Published by: Ingrid King. Last Updated on: January 3, 2023 by Crystal Uys
I don’t usually accept food and treats for review here on The Conscious Cat, unless it’s something I’ve already thoroughly researched and/or tried. I won’t use Allegra and Ruby as product testers for diets whose claims I can’t verify. For those reasons, I was hesitant to try Freshpet Select, but after taking a look at their information, I agreed to a test.
Freshpet Select is a line of freshly prepared meals. According to the company, each recipe only includes select ingredients like high protein meats and eggs, and vegetables. The cat food contains no grains, although it does contain some pea fiber. As Freshpet Select states on their website, the recipe is much like a meal you would prepare for your family with simple ingredients you are familiar with and can pronounce.
The nutritional composition closely resembles raw food when it comes to protein and moisture content. The food is minimally processed, batch-cooked and quickly cooled to eliminate any harmful bacteria or parasites. The products undergo pasteurization just like milk or cold cuts. The company states that their food is mostly sourced from the US and Canada, and that their poultry is USDA inspected.
The texture of the food is a little odd. It’s shaped like dry kibble, but it’s softer. It actually almost looks and feels like stuffing! (Apparently, I’m already in a Thanksgiving state of mind.)
I gave Allegra and Ruby a small amount of the Real Chicken Recipe with Carrots and Spinach. Ruby dove right in and finished her portion without coming up for air. Allegra was hesitant at first, but eventually ate most of her portion. I gave a second bag of the food to a friend who wanted to try it with one of her cats, and it was extremely well received. The little cat purred while eating!
This may be a better choice than grain-free canned food since it is less processed. It could be a good option for rotational feeding, alternating with raw and grain-free canned food, and it may be a good solution for finicky eaters.
Freshpet Select is available in select grocery stores and pet stores. For more information about Freshpet, and a store locator, please visit their website.
FTC disclosure: This food was sent to me for review by the manufacturer. I received no compensation for this review. All reviews on The Conscious Cat will always reflect my honest opinion, or, as the case may be, Allegra and Ruby’s honest opinion.Â
About the author
Ingrid King is an award-winning author, former veterinary hospital manager, and veterinary journalist who is passionate about cats.
Just tried giving my kitty some Freshpet Tender Chicken this morning for the first time, and she backed away from her dish like it was going to attack. ??? She’s usually not finicky about anything, but so far, she just ain’t havin’ it. Anyone else get this reaction?
I usually add a bit of hot water, then mash with a fork. This makes it a bit more recognizable. The initial smell of a freshly opened bag is kinda nasty, that may also be what it’s reacting to.
Hi,none of my 6 cats will eat it.
Have you tried First Mate chicken or turkey?
Hi, my cats won’t touch it either.
Made my cat sick, nausea and constipation so bad I was afraid my kitty was going to DIE!
Same exact reaction. Both cats are acting like there is something poisonous in the food. I was so excited about it because I had a cat with gallstones blockage in bile duct and she finally healed. I researched enough to know grain is very bad for gallstone reduction. So i was excited when I found grain free fresh food that won’t be as messy as canned. I thought it would be so great for them so I bought 3 bags. But both cats, even the one that will eat ANYTHING and even roots through the trash and eats human food, neither of those cats will TOUCH fresh pet vital. I am so frustrated, but I am hesitant to only give them that to see if they would eat it if starved because maybe they kniw something I don’t know. I mean, there was just a jenny o turkey recall this week and a chicken recall last week for humans. So maybe the cats can tell something is up? Any ideas of whether I should keep trying to make them eat it or if I should trust my cat to know best?
My two cats love Fresh Pet. I mix it in with a can of wet food. They are the healthiest cats I’ve ever seen.
Hi,I was going to feed my cats this food,but noticed it contains garlic powder.I know that garlic is not good for cats (or dogs for that matter)I’ve sent an email to Freshpet but had no response.Anyone got advice on this please ?
It’s unusual for garlic powder to be used in a cat food formula. This review was written six years ago, and my guess is they’ve changed their formulas since then. I’d steer clear of this food if it truly contains garlic powder.
Before we made the switch to Freshpet, our cat was vomiting all the time. The vet diagnosed her with a digestive disorder and recommended change in diet. We did. And it was the best decision for our beloved cat.
I sure am glad I found this website a few days ago. One of the posts read that it’s important to check the expiration date on the bags, as well as select the bags from the back of the cooler. Well tonight I stopped at my local Safeway store because I just found out that they carry this food, and I was going to buy the larger bags when I realized that the expiration date was a month and a half ago! Obviously somebody is not doing their job rotating the food. So I grabbed all the bags of expired food and took it to the service counter so someone else wouldn’t possibly feed spoiled food to their cats. I appreciate that the Safeway in my rural Colorado town carries this item but they do need to pay as much attention to expiration dates here as they do the milk.
I hope you mentioned this to the store manager, Heidi. You may also let Freshpet know so they can address this from their end.
I have the most finicky kitten. I have tried every brand of wet and raw cat food on the market, price is not an issue. Freshpet is the only food my kitten will eat other then Origen dry food and my kitten is being weened from all dry food.
My two housecats became sick after eating Freshpet. The feral cat I feed ate it in the evening and in the morning would not touch it in his moist food bowl – leaving all his moist food for the first time in three years. I cannot prove it was the Freshpet as it was joined to some Friskies, but I strongly feel it was and that the food may not have been properly handled at the between the factory and the grocery. My house cats had food poisoning. I have fed them Freshpet before with no problem, always adding it to their regular moist food brands. I won’t risk it again. Maybe another customer took it, then left it on a shelf, and it was returned to the refrigerator later!
My cats would not even sample this food.
On fact my Bengal cat literally gagged when smelling it and ran away low to the ground.
I feed 7 cats in my neighborhood. I never give em dry food, they need wet food to keep em hydrated. I give me wet chicken halo
I’m not sure – check the ingredient list on their website, Angela.
Ingrid, do you recommend feeding this product exclusively? It is the only product that does not give my 2 Balinese and 1 OLH kittens really stinky poop. I’ve tried the other high end brands with my other Bali cats and had the same issues with diarrhea that others have discussed previously. I am also concerned about the protein level and am currently supplementing with boiled organic chicken.
If this works for your cats, then I don’t see why you couldn’t feed it exclusively. If you’re open to feeding raw, you may want to consider that. One of the first things raw feeders notice is that stools become much smaller and have almost no odor, because more of the nutrients are absorbed.
I began feeding my female senior cat the Freshpet Vital Pate Style food a year ago. At first she wasnt going to eat it but she did and loved it. I see there is a difference between the pate and chunky style. I have to buy 7-8 at a time (lack of transportation) and i freeze them immediately. I try to buy them the day they arrive at store. There have been a couple rolls tho that she just refused to eat!! I just noticed it reads that there are grains & potatoes in it. And i just this week got a newsletter from Dr. Mercola stating cats should not have those ingreds. Trying to get decent food for us…people…is hard enough, but now finding out that our pets have been eating garbage too is ridiculous. Its no wonder half the worlds population are dying from diseases. Its sad and maddening too. We are paying to kill ourselves and pets.
I think it would be fine, just make sure you feed more frequent and larger meals than you would an adult cat.
Cats are obligate carnivores, which means they need protein in their diet not just to survive, but to thrive. I’m not sure where you got the idea that protein is difficult to digest for kittens, Clint. While I consider Freshpet Select a good brand, it’s actually a little lower in protein than I like to see. Additionally, the cat formula uses pea protein in addition to meat protein. The ideal food for a carnivore will be at least 95% meat protein.
You can find my recommendations for the best food for cats here, Jaynee: https://consciouscat.net/2012/03/22/the-best-food-for-your-cat/
Is it possible to freeze Freshpet Food without compromising it’s moisture content and texture? Since there aren’t any preservatives in the food, I don’t want it to spoil.
I would check with Freshpet, Darren.
I freeze it all the time…does not seem to be a problem…my kitties still gobble it up!
I have been using freshpet select roasted meals (both chicken and chicken & beef recipies) for the past year for my cat with IBD. Prior to freshpet, I tried about every “high-end” dry and wet grain-free/ limited ingredient pet food out there, and all of them still gave my cat diarrhea. Within a few days of feeding freshpet, my cat no longer had runny stools. A year later, she only has occasional bouts of diarrhea. Freshpet nearly “cured” my cats IBD/IBS and im convinced its from the very simple, wholesome, limited ingredients in freshpet without all the crap and chemicals/additives in most other gain-free or otherwise cat foods. Oh, and i feed it to my 2 other cats, who also love it, and all of their coat have never been more shiny, soft and healthy. their overall health is superb as well. hope that helps. its worth giving it a try.
Thank you for sharing your experience with Freshpet, Mike. That’s wonderful that it helped your IBD kitty so quickly!
Thank you so much for sharing this. Because of your experience, we tried it for our 1 1/2 year old Devon Rex cat who has been suffering for 10 months from diarrhea resulting from IBD. This was after trying numerous prescription foods. In less than 1 week, Freshpet has changed everything and her diarrhea is resolved. It
is unbelievable. Thank you, thank you, thank you:)
That’s wonderful, Jan!
My vet diagnosed my 12 yr old cat with IBD and wanted me to start cortisone shots and pills. Spike has been throwing up for years and recently it has been 2x a day. I didn’t want to do cortisone so I tried this product along with raw ground turkey (raised in my state and sold by the farmers here). Both my cats chow it down and NO throwing up since I started 4 days ago! I am crossing my fingers…but I am VERY hopeful this will help my cat and keep him off meds!!!!! I found only one chain store that carries it- hoping to find more!
Gives my cat constipation
I’ve been feeding Freshpet to my cats almost exclusively for several years now. Except for two instances when I purchased bags that had moldy food, I’m a big fan. The product has pretty long sell by dates which are clearly marked on the packages. Because it can be out of stock occasionally, I purchase extras and freeze them. This is also good for times that I’m away so my caretaker doesn’t have to go buy Freshpet. Because of the mold issue, I inspect each bag–they do have a clear section; the color should look good and I check for tears in the bags. I tried switching to grain-free canned and kibble once. The stench from the litter boxes drove me right back to Freshpet. My boys are 9 and 2-1/2 (brothers) and thriving.
You’d have to make sure that the food doesn’t contain any of the substances your cat is allergic to, Madeline.
My cats don’t have any grain sensitivities so I’m thinking I may try Fresh Pet with some rice for them. They love their rice!
Fresh pet is a god send for my diabetic cat. She’s now off medicine and her fur has never looked better. Three months ago, I was sure she didn’t have long to live. I absolutely LOVE this pet food. More importantly, so does my cat Summer.
Thank you so much for this comment!!! I have a diabetic kitty I’m struggling with! He’s on a lot of insulin and I feel like I’ve tried everything. I bought some of this and am starting him tomorrow so I can do a curve at the same time. I have my fingers crossed!!!!
My cat is diabetic and on fresh pet and his troughs are higher than his peaks on fresh pet, looking for an even better alternative he is on 6u am and pm and still in 400’s. I think my vet has given up, she stopped responding to my emails.
You may want to consider a raw diet, Joy, but you really need to work with your vet, or find another vet. 6 units is a lot of insulin, and your vet should be looking for causes of insulin resistance.
How moist is the food? You mentioned that it looks a little like stuffing so I’m assuming it’s still quite dry. Do you think I need to add something to make the food moister? My cat won’t eat his food unless it’s quite moist.
It is a little on the dry side – not as moist as canned food. You can certainly add water if your cat prefers her food on the moist side.
I have been mixing it with organic ground turkey (zero other ingredients in the turkey)- my cats love it!
Thanks for responding! Do you cook the turkey or feed raw?
I add filtered water, just enough to moisten it sometimes. Maybe smash the pieces if she doesnt like . Check to see if the carry the roll of pate
It’s very difficult to find natural food for cats. And that too, something that they’ll actually like. Freshpet select seems like it may be a good natural alternative to all that processed junk out there. I’m thinking of giving it a try, although I am concerned about all these allegations of moldy food.
I have been using freahpet for my dog and cat for years. I have never run into moldy food. I think the issue with moldy food is where they are buying it. I get mine from Petsmart, Petco and Fred Meyer. If the store is rotating the food correctly you shouldn’t have moldy food.
Fresh Pet select appears to agree with both my cats. Jasper has a really sensitive stomach and Fresh pet select seems to agree with him. Lucy hasn’t turned her nose up at it so that must mean she’s happy.
My cat is probably the world’s most finicky eater. One sniff is enough for her to determine whether or not the food meets her standards. That being said, I was so nervous about giving her Freshpet Food knowing full well what could happen. To my surprise, I don’t even think she fully inhaled – she just gobbled it all down.
i have to admit my cat loves this freshpet vital grain free.
My boy cat got stones from eating dry food the vet told me. Put him on that trash prescription food which made both of my cats puke yellow foam everytime they ate it. So started feeding the wellness canned food and saw this vital freshpet grain free and decided to give it a try.
The boy with the stones sturvite stones loves it my girl will not touch it! Thank you enjoyed the article!!
Note this comment thread:
http://truthaboutpetfood.com/freshpet-pet-food-having-mold-problems/#comment-125197
Unfortunately, I’ve seen multiple reports of this mold problem, and I, too, am concerned.
Hi Ingrid, as you know, I have commented on Freshpet Select previously…keeping a keen eye on this product since the company started selling stock. Anyway, a woman I buy art supplied from told me her sister’s cat was in the hospital with food poisoning. Asked her what the cat was fed, and she told me Freshpet. I don’t know any details beyond that….(the cat is expected to recover). Heads up to everyone, especially in this hot weather, get your Freshpet from the back of the case, check expiration dates, don’t leave it in the car on a hot day, and don’t leave it out all day if your cats don’t finish it! One hour sitting out is all I give my cats to eat it. Then I toss it. (fortunately, they gobble it all up most of the time!).
Thank you for this update, Bell, and for the recommendations.
Igrid, thank you for reminding me about your recommendations for canned (cooked) foods. Can you tell me if any of these come in a pate style? Most of my cats demand pate (sigh). I looked through all of these on your list and I can’t find a pate. In addition, I am looking for no gmo’s and no carageenan and, like you, I prefer no fish. Thank you much.
Addiction, Nature’s Variety, Hound and Gatos and Wild Calling area all pate style, Kris. I believe they’re also all carrageenan free, but I’m not sure about GMO’s.
Thank you very much!
Interesting new comments about FreshPet…..
I just listened to Richard Thompson, the CEO of the company, on Mad Money last night and all he talked about was money. Nothing about quality, nothing about pet safety. As he was talking, I grew more and more confident that this will continue to be a good brand.
That said, keeping the food fresh is on the onus of the seller once it leaves the factory. I always buy the food in the back of the refrigerator (it’s cooler back there…check the dates, etc). But now I am going to be watching this company like a hawk… I would totally move on, but I have a kitty with food sensitivities and aside from Wellness Dry, this is the ONLY food she will eat that does not give her the runs. And I don’t like an all-dry diet.
Here is the link to the interview if you are interested
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xvs8IJs4FlM
I meant to say less confident in the brand, not MORE…
I’m glad you clarified this, Bell!
Bell, this is interesting; thank you for sharing. I too always go for the food in the back of the fridge… and my husband always makes fun of me. Now I can tell him that I certainly am not the only one.
I have a kitty, Rainsong, who is super sensitive too, and she eats dry EVO mixed with dry Young Again but I never could give her ANY wet food until Fresh Pet, which she only “sort of” liked, but at least she didn’t get an allergy to it. Now I give her the Beyond Chicken and Sweet Potato pate and she seems to be okay with it (limited ingredients)… I’m thinking in Rainsong’s case it’s an allergy to carageenan, and it’s challenging to find a canned food without that ingredient. You “might” want to try the Beyond, or maybe not, but I wanted to let you know.
Thanks Kris…I will try that…I am always sneaking in new foods for Sasha to try…she will eat Wuruva Steak Frites and Chicken for a few days, then give it up!
You might like to try Wuruva for your cat…lots of different varieties, some without carageenan.
I have personally corresponded with the owners about the phosphorous level in one of their foods because I wanted to feed it to my CRF girl instead of the prescription stuff (which I did, and it did not effect her in a negative way at all!)…they seem to really care about their product and its safety. My only concern with them is the food is sourced in Thailand. They say it is human-grade and produced in a licensed, inspected human-grade food facility. I’ve been to Thailand and it is cleaner than most SE Asian countries….certainly MUCH MUCH cleaner than China. So on a par with the USA, they are probably about the same as far as trustworthiness goes. Tiki Cat does not have carageenan, so that might be an option too. Anyway, good luck! Keep all of us posted if you have any other foods to suggest for our “sensitive” kitties!
Weruva is one of the brands on my list of recommended brands. I’m not crazy about the fact that it’s made in Thailand, but I’ve found the owners to be forthcoming any time I, or a reader, have had questions or concerns, and that counts for a lot as far as I’m concerned. You can find all of the brands I recommend here: https://consciouscat.net/2012/03/22/the-best-food-for-your-cat/ and my review of Weruva here: https://consciouscat.net/2013/04/23/weruva-cat-food-review/
Hi Ingrid & friends. I haven’t posted for a while, but some concerns with Freshpet have prompted me to return to this great little forum. In previous posts, I commented on the effectiveness of the pouch food on my adult male cat in slimming him down while improving his overall energy level.
I’ve also been feeding Freshpet as a nearly exclusive diet to my pair of young males, who are almost two. I do feed some Evanger’s grain free kibble and the occasional can of grain free food.
My concern is that a few weeks ago, a bag of Freshpet I bought at Target was moldy when I opened it. I neglected to return it to the store. This morning, I opened a new two pound bag purchased at Safeway. It was promptly rejected by two cats (one pawed at it like litter) and the third ate some. I sniffed it and it lacked the normal aroma, a slightly fishy, vinegary tang. It just smelled flat and bland. I removed it and will return it but I’m very concerned about quality control and also the thought that people in the stores may allow it to sit out and then put it back in the refrigerated case. I was wondering if any other users of this forum have had spoilage issues? Between driving around town to find it and paying so much, this last worry may stop me from buying Freshpet for my sweet boys.
Did you contact Freshpet? This is very worrisome.
I find your post extra interesting because basically the same thing has happened here. We were using Fresh Pet for our cats as a nighttime meal, and for a long time (maybe 1 1/2 years?)… and one night a few weeks ago, I was absolutely disgusted to see green and blue moldy pieces fall from the bag into the dish as I was serving it up! We checked another bag, different flavor, and same thing. Ugh. These were bags that had just been opened and the expiration date was far out into the future.
We also had had a few times over the past weeks and months when the cats completely rejected the food and then later ate it again. Worst of all, we have been having unexpected illnesses in several cats with no real explanation… where they just stopped eating and began to lose weight and not thrive. Each time, we had to spend a lot of time with fluids, begging or forcing them to eat again, etc. Luckily, we did not lose those cats and we never knew what was wrong. No signs of a virus either, no UR problems, etc.
I will never know if the illnesses were food related, but once I saw that horrible mold, I felt very strongly that I am done with this food. I realize it could be a store error. I think some workers do not think about this food being perishable without constant and adequate refrigeration. But I feel leery about the food itself as well, and anyway, I have no control over how it is handled. We did return the food to the store and explained why, and I assume they will let Fresh Pet know. I too should write and let Fresh Pet know.
We moved on to canned cat food with no carageenan, no GMO, and not too many ingredients, the favorite among the cats right now is Beyond grain free in the pate style. We also sometimes give Nutro or Wellness.
I’m sorry this happened to you, and to us. But I feel good about the canned food we are using now, and the cats benefit by getting more moisture as well.
Kris and Ingrid, thank you for your speedy responses. Kris, I feel awful for what happened to your cats and I’m glad they’re OK. I think this may be the end of Freshpet for me. Even with assurances from the manufacturer, I would feel uneasy about in-store handling. I still have four bags in my freezer from the batch I got at Target and I just was avoiding opening them. The cat that ate the food this morning is my favorite, bottle raised and the most loving, entertaining cat I’ve had in a long lifetime of wonderful felines. He’ll eat nearly anything, and I’m very worried now. It’s just too much angst over cat food. If I didn’t travel so much, I’d make their food myself. These guys are my kids. I will notify Freshpet and return the food I have, after keeping a sample and copying the batch code. I doubt the stores will take any action beyond getting credit for the returns. I’m sure I’ll be branded a neurotic cat lady!
Thank you so much for being a sounding board. It’s great to have like-minded people to consult.
I don’t blame you for not feeling comfortable with Freshpet any longer. I think you raised an interesting point with your comment about in-store handling. I wonder whether the larger stores just aren’t used to handling pet food that needs to be refrigerated (whether it’s Freshpet, or frozen raw food), and whether that, perhaps, is something Freshpet needs to address?
Thank you Laura and Ingrid, I appreciate your concern and care. Like you said, Laura, it is so great to be able to come here and connect with others who care like we do. And like you, I really wish I could make my own cat food. But significant disability limits me there. And… when I have made food for them, they didn’t even like it, LOL. But I wish I could keep trying until I get it right.
Anyway… I was debating about whether to share here about the problem or not, because I didn’t want to turn people off of Fresh Pet when I don’t even know if they were at fault. But once I read your post, Laura, I knew I wanted to say something. Yes, Ingrid, you’re right… we should let Fresh Pet know, and maybe they could somehow instruct and encourage the store workers to be more careful with the food.
Laura, I think and hope your little one will be all right. I asked my vet and we agreed that, really, if a cat eats a moldy food, they would be likely to vomit or have diarrhea, and then get over it… not just become anorexic and stop eating all together.
We kitty loving people may seem to others to be neurotic cat ladies (or gentlemen), but in truth, most anyone is careful about what they feed their kids; and these are our kids, our responsibilities, and the loves of our lives. <3 Thank you for the opportunity to share.
I’m so sorry this happened to your cats, Kris.
<3 Thank you, Ingrid.
Checking in after reading the latest comments and viewing the link to the other website. After my recent experiences, I did try to take my three cats off Freshpet. My resolve only lasted a week! They loved a steady diet of grain-free canned food, but the stench from the litter box was unbearable! I didn’t realize how little the feces stank with Freshpet. I keep their boxes very clean, but it was still awful going into the vicinity of the boxes. So back to Freshpet. I check each bag for odor and appearance before feeding. Love the convenience, HATE the cost and now the worry. I’m about to revisit the book, “Your Cat” by Elizabeth M. Hodgkins, D.V.M. It was this book that inspired me to change my ideas of cat feeding from IAMS kibble to a grain-free choice.
That’s one of the first things people notice when they stop feeding highly processed foods: stools become smaller and less “fragrant.” Have you considered feeding raw? “Your Cat” is one of the best, of not the best, cat care guides out there.
I feel that out is the best cat for ever. I tried it because our cat was rubbing off his hair. After pouting him on it his hair grew back. The only issue we have is that he cries for it before feeding times.
I’ve been using this food as a grain free non canned alternative to my 10 year old cats kibble, she loves it! I love that it’s fresh, soft and natural, since there were times she was having trouble digesting the kibble, and the canned foods seemed like a waste of money with too many bad ingredients. Now she eats fresh pet over anything else I’ve given her, she choses the fresh pet everytime. I’m so glad to hear other owners are also having some success with it as well. Though I questioned the vegetable filler, I wish they would put out more flavours and options!
I agree with you on the vegetable content, Tiffany. When I’ve talked to the company, they have mentioned working on an all meat formula for cats, but this was years ago, and I have yet to see one.
I have an extremely finky kitty with digestive issues….I was giving Sasha Wuruva Steak Frites and Wellness adult dry….she was still getting very loose stools and was a tad under weight…and and I had to mail-order the Wuruva, which was expensive. Then she ate Ziwi Peak for a while, then abrupty stopped! Wouldn’t go near it, which is too bad, since it cleared up her loose stool issues.
Then we got another cat…wanted them to both be on the same food if possible. Found the FreshPet for cats and both of them LOVE it! They get a little in the AM, the Wellness Dry as an inbetween if they get hurgery, and then a little more FreshPet as their final meal. They are both young cats (age 2.5, 18 months…just took her off kitten food) and they zoom around the house and play for a long time after they have their FreshPet.
Sasha’s weight is perfect now. I recommend it, although I read that it’s a tad high in carbs….but this is what I can get Sasha to eat (I am not exaggerating when I say I tried just about every cat food on the market!) so right now, it’s working for our household…. and both kitties look beautifully healthy!
One caveate I have…I noticed it is sold in Walmart, and that makes me wonder about the real quality of this product. I do not associate Walmart with anything that is good for pets….I am keeping an eye on the FreshPet company, and the minute it gets bought out by P&G or some other conglomerate, it will be a search for a new food.
I feel the same way you do about Walmart, Bell, and I, too, am hoping that the quality of this brand will remain consistent.
fresh pet is also sold at Petco and also Pet Supplies Plus not sure about Petsmart.
Yes. I just got mine at Petsmart
I was at my wits’ end–Mona, my 15 year old, would only eat Friskies from a can. I tried every dry food out there, and lots of grain-free wet foods, and I was about to give up. Her stools were runny from all the HFCS in the Friskies and she wouldn’t touch any dry food or healthier canned food I’d give her. But she begged all the time for human food, especially cooked chicken or turkey. So when I saw this in the pet food aisle in the fridge, it looked so much like our food that I gave it a try.
She was intrigued at first, and after a little encouragement, finished the entire portion I gave her (about a tablespoon), then begged for more. Two days later, she scarfs it down like it’s people food, and her stools are much more solid. She doesn’t beg for the awful canned food anymore, so I’ve cut back to about a teaspoon (instead of a can) per day. I’m sold.
I knew it was good when I opened the bag and it smelled so much like something I’d cook for myself that my stomach actually growled. She’s happy, she’s healthy, so I’m happy!
My super finicky eater, Sasha, LOVES this food! She has finally put on some much needed weight. I alternate this with Wellness dry (the ONLY dry food she will eat) and Ziwi Peak raw venison. They are all expensive, but so far, have good quality ingredients, although I am keeping a close eye on Wellness to see if they go the corporate route and cheapen their ingredients. Sasha has digestive issues, but there are none with any of the above-mentioned foods.She has also done well on Weruva, but it is hard to get around here and I don’t like to mail order large quantities since she has been known to go “off” food after a while. So for finicky eaters, I would say, give it a try.
Hi I tried the bag of moist kibble size bits over a year ago I can’t remember the exact flavor been to long,,,, first thing I noticed was it smelled horrible,, not a spoiled horrible just not a good smelling food,,, but I gave it to my twelve cats every one was curious an each one walked up to the several bowls I put out an everyone of them looked at me like what are you nuts I’m not eating this an one by one they left, they hated it…
My 15 yr old has IBS and I tried all the premium brands on the market and he could not keep anything down. Finally tried Fresh Pet 1 yr ago and he’s been doing so much better and finally managed to gain s
I have been feeding my 7 year old kitty Fresh Pet Select for about 6 months. I found only good reviews when researching the product and my cat loved it a lot and was equally excited during meal times. However, about a week ago, I bought the Fresh Pet Select Chicken 1lb bag like I always do every week and after her regular meal, threw it up 30 minutes later. I assumed she must have gobbled it too quickly (as she does on occasion) so I fed her again about an hour later. She threw up again. Kitty threw up a total of 6 more times on the same food. I gave her some yogurt and tuna and those stayed down. I tried the Fresh Pet one more time and it came right back up. I assumed maybe the food had gone bad during transportation to Jewel (since I had bought it and gotten it home within 15 minutes). I bought a new bag but this time the Fresh Pet Select Beef and Chicken bag. She happily ate it and up it came 30 minutes later. She ate more yogurt and tuna just fine. I tried the Fresh Pet again and she wouldn’t touch it.
I went out and bought canned food and so far it is staying down.
Has anyone else run into this situation? I’ll be taking her to the vet to make sure there isn’t anything medically wrong with her, but from my observation, the food made her sick.
Input would be great!
Definitely a good idea to get her checked out by your vet, Rachael. You may also want to contact Freshpet Select and report this.
This is kind of interesting. I tried my 15 yo boy on Fresh Pet several months ago, and he seemed to like it, but didn’t want to finish what was in the bag once it had been opened — even though I refrigerated it as soon as I served him the first meal. Shortly thereafter — a couple of days — he stopped eating & the vet said he’d developed an intestinal inflammation/infection. He was in kitty ICU for 2 days. He’s ok now, but am reluctant to try this food again. May be coincidence, but he may just be too old or too vulnerable for a raw diet.
Ann,
I am upset to read about what happened to your boy.
Don’t even consider trying this food again – it is not a coincidence, and very concerning.
I am glad he recovered and hope that he is doing well.
Rachael,
I just read your post and wanted to validate that yes, your cat was sickened by the food.
You did an at-home trial and proved that the food was the culprit (although I do feel bad that your poor cat had to continually demonstrate this fact by getting sick).
This is good to know.
My 12 year old boy has triaditis and possible lyphoma and has been steadily losing weight over the last year. I bought a bag of the Fresh Pet Select Beef and Chicken and when I opened it, noticed it smelled horrible – very strong smell of vinegar.
He wouldn’t touch it – sniffed it, considered it, but was definitely saying “no”.
This won’t be a product I’ll try again given my experience.
Buford, my 8 y/o male , isn’t a fan of this kibble type freshpet, but our Kitten loves it. What Buford really loved was the wet cups.
I started feeding freshpet select wet cups to him about as a snack every Friday about 3-4yrs ago. I really wish they would bring them back, they got discontinued. He never had one bit of trouble until they stopped making it and switched to commercial. We are on our 4th UTI in a year. I firmly believe whatever was in their kept him healthy, he was all muscle, shiny and healthy. Now he has dandruff, and is hefty. I wish Freshpet would expand their line, I’d pretty much buy whatever they made.
My kitty Laser absolutely adores his Freshpet and I am able to feel good about feeding it to him. He doesn’t care for any sort of pate food and too many of the better grain-free, real meat first, less processed foods only offer their wet foods in pate form. He isn’t always accepting of dry kibble. Laser is semi picky and will find a certain food and love it for a while than all of the sudden he won’t even consider sniffing it. With Freshpet it was love at first taste. He always cleans his bowl and has never gotten sick of the flavor or texture. I love the ingredients and the companies approach to pet food. The company is also good about communication with their customers. If you have a question, comment, or even desire a coupon once in a while they are very quick with a response. I also noticed that with Freshpet his waste doesn’t have the overwhelming stench that some foods seem to help produce. I believe this could mean that he is better able to digest Freshpet than some other foods.
A correction: that’s “cooked” not “Cooke.” Go figure!
I just bought three 1-pound bags of Freshpet Vital Chicken and Whitefish at Pet SuppliesPlus and my eight (count ’em, eight!) little darlings just love it! Boys and girls, they range in age from two to seven years. I’ve been in the process of changing their food from canned, as Wellness Core chicken canned and Nature’s Variety Chicken canned seem to have changed of late and the kitties were not happy at all, even when I added Nature’s Variety Limited Ingredient Turkey kibble “garnish” on the top. I’m so happy the little sweeties are loving it! I just need to find some store where I can buy 14 bags at a time–to last a week–instead of running all over to find it. I also hope they come out with larger bags for big families.
On a related note, I also bought the little dearies some Nature’s Variety frozen little chicken nuggets for them to try and the cats were not thrilled. I also Cooke a bit of it to see if that would improve the taste and, instead, it smelled really dreadful: like ground turkey! Not good like ground chicken.
I really prefer the Freshpet Vital! Smells good, really simple to use, and no tons of cans in my weekly recycling. I’ll be so happy to see larger bags of it!
My 16 yr old cat only has diarrhea. Nothing has worked. Tried the fresh pet in the wet kibble in the am and Candida canned at night. She pooped solid for the first time in a year today. Stopped dry food 2 weeks ago and started this routine 3 days ago. She purrs while eating the fresh pet. She doesn’t even purr when she gets tuna as a treat! I’m sold!
Our two cats have been on fresh pet roasted meals (pouch] for 4 months. We immediately noticed a change in gas and bowel movements that was great…almost odor free….that alone is worth any additional cost. Their coat health improved and they love it. We have treat weeks where we substitute out fresh cooked chicken and salmon to give them variety and they have zero issue going right back to fresh pet. We have been very pleased with this food.
Thanks for sharing your experience with this food, Jessica.
My 16-year-old kitty has CKD. I’m doing the search for the safest diet. Protein with low phosphorous is a must and healthy low carbs with plenty of water content. No grains. Mo additives. Has anyone else had success with this food for cats with failing kidneys?
I can’t comment on using this diet in cats with chronic kidney disease, but this article may be helpful for you as you research diets for your kitty: https://consciouscat.net/2011/10/17/kidney-failure-and-diet-in-cats/
Dos anyone know if Freshpet Nature’s Fresh™ Whole Meals will be ok for my cat that have irritable bowel syndrome disease. He CANT tolerate cat kibble.. he only tolerate raw food and some simply meald that I cook for him.
Since Freshpet is gently cooked, it may be okay for your IBD kitty, Anne-marie. However, if he’s doing well on raw and homecooked, I probably would stick with that. If you decide to try Freshpet, I’d introduce very slowly and gradually.
My Maggie came to us from a very bad first few months of her life, a hoarding situation with 100 cats! She had terrible digestive problems and at about 8 months, had constant diarrhea for the first two months we had her. The vet tried supplements, special diets, pills…nothing helped one bit. Then I came across Freshpet and she was regular within a day. Amazing and I believe the food saved her life. She and her sister have been on Freshpet for two years now (the bagged version) and they both are healthy and happy. Certainly worth giving it a try!
Now that’s a great testament for this food, June! Thanks for sharing.
Oh thank you for helping to give her a good life and heal her from the anguish of her previous situation.
Does anyone know if Freshpet helps with cats constipation.
If your cat has ongoing issues with constipation, and if you haven’t already done so, you need to take her to your vet for a thorough exam, as chronic constipation can be an indicator of serious health problems. There is no single food that helps with constipation. Moist food may help, and Freshpet does have more moisture than dry food, but not as much as canned food. If your cats like Freshpet, but you have issues with constipation, you can try adding some canned pumpkin (the plain kind, not the pie filling). This also works with canned food. Try 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon per meal.
I contacted Freshpet to get a definitive answer for you regarding the availability of the product. Here’s what the Freshpet rep said:
“Thanks everyone for your questions about our Roasted Meals! We’re sorry about any inconvenience to you or your kitties, but we want to assure you we are not discontinuing our Roasted Meals for cats. We’re currently in the process of switching from 1LB bags to 2LB bags of our Chicken and Chicken & Beef recipes in stores like Fred Meyer and Kroger to make feeding Freshpet even easier. Some stores have been out of the Roasted Meals temporarily until the new 2LB bags arrive, which should be in stores this week. If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact us at 866.789.FRESH (3737). Thanks!”
Fantastic news! Thank you very much, Ingrid. This week. 🙂
I too have been disappointed to learn that my Fred Meyer store is no longer carrying Fresh Pet for cats, and now only have the one for dogs. I did talk to Fresh Pet about 2 months ago, and they indicated that they will be offering a choice of a bigger bag for cats (which sounds to me like they’re going to keep making it ???)… so then I was sorry to see my store discontinue the cat food all together.
I really want to keep feeding this food! My two cats who eat it are happier and healthier with this food, and they are both very picky about what they will eat. Sigh. I haven’t checked our Safeway… I’m planning to call them, plus both Fred Meyer and Fresh Pet and see what is up… I’ll let you know here whatever I find.
My Frys (Kroger) grocery store appears to be closing out the bagged cat food. Safeway may still have it. I can get it at Walmart and they have a beef flavor in two pound bags for a little over $8.00. Still very pleased with the food. Over two years on it for my adult cat. I previously posted how well he does on it. I’m happy to say we added two male kittens to the family (bottle raised by yours truly) and they’re also on FreshPet Select. Ingrid, we’re still headed to Kenya so I alternate grain-free canned and kibble to get them used to it. I’ll be able to get those shipped overseas through diplomatic post office.
I think the cats slightly prefer the chicken flavor over the beef. The only Target in town doesn’t carry it. I stock up when I find it–either flavor.
I’ve been buying this cat food for about a year and have noticed that 2 local stores no longer carry it. I noticed someone else on this thread said the same thing back in June. I went to the FreshPet website and they don’t even have mention of the cat food.
Does anyone else have news about this cat food? I wonder if it’s okay to give my cat the dog food?
Thanks for any information.
I think you can find Freshpet at Target now, Dorothy. And no, do not feed dog food to your cat – it’s lacking important nutrients such as taurine that cats require.
I have been looking for a review of Freshpet Select. I just got a severely underweight kitty about 1 yer old from shelter. Finicky eater. Second trip I happened on bag of Freshpet select. Literally turned her health around in all aspects within the past few weeks. bBrough her home on 6/13/2013 and today 7/1/2013 she has grown from 3.5 lbs to 5.3 pounds! Shinny long hair, bright ese, more active, cleaner litter and no loose stools. She talks to me every time I go to refrigerator! Do not know what flavors they add bu suspects it heavily laced with cat nip or something. ;-). My Bella Rose just goes crazy over this food! Wish it were not so expensive, but it is so worth it to see her healthy!
I am glad to see other positive reviews!
This food is no longer sold at Raleys in North California. Our Pixiebob I very finicky, and we used Freshpet Select to break him from his 8 year long Raw diet. His coat was so much softer after the switch! But now we must try to find something else…..
I believe you can order it from Petfooddirect.com, and possibly other online retailers.
I saw this for sale at the Target store in Albany today.
I wanted to comment on the post saying the label says made in Thailand and has the ingredient carrageenan. I feed my cat the kibble refrigerator package ,chicken with spinach and carrots (I believe) (dont have the package in hand). Anyway this food DOES NOT say made in Thailand on the package ,it clearly says MADE IN THE USA. I went and searched the entire package , I also do NOT see carrageenan listed as an ingredient ,never have. We have fed this to our cat for 4 months now and the package has been the same since we have been using it. I am in Texas so I don’t know if maybe its different where that person lives. I love this cat food and I believe it saved our cat along with aloe juice and coconut oil. She was very ill and not well untill we threw out the cruddy dry food we had given her all her life and started this diet with the organic filet aloe juice and organic virgin cold pressed coconut oil. I’ve noticed she has a much cleaner cat box and much less poop. She is playful and happy. She used to never meow and now she talks all the time. I dunno but she seems fabulous to us. ????
It is the FreshPet in the cup that has carrageenan in it and says Made in Thailand With No By-Products printed on cup label. The 1 lb pouch is made in USA and does not have carrageenan in it. My local Target carries it in a refrigerated kiosk in the pet food section. I paid $4.59 for the pouch and $1.49 for a cup.
When I first started rotating Fresh Pet into my Abigail’s diet in an attempt to get her off dry food, she was a bit hesitant. By the week’s end, she would give me a “what’s this?” look if I gave her the dry food instead. She loves Fresh Pet and goes running to look in the fridge every time we open the door. Not to mention she has more vocal than usual ever since, meowing her approval. Not sure if that can be put in the win column though. 🙂
My hyperthyroid cat loves it but I want to find out about iodine content. That is crucial since he can’t take meds for the condition. They were toxic to him. He is fourteen and so far loves the fresh pet refrigerated pouch with roasted chicken. I just don’t know yet how it will work for his condition. He was tired of the Hill’s Y/D food which was working.
Thanks.
I have used Fresh Pet awhile back but didn’t like the ingredients list. Tigger has diabetes
and it seemed to elevate his blood glocus to dangerous levels. I started him on Fancy Feast Classic
and he is doing better.
Patti
@minisport et al.
I have a cat with IBD and lymphoma. I myself have UC. I am also a research doc and my area of focus for the last few years has been around aTNF biopharmaceutical therapies for RA, COPD, UC, Crohn’s etc. I have tried everything with my little Burmese and he is still losing weight due to malabsorption. His B12/Folate levels are severely low and this is with weekly injections from me. I saw this food and thought I would give it a try. He loved it, but then again he is starving. I liked the idea but then I noticed that the product contains carrageenan. This ingredient does not appear on their website but is on the back label for the food. Interestingly enough they also label their food “made in the USA” on their website but on the back of the container it says made in Thailand. A false claim on a web site is nothing compared to a false label claim. The legal ramifications are not even close. Thus, I believe the label on the food. Now as for the carrageenan, unfortunately this additive has been linked to gastrointestinal inflammation, including higher rates of colon cancer, in laboratory animals. This filler, is derived from seaweed and used to bulk up and provide texture for the food along with the other gum additives which are also fillers. BTW, while you are looking up carrageenan look up the definition of a food filler. Carrageenan is the very definition of an additive used as a filler despite their misleading claims. I am disappointed but not surprised. I will continue the search but in the meantime I will be supplementing his diet with raw chicken and beef. Harmful bacteria? Sure, to me.
Good luck and think critically.
I can’t comment on the claims on the food label or the website, Wayne – you’d have to contact the manufacturer for clarification. I merely reviewed the food.
As for carrageenan, I recommend choosing brands that don’t use it, and have previously written about the topic: https://consciouscat.net/2012/06/08/carrageenan-should-it-be-in-your-cats-food/
I have a 15 year old boy who was starting lose weight and had a hard time keeping food down. I started this food about 2 weeks ago and he hasn’t thrown up once and is starting to pick weight back up. It smells horrible, but he loves it! Very happy as I didn’t expect these kind of results from something I can buy at the grocery store.
I’m so glad this food is working for your boy, Sara.
What with the latest round of consolidation in the pet food industry, over the Winter my eight little guys developed a distaste for Wellness Core Chicken and Natural Instinct Chicken, which they had previously gobbled right up like the good little carnivores they are. Over the Spring I tried lots of different products, some of which they seemed to enjoy and some of which they refused. Then, at Pet Supplies Plus, I discovered FreshPet Vital and it has been an enormous success. They put up quite a clamor for it at feeding time! I, too, warm it in the microwave just a tad to take the chill off. After all, kitties are not doggies! I am currently paying $7.00 for a 1-1/2 pound pouch.
my cat has issues with IBD and is currently only being treated syptomatcially with b12 and prilosec, while on a grain free diet. last week he had a rough couple of days with a flare up and seemed to have a hard time recovering, in an effort to find another food while he was flaring, i came across this fresh pet moist food. he took to it readily and his flare up calmed right down. he’s been symptom free for 2 weeks now and is back to being his happy carefree self. im not counting my chickens just yet, but im keeping my fingers crossed right now. he’s doing well so far….
I’m so glad to hear this food seems to work for you cat. Keep us posted on how he’s doing with it.
I have been feeding my 6 year old Siamese mix guy exclusively on the FreshPet Select pouched food for over a year now. He is very finicky. I was misguidedly feeded Iams Indoor Weight Control dry food. He was fat and the vet warned me about Diabetes so I switched. He dove into the food and he’s loved every morsel since, looking like a little steam shovel at his bowl. He immediately trimmed down (he has a waist again!) and he has been much more active (crazy zooming, giant flying leaps, and ardent fetching of paper balls.)
He also loved the food in the cups but we just stick to the pouch. I pay $4.59 to $5.00 per bag. A bag lasts him four days at 1/2 cup each morning and night. He weighs about 9 pounds now.
My main complaint has been finding the stuff; stores that carry it are often out. I stockpile and freeze it for him. Lately he has been vomiting more than usual and I’m getting nervous about feeding him the one food and nothing else. My newest concern is we have just been offered a chance to move to Kenya for two years. I’ll have to find a non-perishable food that I can consistently get shipped there for him, or learn to make his food from scratch.
For the most part, I’ve been truly impressed with this product and recommend it openly.
Canned food is probably going to be your only option once you move to Kenya, unless you’re able to make your own food. Whether that’s an option would depend on availability of safe, organic meat. If you’re planning on going with canned food, I’d introduce some good, grain-free brands now and rotate with the FreshPet Select.
I started feeding my cat Fresh Pet (in the pouch) a while ago. I was looking for a soft food since she had to have two back teeth pulled from an abscess. She’s never been a fan of canned, and she loves this. I wanted to get her on a grain free diet, she’s got itchy skin, and have been trying to eliminate things that could be causing it. I feed her Fresh Pet in the morning, & still give her Blue’s grain free turkey dry formula to nibble on.
Regarding the comments on stool, I was shocked at what a small amount was in the litter box compared to what it used to be when she ate other dry food. Easy to see how much of the food was worthless. My mother kept her for me for a few days and was shocked as well.
Ginger will eat this cold, but I have warmed it a few seconds too. She doesn’t care either way.
It is amazing how much of a difference you see in stools once you switch to a better quality diet, Robyn, isn’t it? I’d be curious to hear whether Ginger’s skin issues cleared up on this food.
I gotta show everyone what my cats do when I give them this food. I only give it to them as a night time snack. They scream so loud, it wakes my husband up! Video to follow! 🙂
I have been feeding my 4 cats Trader Joe’s canned for the past few years. A few weeks ago I started to feed the Freshpet Select in the 1 lb bags, and am slowly phasing out the Trader Joe’s canned. They all love the Freshpet Select. But I am noticing very loose stools in the litter box. I am hoping that this is just because their system is having to get used to the change in diet? Oh by the way is it OK to slightly warm up their food in the microwave when I take it out of the fridge without damaging any of the nutrition? Thank!
It’s possible that the changeover to the new food is causing the loose stools, Stanford. I recommend adding a good probiotic – something I recommend as a regular supplement anyway. Most likely, it will take care of the loose stools. I like Dr. Goodpet’s Feline Digestive Enzymes.
I think it’s okay to slightly warm the food in the microwave. Even though some purists will disagree with me, I don’t think a few seconds kill the nutrients in the food. If you’re really concerned about microwaving, you can also add in a small amount of hot water to warm it up.
Thank you Ingrid. They are all back to normal bowl movements now, and they all absolutely love Freshpet Select. I pay $4.59 a 1lb bag at Fred Myers here in Portland, OR. I have no idea if that is normal cost? But I do know it is very well worth every penny!
Thanks for your comment – This is my second time trying the freshpet ‘moist kibble’ and I too noticed loose stool. My cat’s stool got so loose that she began to drop little poop balls around the house every time she passed a little gas. The first time it happened I got so worried that I took her to the vet (she had her teeth cleaned a few days prior and I thought that maybe she was having a reaction to the anestesia) I also discontinued the food. About 2 days ago I purchased another bag of the freshpet kibble, and started her on it again – lo and behold..little loose stool balls are showing up around my house again. I really do like the brand, and she takes quite well to the freshpet that comes in the little containers, but she seems to have problems with the kibble. Maybe I need to take a little more time to transition her to the kibble. Either way, I just wanted to leave a comment, just in case anyone out there might be having the same issue – it’s so terrifying when you realize that your kitty is doing something out of the ordinary.
This stuff is more expensive and though we thought we were spoiling our cats, they would not touch it! Either did the cats we gave it too. Got a message it was definitely at NO GO. I have never encountered this. Won’t waste my money again on it.
I had the same problem, but only at first. I mixed a little with his old food until it was only the freshpet, not wanting to have wasted my money. Now he loves It and nobody can come close to the fridge without him begging for it
A gradual transition to a new food often helps to get cats to accept the new food. I’m glad it worked for your kitty, Zack.
I just lost a sweet wonderful 16 year kitty to hyperthyrodism and crf. She was on medication, but I had to let her go when pain started from the kidney problems. The one thing I learned was to feed a canned food that is very low in potassium. The prescription diets are junk. I found Wureva was the least amount. I wrote to Fresh Pet Select and asked about their products. It is even lower then Wureva. The three flavors of Fresh Pet Select are .11% to .14%.
I will go pick some up tomorrow. Not sure how it compares in price, but I am paying $2.00 for a 5oz. can.
I’m sorry about your kitty, Karen. I agree with you on the prescription diets – the ingredients are less than desirable. That’s great to hear that Freshpet Select is low in potassium. I wish all manufacturers would put potassium levels on their labels!
I completely agree with you. My 14 year old cat was just diagnosed with lymphoma and kidney failure. He has been on a mix of fancyfeast and Iams his entire life but after the research iv done I was very uneasy continuing forward with that diet.. It was so hard to find a nutritious choice suited for kidney problems but A gentleman in Petco referred me to Vitals refrigerated. Ill let you know how it goes
My cat, Tigger, has just been diagnosed with diabeatis. We’re having trouble regulating his levels.
I tried the Blue Buffalo canned but he hated it. I changed to Fancy Feast Classic and he gets no dry at all but he would fluxuate . Vet suggested Freshpet Select. He seems to really like it. I’ll get
A report to you when we’ve used it for. A longer period of time.
Try EVO can chicken, beef, venison, duck. It really helped my diabetic cat!
I was wondering if anyone would be willing to list the price they paid for this food. It sounds like a pretty good food, and I am looking for an alternative to feeding homemade cooked food from time to time to my very large gaggle of cats. I don’t need to know the exact price but if I had a few replies I could estimate whether we can afford it or how often we can afford it. Thanks, and than you for the review!
I found a cooler that had bags of this at our Shop Rite in Colonie (Albany), NY. I paid $4.69 for a bag of the same size as Ingrid has pictured above. I tried it with my 2 older kitties — just a little bit to see if they liked it & to ensure that didn’t ‘react’ to a larger amount of different food. My youngest seemed interested as well, but the oldest fat boy pushed her out of the way! She sniffed it later & didn’t seem all that enthralled. At 8% fat, I’d like to see if I can shift the 2 older, heavier, more sedentary kitties to it.
I paid $4.29 at Target
I have 2 older cats and I can’t afford the diet I would like to feed them, but the FreshPet Select is part of their daily diet.
I live in a suburb outside of Pittsburgh, PA. In my local grocery store, the 1 pound bag is $4.99, the 2 pound bag is $8.99 and the 3 pound bag is $12.99. The 3 pound bag is the best deal, but very difficult to find locally.
Rhonda, Thanks for the tip about Target. I’ll go there soon to see if my local Target has FreshPet and if it’s the same price.
RoxxyB
Just bought this for my cat, Nikky. He gobbled it down! He is a very picky cat and I have been trying to find a healthier alternative to the regular canned food for him. So many of them have something in them that makes him hoark. Also, a lot of them have ground up shrimp shells in them, and he is allergic to shellfish, of all things. One thing I like is the cost. Compared to most foods in cans it’s very inexpensive. .23 cents per ounce compared to about .18 cents per ounce.
I’m glad this works for your Nikky, Mona.
I have recently adopted a very overweight cat and am trying to trim her down… I have her on Blue Buffalo dry food and Freshpet “wet” food for some variety. The vet wanted to put her on some weight loss formula in his office, but the ingredient list is horrible! I try to make sure she gets plenty of exercise, and I never leave food down constantly, but she always has a supply of fresh water. Does anyone have any suggestions for her weight loss? I would appreciate any input. Thank you!
I don’t like the veterinary diets’ ingredients, either, Ashley. I would eliminate the Buffalo dry. Dry food is too high in carbs for cats. Feed only the Freshpet, but don’t feed the “homestyle” variety, as it contains grain (rice). You can also feed grain-free canned food. Some brands I like are Weruva, Nature’s Variety Instinct, and Wellness CORE.
I have a diabetic cat and wanted to try the fresh pet cup food and the pouch. I saw all the ingredients and they looked pretty good. I didnt see the carb count on it though. I called the manufacturer and the cup food is 3% carbs and the pouches are 1.8% carbs. This is lower in carbs than most other wet food I have resaerched. This is great to hear since we all know carbs are bad for diabetes. I am in the process of weening my furry son off dry food since calling about the so called special prescription diabetic food that is 36% carbs. His blood sugar is on track to becoming lower and more manageable. I hope this somewhat help anyone who is wondering, so that this may help manage other feline diabetes better.
Thanks for letting us know, Sasha. I always love hearing about cats whose diabetes is being managed with diet change alone – and that usually means change to a true low carb diet, which means grain-free. None of the veterinary prescription diets aimed at controlling diabetes are grain-free, and they’re loaded with by-products.
Try EVO chicken, beef, duck, and venison. The chix and beef hardly have carbs. Like less than 2! My diabetic cat has been on it for over a month, and he’s had stable sugar levels since! He used to eat Fresh, but that was before he was diagnosed with diabetes. Not that I blame Fresh for that, but he did tend to eat more and was less satisfied after eating it. Almost like it was a treat and not a meal.
Newly adopted mama & baby cats:
Peaches (1 year)
Macy (10 weeks)
I mostly purchased this food for Peaches, she has a forever home with me as of 1 week ago and she is severely underweight (just finished nursing kittens, and she also had a rough upbringing). I wanted her nutrition to get back on track… This food was $5 at my local grocery store.
Both of the cats are IN LOVE with this food. They inhale it!! I’m hoping the benefits are going to become apparent in the near future.
It’s expensive, but I’m planning on using it as a supplement to their diet to make sure they are happy & healthy 🙂
My cat Sookie has been eating the Freshpet Select stuff in the little yogurt containers for about a year now. She loves it. She’s about 1.5 years old and never eaten another animal except the occasional fly.
I’m glad it’s so good for her. I just tried it once and she liked it so much we never stopped feeding it to her. I just bought the bag you’re talking about last night and so far it has good reviews also.
I like your honesty, Ingrid and I agree with you. This may not be the ideal food, but it’s in a much better neighborhood than a lot of products out there. I think the pet food company’s alarm bells are going off between the huge increase in grain-free canned options and more and more frozen raw options hitting the market. Now if we could only get RID OF all that over processed dry food…but baby steps…baby steps.
🙂
My Callilou votes “YES!!” regarding Freshpet Select. I don’t know if it’s as good as the company and label claim, but she LOVES it- and she’s very picky. There are times I have two or three different kinds of food out for her because she snubs so many, or “changes her mind” after initially liking it. She won’t eat Blue Buffalo, and several other “superpremium” brands. She does like Holistic Select dry, so I’m trying to keep her on that as a part-time food, as I can’t afford to feed her all Freshpet Select.
I’m curious about whether they do any cruel/abusive animal testing, though. Until I learn of any such doings, I think I’ll be a customer!
My impression, based on the strong smell of the food, was that it could be a good choice for finicky eaters, and your Callilou seems to agree!
I don’t know anything about Freshpet Select other than what I read on their website, Tami. If you have concerns about animal testing, I suggest that you contact them.
But I was under the impression that cats do not need stuff like carrots and spinach?
They don’t. Manufacturers put them into the food for the humans – it’s mostly a marketing ploy, since we associate veggies with “healthy.” The amount of vitamins derived from these additions are usually negligible.
kinda thought so. That had been my impression for reading up on cat food articles. Nice trick, they should add brie to get my attention.
I disagree Ingrid. While carrots and veggies does pull on this healthy marketing ploy, I think the cats can use the extra fiber. My cats and I’m sorry I’m being gross-do doggie size poo after eating this. 🙂
The large stools are the result of your cats not absorbing the nutrients in the carbs, Jessica.
Ingrid: Did you read this article?
http://www.thedailycat.com/nutrition/dietingredients/cat_digestion/index.html#axzz2AedYU2MO
My cats have beautiful coats and aren’t overweight. Stool isn’t hard or too soft. I
It doesn’t say anyting about the size. LOL! 😉
This site (and most likely the article) is sponsored by IAMS, Jessica. I do not consider any of their diets species appropriate nutrition for cats: they’re too high in carbs, and they contain by-products.
I’m not sure Ruby is a very good food tester since she seems to simply like food in general! I’m going to see if anyone locally carries this. I’ve been finding that my local put supply stores carry raw or tehse types of foods for dogs, but not for cats.
You’re probably right about Ruby not being the most discerning feline eater, Bernadette!
I tried this as I found a coupon for it. My two cats turned up their noses at it. I gave it to them directly out of the refrigerator. I still have most of the bag. Next time I will warm it up in the microwave first so it is not too cold and not hot but just warm. I hope they will like it then.
It’s always a good idea to slightly warm food that comes straight out of the fridge. Let me know whether that did the trick for your two, Cynthia.
Ingrid,
I will definitely try that. I will let you know. Cynthia
Please don’t microwave. .. it’s defeating the purpose of the wholeness of the food. . Try placing a baggie in warm water for a few minutes. . Then the vitamin and mineral content will be safe. . Look at any holistic cat care book for more on microwaves and foods. It will shock you! My Lily is alive today thanks to fresh pet! I am eternally grateful. . Just wish they were easier to find and larger bags!
Microwaving is a controversial topic, and purists definitely advise against it. I’m glad that this food helped your Lily, Karissa!
I tried this with my two cats during my transition to raw. At first when I put it down they didn’t touch it. I crumbled and mixed in just one of the tiny new Nature’s Variety freeze dried raw cat treats and then they devoured it. I continued this for a few days and then stopped the treats and they still ate it. Now they seem to love it! Soon I am going to integrate raw into the mix.
Good luck with your transition to raw, Jamie. Great “trick” to get them to accept the new food!
This might be an option for my super finicky cat Billy. RIght now he is on a grain free dry food called Pure Vita–it took a long time to find one he would eat– and he will occasionally eat canned if- and only if- it is fish flavored which I know he shouldn’t have very often. He is so much livelier since changing to the grain free dry food. I would love to improve his diet even more! I looked at this company’s website and it seemed to be geared heavily towards dogs but I liked their approach to pet food and will consider trying it.
Deborah Julian
http://www.DeborahJulian.etsy.com
Debbie, let me know how Billy likes this.