is what it says on the label:

Guaranteed Analysis:
Crude Protein 34.0% minimum, Crude Fat 18.0% minimum, Crude Fiber 3.0% maximum, Moisture 10.0% maximum, Magnesium 0.1% maximum, Zinc 120 mg/kg minimum, Selenium 0.4 mg/kg minimum, Vitamin E 150 IU/kg minimum, Taurine 0.1% minimum, Omega-6 Fatty Acids 3.0%*, Omega-3 Fatty Acids 0.5%*

It comes pretty close to what you said in regards to protein and fat, maybe a little low on fat but that’s the minimum amount.

Like I said, they have three different kinds of dry food, the other two are the indoor variety (which is very similar to ours, just a little less calories) and a grain free version but it’s fish based instead of chicken. I think there’s canned food as well but I didn’t look it.

If you end up trying it, I hope your cats like it . Lily and Bubbles keep trying to mess with the bag, it must smell pretty good even though it’s still sealed.

[Sindri]

It sounds pretty good. I hope they enjoy it!

[MoxieMeadows]

It looks like a good cat food.

And Lily looks so cute!

[KytKattin]

Ferrets are illegal in California, so I don’t know too much about them, but I think they are very fascinating little pets. Are they obligate carnivores like cats, or can they digest some plant matter? Do they need taurine like cats and dogs do? Do people ever feed them wet or raw foods? After I switched my cat, I was amazed at how much less the litter box smelled.

[bunnytowne]

Hazel I wanted to inbox you from BB.  I cannot find you to inbox you.  I tried clicking on your name and 4 different hazels came up but none are yours. 

I wanted to ask you about siamese cats. I see you have one and she is so pretty.  So you got a ferret. How do you like the ferret?  Is your cat ok with her new food?  That isn’t what I wanted to ask you tho. 

About the breed I don’t know how many siamese you have had.  Are they real talkers  do they tend to have lots of health issues?  Thats what I was wondering . Ok Thanks

[Hazel]

bunnytowne: I sent you a message! This food is actually just for the ferret, Lily has food allergies and can’t eat anything that’s not totally grain free. She’s allergic to beef, as well.

MoxieMeadows: Thank you! I hope it’s good, it has to be better than that stuff from Walmart. The crazy thing is, it’s actually cheaper!

KytKattin: As far as I know they only eat meat and they benefit from Taurine, as well. There’s Taurine in this food, so that’s good. I was always of the opinion that wet food is best for cats, since they get most of their water from food. I would have thought ferrets would do best with wet food as well but from what I’ve read, most people advice to feed dry. I think it’s because their digestive tract is very short and because of that they eat many small meals a day. Leaving wet food out all day would cause it to go bad pretty quickly, I guess. Feeding dry seems to be okay, as long as it’s a good quality food and their teeth get brushed regularly. I wish we could have gotten grain free food for him but this was the best I could find. Unfortunately we spend so much money on the cat’s special food already, we can’t go all out with the ferret, too. This food seems to be very good, though .

[bunnytowne]

ferrets are illegal in california.   I never knew that.  There is a certain species of paraket that are illegal in certain states too.  

I see ferrets for sale in pet stores here in florida so I know they are ok here.  Funny whats legal in one state is illegal in another

Your cat is beautiful Hazel.  Just gorgeous

[Hazel]

Thank you, bunnytowe! She’s a sweetheart and turning 4 tomorrow!

Ferrets were actually illegal in our state as well, until not too long ago. Weird that a certain species of parakeet would be illegal, I wonder why.

[KytKattin]

Yes, I very much agree that wet is best for cats! I actually had my cat on a grain free canned food for about 5 months, but it was costing over $2.50 per day for just the cat. I could not deal with that price at all, it just wasn’t affordable for me, so I completely understand the whole price thing, especially since your cat really needs things a certain way. I ended up switching to making my own food and the cost is now somewhere around $3-4 per day for 3 small dogs and a cat, price depending on if I can find something on sale. The bonus is that the litter box does not smell at all now, and I find myself not needing to use as much litter.Your girl looks super sweet! Such an angular face!

I would love to see a picture of little Bubbles. Did you post pictures in another thread?

[Hazel]

Wow, $2.50 a day, that’s crazy expensive! Which food was it? What size cans? We have been feeding her Innova Evo cat and kitten all her life but now for whatever reason, (we can’t get a straight answer from anyone) this food is disappearing. So now we finally switched her to Wellness grain free, it costs us $1.50 a day, we buy the big 12.5 oz cans. A lot more expensive than the Evo was but what can you do…

I think it’s great that you’re making your own pet food, do you just buy whatever meat is on sale? Do you feed raw?

I did post a picture of Bubbles a couple of weeks ago in the May chat thread (first page) and two more in the picture thread (second page). I’m bad about posting pictures of our cat, I try to keep non-bunny pet pictures to a minimum, since this is a rabbit forum after all .

[KytKattin]

It was Nature’s Variety Instinct, and I bought the larger cans, but it was often $4 to $5 a can without a coupon. I did try to bring the cost down with coupons, but in the end, I just couldn’t justify spending that much, and either he or I was not happy with other foods. That is really weird that Evo is disappearing. Maybe they are just having problems with manufacturing?

Yes, it is raw. I try to feed a mixture of 10 lbs chicken, 10 lbs pork, and 10 lbs beef. Unfortunately, the beef is often really expensive, so sometimes they get more pork if I can’t find any for less than $2.50/lb. I try to use beef organs as they have a much higher nutrient profile than chicken. Then I add in some supplements, such as fish oil and taurine. I started with a recipe from catinfo.org, but have modified it to be more appropriate for dogs as well, based around 10% bone, 10% organs, and 80% meat. I mostly feed this way in order to help keep my dogs’ teeth clean. Small dogs seem to get plaque build up much quicker than larger ones, and it is not unusual for them to need cleanings every year or every other year even with brushing (especially the back/hard to reach teeth). Unfortunately, due to this I had a dog that was mortally injured during a routine cleaning. I never really got over it, so here I am. 2 years later and my oldest dog (8 years), while still having some build up from before we switched, has not gained any more build-up in the amount of time she normally would have gained enough for at least one cleaning. My younger dogs have absolutely no plaque at all, with one going on about a year of raw now. I plan on getting my older girl in for what will hopefully be her last ever cleaning soon!

I will have to go look for those pictures then! I know what you mean about not wanting to post too many non bunny photos, but I think there are lots of people here who love animals of all shapes and sizes who would appreciate them as long as they are in the Lounge!

[Hazel]

Wow that’s great, good for you! I wish we could do that but Lily needs so much consistency concerning her food I don’t think we could switch the formula up according to what kind of meat is available. Sounds like it’s working well for you and your pets though!

Yeah it’s weird about the Evo. It’s only the cat and kitten that’s disappearing, though. Hubby called Innova and they told him that there was a problem with what had been put on the label but they had fixed it and the food was shipping out again. That was a couple of months ago and there’s still nothing. Then we asked a guy at one of the pet stores we went to scavenge any Evo cans we could find. He said that that there had been a few recalls and that they had been bought by a different company but he still couldn’t explain what why there was no cat and kitten. About a year ago we had switched Lily to the Evo 95% beef because she LOVES beef. Then we had to switch her back to cat and kitten because she lost almost half her body weight, turns out she’s allergic to the beef. So you can understand how concerned we were when her food got harder and harder to find. She seems to be doing well with the Wellness but we still keep weighing her to make sure she is okay.

[KytKattin]

It might be more doable than you think! See, I had to change the formula I found because I feed dogs as well as a cat, but the recipe I use (from catinfo.org) is specifically for cats and needs no altering. I believe she recommends and uses only chicken thighs (with bone and skin), which are easy to find. I actually use the same type of chicken thighs for my chicken noodle soup, and I think they are around $2 per lb. The average cat eats about 4-6 ounces of food per day, so you can see that even if you were feeding something like 8 ounces per day you still would be at about $1 per day. The cost of organs might be a touch higher per pound, but again, you would not be using much.

Of course that doesn’t include the start up cost… (and now I feel like I’m trying to sell you on a pyramid scheme, haha). The supplements, while not a one time thing, do last quite a long time. Especially for just one cat, I can’t imagine you would need to buy them very often. Then there is the grinder. Thigh bones are too thick for a cat to eat, so you would have to grind them. I went for a motorized grinder and it cost about $180. I plan on upgrading to a commercial grade grinder now that I think I will be doing this permanently, just so I can grind faster and spend less time in the kitchen! There are hand cranked grinders as well, which could definitely be more economical for someone with less to make.

I always recommend anyone thinking of trying raw to first see if their cat will even eat raw meat. I think the transition from wet to raw might be easier than kibble to raw, as not only can you safely feed a mixture of wet/raw, but the cat already knows that wet things can be food.

Of course I do not think that feeding raw is for everyone, even if their cat will eat it. I share this with you because you seemed interested in it, even if you never plan to switch! While you would be perfectly safe following a vet approved recipe like the one I recommended, I can say that I have spent days upon days going over nutrient profiles, calculating ratios, and talking with other raw feeders, and I honestly still worry that I am missing something, or not doing something right. That is part of the reason why I wait until my puppies are at least 1 year old before switching them. I have read the research on raw, and unfortunately find the results to be not scientifically sound, or to be biased because they are funded by those that stand to lose a lot of money by people not buying their food. I really hope to see more studies in the future! Basically, raw food done right seems to be great, but raw food done wrong has very serious repercussions.

That is really strange with the Evo. It does look like there were recalls, but maybe not for the canned food? It might be in your best interest to stick with Wellness until it all gets sorted out anyway, as if there is a recall you can’t be too cautious! I’m sorry to hear about the beef allergy, your poor baby! Though I’m glad that you were able to get her on something else so she can be healthy again.

[Hazel]

Thanks for all the info, KytKattin! I’ve been interested in feeding raw ever since we got Lily. Sounds like a great option for most cats and dogs, I’m happy to hear that your pets have taken to it so well! I’ll definitely research it more. Seems to be quite cost effective too!

We will stick with the Wellness for now, as Lily seems to be doing great on it, so far she’s not losing any weight. She seems to like it a lot, too.

[KytKattin]

Yes, I could talk for days about it. Haha. I really feel as though I missed my calling to be a biologist of some sort, as I would love to be able to understand nutrition from a more scientific point of view, which is why I was curious about ferrets. When it comes down to it, raw is definitely not the cheapest option (especially when you factor in bargain bin brands), but when compared to the top brands as far as quality of ingredients, raw is often cheaper. For cats especially, since they really do benefit from not eating anything other than meat and even the top brands often have ingredients that cats simply cannot digest. Plus my cat won’t let me brush his teeth, so anything I can do to prevent teeth cleaning is great in my book!

So glad to hear she likes it and is doing well on it! That was part of my problem as well with the Nature’s Variety; Midas would not always eat everything, or would decide he did not like a certain flavor that week. Every animal is so individual I think it just takes time and patience to find what food works best for them. I can’t imagine how frustrating it was when you couldn’t find the food that was working for your girl!

[NewBunnyOwner123]

My dog is on a raw food diet. I did it after she had a reaction to her rabies vaccine and then her heartguard preventative. Then she lost almost all of her fur on her grain free gluten free 5 star rated dog food. So I switched to raw to give her a break. And WOW the difference it has made. She gained all of her fur back. I was originally only wanting to do it for a few months to get her health back in check but now I’m hesitant to switch back to her dog food. It’s a really good food too. But pricey! Actually just today I tried giving her some kibble and she looked at it like, “what is this you’re giving me?!” So I had to give her a chicken wing lol

My other dog is still on the Merrick food. But Abbie, my allergic dog, is on an all raw meat diet. She gets organs as well and as many different types of meats and parts of the animal as I can find. I’m just glad her health is back. She just was never the same after having that reaction to her rabies vaccine. She nearly died in minutes of it :/ and then the heartguard meds too she almost died ugh. But I love raw. Just can be time consuming lol

[NewBunnyOwner123]

I’ll also say that Abbie’s teeth are pearly white now at 5 years old. Her last vet check up they said she was getting some tarter buildup. Not anymore! :p we give my other dog a turkey neck once a week just to keep his teeth clean. But he’s not on raw.

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