UK - Low Carb Food Brands

Hello fellow Uk-ers.

Just wondering if anyone knows which branded cat foods are low in carbs? I recall people saying to avoid the gravy ones and use jelly - but are there any to go for/any to avoid? Mootle is doing really well OTJ but want to make sure he stays that way by feeding him properly.

Any ideas gratefully received.

x

 

I've had some success with the Whiskas Simply and Fisherman's Choice ranges, I think they are between 1.8% and 2.4% carbs dependent of flavour.

I have recently switched to a brand called Bozita, which is a Swedish brand of higher quality meat, lower in carbs at 1.2%, and comes in a huge variety of flavours that include things like reindeer and crayfish... This stuff has actually worked out cheaper gram for gram than the commercial foods I was buying, such as Whiskas, and my cat loves it.

The Bozita range do chunks in jelly, chunks in sauce (higher carb I'd guess) and a pate. The chunks in jelly is what I've gone for, and that has the 1.2% carb value.

Have a look online, search for Bozita, have a look at their own site to find some more info. I ordered from the ZooPlus website, they delivered within two days & shipping was free with a fairly low minimum spend.

H

 

Hi Catherine,

I'm really glad you've posted this message because I think a UK food discussion is needed. So thanks for initiating it. :smile:

Funnily enough, I've been meaning to post for a couple of days because I've changed Bertie's food recently and almost cannot believe the change in him! At first I thought it was just a 'flash in the pan' thing, but the effect on him has remained stable for about a month now, so much so that I'm going to write to my vet about it...

Around this time of year, as the weather gets cooler, Bert's numbers usually deteriorate dramatically, and he can even fail to respond to insulin at all - flying up into the mid teens and even low 20's (270-396) for a spell. But this year, as his numbers started to rise, I felt I just had to see if I could make the situation better, and I looked at his diet... I started reading online about cat food...ingredients in cat food....quality of ingredients in cat food...blah. blah, blah... Geez, I've even started dreaming about cat food... :shock:

When Bert was DX back in early 2007 the general advice for UK'ers on this board was that pretty much any food in jelly (that looked like it had a low carb content) was fine. Most people fed their cats Whiskas or Felix in jelly, or Butcher's Classic (and a few folks fed raw food). I fed Bert Butcher's Classic and Felix foils. And it stayed that way until about a month ago...

Following all that I came across online I switched Bert's food to mainly Bozita (cans not tetrapacks), supplemented with Grau 'grain free' and Lily's kitchen. It was the start of an interesting experiment...

Within 3 days Bert's blood glucose dropped. And his response to insulin changed. His glucose curves flattened out. Currently at preshot he's about 10(180), then after 4 hours he'll drop to between 5 - 7 (90 - 126) and just stay there for hours...sometimes up to 24 hours, which means he sometimes needs only one shot per day. This morning when I got up he was 6.2, and he was the same when I checked him just recently, so, no shot this morning.... This is extraordinary! Even in the height of summer his numbers have never been this good!

Now, when you just look at the cat food label 'analysis' of protein, fat, moisture levels etc, all of these foods look pretty much the same. And the carb content seems to be fairly similar. So I think the 'quality' of the food must play a key role in the equation.

When you read pet forums there are a lot of messages from people concerned about the quality of our 'usual' UK cat foods, especially the 'big names' that so many of us buy just out of habit. There is a feeling that things are very different in the rest of europe -notably Germany and Sweden - where pet food standards are apparently higher; The protein content from real meat is significantly higher, and the protein from other sources, ie meat or fish 'derivatives' is much lower. There is also much greater transparency about what the food actually contains.

In terms of cost, Bozita cans can work out only slightly more expensive than Whiskas and Felix etc, and so would seem to be one of the best options for FD cats on a budget. It is however a 'pate' type and not all cats will take to it initally. Grau 'grain free' is quite pricey unless you buy the big 800g cans (which work out much cheaper per kg). With the big cans there would seem to be the potential for wastage if the cat/s gets bored. But someone pointed out to me the other day that - even if you only have one cat - you can buy some big cans, portion up the food and freeze it so that you can use it more easily in rotation with other foods. Lily's kitchen is even pricier but the ingredients look fab: and they refuse to make a dry cat food! Hurrah!!!

Animonda Carny is another food that is generally popular, but when I calculated the carb value from the label it looked higher than the other foods. (Though it might be worth contacting the manufacturer for a more detailed breakdown of the ingredients..)

Bozita cans and Grau grain-free can be bought from Zooplus. The price of Lily's kitchen foods seems to vary and it can be worth searching online for good deals. Generally, vetuk.co.uk seems to have the best prices (but currently at Ocado Lily's kitchen is 5 for the price of 4, so maybe Waitrose have the same offer..?)

I'd be really interested to know what other UK folks are now feeding their cats, and also would love to know if anyone else has observed significant BG changes as a result of switching brands...?

 

Is Lily's Kitchen a complete food?

For some reason I always think that when cat foods are called things like "turkey dinner" or "fish dinner" that it's more of a treat than a complete food... Am I completely wrong is this belief?

H

 

Elizabeth - great to hear from you and top top news about the Bert-ster!! Hopefully he can stay with flatter curves for longer - and maybe indeed it is the food that's doing it.

When Mootle Bootle was first diagnosed, and until about 3 weeks ago, we were feeding him the W/D wet food, 1 can split into 3 meals. But I kind of felt sorry for the chap, eating that muck (they only do one flavour) whilst the other cats were diving into felix and whiskers, so we gradually swapped him back - keeping him on the jelly stuff and the oh so fishy/meaty varieties. To be honest, he'll eat anything - so changing good is not an issue appetite wise for Monty. I have to say I don't think its made a huge difference to his numbers which continue to fall between 4.9 and 5.8.

This Bozita brand sounds really good though (and thanks Helene for the tip) - I have 3 cats so I'm sure they could easily make their way through the bigger cans - and I'd like to be giving them something that has better quality meat in it - that's got to be good hasn't it!!

Will be very interested to see where Bertie's numbers go from here - I didn't know that cats BG levels change with the seasons and will be on the look out for that with Monty!

 

Haha it was Elizabeth who put me onto the Bozita range herself a couple of weeks ago, I can't claim credit for the discovery!

But Cleo has properly thrived since getting on it, she just seems in really good condition at the moment, and really happy.

No idea what her BGs have been over the past two days (eek) cos now the damn cat is feeling so good she won't let me test her anymore, turns it all into one huge big scratchy bitey game. Which I inevitably lose..hm. Gotta get that one sorted out. EDIT - Just had a thought: oven gloves? Or even those big red leather welder's gloves? I'm only half joking...!

Anyway, yepp, Bozita is good!

H

 

Aha - well thanks then Elizabeth too - its all good knowledge. I've just ordered in some Grau Grain-Free stuff for the Mont-ster so we'll see how he does on that. When he was first diagnosed I spent ages looking for Fancy Feasts that people post about on here - before I realised they were an American brand. Doh.

Do you know, I think Monty actually MISSES having his ears stabbed all the time - possibly because he used to get a chicken treat afterwards..he keeps pitching up in the kitchen now and shouting at me - sitting where we do the ear pricking. Strange animals!!

 

Excellent, I'm sure lucky Monty will be chuffed to bits with that. I was tempted myself, but just could not justify it financially. Will keep it in mind should financial solvency improve. Having said that however, Cleo really is enjoying munching on her amazingly devised varieties of Bozita (elk?!).

I'm speechless! This cat of mine just will not be bribed. I doubt it's got much to do with high moral values or anything so noble; she's just a beautiful yet stubborn little creature, who I sometimes suspect enjoys being contrary for the sheer hell of it!

H

 

Nothing to add here - I don't have a diabetic cat these days, just a lively little two-year-old ;-) but wanted to say that it's really good to see a little band of regular UK posters again. This is an international board; the vast majority of users who come here regularly are from the US and great though they all are, it's only another UKer who can give the sort of domestic advice that is so often needed.

So - from someone who joined this board back in 2007 when my lovely boy Tom was dx, at a time when there were several of us in this part of the world (we even even actually met up in person) - I say well done, keep up the good work by coming here and offering moral if not practical support to each other. FD can be such a lonely road to travel and this board is an absolute lifesaver.

Diana

 

Gosh, yes, Diana. 'FDMB UK' was quite a sociable entity at one time, wasnt it! drinking11 I still have photos somewhere of a party held here. And I recall too the couple of meet-ups we had with FDMB visitors from the US and Canada; and the visit to Hampton court and that glorious rose garden... And all of those events timed to fit between cats' insulin shots! :lol:

Eliz x

 

Hi Helene, yes, as I understand it 'Lily's Kitchen' is a complete food. I'm feeding a little to Bert these days to hold his attention while I give him his insulin shots, and also give a little to my other 4 cats at the same time to stop them from eating Bert's food! But I couldn't afford to feed it all the time without remortgaging the house! :lol:

 

Yes that's so true, Eliz!

xx