Have you tried EVO 95% canned food? We fed this to our two until they had to go on an Rx diet. They didn't like the regular EVO canned food either.

I'd just feed them dry if that's what they "love". My cat lived to be 17 years old on dry...he would NOT TOUCH canned food at all. Back in those days we never even heard of these expensive fancy food, he ate something called Kozy Kitten...HA. I think it was about the cheapest food but we didn't know anything different back then and it served him well anyway. I'm beginning to believe all these super high priced foods for dogs and cats are little more than a scam to get our money. My dog got really sick off the high end foods...she now is on DOG CHOW and is healthy and LOVES IT!

Cat_mom, it was the 95%. The funny thing is they loved the 5 oz. can, so we bought two cans of the 14 oz. and they wouldn't touch it! Maybe it was processed differently.

Arkansas_girl, we lost our last cat from kidney, thyroid, and heart disease at age 14. It was expensive and traumatic, so I'd rather pay for good food now than have us and the cats suffer at the end of their lives. Past thinking was that you could feed cats like dogs, but they know more about cat nutrition now. I've had cats on dry food my whole life and they've had grain-related skin allergies and diabetes.

"Canned mousie would be what my guys want, not a squash or veggie stew or eggs florentine with garden greens or whatever! "

LOL! I know what you mean. When I took in a young feral cat three years ago I decided to begin feeding both she and my older cat "good" food. Then it was just the one cat, and now this stray tom cat too. After trying several brands,they've settled on Great Life Essentials as their favorite. It runs into some money every month though. I call it FF with blueberries!

I buy several cans of "Paw Licken' Chicken" every once in awhile, and they really like the PLC too.

I've had vets specifically recommend Fancy Feast as a good mid-priced food. While not as high quality as some of the super premium foods (at a super premium cost) it is fine for daily feeding.

If that vet thinks Fancy Feast is a Happy Meal, wonder what they consider 9-Lives - heroin?

Our old cat Toby ate Iams dry food and Fancy Feast. Our vet said FF is okay on occasion, just like McDonald's is okay on occasion. My objection to FF is the addiction factor, the small cans, and the gravy and sauce. I want to spend my feeding dollars on good-quality protein that fills them up, not on gravy, grains, fruit, and veggies. They also seem to get addicted to the flavor enhancers in FF and dry food, and then when they need to go on a special diet, good luck.

I buy large cans whenever I can, and we get a 10% case discount at one store and a 10% senior discount at another. I won't pay $2 for a 5 oz. can of cat food and avoid the 3 oz. cans all together. I compared price per ounce on the large cans (11-14 oz.) with our discount and Weruva PLC, Wellness Chicken Formula, and EVO all cost around 20 cents an ounce. Fancy Feast is 15 cents an ounce. The real deal is Trader Joe's for 69 cents a 5 oz.can. I'm trying to give them some variety though as they do get tired of the same thing.

Kasha_kat, I have also read a lot about nutrition and disease. You probably know you need to add taurine to homemade food. I read on the website of the commercially-prepared raw food the kitten was eating that it's the organ meats that provide taurine. Cats will eat the brains and heart of their catch and not so much of the muscle meat. I can confirm that as I saw Toby crunching on a mouse head.

Schoolhouse, I haven't seen Great Life Essentials but I'll look for it. Thank you!

Mdln, I have read that the cheapest canned food is healthier than most dry foods. The basic FF "Formula" varieties are the best. They're pate.

Agree, the cheapest can food is probably a lot better than any dry food. Have spent a lot of time working with many different vets.

As my favorite feline vet says, "cats are not little dogs."

Here is a link that might be useful: Great cat feeding article

Have you tried Tiki Cat? I just bought a can of the Puka Puka Luau. Just chicken and broth. All four of mine go crazy for all their flavors. Not cheap so.

Here is a link that might be useful: Tiki Cat

@ glaserberl - Does it meet AAFCO nutrition standards?

Here is a link that might be useful: feeding cats

@mdln - I believe so.
From their website:
Ingredients: Chicken, Chicken Broth, Sunflower Seed Oil, Fish Oil.
Dicalcium Phosphate, Choline Chloride, Taurine, Vitamin E Supplement, Zinc Sulfate Heptahydrate, Ferrous Sulfate Monohydrate, Thiamine Mononitrate (Vitamin B1), Nicotinic Acid (Vitamin B3), Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin A Supplement, Potassium Iodide, Manganese Sulfate Monohydrate, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Copper Sulfate Pentahydrate, Riboflavin Supplement (Vitamin B2), Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B6), Folic Acid, Vitamin B12 Supplement.

Calorie Content:
Calories: kcal/100g -107
Calories from fat: kcal/100g -27
Calories per 2.8 ounce can: g/can - 85
Calories per 6 ounce can: g/can -182

Grain Free
Gravy Free
Omega Rich

Guaranteed Analysis:
CRUDE PROTEIN (MINIMUM) 14%
CRUDE FAT (MINIMUM) 2%
CRUDE FIBER (MAXIMUM) 0.5%
MOISTURE (MAXIMUM) 80%
ASH (MAXIMUM) 2.5%
TAURINE (MINIMUM) 0.05%

Really good articles, mdln. Learned a few new things. Thanks!

Weruva Paw Lickin' Chicken is comparable to Tiki Cat, but not quite as "pure"--it has starch and gums. It's shredded white meat chicken, but it's also sold in 10 oz. cans for around $3 a can. Note that Tiki Cat is only a 2.8 oz. can!

Ingredients for PLC:

Chicken, water for processing, potato starch, sunflower seed oil, xantham gum, vitamins and minerals.

However, Tiki Cat is 14% protein, which is rather high. PLC is 10% and most others are 9-10%, and moisture is 85%. So more water, less protein in PLC. It also meets AAFCO's standards.

@glaserberl - if it meets the AAFCO standards, it usually says so on the can.

While the Zoran article was written for vets, I think non-vets can get a lot out of it. It is one of my favorites to pass on to cat owners.

may_flowers brings up a good point about FF that I share. The cans are small and at $.60 a can (on average or on sale) around here, I end up feeding more cans a day compared to one larger can.

Kind of OT, but I also feed "Orijen" dry food......yep, $23 for a 5lb. bag.....I know, but the cats love it and it appears SO healthy. Anyway, this payday I spent a total of $74 on two cats. A case of canned (24 cans) a bag of dry, and the worm med. Even the cashier said "That sounds so high" and did the figures again. True story. I'm thinking of dropping my cell phone so I can afford the cat food! Is it really all hype like one poster suggests? And yes I tried switching to a less expensive "healthy" dry but the cats just nibbled at it but I refused to buy more until it was gone. I might add the stray tom cat ate most of it. Should I go back to Meow Mix??? ha.

The Tiki also comes in a 6 oz can. I know 6 oz is 6oz but it sure seems to me that there is more in those cans. At least he portion size seems bigger when I divvy it up. The Tiki is an occasional treat. I feed them a variety of grain free canned food, a little dry (grain free) and throw in some raw once in a while.
Schoolhouse- I have wondered if it is worth it but then I have not had any vet bills other then check ups and shots in the last several years. The vet always comments on how healthy my four are and how shiny and soft their fur is. They are no spring chickens either, ranging in age from 3 to about 16.

Thanks glaserberl. Makes me feel better.

I just wonder why it is if they are so much better at making cat food these days and they just know SOOOO much...then why is it that the cat foods are all full of fillers even the expensive stuff. Why do they think cats need vegetables? If they know so much then shouldn't they know that cats don't eat vegetables? I really only have to go by personal experience with my old cats and they just ate dry cheap grocery store foods and they all lived to be really old and had no health issues. In a perfect world I suppose cats would eat mice and birds.

My picky cat likes Halo chicken pate canned (not the Spots Stew) food best - and we have tried many of the better foods. It has some finely ground veggies in it but I think that helps keep it moist and soft. Many of the premium foods are very dry and hard. My girl tends to like the softer, wetter foods. She also gets some Pure Vita dry food.

For good prices check Amazon. It can vary, and they may not have all brands. but I get Halo for $.70 cents LESS a can than at Petco or Petfooddirect.

I found something good! It's called First Mate and made in B.C., Canada. It's pate and is minimal ingredients--chicken, chicken broth, potato. No gums or carrageean. $1.75 for a 5 oz. can--less than Wellness. Both cats like it. It's only sold in the western states and Canada, but I think I saw it on Amazon.

I buy Merrick 96% meat canned food to add to the dried food my dogs eat, so seeing your need for a mostly meat food for cats caught my eye. I pay $2 a can for 13 oz or so at our bargain-basement independent pet food store. It is 9 % crude protein, 7 % crude fat, 1.2 % crude fiber, 78% moisture. It does not have the added taurine that cats need, though their cat food does have it. I have no idea what the cat food costs. You might want to look into it, though. I see it does have Guar and carrageenan, though.

Merrick Before Grain Salmon Canned Cat Food
Ingredients

Salmon, Water for Processing, Whitefish, Dried Egg, Yeast Extract, Glycine, Calcium Carbonate, Sodium Phosphate, Potassium Chloride, Salt, Guar, Choline Chloride, Taurine, Carageenan, Mixed Tocopherols, Vitamin E Supplement, Zinc Amino Acid Complex, Iron Amino Acid Complex, Manganese Amino Acid Complex, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Copper Amino Acid Complex, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin A Acetate, Niacin, Lecithin, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Riboflavin Supplement, Folic Acid, Ethylenediamine Dihydriodide, Cobalt Glucoheptanate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Biotin, Thiamine Mononitrate, Sodium Selenite

Guaranteed Analysis
Crude Protein (min.) 10.00%
Crude Fat (min.) 4.50%
Crude Fiber (max.) 1.40%
Moisture (max.) 78.00%

Here is a link that might be useful: Merrick

Thanks, Nancy. I think we tried the Merrick chicken last year and Gracie didn't like it. She's so picky with wet food. She was a rescue, so she shouldn't be complaining about good food served up warm!

I am also using NutriSource Chicken and Rice. I like what I've read about the company. They also make Pure Vita, which Gracie doesn't like (though she loved the sample of their dry food that the pet store gave us). No veggies, no carageenan, but rice and alfalfa meal? $1.35 for 5 oz.

You talkin' about me?

You could try woody's from woody's pet food deli.
Personally I've given up on commerical cat food, the cans are redictiously $$$ and dry causes a lot of issues. UTIS. teeth issues/ ect.
with Woodys i spend around $29 every 2 weeks on 2 cats. You get around 7 1lb frozen containers that you thaw out in the fridge. and a bag of little plastic cups you use for serving size.

Try Life's Abundance! I looked everywhere and this one seems to be the best I could find. My cats will not eat raw diets. This is totally affordable, especially with autoship. :

INGREDIENTS: Organic Chicken, Chicken Liver, Chicken Broth, Turkey, Chicken Meal (Preserved With Mixed Tocopherols), Shrimp, Fish Oil, Calcium Sulfate, Guar Gum, Salt, Taurine, Inulin, Dog Grass Extract, Ground Rosemary, Vitamin E Supplement, Iron Amino Acid Chelate, Zinc Amino Acid Chelate, Choline Chloride, Cobalt Amino Acid Chelate, Thiamine Mononitrate, Copper Amino Acid Chelate, Folic Acid, Manganese Amino Acid Chelate, Niacin, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Sodium Selenite, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin Supplement, Vitamin A Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Potassium Iodide, Biotin.GUARANTEED ANALYSIS:CRUDE PROTEIN (MIN.)12.0%CRUDE FAT (MIN.)9.0%CRUDE FIBER (MAX.)1.0%MOISTURE (MAX.)76.0%ASH (MAX.)2.2%MAGNESIUM (MAX.)0.025%VITAMIN E (MIN.)60 IU/kgTAURINE (MIN.)0.10%OMEGA-6 FATTY ACIDS* (MIN.)1.20%OMEGA-3 FATTY ACIDS* (MIN.)0.30%.* NOT RECOGNIZED AS AN ESSENTIAL NUTRIENT BY THE AAFCO CAT FOOD NUTRIENT PROFILES.Calorie Content (Calculated): 1,329 Kcal/Kg Or 113 Kcal/Can (3 Oz).

I only feed wet: http://www.lifesabundance.com/Category/CatFood.aspx?realname=&cat=0&hdr=&Ath=False

Good Luck!

I haven't seen Life's Abundance, but I do try to limit liver as I'd read something about that when I was researching.

A year later and they're both eating Against the Grain in the fish varieties as their main wet food, which they eat twice a day. It's a 2.8 oz. can and neither eats more than a can a day. They like Origen dry food for nibbles, and I figure that provides their chicken as protein source. Gave up on everything else.

http://www.againstthegrainpetfood.com/

Thanks, I'll check that out too! Yeah, too much liver can cause vitamin A toxicity. Not sure how much liver is in the food, but it's ok to feed liver occasionally. I have an email out to the company, will let you know what I find out about the amount in the food. Fish is also a problem for cats so I don't feed a lot of fish cat food--i alternate with Wellness and Wellness Core. I don't like the fruits and veggies in it though. Here's one article: https://catnutrition.wordpress.com/2007/09/22/eight-strikes-against-fishy-feeding-for-cats/

My cats liked Wellness and suddenly stopped eating it altogether. I think they changed the formulas. They had a shredded turkey and chicken variety Gracie loved, but she wouldn't touch it one day. We tried again a few months later but no interest.

It's weird, I know. Sometimes the size of the can matters too. The 5.5 oz ones seem to have the most juice, but it just depends.

I got a response from the Lifes Abundance website:

"Thank you for using our food and taking time to ask your questions.

Organ meat of any type is high in vitamin A. There are standards for the amount of vitamins and minerals a cat must have to be healthy. We use the amount of liver that will meet those health standards and not exceed them..The guar gum is very necessary to keep the food together. Without the gum the food would be very mushy."

Any wet food is better than premium dry food... cat's need as much water in their system as possible for better health... i give mine halo stew brand, there is still veggies in it, but they eat around them... for more information, i reccomend the follwowing website:

https://catinfo.org/