I’ve recently moved house. Most people take this opportunity to sort through old things and throw away stuff they don’t need. You know, get rid of all those useless things they hoarded throughout the years. Make a fresh start.
Unlike most people, I not only didn’t throw away anything before I moved, but I even moved my garbage. Yes, you read that right. I neatly packed my trash in a moving box and carried it all the way across London into my new professionally cleaned place. And what’s even worse? I even took pictures of it which I’m now posting online. Welcome to the weird world of Oana. And welcome to a new section of my blog called Empties. Where I write about my (cat) trash.
Yup, these posts are weird – no doubt about it. But hopefully you’ll also find them useful. What better way to review an item if not by using ALL OF IT? So, here are my Sept-Dec 2014 empties:
* Science Plan Oral Care Dry Cat Food 5kg – The first thought I had when Alfie finished this was – OMG! My cat literally ate his whole weight in cat food! OK, he didn’t have all of it in one go (although he did try to – proof being the savage attack marks you see on the bag). Science Plan is my dry food of choice at the moment – no meat by-products, high protein content and the added benefit of “specially designed kibble to help clean your cat’s teeth and remove plaque and tartar with every bite”. They are bigger than the usual cat food pieces, so I kind of believe their claim.
Verdict: Will repurchase
* Schesir Wet Cat Food – Mix of flavours: Tuna with Whitebaits, Chicken & Apple, Chicken & Shrimps, Chicken & Beef, Chicken & Pineapple. This is Alfie’s favourite wet food brand. I’ve been feeding him Schesir since he was a kitten and he’s always loved it (especially the tuna ones). I never have problems (i.e. his tummy getting upset) when I switch from chicken to tuna (and the other way round) so it’s all good. They’re very pure (just 2-3 products: meat + fruit/rice and no nasties like meat by-products) and they have loads of varieties so Alfie can explore different tastes and textures. His favourites are the tuna ones, but I only let him have tuna once every 3 cans to avoid him getting tuna-addicted again (see my previous blog post on the dangers of tuna addiction in cats).
Verdict: Will definitely repurchase
* Applaws Natural Cat Food – I saw this brand and being a sucker for sleek packaging, natural-claims and all-good ingredients I decided to give it a try. You get a mix of different flavours in each pack which is great because unlike with Schesir (which is sold in packs of min 6 per flavour on Zooplus), you get a good mix without needing to spend £30+ in one go. And although I still think it’s a great (read healthy) cat food option, it didn’t really work well for Alfie as it upset his tummy every time I switched flavours. We would probably get used to it in the end but it hurts me to see him puke every time I switch flavours, so I went back to Schesir once these 2 packs were gone.
Verdict: Won’t repurchase
* Burns Original Cat Chicken & Brown Rice sample I got in a Cat Hampurr box – OK as a one-off, but not a fan because of its super-high 46% brown-rice content (only 36% meat). Cats are obligate carnivores which is a fancy way of saying they are strict meat-eaters and need a high-protein diet. So, sorry Burns but your 46% brown rice content is a bit too much for my Alfie. He did enjoy wrestling with the package though so for that part alone, this was a win!
Verdict: Won’t purchase
*Gimpet MilkBits Cat Treats – Alfie loved this stuff. So I loved it too.
Verdict: Will repurchase
* Almo Nature Azul Label Sticks – These didn’t go well with Alfie, as I gave him only a nail size bit of a stick a day and he would puke it out without fail. Not a major disaster – wasn’t planning to repurchase it anyway as I’ve just noticed beef by-products and salt & sugar in the ingredients list. I’m a bit more relaxed about the nasties in treats (as I only give him a small amount of treats a day), but with so many all-good ingredients options, I try to stay away from the more doubtful ones if I can.
Verdict: Won’t repurchase
*PlaqueOff – This is a natural meal supplement which claims to help remove plaque and tartar build-up and bad breath (full review here). This is good stuff, definitely recommend it!
Verdict: Have already repurchased
* Cosma Thai Snackies – They not only have super good ingredients (45% chicken, 45% chicken liver, 10% rice) but they’re also tasty (judging by Alfie’s gimme-more look after he’s had about 5 in one gulp).
Verdict: Will repurchase
So that’s it. My first Empties blog post. Let me know if you like these kind of blog posts and I’ll keep being weird and collect my garbage for the next 3 months, all in the name of a blog post.
A purrfect cat 