Jess Caticles roasts worst cat food brands

[@andreakneale1934]

Carrageenan is also a carcinogen and is in dry and wet foods. Also phosphates are another form of phosphorus which tends to be bad to the kidneys. That doesn’t help our feline friends because our cats as they get older end up with kidney issues and most oldies die of kidney disease or complications of it.

[@Hucklebuz]

Over 5 years ago, I rescued two cats whose owner had died. Several months ago, I was contacted by the person I got the cats from asking if I would take a friend's cat. They both gave me different stories why the cat was being surrendered which is why I refused to take the cat. Both were feeding each of their cats this junk food, and only dry food at only, no wet. Neither would listen that this was unhealthy, saying their cats liked it and were doing just fine. Neither would listen that down the road, health issues would arise due to the food they were feeding.

[@jesscaticles]

Very unfortunate! But some of us have to learn the hard way ):

[@judithsmith9582]

I had a cat that I loved Loved LOVED; he was born in my lap would go for walks in the woods for me and waited at the end of the driveway for me to pick him up and drive home to the garage. I had to sell my house and moved into my mom's basement to assist her in her elder years. Soon after my move my wonderful Tiger cat developed diabetes. I noticed this because he started drinking an unusual amount of water whenever I put my glass down even though he had water available at all times. I took him to the vet and started an insulin regimen. I specifically asked if the food he was eating was the problem. "No." I started checking online but couldn't find any definitive information at the time. My mother got seriously ill and I spent days and nights at the hospital. My cats insulin regimen was upset. Soon after my mother died my Tiger cat died as well. When I noticed he wasn't eating again went to the vet. His body was shutting down. As I held him I had the vet give him his shot. I cry to this day; am crying as I write this. I know for a fact the food i was feeding him killed him. I read the contents at the time and the first listed ingredient was corn. This product is a major selling brand in all stores. I can't thank you enough for your analysis. Although I'm no longer feeding the "killer" brand and have searched for an appropriate food I did not know what brands are "the best." After watching this I've ordered different food and will be changing over. However, I have one cat that absolutely will not WILL NOT eat wet food. I'm hoping to get her changed over, someday. Thank you so much for this information!

[@jesscaticles]

I'm so sorry to hear about this! My family and I learned the hard way with our cats too. I mentioned this in your other comment but will post again. Most cats are picky about food changes. In fact, this is the #1 complaint I get. So you are not alone (: Here is an entire playlist of everything you need to know: kzbin.info/www/bejne/qoW5YXmJral4Y9k - The first video is a complete guide on how to switch food, specifically formulated for picky cats. Next is my cat food reviews video which includes 100+ records of all types of food. And the remaining videos cover healthy treats, FAQ, and supporting help.

[@lindag1762]

Hope this shames them into taking at least some effort in cleaning up their act. Of course, it’s the responsibility of the owner in the end. Thank you for your part in bringing awareness.

[@jesscaticles]

Thank you for your comment!! You're absolutely right. I'm not expecting billion dollar companies to change their ways. I'm counting on the cat parents out there to shop smarter. And I hope my videos shed some light on that!

[@debbieshomes6984]

@@jesscaticles Most definitely your videos are great! I unfortunately used Meow Mix & Friskies early when my cats were young. They didnt seem to like them & remember the poops being very loose with Friskies gravylicious bag! Switching from grainfree dry & gf wet foods to gf wet and freeze dried raw. Think its best for me & my crew. I could go to freeze dried raw without having to go to air dried dry food first, correct? What I did the other day was crumble some freeze dried raw over their current gf dry food (Crave). Everyone seemed to like it! I want to try it rehydrated and see as well. I hope they will love it. Also, looking to buy raw goats milk as it might help my cat with digestive issues (suspected IBD according to my vet). Have u tried raw goats milk for Jericho?

[@jesscaticles]

@@debbieshomes6984 Definitely! I'm not sure if I've sent this playlist to you but I have reviews on all of those foods here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/rnyUeqCYjLSeoZo. Let me know how the transition goes!

[@redvelvetunderground]

i'm so happy i found your videos, they've helped open my eyes to what cat food labeling is. i stopped feeding my girls dry kibble ages ago after seeing what they were actually made with, which led me to seeking out more resources on good wet food brands, etc. cat food brands and labeling is so misleading and daunting if you've no idea what you're supposed to look for. i avoid brands like purina like the plague and will only feed my babies stuff with named proteins in em!! i'm gonna try to transition them to raw next and watching your videos about it to help. thanks so much!!

[@hairywitch4063]

What is animal digest?

[@stacyfakename]

"Natural White Meat Chicken Flavor" yummmm 😬

[@jesscaticles]

LOL! I say the same in the video.. "animal digest" mmmm doesn't that sound good? 😁😆

[@Dsfgxfdd]

Can u do a video on popular wet cat food if possible

[@jesscaticles]

You want me to roast popular wet foods? Or are you looking for suggestions for good-quality wet foods? If good-quality wet foods, I just published one yesterday: kzbin.info/www/bejne/mKunh5SCZtmkpdE. Either way, I'll add roasting poor-quality wet foods to the list (:

[@inezgraer5482]

Please please include some European manufacturers and products. Like Affinity Ultima natural and Acana Bountiful catch. I am in Portugal and have a shelter cat.....she is 6yrs old now and has only ever known dry food. We feed grain free (supposedly) from the abovementioned manufacturers. I am now going to introduce her to wet food slowly. Would love your assessment of the above. Your site is awesome. Keep going.

[@jesscaticles]

Thank you! Acana is definitely one of the better brands I've found. Here is an entire playlist of everything you need to know: kzbin.info/www/bejne/qoW5YXmJral4Y9k - The first video is a complete guide on how to switch food, specifically formulated for picky cats. Next is my cat food reviews video which includes 100+ records of all types of food (available inside and outside the US). And the remaining videos cover healthy treats, FAQ, and supporting help.

[@veganconservative1109]

Standards on Pet food are not enforced like they are on Human food (and...yeah, don't bet your life on this either.) The Pet Food INDUSTRY is self-regulating. For the vast majority this means whatever gets them the most profit. Choose small companies where the people working their actually give a dang about animal health. Then research their ingredients because even 'well meaning' folks can be ignorant of facts (like putting using 'wholesome' vegetables in cat food. Good videos. Thank you for your work.

[@jesscaticles]

Thank you for your comments!! You're absolutely right. AAFCO is a private organization, and they clearly state they don't even regulate, test, or approve pet food.

[@debbieshomes6984]

@@jesscaticles Wow! Did not know this till now

[@jesscaticles]

@@debbieshomes6984 Yes, it's a big myth! "make sure your food is aafco approved" welp they do not approve anything!

[@ChristineMonet]

Great video! Very informative and I love the roasting. ;) Let's make a BBQ out of these bad cat food products!

[@jesscaticles]

LOL a BBQ Roast!

[@cannoli2425]

What were the two that passed?

[@applesause5444]

Jess, would you tell me... is the amount of fat in Feline Natural canned, ( chicken and lamb ) good for a cat 1 1\2 lbs. overweight, and especially what is best canned with, lowest fat, highest protein and lowest carbs.? thank you.

[@jesscaticles]

Hey! So cats actually use fat as a source of energy. It is carbs that make cats gain weight. The best high protein, low carb wet foods are right here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/mKunh5SCZtmkpdE and some runner-ups are in the description. Please transition foods slowly as cats are sensitive to food changes. I have a full guide on how to switch food properly here: www.caticles.com/how-to-transition-cat-food/ And if you're interested in a weight loss program, check out my guide here: www.caticles.com/how-to-get-a-cat-to-lose-weight/ Good luck!

[@jesscaticles]

@Diana Moore I included tiki cat after dark in my best wet cat food video description as a runnerup. My mother feeds that and a few others mentioned in that video to her 4 cats.

[@calliecrumley188]

You are amazing! Thanks to you, my cats are eating better! I love your videos 🤍 Would you do videos like this for human food? I’d love to hear your input!

[@jesscaticles]

Hi Callie, thank you for your kind words!! I'm glad your cats are doing well. Maybe I could do a vlog type video on what I eat? Although I'm not the healthiest eater sometimes lol Mainly I stay away from processed food and fast food.

[@cheesygorditacrunch96]

I’m a new subscriber & somewhat new cat owner, and I love how informative and thorough your videos are! Could you check out Blue Tastefuls wet food? It’s the only wet food I’ve found so far that both of my cats will eat, but I noticed that it has carrageenan and I’m a little worried. (I switched them from dry food after finding out from you how bad a dry food diet is for cats!)

[@jesscaticles]

Hi Maddie! Thanks for subscribing and commenting! I'm glad you were able to transition them from dry to wet. That's wonderful! I prefer the wet food brands in this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/mKunh5SCZtmkpdE and there are runner-ups in the description too. Blue buffalo isn't that great. General mills, the billion-dollar cereal company, owns and manufactures their products. So I don't think their pet food products are that great. Cats are very picky about food changes so you'll have to introduce new foods very slowly. I have a guide here for transitioning foods: www.caticles.com/how-to-transition-cat-food/. You may already know this from watching my videos but of course I like to mention just in case 😁 Let me know how it goes!

[@cheesygorditacrunch96]

@@jesscaticles thank you for the reply!! I tried Tiki cat first, one of them wanted nothing to do with it and the other ate it for a couple of days and then decided he didn’t like it. Luckily they both love Petco’s Wholehearted brand! I didn’t even have to mix their old food into it, they both just ate it right up 😊 I feel so much better knowing that I’m giving them food that is better for them ❤️ thank you for your help!

[@jesscaticles]

@@cheesygorditacrunch96 You're very welcome!! ♥️ I'm glad they are liking the new wet food!

[@veganconservative1109]

Sad to say: if it can be found in a regular retail store it likely isn't good. Typically, all a major chain will offer is stuff from other major corporations. (This is why I always research brands that were once boutique and then suddenly can be found in major retail outlets. So far it is always because the boutique brand sold out to a corporation. I then quit buying that brand.) Shop at 'pet boutique' stores or online and research the heck out of them and their product.

[@jesscaticles]

@@veganconservative1109 Yes I always heavily research companies. If the company owns more than one cat food brand, don't bother. Why would they need to own several if the one was actually good? It's all about money, people!

[@elizabethortiz2571]

What about Rachel Ray Cat food?

[@cavy5300]

I’m going to pray that Orjan/Acana is on your list for “good” kibble.

[@jesscaticles]

I have analysed those as a lot of people tell me they are good. Unfortunately, they are both still very high in carbohydrate amounts. It looks like orijen is a bit better since there are more meat ingredients. But unfortunately many of their products fit under the "with" rule meaning the max allowance of the named ingredients is less than 25%.

[@plantedlife]

Hi, can you analyse some of Cindy's Recipes products? I tried using the percentage count to estimate the carbs but it came down to negatives which weirded me out.

[@jesscaticles]

Weirded you out? Lol. This is only a guesstimate. The numbers are provided on a mix of minimum and maximums so the numbers may be funky since we are guessing. The only way to know for sure is to ask the manufacturer. Anyway, it looks like their wet foods aren't complete and balanced. Meaning it does not provide all the essential nutrients that cats need. It's missing organ meats and bones. I didn't look into too many of them. The website is too slow. I would search for the nutritional adequacy statement before feeding that. If it is "intended for supplemental or intermittent feeding" it is not a complete and balanced meal. Basically a treat.

[@maddiethekittenqueen3395]

Thanks. I did a live stream roasting Hill's pet food

[@cindyvanderpol1441]

Its crazy how many bad cat foods there are out there.

[@Tanacarroll]

Thank you so much for all you have taught me and what you do for us by teaching us how to read these labels. I ordered Darwin’s Raw Chicken and Turkey for my two new cats. One is 12 weeks tomorrow. It says from Darwin’s to cook it for 8-12 min until they are 4 months old. What is your opinion please? Have you ever done a video on Darwin’s. The producer of Pet Fooled I watched a video here on YT and the owner, Mr Darwin done an interview of like 42 min and there is also a video of the Producer touring the pet food plant. Have you seen this video? Thanks very much! 💗☀️🐱

[@jesscaticles]

You're welcome!! I'm glad you've got some good quality raw coming to your baby monsters. I've seen pet fooled and that's what started my nutrition rabbit hole adventure. I'm also part of his online community pet schooled. I haven't seen the darwin's interview or tour though. I talk about darwin's in another video for raw food. I've seen that they recommend cooking the food lightly as well. Since the bones are already ground, this may not be an issue. But I don't think I would cook it for that long. What are they eating now?

[@stewartrivers2730]

What are natural flavors??

[@jesscaticles]

Exactly! The term "natural" by AAFCO's definition means it comes from an animal or plant. So by that definition, rendered diseased meats are considered natural.

[@lilcricket4379]

Baby lung

[@悪魔の幽霊-t4z]

Sadly my cat likes friskies 😭 it's so hard to transition him. He doesn't know exactly what food he likes. Recently, I've started cutting chicken breasts and thighs into small chunks and add them to his friskies I think he actually likes the gravy that comes in friskies pouches so I reduce the friskies chunks and add the raw chicken I cut into the gravy and he eats it but again I wanna throw out friskies. I've been considering buying him tiki cat savory broth , goat milk powder and nulo freeze dried raw and see which one will sound appealing to him the most. I really can't afford all of these products but I'm doing everything for his sake for his health. I cry Everytime I see him eating that friskies knowing how unhealthy it is for him. I don't wanna see him in pain suffering from diseases. Please, tell me which product that contains water/ broth to offer to him ?. He eats dry food but I won't buy it anymore but I want a replacement for him so he can find sth to eat when I'm out. I bought him some products from instinct like liver powder and raw chicken powder etc and when I added them to raw chicken he didn't like them and when I took the chicken out, he started licking them!. I tried raw egg yolk and he licked it. I believe he wants moisture in his food but with chunks in. He doesn't like completely grinded food like minced meat he wants sth to chew on.

[@jesscaticles]

Most cats are picky about food changes. In fact, this is the #1 complaint I get. So you are not alone (: Here is an entire playlist of everything you need to know: kzbin.info/www/bejne/qoW5YXmJral4Y9k - The first video is a complete guide on how to switch food, specifically formulated for picky cats. Next is my cat food reviews video which includes 100+ records of all types of food. And the remaining videos cover healthy treats, FAQ, and supporting help.

[@richiec.7637]

Hope you're listing these from best to worse of the worse...lol. The first one is what I feed my cat. I bought a 13.5lbs. bag. She's probably ate 2/3 of it. I'm planning on transitioning her to just canned food.

[@jesscaticles]

Lol. No they're actually starting from worst. You're talking about meowmix right? That got a 10% rating. And the other brands in the video got 15% and 17.5% I believe.

[@richiec.7637]

@@jesscaticles Wow. I have decided to transition her to strictly can food. But I think I'm going to finish with this meow mix I have. Actually, I've have 3 cans of friskies in my cupboard that's been there several months. Yesterday I opened a can and gave her some and she ate it. But I want to get her to eating a better quality canned cat food.

[@richiec.7637]

@@jesscaticles I actually fed her dry fancy feast for years but then I transferred to meowmix because they had a "moist" variety or what they called tender centers variety.

[@jesscaticles]

@@richiec.7637 Gotcha but the moisture on the bag still says 10% which is too low.

[@jesscaticles]

@@richiec.7637 You may have to start out with lower quality canned food to begin with. At least she'll get used to eating wet food. Especially since she already showed interest in the friskies you gave her. Then going from wet to wet will be much much easier because she'll already be used to the texture. And you can mix it very well. She won't even know the better quality wet is there.

[@Carriebloss]

My bf says you and I could be doppelgängers, I even talk like you when I talk about cat food :P

[@jesscaticles]

That's so funny!!

[@AUTUMN-DARK]

Nature's menu kitten chicken pouches are good

[@jesscaticles]

Definitely better than dry food. Although there are better wet foods (that are also appropriate for kittens) that include more meat ingredients. These pouches are essentially just chicken meat, water, and synthetic vitamin/minerals. You can check out my cat food reviews in this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/m4PXfWZ9fMZnl9U&t if you'd like more options.

[@CJ-rb7li]

😲😲😲😲😲

[@anneberkes1516]

Mmmmmmm.....dead, disease, dying or disabled animals. Great for vultures! Not so great for your cat. Three cheers for mystery meat! Ugh.

[@jesscaticles]

Yes unfortunately all the leftover scraps make it into cat food. And since they throw it all together, the pet food manufacture doesn't know what's what. Yum!

[@lilcricket4379]

Poor Vultures