Diamond Naturals Active Cat Adult Dry Cat Food Chicken Protein Formula from Cage-Free Chicken with Superfoods, Probiotics, Antioxidants and Essential Nutrients 18lb

UPDATE June 2015: I'm going to leave this review up so others can benefit from all of the time and effort that went into researching this food; however, we took our older cat off this food a couple months ago because she had become a bit UNDER-weight. We put her on Blue (yep) "Healthy Aging" food and she has done really well on it. She gained a pound in about a month, seems a bit more energetic (for an old cat who never did much more than hold the carpet down, that is), and her coat is noticeably softer. That said, I still think this particular Diamond food is a good quality, reasonably priced food for cats who need restricted carbs. I just don't think our cat, in her old age, was benefiting from this food any longer. We will see if she ends up gaining too much weight on the Blue now! Original review: I bought this after a TON of research on cat foods. I thought I'd help out other detail-oriented shoppers by sharing what I've found: I tried Blue and they ate it (mixed with their old food), but after reading and researching even more, I decided Blue was not only too expensive, but that it was possibly too fancy. All those vegetables and potatoes (which are apparently questionable for cats) started to seem more like a marketing ploy for pet parents than good nutrition for cats. I'm not totally against veggies for cats since one of mine happens to go nuts for carrots and I know they like to eat greens, but I think some pet grass is a better answer to that with a good basic diet. I have been guilty of trying too hard to do good things for my pets and then those things backfire. So I think this food is a good way to get them on a high protein diet without going overboard. My vet was happy with the high protein, no filler concept though she didn't appear to know anything about this brand specifically. My cats love this food. When I first opened the bag I thought I'd just give them each a piece like I would a treat and see what happened. They both ate their piece right up and wanted more. They didn't care when I gave them a piece of their old food (Authority) and walked away from that. I thought, well maybe it's because it's a novelty. So I occasionally try it again to see if they will still eat it as a "treat"--and they do. Every time, even though it's sitting in their bowls all the time. And with their old food they ignore the piece offered. Every time. I just went up to half old food and half new food. I think it's very important for their digestive system to change slowly, but I know they would eat this food without their old food mixed in no problem. Still, I'm changing slowly for digestion's sake. I was hoping to find a food with no fish in it, because of mercury, but all of the ones I could find had corn or other garbage in them that seemed worse than a little fish. I would not do a food that fish is a main ingredient of, but it doesn't seem to be in this one, after talking with the manufacturer. Plus, I found out from the manufacturer that the "fish meal" used in this food is from menhaden fish, which are not considered dangerous to humans, at least, and I would prefer to have a real source of omega 3 anyway in there, since apparently cats can't get it from flaxseeds like humans can. This is all based on articles I've read. There is so little out there that are true scientific studies on cat food, it's difficult to say anything with certainty. This is another reason that I think simple is best at this point. A good, basic food (that I can afford on a student budget!) without any fillers and without anything fancy that is made mainly of things cats would eat in the wild plus the vitamins and minerals they need is what I was looking for, and this seems to be it. I wanted to find something with chicken as the first ingredient, not "chicken meal," but I did some research and spoke with the manufacturer and found out that their chicken meal is made of what cats would eat if they caught a chicken outside and nothing they wouldn't (they do, apparently, eat bone in the wild--it's actually good for them, from what I've read). This is what the vet on the Diamond team wrote: "Chicken meal, according to the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO), is the dry rendered product from a combination of clean chicken flesh and skin with or without accompanying bone, derived from whole carcasses of chicken, exclusive of feathers, heads, feet and entrails.[1] A meal in general is "an ingredient which has been ground or otherwise reduced in particle size."[2] Chicken meal is ground up chicken meat that has been carefully dried to a moisture level of 10%. The protein content is 65% and the fat level is 12%. Regular chicken contains about 70% water with 18% protein and 5% fat. To create chicken meal, ingredients are placed into large vats and cooked. [3] This rendering process not only separates fat and removes water to create a concentrated protein product, it also kills bacteria, viruses, parasites and other organisms. It is difficult to say what percentage of the meal is the chicken meat that we traditionally eat, but it is very digestible animal protein." I think that makes sense. The Diamond vet actually did not recommend this for my older cat who is decidedly NOT active, but I've asked around on blogs and read reviews and the anecdotal evidence that the high protein actually helps them not become overweight seems to overrule the fact that this is higher in fat than most senior cat foods. It's enough for me to try this and see if my older cat gains weight. [UPDATE: My older, sedentary cat has not gained weight, and in fact lost some weight. UPDATE #2: My older cat ended up underweight after several years on this food, and we have since changed her to a different brand.] I think this is the least gimmicky, best protein food for an affordable price out there (actually, at any price, from the research I've done). And I have LOOKED. It will be this (ONLY the ACTIVE variety--the others in this brand have corn fillers), and the Soulistic Good Karma Chicken and Autumn Bounty pouches, unless we have any new issues arise. [UPDATE: It turns out my younger cat is allergic to chicken, so she's on Rx food :( but our other cat is still happy with this. PLUS the cat who is still on this used to regurgitate her food frequently and have hair balls all the time--like weekly or even more often. She hasn't regurgitated food since we started her on Diamond Active 6 months ago! And she rarely has a hairball now too. SO happy about this!]

Amazon recommended this brand when I was considering Hill's Science Diet Digestional Something variety, which a friend had said kept their kitty alive past 20 after some digestive disease. well, i DID NOT KNOW Hill's was so expensive and noped out immediately, but then then this brand was listed as an alternative. i was a bit skeptical of the super low price (seriously cheaper than the cheapest purina) but i used fakespot.com to assess the accuracy or the 5 star rating and it showed full A+ accuracy. okay, how do i KNOW (or strongly strongly suspect) this food is really good? Lily's poops hardly smell at all. i hadn't had a chance to observe this in the warmer months bc she goes outside but now in the winter, i started to notice that her poops in the litter are hardly even noticeable in the litter, even when not fully covered. someone else said in a review that dry poops are a sign of a healthy poop and i am also noticing this aspect as well. she also seems to be much much more energetic during our daily play/exercise sessions. it might be a coincidence but prior to the new food, i would work out Lily twice a day for 10 minutes before feedings and she would start out strong and frenzied, but kind of lose interest at the 10-15 minute mark. due to my schedule i switched to a once daily longer session and she now is super crazy energetic for as long as i can keep going, 30-45 minutes sometimes. again, could be some other factors, but i'm now wondering if it is the food. this food seems really great and is super affordable!!!

Love

good diet fill when cat want a change

I am BEYOND impressed with this cat food! I bought it based on reviews and hoped that the experiences of others would work for me as well... and they have!! All the way around, this catfood has had such a positive effect on the two kitties in our household. The main reason I was on the hunt for a new catfood was because one of my cats was a frequent vomiter. I was never able to identify what caused her to vomit so frequently despite purchasing expensive probiotics, hairball medication and other supplements. After reading reviews that stated that this Diamond cat food solved their cat’s constant puking, I figured it was worth a try — ESPECIALLY for a food as reasonably priced as this one. I was eager and hopeful when ordering. As soon as the food switch was compete the vomiting issues completely ceased. It’s been several months now and she has not vomited a single time. The cat boxes are also much more tolerable — no more toxic cat poop wafting through the basement! They also seem to be shedding less and look healthier and happier overall. I’m a real believer in this catfood, it’s quality stuff!

One of the last decent values in a mid-grade food that isn't loaded with carbs and/or plant protein, or iffy fats. Maybe regular rice isn't the lowest glycemic option (especially important for older or somewhat portly cats), but this formula appears to go easy on it. And at least it's not brown rice combined with minimum taurine, considering the potential effect of rice bran. At 28-30 bucks for 18 lbs, less spendy than many hyper-marketed "grain-free" (but not necessarily low carb) foods, and probably fine for most cats given the apparent rarity of all-grain allergies. The kibble did seem harder than my other staple dry food, so some cats with trouble chewing might be more inclined to swallow it whole. Overall, though, it has been one of the better choices.