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Does anyone have experience with feeding Halo to their kitten?

(12 posts)
  • Started 3 months ago by Theresa
  • Latest reply from furryfriends50
  1. So I took Turbo to the Vet and the Vet said that he's healthy and is just adjusting to the new enviroment. I told him about his dirrehea and throw up, so the Vet thinks that for now Turbo has an extremely sensitive stomach (I hope he won't be so in the long run). Turbo was prescribed Science Hill Prescription Diet I/d feline. I tried feeding some of it with parts of the old food and Turbo does not like it and still threw up ( I know how to slowly switch from one food brand to another gradually so that's not the problem).

    I had a coupon for Halo products online so I bought a bag of the Spot's Stew Sensitive Cat Wholesome Turkey dry food, and was thinking of getting the canned food at the pet store soon. I read good reviews mostly about the brand and its digestibility with cats. But I also read reviews about how many cats doesn't like the taste and wont touch it. I am afraid that he won't like it if it smells too healthy. Some reviewers also did not like the ingredients in it as much as other holistic brands because of its high veg contents. What do you guys think of Halo cat food?

    Posted 3 months ago by Theresa #

  2. FF50 is the person to talk to, she has a vast knowledge on kitty foods! Hopefully she'll come on later tonight and see this.

    Have you been trying any of the suggestions about luring Pepper if he's still in the neighbourhood? I'm glad to hear Turbo is fine, but sorry to hear about his sensitive wee stomach. How's the litter box training going?

    Posted 3 months ago by jcat #

  3. It could be that Turbo can't handle something in the ingrediants, a few of mine can't handle anything with corn or soy. Mikey was my biggest problem, and the vet kept saying try this science diet formula and that other one...once i stopped listening to them after learning how bad science diet was and switched him to Taste of the Wild and Natural Balance dry foods (he also eats fancy feast and authority wet as his main food) he never threw up again.

    I think that Halo has too many veggies/fruits and not nearly enough meat, cats are obligate carnivores and they must eat meat to thrive. The first ingrediant in Halo i believe is turkey, after processing it would become the 5th or 6th ingrediant.

    ingrediants: Turkey, Eggs, Pea Protein, Oats, Pearled Barley, Vegetable Broth, Chicken Fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid), Whole Peas, Turkey Liver, Salmon, Flax Seed, Salmon Oil (preserved with mixed tocopherols), Pea Fiber, Sweet Potatoes, Apples, Blueberries, Green Beans, Carrots, Cranberries, Zucchini, Alfalfa, Inulin, Calcium Sulfate, Potassium Chloride, Taurine, Salt, Vitamins (Folic Acid, Vitamin A Supplement, Vitamin D3
    Supplement, Vitamin E Supplement, Choline Bitartrate, Niacin, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Ascorbic Acid, Riboflavin Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Biotin), Minerals (Zinc Proteinate, Iron Proteinate, Cobalt Proteinate, Copper Proteinate, Manganese Proteinate, Calcium Iodate, Sodium Selenite), Lactobacillus acidophilus, Bifidobacterium longum, Enterococcus faecium, Lactobacillus plantarum.

    Too me it looks like something with way to much veggies/fruits. it has 30% carbs which would mean one fat cat if fed over time. it is low protein (since most of the protein comes from the peas etc) and fairly low fat. cats need protein and fat, the more the better.

    some foods that agree with my cats stomaches and i think are very good are

    -Taste of the Wild
    -Nature's Variety Instinct
    -Wellness CORE
    -EVO
    -Kirkland
    -Orijen
    -Natural Balance

    most of those companies i think would send you a sample to try, or you could get a sample from a pet store.

    if he would eat wet food that would be much better, as dry food dehydrates cats, and wet food has the right amount of moisture and is much more natural. I have been feeding the Raw diet for quite a while and mine all love to eat the meat and actually chew. they are also much healthier.

    Posted 3 months ago by furryfriends50 #

  4. Hi there-

    I am new to this forum and I saw your post. I just got my kitten 6 weeks ago and have been feeding her Halo dry food. I feed her natural balance can food in the am and let her free feed on the Halo for the rest of the day. She LOVES it. I mix the salmon and chicken flavors for her so it is very tasty. I have never seen a kitten eat so much before. she is four months old. Hope this helps!!!

    Posted 3 months ago by lioness1 #

  5. My kids love Halo and they will do anything for the freeze dried chicken treats

    Posted 3 months ago by spanky_mouse #

  6. These are excellent websites on feline nutrition. I am currently feeding my babies organic wet food, but having read 'Raising cats naturally' by Michelle Bernard: http://www.blakkatz.com - go to 'Natural Diet' on the website) I am convinced. I recommend this book thoroughly to any cat person.

    This is the awful truth about commercial cat food, 'big name' and other brands:
    http://www.bornfreeusa.org/facts.php?p=359&more=1

    I am switching to a raw diet with my 2 girls in the next month. I expect the health benefits to be enormous. I couldn't quite imagine doing the whole thing, grinding up bone and organs etc, specially with working all day, so I've found an excellent compromise, ie, adding the necessary nutrients and vitamins to raw meat: http://www.felinefuture.com

    I'm on a soap box, I know it, but I feel strongly about this. I think we are duped, like in so many areas, by money-spinning big companies, and drug companies who are kept in business by vets. It's a vicious circle, and I would like to step out of that particular loop. I would also like to see my cats live long and joyous lives, without such ridiculously regular visits to the vet.

    Posted 3 months ago by eleniki #

  7. FurryFriend, I am delighted to read your post, and congratulations on making the transition to Raw.

    Posted 3 months ago by eleniki #

  8. thanks elenniki. i love feeding raw and seeing them eat real food that i actually get to know what went into it. personally i don't feed ground meat, i feed raw chunks which i feel is the best way to go. benifits i have noticed when feeding raw:

    -they lost their extra fat and have way more muscles
    -they way more, but are much slimmer (i think that they wiegh more because the have gotten much more fit and muscles do way a bit).
    -running around wildly after and before eating
    -softer fur and much shinier
    -no flea dirt so i think that would mean no fleas, and no earmites anymore.
    -much cleaner teeth, they are very white and breath doesn't stink really at all anymore
    -much better immune systems
    -a few of mine all the sudden had growthspurts, the ones that did were between 1-2 years old
    -eat less and much less poo

    i have to use 2.5 pounds of meat a night so all of mine can get a few ounces, if i were to feed all raw i would be using around 4 pounds. i still feed wet but only a few pieces of dry to try and up the calories because i few of the more feral cats in the haymow weren't getting enough food since the others were eating it all, so now i feed on 15 differant plates (there are 10 cats up there) and put raw down first. once the raw is gone i put about 2 oz of wet on the plate with a few pieces of very high calorie kibble (right now it is EVO). next batch of raaw i think i will up to three pounds of meat/bones/organs i want to slowly get to all raw. it is much cheaper to feed raw (about $1.50 less a day).

    Posted 3 months ago by furryfriends50 #

  9. No, I don't intend to feed ground meat - I would not feel confident about bacteria in it. And the chunks mean that their fangs get the exercise I know my miso is longing for (she chews on anything she can get, from telephone receiver extensions to cardboard, so I know her teeth are aching for a good chew). I'm heartened to hear it ends up being cheaper to feed raw too! The organic food I buy costs quite a lot. And also delighted to hear they will lose weight, as miso, who's only 11 months, has a little wodge of jelly-like fat on her lower belly, almost between her back legs! She's asthmatic, and I'm also hoping the raw diet will have benefits on her asthma, which was triggered by an allergic reaction to corn litter when she was only 5 months old. My kitten is still skinny as anything, but I look forward to rearing them from so young on raw meat. Have you read Raising Cats Naturally then?

    Posted 3 months ago by eleniki #

  10. i haven't read that one yet but i want too...normally i just get what i can through the library, but they don't have that one though i could order it and they would get it from somewhere else.

    i've read this one: http://www.amazon.com/Your-Cat-Simple-Secrets-Stronger/dp/0312358016

    and Whole Health For Happy Cats, i also want to read this: http://www.amazon.com/Natural-Cat-Comprehensive-Guide-Optimum/dp/0452289750/ref=pd_sim_b_2

    i also am a member of some raw feeding forums and get am in the yahoo raw feed cat group.

    Posted 3 months ago by furryfriends50 #

  11. FF...am I missing something? What is the difference between 'Raw' & 'Ground', other than the obvious? Are you talking about meats like sirloin,or, is the meat straight from the butcher? What would be the difference in cutting up a sirloin steak as compared to ground beef?

    Posted 3 months ago by feral #

  12. whole chunks of meat they get to chew, which is healthier for them and makes their teeth much cleaner. i get meat from the grocery store, they butcher the animals themselves and will sometimes give me the less appealing looking cuts that they can't sell to people just because they are good enough looking. ground from a grocery store you also have to worry about the bacteria from the grinder and what the grinder was used for last, also how clean they keep it.

    also none of mine will touch ground now that they know how to chew. it is easy to feed whole chunks of meat since then each cat can go off to where ever they want to eat, they just grap a chunk of meat and go eat it.

    i get meats like steaks when it is on sale and stock up. i feed pork but freeze it for three weeks first. chicken is the cheapest and i generally use the thighs and breasts (breasts i like because of the ribs which are easy bones). turkey drumsticks are their favorite food. i also feed lots of heart, i get whole beef heart for pretty cheap, and have figured out how to recongize the differant organs since the grocery store i typically use just has "giblet packs" and puts whatever into them. generally they have some with all hearts, some with all livers, and some with all kidneys.

    grinding the meat also can greatly reduce the amount of taurine. the darker the meat/most worked it is means the highest amount of taurine. whole meat chunks have way more taurine than ground even if it is the same type of meat. hearts are very high in taurine while chicken breasts are very low. so days that they get chicken breasts they also get two chicken hearts per cat.

    Posted 3 months ago by furryfriends50 #


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