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I have 4 cats ranging in age from 2-10 years old. We previously fed them Iams Multi-Cat dry food which we purchased in 20lb bags at our local warehouse store. About 4 months ago, the warehouse store discontinued stocking Iams cat food, so I went looking for another, better quality dry cat food that was reasonably priced (my preference was to make my own cat food, but the reality is that I don't have time to do so).
I stumbled on Castor & Pollux on Amazon & decided to give the blue bag (adult feline) a try. We've now gone through 27lbs of the adult feline dry food and like the Castor & Pollux dry food enough to make this our cat food of choice (so I have to remember to order ahead of time to not run out). We are now trying the green bag (indoor cat), so that review will come later after we go through a bag or 2 (15lb bags).
Since it is not listed, and I wanted to know this information before I purchased, here is a full List of ingredients straight from the back of the blue bag:
Chicken, Chicken Meal, Turkey Meal, Menhaden Fish Meal, Ground Whole Grain Barley, Oat Groats, Brewers Rice, Chicken Fat preserved with Mixed Tocopherols (form of Vitamin E), Salmon Meal, Dried Egg Product, Brewers Dried Yeast, Dried Potatoes, Cultured Whey, Dried Carrots, Dried Bananas, Dried Apples, Natural Chicken Flavor, Ground Flaxseed, Sodium Bisulfate, Potassium Choloride, Salt, Dried, Blueberries, Dried Papya, Choline Chloride, Taurine, DL-Methionine, L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate (source of Vitamin C), Zinc Proteinate, Copper Proteinate, Manganese Proteinate, Vitamin E Supplement, Ferrous Sulfate, Zinc Sulfate, Zinc Oxide, Copper Sulfate, Niacin, Vitamin A Supplement, Calcium Pantothenate, Manganous Oxide, Thiamine Mononitrate (source of Vitamin B1), Riboflavin Supplement (source of Vitamin B2), Pyridoxine Hydroxcholoride (source of Vitamin B6), Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Vitamin K1 Supplement, Sodium Selenite, Folic Acid, Calcium Iodate, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Cobalt Caronate, Yeast Culture (Saccharomyes Cerevisiae), Dried Enterococcus Faecium Fermentation Product, Dried Lactobacillus Acidophuilus Fermentation Product, Dried Aspergillus Niger Fermentation Extract, Dried Trichoderma Longbrachiatum Fermentation Extract, Dried Bacillus Subtilis Fermentation Extract and Fermentation Solubles.
My older cats (8 & 10 yrs) had a hard transition from the Iams. We cleaned up a lot of carrot-filled cat vomit for the first 2 weeks. The younger cats transitioned with no issues whatsoever. We have since gone to the indoor feline and are not experiencing the daily upchucking (whether this is because they are already accustomed to the food or not, I don't know, but would assume that it plays a part). All cats love the food. We did find that they eat a little less of the Castor & Pollux, so maybe they are getting more quality with each bite. Iams uses by-product and Cator & Pollux uses meal, so I assume this may be the case.
I did research on by-product vs meal & found the following information from various websites:
Protein, in the form of quality meat ingredients, is the most important component of a pet's diet. As animals with a carnivorous background, their digestive tract is designed to utilize primarily meat and fat. It is also the most expensive ingredient for a manufacturer to buy and the profit margin on a product is drastically affected by the amount and quality used. Ideally, the first ingredient of a food should be either a specified meat meal, or a specified fresh meat type followed by a meal.
Meat sources in "meal" form (as long as they are from a specified type of animal, such as chicken meal, lamb meal, salmon meal etc.) are not inferior to whole, fresh meats. "Meal" consists of meat and skin, with or without the bones, but exclusive of feathers/hair, heads, feet, horns, entrails etc. and have the proper calcium/phosphorus ratio required for a balanced diet. They have had most of the moisture removed, but remember that meats in their original, "wet" form still contain up to 75% water.
Byproducts of any type are less desirable and only acceptable if they do not make up the main source of animal protein and if the name of the species used is also defined in some manner (e.g. "chicken byproducts" or "beef byproducts" but not "meat byproducts" or "poultry byproducts"). Byproducts consist of anything but the quality cuts of meat.
Castor & Pollux has a Pet & Soul Foundation that supports various pet organizations & charities. Look on their website & do the daily free kibble game to donate free kibble to pet shelters.
All in all, I think that I could probably come up with a better homemade cat food, but, given time constraints and solid know-how, I think that this Caster & Pollux dry food is a good choice. My cats, all indoors, love the food, their fur is shiny & their skin appears to be healthy. We do not have dander issues & all the cats seem to be feisty & healthy.
This is a reasonably priced dry food with a good list of ingredients as compared to other commercial foods. Castor & Pollux claim that they fully & unconditionally guarantee their food, so if you order & don't like it, you can call them.
Best of all, Amazon ships it to my doorstep. RECOMMENDED.
10/3/11 (EDIT): I am still feeding my cats this food & they are doing well. I now supplement with a little wet cat food (have tried many brands/varieties & a still trying to find a "hit") daily, but the majority of their diet is this Castor & Pollux kibble.
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