Your feline companion may have a refined palate or a good appetite, but the decision of what to feed them ultimately lies with you. With a wide array of options available in the market, how do you navigate through them all? In this guide, we have curated five products that we believe strike the perfect balance between quality and affordability.
Thanks to the opinion of users and specialists, we have tried to answer the owners’ doubts when it comes to choosing between morsels, croquettes, or pates, advertised with inviting images and slogans.
One must be careful, for example, to be attracted by the raw materials heralded on the packaging: a turkey meal will contain, on average, no more than 5% of tasty feathered. Here we will be listing the top 12 best cat foods.
- Contains one (1) 14-pound bag of Rachael Ray Nutrish Indoor Complete Natural Premium Dry Cat Food (Packaging May Vary)
- Small kibble is easy to chew and swallow, keeping the crisp, crunchy texture and big flavor and Real salmon, wholesome lentils, and unique Superfood Blend helps support dietary needs of indoor cats.
- Natural prebiotics from pumpkin for a healthy digestive tract and Natural food for adult cats includes added vitamins, minerals, and amino acids.
- Fancy Feast wet cat food made without artificial colors or preservatives
- Crafted with real, high-quality ingredients to deliver 100 percent complete and balanced canned cat food
- Fancy Feast grilled cat food developed in partnership with our expert nutritionists to create a unique and unforgettable taste experience for your cat
- Complete and Balanced for Adult Cats: 100% nutrition, 0% fillers, this dry cat food supports whole-body health with essential nutrients and is enriched with antioxidants for a strong immune system
- Provides Hairball Care: IAMS PROACTIVE HEALTH dry cat food is formulated with a proprietary fiber blend with beet pulp that helps reduce hairballs before they start
- Supports Healthy Weight: This adult dry cat food is formulated with L-carnitine to help your indoor cat burn fat and maintain a healthy metabolism so they can continue to live a happy life
- Contains (1) 6.3 Pound Bag of Dry Cat Food
- Complete and balanced nutrition
- Provides all essential vitamins and minerals
- SmartBlend of high-quality ingredients in this digestive cat food starts with real salmon along with accents of carrots and peas, and vitamins A and E promote your cat's bright eyes
- High levels of protein in Purina ONE Tender Selects Blend adult dry cat food with salmon help support your cat's strong muscles, including her healthy heart, throughout her active life
- Is Purina ONE good for cats? This natural dry cat food with added vitamins, minerals and nutrients and no artificial flavors or preservatives delivers complete and balanced nutrition for adult cats
- Premium dry cat food delivers 100 percent complete and balanced nutrition and is 100 percent made to delight even the pickiest eaters
- Crafted with high quality Fancy Feast cat food ingredients, including real chicken and turkey
- Provides essential vitamins for cats, plus minerals to help support feline health
- Natural nutrition with high-quality ingredients like real chicken as the #1 ingredient for a taste your cat will enjoy
- Purina indoor cat food made with real salmon and whole grains formulated for all life stages
- Weight control cat food containing 25 essential vitamins for cats and minerals to support your cat’s overall health
- One (1) 4 lb bag of ORIJEN Original Cat Food with Fresh and Raw** Ingredients
- ORIJEN dry cat food helps supports digestion, shiny coat, healthy skin and heart health for cats of all life stages
- Biologically Appropriate high protein recipe made with 90 percent animal ingredients* to deliver the nutrition cats need to thrive
- REAL CHICKEN FIRST: This Blue Buffalo cat food is made in the USA with real, high-quality chicken as the #1 ingredient
- IDEAL FOR ADULT CATS: Dry indoor cat food formulated with natural sources of fiber and nutrients for digestive care and coat health
- IMMUNE SYSTEM SUPPORT: Healthy adult dry cat food contains exclusive, antioxidant-rich LifeSource Bits
- Seafood flavors for the taste cats love. 100 percent complete and balanced nutrition for all life stages
- Contains protein to support strong muscles. Tempting texture to please her palate
- Essential fatty acids to help support healthy skin and coat. Vitamin A and taurine to help support clear, healthy vision
- Cat food with gravy, made without artificial colors or preservatives
- Purina Fancy Feast canned cat food variety pack crafted with real, high-quality ingredients, like real poultry or beef, to deliver 100 percent complete and balanced food for adult cats
- An irresistible, protein-rich Fancy Feast Gravy Lovers cat food taste offering a gourmet turkey, chicken or beef cat food meal with an enticing aroma and a light, savory gravy
- Cat food with gravy, made without artificial colors or preservatives
- Purina Fancy Feast canned cat food variety pack crafted with real, high-quality ingredients, like real poultry or beef, to deliver 100 percent complete and balanced food for adult cats
- An irresistible, protein-rich Fancy Feast Gravy Lovers cat food taste offering a gourmet turkey, chicken or beef cat food meal with an enticing aroma and a light, savory gravy
Best Cat Foods Buyer Guide
On the shelf, real or virtual, there are dozens of brands and as many feed qualities for our four-legged friends. In this guide, we will mainly deal with cat food that does not have specific needs.
Wet or Dry?
One of the first questions we ask ourselves when we try to understand which cat food to buy, concerns the choice between the dry and wet feed. Both options offer advantages and disadvantages.
On average, wet foods contain a more balanced quantity of fats and, moreover, they guarantee the right amount of water. Our four-legged friends seem to appreciate them more than the kibbles, but you have to consider how willing you are to spoil them.
There are studies and research, in fact, that clearly demonstrate how much a diet based exclusively on paté or morsels can weigh on your wallet.
Nutritional Values
Cats are primarily carnivorous animals, and there are many nutrients that should not be missing from their daily meal.
The supply of proteins is fundamental, but the fibers, fats, minerals, and the right vitamin contribution must not be neglected.
The dosage of these elements can vary depending on the feline’s age and state of health.
Fats, provided they are offered balance, perform some critical functions: they guarantee the right amount of energy, particularly necessary for puppies, and, perhaps less known, they favor the absorption of some precious vitamins.
Felines, however, even more than dogs, derive the most excellent energy intake from proteins. Any “vegetarian” experiment on your cat would be harmful to his health.
Muscles, bones, and ribs are formed thanks to the protein contribution of meals correctly. Vitamins and minerals are also fundamental, as are fibers, useful for regulating intestinal functions.
In this regard, it is worth remembering that the classic image of the kitten in front of the milk bowl is entirely at odds with the cat’s dietary needs. Lactose, in fact, is poorly digested by felines, as well as my dogs.
Dietetic and Complementary Products
When looking for the best cat food, perhaps among the offers of an e-commerce site or on the shelf of a supermarket, one must always make sure to choose products that constitute a complete meal, and not a pure supplement.
The national and European rules that regulate this market are quite precise and strict in the distinction.
It is almost commonplace that felines in this condition tend to gain weight. But the commonplace is partially confirmed by reality: males reduce the exploration of the territory and become more sedentary, reducing their calorie needs by up to 30%.
Properties of A Good Cat Foods
Comfort and Quality
The trays of Sheba morsels are sold in convenient packs of 85 grams. The daily requirement for a cat of about 5 kg can be calculated in about three or four doses.
This means that the cost of feeding your kitty daily should be just under three euros a day.
This expense is partially resizable if you buy, for example, packs of 22 trays, often sold online at advantageous prices.
The choice of dry food allows you to save money and not a little. Still, there are many good reasons to resort to bites and pates, at least occasionally.
The wet feed is less fat and more affluent in water, a not insignificant detail for a feline who tends to stay a little in front of the bowl of water.
Sheba products have been analyzed by more than one independent company. They have always achieved excellent results in terms of raw material quality.
All the Necessary
The Sheba product emerges as a winner in more than one comparison between the many brands offered on the market. You can buy it easily on the net or in supermarkets.
Both the quality of fats and that of proteins are promoted with flying colors. More than 45% of the product is made up of meats and derivatives, of which 4%, in this case, from chicken.
It may seem a low percentage since the chicken is advertised on the package, but it is actually a perfectly average value for this type of product.
Furthermore, if you read the composition indicated on the label, you will find exactly this figure.
Another quality boasted by manufacturers is the low use of preservatives and additives. A characteristic that corresponds to the product.
In Sheba morsels, on the other hand, there is an excellent mix of vitamins, fibers and minerals essential to the cat’s diet.
Long Live the Taurine
In the diet of our feline, some essential amino acids cannot be missing, including taurine. It has been verified by more than one independent test that Sheba trays contain the right quantity and quality of these constituent elements of animal proteins.