Place | Name | Characteristics in the rating |
The best wet foods for kittens |
1 | Animonda Carny Kitten for kittens with beef and turkey heart (0.2 kg) | High quality composition and pleasant aroma. Hypoallergenic grain-free canned food |
2 | Animonda Vom Feinsten Baby-Pate for kittens from 4 weeks (0.1 kg) | The best complementary food for little ones. Recommended from 4 weeks |
3 | Schesir Pieces in jelly. Tuna (0.1 kg) | An ideal choice for the most picky people. Suitable for dry food training |
4 | Brit Care Kitten Chicken (0.08 kg) | Simplicity and usefulness of components. Veterinarian and Breeder Approved |
5 | Organix meat soufflé for kittens with lamister beef (0.15 kg) | Decent inexpensive premium food. Optimal price-portion ratio |
The best dry food for kittens |
1 | Orijen Cat & Kitten (1.8 kg) | The best holistic. Biologically appropriate nutrition |
2 | GO! Sensitivity + Shine Duck Cat Recipe Limited Ingredient Diet, Grain Free (1.82 kg) | Hypoallergenic therapeutic and dietary composition for sensitive digestion |
3 | Grandorf Lamb with rice KITTEN (2 kg) | Organic ingredients at the lowest price. No chicken |
4 | Brit Care Crazy I'm Kitten (2 kg) | The most profitable high-quality super-premium dry food |
5 | Royal Canin British Shorthair Kitten (2 kg) | Easy to find in the store. Original form of granules |
The best wet foods for kittens
Wet food is the best solution for babies. Unlike a dry diet, canned food can be used as the first complementary food for kittens from four weeks of age. In this case, it is recommended to pay special attention to pates, mousses and soufflés of full premium or super-premium class. Their texture allows babies to quickly and easily learn to feed themselves. For kittens over two months old, not only creamy foods are suitable, but also pieces in jelly or broth.
Many wet foods are a complete diet that does not require any supplements. At the same time, they are easily digestible and suitable for everyone, including kittens, who drink relatively little water.
Super premium kitten food
The kitten's nutrition should be given special attention from the moment the first complementary foods are introduced. The diet must contain meat ingredients, vegetables, minerals and vitamins to promote normal growth.
The classification of food by segment is similar to food for adult cats - preference should be given to the holistic and super premium classes. They contain more natural animal protein and healthy vitamins.
For kittens, wet food options will be preferable due to the imperfection of the digestive system. From the age of six months, you can switch your kitten to premium dry food.
White and red kitten
Popular brands producing food for kittens in this segment include:
- Fest Choice;
- Nero Gold;
- Hills et al.
The following brands of wet food for kittens have gained well-deserved popularity:
- Almo Nature Legend. The line includes canned food with various exotic flavors. The feed is highly digestible and enriched with vitamins and minerals.
- Applous. They are found in three forms - pate, canned food and jelly. About 75% of the components of this company’s diet come from natural meat.
- Pitrite. Some cat breeders believe that this food belongs to the holistic class. In fact, its composition is more like a premium class representative.
The main feature of kitten nutrition is its high digestibility with a large amount of minerals and vitamins in the composition.
The best dry food for kittens
Dry food is rich in vitamins and microelements. Their composition is much more diverse than the composition of canned food. Often, in addition to meat components, representatives of this category contain healthy vegetables, fruits, herbs, and sometimes berries. Thus, the best dry food provides your cat with everything it would receive in its natural environment.
However, they are not suitable for everyone. Despite the availability of lines for the smallest, veterinarians do not recommend giving dry food in its pure form until at least three and a half months, because a kitten’s stomach at such an early age can be injured by hard food. An older kitten should be switched to this food carefully, gradually adding it to canned food or soaking it in water.
Super premium food for cats: list and rating
Often, cat breeders and even pet store sellers incorrectly classify food, classifying items that are not super premium as super premium. The rating of the best brands and their products in this segment will help you decide on the right choice of ready-made nutrition system for your furry pet:
Cat food
- First Choice. Being at the top of the rating, this super premium dry cat food meets all the requirements for this category of nutrition. The composition contains natural meat ingredients, 17% of which is fresh chicken. Additional protein sources are herring flour, egg flour, a product of egg content and hydrolysis of chicken liver. The sources of carbohydrates here are 2 types of rice, oatmeal and barley. First Choice food uses a natural preservative and is hypoallergenic. There is a line that consists of super premium medicinal cat food from this brand.
- Bozita. It is in second place in terms of popularity and usefulness of ready-made diets for cats in the premium segment. The composition contains dehydrated chicken meat, some salmon and Arctic fish. The only disadvantage of Bozita is the presence of corn gluten and wheat flour, which is typical for cheaper feeds. However, the content of meat and offal in their natural form allows us to classify the food system as a super premium segment.
- Dukes Pharm. 30% of the feed is fresh chicken meat; another source of animal protein is present in almost the same amount - chicken meal. Carbohydrates here are peas, rice and oats. A good source of fiber is the added beet pulp. In addition to the super premium composition, there is a high percentage of fortification of the feed.
- Nero Gold. The only drawback of the food is the lack of percentage of meat products on the packaging. However, despite this feature, manufacturers classify their product as super premium. The food is hypoallergenic and contains natural meat.
- Nau Natural Holistic. Despite its name, this nutritional composition belongs to the super premium segment. The food is completely grain-free and is based on fresh meat and a moderate amount of vegetables and fruits. There are no hormonal preparations in the diet. The main distinguishing feature of this brand is the feeling of freshness after opening the food.
- Hills Science Diet . This series of the Hills brand refers to the creation of therapeutic nutrition options. The food is indicated for the fight against excess weight of an animal, as well as for pregnant kittens and cats. Finding such food is not easy; veterinary clinics often offer it as a medicine.
- Trainer. The composition of the food fully justifies the segment to which it belongs. The diet is rich in vitamins and has a high percentage of meat and meat products. It has an extensive product line and also includes super premium wet cat food.
Nero gold
Another example of a not very objective rating of super premium food:
- Fitmin for life;
- Brit Care;
- Summit;
- Blitz;
- Leonardo.
Foods that fall into the super premium category are absolutely harmless to cats and can be used as the main source of nutrition throughout the animal’s life. If your cat refuses a certain type of food, you should be persistent or try to replace the composition with another brand in this segment.
Rating of holistic cat food
And, of course, no “cat food rating” can do without an expert analysis of food from the “holistic” category. In particular, dry diets. And if the list of premium cat food in the ratings can go on for a long time, then the truly excellent quality of “holistic” ones is one or two – and it’s gone. But the best super-premium cat food, according to veterinarian reviews in the holistic category, is Innova Cat and Kitten. Truly “highest aerobatics” in the production of truly high-quality and healthy animal feed. The diet is rich in vitamin S, as well as Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids, which improve the appearance of the coat, making it silkier, and support the cat’s overall immune system. The cost starts from 1000 rubles. for 2 kg. Further holistic food for cats is included in the rating in the following sequence:
No. 1 American Golden Eagle Holistic from Eagle Pack
Excellent food, without taste or smell enhancers. Another best dry cat food according to veterinarian reviews. Many experts recommend it, especially for animals weakened by disease and for the prevention of a number of diseases. The price varies, starting from 450 rubles per 400 grams.
№2 Go Natural holistic
Prepared by the manufacturer from ingredients suitable even for human nutrition. Plus minerals, vitamins and probiotics. An excellent diet for the prevention of obesity, urolithiasis and gastrointestinal problems in animals. The cost of a pack (3.6 kg) is 2000 rubles. The product line includes dry food for kittens and cats. With a green stripe on the packaging, this is a grain-free diet for pets with sensitive digestion. With pink - food with chicken, fruits and vegetables. With purple - 4 meat.
№3 GRANDORF Natural & Healthy
Holistic drying with an ideal protein level (32%). Included in the list of the Best Foods of 2015 according to reviews from veterinarians. And rightfully so. On the official website of the brand, it is especially emphasized that their holistic food for cats included in the rating does not contain one of the most common ingredients in animal food - chicken! This means they are suitable for pets with allergies to this product. The price of a pack is from 660 rubles for 3 kg.
The right to choose which cat food is best, of course, remains with the animal owner. He can buy premium cat food from the rating or purchase one of the best foods of 2015 according to veterinarian reviews according to our portal.
What should and should not be included in food
Super-premium cat foods vary greatly in composition and quality. There are no exact criteria for including a diet in one group or another. High-quality super premium foods are often combined with holistic foods or, conversely, due to the presence of not very healthy ingredients, allergens, and flavoring additives, some experts downgrade the product. Therefore, when choosing a diet, you must first of all focus on the composition and condition of the cat.
If your pet is healthy and active, has a beautiful coat, and you didn’t see anything harmful in the list of ingredients, you can safely feed the animal dry granules. Super-premium cat food contains all the necessary substances to maintain health. You don’t have to include natural food in your diet. But, if you and your pet like a combination diet, it won’t hurt. The main thing is to separate ready-made cat food and natural meat at different meals.
A feature of super premium diets is a lot of animal protein with high energy and biological value. Natural poultry, fish, beef, lamb, and rabbit are added to cat food. If the composition contains by-products, then these are “representatives” of the highest category - liver or heart. The packaging must indicate the percentage of protein in the total composition of the feed. It is desirable that it exceed 25-28%. Thanks to the quality of animal protein, the digestibility of super-premium cat food reaches 83% or more. Pets eat less and stay full longer. Therefore, super premium feed is consumed economically.
The source of carbohydrates in such diets is rice, oats, less often potatoes, and barley. They are not as strong allergens as wheat and corn. Many super-premium cat foods are grain-free. In principle, the presence of corn and wheat gluten is acceptable, but in small quantities.
A vitamin and mineral complex is added to cat food in this category. It is advisable that it contains taurine to support heart function, valuable unsaturated acids omega 3 and 6. Dehydrated natural vegetables in cat food are also useful. They support normal intestinal motility of the animal.
The diet should not contain:
- BHA, sodium metabisulfate and other harmful artificial preservatives - they are replaced in super-premium cat food with harmless tocopherol and natural plant extracts (such as rosemary);
- taste enhancers, artificial flavors and appetite stimulants (this is sodium monoglutamate, digest) - high-quality food, rich in protein, pets willingly eat without harmful additives;
- sugar (sucrose) - it causes indigestion and excess weight gain;
- soybeans, low category by-products (horns, tails, hooves), fats with an undetailed composition.
Having analyzed the features of the composition, we will give examples of high-quality dry super-premium cat food with their advantages and disadvantages.