For Colony Cats or Cats at Home... This page gives you info regarding Bad Canned Cat Food Ingredients
So, A good question to ask is... "Why do cat food manufacturers continue to use ingredients WHICH THEY KNOW ARE BAD for your cat's long-term health?"
Answer? They really don't care about your cat's long-term health. They just want your money. Cheap ingredients, slick websites, clever advertising, pretty packaging, and unique flavor titles will snag your wallet every time.
I used to publish a major cat website which I had to delete because I ran out of money to pay the hosting fees along with my other expenses. Something had to go.
Life is strange in that way. Letting go of all of the time I spent developing and maintaining that site was the very thing which gave me the time I now spend caring for the cat colony on Abbey Lane.
The information which follows was derived from a years-long study in which I examined and evaluated over 1500 canned cat foods - all brand named products prevalent on store shelves today. The ingredients below are used abundantly in products throughout the cat food industry. You would be wise not to feed your cat(s) food containing these ingredients.
HERE'S WHAT I WANT YOU TO KNOW – In my present capacity as caregiver for a cat colony, I fully realize that the cat food I am feeding the colony cats isn't the best for them. Fact is, I can't afford to buy better foods. I depend on the community's support for donations. The only way to process donations is via Amazon & PayPal, hence I knowingly feed substandard foods - because that's what I'm forced to do by financial restraints.
I'm just trying to explain to you why, on the one hand, I fully know the cat foods I feed are 'substandard', i.e. most probably detrimental to a cat's long-term health, but I must do so because I am poor financially and I'm barely getting by.
I hope you understand. - Doug Hines, Advocate for The Cats on Abbey Lane
So, An obvious question to ask is "If so many cat foods have bad ingredients, which brands are good?"
At the time I did the study, out of the 1500 brands/flavors I examined I could not find one that I would recommend. All had one or more ingredients which were detrimental to a cat's long-term health.
There are, however, some cat foods which fit into a category called 'Single Ingredient' foods, i.e. these products only have one ingredient in the can - for example only chicken. Single ingredient cat foods are, themselves, not exactly good for repetitive feeding for cats. Those foods don't include the other nutrients a cat needs to maintain good health.
So what are you left with? No much in today's canned products. Best thing to do is get yourself educated regarding feeding raw.
Nothing Else Matters...
• The manufacturer's website claims don't matter.
• Product lable statements don't matter.
• Advertising doesn't matter.
• Internet product reviews don't matter.
• Satisfied customer's testimonials don't matter.
• Whether or not your cats "like" the food doesn't matter (all kids like junk food).
"If you are feeding canned cat food, the ONLY things that matter to your cats' future health and well-being are the ingredients in the can and the quality of those ingredients." - Doug Hines, Advocate for The Cats on Abbey Lane
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animal digest (Wikipedia describes this as “a cooked-down broth which can be made from unspecified parts of unspecified animals. The animals used can be obtained from almost any source and no control is in place over quality or contamination) animal fat (rendered or extracted fat. Restaurant grease is a major component of feed-grade animal fat)
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artificial colorants & flavorings (see reject #6 👉)
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ascorbic acid (source of Vitamin C, but origin and acidity are suspect.)
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barley (see reject #3 👉)
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beet pulp (residue from sugar beets – an unnecessary filler with little nutritional value)
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BHA (butylated hydroxyanisole) and BHT (butylated hydroxytoluene) (artificial preservatives used to maintain food odor, color and flavor. Both are linked to cancer. It is “reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen” according to The National Toxicology Program of the Department of Health and Human Services (source). While it is labelled as being safe in low doses, it has been shown to cause tumors in lab animals.)
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BPA lined cans (see reject #8 👉)
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brewers rice (low quality grain containing few nutrients) by-products (see reject #4 👉)
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caramel (see reject #6 👉)
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carrageenan (red seaweed, binder & thickening agent – One of it’s forms, degraded carrageenan can create inflammation leading to fetal toxicity, ulcerative colitis, immune suppression, and yes – cancer) “While the degraded form is not used in food applications, some people have concerns that the ingredient could become degraded from a cat’s stomach acid, therefore potentially increasing cancer risk. It is likely fine, but with so many other options on the market, many people choose not to take the risk.” Emily Parker – Catological.com. Read more by Susan Thixton – ‘Why Carrageenan Can Be Dangerous to your Pet.‘
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cellulose (a filler high in insoluble fiber which can interfere with digestion and inhibit nutrient uptake. It’s typically made from sawdust. Want that for your cat(s)?
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cereal food fines (waste from breakfast cereal production)
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cheese and cottage cheese (cats can be lactose intolerant)
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copper sulfate (linked to liver disease, copper storage disease and cancer) For more about copper sulfate read this article: A Veterinarian Takes A Stand Against A Common Pet Food Supplement
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corn, corn bran, flour, meal, gluten, starch (see reject #5 👉)
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dried egg product, dried egg whites (potential allergens)
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flaxseed & flaxseed oil (also called linseed) (cat’s cannot convert the fatty acids in flaxseed to beneficial fatty acids (see reject #3 👉)
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garlic, onions (can be incredibly toxic to cats. can lead to anemia, organ damage and/or failure, and even death. And unbelievable as it may seem, these are ingredients in cat foods produced today)
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gelatin (made from horses, cows or calves hooves)
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glucose/dextrose/sugar (nutritionally unnecessary additive which may cause obesity and diabetes)
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gluten (contains no nutritional value – comes from high- allergen sources such as corn – can trigger adverse inflammatory, immunological and autoimmune reactions in some pets)
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glyceryl monostearate (an emulsifier in lower grade cat foods – may contain BHA and BHT)
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goat milk (cats can be lactose intolerant)
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grains (see reject #3 👉)
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iron oxide (coloring additive which is derived from rust) (see reject 👉)
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lard (from swine fat – typically hydrogenated which produces trans fats as a by-product – often treated with bleaching and deodorizing agents, emulsifiers and antioxidants such as BHT)
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linseed (see flaxseed above)
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maize (corn)
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maltodextrin (derived from corn – has a high glycemic index which can contribute to diabetes and other problems
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meal (see reject #5 👉)
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menadione sodium bisulfite complex (a cheap and artificial form of Vitamin K that can interfere with glutathione resulting in oxidative damage to cell membranes. Toxic to kidneys, lungs, liver,mucousmembranes). Read more by Susan Thixton – ‘Toxic Menadione‘ and ‘A Pet Food Ingredient to be Wary of: Menadione Sodium Bisulfate.
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milo (another name for sorghum)
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montomorillonite clay (a thickener and anti-caking agent believed to provide resistance to environmental toxins, though research is far from conclusive, and it sounds more like ‘hype’ to me. Nonetheless does that sound like something you want to feed to your cat?)
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oats, dehulled oats (see reject #3 👉)
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oils: vegetable/grain fatty oils (corn, canola, flax, safflower, soybean, olive, ‘vegetable’ oils – which can be allergenic – cats have difficulty converting these to the appropriate fatty acid.)
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porcine plasma (pig blood)
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propyl gallate (synthetic chemical preservative linked to liver damage and may cause cancer)
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rice (see reject #3 👉)
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skim milk (dried) (residue obtained by drying defatted milk – contains lactose which cats cannot digest properly)
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sodium carbonate (used as an acidity regulator, anti-caking agent and helps kill mold)
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sodium hexametaphosphate (from phosphoric acid – potential allowable heavy metal/arsenic content)
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sodium nitrate and nitrite (unnecessary synthetic chemical preservatives and color enhancers known to be carcinogenic)
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sodiumpropionate (syntheticpreservative)
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sodium pyrophosphate a/k/a tetrasodium pyrophosphate, a/k/a tetrasodium phosphate (often called sodium acid pyrophosphate) (buffering agent, emulsifier, thickening agent – twice as toxic as regular table salt)
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sodium selenite (linked to liver disease. The only real danger with sodium selenite comes if it is overdosed, i.e. if the manufacturer (mistakenly or not) uses too much of it. An overdose can kill a cat. I guess you either have to blindly trust that the manufacturer will use the correct amount or reject this ingredient altogether. I won’t take that kind of risk with my cat’s health. I have found sodium selenite in 57% of the products that I have reviewed. I also wonder about the cumulative effect of continued feeding of sodium selenite. Does that equate to an overdose over time? Someone smarter than I will have to answer that question for us.)
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sodium tripolyphosphate (The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (a division of the CDC), suspects sodium tripolyphosphate may be a neurotoxin. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recognizes it as an insecticide, fungicide and rodenticide.)
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sorbitol (sugar substitute usually derived from corn – highly processed and unnecessary)
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sorghum (grass which is indigestible for pets)
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sucrose (sugar)
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sugar (addictive, no nutritional value, contributes to immune problems, cancer and diabetes)
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tetrasodium phosphate, a/k/a sodium pyrophosphate, a/k/a tetrasodium pyrophosphate (often called sodium acid pyrophosphate) (buffering agent, emulsifier, thickening agent – twice as toxic as regular table salt)
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titanium dioxide (potentially carcinogenic artificial color used as a white pigment (see reject #6 👉)
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wheat (see reject #3 👉)
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yeast (common allergen for pets – completely unnecessary)
I also reject any product where the metal can contains BPA – a commonly used chemical in the plastic lining of canned foods.
BPA is an “endocrine disruptor chemical”, and as such may interfere with the body’s endocrine system and produce adverts developmental, reproductive, neurological, and immune effects.” – from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
I reject products that contain:
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starchy vegetables – carbohydrate/starches such as pumpkin, carrots, potatoes, tapioca, sweet potatoes, squash, quinoa, beet pulp, turnip, aubergine/eggplant, zucchini etc. (All starches are used as filler ingredients, and are not biologically appropriate for cats. The fact is, cats have zero carbohydrate/starch requirements, and both can be bad for a cat’s blood sugar/insulin balance. In general, plant protein sources are processed inefficiently by the cat’s body, increasing the burden on the liver and kidneys.) Besides all of that, potato’s consistency is little more than gooey wallpaper paste which can, in fact, inhibit nutrient absorption.
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legumes – such as peas, chickpeas, soybeans, fava beans, garbanzo beans, alfalfa or clover (Peas or pea protein or pea starch or pea fiber). Peas and pea fiber are inexpensive fillers and highly insoluble. Peas contain lectin proteins which carnivores like cats cannot digest well. Peas are mostly used in place of grains, and are linked to gastrointestinal issues (can block nutrient absorption). Soy (soy, soy protein, or soybean meal contains phytoestrogens and negatively affects the thyroid gland) etc.)
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fruit – like cranberries, blueberries, apples, papaya, pomegranate, mangoes, raspberries, avocado, coconut, tomatoes and tomato pomace (cranberries and tomatoes are both very acidic). (avocados have been found to be toxic to cats.) (the benzoic acid in cranberries has been proven toxic to cats.)
As has been repeated many times before, cats are obligate carnivores and get their protein from animal sources, not plants (grains, legumes and vegetables). Cats have zero carbohydrate requirements. To paraphrase Dr. Andrew Jones, Online Veterinarian, “Cats lack certain enzymes such as salivary amylase. These are enzymes that are there [in humans, for example] to help break down carbohydrates. Cats don’t have those. Cats are uniquely designed for short, more frequent meals that are protein based.”
“Because cats are carnivores, the short length of their long intestines limits their ability to ferment fibers that are found in many carbohydrates.” – Your Cat’s Nutritional Needs, published by the National Research Council of the National Academies, pg4
*This quote is from an article on the HappyCatsHaven.org website: “... cats have a relatively short digestive tract with a smaller stomach... Cat’s livers are also lighter and much more simple... Because they lack essential enzymes and amino acids, [cats] simply don’t have the capacity to digest other food sources, like vegetable matter or fruit.”
And another thing... “... in pet food any vegetable or fruit listed on a label could be sourced from spoiled, damaged, or even contaminated (such as with pesticides) vegetables and fruits that cannot be sold as human food.” – Susan Thixton, TruthAboutPetFood.com – Learn the Truth about Pet Food Ingredients Part 4
(By the way... Think cats need vegetables, legumes or fruit? Let me know the next time you see a cat digging up someone’s garden to eat their potatoes. Let me know the next time you see a cat shucking peas or shimmying up a tree to eat mangoes.)
Next, I reject any product containing gums – xanthan, locust bean (carob bean), ghatti, polysaccharide, cassia or guar gum
(These fructooligosaccharides (FOS), used as a gelling agent, stabilizer and food thickener, are highly processed and have no nutritional value. They are actually too high in fermentability, and can cause gas, diarrhea and nutrient loss. Some research has shown that gum had a significant negative effect on apparent protein digestibility and tended to depress apparent fat and energy digestibilities. Interestingly, the FDA has banned guar gum as a human weight loss pill ingredient due to reports of the substance swelling and obstructing the intestines and esophagus.
Next, I reject any product containing grains, especially genetically modified grains, (wheat, oats, barley, quinoa, rice, flax (linseed), corn (corn starch, corn gluten meal). Less costly than meat, grains are often used to boost the crude protein numbers in place of adding more meat to the product.
See Ms. Thixton’s article ‘What you should know about Grains in your pet’s food.’
To repeat, cats are obligate carnivores and get their protein from animal sources, not plants. Grains, fruits and starchy vegetables are ‘fillers’, none of which have any nutritional value for cats, and all of which have questionable effects on a cat’s digestive system.
And how about by-products? – Reject them. Obviously cats in the wild eat nearly anything and everything from their prey. (Cats in the wild do reject various parts of their prey and leave the parts strewn about the kill site.) Examples are below. No... I reject by-products because it’s a category ripe for manipulation by unscrupulous manufacturers.
According to AAFCO, meat by-products are “non-rendered, clean parts, other than meat, derived from slaughtered mammals. Includes, but not limited to lungs, spleen, kidneys, brains, livers, blood, bone, partially defatted low temperature fatty tissue, and stomachs and intestines freed of their contents. It does not include hair, horns, teeth, and hoofs.”
( I wonder... how do pet food manufacturers separate the fecal matter contaminants from the ‘by-products?’ How much chicken or cow poop is in ‘by-products’?)
Here’s an article title that makes me laugh out loud (who are they trying to con), again by Susan Thixton, TruthAboutPetFood.com – “Purina Says By-Products are “Nutrient Rich.”
I put the can back on the store shelf if the description contains the words ‘meal’ or ‘bone meal’, like in Chicken Meal. ‘Meal’ is the rendered product from animal tissues, excluding the things noted above under ‘By-Products.’ Rendering is a process wherein meat is first over-cooked to remove the water. It is then baked until it becomes a residue. It becomes a highly concentrated powder – or meat meal. Low quality meat meals can come from slaughterhouse waste, spoiled meat, and/or dead/dying or diseased animals.
“This is one of those rendered products that could contain anything from euthanized pets to zoo animals to roadkill to expired meat and the styrofoam wrapper it comes in.” – Emily Parker – Catological.com.
“There is a very suspicious reason as to why the pet food ingredient ‘chicken’ is not required to be sourced from a slaughtered animal. That reason is the common practice of culling baby male chickens and spent layer hens by a macerator. The birds are ground alive (they are not slaughtered). As explained to me, the end product is sold to pet food as ‘chicken’ and/or ‘chicken meal’.” – Susan Thixton, TruthAboutPetFood.com – Inexcusable Pet Food Ingredient Definitions
Throw out artificial colorants and flavorings too. Coloring is added to cat food to make it more appealing to the human eye. It is a potential allergen and completely unnecessary for a cat.
Why would a cat food manufacturer be so obsessed with food color? Adding color is a 100% marketing gimmick. It’s a subtle example of hype. Here’s a list of the color additives just one company uses to influence your visual, aesthetic sensibility: Titanium Dioxide, Beta Carotene, Sodium Nitrite, Canthazantin, Caramel Color, Iron Oxide, Red 3. Read about these color additives below.
‘Natural flavor’ (as contrasted with unnatural flavor?) I’m very suspicious of something called ‘natural flavor.’ That term could mean anything at all. Old car tires could be used to flavor something. Ground up roofing shingles could be used to flavor something else. The term is just too broad to not be a catch-all, blanket phrase for anything manufacturers want to put into the food. Worst of all, ‘natural flavor’ usually occurs high up on the ingredients list. I simply do not trust the term – or the ingredient -at all.
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caramel (produced from caramelized sugar, caramel is a brown colorant in pet food that is designed to ‘produce appeal’ by making the color ‘richer.’ One might ask – “Who’s appeal?” “My cats?” I suspect that my cat doesn’t give a hoot about his food’s color. lol (for more about caramel read this article, again by Susan Thixton, TruthAboutPetFood.com: Coke, Pepsi and Pet Food)
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sodium nitrite (promotes color retention and can be carcinogenic)
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red 3 (artificial colorant)
beta carotene (color enhancer) -
canthaxanthin (color enhancer)
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carmine (red colorant)
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annatto extract (color enhancer)
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iron oxide (unnecessary coloring additive which is derived from rust! – 100% marketing gimmick, and usually the sign of a cheap cat food.)
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titanium dioxide (potentially carcinogenic artificial colorant which may cause DNA damage, inflammation, cancer, and genetic disorders. Used to provide whitening to offset the natural, normal gray appearance in canned poultry and fish cat food to make the product more visually appealing to the consumer (and I don’t mean the cats). It is indigestible.) sometimes the label just says “added color”
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sodium acid pyrophosphates (SAPP) (used as a palatability additive, a flavor enhancer)
