Is Before Grain Supplimental only??

Discuss ways to improve the quality of your cat's life and longevity through proper nutrition; a place for all of your questions and answers about feeding your kitty!

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Basketball

Bouncing Around

Purred: Thu Jun 14, '12 1:40pm PST


	All, Merrick's Before Grain 96% is a very attractive option for me because I am transitioning to raw and even the Wellness canned that I used to consider highest quality is high in carbs and calories and veggie fillers, and is VERY expensive. HOWEVER: I have read this is NOT a complete diet for cats. It even says on the page "Before Grain 96% Quail Formula Canned Cat Food ''5'' is intended for supplemental feeding only and are not intended for use as a complete and balanced diet." Is that just the quail? Can I feed the chicken? What is missing from this diet that makes it only supplemental??

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Shadow

Education is the- Key

Purred: Thu Jun 14, '12 2:06pm PST


	Hi Basketball, all Merricks Before grain are now complete and Balanced http://products.merrickpetcare.com/product/consumerproduct .jsp?id=93&description=Adult/Cat/BG-Chicken

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Merlin - An Angel- Forever

*Poof*

Purred: Thu Jun 14, '12 5:02pm PST


	A supplemental food has no vitamins and minerals, just some meat or fish, water for processing, maybe thickening agents and a few other thngs. When Before Grain canned came out on the market a couple years ago, it was supplemental only. The cans had 100% chicken or tuna or whatever on the label. The only ingredient was the meat or fish and water. Nothing else. The labels did have a teeny tiny disclaimer that the food was for supplemental feeding only but how many people actually read teeny tiny print? This is what the old 100% Before Grain canned label looked like: http://www.chaar.us/product_images/w/026/20478-3oz_Cat-2Salmon__57548_zoom.jpg Before Grain has changed the formula in the past year or two so that the food IS nutritionally complete The food is now 96% meat or fish, not 100%, and includes vitamins and minerals. The label now says "Complete and balanced nutrition for cats". Here is what the Before Grain labels look like now: http://www.petsolutions.com/images/Products/22820477.jpg The only Before Grain canned you can find in the stores now is the 96% one. The old 100% cans have long been discontinued and I doubt any pet store would still have any stock leftover. Where did you see that the Before Grain quail is supplemental only? The Before Grain web site lists all the canned food as 96% and a complete diet, http://www.merrickpetcare.com/merrick-before-grain-cans.php If it was an online pet store web site or something, the product information is out of date. Generally, if a canned food is labeled as "supplement only" then it is assumed that your cat is eating dry food and getting all the nutrients from that. The "supplement" canned food is just an extra treat to make mealtimes more appealing. If your cat is eating regular canned food, you could feed a a little "supplement" canned food as a yummy topper to the regular canned or just as a treat. There are a few supplement only canned foods out there. Fancy Feast Appetizers is one brand. Edited by author Thu Jun 14, '12 5:12pm PST

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Basketball

Bouncing Around

Purred: Thu Jun 14, '12 6:28pm PST


	Wow thanks for all these great replies I saw that warning message only on the quail and chicken type at petfooddirect.com. (For anyone not getting food delivered, I would look into it, it saves me about 10 cents an ounce and that adds up fast!!!) Actually, while looking into some different options during the raw transition phase I came across By Nature 95%: http://www.bynaturepetfoods.com/productpages/95percentcannedcat.php# ccl No veggies, fruits, grains, additives, etc. Looks to be a higher quality than Wellness AND Merrick, and comes in at 12 cents an ounce, compared with Wellness and Merrick at 24 cents an ounce.