The Worst Canned Cat Food: Is Your Cat’s Food On The List?
The truth about wet cat food
Let’s face it. Most cats don’t complain at meal time about the food in their bowls. As long as it tastes good they will eat it. 😻 They trust us as cat parents to give them food that’s good for them, not just something that tastes good. But how do you really know if the food you’re feeding your cat is really good for them? Since great nutrition is essential for great health you owe it to your cat to learn about the ingredients listed on their cat food labels. Wet food is usually a favorite with cats. While it’s much better than kibble, not all wet food is healthy or good for your cat’s health. I can hear your gasps already: Why? It’s got gravy! It’s moist and made with meat! My cat loves it! How can it be bad? Today I’ll share with you a list of the worst canned cat foods on the market and how these products made the list to begin with.
Worst cat food ingredients
There’s an expression you’ve probably heard: the devil’s in the details. The same goes for cat food ingredients. Pet food manufacturers can be extremely deceptive about their products. Most are profit driven; they use cheap, low-quality ingredients and fillers. They use “feed-grade” not “food grade” products. (In other words, products that are not fit for human consumption.) They put beautiful pictures of fresh, whole foods on the packages and have large marketing budgets to produce heart-tugging, memorable commercials that drive consumers to buy their brands at the grocery stores and vet clinics.
Most cheap cat food contains unhealthy ingredients
There’s a great article I found that does a fantastic job of breaking down every single ingredient you’ll find in cat food. While some of these may sound healthy and appropriate the truth may surprise you. Some of the words that are hard to pronounce and sound suspicious may not even be appropriate for humans to consume much less cats. Cats are carnivores and should eat a meat-based diet, yet the “meat” products you find in cat food are questionable at best because of how they are sourced. They’re known as 4-D.
4-D is meat and by-products that have been derived from animals that were rejected by food inspectors who classified the animals as not fit for human consumption because they were “Dead, Dying, Disabled or Diseased” at the time of inspection. Any chemicals that existed within that animal, would still be in it when dead. Meat by-products are nothing more than slaughterhouse waste; waste that’s been banned for use in human food and then sold to the pet food industry. It’s what’s left over after the slaughter and classified as inedible waste, unfit for human consumption.
4-Ds: Road kill, slaughter house rejects, animals that die on their way to meat packing plants – all are acceptable ingredients for pet food under the “4D” rule. Steroids, growth hormones and chemicals used to treat cattle including insecticide patches end up mixed into the final product. Meat from grocery stores past its due date is also added to the mix, as are the Styrofoam trays and plastic wrap they were packed in.
More cat food ingredients to avoid
Hungry yet? But wait! There’s more! Apart from terrible meat and meat by-products, you’ll find LOTS of corn products, most of which is GMO. You’ll also find wheat which is often sprayed heavily with Round Up herbicide, a know carcinogen, right before harvest. Soybean oil and soy protein products are also common which are GMO and inappropriate for cats. If you see the words artificial and natural flavors these are chemicals used to enhance the flavor. Synthetic vitamins are added back to the food because the heating process has killed all the naturally-occurring vitamins and enzymes. Powdered cellulose, which is sawdust, and grain hulls are used as fillers. They contain no nutritional value whatsoever, and are not fit for human consumption yet the AAFCO (the governing body of pet feed ingredients) allows them as “acceptable.” You’ll often find a host of artificial colors like FD & C Red #3, Blue #1 or Blue 2, Yellow 5, and Green #3 which are chemicals linked to various types of cancers, allergies, and gastrointestinal problems. Toxic chemicals like sodium selenite and preservatives like sodium nitrite and BHT (used to preserve various vitamins) are very common as well. In fact, there are so many chemicals used in cat food that it should be called chemical stew, not cat food. It’s no wonder our cats are being diagnosed with cancers, auto-immune diseases, diabetes, skin allergies, and other common ailments.
Check out the list
These are the worst canned cat foods that made the list. You’ll probably recognize all of them because you see them sold in the grocery stores and in your veterinarian’s clinic. Yes, pet food manufacturers want to make it convenient for you to buy their terrible food.
- Fancy Feast Grilled Chicken Feast In Gravy
- Friskies Wet Cat Food Classic Paté Classic Seafood Entrée
- Purina Pro Plan Cat Extra Care Urinary Tract Chicken Entree In Gravy Canned Cat Food
- Purina Pro Plan Salmon & Rice Entree Canned Cat Food
- Purina Veterinary Diets UR St/Ox URinary Feline Formula Canned
- Hill’s Prescription Diet c/d Multicare Feline Bladder Health with Chicken Canned Food
- Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Feline Urinary SO in Gel Canned Cat Food
- Royal Canin Babycat Instinctive Canned Cat Food
- Sheba Premium Cuts in Gravy
- Great Choice Gourmet Cuisine in a Delicate Sauce
- Purina DM Feline – Savory Selects
- Purina Feline UR Rx diet
- Meow Mix Tender Favorites Real Chicken and Beef in Gravy Cat Food Cup
- Special Kitty: Salmon Dinner
- Whiskas Purrfectly CHICKEN Chicken Entree in Natural Juices Cat Food Pouches
- 9Lives Tuna Select Flaked Tuna in Sauce Canned Cat Food by Del Monte
- Whiskas Seafood Selection with Tuna in Sauce By Kal Kan Foods
- Hi-Tor Neo Diet For Cats
- Iams Veterinary Formula Intestinal Low-Residue Canned Cat Food
- Evolution Canned Vegan Cat Food (NO Meat Included)
The worst canned cat food is not limited to this list. Just because you may not see a particular flavor of the brands listed above doesn’t mean all the other flavors or varieties are safe and healthy! Now that you are a bit smarter you can read the labels and make better choices for your cat.
The best diet for cats is a species appropriate, meat-based, grain-free, fresh or raw diet. Want to learn more? Check out the Optimal Nutrition for Cats page. Your cat’s health and longevity depends on it!
Want to find out which dry cat foods made the “worst list?” Click here.
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