Purina VS Iams

[jebbewocky]

I don't usually post much here anymore, but I thought I would weigh in on the topic..

If you want to read a great article on cat nutrition put together by a vet who specializes in cats, then this is the website for you: http://catinfo.org/

There is a LOT of information there that should help you make an informed decision about cat food.

We have 4 cats and I have worked and volunteered in animal shelters and rescues for about the last 14 years. I'm currently taking a much needed mental hiatus from it, but, I've spent a lot of time around cats and especially around cats that have been surrendered.

A primary reason for surrender is a health condition the owner cannot afford to treat. Most of those cats were living on dry food. Leading causes of death in indoor cats are primarily urinary blockage and kidney failure. The reason for that is the prevalence of a dry food diet.

Cats are obligate carnivores, as such, they wouldn't so much as sniff at the corn that is the primary ingredient in most cat foods. If you look at the ingredient panel on most cat foods, they are sorted in order by weight with the ingredient of the most weight being listed first.
Now, there is some trickery involved on labels now that you need to be aware of. A "Meal" product is a dried product. For instance, chicken meal is separated and dehydrated chicken. Chicken "Byproduct" meal is dehydrated chicken parts that could not be sold for human consumption. Normally feet, beaks, heads, intestines and so forth.
On the Iams label, the first ingredient is chicken and the second ingredient is "corn meal". To lead you to believe that chicken is the primary ingredient, it is weighed before being dehydrated down for dry food and the corn is weighed after most moisture is already stripped out. Whenever you see "chicken" as the first ingredient followed by a grain meal like "corn meal" you can be confident that corn is the primary ingredient, not chicken. Most meats are around 70% moisture and most dry foods are around 10% moisture once processed. What that means is that once that chicken is dehydrated, there won't even be a fifth of the chicken that there is corn.
Since cats should never eat corn, I'm sure you can extrapolate the quality of the food..

Obviously, times are tough financially for a lot of people and some have had to cut back on what they feed their pets.
In all reality though, you wouldn't be paying that much more for a quality canned diet then you would pay for Iams or Purina dry foods.
For instance, around here you can buy the large can of Innova for about $1.12 which is plenty for a cat for a day, even too much for a cat over 8 lbs.
The 8 lb bag of Iams will cost you about $12 and will probably only last about 10 days because cats have to eat a lot more as it is not very nutritionally dense.

It does take some shopping around to find the quality foods at a good price. Generally, if it's sold in a Walmart, then it's probably not a quality food with very few exceptions.

Huh. I always always told by vets to not give wet cat food because it's so fatty.
And I found out today, that my fiance's cat doesn't like Iams as much as I thought she does. She'll eat it, but she chews it like it's gross apparently.

 

[jenniferinny]

Unfortunately, most vets are trained at colleges whose nutrition programs are sponsored by companies like Purina or P&G. Very few luck out and go to an independently run nutrition program during their studies.

I used to manage the pet department in a Walmart. I would guess that the push for dry food is all about profit margins. The profit margins have always been substantially higher on dry foods.

It is actually uncommon to have an obese cat feeding a quality canned diet. Obesity usually comes with dry food and corn and the use of plant proteins.
Just for comparison, this is the guaranteed analysis and ingredients of Purina Complete Cat Chow.
http://www.catchow.com/Cat-Chow-Complete/
Crude Protein (Min) 34.0%
Crude Fat (Min) 13.0%
Crude Fiber (Max) 4.5%
Moisture (Max) 12.0%
Linoleic Acid (Min) 1.25%
Arachidonic Acid (Min) 0.02%
Calcium (Ca) (Min) 1.1%
Phosphorus (P) (Min) 0.9%
Selenium (Se) (Min) 0.30%mg/kg
Vitamin A (Min) 10,000 IU/kg
Vitamin E (Min) 70 IU/kg
Taurine (Min) 0.15%

Ingredients:
Poultry by-product meal, corn meal, corn gluten meal, ground whole wheat, brewers rice, soy flour, animal fat preserved with mixed-tocopherols (form of Vitamin E), fish meal, meat and bone meal, brewers dried yeast, phosphoric acid, animal digest, calcium carbonate, tetra sodium pyrophosphate, salt, potassium chloride, choline chloride, calcium phosphate, taurine, zinc sulfate, Vitamin E supplement, ferrous sulfate, manganese sulfate, niacin, Vitamin A supplement, calcium pantothenate, thiamine mononitrate, added color (Red 40), copper sulfate, riboflavin supplement, Vitamin B-12 supplement, pyridoxine hydrochloride, folic acid, Vitamin D-3 supplement, calcium iodate, biotin, menadione sodium bisulfite complex (source of Vitamin K activity), sodium selenite. F-4501

To compare a similar food, only in canned form, this is Friskies Country Dinner in canned form. They are both made by the same company.
http://www.friskies.com/Wet-Cat-Food/Country-Style-Dinner/Default.aspx
Guaranteed Analysis

Crude Protein (Min)10.0 %
Crude Fat (Min)5.0 %
Crude Fiber (Max)1.0 %
Moisture (Max)78.0 %
Ash (Max)3.0 %
Taurine (Min)0.05 %
Ingredients

Meat by-products, water sufficient for processing, chicken, poultry by-products, rice, artificial and natural flavors, calcium phosphate, guar gum, added color, potassium chloride, salt, carrageenan, taurine, zinc sulfate, thiamine mononitrate, Vitamin E supplement, ferrous sulfate, niacin, manganese sulfate, calcium pantothenate, Vitamin A supplement, copper sulfate, menadione sodium bisulfite complex (source of Vitamin K activity), pyridoxine hydrochloride, riboflavin supplement, Vitamin B-12 supplement, biotin, folic acid, Vitamin D-3 supplement, potassium iodide. A-6052


As you can tell, there is less then half the fat in canned food even in a low end brand like Friskies. That isn't even a diet version.

This though, is what a quality food looks like. When purchased in the large can, it costs less per ounce then Friskies.
http://www.evopet.com/products/default.asp?id=1501
It is called Innova Evo


Ingredients:
Turkey
Chicken
Turkey Broth
Chicken Broth
Chicken Meal
Herring
Carrots
Whole Eggs
Salmon Meal
Natural Flavors
Carrageenan
Cottage Cheese
L-ascorbyl-2-polyphosphate
Apples
Guar Gum
Vitamins/Minerals
Inulin
Herring Oil
Choline Chloride
Potassium Chloride
Salt
Sunflower Oil
Taurine
Sodium Phosphate
Beta Carotene

Guaranteed analysis:
Crude Protein (min) 12 %
Crude Fat (min) 8 %
Crude Fiber (max) 0.5 %
Moisture (max) 78 %
Ash (max) 3 %
Carbohydrates NFE (max) 1.01 %
Vitamin E (min) 100 IU/kg
Magnesium (max) 0.03 %

While this diet is higher in fat then the canned friskies, it is all fat that can actually be utilized effectively by a cat.

Some other typical old wives tales surround dry food and it's ability to 'clean' their teeth. Naturally, a nearly all carbohydrate crunchy diet does not clean their teeth any better then eating pretzels would clean yours. Carbohydrate/grain based diets leave a sugary residue on teeth making them more susceptible to decay.

There was a time I fed Iams to my dogs and cats. Their teeth were brown, they needed dental cleanings and teeth pulled. Now I have a ten year old dog with perfect white teeth including even the molar like teeth in the back. She has never needed a single dental and my vet can't understand why as dental's are a huge part of his practice. He also recommends dry food to clean teeth. My pets have been on a raw diet for about 4 years now. I don't immediately recommend raw to people because I think it frightens people away. Honestly, I think the most important part is to understand what an obligate carnivore like a cat should be eating. Once you understand that, selecting a diet becomes a lot more about science then about the fuzzy commercials you see on TV. It becomes more about what your cat should eat rather then what it can be tricked into eating with a coating of "animal digest".

 

[jebbewocky]

After discussing it with my fiance yesterday, we've been re-evaluting our cat food choices--being that one of the cats doesn't really like it that much anyway--I'll talk to her about putting them on a canned diet.
Raw food? Not so much I think. Not just yet at any rate.

 

[Shell]

'They' didn't....sadly, Iams sold out to Proctor & Gamble, and P&G dropped the quality of the ingredients by a good 50% to cut costs and widen the profit margin...one of the main reasons was so that they could mass-market it via Wal-Mart. I owned a pet shop when the change occurred...90% of my Iams customers had dogs or cats that had massive digestive disruptions when they bought their first bag of the new formula...I dropped the entire line about a week later.

Yes thank you, I did know that. Memory lapse I suppose

 

[jbm150]

This has been an interesting thread. It's been a long time since I've thought about cat nutrition (all out of cats) and I'm disappointed to hear about how Iams has fallen off. Thanks Jennifer, Shell, and Toirtis for bringing all of this out; I'd just like to add that this is the same crap that is being pushed on us. Corn is a crap grain through and through for us, our feedstock, and our pets. With government subsidies fostering an overabundance of it, they'll keep sneaking it into a wide range of products to our detriment.

 

[jenniferinny]

I forgot something very important to mention. That last food I referenced, Innova Evo, was just bought out by P&G, the same people who destroyed Iams and Euakanuba's quality.

So far, it's still the same formula, but the buy-out just happened.

With pet foods, the grubby overlords of commercial pet food will always be buying out the good smaller companies and relying on their name to sell Ol' Roy quality food under a previously well known label.

Many people still buy Iams because they associate the name with a quality pet food. Iams was bought out by P&G back in 1999. Now, a little over ten years later, the ingredients aren't much different from Purina and Ol Roy and everything else on a Walmart shelf. Now that people are catching on, P&G plans to dump Iams as it's no longer much of a poster child.
Natura products, which include names like California Natural and Innova Evo are their new poster child. It wouldn't surprise me at all to see the ingredients almost immediately change to predominately grain.

With pet food, you have to pay attention to the label and check the ingredients frequently because you may have missed a P&G buyout and now be paying premium prices for nothing better then Ol Roy.

That is the shame with Iams, it's not better then anything else on the Walmart shelf. It's all crap. Only people will pay double the price for the Iams name.

Anyhow, I won't beat the subject up anymore. I just didn't want people to 5 years from now be thinking "Innova Evo is a good food, I saw that in a forum once" only to discover that it's now crap food too.. Things change constantly and the big pet food companies are always looking for little guys with a solid reputation to buy out.

 

[Toirtis]

I forgot something very important to mention. That last food I referenced, Innova Evo, was just bought out by P&G, the same people who destroyed Iams and Euakanuba's quality.

So true...sadly, my cat eats about 30:70 dry:wet (I cannot get her to eat raw), and Evo is the food she loves almost to exclusion of all other dry brands, so now I am looking for something of similar quality, no grains, high meat that she will eat.

 

[advan]

interesting thread. my cat only eats fancy feast wet and dry but she always goes outside. never seen her eat anything she's caught though she will just bring me a present.

 

[Shrike]

I'll be honest. I don't like either brand. My cat eats a brand called Nature's Variety, Instinct (this comes wet and dry and I use both). It's completely gluten free, and my cat loves it. My cat is healthier for it and I think it's well worth the price.

 

[Snuggles]

Last night at the store, we had to pull ALL varieties of Iams canned cat food. Usually when there is a recall, we are given specifics like flavors, codes, expiration dates, sizes, etc. Yesterday involved ALL CANS. That's scary.

There is hardly ever a Purina recall. They may be chicken beaks, but them are some wholesome chicken beaks. ;P

 

[DireWolf0384]

Has anyone heard of a Cat food called "Taste of the Wild"? I heard from several people its pretty good stuff. I want to give it a try. :?

 

[jenniferinny]

Taste of the Wild canned food is definitely a good choice, at the moment anyways. But, always watch those ingredients for changes because the small companies do tend to change hands.
If you have to feed a dry food, then their dry food is decent too as far as dry foods go. Canned is just about always a better choice, but their dry food is about as decent as a dry food can get.

http://www.tasteofthewildpetfood.com/products/cats/rocky_mountain_feline_formula_in_gravy/
"Salmon, fish broth, chicken broth, chicken liver, chicken, egg whites, ocean fish, potato starch, peas, sweet potatoes, potatoes, roasted venison, guar gum, natural flavor, tomatoes, sodium tripolyphosphate, calcium carbonate, dl-methionine, salt, potassium chloride, minerals [iron amino acid chelate, zinc amino acid chelate, copper amino acid chelate, manganese amino acid chelate, sodium selenite, calcium iodate], taurine, choline chloride, chicory root, yucca schidigera extract, blueberries, raspberries, vitamins [vitamin A supplement, thiamine mononitrate (vitamin B1), riboflavin (vitamin B2), niacin (vitamin B3), D-calcium pantothenate (vitamin B5), pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), biotin (vitamin B7), folic acid (vitamin B9), vitamin B12 supplement, vitamin D3 supplement, vitamin E supplement]"

It's got some things in it that aren't necessary for an obligate carnivore, like potato starch and sweet potatoes, BUT it is mostly meat and it looks like decent meat without a bunch of mystery ingredients.

 

[LeilaNami]

Though Nutro Max is okay, I still wouldn't rank it high above either brand.

I personally feed Blue Buffalo. I can get a small bag for 11.99 at PetSmart in my area (and yes I know that sounds like a lot) but for a 5-9 lb cat, you are only feeding 1/4 to 1/2 cup a day. It takes an entire month for my 7lb kitty to go through the SMALL bag. It is a very good food and if you can swing 12 bucks once a month I would highly encourage you to put your cat on it.

As far as wet vs. dry, it has been shown that cats are not large water drinkers (meaning they don't seek water as much as dogs would do) and feeding a completely dry food can increase the risk of a urinary tract infection. Having said this, my cats throughout my life have had two instances of UTIs on a completely dry diet. The only drawback with wet food is that it tends to stick to the teeth a little more so if your cat will let you, get a little finger toothbrush, put some yummy tasting cat toothpaste on there (if you can find some). If your cat is too old to start them comfortably on the tooth brushing (I know it sounds weird) give them some dental treats. The benefit of wet food with provide more moisture into the cat's diet and thus lowering the risk of a UTI.