Royal Canin Dry Cat Food
Royal Canin Pet Foods are manufactured by Royal Canin, which was first founded in 1967 in Gard, France. Royal Canin was acquired by the Mars/Masterfood Group in 2002. The headquarters of Royal Canin are in Aimargues, France. However, there are currently eight production facilities worldwide, one of which is in Rolla, Missouri (USA). Royal Canin specializes in premium dog and cat food that meets specific health-related needs. Royal Canin is also very well-known for the clinical formulation of symptom-specific diets, as well as research in dietary formulas for their veterinary pet food products. In 2007, Royal Canin recalled several products because a melamine derivative was found in its rice protein concentrate. This involved the KASCO Cat bagged dry food, and all packaging types of Royal Canin's Feline Hypoallergenic HP 23 formula.
Royal Canin currently offers 21 different types of cat food formulas. Each of these formulas is available both in a dry kibble formula and in a wet canned formula. The dry formulas are available in a 3.5lb bag, a 7lb bag, and a large 15lb bag. Royal Canin has a different approach to cat food than some other cat food companies. This is because many of Royal Canin's cat food formulas are designed for cats that need to follow a “therapeutic diet”, or have specific health needs.
Royal Canin Dry Cat Food Review
The 21 different Royal Canin Cat Food formulas are each designed for different dietary needs. For example, there are four different Protein + Green Pea flavors that are designed to be used with a Limited Ingredient Diet. There are also two different Calorie Control formulas, one with higher fiber, and one with higher protein. Four different types of cat food are in the Early Care diet category, which are designed for growing younger cats. Hypoallergenic formula, Dental formula, Diabetic formula, Intestinal formula, Recovery formula and Urinary Tract formula are a few other types of Royal Canin cat foods that are designed for specific therapeutic diets.
Royal Canin Dry Cat Food comes in the follow 21 recipes:
- Royal Canin Growth DD 34 Cat Food
- Royal Canin Mature WK 28 Cat Food
- Royal Canin Young Adult YWS 34 Cat Food
- Royal Canin Young Male WS 38 Cat Food
- Royal Canin Calorie Control Formula CC 29 High Fiber Cat Food
- Royal Canin Calorie Control CC 38 High Protein Cat Food
- Royal Canin Control Formula Cat Food
- Royal Canin Dental DD 27 Cat Food
- Royal Canin Diabetic DS 44 Cat Food
- Royal Canin Green Peas and Duck Formula Limited Ingredient Diet Cat Food
- Royal Canin Green Peas and Lamb Formula Limited Ingredient Diet Cat Food
- Royal Canin Green Peas and Rabbit Limited Ingredient Diet Cat Food
- Royal Canin Green Peas and Venison Formula Limited Ingredient Diet Cat Food
- Royal Canin Hypoallergenic HP 23 Cat Food
- Royal Canin Intestinal HE 30 Cat Food
- Royal Canin Modified Formula Cat Food
- Royal Canin Renal LP 21 Cat Food
- Royal Canin Treats Cat Food
- Royal Canin Urinary SO 33 Cat Food
- Royal Canin Recovery RS Cat Food
Royal Canin Dry Cat Food Final Thoughts
General consumer opinion in regards to Royal Canin cat food is mixed. Since many of the formulas contain corn and corn-based products as one of the top five ingredients, some pet owners opt to avoid Royal Canin. Some cat owners have animals that have had bad allergic reactions to some of Royal Canin's cat food formulas, though this is fairly rare. However, some veterinarians will recommend certain Royal Canin cat food formulas for pets that have health problems.
Royal Canin Dry Cat Food Consumer Ratings
Have you ever bought and fed your cat Royal Canin Cat Food? If so, please take the time and let others know what you thought of Royal Canin Cat Food. Below is a ranking based on the price, ingredients and availability of Royal Canin Cat Food.
Royal Canin Dry Cat Food,
June 3rd, 2009 at 8:59 pm
As a breeder of Russian Blue Cats, I started out using Royal Canin. I slowly became disenchated as many of my cats seem to vomit up the food. It seems that breeders of other types of cats were having the same issue. I still use Royal Canin Baby Cat as it is the only food that has small enough kibble for 3 to 4 week old kittens. I use Science Diet Optimal Care for cats over 5 months and have seen improvement in their coats and condition over the Royal Canin product. I understand that Science Diet is coming out with a kibble for young kittens so I will probably switch to that when it is available.
June 13th, 2009 at 3:49 pm
I have a Russian Blue who is tearing his fur out. We have him on Advantage and he is still doing it. I want to change his food to something hypoallergenic to see it that works. Have you ever had this problem with your Russian Blue’s?
June 15th, 2009 at 5:56 am
My question is, my cat is on urinary SO wet and dry food. You changed the formula in the wet food, WHY? My cat does not like it now, and it is very pasty and dry. Why the change?
June 16th, 2009 at 12:03 pm
Why would anyone feed an obligate carnivore a dry food with a lot of grain products in it? While no single grain product may be the primary ingredient, when you add together the content total of several grain products or even two it will be the majority of their food source. Felines did not evolve to thrive on plant sourced proteins,foods and carbohydrates. The carbohydrate percentage of their foods is extremely high. Eating this type of diet usually leads to kidney problems, diabetes, and food allergies. This is not a species appropriate diet.
June 18th, 2009 at 7:36 am
I feed my Russian Blue with Royal Canin and i had no problems. She likes it very much and she never had any vomiting/fur problems. I am pretty satisfied with this brand of cat food.
July 9th, 2009 at 10:05 am
I started using their Hair and Skin sort when my cat had a mycosis and it just shocked me how her fur looked better while recovering from the mycosis than ever before. I’ve been buying their stuff for quite a long time. The only thing she likes more than Royal Canin kibbles is raw tuna and that’s why I’m gonna try for Acana Pacifica…that and its high-protein content.
July 10th, 2009 at 7:27 pm
My cat is a russian blue with tiger stripes because she is mixed with i guess a regular brinel cat. She has stomach problems. When she was put to sleep for her spaying they said her glands under her tongue were swollen. Funny thing is I didn’t send any cat food with her and they were feeding her Rabbit and Pea… she was on Purina Indoor Cat food. Well for forty bucks I feed her Rabbit and Pea and she still scratches but not as bad she scratches sores on her neck and head if i take her off Rabbit and Pea but with Rabbit and Pea she still scratches but with less scabs. I can’t find what she can eat…I am going back to the vet for an allergy test.
July 16th, 2009 at 7:56 pm
This is a high priced very poor quality food. Lots of corn….which cats do not tolerate well. Our cats did not do well on this food at all…so we switched to a much higher quality food…..and had excellent results. Would never recommend this food to anyone serious about what they actually feed their pets.
July 25th, 2009 at 2:13 pm
Urinary SO wet food formula must of changed…. my cat use to love it, now he hates it!!!! He loved the lighter colored formula… why the change Royal Canin? Now I have to look into other products to help treat my cats urinary problems.
August 6th, 2009 at 7:07 am
You used my comments for your benefit, but I never received an answer to my question about Royal Canin SO food changing. Why did you change the formula? I would like an answer please. Joan Needelman
August 7th, 2009 at 5:23 am
Joan,
I am neither a sponsor or a representative of Royal Canin. If you would like to get a hold of them you could probably do so by visiting this website:http://www.royalcanin.us/contact/default.aspx
Thanks,
Sean Green
August 18th, 2009 at 2:11 pm
I’m glad that the information on here is about Russian Blues. I just adopted one and was going to feed him the Royal Canin. I guess now I won’t. I don’t think that I want to put him through that. We have him on Blue Buffalo Organic Chicken and Brown rice and he loves it. We eat organic, so he eats organic. Wouldn’t have it any other way.
September 3rd, 2009 at 12:05 am
We have a persian and he is on royal canin persian. He throws up every day and appears not to chew his food, which is one of the goals of why it is shaped the way it is. I wouldnt reccommend this food for persians.
September 4th, 2009 at 7:27 pm
My 13 year old cat started scratching her face and neck, then started pulling her hair off the back of her tail. It turned out to be food allergies. She is allergic to corn, chicken and salmon. Current food (wet and dry) that she does well on is Duck and Pea, Rabbit and Pea, and Venison. Brands are Natural Balance and we are just now trying Royal Canin(Rabbit and Pea).
September 15th, 2009 at 3:57 pm
I have a 10 year old persian and over the past 2 weeks he has been throwing up his Royal Canin Urinary S/O after eating it. Along with the poster above when he is eating he seems to bite it and spit little pieces back out. He receives Natures Balance Chicken & Green Peas wet food during the day, no problems there, free feeds at night and morning on the dry S/O and this is when he pukes. I am switching his dry food to Natures Balance, no byproducts or grains, will continue his wet, and see what happens.
October 11th, 2009 at 11:14 pm
Why are there so many varieties?
Are there different kinds of mice specifically for every different age and breed of cat?
This food is a complete scam. Lousy ingredients, a ridiculous number of types, and a big price tag.
I got a free coupon for this stuff out of Cat Fancy last year. My cats mostly eat Evo but I thought since RC was so expensive it might be ok for a snack. Then I got to the store and saw the ingredients. I think it’s a bit better than Science Diet, but that’s not saying much.
Price is definitely not the best way to tell if a food is really good. You can get much better cat food for the same price or less. The ingredients are what really matter.
My cats range in age from 13 to 1.5 years and yet they all thrive on the same food. All the excess varieties accomplish is to confuse loving cat owners and trick them into believing that their corn-kibble is worth the cost.
December 25th, 2009 at 10:01 pm
When my cat was diagnosed as a diabetic, they prescribed him the Royal Canin Veterinary Diet formula for diabetic cats. He wouldn’t touch it. Then the vet said just to feed him whatever, since he had to eat. We got a second opinion, and he was placed on Purina Veterinary Diet, which he loved, and our other 4 cats would try to sneak bites out of his bowl when we weren’t looking. This stuff is crap for its price.
January 9th, 2010 at 9:42 pm
Am getting a new kitten in a few weeks… Ragdoll. Breeder recommends Royal Canin, as she will have been on it, for the kitten kibble. Now, I really would like suggestions as to what cat foods are the best, nutritionally, as I have used Science Diet, and Iams, but from what I am reading, neither of these are recommended as truly good nutrition. Can anyone help me figure this out?
January 9th, 2010 at 11:18 pm
Hi Gail,
Congratulations on your new kitten! Ragdolls are beautiful cats! There are a number of brands what are much better than the ones your mentioned. A few brands to consider are Evo, Castor and Pollux, and Solid Gold. There are a number of other brands that are also of high quality. Like many things in life you get what you pay for and cat food is no exception, but when you consider the money saved on vet bills, high quality food is a no brainer. Best of luck, and please feel free to ask more questions if you have any!
January 20th, 2010 at 11:51 am
We were using Medi-cal CR. Which when they bought Medi-cal they completely changed and my cats wont eat. So then we tried mature which was completely different but my cats liked. Then they just changed the mature too. I am getting extremely frustrated with this company. You cant rely on them.
January 27th, 2010 at 8:51 am
my 14 mo siamese cat has had problems with scratchung,hair loss and vomiting,this in the beginning was only food i could get him to eat,he loved it! now after 10 mos on it,he is sick,now iam looking to find a better quality food for him,iam upset as i thought i was giving him a quality food,instead it just made him sick!
January 31st, 2010 at 7:42 am
I agree with Wendy and don’t trust Medi-Cal (Royal Canin) anymore. My 2 older cats used to eat the dry Medi-Cal Mature and liked it, but for some reason, RC changed the food, and subsequently, my cats refused it. I contacted RC and they said that the only change they’d made was to the shape of the kibble, and hadn’t changed the food itself. Oh really? I know cats can be fussy, but…
We tried the canned Medi-Cal Mature, which my girls ate once or twice, but without much enthusiasm, after which they refused that too. Stuck with several extra cans of this stuff, I put it out for the 3 stray cats we care for, and even they refused to eat it! Enough said.
March 9th, 2010 at 11:27 am
I fed my Persian on Medi-Cal Adult and then Mature and he loved it for 10 years. Now that Royal Canin has bought the company my cat has been sick every day that he has eaten this food. The vet put him on Royal Canin Allergy formula and he is no longer sick but hates the taste so much he barely eats. I just don’t know what else to give the poor little guy. He has lost 2 lbs so far.
I live in Canada can anyone recommend a tasty good dry cat food for an older Persian of 13 years of age.
Thanks for any help offered.
May 7th, 2010 at 7:12 pm
I would avoid using any cat food that contains corn in it because there is a 95% chance that it is GMO corn,which is one way for sure for your pet to have problems in life, if you want your pet to live a healthy long life & humans too, stay away from anything with Corn, Soy or Canola unless it Cert. Organic. , i found that EVO 95% Chicken & Turkey with no grains canned cat food is the best for my cats.
May 9th, 2010 at 12:19 am
I have number of cats in house. First I was feeding them with ShowCat. I noticed several cats had bad reactions. Then I changed to Whiskas, but that brand resulted in allergic reactions and dull hair coat. After giving Royal Canin their health seems very good. This is a great cat food compared to Venky’s Showcat, BB, and Whiskas. Go for it. I am using Royal Canin’s fit32 and Kittens36.
May 10th, 2010 at 10:23 pm
I recently had to put my 3 year old cat on the RC Urinary SO formula 30 because of a FLUTD diagnosis. He LOVES the taste of it and enjoys it even more than his old food (Nutro Natural Choice Adult). I like it because I do feel it is a bit Better than Science Diet, but I would rather him eating his old food because it was much better Quality. I feed my other two young cats the RC Dental DD as a treat to help with tooth heath. They like the taste of it and I have to keep it tucked away or they will chew through the bag to get at it. Again, I had considered Science Diet TD, but I feel RC has a slightly better nutritional value. My youngest cat eats Blue Buffalo Weight Control. It has a very good nutritional content as well, although I agree with earlier statements that cats should not have as much grain in their diets. I wish that there was an all Meat Dry Diet. I have found that By Nature makes canned food that is primarily meat and actually smells like food I would eat myself (if it were not cat food that is). My cats like it, but it is pricey costing around $1.59 per can.
If any one knows a a good quality Fish flavored canned food that would be suitable for a Hyperthyroid 18 year old cat I would be open to suggestions. He likes fish, and most senior formulas I find are lamb and rice flavored.
June 17th, 2010 at 6:31 pm
I think it is really funny how every pet owner assumes they know more than veterinary medical professionals. I am a vet tech and I know what knowledge, testing and ingredient trials go into high quality pet foods. And by high quality I am talking about Hills and Medi-cal. These are the HIGHEST quality foods. There are very specific reasons they use the ingredients they use and those who buy into the lies of holistic and organic foods are being conned. No research is being done on these food and thus we do not know what they are really doing to our pets bodies. Don’t assume you know more than a Vet profession and do realize that the labels on bags can be deceiving. For example….a food can claim to be holistic just by having 1 holistic ingredient. Educate yourselves and quit acting like you are a pet food specialist!!!
July 26th, 2010 at 9:42 am
In response to Leah’s comments. We certainly do not think we know more than the vets, however we live with our cats all the time, we feed and care for them like our children. This means that we notice on a daily basis how our cats are doing, and if they start to throw up, ignore their food we take them to the vet. When they say there’s nothing wrong we assume it’s the food. We change their food and they are fine!! Nothing to do with discounting the vet’s opinions. EVERYTHING to do with paying attention and giving the best care we can, to our cats who, like people, have definite individual needs.
July 29th, 2010 at 8:05 pm
This is so hard. I have six indoor cats. Three are 12 years, one is 16 years and two are 13 years. They are changing at different rates and they have developed aging issues that require creating new routines for them. They are much more individual now in terms of needs so food has become a huge issue. California Naturals seems to be working well with three of the cats – dry food, chicken and rice. But two of the others is constipated and I am sure I have to change their food. I bought a bag of Royal canin indoor mature dry and they like it but all these reviews are disconcerting. This is really hard on me because I feel like I just can’t trust anyone regarding the health of our animals.
August 16th, 2010 at 8:56 am
We have 7 indoor special needs kitties. They are all R.C. lovers. At the end of June I purchased a bag of #34. The date on the bag was “use by Dec. 2010.” They ate it as normal. After a day they started getting sick. Everyone reacted. I returned the bag to the store and got a bag of 35/30 which I give them when I can’t get #34. They had no problem with it. A few weeks ago I got a new bag of #34. This time they refuse to eat it. I fed it to the outside cats. Now I have noticed they are throwing up after they eat it. I looked at the date which stated “use by 01292011.” What is going on? When I went to the store to get more none of it was on the shelf. This is at Petsmart, not a small store. I was told the truck would be in the next day. When I returned there still wasn’t any new R.C. foods. So then I went online and the place I ordered it from had only 3 left. Why?
I have kitties that need to have a steady diet. When they don’t get their food on time they have health problems. I never leave the food out all day. Long ago I found that the water dish needs to be a room away. That way they don’t eat a lot of food, then overloaded on water and getting sick.
I lost a cat to Nutro several years ago, and I sure don’t what a repeat of that. Has anyone else had this problem?
October 28th, 2010 at 7:10 am
I recently changed my cat food from Royal Canine to a less expensive but better quality food. I was very surprised when my BIG cat who I thought had a thyroid problem began to slim down and became much more active and looks like a normal cat now. I realized that for over a year he had an allergy to something in this food. Anyone experience this?
November 5th, 2010 at 4:32 pm
How does Royal Canin cat food compare to Iams? I have a russian blue hair who is now having problems with Iams Iriginal Chicken cat food. He has problems with any cat food that contains fish but the original Iams worked best for him. Was there a recall on Iams dry original with chicken? Went to store and they recommended Authority cat food.
November 25th, 2010 at 6:45 pm
My cat Kitty is 10 years old. He had developed crystals when he was young so I’ve had him on Urinary S/O. I noticed he would vomit and 99% of the time the food was whole and there were huge hairballs in it. I told the Vet and was told it was his hairballs that make him vomit and they sold me some Vitalax to help him get rid of the hairballs. In addition he has a yeast buildup that looks like dandruff in his skin. Could I have been blind sided into believing it was hairballs and not the cat food? I thought for the price and with the professional telling me it was the best food that he must be right. Then tonight I stopped by a pet store and the owner showed me a holistic food where I can pronounce every ingredient. I’m stuck between wanting to try the new food but being scared that his crystals may return.
November 29th, 2010 at 4:43 am
RE: RC canned and dry cat food…SO for urinary control/problems
My Vet just recommended this cat food after my cat’s surgery to remove spur stones from its bladder. It costs $1.59 per can, ouch! However I’m confused about the ingredients as I’ve read about cat conditions on (reputable) sites, and for this problem they say you should feed your cat a diet with high protein, low magnesium, no fish, and no corn/wheat. Royal Canin cat food has grains! So, what is a cat owner to do? Should I listen to my vet, or what? My cat loved the Friskies Special Diet for urinary control (.40 per can) but my Vet said it would not be “reliable” but probably “okay.”
Has anyone had luck with Hills CD for Multicare? Why do they all have so many grains if it’s not good for our cats?
December 13th, 2010 at 9:06 am
Hi, I have a 5yr old flamepoint persian. He is on Medical HP formula. He does not eat much of it and now is developing feline acne. I am concerned that this HP food is the cause. One of the main ingredients is chicken and I feel this may be the problem. I also notice that his dish, which is metal, every other day I wash it as there seems to be alot of grease or oil residue left from his food. At this point I am not sure if I am creating this annoyance for my cat. The vet assures me that this is the best food for him. I am leary on changing his food, as when I first brought him home it was a nightmare switching foods. He became very ill even though I gradually added the Royal Canin into his existing food. Does anyone have any suggestions on a better quality cat food?
December 13th, 2010 at 9:08 am
Nell, what kind of food did you switch your cat to? At this point I am at a loss.
December 17th, 2010 at 2:07 pm
I have always fed my cats organic food, however my cat had to be put to sleep in June because of urinary problems. Now my current cat (7months old) has developed crystals and had a blockage which required expensive emergency surgery. My vet has put him on medical urinary. So, while I agree the ingredients aren’t as good as previous organic foods, he is on the diet for a reason. The ingredients that are in it will prevent him from getting crystals, and as far as I’m concerned I trust my vet. He is the one who knows the ins and outs of animal health and my cat eats the food without a problem. It is however really expensive for the canned food!
December 21st, 2010 at 6:46 am
My Norwegian forest cat was diagnosed with urinary tract crystals and a blockage. I was feeding him Blue Diamond Dry cat food as well as a quality wet food. He’s fine now, but I want to do everything possible to prevent these problems from reoccurring. Any suggestions? He is currently on a special diet from the vet.In addition I’m mixing it with Royal Canin Special 33 and Hills Science Diet to help correct this problem. Also I bought a water fountain in hopes that he would drink more but it’s a joke. None of my cats like to drink from it. Any suggestions would be welcome!
Thanks,
Mark Buffalo, NY
December 30th, 2010 at 5:57 pm
Wow. I switched to Royal Canin cat food from Iams about a month ago and have been nothing but pleased. Before, my Russian Blue would break the pieces on the floor, now she does not. Her coat looks a little better and her litter box doesn’t smell as bad. No throwing up or any negative side effects.
So far so good.
January 8th, 2011 at 1:48 pm
I have been fairly pleased with Royal Canin. We’ve fed our 3 males Science Diet Adult for many years but with the new addition of a female kitten, we’ve switched their canned food to Royal Canin. They really love it. We still feed Science Diet dry food but I’m thinking of switching them to Royal Canin dry food. I have no complaints about Royal Canin.
January 19th, 2011 at 7:04 pm
Ive switched to Royal Canin #30 for Persion about 2 months ago and my 9 year old female Himalayan seems to love it, but she has lost a ton of weight and is just skin and bones now. She was 7.8lbs but is now down to 4.3lbs! Ive spent a ton of money at the vet, blood work, x-rays, and cant find anything wrong with her. Is it the food? Help!
January 27th, 2011 at 10:20 am
Cats and dogs become allergic to proteins. If they are allergic to corn it’s the protein part of the corn that they are allergic to. Corn starch is the carbohydrate part of the corn and pets would not have an allergy to that. So it’s important to remember that while grains and corns get a bad rap it’s the protein that is the offending nutrient. The most common food allergens in pets are chicken and beef. Also, in order for a pet to be allergic to an ingredient, the pet must have been ingesting that ingredient in the past. Remember that veterinarians went through at least 8 years of school and they are the ones that I would take nutritional advise from. Also each veterinarian is required to complete a certain number of continuing education hours each year to stay on top of changes in medicine and animal heatlh.
January 27th, 2011 at 11:48 pm
We have had a cat for 10 years now and he has had a number of stomach issues. He is on medication and I have tried almost every cat food on earth. Believe it or not, he is doing fine with a superstore brand that is 1/4 of the cost of anything from the vet. My husband and I are on pensions and we just cannot afford to spent $3.00 on one can of cat food and $30 for a small bag of dry food. I have switched the wet to the stuff I described above and we use a good quality dry from a small pet store.
I am sick and tired of paying a fortune for cat food from the vet. There must be a huge kick back because every single solitary vet has a huge display of cat and dog food in their offices. Enough already, use a cat food from a pet store or even a grocery store that your cat likes and be done with it. Once when our cat would not eat and we were getting deperate the vet said to feed him fancy feast if that was what he wanted. Bingo, he started eating and he was fine.
I wonder how many other people out there that do adore their pets are just sick and tired of spending a fortune on food that I bet is not a whole lot different than the stuff sold in the local grocery store.
February 24th, 2011 at 8:55 am
Hey guys. I’m from Malaysia. I don’t know why there are so many bad reviews on Royal Canin products here. Based on my experience, I fed my Gizmo Snugglepuss Science Diet at first but he had diarrhea after that. We switched to Royal Canin Fit 32 (recommended by few vets here) and Gizmo didn’t have probs after that. He loved it. The litter box not so smelly (it’s still a poo so don’t expect lemon scented waste here). The only prob started after 6 months on Fit 32, his fur start falling. We checked with the vets and switched to Avoderm, Acana & Fish4Cats but still the same. Then I changed to Royal Canin Hair & Coat 33. Surprisingly after two weeks or so, Gizmo’s fur was back to normal condition. He loved the food even more. In my opinion, maybe there are no ‘perfect’ or ‘the best’ cat food on the shelves. It’s down to the feline’s compatibility to accept the food or not. And also the feline’s surroundings. I have a neighbor who feeds her cats Whiskas & Friskies and they still look gorgeous and healthy till today.
March 11th, 2011 at 3:28 pm
I have a 4 year old (runt) maine coon mut mix that is about 7lbs or so who has eaten Royal Canin her whole life with the exception of a few experimental changes that did not work out. My wife and I started with kitten formula milk because she was so young (4 weeks maybe), and at $7.00 a can that stuff was expensive and went quick!
We then switched to royal canine kitten kibble which was terrific for our baby. She had a beautiful coat and was very happy with her food. Once she passed the kitten stage, we moved on to the maine coone variety of royal canin’s food. The kibble seemed excessively large at first (same size as my 50LB beagle mix’s kibble), but our kitten adapted well and has loved her Royal Canin maine coone food for about 3 1/2 years now. I give her 1/2 Cup per day and she conserves her bowl of food very well to where she isn’t waking my wife and I up in the middle of the night for another feeding like some other “experimental foods” we’ve tried.
The experimental foods we’ve tried have been Science Diet and Blue Buffalo brand. She ate her 1/2 Cup of food in less than half a day and was whining for more by waking us up in the middle of the night which was a real inconvenience for both us and our kitty. I immediately took that garbage food back to Petsmart and requested a refund to purchase our Royal Canin maine coon brand, and our kitty was right back to normal after her first feeding. Every kitty is different than another so what may work well for one kitty may not work well for another. For my kitty this food has been outstanding, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything else on the market.
I tried science diet also and that stuff is total garbage! My kitty burned through 1 Cup a day of that stuff and was still whining for more. If she was getting a holistic meal, I doubt she would still be whining after double the dose of her standard feeding of royal canin maine coon. I’m a lifelong supporter of royal canin’s maine coon variet. I even had a Blue Buffalo sales rep approach me in a Petsmart (first time ever in 10 years of pet food shopping) who suggested I try his brand of food. After hearing his sales shpeal, I grabbed my Royal Canin and bumped out. My cat went totally crazy on Blue Buffalo, and I will never try their brand again.
By the way, my kitty’s stool is solid and healthy every single day as well as very regular. Did I mention she’s beautiful? As I said, some foods are good for some but not others. This food is the best for my kitty and she will continue to get it. When I see science diet going for half the price of my Royal Canin maine coon I wonder where they’re cutting costs to deprive their consumers of a quality product, and you should too.
March 17th, 2011 at 9:08 pm
I have a cat who is allergic to chicken. I’ve tried every type of cat food there is, and the only one that agrees with him is Royal Canin’s Lamb and Pea formula. Today my vet told me that Royal Canin is discontinuing their Lamb and Pea formula. Has anyone else heard this rumor? I am at a loss on what to feed my eight year old cat. He’s been doing great on the lamb, but now I have to find something he will eat. He is the most finicky cat I’ve ever known. He won’t even eat certain lot numbers of the Lamb and Pea from Royal Canin, he smells it and just walks away. When he eats anything with fowl in it, he gets ear and skin infections. He’s already had both ears cut and drained from the allergies to chicken. He ate Hills CD for five years before the Lamb and Pea.
April 5th, 2011 at 2:17 pm
I was given a bag of science diet when I first got my kitty, and the minute I switch her to Royal Canine she left science diet alone. I read all about Science Diet’s recall and reviews since then and never went back to them. Since then, after reading so many recalls on many different branded products, I have started to mix 4 plus types of kibbles (free feeding; since she is a kitten) plus a can of wet daily. I still love my royal canine as base (her fur is like a bunny’s), while mixing it with Taste of the wild, Avoderm & Max Nutro with Wellness occasionally thrown in. The main reason for mixing kibbles that is since I am not “God”; I cannot predict which brand will be on recall for either contamination (SC eg.) or Vitamin deficiencies (Wellness), or for some other problems.
Mixing the kibbles will ensure she does not eat a solo brand that is lacking in something (and get sick from Vitamin deficiency) or get a huge dose of contaminates a.k.a. poison from a singular brand that she has no choice but to eat. If she is hungry and that food don’t smell right, she can choose to pick out the good kibbles and not to eat the bad ones. Mixing kibbles also ensures my kitty from being bored from just one brand, albeit it is a little on the expensive side, but my kitty has firm stools to prove her diet is good for her, and a TDF coat plus that of her health.
So I truly believe in little different meals the way of the cats in the wild, and the variety that will give the kitty bodies what they need to sustain their health. I like Royal Canine, but it is but only one of the brands I like.
April 17th, 2011 at 9:40 am
Sorry this is long. I live with 7 DSH-mixed kitties from 17 years to 8 months who do extremely well on Royal Canin food. I worked with a vet that recommended Science Diet, so my 15 and 10 year female spayed kitties spent much of their lives on that food. A couple years ago, I started working with a vet that recommended Royal Canin. I tried the adult food, both loved it, and I noticed a considerable improvement in their coats. My roommate’s 5 year old and my 3 year old male neutered kitties have problems with urinary crystals and UTIs but do extremely well on Urinary S/O. My roommate’s FS 1 year old and my MN 8 month old have been on Royal Canin for their entire lives and have been very healthy. I’m the type of owner that does yearly or semiannual blood work on all pets, and besides some congenital kidney issues in the 3 yo, all are doing well.
In the last week, the 3 youngest were exposed to a toxin and stopped eating. All are doing as well as can be expected on a Royal Canin Recovery/water slurry.
I don’t have a lot of knowledge of how purebred cats do on RC. My kitties have tried: Baby Cat, Kitten, Urinary S/O, Recovery, Adult, Mature, and Adult Fit 32, and the bottom line is: based on personal experience I recommend this brand in a heartbeat.
But, all animals are different. Be wary of anyone who denounces all foods in favor of one. I’m a vet assistant and have met pets that do awesome on grocery store food or table scraps, and ones who do poorly on vet recommended or organic or holistic foods. This is what I tell all of my clients: “Know your pet.” We recommend certain food because studies tell us that most pets do well on those foods, yes, even those with grain and corn. There aren’t many studies on some of the newer organic foods but that’s no indication of good/poor quality. Judge foods individually based on how your pet is doing: Does he eat the food? Is his coat/skin healthy? Does he have normal bowel movements? Does he have any medical conditions/allergies? Is he over/under weight? Do yearly blood work (even on young cats) if you can afford it. Ultimately, feed your cat what he does best on whether Uta’s vet recommended, holistic, or grocery store.
April 17th, 2011 at 10:02 am
I was given an open bag of Royal Canin Adult Indoor Cat food to try by a friend who had fed it to her Abyssinian. She said she mixed it with regular dry food without consequences, and that it was intended to help with hairballs. Our black & white American short hair immediately started throwing up all her food when we tried to feed it to her. After a few weeks we tried just putting a little in with her regular food, but she threw it all up. I came looking online for information about the food and found this web site, which reinforces that others have the same experience with this food. Certainly, I would not recommend it. We have the best luck with cheaper brands like Meow Mix for indoor cats or Deli Cat.
April 20th, 2011 at 11:27 pm
My 4 years old cat has been on Royal Canin from day one. I started with the development brand as a kitten now she’s on preventative. I myself found she has done extremely well on Royal Canin, but I am not denouncing peoples claims. A good point which I read here is that every cat is different. Her checkups are excellent. She’s vibrant full of energy and she loves the food very much so for me if it is not broke why fix it? She gets the blood work done, and my vet says she is doing very well. I also started comparing ingredients and found minor differences.
One thing also I read repeatedly that if you care for your animal you feed them the best. That’s great, but some seem to me too be pompous about that. I love my cat as much as anyone. The term “organic” is often used like an “I am better then you” attitude. It is a great word if only it was always true. Did you know that some organic farms still us natural pesticides which is okay unless they use synthetic also. The USA, Canada, and Australia have regulations that food only needs to be 95 percent to be organic. 5 percent of the food can be non organic and still be legally deemed an organic product. So unless you do all the research of each ingredient of the product you purchase, or ask if they can tell you where they received it from a list that would state the farm, and how they made that product you can’t really know how good it really is. So the lesson here do your own research. Find out what best choice for your pet is. Also when switching food start with a third of a cup mixed with the old food. It should take about a month before you switch completely from one food to another. I wish you all the best of luck!