Kitty Finally Finds a Paté She Likes

Blue Wilderness Chicken Recipe Wet Cat Food

For years, we’ve been convinced that the mini-kitty (as Miss Winki’s generally known) would automatically turn up her nose at any paté that landed in her food bowl. As a result, we’ve limited her wet food to serving from packages labeled “in gravy,” “flaked,” “slices,” or occasionally “in aspic.” Times being bizarre, however, the lady of the house recently picked up some canned food for our teenager (almost old enough to drive!) at the grocery. She knew to get Blue Buffalo, but the significance of a can with the word “recipe” was lost on her.

In case you didn’t know already, that means the contents are paté. Kitty's always been pretty dismissive of even the premium foods in that form, including Wellness and Natural Balance. But when the Blue Wilderness® Chicken Recipe hit her food bowl, Winki was all over it. Who knew?!

According to the label (and to Blue’s website) Wilderness is grain-free and has no chicken or poultry by-products, artificial flavors, or artificial colors; or, of course, grain. What it does have is chicken (including liver), potatoes, flax seed, taurine, and natural flavors. The “recipe” also includes vitamins (a, B1-9, E) and minerals (Ca, Zn, K, Mn, Cu, Fe), folic acid, and thickeners like carrageenan and guar gum. You can look it up yourself at Blue’s website, since who knows when they’ll change the formulation.
For those who want to know, the analysis is: minimum 10% protein, 8% fat, 1.5% fiber, 0.10% taurine; and maximum 78% moisture.

Whatever the case, Miss Winki is definitely a fan. She only gets an ounce at a time, morning and evening, and gobbled it all – even after it was chilled in the fridge. Although the Wilderness is a little pricier than everyday Blue recipes (even the cuts in gravy), the little girl is worth it. Not to mention that she’s just expanded her menu by a whole bunch of flavors!

copyright © 2020 scmrak

Purrfect Bistro Tuna Niçoise: Kitty Agrees on the Purrrrrrrrfect!

Merrick Purrfect Bistro Tuna Nicoise

Winki the mini-kitty wasn’t having a good year. She and the new rescue hadn’t connected yet, which resulted in a lot of hissing fits between her, perched halfway up the spiral staircase to her lair in the attic, and the new boy, whining and snorting on the bottom step. She also slept less often in her favorite spot, tucked into Daddy’s armpit. Poor baby…

Aloha, bland food: here comes Tiki Cat Hookena Luau

Tiki Cat Hookena Luau Ahi Tuna and Chicken

Maybe it’s because she’s spoiled, and maybe it’s because she resents having to live in a house with two dogs, but my cat has little interest in pate-style foods. As a result, almost everything I buy her is either “flaked” or some variation on “chunks in gravy.” I generally avoid so-called supermarket cat foods, too, so you can almost always find me looking for sales on the high-end stuff. That’s probably why I picked up a few cans of  Tiki Cat not long ago, one of which was Hookena Luau Ahi Tuna and Chicken. To be blunt, kitty approves – a LOT.

Kitty Has a New Favorite Brand: Nulo

Nulo Medal Series Beef and Rainbow Trout Cat Food

One of kitty’s more interesting quirks is that she pretty much refuses to eat pate-style foods. That’s not really a problem, given the variety of “filets,” shreds, chunks, and flakes on the market. We do, however, try hard to avoid what some call “supermarket” cat foods while also not breaking the bank buying two-dollar cans. Since she only gets an ounce or so twice a day with her dry kibbles, though, a dollar or so a day seems acceptable.

Kitty Gives Science Diet Chunks and Gravy Two Paws Up

Science Diet Mature Adult Cat Chunks and Gravy Canned Food, Tuna Recipe

During our quest for canned food at which kitty won’t turn up that lovable nose, some years back a new format for canned food appeared, the “slices in gravy” genre. Kitty was immediately in love was with Science Diet Culinary Creations Slices in Gravy, but that label long ago disappeared from the shelves in our local stored. Hill’s, however, followed it on with “chunks & gravy,” and kitty was delighted to make that brand’s acquaintance.

She’s happy with the flavor selection, especially Tender Tuna Dinner – one that's formulated for “Mature Adults” (7-plus years: yes, baby is now more than ten: time sure flies). They also market tuna, chicken, and fish formulas for adults; and a chicken flavor for kittens.

Blue Buffalo Basics Turkey and Potato Recipe Dry Cat Food

Kitty's Healthy and Happy with her Blue Buffalo Basics Turkey and Potato Recipe

Little kitty's life now is worlds different from when she came to live with us almost a decade ago. That house is 1,000 miles away; and although she still lives with two dogs, they’re not the same ones (sniff). She always got along beautifully with our previous pooches, but Winki and her new brother just don't get along. Consequently, she's now a nocturnal beast, sleeping in her attic room during the day and prowling the downstairs at night when that evil dog is sleeping behind closed doors.

Given her level of stress, we worry that her health might suffer. So she stays healthy we try to give her quality food; mostly dry kibble juiced up with a couple of ounces of premium canned food each day. For the dry portion, we've upgraded from IAMS to Blue Buffalo Basics Limited Ingredient Formula. She seems to appreciate the change, especially her Limited Ingredient Turkey & Potato recipe.

Ingredients and Analysis¹

When the Blue people call this food “limited ingredient,” it means there's no

• Chicken, poultry by-products, egg
• Corn, wheat, soy 
• Artificial preservatives, artificial flavors

What they do include looks a lot like the menu of a typical Thanksgiving dinner: there's Turkey, potatoes, peas, cranberries, oatmeal and brown rice. There are also some alfalfa, blueberries, carrots, barley and kelp, too; and all those polysyllabic whatsits that we eventually recognize as vitamins (like pyroxidine is vitamin B6 and folic acid is B9) and compounds containing  minerals like selenium or copper. For kitty's gut health, they add in probiotics like Lactobacillus and Saccharomyces (better known as yeast). The food looks good (at least to me); small, barrel-shaped tan kibbles, BB-sized. About 5% of them are smaller and a deep brown. These are what Blue terms “LifeSource Bits,” pellets full of antioxidants and essential nutrients. Kitty doesn't notice the color; she chows down on everything in her dish. We, on the other hand, appreciate Blue's grain-free formula (at least corn, wheat and soy, though I'm pretty sure those small amounts of oats and barley are technically grain). We're also impressed that the first ingredient listed is turkey, with turkey meal and potato coming next.

Blue's analysis: crude protein minimum 30%, crude fat minimum 12%, crude fiber maximum 3.5%, moisture maximum 10%, Magnesium minimum 0.08%, taurine minimum 0.15%, Omega 6 fatty acids minimum 2.5%, Omega 3 fatty acids minimum 6%.

Kitty's Reaction

Although she's pushing thirteen, little Winki remains healthy. She has strong teeth (and claws), her coat is clean and shiny and unmatted, she's slender but not bony, and remains playful. She gets daily exercise by running up and down her staircase to taunt those dogs, and attacks her collection of cardboard scratchers with gusto. She hacks up maybe one hairball every couple of weeks and the deposits in her litter box are well-formed and solid. Transitioning Kitty off IAMS to Blue Basics Limited Ingredient Formula went without a hitch. We're looking forward to her ripe old age; and we fervently hope that some day soon she and dog number two will call a truce. One can only hope

Summary: 

PLUS: no grains, no byproducts, no weird ingredients
MINUS: somewhat expensive
WHAT THEY'RE SAYING: Blue Buffalo Basics Limited Ingredient Turkey and Potato Recipe keeps our kitty healthy and fit.


¹ I don't copy and past lists of ingredients because they change through time. Check the manufcturer's website or the label on the bag for specifics.

copyright © 2014-2017 scmrak

Merrick New England Boil Cat Food

It Smells So Horrible, It has to Be Good!

Life's been tough for the little kitty who lives in our house, mainly because of the new rescue dog in the house, with whom she is decidedly not on speaking terms. These days, she rarely gets an opportunity to bond with her humans, about which she is occasionally vocal. She will perch a couple of steps down the spiral staircase to her attic, safely out of reach of Cooper, and alternates between mewing at her human staff and snarling at the dog(s). We sure do feel sorry for her.