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Is your cat the kind that values feeding on a wide variety of meals every day? It is only understandable since feeding on one type of food every day can be quite boring. Today, there are so many formulas offering an array of flavors for your cat. However, most of these companies are in it for quick cash and therefore offer low quality ingredients that can harm your pet. With that said, it is still possible to get quality multiple flavored formulas your cat will delight in.
Felix Adult Good As It Looks is one of the multi-flavored formulas in the market. According the company, these formulas look and smell so great that your cat will hardly let you place the bowl on the floor before it starts feeding. The company also says that the formulas contain real fish and meat pieces for optimum health.
Are these claims valid? Read on to find out.
The varieties available
Tuna in jelly – This ingredient is a well known saltwater fish. There is some debate about whether fish products should be included in cat food at all, because cats by nature do not eat much sea food. A lot of cat owners would rather see meat from other animals such as beef, chicken, turkey, or other meat sources. However, tuna does supply a good amount of protein and also contains an excellent amount of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids.
As good as it looks favorites in jelly – this pack contains chicken, tuna, salmon and beef.
Chicken in jelly – Chicken is a very popular ingredient for pet food and in this case, they are referring to whole chicken. This is a very high quality meat source and we are pleased to see it listed. In dry cat foods, whole chicken loses about 80% of its content during the cooking process. This is because chicken consists of about 80% moisture. After the cooking process is complete, the amount of whole chicken remaining is substantially reduced. However, in wet cat foods the cooking process is a bit different so this is much less of a concern.
As good as it looks ocean feast in jelly – this comprises of plaice, salmon, cod and tuna.
As good as it looks country recipes in jelly – this is a multipack that contains:
- Beef and carrots
- Salmon and courgettes.
- Chicken and tomato.
- Trout and green beans.
As good as it looks meant menus in jelly – this comprises of chicken rabbit, lamb and fish flavors.
As good as it looks ocean selection in jelly – this is made of Pollack, sardine, salmon and tuna flavors.
An overview of the ingredients
Chicken – Chicken is a very popular ingredient for pet food and in this case, they are referring to whole chicken. This is a very high quality meat source and we are pleased to see it listed. However, whole chicken loses about 80% of its content during the cooking process since the majority of whole chicken is water. After the cooking process is complete, the amount of whole chicken remaining is substantially reduced. Therefor, while whole chicken is a great source of meat protein, this ingredient alone is not enough to provide sufficient levels of meat protein in a cats diet.
Tuna – This ingredient is a well known saltwater fish. There is some debate about whether fish products should be included in cat food at all, because cats by nature do not eat much sea food. A lot of cat owners would rather see meat from other animals such as beef, chicken, turkey, or other meat sources. However, tuna does supply a good amount of protein and also contains an excellent amount of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids.
Salmon – Salmon is an excellent source of high quality proteins for cats and is extremely rich in healthy Omega 3 and Omega 6 fatty acids. Some people worry about mercury levels in fish. It’s true that all fish contains some degree of mercury, the level in salmon is much lower than other types of fish and the FDA doesn’t believe it is cause for concern. Most salmon in cat food is farmed salmon, but higher end cat food (especially those labeled “natural”) can often times be fished from natural lakes and streams. The biggest problem with fish ingredients, including salmon, is if the fish includes an antioxidant called ethoxyquin (EMQ). It is believe that ethoxyquin could be very harmful to cats and other animals. Always make sure you are using “Ethoxyquin free” cat food blends when they include fish ingredients. When in doubt, call the customer service number and ask.
Beef – Beef is considered to be a higher quality ingredient. It is an excellent source of animal protein and contains many other nutrients that are very important for a cat to survive and thrive. Since this is not in “meal” form, that means this ingredient still contains all of its moisture content prior to cooking. Once fully cooked, most of this ingredient will have evaporated due to its high moisture content. That means, even when this ingredient is ranked highly, it will usually only provide a small percentage of the overall protein in the food. There is no dismissing this ingredient, though. It is high quality and we are pleased to see it listed.
Plaice – Plaice is a common name used for a group of flatfish. There are four species in the group, the European, American, Alaskan and scale-eye plaice. Fish can provide a healthy amount of protein and very beneficial fatty acids like omega-3 and omega-6. Many cat owners worry about feeding fish to their cats because many times, fish products in pet foods are the result of fish that can’t be approved for human consumption. It is also likely the fish came from a fish farm instead of free water fish. All fish also contains some level of mercury and many cat owners are worried about the long-term effects of feeding fish containing mercury. However, plaice has been put on a list that is safe even for pregnant woman to eat.
Carrots – A good source of carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals, carrots are becoming more common in pet foods. This ingredient is also known to boost the immune system and help promote healthy eyes in cats as well as providing a good source of fiber.
Sardine – A sardine is a young pilchard or other young or small herringlike fish. Some cat owners like to avoid fish in cat food because sea food is not usually a part of a cats natural diet. All fish products also contain a certain level of mercury and some cat owners fear that over time, the ingestion of mercury could be harmful (although there is very little evidence to suggest a significant risk). Overall, this ingredient does supply some extremely nutritious properties including protein and very healthy fatty acids.
Tomato – This ingredient may surprise some cat owners because we often hear that cats should never eat tomatoes. These foods are members of the Solanaceae family of plants, which includes the Deadly Nightshade, and contain a bitter, poisonous alkaloid called Glycoalkaloid Solanine, which can cause violent lower gastrointestinal symptoms. The leaves and stems are particularly toxic. However, tomatoes in pet foods are ripe, and should cause no concern because they appear in relatively small amounts. This ingredient may add some vitamins and minerals to the food, but overall, it doesn’t provide a whole lot of nutrition for your cat.
Green beans – This ingredient is most likely added as a filler ingredient to help make your cat feel more full after eating. Many cat food blends use grains for this purpose, but as many cat food manufactures move away from grains, beans are becoming more common. Unlike grains, it is thought that green beans may aid in weight loss. Cats also seem to like the flavor of green beens and they also provide a decent source of fiber to aid in digestion.
Rabbit – This is a great alternative meat source that provides excellent meat protein. When listed as “rabbit” that means this is whole rabbit. It contains the flesh, meat, and skin of the rabbit without the fur, bones, or intestines. While this is considered a very high quality meat source, it loses about 80% of its volume during the cooking process in dry cat foods. That means, in reality, this ingredient would be listed lower on the ingredients list if the ingredients were weighed after the cooking process. In wet cat foods, however, this is not as big of an issue since the cooking process is much different. In either case, this is a very high quality meat source and we are pleased to see it listed here.
Lamb – Lamb is a very high quality source of meat protein. Generally, this ingredient is more nutritious in canned formulas than dry formulas, but in either case, it is nice to see this ingredient listed. Unfortunately, about 80% of this ingredient is lost during the cooking process. That means, there actually isn’t much of this ingredient left once it has all been processed.
Pollack – Pollack is a greenish-brown fish of the cod family. Like just about any other type of fish, cats gain quite a bit of protein value from this ingredient and can also make good use of the healthy omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids. Since all fish contains trace levels of mercury, many cat owners like to shy away from fish based products. However, to date the FDA and EPA indicate mercury levels are still within safe limits.
Courgettes – If you know what zucchinis are, then you would know what courgettes are because they are the same thing. We’re not sure why they would use the less common labeling for this ingredient, but regardless, this ingredient does provide some vitamin A as well as healthy amounts of folate and potassium. Even though this ingredient is not considered to be extremely nutritious for cats, there are no major concerns about allergic reactions or health problems associated with it.
Can this formula cause allergies in cats?
This formula contains no allergy causing ingredients. Therefore, this formula can be given to cat with allergies and those that do not.
Ingredients you should not feed your cat on
Artificial coloring or preservatives – Both artificial colors and preservatives are very controversial ingredients in both human foods as well as pet foods. Artificial coloring provides no nutritional value for your cat and is only used for marketing purposes. It may also have links to serious illnesses like cancer. Artificial preservatives are also thought to be lower quality ingredients that may pose a health risk to your cat.
Soy – Soy is another common food allergen for cats and is also known to cause gastric upset. This ingredient is considered a very low priced filler ingredient. While it will certainly help make your cat food more full, the full nutritional benefit in this ingredient is questionable at best. Many cat food brands will tell you the allergy risk is very low with soy, but it is one of the most well known food allergens that cats deal with in commercial pet food. Overall, this is a pretty low quality ingredient.
Wheat and corn – Both of these ingredients are grains and unfortunately, they have links to food allergies in cats. While most cats will not form allergic reactions to these ingredients, cats with pre-existing food allergies should avoid both wheat and corn based products. In addition, wheat and corn can be very difficult for some cats to digest. Since cats are obligate carnivores, their digestive systems are designed to process meats and not grains. These ingredients boost the protein percentage of the food, but cats do not get the same nutritional benefit from plant proteins as meat proteins. Cats require meat protein to live a healthy life. Both of these ingredients are most commonly found in lower priced cat foods and include the grains as a way to help make your cat feel more full without actually adding more expensive and nutritional ingredients to the food. In smaller quantities, these ingredients shouldn’t pose any issues, but wheat and corn aren’t considered to be high quality ingredients by any means.
Conclusion
The Felix adult as good as it looks variety formulas offer cat owners feeding alternatives. Depending on the combination you choose, it is actually possible for you to determine the amounts of meat protein you feed your cat on. While the varieties may lack in some essential nutrients, they are protein rich and are definitely worth every penny. However, it is advisable to include another full nutrition formula to the meals to ensure your cat gets all the nutrition it needs to remain healthy.
