Is The Price Of Cat Food Proportional To Its Quality?
Brands, composition and sales channel influence the price of kibble for your cat. The increases in the cost of living in recent months have many feline owners wondering if they should continue to feed their misty games correctly, without sacrificing quality, but at a lower cost. Are entry-level kibbles really unsuited to the carnivorous diet of felids? Can we choose a mid-range brand to meet all the animal’s energy needs or should we choose premium food to protect its health and also our wallet?
A dry cat food adapted to your budget, but at what cost for its health?
Pet Food has understood our passion for cats. In supermarkets, in specialized stores and at our veterinarians, there is a multitude of brands and kibbles to meet the needs of our pets and the budget that their owners are ready to devote to their well-being. From first price to high-end kibble or specially developed for your cat’s pathology, yes, the price of kibble depends on the quality of its ingredients.
First-price croquettes, a false good economy
To maintain your cat’s good health, low-cost croquettes remain the least recommended. While your small carnivore needs a diet with a high dose of animal protein, entry-level kibbles do not offer this minimum level of 40 to 50% meat protein. They are most often made from meat meal, or more precisely bone powder. In addition, to compensate for this lack of meat cuts, some manufacturers will increase the vegetable protein content. However, cereals are not suitable for the diet of your four-legged friend. Their rate should not exceed 20% to respect the digestive system of the feline. Poor in meat, rich in cereals, often the lipids from animal fats essential to the functioning of his body will be replaced, because less expensive, by vegetable fats. The so-called first price croquettes when they minimize the manufacturing costs can cause serious health problems for the animal, because their composition does not correspond to the feline’s digestibility and energy needs. The use of cereals also induces an increase in the carbohydrates ingested by the cat and can lead to long-term illnesses. The cost will turn out to be higher in the end than if we choose a really elaborate diet for your “velvet paws”. If your budget is really tight, there is only one method to ensure the quality of the kibble: analyze the composition of the package. Some brands in the supermarket will meet your pet’s needs better than others and to be sure, a complete study of the composition of the chosen food is essential. In any case, when the price per kilo is less than two euros, the quality of the ingredients cannot be there.
The Other Criteria That Influence The Price Of Your Cat’S Kibble
Other criteria can increase the price of the croquettes that you serve with love every day to your four-legged friend. A long-term pathology, its age and its condition require a tailor-made diet to protect or deploy its health capital.
A Diet Adapted To The Pathology Of Your Animal
When the animal suffers from a hereditary or acquired disease, the diet must be adapted to prevent your cat from seeing the pathology worsen. You will only find them in specialized stores or at your veterinarian. These therapeutic kibbles are precisely dosed in nutrients and trace elements to protect your feline’s already affected organs or help with weight loss. They aim to help cats suffering from diabetes, obesity, kidney failure, hepatic failure or food intolerance. In any case, always check the composition of his food to make sure that vegetable fats and carbohydrates do not exceed the recommended thresholds for the health of your “velvet paws”.
Kibbles Adapted To The Age Of Your Little Companion
For the growing kitten, or for the pregnant or lactating female, the need for proteins and calcium contributes to the harmonious development of the animal, both in its head and in its paws. Here again, you will have to make sure to provide your little companion with a sufficient and quality source of meat and animal fats to avoid any deficiencies. Certain allergy-prone foods must have the lowest levels or be absent from the preparation of your kitten’s kibble: starch, cereals and lactose. For your little cat, prefer premium croquettes, while carefully analyzing their composition.
Dry Food For Senior Cats
When the cat gets older, he often shows less interest in his bowl while his immune defenses drop. To stimulate your appetite, nothing better than choosing croquettes with subtle meat flavors and ensuring a sufficient proportion of protein and a low rate of cereals, animal by-products such as carcasses and vegetables. . In order to facilitate chewing, you can turn to smaller kibbles and offer your senior cat a mixed diet consisting of kibbles and pâtés. This feeding mix will protect its renal functions and will participate in the elimination of dental plaque.
Kibbles Intended For The Sterilized Animal
Whether or not the cat is sterilized, its kibble must contain enough meat protein. The quantity present must represent more than 40%. Carbohydrates, which are mainly used to coat the kibble and ensure its cohesion, must not exceed 15%. Finally, lipids, extracts of animal and fish fats are necessary for the functioning of its organs.
The Cost Of A Bad Diet To The Health Of Your “Velvet Paws”
Your cat’s health largely depends on his bowl. A poor choice of kibble can endanger the health of your pet in the long term. Thus, a diet too rich in carbohydrates will cause diabetes in your four-legged friend. Between the cost of the first consultation and additional examinations to confirm the diagnosis, the savings made on the packages will reduce like snow in the sun. Perhaps less worrying, the cat can suffer from food allergies to meat proteins and lactose. These allergies cause diarrhea or skin disorders in the animal. Researching the allergenic element and its treatment will sometimes cost much more than the savings made by choosing cheaper or unsuitable kibbles for your feline’s needs. Preferring quality kibble remains the best choice for the health of the animal, but you still have to take the time to read the labels and analyze the composition of the product, whatever its price.
5 Quality Criteria For Choosing The Best Kibble For Your Cat
Choosing your cat’s kibble is opting for a food that will protect his health and your wallet. To make sure you choose the best kibbles for its development, its evolution and its well-being, rely on these criteria during your search:
- 40 to 50% protein from leftover meat, carcasses or offal. Avoid brands that make their product from animal meal. These are most often made up of bone, cartilage, feathers or hooves and are not a source of meat for your little feline.
- Make sure that the lipids that make up the croquettes are of animal origin: beef, chicken, lamb, fish. Forget kibbles if vegetable oils replace animal fats.
- Check that vegetables, fruits or tubers are present only in minute quantities compared to proteins and lipids.
- Choose a low carbohydrate food to protect the health of your four-legged friend.
- Looking at low temperature to preserve the benefits of nutrients.
