I have been researching dry cat kibble.

[ginnyinWI]

I learned that it's good to avoid wheat, corn and soy in the ingredients list. I mainly give my cats wet food, but do supplement with a little dry, and I want it to be high in protein and without those filler ingredients.

So I bought some IAMS Healthy Naturals at the supermarket, and the cats like it fine, but it does cost $2.00 a pound. And of course the more premium, pet store brands cost more like $3.00 a pound and up, even on Amazon.

Then I found, on a cat food review site, http://petfoodtalk.com/catfoodreviews/, Kirkland brand from Costco, which led me to their manufacturer, Diamond and to their Diamond Naturals line and to their "Active Cat" dry food. It seems to be high quality but costs just $1.38 a pound on Amazon. It has 40% protein, none of the fillers mentioned above, and no anonymous "animal" or "meat" products or by-products. And it is not their regular line which does have the grains and fillers in it, and is not the same as the Kirkland brand either. Diamond also make the "Chicken Soup" varieties of cat food.

So I bought a big bag and will try it out. The cats like it so far--I am mixing it with the old food gradually, as they say to do. And since it is such a big bag, 18 lbs, I'm putting half of it in the chest freezer. Dry kibble can go bad, and then the cats won't touch it, even when to people it looks and smells okay. Free shipping with Prime on Amazon!

I am opting for the regular, not the reduced calorie version, Diamond Indoor/ Hairball, because it has more protein. The idea is that it will satisfy the cats better and they won't need as much to keep them full. So we will see.

Just thought I'd share the results of time spent finding all this stuff out. I know they had some recalls a few years ago, but nothing recent. And I assume all of that has been rectified. It is made in the U.S.A. in Meta, MO.

[hollysmom]

1. Iams is crap. I turned on them after their additives almost killed one dog.

If you want the best what ever cost, I like fresh pet. But my dog mostly eats dry, supplemented with the moist as her daily treat. Not to mention all the people food she can beg, usually peas or carrots, I try to stick to vegs. but Kirklands is usually good food, at least not the worst food.

[ginnyinWI]

2. carbs are okay for dogs...

So I think a dog food can include them, as long as the ingredients are decent quality. Dogs are more omnivorous than cats, who are obligate carnivores. They've gotten a bad deal (cats have) because in this country their food has been modeled on dog food with corn and other fillers, and it eventually makes them fat and sick.

[Curmudgeoness]

3. Thank you for sharing all your research.

I am so afraid to change my cat's food because of so many health issues he had when I got him, but it is good to have options. I pay too much for his food, but at least he no longer has chronic diarrhea.

I do have one question about this Diamond Active Cat food. Are the kibbles small, or are they larger kibbles?

[ginnyinWI]

4. they are small.

Little disc shapes.

Wheat, soy and corn can cause allergic reactions like diarrhea--but of course there are other causes, like parasites. I heard of one cat who they thought needed to be on a special diet for it. All the tests for parasites showed negative. Then the vet tried one more treatment--for whipworms, just in case--that one is easy to miss. And that was the one--the treatment did the trick and he no longer has a "sensitive" tummy.

I measured one: oval shaped, 1/4" x 3/8"

[Curmudgeoness]

5. I have no idea what caused my baby the digestive problems.

He came to me after being returned to the rescue group a few times in so many months. We tested, we put him on special foods, we tried anti-diarrheal meds, and antibiotics....nothing. I finally fed him yogurt and it cleared up...I have no idea why.

But the size of the kibbles is important to me because he also came to me with stomatitis, and he had to have all his molars removed. And he also has lost all the rest of his teeth for some reason, except his eye teeth (fangs). And he refuses to eat wet food. Go figure.

[ginnyinWI]

6. so he'd probably swallow these without chewing

Which is fine, really.

Not eating wet food is another whole problem. Cats get addicted to dry food and it's hard to get some to switch to wet food, as much as we'd like because it is healthier. You can do it gradually by topping it with dry food for a while, to get them started. Also get something really irresistible like a good brand of tuna flavor--something really stinky. One of mine would be happy to eat only dry food, but it makes her fat and she doesn't get enough liquid. So we have an agreement: she eats canned in the morning and in the evening gets more canned but with a side of quality dry food, one or two coffee measures full and that is all. She's a larger breed, a Maine Coon mix. The other cat doesn't care if she never eats any dry! So we have opposites.

[Curmudgeoness]

8. Every other cat I have ever had would only eat wet food

if I would have been willing to feed it exclusively. I'm not. It is just too much more money. And since my first pair of cats lived to 17 and 18 years old, and ended life with cancer (two different kinds), I don't worry about feeding dry food. I was just really shocked that this little boy won't eat it.....hell, he is always trying to steal my food from my plate. What could be wrong with canned food????

[hamsterjill]

7. We use a lot of the Kirkland brand.

First ingredient is chicken. The problem with ALL of the pet foods in my opinion is how the companies can manipulate the labels. It's really very frightening because we don't actually know what's in the food.

It's also necessary not only to read the label when you decide what brand you are going to buy, but pretty much read the label EVERY time you purchase the food because things tend to change. Companies buy out companies, etc.

I would love to be able to actually cook for my own little tribe, but I simply don't have the extra hours in the day to be able to do that. And as you indicate, there's always the issue of cost!