Whiskas food for kittens - reviews from veterinarians and owners

Everyone knows about Whiskas food for kittens, even children. It has been produced for a very long time - since the 50s of the last century and throughout this time this brand has not lost popularity. This is not surprising, because a memorable advertisement for Whiskas food with a cute gray cat and the slogan “Your pussy would buy Whiskas” are constantly flashing on TV screens.

The products of this manufacturer can be purchased in any store at a very affordable price, and from a wide range of diets, every kitten owner will be able to choose food with a suitable taste for their pet. But whether this food is as good as it is presented in advertising should be found out.

Is it possible to give Whiskas to kittens?

Many people have a stereotype that it is impossible for a kitten to get all the substances necessary for full development from natural food. That’s why ready-made food in dry or wet form is so popular today. Every person who has a small fluffy ball in their home remembers the advertisement about Whiskas and wonders: is it possible to make it a permanent diet for their pets? This food, as you know, belongs to the economy class, which means there can be no talk of any high quality. Therefore, when giving food to a kitten, it is impossible to predict how its body will react to such food.

But if, nevertheless, the owner of a kitten decides to feed his pet Whiskas, it must be done correctly.

Ingredients of Whiskas: what is included?

Whiskas dry food is one of the well-known budget types of cat food. The country of origin is the USA, the Mars Corporation, which owns the brands Kitiket, Royal Canin, and Sheba. Whiskas products can be purchased in supermarkets or pet stores. The pack contains 350 and 800 g. Large packages are sold in 1.9 and 5 kg. The ingredients are indicated on the box, but the manufacturers do not specify the exact percentage of ingredients, and the presence of dyes and preservatives is not stated at all. It does not say which by-products are added to the feed. Accurate information can only be found on the website of the American manufacturer of dry food for cats. Composition of Whiskas feed:

• wheat flour;
• cereals;
• animal meal from poultry meat and bones;
• rice;
• plant protein extracts;
• offal;
• animal fat;
• sunflower oil;
• Brewer's yeast;
• vegetable pulp, mainly carrots and beets;
• vitamins and minerals;
• taurine

Veterinarians warn that cheap dry Whiskas contains very little fiber, which is necessary for a cat’s quality digestion, so for regular feeding it is better to choose premium food.

How to give

If a kitten eats Whiskas no more than once a month, then there should be no consequences for its body. It happens that a kitten has to be left at home alone for more than half a day, then Whiskas is suitable as a one-time meal. It’s just important not to forget to leave him enough water. For such a case, Whiskas will be very useful.

Interesting video:

But it is not recommended to purchase it for a kitten as a treat, even occasionally. It is better to give him a natural treat that will benefit the small, vulnerable organism.

Manufacturer

The manufacturer of Whiskas feed is MARS. The brand first appeared in 1958 in the UK, quickly became popular, and has been producing animal food for more than 60 years. The management does not skimp on advertising, over all this time it has developed several types of both dry and wet food, and is opening more and more factories in different parts of the world (including in Russia: in Rostov-on-Don and in the Moscow region).

Feed was first brought to Russia from Germany in 1992, and 2 years later the first production was opened in the Stupinsky district of the Moscow region. In 2000, spiders appeared on the market.

The company has been engaged in charitable activities for a long time. In addition to helping homeless animals in shelters, the company helps implement projects in the field of pet nutrition.

Whiskas diets for kittens from 1 to 12 months

The food rations of this manufacturer are distinguished by a variety of tastes. The assortment includes:

• Delicious pillows with milk, turkey and carrots . This is a dry food, sold in packages of 350 g and 1.9 kg. It is produced in the form of crispy pillows containing milk inside.

The composition contains wheat flour, as well as poultry and turkey flour (minimum 4% in brown, yellow and red granules), meat and bone meal, protein plant extracts, rice, animal fat, brewer's yeast, sunflower oil, at least 4% carrots (in brown, yellow and red granules), dairy products (minimum 4% milk solids in the pads), taurine, minerals and vitamins.

• Stew with lamb . Wet food, which is complete and essential for a growing body. Your little one will definitely love the little pieces of tender lamb in a delicious sauce.

The stew contains meat with offal (including at least 4% lamb), vegetable oil, minerals with vitamins and taurine.

• Stew with chicken. Wet food, which is complete and essential for a growing body. Your little one will definitely love the small pieces of tender chicken in a delicious sauce.

The stew contains meat with by-products (minimum 4% chicken), vegetable oil, cereals, minerals with vitamins and taurine.

• Stew with salmon . Wet food, which is a balanced diet, so necessary for the full development of a kitten. He will definitely love the tender little pieces with salmon that has a pleasant aroma.

The food contains meat and by-products (minimum 4% salmon), vegetable oil, cereals, minerals, vitamins, and taurine.

• Veal jelly . Wet food, which is a balanced diet, so necessary for the full development of a kitten. He will definitely love the tasty meat pieces with veal in aromatic jelly.

The food contains meat and offal (minimum 4% veal), vegetable oil, minerals, vitamins, and taurine.

• Turkey jelly . Wet food, which is a balanced diet, so necessary for the full development of a kitten. He will definitely love the delicious meat pieces with turkey in aromatic jelly.

The food contains meat and offal (at least 4% turkey), vegetable oil, minerals, vitamins, and taurine.

• Chicken pate . Wet food, which is a balanced diet, so necessary for the full development of a kitten. He will definitely love the tender meat pate with chicken.

The food contains meat and offal (minimum 25% chicken), vegetable oil, minerals, vitamins, and taurine.

What does the manufacturer put in economical varieties of food (Whiskas, Friskis, Kitekat and the like)?

Dry food with Whiskas chicken: to preserve nutrients in the diet, manufacturers often add special components. For example, the preservative ethoxykin has the task of increasing the shelf life and preserving micronutrients. This component has not been found to have any harmful effects on animals, which is why it is not prohibited by the FDA (USA).

Sodium nitrite (trade name E250) is a food preservative for adding to industrial products for indoor animals. The concentrate does not affect the body, but its pure form in large dosages can cause poisoning. Absorbed into the blood from the stomach, nitrites do not allow oxygen to move and bind hemoglobin. But this reaction is possible only with the absorption of a concentrated dose of the preservative.

Reviews from veterinarians describe diseases caused in cats by immune weakening, which occurs due to improperly selected food for the pet.

There is more information on the American Whiskas packaging (this is established at the legislative level). Let's get acquainted with the composition of Meaty Selections (Whiskas meat selection): protein - up to 36%, animal fat - 14%, fiber - up to 5%, moisture - 13%, phosphorus - 1%, calcium - about 2%, zinc -160 mg per 1 kg, chondroitin sulfate – 310 mg per 1 kg, linoleic acid – 1.5%. Responsible for the nervous state, vision and function of the heart and blood vessels, immunity taurine -0.2%. Vitamins A - 12000 units per 1 kg, E - 160 units. per 1 kg. Glucose (410 mg per 1 kg), like chondroitin, is needed to prevent diseases of cartilage surfaces and bones, to strengthen ligaments and joints. First of all, such components are recommended for representatives of the British breed for development and growth.

About the negative aspects of using Whiskas, they also note the lack of specific indications and numerical quantities of meat components, preservatives and organic dyes. Commonly found additives in cat foods are butylated hydroxyanisole and butylated hydroxytoluene, which are not used in human foods. Their use is necessary for quality and shelf life extension.

Pros: low price, wide distribution in all stores (retail chains and very small stores), availability of a vitamin-mineral complex, rich assortment - wet food, pate, dry food and treats.

Feed composition

As an example to analyze the composition of Whiskas for kittens, you can take “pads with milk filling, turkey and carrots.”

• The first ingredient on the package is wheat flour, which is a source of carbohydrates; rice is the same source. The amount of flour present in the feed is unknown, as is the percentage of other feed components. But since flour comes first, we can assume that there is more than half of it in the feed.
• The second ingredient is flour of animal origin, that is, from turkey, poultry and meat and bone. But there is no information on the packaging about what parts of turkey and poultry were used in the production of the food and the exact percentage.
• Next come protein plant extracts, but their percentage is again unknown.
• Since poultry meal, meat-and-bone and wheat flour, as well as rice contain a small amount of protein, most likely of the 34% of protein present in the food, a significant part belongs to vegetable protein, which is more difficult for the cat’s body to digest.

• The feed contains sunflower oil and animal fat as sources of fatty acids, but it is not known which animals it comes from.
• The source of B vitamins is brewer's yeast, and the source of fiber is carrots.
• The remaining ingredients are various additives.

Brand history

The Whiskas brand has been on the market since 1958. Now every developed country has a representative office of this brand, and you can buy finished products in almost any store. The same cannot be said about some other brands for cats, which are sold only in specialized pet stores.

Note! Cat owners began to call food from other manufacturers “Whiskas.” The name has become a common noun.

Veterinarians' opinion

If you listen or read reviews from veterinarians, you can see that almost all of them agree that Whiskas should not be fed not only to kittens, but also to adult cats. No matter what kind of food (wet or crushed dry) a kitten is given, it will not grow up healthy. Sooner or later he will begin to have health problems, because the daily portion of Whiskas contains a tiny amount of protein (only 5%) and harmful chemicals.

Of course, there will be people who are ready to argue with this, and will give more than one example of how cats eat only Whiskas for years and feel great without any health problems. But before drawing any conclusions, it would be a good idea to carefully analyze such cases. Most likely we are talking about non-pedigreed cats, since their bodies are resistant to even the most severe influences. And in fact, such animals can live 5-7 years without illness, eating low-quality food. But then they will still start to get sick and will live no more than 9 years, not reaching the required 15.

Interesting video: Whiskas kills cats

An owner who loves his pet and wants it to grow up active and healthy will never skimp on its food. He will choose expensive ready-made premium food or will feed the animal with good quality natural food, which will be healthier than any ready-made food.

Feed to replace Whiskas

If you believe most veterinarians, you can replace Whiskas with almost any food. Moreover, you can choose a new food in any class (economy, premium, super premium and even holistic). Naturally, after economy class it is very difficult to switch to holistic food financially, so let’s consider more economical food:

• economy class: Kitekat, Sheba, etc.;
• premium class: Royal canin, Iams, Pro Plan, etc.;
• super premium: Hills, Monge, 1st Choice, etc.

Photo gallery: feed to replace Whiskas

Expensive foods contain more useful ingredients, but such products are difficult to find in a regular store

Hills has a line that is close to holistic people, and also has a series of products for the prevention of various diseases

“Kitekat” is one of the cheapest and most popular feeds, although its composition does not have a high content of animal proteins

Veterinarians often recommend Pro Plan to their clients.

Royal Canin is one of the most common foods among cat breeders

Table: comparison of feeds of different classes

Is it worth exchanging Whiskas for another economy class food?

Having heard negative reviews about their usual food, owners often rush to replace it with another food, albeit in the same price category.

From the point of view of economy, of course, it is not easy to immediately switch to more expensive food. After all, the owners made their choice in favor of Whiskas for a reason. But on the other hand, if you feel that you no longer trust purple bags, then you can choose the cheapest food in the class, for example, premium. If you buy large packages (from 1 kg), then in the end the difference in price will not be so big.

Nowadays there are plenty of offers of seemingly expensive food (Royal Canin, First Choice, Advance, Hills and others) in large packages from 3 to 10 kg. In terms of daily expenses for feeding, it will be cheaper than Whiskas and the like, but the quality is much higher.

Vetathome, forum user

https://ipc.kiev.ua/kormlenie-kotov/2180-zamena-viskasu-i-kitiketu-predlojeniya.html

And if you listen only to the opinion of veterinarians, then they are the ones who do not recommend “jumping” from one food to another. No matter how questionable the composition of the feed may be, it is in any case already balanced. In addition, all food undergoes many checks before entering the market, including compliance with international standards. Therefore, whether to replace Whiskas with another cheap food or not is up to you to decide.

Feed reviews from cat owners

The cat is 1.5 years old. Well, we accustomed her to Whiskas food. The cat didn’t want to eat anything other than this food (like a drug addict). She ate until she became severely poisoned and almost died.

Alissa111, forum visitor

https://spasibovsem.ru/responses/etot-korm-chut-ne-ubil-mou-lubimuu-koshechku.html

Video: cat eats Whiskas

What’s good about it for me personally is that you don’t have to wash dishes, like with other foods. In general, if the cat likes it, what should I wish for? If only the pussy ate Whiskas. And Filya eats.

Eliza Dulitl, forum user

https://otzovik.com/review_1527451.html

Video: cat eats Whiskas with hands

I read that cats supposedly start to feel bad if you only feed them whiskey. I don’t know, I haven’t noticed this with my cat. Feels normal. Recently he goes outside to go to the toilet more often, so I can’t control it. But the cat looks quite well-fed and happy with life. So I recommend this food.

ms.M.Ko, forum user

https://irecommend.ru/content/dovolno-taki-prilichnyi-korm-za-svoi-dengi

Whiskas is one of the most popular cat foods among Russians. It is inexpensive, but its composition is not ideal. At least that's what veterinarians think. But cats simply love Whiskas, and this brand also has special lines and a series of food for kittens and adult cats. Reviews about this product are extremely contradictory, but this does not make it less popular.

Pros and cons of Whiskas food

As mentioned above, Whiskas food is produced in dry and wet form, giving kitten owners a choice. But only the owner, and not his pet, can discover any advantages in food that belongs to the economy class. And the statement “your pussy would buy Whiskas” has nothing to do with the truth. A kitten who eats budget food with great appetite does so only because of the presence of various chemicals in it, which cause gradual addiction to this food and a desire to eat it. It's similar to how people get addicted to drugs.

According to kitten owners, the advantages of Whiskas include:

• Ease of feeding . If you don’t have enough time, feeding your kitten with ready-made food is very convenient; you only need to spend a couple of minutes on the whole process. Since the food is already ready, all you need to do is open the pack and put it in a bowl. Even a child can cope with feeding a kitten.
• Avoiding food spoilage . Those who have a kitten left alone for the whole day put a portion of dry food in a bowl designed for this time, and can rest assured that the food will not spoil and the kitten will not be poisoned after eating it.
• Eating food with appetite . A kitten may adore Whiskas, but not for its quality composition, but for the chemical components contained in the food in large quantities.
• Low cost of feed . The kitten owner may like this because he won't have to spend a lot of money on his pet. But this is only an appearance, but in fact, having carefully calculated the funds spent on the purchase of ready-made food, it will become clear that natural food will be much cheaper.

As for the disadvantages of Whiskas, they are associated with the condition of the kitten. If he feeds only on it, his health will be undermined in a short time. An animal that grew up on such food will no longer be able to live a full life, even if the owner later switches it to feeding high-quality natural food.

So, the main disadvantages are:

• Bad composition . He will not be able to saturate the kitten with the required amount of proteins, microelements and vitamins, so with such a diet there will be no full development. And if the kitten grows well outwardly, then its insides are still not formed correctly. Sooner or later, problems will begin with the baby's health.
• Presence of addictive chemical components . Eating only Whiskas, the kitten gets used to these substances, and then it will be very difficult to switch it to nutritious food.
• Development of urolithiasis . This is due to an increase in the level of mineral salts in the urine. Normally, a kitten should drink a glass of water after eating 100 g of food. But it is clear that this is impossible, and the baby gradually begins to develop this disease from childhood.

Reviews from veterinarians and Whiskas buyers

• “My cat and I’s choice is Whiskas canned food from MARS. We compared it with Proplan and Royal Canin, looked at the appetite of a non-pedigreed pet (before him, we had a Cornish Rex, who was fed premium and super class, but did not eat everything). So it is with the current one - he turns his nose up or ate without pleasure. We need to select. From a conversation with one friend, we learned that he was at the factory where Whiskas is produced, and so, all the components are of natural origin. I consider the downside of the food to be the percentage of protein ratio, which is lower in comparison with other types, the same for the rest. Royal Canin also makes MARS. The difference is in the mass and premium segments, and so does the price.”
• “Whiskas feed justifies its cost, it is of high quality. Consists of 13% meat protein obtained from bone meal, offal and meat. Owners who are not aware of the rules for healthy feeding of pets claim that it is bad to use offal. However, after reading the instructions on how to feed cats natural food, you can find instructions on the mandatory feeding of offal. Tripe and liver are rich in nutrients and beneficial elements that provide a balanced diet.”