[arwyru24]

You can definitely still call me Sharon 🙂 I don’t want to hide my identity really or anything I just felt a little uncomfortable using my first name and last initial in such a public forum like this where anyone can creep and lurk around. Not that I think anything bad is gonna happen it just seems like some real weirdos come through here from time to time.

• This reply was modified 9 years, 11 months ago by arwyru24.

[arwyru24]

Hey guys this is Sharon I finally figured out how to change my display name here to my username which is what I thought was my display name when I first signed up…user error lol. Wanted you to know that I’m the same person esp Akari, Bobby dog , C4C cause I’ve been chatting with you. I used Weruvas idea for coming up with a name by combining the first 2 letters of my pets names. So I have two cats Aaron and Wyatt and a puppy named Rudi.

[arwyru24]

I have a whole ton (well maybe 6) of $2 off of 6 Purina one cat food cans that I got off of cans I purchased last year that are still good that I probably won’t use, because for 1 I don’t use Purina one for my cats, and 2 even if it works out to be 40 cents a can or so, that still isn’t really a great deal because the cans are so small that if its a donation can I can get a lot more value out of larger cans. I have two big boy cats to feed and anywhere I would donate cans to is feeding a lot of cats so I really have no use for small cans unless they are at an unbeatable price. Like when Sheba was putting bogo coupons on all of their cans a couple years ago, I would buy a ton of cans and they all came with bogo stickers on them so I couldn’t help myself but to buy a bunch of them for 25 cents a piece. hundreds of cans of sheba… I fed some to my cats and brought a lot of them to the shelter.

• This reply was modified 9 years, 11 months ago by arwyru24.

[arwyru24]

Are you going to use the $1 off of 6 meow mix cups coupons from coupons.com ?

[arwyru24]

The meow mix souffle’s have a lot of wheat gluten in them to give them the starch they need to be such a firm pate I think. In my experience cats seem to like the non souffle meow mix cups better probably because they all have quite a bit of tuna in it, is what it seems like. The tuna and shrimp, and the salmon and crab I think were both pretty decent for a really tasty treat/ junk food fix. At the shelter I worked at, I would give meow mix to cats that seemed to be having a hard time because they seem like such a fan favorite and food association bonding is one of the best ways to bring a new friend out of their shell.

[arwyru24]

So I am no Akari when it comes to scoring great deals but I do like to keep my eye out for deals I just can’t pass up, and I do like to donate food to rescues/shelters whenever possible.
So yesterday I went to Petco and got one 3.5lb bag of Purina One sensitive systems dry cat food, Six 5.5oz cans of Iams Pate (2 lamb and 4 turkey and giblets), one 5.5oz can of Halo Shredded Turkey, and two 5.5oz cans of Canidae lifestages indoor cat food and my total was just under $8 (I threw away my receipt and can’t remember exactly not that it really matters) I thought that was pretty decent.

My local TNR group uses the small bags of dry food to give out to their colony feeders (the feeders have to take the food to the feeding stations so it has to be easy to transport and they try to be as invisible as possible) and one of the local supermarkets I think pretty regularly donates cases of the 3lb bags of their store brand so I think that is a good place for the dry food. Or, the local shelters I think usually use most of their dry food donations like that for their pet food pantry so that is another option. And I have a friend that is currently feeding a lot of cats, she is always rescuing and helping out animals in need so I have a big 13lb bag of Purina Cat Chow naturals that I got for free to bring up to her and I have also been collecting cat food cans for her over the last few months so I will add the Iams and Canidae to that collection since the Canidae has rice. And my cats will get the shreds. I am really pretty broke but I try to help when I can.

[arwyru24]

great deal!

[arwyru24]

that one is a case of the 5.5oz cans too which works out to be 70cents a can I think, but that is the only flavor that is that inexpensive. The rest of the 5.5oz flavors cost more.

[arwyru24]

They have a really good deal on the Chicken and Liver Variety of the Nutro Max too, since I know you said your cats like Nutro C4c. $16.99 for a case of 24

http://www.chewy.com/cat/nutro-max-adult-chicken-liver/dp/29664

[arwyru24]

Chewy is right! I am so glad I found that site it is amazing. I noticed they just reduced the price of the CS cans from $19.99 to $18.99 but it doesn’t seem to indicate it is a temporary sale so that might be the new regular price. Can’t complain. I have never met anyone that is so ambivalent and unable to make cat food decisions as I am… I go back and forth. I am thinking I might skip the CS, because even though I don’t know for sure if it is rice/grain or not that makes my sensitive cat have explosive diarrhea, things have certainly improved since I removed anything with rice in it, and stick to certain foods. I am going to try the chicken Nature’s Logic for sure, it looks like it will be fine, but I think I am best to introduce one new food at a time to see how it goes. I do rotate from day to day. I order once a month, so I will make my next order in a little less than 2 weeks. Oh, also on Chewy if you sign up for Autoship (which you can cancel or change or whatnot) you can save an additional 20% off up to $15. Last month was the first time I ordered on Chewy so I did that and got the additional $15 off which was amazing. Also a few of the large wellness cans came with serious dents in them to the point that I wasn’t sure if it was safe to feed them and they sent me out a whole new case for free right away. They just asked that I consider donating any salvageable cans to a rescue which I did. I think that was 7 large cans.

[arwyru24]

Thank you!!! I will probably get a case of the CS, my cats like it a whole lot and $18.99 is a great price for a case, that is less than 80cents a can.

[arwyru24]

I feel like the more I know, the more I find out I don’t know. Its only recently that I learned to check for these things. I am actually working my way through a case of Halo right now. ugghh. Its so complicated. Or at least such a pain in the @ss

[arwyru24]

Thank you so much for this info!! No By Nature for me then! I think I am just going to try out two different Nature’s Logic recipes, and then Chewy has the NV Pride on sale this month, and so I think I am going to try one of the minced varieties, and then I also noticed that Chewy reduced their price of Chicken Soup for the Soul to $18.99 for a 24pk so I am thinking about it…. I just don’t know if rice does or does not cause the sensetivities in one of my cats for sure. It has been difficult to narrow down for sure, and part of me thinks why bother. The cats have seemed to enjoy the chicken soup for the soul in the past , they eat it well and it is cheap. I actually never looked into who the co-packer is on that brand either. might be a good idea.

[arwyru24]

That or the 95% Turkey/turkey liver I was looking at. Both of those are $24.71 for a case of 24 5.5oz cans which I don’t think is a bad price for a good food.

I was also looking at Red Barn…. http://www.chewy.com/cat/redbarn-premium-grain-free-tricky/dp/48017

If I don’t rotate up the foods the cats stop eating them. I’ve noticed with the Wellness Pate this is starting to happen and I still have a full case of 12 big cans left of the turkey and 6 of the turkey/salmon so it is definitely time to add to the rotation so I don’t wind up throwing food away. I did decide for sure to get a case of Nature’s Logic because I have read so many wonderful and glowing things about it but it is a little expensive (but really not too bad at Chewy) http://www.chewy.com/cat/natures-logic-chicken-recipe-canned/dp/39275 so I do need to work a little value into my monthly order.

[arwyru24]

http://www.bynaturepetfoods.com/cat-food/grain-free/turkey-cantata.php

[arwyru24]

Does anyone have any experience or opinions on By Nature canned cat food? I am looking specifically at the non organic types because they are a lot less expensive. I am going to try out some different cat foods this month.

[arwyru24]

I was just on coupons.com and noticed that Waggin Train has a ton of coupons out. Ugh, I didn’t think they still sold that stuff.

[arwyru24]

I did like to get the minced turkey or chicken kind at the store from time to time but I am not paying $1.89 a 5.5oz can for it and those aren’t a very good deal at Chewy either. I did notice that Chewy does have NV Pride minced or flaked on sale this week, I think the chicken or salmon is $16.79 for 12 5.5oz cans so I might try out a case of that

[arwyru24]

the wellness newsletter I get allows me to print each coupon (the $1/can and $3/dry) two separate times, but it says that each coupon is uniquely coded and cannot be used more than once and that “photocopies, additional prints, or alterations constitute fraud”. My local pet stores just raised the price of Wellness cans again to $1.89/can of the 5.5oz. One increased the price first but another was holding out at $1.59/can for awhile, so I would use my coupons and buy a few extra cans there from time to time, but last week they went up to $1.89 too so from now on I am just going to buy all of my wellness online I think. I have been buying a case of 12 of the 12.5oz size from Chewy.com for $23.40 and that has been working out well for me. That works out to be $1.95/can which is a good deal, and I am not having to throw any away so far. I get 2 cases of the Turkey(green can) and one Turkey and Salmon (purple) because my cats do not seem to like the chicken formula as much and when I get the large cans of that variety I do wind up throwing some away.

[arwyru24]

I usually have them try to draw the urine from mine at the vets. When they haven’t been able to do that, they give me this stuff called plastic litter that you put in the bottom of a clean litter box and it doesn’t absorb any of the urine so you can just pour the urine right into the collection container. With uti’s in kitties, especially those that are prone to crystals moisture is obviously of the utmost importance, but the ph of the urine is also very important too, as crystals thrive in alkali I believe. I am sure your vet will have some good suggestions for you. Our puppy just got home from the vet, he has bronchitis the poor little guy, but he is still all full of energy and naughtiness. No nursery school or puppy play time, or training for him until he is symptom free, he started on Clavamox today.

[arwyru24]

If you have a Whole Foods near by, they have a new pet food line out called Whole Paws and in it they have some “shreds and gravy” that are sort of like the general type of food consistency that the Friskies shreds and gravy is except the Whole Paws is made out of all healthy ingredients. My cats really liked it, but it triggered projectile vomiting in Aaron. He hasn’t puked at all since I haven’t mixed any Orijen kibble into their food. I mean, I was only mixing it in for a day, and I fed them some by hand initially to see if they liked it, but it did coincide pretty much EXACTLY to when I had the vomiting problem with him, and this has happened with other canned foods, for example the Whole Paws, that goes away when I stop feeding the offending food it seems like

[arwyru24]

Hey Bobby Dog, thankfully the vomiting has officially stopped, funny enough it stopped after I removed all Orijen kibbles, I will have to test that out again at another time. I get paid in a couple of days so I will have to take him in after that. His blood work always comes back on point so hopefully that will continue, although he is definitely sensitive digestive system, and is really immuno-suppressed, so he seems to be really suceptible to infections of various types that my other cat never ever gets. We will see.
The veggie thing is what I don’t like about the Halo Spots Stew, its watery, and my cats don’t want to eat big chunks of green beans or carrots or peas. I don’t think its a good value for the money. Have you ever tried the HALO Spots PATE though? It only comes in 2 varieties, chicken and whitefish, and it is a nice firm, smooth pate that my cats seem to love more than any other chicken variety I have tried. I mean they really love it. The wellness chicken formula is hit or miss with them. The instinct formulas seem to have a rubbery texture that they aren’t really crazy about. The weruva and soulistic chicken shreds and gravy with pumpkin they like enough, they like drinking the broth and the shreds they eat but often leave a bit behind. and worst of all is that is just doesn’t fill them up like a pate does so it is a poor value for me. But yeah, Halo Spots Pate chicken variety is a must try if you haven’t yet.

[arwyru24]

I had a cat pass away last May at 18 years old and she had developed hyperthyroid at about 14, and we suspect she had cancer, maybe in the gland itself because at the end she really stopped responding to the medication regardless of dose or route of administration and was under 5lbs when she passed away. At that point the vet was able to feel bumps all over her liver that had not been there before. I thought I read somewhere that wheat gluten was a suspect contributor but I know that it is the “old cat” disease, it seemed like at the cat shelter the majority of cats over a certain age had the thyroid issue. This seems different. He was throwing up a lot when I had him on different food, sometimes hairballs, a lot of times not, and he also had diahhrea a lot. But I have stabilized him since then and he rarely throws up now. This happened all of the sudden, starting Saturday night, he would eat, then puke it alllll up at every meal. Last night I didn’t give him wet cat food, but instead a little jar of chicken baby food that I keep on hand for such occasions. It just so happens that I had long ago agreed to stay over night at my parents house last night and today to puppy sit while my parents go down to PA to the internment of my grandfather’s ashes so I couldn’t monitor how he did with that but when I went up this morning, I couldn’t find any new vomit so that is a good sign. I gave him just a teaspoon of his normal wet food because I was out of baby food and I will check in again on them a little later. I had him in for a checkup most recently in March, but his last blood panel was over the summer last year, so you are right it is a really good idea to have that checked just incase.

I LOVE trader joes! It is one of my very favorite places to shop ever. There is only one here, luckily it is very close by, but I lived in SoCal for years and there was one in every town there which was very nice. You won’t know what you did without it. At least I dont know how I ever lived without TJs 🙂

[arwyru24]

Good to know about Diamond only manufacturing dry!! I learn something new on here everyday. It also makes me feel better about feeding TOTW rocky mountain canned because my cats really love it.

I use this chart as my go-to reference: http://catinfo.org/docs/FoodChartPublic9-22-12.pdf
And I mostly use the wellness grain free cans, tky/sal, tky, ckn, ckn/hrg, (my cats seem to like them in that order) They LOVE HALO pate chicken sooo much, I feed that A LOT and I can always get coupons online. I feed the evo adult chkn/trky sparingly like maybe a can every other week, and I know its crazy high in fat (no wonder they love it) but Im ok with it. Oh, I also use the CORE chicken,chickenliver, Newmans own turkey 95%, chicken and liver 95%, california natural salmon and sweet potato, TOTW rocky mountain, NV rabbit, chicken, duck, venison, NB LID chk, salm, venison. What I rotate in depends a lot on what I have coupons for, what is on sale, what they have been turning their noses up at recently etc and its just easier for me to refer you to that site. Im sure I forgot some.

I feel like when I was feeding fancy feast, the ones I used didn’t have fish in them because I was more focused then on avoiding fish….I used the liver and chicken, chicken and beef, turkey and giblets, chop grill, and I had a hard time getting them off the crack. lol. they also LOVE the friskies shreds like the chicken and salmon, chicken, turkey, they love love loved them. I hated myself for it because of alllll the carbs and gluten but made myself feel better because I am poor and at least they were getting well hydrated. But I got them off of all of that and they are happy with their food, and if they prefer the turkey and salmon wellness then so be it, I am not going to get too upset that whitefish is the third ingredient. lol

[arwyru24]

I guess the one thing that is different is that I introduced some Orijen kibble last night, and he did have a little of that, I mixed in a small amount with the wellness after giving them a couple kibbles by hand to see if they liked it and they LOVED it. But he is barfing whether or not he has any kibble at all. I didn’t put anymore out, just in case but I really doubt if it is more than just a coincidence.?

[arwyru24]

Akari32- I have heard really really good things about the Simply Nourish food in terms of quality for the money. The Core Indoor is definitely higher in carbs than the regular Core, I was trying to cut down on calories, I think the indoor has 390/cup vs over 500 for the regular Core. I have heard too, that fish can be addicting to cats, but I have never personally experienced that with my cats. (not to say there isn’t truth to it) Actually only one of the cats I have had will eat really fishy food, poultry has always been the preferred protein source for my cats. There are sooooo many cat foods from high end to low that contain nothing but fish, whereas the turkey/salmon(this has chicken and herring in it) and chicken/herring wellness aren’t really fish based foods but, contain fish, and I know salmon isn’t as much of a concern as a lot of other fish is. I also regularly feed fish free varieties, so I am not too worried about the fish part. I don’t feed beef one of my cats doesn’t tolerate it well. I am also not overly worried about fat content, as cats process animal fat pretty well, it isn’t high up there on my list of concerns. The friskies and fancy feast and ONE can be very addicting though in my experience. My cats LOVE friskies and fancy feast and ONE, I am sure they would be happy to eat nothing but them(and then throw up all over my apartment) all the added artificial flavors make them super palatable and then more natural food just doesn’t look so good. Also, the coloring is a real problem for me, because it gets barfed up and stains the carpet, in addition to the obvious health related concerns with it. I think the Friskies Special Diet Ocean fish doesn’t have coloring in it, and the Friskies Indoor Chicken didn’t look like it did either if I am remembering correctly, I think that was one of the better ones. Wheat gluten has a HUGE link to hyper thyroid in cats, as I am SURE you already are aware to avoid it.

Bobby dog- I soooooo hear you about getting sick of throwing away expensive food, sometimes it can be aggravating, and my cats too get bored. I (or should I say my cats) really like the Merrick Before Grain but they don’t make that anymore, and I haven’t tried the bistro ones. the cat shelter I used to volunteer at used to feed their diabetic cats fancy feast classic wet food only, as all of the fancy feast classics are grain free, but I just hate the dyes. And the thing with friskies is that there is so much added water, and the actual pate is smaller that I have found that 1 5.5oz can of a high quality pate like wellness feeds like at least 1.5 cans of friskies if not more. Have you guys ever tried Trader Joes canned cat food? If your cats can tolerate rice and you dont mind fish inclusive (I cant remember if the turkey and giblets one has fish in it too, but the chicken turkey and rice dies) it is a really great deal and worth it to include in your rotation. I can’t feed it because of the sensitive one, but I used to rotate it in, because its only 69 cents a 5.5oz can here. My cats definitely didn’t love it though. Cats are really funny and fickle though and you really have to feed what works. My cats did really like Chicken Soup For the Soul and it used to be in my rotation because it is very reasonably priced, even though I would really like to stay away from Diamond.
Crazy4cats- I do refrigerate, but I have to microwave it for 10-15 seconds to bring it up to room temp before I serve it, and also, if its been in the fridge for more than 24 hours they don’t eat it. If it is cool and dry in my apartment and its only a few hours between feedings then sometimes I just use a plastic can cover and leave it out on my counter so that it is a non issue.
My older, sensitive system cat Aaron all of the sudden has not been able to keep his food down today, I am not sure what is going on. The other one isn’t sick in the least, no sign of diahrrea or even gas, they both have appetities, and I am using cans from the same cases I have been feeding from since the beginning of the month, so I don’t think its the food. This guy can be really immuno-suppressed, he has pretty severe stomatitis and as soon as I can get the money together I am going to have to get a full mouth extraction for him but that is sooo pricey. I adopted him at 10 years old, and he came to me with this problem, which the shelter vet/medical team didn’t catch (no one did until I took him to my vet). So I dont know whats going on but I am going to have to bring him into the vet if this continues tomorrow.

So great to hear from all of you, and very nice to chat! What a friendly, welcoming community! Its a real pleasure. 🙂

[arwyru24]

Hey all, I am new here, have been lurking around this site for a little while for dog food because my parents just added a new puppy, but feeding cats on a budget happens to be my specialty. I have 2 pretty big guys (12 and almost 14lbs) The 12lb guy has a really sensitive system, but his body condition is ideal, and the 14lber tends towards the tubby side and so I have to really pay attention to his weight (they are both indoor only). I have tried most of the higher end foods on the market at one time or another. I subscribe to the idea that cats need the moisture in their diet and ideally should be on all wet food, however I supplement with dry to help meet my budget.
I primarily feed wellness grain free canned food, the 12.5oz cans are really cost effective, I primarily feed the turkey and salmon (purple can) it seems to be their favorite and the one they eat the most consistently without turning their noses up to it. I also rotate in the chicken (orange can), turkey (green), and chicken and herring (royal blue) and the minced turkey, chicken, and turkey salmon. I like wellness for a number of reasons and they have done really well on it. I rotate in a number of other brands: Evo (again those big cans save money), california’s natural salmon and sweet pea, (I am a little wary of Natura but I havent had any bad experiences) natural balance LID can’s, HALO pate, Instinct all work and are tolerated well.
The cat that loves crunchies isn’t picky at all really. He never met a kibble he didn’t like….. that is until I bought a 6lb bag of what I am feeding now: Wellness Core Indoor formula. I just bought a trial size bag of Orijen yesterday for $3.99 and am mixing it in with the Wellness. Its the first I have tried Orijen, because it is so expensive, but with the Orijen mixed in I am feeding less than 1/2 a cup of kibble a day total so it is affordable. Dry food lasts me forever it is the canned that really breaks the bank.
Sorry to chime in uninvited to this forum but am glad to have a place to share my experience 🙂

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