Authority Dry Cat Food
Authority brand cat food is marketed by the company “PetSmart”, as their higher grade store-brand pet food. PetSmart also markets their “Sophisticat” brand , though Sophisticat is considered to be of lower quality than Authority cat food. PetSmart was first founded in 1986, and was originally based in Phoenix, Arizona. By the 1990's, PetSmart had expanded across the United States, and even opened a few stores in Canada. Technically, PetSmart was named PETsMART at the time, though soon changed their name to “PetSmart”, to emphasize their dedication to pet care. In addition to selling pet food, PetSmart also sells a variety of products for caring for pets. Authority brand cat food was one of the brands that was involved in the recent pet food recall, having three canned cat food formulas on the recall list. However, no Authority brand dry cat food formulas are currently affected by the recall.
Authority Dry Cat Food Review
Authority brand cat food is currently available in eight different dry cat food formulas. In general, Authority brand cat food has a protein-based first ingredient, though is not currently available in a low-carbohydrate or grain-free formula. All of the Authority brand dry cat food formulas are available in a 4lb bag, an 8lb bag, and a large 20lb bag.
Authority Dry Cat Food Formulas:
- Authority Indoor Formula Dry Cat Food is designed for cats that are from one to seven years of age. This formula is chicken-based, with the first two ingredients being chicken products. Other ingredients include Corn Gluten, Ground Corn, Beep Pulp, Canola Oil, Taurine and dried Cellulose. The Guaranteed Analysis of this formula includes 34% protein and 12% (min) or 15% (max) fat.
- Authority Adult Weight Management Dry Cat Food is designed for cats that are more susceptible for becoming overweight. The first five ingredients of this formula are Chicken, Chicken Meal, Brewer's Rice, Corn Gluten Meal, and Ground Corn. Other ingredients include Egg Product, Canola oil and various Animal Fats. The Guaranteed Analysis of this formula includes 34% protein and 8% (min) to 11.5% (max) fat.
- Authority Adult Formula Dry Cat Food is available in “Chicken & Rice” and “Salmon & Rice” flavor variations. In both flavors, two of the first five ingredients are protein-based. The Guaranteed Analysis of this formula includes 32% protein and16% (min) fat.
- Authority Hairball Control and Weight Management Formula Cat Food is designed for indoor cats that are prone to becoming overweight, and also may develop hairballs. Two of the first five ingredients are protein-based, and Beet Pulp provides the primary source of fiber. The Guaranteed Analysis of this formula includes 34% protein and 8% (min) to 11.5% (max) fat.
- Authority Adult Hairball Control Formula Cat Food is designed for cats that are prone to developing hairballs. The Guaranteed Analysis of this formula includes 32% protein and 16% (min) fat.
- Authority Kitten Formula Dry Cat Food is designed for kittens up to one year of age. The Guaranteed Analysis of this formula includes 34% protein and 20% (min) fat.
- Authority Senior Formula Dry Cat Food is designed for cats that are seven years of age or older. The Guaranteed Analysis of this formula includes 32% protein and 10% (min) to 13% (max) fat.
- Authority Sensitive Solutions Formula Cat Food is designed for cats that need specially formulated food in order to achieve proper digestion. The Guaranteed Analysis of this formula includes 32% protein and 15% (min) fat.
Authority Dry Cat Food Consumer Ratings
Customer reviews of Authority brand dry cat food are fairly mixed. While many consumers report that they are able to feed their cats Authority cat food without any problems, some consumers report that their cats experience digestive problems when being fed Authority brand cat food. This could quite possibly be because of the corn-based ingredients that are included in all of Authority's dry cat food formulas.
August 15th, 2009 at 1:27 pm
I actually found that Authority’s Sensitive Solutions formula does not contain any corn or corn products (my 11 yr old cat has trouble with corn). I can’t say the same for nearly every other brand on the market besides the more-expensive (though very excellent) Blue Buffalo or By Nature. He seems to tolerate it well and the other two cats in the house like it as well. I just wish PetSmart offered it in a bag larger than 7lbs since that doesn’t take long to go through in our house.
November 28th, 2009 at 10:37 am
As of this morning… 3 separate times, 3 separate PetSmarts…2 different versions of Authority, the Kitten and now the Hairball controll, I have found bugs crawling and flying around in the bags of food. 3 times a charm, no more authority cat food, and now I am even concerned about Petsmart and buying any food there.
December 19th, 2009 at 9:58 pm
I have a cat that has allergies to corn and the Authority Sensitive solutions has cured the problems. ALL the cats (11) in total love it.
No digestive problems, and they all eat it.
I agree though that Petsmart needs to carry the larger bag. The 7lbs does NOT last long in my house at all!!
January 23rd, 2010 at 10:42 pm
I have 7 cats, 10 including fosters. The indoor cat food does not contain corn. I will NOT feed corn to ANY of my animals. Everyone does well on it, we purchase the 20bls bag about every 2-3 weeks.
February 9th, 2010 at 7:22 pm
I read Mike’s review awhile back plus some class action suit about restaurant grease, hooves, euthanized animals and hair being added as ingredients into Authority’s dry mixes. So we tried another brand. Unfortunately the cat doesn’t like that Blue Buffalo stuff and he loves Authority. The cat has no problems w/ stool, coat, eyes, or energy levels on Authority. He is gaining some weight though and we only give him 1 cup of dry per day and the cat is 14 pounds when lean (male Bengal).
Does anyone know if there was any legitimacy to the claims of disgusting ingredients being added? We’re worried about that.
February 24th, 2010 at 12:41 pm
I have a Belinese kitten who loves Authority kitten dry and wet food. I got her from a rescue home several months ago and they recommended the Authority kitten foods. Her silky fur and blue eyes are looking really good. I was so glad to find a good healthy food for my new kitten friend… a food that she loves. I live several miles from the petsmart store… I wish that I could get mail order service on all the Authority kitten products.
I give Authority kitten foods a thumbs up and 5 stars. Thanks.
April 17th, 2010 at 11:43 am
My 8 year old cat Jasmine was always fed Purina Indoor Cat Chow (after starting off on Kitten Chow of course) but we got a new kitten and Jasmine would not leave her food alone. Jasmine already has a weight problem even with regulated feedings, and so this did not improve her waistline. I figured if we switched to a more natural diet, with real meats as main ingredients, it might help. It really did.
Jasmine now has been on Authority’s Weight Management and Hairball Control, and she is back to a healthy weight (another thing that I liked about Authority was that all of the other brands’ weight management products still had a LOT more fat then my cat chow!) and she has had significantly less hairballs. AND she has stopped snacking on the kitten’s food (who also is on Authority, but the kitten edition).
It took me a long time and a lot of research for me to finally decide on Authority, and I am really glad that I did.
April 21st, 2010 at 7:08 pm
One of my cats, although chubby, has a sensitive digestive system. I’ve found that the Salmon and Rice Dry Food works very nicely and the other cats like it, too. Since all three cats need weight maintenance, I mix the Salmon and Rice with Chicken Soup for the Cat Love’s Soul Reduced Weight food. So far so good, although the Authority Dry Cat Food has become quite expensive and the Salmon and Rice does not come in larger than 8 pound bags.
July 2nd, 2010 at 4:33 pm
I’ve been giving my cats wet and dry Authority food. I find that they are throwing up a lot more than normal, especially my girl. Also, there was another post here about buying a bag of food that had bugs in it. I had the same problem with a bag of dry food from PetSmart (not the Authority brand.)
August 15th, 2010 at 1:32 am
Authority Sensitive is a lifesaver for my cats & my sanity! It immediately resolved their problem of regularly throwing up their food. I attribute it to it being corn free, and the price is way lower than any other corn free kibble out there. I am impressed.
September 29th, 2010 at 11:36 am
I’ve tried many different cat foods with my kitties. They are not too picky, but we have a long-haired cat with a VERY sensitive digestive tract. They also seem to hate foods that aren’t “pebble” shaped (at least that is the case for my two older kitties).
We started feeding them Science Diet Mature with our new kitten on Science Diet Kitten. My sensitive, older cat threw up the Science Diet all the time and could only stomach the kitten formula.
Our vet recommended Authority Sensitive for our kitty and he has not vomited since! He loves the food and he’s been more active than ever!
We didn’t seen any bugs or creepy crawlies in our bags so maybe the problem was the individual Petsmart, not the company as a whole.
Also, we don’t feed our cats wet food on a regular basis (and when we DO give them wet food, it’s more like a treat) so we don’t really need to worry about Authority’s Wet brand.
October 2nd, 2010 at 6:21 pm
I need to know whether Authority ADULT Chicken & Rice Recipe has been discontinued or just re-packaged as Chicken? We have been 100% satisfied with it and don’t wish to change. Our cat loves it.
October 18th, 2010 at 4:16 pm
Our cats LOVE authority. I have tried more epensive brands and they ate them too, but the stool smell was horrible. The stool from Authority is no where near as bad as others.
I now have two foster cats and a litter of 7 kittens. The rescue gave me a different brand, but she would rather eat my cats food then the one she was provided (a supposedly better brand).
Our Petsmart is super clean, I have not had any issues, we also use the dog food. I have to stay within a budget, and I am happy to find a by-product free food, that they love and that we can afford.
October 24th, 2010 at 2:15 pm
My 9yr old male Bengal had an ongoing problem with IBD. He’s tried many different brands of catfood, including the well known Science Diet, Iams, and other expensive leading brands. Nothing helped, and he continued having accidents all over the house, little messes here and there. Inova dry food seemed to keep the IBD at bay,but it was expensive, because I have 4 other cats who all eat the same food.
The Authority Brand (Sensitive Solutions) has been keeping his bowels regular. The price is reasonable, and the ingredients are just as good as Inova. I had been paying 21.00 for a small bag of Inova, now I spend 13.99 for roughly the same size bag. Five kitties go through 2 bags per month. They all love it, and everyone is happy! (especially the Bengal!)
November 30th, 2010 at 8:08 pm
Well, I can say Authority cat food (made by PetSmart) is the best by far out of the other brands I’ve tried so far. Before I gave my two cats Authority cat food I tried many others in the past two to three years. They’ve really been enjoying this brand, both wet &dry. In addition I have a peace of mind knowing this cat food is good for them.
Thank you PetSmart for caring for all of the Dogs & Cats. It is worth the extra money to have a healthy pets. Health is weath!
January 27th, 2011 at 1:01 pm
I have two cats, one long haired and one short. It has been a challenge to find a food that they both like. My long haired cat often throws up hairballs no matter what I tried, even high quality cat food. My short hair cat seems to throw up at least once or twice a week, right after he eats. I have tried Iams, Innova, and Science Diet. Last month I started the Authority Sensitive Stomach and so far they both have not thrown up anything yet. I am so happy that I don’t have to watch for throw up anymore on my carpet or sofas. The price is reasonable, especially if it saves my carpets.
February 24th, 2011 at 9:59 pm
I will never buy this food again. My cat has been on this cat food and she has lost a lot of weight. Her hair is falling out by the handful. I have also lost my dog to the same food. They eat and eat and eat and they are getting sick from this food.
If anyone notices a change in the amount of food your animal is consuming, and they are losing weight see you pet as soon as possible.
March 28th, 2011 at 11:56 am
Teen, I am noticing the same thing since I put my cat on Authority Sensitive Solutions. He lost a lot of weight in a very short amount of time and his eyes look very sleepy. He also going to the bathroom a lot more then usual. I only had him on it for abount 2 or 3 weeks now, but I’ve decided to just throw the rest of the bag of food away buy him something else. It is worrying me.
I tried this because I was told it would be good for him since it doesn’t have all these fillers, but he looked a lot healthier on the other brands then he does on this one. One of the reasons I tried this is because he was losing fur and the vets think it might be an allergy to some foods, but this has not helped in any way. He is still losing fur. I think I will go back to Iams or try Science Diet or buy it from the vet’s Office. It is a lot more expensive, but I rather pay more then make my baby sick.
I see others on here saying they love it and that their cats are doing good which surprises me. My cat is in the worst shape he has ever been in on this stuff. Before eating this cat food he always was very healthy looking with the exception of losing some of his fur.
April 16th, 2011 at 10:39 pm
Authority adult cat food has been an excellent choice for our two 1 year old cats. We’ve had both cats (who are brothers) since they were seven weeks old. I fed them Kitten Chow for the first 8 months or so, and I thought that was a good thing. Since we’ve switched I have noticed a huge improvement in their overall appearance. Before the switch, one cat always had runny eyes and a dull, flaky coat. (Actually I used to think maybe he was sick and that’s what was causing his ailments.) Now that we’ve changed his food, his eyes are dry and clear, and his coat is extremely silky and shiny with no more ‘dandruff’. Also, I find that their stools are much less offensive in odor, which is a definite plus since I am usually on ‘cat duty’ because my husband doesn’t like to clean the litter box. 😉
Lisa, I’m sorry to hear about your experience with your pet losing its fur. However, I really don’t see how the problem can be attributed solely to the Authority food since you stated that your cat began to lose hair prior to switching his/her food. I think it’s possible that this would have happened to your pet anyway due to some other condition, or perhaps a preexisting condition was aggravated by switching foods, and that’s why you see these other symptoms. Regardless of the reason, I hope your baby feels better soon.
We recently added a new puppy to the family, and she is on Authority Lamb and Rice for Puppies. Absolutely no complaints from either food. Great product!
March 4th, 2013 at 5:17 pm
I have used the indoor Authority brand for over 5 years. My 3 cats have been in great health, have lots of energy and their coats are soft and shiny. I would recommend this brand to all. My only negative comment is I would like to have the option of choosing flavored.