"Addictive" cat food flavorings?

[Heather & Angel (GA)]

I've read several times here discussions about certain cat food brands adding artificial flavors to the foods that are actually addictive to cats, which is why they wind up only wanting those foods.

One of my cats, who usually is very food-oriented and will eat almost anything, has been very picky lately and only wants to eat a certain store-brand of food (I only feed canned food), instead of the premium foods that I normally buy. I'm worried that she might be having a recurrence of a previous illness.

Can anyone provide any more information about these "addictive" flavorings? I really don't want to get to the point where she'll only eat this relatively junky food, with all of its by-products and artificial flavors, but she does need to eat.

 

[Sue and Oliver (GA)]

It's called Fortiflora and the idea is that, yes, it is put into dry food to get cats to eat it. You can buy it online, or sometimes from the vet. It is a probiotic so is good for the cat, but is also used to entice her to eat wet food. It works wonderfully for some cats and not well at all for others.

Here is what Dr. Lisa says about it:


Try a product called FortiFlora. Most cats LOVE FortiFlora and this has recently become my favorite trick. This is a probiotic made by Purina but you are not going to use it for its probiotic properties. You are just going to use it as a flavor enhancer. The base ingredient in FortiFlora is animal digest - the very substance that makes dry food so very enticing to cats. The directions say to use 1 package/day - and you can use this much if you want to - but this amount is not usually necessary. You may only need ~1/4 of a package - or less - with part mixed into the food and part sprinkled on top of the food just as you would use salt and pepper on your own food.

 

[Vicky & Gandalf (GA) & Murrlin]

I think the OP is asking about what manufacturer's put in the foods to addict cats to the brand, not what we can put on food to encourage them to eat. I doubt manufacturer's are going to put something good like Fortiflora in their foods!

But then, if a cat seems they are getting addicted to a certain food, you could use Fortiflora to get them interested in a food you want them to eat.

 

[BJM]

Embedded in there was animal digest- that is basically the flavoring part which cats like. Think of it like bouillion, without the salt.

My dad once did a chemical marketing research study on pet foods and said that with the right fat on it, cats would eat something as non-nutrional as cellulose! So certain animal fats may provoke a strong interest in the food.

Warming up the food slightly before putting it down, grated Parmesan cheese, catnip, etc are all ways to pique interest in eating.

If the eating change is recent, perhaps the cat has an upset stomach and has associated certain foods with feeling sicker (even though the food didn't necessarily cause the problem). It may be prudent to touch base with your vet to determine if anything else is going on, maybe do a CBC and serum chemistry to see if anything is off.

 

[squeem3]

Nature's Variety usse a "bio coating" on their dry food.

What is the Nature's Variety Bio-Coating?
Nature's Variety kibble diets are all coated with freeze dried raw foods and nutritious oils. This cold processed, enzymatically active food is exclusive to Nature's Variety, and gives pets the great taste of our renowned Nature's Variety raw food.

Many non-premium dry foods (not sure about canned) contain animal digest or something similar to appeal to a cat's taste bubs.

 

[Lisa dvm]

While fish/seafood is not an artificial flavor, it can be very addicting due to it's strong smell and strong flavor.