Advantages of wet food
Wet food is an excellent food choice for your cat. Because of its high water content, you can rest assured that your cat is getting enough water. Also, wet food is usually free of the grain and corn found in many dry cat foods. As a result, wet food is a more natural food option for your cat.
Individual preferences
All cats are different. Some cats prefer certain flavors over other flavors. Some cats prefer certain textures over other textures. It would be impossible to predict which flavor and texture your cat will prefer. However, we can provide some tips to help you select the best wet food for your cat.
Meat or meat by-product as the first ingredient
You should pick a wet food where the first or second ingredient is meat or “meat by product.” “Meat by product” means that the entire animal is being used in making the food, including skin, organs, fat etc. “Meat by product” is actually good for your cat, because it ensures your cat is getting the vitamins, nutrients, and nourishment of the entire animal, and not just one cut of meat.
Water as one of the primary ingredients
Water as a top ingredients in wet cat food is fine. Water is necessary in processing the food. More importantly, this water content will help ensure that your cat takes in enough water. However, you still want to ensure that your cat has fresh water to drink separately.
Different flavors
Wet food is sold in many different flavors, including fish, beef, chicken, turkey, tuna and shrimp. You should experiment with different flavors for your cat. However, at the same time, you should not allow your cat to become too dependent on just one flavor. Feeding your cat a variety of flavors will help ensure that your cat has the benefit of the different vitamins and minerals available in the different flavors.
Different textures
Perhaps more important than flavors are textures. Cats tend to like many flavors of wet food. However, they often have definite preferences for textures. Wet food is sold in a variety of textures. Common textures including
- “pate” – a thick meaty paste
- “shreds” – long narrow strips of meat in gravy
- “flaked” – thin flakes of meat in gravy
- “chunky” – large chunks of meat in gravy
- “bits” – small bits of meat in gravy
A good sign that your cat likes a particular texture is that he or she eats all of their food. Some cats will lick the gravy out of their food, but leave the meat. This is not ideal, because while the gravy is tasty for your cat, the meat is crucial for their health and well being. If your cat eats only the gravy, try switching to a different texture, such as the pate, which dollar-for-dollar probably has the highest meat content of the above flavors.
Tips for picking the best wet food (Summary)
- “Meat by product” as first or second ingredient
- Water as a top ingredient is fine
- Experiment with different textures
- If your cat just eats the gravy, try other textures
- Consider “pate” texture
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