Hills Science Diet Feline Senior Turkey Formula - Good Enough to Gobble?
Written: Jul 20 '02 (Updated Jul 20 '02)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: No by-products, low ash & magnesium, satisfaction guaranteed
Cons: contains natural flavor, soybean mill run - what's up with that?
The Bottom Line: This food has lower magnesium, sodium, ash and phosphorus, is palatable, and uses no by-products nor digest in its formula. A quality food overall.
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| patriciak's Full Review: Hill's Science Diet Feline Senior Turkey Formula |
I continue on my quest for appropriate foods for my senior cat who has early stage Chronic Renal Failure, and for foods that are best for my senior cats who are healthy. Given the good response I had to Hills Science Diet Feline Beef Formula, I thought I'd have Patrick, my beloved Cream Lynx Point American Curl, give this canned delicacy a test-taste.
Patrick Speaks
Oh, why not? I do have a voice, full of inflections for various expressive feline phrases, and I have good volume control too! I just don't care for the taste of this ground food, even when it is served to me mixed with warm water to make a bit of gravy. I love gravy! I have no plans for an outright refusal to eat, if she continues to serve this, however. I can tell by her lingering, her constant checking the level of food left in my bowl, that she really hopes I like
this stuff. Humpf, the things I sometimes do, to make her sorta happy!
Why Consider A Special Diet and When is a Cat Considerd "Senior"?
There are several conditions that one may see as your cat reaches that magic number which varies depending on who you talk to - somewhere between 6 years and 8 years - all agree, somewhere in there, your cat becomes a "Senior". So what? Well, here is the short list of things to watch for in our older felines who with advances in veterinary medicine and improved diet, are living longer lives on average. Diabetes, Hyperthyroidism, Irritable Bowel Disease, Obesity, dental disease including gingivitis and cavities, Chronic Renal Failure (CRF).
All of the above will require changes in dietary regimen, so to me, it stands to reason that at any age, what you feed your cat is of great importance. Hills Science Diet has formulated foods especially with a senior cat's needs in mind (they define senior as a cat age 7 or older). The Feline Senior Turkey Recipe canned food is lower in ash, magnesium, sodium, calcium and phosphorus, utilizes a readily digestible source of carbohydrates (rice), and a good protein source (turkey - not by-products, not animal digest). It is an appropriate food for my cat with early stage CRF. If your cat has any of the conditions I listed above, you should be guided by your veterinarian's specific dietary suggestions, as each requires different dietary considerations.
Each 5.5 oz can of Hills Science Diet Feline Senior Turkey Recipe has an easy to use pop-top, and contains a finely ground meat with visible white rice mixed in, slight amount of liquid also is noted. The smell is not unpleasant, and improves, to my nose, with the addition of a bit of warm water to mix it with for a thick puree effect. It is recommended (per the label) that you feed 1 can daily if your cat weighs 6 lbs. Obviously, if your favorite feline is a 12 pounder, you'd double this to 2 cans daily. For those in between, adjust accordingly. Always be sure to have lots of clean, fresh water available. Rinse out that bowl and refill it daily!.
Ingredients List and Guaranteed Analysis - For Those Who Need To Know (the rest can skip down to my Final Thoughts)
water, turkey, liver, rice, natural flavor, powdered cellulose, guar gum, xanthan gum, locust bean gum, soybean mill run, taurine, brewers dried yeast, DL-methionine, minerals(calcium carbonate, potassium citrate, salt, zinc oxide, ferrous sulfate, copper sulfate, manganous oxide, calcium iodate, sodium selenite), vitamins (choline chloride, vitamin D3 supplement, vitamin E supplement, thiamine, niacin, calcium pantothenate, pyridoxine hydrochloride, riboflavin, folic acid, biotin, vitamin B12 supplement.
Guaranteed Analysis
Crude Protein...min. 8.5%
Crude Fat...min. 4.0%
Crude Fiber...max. 1.7%
Moisture...max. 77%
Ash...max. 1.8%
Calcium...min. 0.11%
Phosphorus...min. 0.1%
Sodium...max. 0.13%
Magnesium...max. 0.22%
Taurine...min. 0.105
Final Thoughts
I have been pleased with the quality, and my cats response to a different flavor of Hills Science Diet Feline Senior canned food. I wish Patrick were more enthusiastic about the Turkey Recipe as well, but he will eat it, and it meets my task of finding lower phosphorus, lower protein foods that he will eat, as we are dealing with his early stage CRF. My one concern (okay, make it two) are that I do not know what "natural flavor" is, in human foods, it "can" mean msg, and I'd prefer not to feed that to my cat of any age or state of health. I also do not know what "soybean mill run" is, but I suspect it means some discarded portion of mill processed soybeans, and that would not be my first choice to feed either! I will recommend this food, as despite my two concerns, I am pleased that this food does not contain by-products, nor use animal/poultry/turkey digest. I feel it is overall a quality food, and worthy for you to try with your senior pal.
Company Contact
The label states 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed. If you need to contact them, call 1-800-445-5777.. You may write to them at: Hill's Pet Nutrition, Inc., P.O. Box 148, Topeka, KS 66601.. They do have a website, which you can click through to easily by using the link that Epinions provides.
Thanks for reading - this is a contribution to the Home & Garden/Pets - Health & Beauty Intramural Write-Off!
Recommended:
Yes
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patriciak
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I will always carry you in my heart, my sweetlings. I miss you so.
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