# Wet food containing fish/bones



## stephnnemo (Jan 19, 2008)

I am trying to find a wet food that my cat will eat. I bought Meow Mix wet food which he eats, but I am finding tiny pieces of fish bones in some of it and I am scared that he is going to eat one and get sick. I go through the food before I let him eat it to try and remove any bones, but what if I miss one? He is very picky and likes the foods with the gravy. Sometimes he will eat the processed meats and other times he just licks all of the gravy out of it and the chunks are left behind. He seems to like the fish ones the most so does anyone know of a brand that has the real pieces of fish, but is maybe a higher quality that won't have the chance of having the little bones in it?


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## Jet Green (Nov 28, 2005)

I've also found bones in Whiskas Purrfectly Fish, so I avoid that brand. Fancy Feast has a flavor called Fish & Shrimp Feast that's basically ground up fish pieces, that I've never personally found bones in. 

But if your goal is just to find a wet food that your cat will eat, it's really a better idea to avoid fish and seafood except as an occasional treat. Someone who knows more about this should jump in here, but my understanding is that fish has a lot of phosphorous and mercury, which can build up over time and affect the kidneys and/or thyroid. 

It's also better to feed the higher-quality foods if you can. Most foods sold in the grocery store are mostly corn or wheat, and are really not that good for cats. High-quality foods are usually sold in smaller, independently-owned pet supply stores -- however, they tend to be very expensive. Some examples of good brands to consider if you can: Innova, Wellness, Felidae, Natural Balance, Merrick.

Of the grocery store brands, the consensus here seems to be that the best brand is Iams. But if your cat is very picky, Fancy Feast seems to be the most well-liked by cats. Fancy Feast has several flavors that are entirely free of wheat or corn (I can rattle off a list of them if you're interested, since this is what my cats eat). They also have a lot of flavors in gravy, however these have wheat gluten in them. Warning: Once you start feeding Fancy Feast, good luck getting your cat to eat anything else!  

This is a very brief and rushed summary, but I hope it helps a little.


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## stephnnemo (Jan 19, 2008)

That would be great if you could give me a few examples so I know what I am looking for at the store. He is soooo picky. He doesn't even like eating the chicken one that I got that has the gravy. He will typically just lick the gravy and leave the chunks. I even tried smashing them up to be more like the gravy, didn't work.


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## Jet Green (Nov 28, 2005)

My cats are the same way if I give them gravy food. I had to stop, though, because one of them has Inflammatory Bowel Disorder (IBD -- it's as much fun as it sounds! :?) and he seems to be really sensitive to wheat and corn. Most of the gravy cat food out there has wheat gluten in it.  

The Fancy Feast flavors without wheat gluten are all the non-gravy "loaf" kind. I give mine Gourmet Chicken Feast, Tender Liver & Chicken Feast, Tender Beef & Chicken Feast, Tender Beef Feast, Tender Beef & Liver Feast, and Turkey & Giblets Feast. There is another one called Mixed Grill, but my cats don't like it. There are a few seafood flavors that are grain-free too: Ocean Whitefish & Tuna Feast, Cod Sole & Shrimp Feast, Savory Salmon Feast, and Fish & Shrimp Feast are the ones I know of. (Basically, stay away from any FF flavors marked "chopped," "grilled," "minced," "chunky," or other similar adjectives if you want the grain-free kinds.)

If you do want chunky/gravy foods, the brands that I know of that have grain-free options are Avoderm Select Cuts, Fromm's, and I think some kinds from Merrick. I get those from an independent store. They are pretty expensive, and in the case of Avoderm you're getting almost nothing but gravy, so I don't buy them very often.

Fancy Feast is probably the easiest option for a picky cat. But I do have to point out that it's possible to get much better food for the same amount of money, if you're willing to buy bigger cans and refrigerate them. I also buy Wellness in soup-sized cans -- they have several grain-free varieties -- and ounce for ounce it costs exactly the same as Fancy Feast. But only two of my six cats will actually eat it, so I understand the pickiness thing, believe me!  

I hope this helps. Good luck!


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## hypertweeky (Nov 25, 2007)

Wellness chicken formula (grain free) is delicious, you can try the beef or the chicken and beef combined, it is high quality food.
Good Luck!!


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## Jet Green (Nov 28, 2005)

hypertweeky said:


> Wellness chicken formula (grain free) is delicious, you can try the beef or the chicken and beef combined, it is high quality food.
> Good Luck!!


Agreed, Wellness is an excellent food. It smells like real food you would consider eating. I know of five grain-free flavors: Chicken, Chicken & Beef, Turkey, Turkey & Salmon, and Chicken & Herring. Even my picky cats will occasionally eat some Chicken & Herring.


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## stephnnemo (Jan 19, 2008)

He is unbelievably picky. I went to the store today and grabbed a few different kinds and so far with the first one he licked the gravy out of the bowl and left the chunks. He just doesn't like the processed stuff that is like molded into chunks. I may have to try the one that is a lot of gravy. Anything that is just ground up stuff he doesn't want to touch usually but I will have to try the Wellness. I'm not sure where I am going to find it though. I wasn't able to find it at Petsmart of course.


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## doodlebug (May 13, 2006)

Go to the Wellness website and use their store locator to find a store near you that carries it:

www.omhpet.com


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