LOW CARB CANNED AND AIR/FREEZE DRIED CAT FOOD
AVAILABLE IN AUSTRALIA
Updated July 2019
Foods found at Woolworths
Gourmet Delight canned.**Please see note below
High Protein, low carbs, no by-products, no preservatives or added salt. Cans 85 grams. www.gourmetdelight.com.au for website or phone 1800819785. There are several other varieties available but I do not know their nutritional information.
Canned food which is in a small rectangular can.
Phone (02) 8852 2103 for Ultimates and Ultimates Indulge.
No artificial colours, flavours, grain free and by-product free.
I spoke to the marketing manager and he supplied the following carb contents.
Ultimates Indulge ** Please se note below
Canned in a rectangular can. Superfood with natural beef mince and taurine. Grain free, grass fed beef and taurine. There are three different varieties and they all have the CARB content on the back of the can, which is great.
I emailed the company that makes the Ultimates range and rang the company that makes the Gourmet Delight range because it appears that their products were not complete and nutritionally balanced. These are the responses I received today. The first is from the Ultimates marketing manager:
"Generally we formulate our products to comply with AAFCO but we don’t claim AAFCO as we over achieve on two essential amino acids Tryptophan and Methionine due to the natural real meat we use in our products. We state that our product is for supplemental feeding on our can, the same as all natural products, because we over achieve on those two essential amino acids. Our pet nutritionist who is an emeritus professor in animal nutrition, who has an alphabet behind his name in terms of qualifications, has advised us in the past that he is not sure why essential amino acids have a maximum level for obligate carnivores like cats ?
So we don’t claim complete and balanced because we believe that real meat is more important for cats, than some arbitrary maximum level for amino acids.
Regards
Dean de Villiers
Marketing Manager"
Interestingly enough, I also phoned the Gourmet Delight company today to ask the same questions about compliance with the AAFCO and they told me exactly the same thing; that because they use real meat/fish the two essential amino acids Tryptophan and Methionine are higher than the recommended amount with AFFCO and therefore that can't claim to comply. They said other than that the rest complies.
So it is up to the caregivers whether they want to use these products or not.
Fancy Feast classic recipes canned (85grams). Phone 1800738238. The can states it has cereals but the spokesperson I spoke to on the phone said these ones below did not. I have used them, and they are definitely low carb. I phoned the company twice and got the same following information.
Foods available in store or online at PETBARN, petcircle.com.au, petstock, mypetwarehouse.com.au
Wellnessinfo@wellpet.com
I received the following email from Wellness. At the time I was asking about the phosphorus levels in their food in Australia. I do not have the carb values. You should be able to find the carb values on Lisa Pierson’s chart. There may be some people with CRD kitties who would like the phosphorus levels.
“Thank you for taking the time to write Wellness®. Unfortunately, our formulations are not prescription diets geared for particular health issues. Therefore, we recommend consulting with your Veterinarian for advice based on your pet's particular medical challenge. With that being, said below are the phosphorus values for our Wellness wet products available in Australia.
Wellness® Complete Health Wet Cat Foods
Complete Health Chicken Recipe
As Fed: 0.31%
Dry Matter: 1.15%
Complete Health Chicken & Herring
As Fed: 0.37%
Dry Matter: 1.48%
Complete Health Beef & Chicken
As Fed: 0.28%
Dry Matter: 1.17%
Complete Health Turkey
As Fed: 0.28%
Dry Matter: 1.04%
Complete Health Turkey & Salmon
As Fed: 0.35%
Dry Matter: 1.44%
Complete Health Salmon & Trout
As Fed: 0.33%
Dry Matter: 1.28%
Complete Health Chicken & Lobster
As Fed: 0.33%
Dry Matter: 1.31%
Complete Health Beef & Salmon:
As Fed: 0.26%
Dry Matter: 1.06%
Complete Health Salmon, Shrimp & Crab Recipe
As fed: 0.45%
Dry Matter: 1.57%
Complete Health Kitten
As Fed: 0.31%
Dry Matter: 1.15%
Wellness® CORE® Wet Cat Foods
CORE® Grain Free Chicken, Turkey, & Chicken Liver
As Fed: 0.30%
Dry Matter: 1.08%
CORE® Grain Free Salmon, Whitefish, & Herring
As Fed: 0.33%
Dry Matter: 1.20%
Wellness® Cubed, Sliced and Minced Wet Cat Recipes
Chicken Cubed Entrée
As Fed: 0.34%
Dry Matter: 1.51%
Minced Chicken Entrée
As Fed: 0.33%
Dry Matter: 1.48%
Sliced Chicken Entrée
As Fed: 0.34%
Dry Matter: 1.52%
Cubed Salmon Dinner
As Fed: 0.41%
Dry Matter: 1.86%
Sliced Salmon Entrée
As Fed: 0.41%
Dry Matter: 1.87%
Minced Salmon Dinner
As Fed: 0.41%
Dry Matter: 1.87%
Cubed Tuna Entrée
As Fed: 0.31%
Dry Matter: 1.37%
Minced Tuna Dinner
As Fed: 0.31%
Dry Matter: 1.37%
Cubed Turkey & Salmon Entrée
As Fed: 0.35%
Dry Matter: 1.55%
Sliced Turkey and Salmon Dinner
As Fed: 0.37%
Dry Matter: 1.66%
Minced Turkey & Salmon Dinner
As Fed: 0.37%
Dry Matter: 1.63%
Cubed Turkey Entrée
As Fed: 0.34%
Dry Matter: 1.49%
Minced Turkey Entrée
As Fed: 0.37%
Dry Matter: 1.64%
Sliced Turkey Entrée
As Fed: 0.37%
Dry Matter: 1.65%
Thanks again for contacting us. WellPet Consumer Affairs Team 000390675A”
There is a large variety of Wellness canned food available. Not all are low carb. Check your chosen canned food against Lisa Pierson’s food chart for the number of carbs.
K9 Natural. A natural cat food range made fresh from New Zealand.
All low carb.
It comes in Freeze Dried and canned food. The cans are free from gelling agents.
The only thing added is water and supplements necessary to make it a complete food.
Canned varieties include single source proteins and mixed:
ZiwiPeak canned and air dried made in New Zealand. Several varieties.
Weruva – ‘cats in the kitchen’ canned food. www.weruva.com
This brand is available from PETBARN and can be ordered online or collected from a store.
PETBARN also carries the ‘b.f.f.cans and pouches’ and the ‘cats in the kitchen pouches’.
Look online for nutritional info for those. The website has the full nutritional values for all its foods. Some of the ‘cats in the kitchen’ canned food is low in phosphorus for CRD kitties
Several varieties cans and pouches and all state are low carb and don’t use any rice or added carbs in their recipes.
Check Lisa Pierson’s list for exact carb content.
Fancy Feast varieties as listed above in WW stores.
___________________________________________________________________________
Prescription Foods from your vet
M/D Hills canned for diabetics. The following is correspondence I had with the Hills Company. I was inquiring as to the percentage of carbs in the M/D in As Fed basis. I was surprised to be told it was 3.9%. The lady who wrote the email was the vet attached to the company here in Australia by the looks of it. The emails start with an inquiry from me.
Hills A/D For nutritional support following illness or operations.
___________________________________________________________________________
Raw Diet Option
Another option for a low carb diet is to give your cat a raw diet or a home cooked diet. Previously we did not have any premade supplements available to buy here in Australia, to add to the meat to make it a nutritionally complete diet. We now have that option available to us and the supplements to add to the meat can be bought online at www.rawmeow.com.au
They ship their products to all over Australia and NZ, except for the frozen meals which are only available in Perth.
They also have a very friendly Facebook page which is very active, and the owner of the business is lovely and will answer any questions and help you if needed. The Facebook page is Australian Raw Fed Cats……just ask to join.
Frankenprey Raw Diet
This is another raw diet for cats that is becoming increasingly popular. For information on how to prepare this, google ‘Frankenprey Diets for Cats’ for information. It has zero carbs.
If you are uncertain of the carb content of any food on this page, or any canned food you might find in the store, or if the carb content is not mentioned, look it up on these 2 links by Lisa Pierson
Cat Food Protein-Fat-Carb-Phosphorus
https://catinfo.org/docs/CatFoodProteinFatCarbPhosphorusChart.pdf
If you need more help with food options, the following people live in Australia and may be able to help. Just tag them. Bron and Sheba, Tucker, Girlie’s mom, Laura and Gremlin. Myrtlesmum, Auora.
Sources:
Bron and Sheba (GA). “Updated Australian Cat Food List Suitable for FD Cats.” Feline Diabetes Message Board, 16 July 2019, https://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/updated-australian-cat-food-list-suitable-for-fd-cats.216897/
AVAILABLE IN AUSTRALIA
Updated July 2019
Foods found at Woolworths
Gourmet Delight canned.**Please see note below
High Protein, low carbs, no by-products, no preservatives or added salt. Cans 85 grams. www.gourmetdelight.com.au for website or phone 1800819785. There are several other varieties available but I do not know their nutritional information.
- Healthy Weight (ocean fish and lean chicken) 2.8 carbs
- Heart Health (mackerel ocean fish and salmon) 1.9 carbs
Canned food which is in a small rectangular can.
Phone (02) 8852 2103 for Ultimates and Ultimates Indulge.
No artificial colours, flavours, grain free and by-product free.
I spoke to the marketing manager and he supplied the following carb contents.
- White meat Tuna with Fish Roe and Chicken Breast carbs 1
- White meat Tuna with Red Bream and Chicken Breast carbs 1
- Sardine Fillet with Shrimp and Calamiri carbs 1
- White meat Tuna with Flaked Salmon carbs 1
- Tuna with Shredded Chicken Breast and Prawns carbs 1
- White meat Tuna with Chicken Liver carbs 1
Ultimates Indulge ** Please se note below
Canned in a rectangular can. Superfood with natural beef mince and taurine. Grain free, grass fed beef and taurine. There are three different varieties and they all have the CARB content on the back of the can, which is great.
- Tuna, Chicken and Turmeric carbs 3
- Natural Chicken Mince and Gravy carbs 7
- Natural Beef Mince and Taurine carbs 6
I emailed the company that makes the Ultimates range and rang the company that makes the Gourmet Delight range because it appears that their products were not complete and nutritionally balanced. These are the responses I received today. The first is from the Ultimates marketing manager:
"Generally we formulate our products to comply with AAFCO but we don’t claim AAFCO as we over achieve on two essential amino acids Tryptophan and Methionine due to the natural real meat we use in our products. We state that our product is for supplemental feeding on our can, the same as all natural products, because we over achieve on those two essential amino acids. Our pet nutritionist who is an emeritus professor in animal nutrition, who has an alphabet behind his name in terms of qualifications, has advised us in the past that he is not sure why essential amino acids have a maximum level for obligate carnivores like cats ?
So we don’t claim complete and balanced because we believe that real meat is more important for cats, than some arbitrary maximum level for amino acids.
Regards
Dean de Villiers
Marketing Manager"
Interestingly enough, I also phoned the Gourmet Delight company today to ask the same questions about compliance with the AAFCO and they told me exactly the same thing; that because they use real meat/fish the two essential amino acids Tryptophan and Methionine are higher than the recommended amount with AFFCO and therefore that can't claim to comply. They said other than that the rest complies.
So it is up to the caregivers whether they want to use these products or not.
Fancy Feast classic recipes canned (85grams). Phone 1800738238. The can states it has cereals but the spokesperson I spoke to on the phone said these ones below did not. I have used them, and they are definitely low carb. I phoned the company twice and got the same following information.
- Prime Filet Fish. Protein 12 fat 2 carbs 3.8 calories/100g=70
- Chicken and Giblet Pate Protein 11 fat 4 carbs 2 calories/100g=80
- Carved Beef Flavoured Feast Sliced Protein 11 fat 2 carbs 4.8
- Decadent Roast Chicken Protein 11 fat 2 carbs 4.8 calories/100g=70
- Prime Fillet of Salmon Grilled Protein 12 fat 2 carbs 4.0 calories/100g=70
- Gravy Lovers Salmon and Sole Feast in Gravy (15 carb)
- Gravy Lovers Gourmet Beef Feast in Gravy (20 carbs)
- Fancy Feast Medley collection (4 varieties)
- White Meat Chicken Tuscany in a Savoury Sauce (20 carbs)
- Fancy Feast Tender Turkey in a Savoury Sauce (20 carb
- FF Turkey Florentine with Garden Greens (15 carbs)
Foods available in store or online at PETBARN, petcircle.com.au, petstock, mypetwarehouse.com.au
Wellnessinfo@wellpet.com
I received the following email from Wellness. At the time I was asking about the phosphorus levels in their food in Australia. I do not have the carb values. You should be able to find the carb values on Lisa Pierson’s chart. There may be some people with CRD kitties who would like the phosphorus levels.
“Thank you for taking the time to write Wellness®. Unfortunately, our formulations are not prescription diets geared for particular health issues. Therefore, we recommend consulting with your Veterinarian for advice based on your pet's particular medical challenge. With that being, said below are the phosphorus values for our Wellness wet products available in Australia.
Wellness® Complete Health Wet Cat Foods
Complete Health Chicken Recipe
As Fed: 0.31%
Dry Matter: 1.15%
Complete Health Chicken & Herring
As Fed: 0.37%
Dry Matter: 1.48%
Complete Health Beef & Chicken
As Fed: 0.28%
Dry Matter: 1.17%
Complete Health Turkey
As Fed: 0.28%
Dry Matter: 1.04%
Complete Health Turkey & Salmon
As Fed: 0.35%
Dry Matter: 1.44%
Complete Health Salmon & Trout
As Fed: 0.33%
Dry Matter: 1.28%
Complete Health Chicken & Lobster
As Fed: 0.33%
Dry Matter: 1.31%
Complete Health Beef & Salmon:
As Fed: 0.26%
Dry Matter: 1.06%
Complete Health Salmon, Shrimp & Crab Recipe
As fed: 0.45%
Dry Matter: 1.57%
Complete Health Kitten
As Fed: 0.31%
Dry Matter: 1.15%
Wellness® CORE® Wet Cat Foods
CORE® Grain Free Chicken, Turkey, & Chicken Liver
As Fed: 0.30%
Dry Matter: 1.08%
CORE® Grain Free Salmon, Whitefish, & Herring
As Fed: 0.33%
Dry Matter: 1.20%
Wellness® Cubed, Sliced and Minced Wet Cat Recipes
Chicken Cubed Entrée
As Fed: 0.34%
Dry Matter: 1.51%
Minced Chicken Entrée
As Fed: 0.33%
Dry Matter: 1.48%
Sliced Chicken Entrée
As Fed: 0.34%
Dry Matter: 1.52%
Cubed Salmon Dinner
As Fed: 0.41%
Dry Matter: 1.86%
Sliced Salmon Entrée
As Fed: 0.41%
Dry Matter: 1.87%
Minced Salmon Dinner
As Fed: 0.41%
Dry Matter: 1.87%
Cubed Tuna Entrée
As Fed: 0.31%
Dry Matter: 1.37%
Minced Tuna Dinner
As Fed: 0.31%
Dry Matter: 1.37%
Cubed Turkey & Salmon Entrée
As Fed: 0.35%
Dry Matter: 1.55%
Sliced Turkey and Salmon Dinner
As Fed: 0.37%
Dry Matter: 1.66%
Minced Turkey & Salmon Dinner
As Fed: 0.37%
Dry Matter: 1.63%
Cubed Turkey Entrée
As Fed: 0.34%
Dry Matter: 1.49%
Minced Turkey Entrée
As Fed: 0.37%
Dry Matter: 1.64%
Sliced Turkey Entrée
As Fed: 0.37%
Dry Matter: 1.65%
Thanks again for contacting us. WellPet Consumer Affairs Team 000390675A”
There is a large variety of Wellness canned food available. Not all are low carb. Check your chosen canned food against Lisa Pierson’s food chart for the number of carbs.
K9 Natural. A natural cat food range made fresh from New Zealand.
All low carb.
It comes in Freeze Dried and canned food. The cans are free from gelling agents.
The only thing added is water and supplements necessary to make it a complete food.
Canned varieties include single source proteins and mixed:
- Lamb and King Salmon Feast <1% carbs
- Chicken and Lamb Feast <1% carbs
- Beef Feast <1% carbs
- Chicken Feast <1% carbs
- Lamb Feast <1%carbs
- Beef and Hoki Feast < 1% carbs
- Chicken and Venison Liver Feast <1% carbs
- Beef and Zoki Feast Freeze Dried (FD) <1% carbs
- Chicken and Lamb feast (FD) <1 carbs
- Lamb and King Salmon Feast (FD) <1% carbs
- Freeze Dried Raw Green Tripe < 1% carbs which would be a great treat to give cats when testing.
- Chicken Healthy Treats….Ingredients 100% chicken, chicken heart, liver and kidney
- Beef Healthy Treats….Ingredients 100% beef, beef heart, liver and kidney
- Lamb Healthy Treats….Ingredients 100% lamb, lamb heart, liver and kidney
ZiwiPeak canned and air dried made in New Zealand. Several varieties.
- Beef 10 carb
- Lamb 6 carb
- Rabbit and Lamb 3 carb
- Venison 3 carb
- Venison and Fish 5 carb
Weruva – ‘cats in the kitchen’ canned food. www.weruva.com
This brand is available from PETBARN and can be ordered online or collected from a store.
PETBARN also carries the ‘b.f.f.cans and pouches’ and the ‘cats in the kitchen pouches’.
Look online for nutritional info for those. The website has the full nutritional values for all its foods. Some of the ‘cats in the kitchen’ canned food is low in phosphorus for CRD kitties
- Tu Two Tango Protein 56.9 fat 38.4 carbs 4.7
- La Isla Bonita Protein 50.6 fat 46.0 carbs 3.4 phos/100mg=166
- Goldie Lox Protein 66.0 fat 30.0 carbs 4.0
- Kitty Gone Wild Protein 60.3 fat 35.1 carbs 4.7
- Funk in the trunk Protein 63.4 fat 28.8 carbs 7.8
- Fowl Ball Protein 40.5 fat 55.4 carbs 4.1 phos/100mg=180
- Splash Dance protein 50.0 fat 45.7 carbs 4.4
- Lamb Burger-ini protein 45.3 fat 47.1 carbs 7.6
- Chicken Fric A Zee Protein 50.8 fat 47.2 carbs 2.0 phos/100mg=174
- The Double Dip protein 47.9 fat 44.5 carbs 7.6
- Pumpkin Lickin’ Chicken 12.4 carbs
- Chicken Magnet 15.8 carbs
- Love me Tender 17.1 carbs
- Pumpkin Jack Splash 13.5 carbs
- 1 if by land, 2 if by sea 16.4 carbs
- Mack, Jack and Sam 18.2 carbs
Several varieties cans and pouches and all state are low carb and don’t use any rice or added carbs in their recipes.
Check Lisa Pierson’s list for exact carb content.
Fancy Feast varieties as listed above in WW stores.
___________________________________________________________________________
Prescription Foods from your vet
M/D Hills canned for diabetics. The following is correspondence I had with the Hills Company. I was inquiring as to the percentage of carbs in the M/D in As Fed basis. I was surprised to be told it was 3.9%. The lady who wrote the email was the vet attached to the company here in Australia by the looks of it. The emails start with an inquiry from me.
- “Re: Hills prescription M/D canned cat food for diabetics. I have a diabetic cat and I feed her M/D canned food and she has insulin twice a day. I am concerned your food has 15 percentage of carbohydrates. It is given as dry matter. Could you tell me the percentage of carbohydrate when it is given as e.g.: percentage of water, percentage of protein, percentage of fat, percentage of carbohydrate please? I want to compare it with other canned cat food. I am not entirely happy with M/D - the texture and look of it changes, sometimes quite dry, and it is expensive. Thank you for your time.”
- “Thank you for your enquiry. The percentage of carbohydrate on an As Fed basis- which is when water is included (I am assuming you are referring to the canned food?) is 3.9%. Since canned food is made mostly of meat, the water content will be high, around 75% - because this is the amount of water found naturally in meat. I am sorry to hear the texture is not favourable at times. Natural changes can occur as the product comes closer to shelf life. Fresher batches will generally be more moist. We can assure you that the product is clinically trialled and shown to be not only safe but effective up till the expiry date. If your cat ever dislikes the food because of the different texture, check with your clinic, they should be able to organise the 100% Money Back Guarantee on the remaining cans. Kind Regards”
- “Are you saying that M/D canned has 3.9% carbohydrate per can and 78% water (which all canned food has of course). If this is so, can you tell me the amount of protein and fat as a percentage as well please?”
- “Yes, there would be approximately 6 grams (3.9% means 3.9g in 100 grams, so 3.9% of 156 gram can gives about 6g). The m/d has been clinically trialled and shown to, in some cases, bring diabetic cats into remission, however this is based on it being the only thing fed. Even though chicken and kangaroo and bones are not high in carbohydrates, addition of any food can dilute the active ingredients and components of the food and render it less effective. It may be worth while trying to cut out these foods and see if that helps control her levels again. Even if you previously fed these treats, our bodies change with age, so she could be experiencing changes that mean she cannot handle the extra nutrients. The Fat content is 4.8% and Protein is 13.1% (as fed not dry matter). The products are displayed in Dry Matter because this is a commercial standard in pet food labelling, and is the most accurate way to compare two different products- including different brands”
Hills A/D For nutritional support following illness or operations.
___________________________________________________________________________
Raw Diet Option
Another option for a low carb diet is to give your cat a raw diet or a home cooked diet. Previously we did not have any premade supplements available to buy here in Australia, to add to the meat to make it a nutritionally complete diet. We now have that option available to us and the supplements to add to the meat can be bought online at www.rawmeow.com.au
They ship their products to all over Australia and NZ, except for the frozen meals which are only available in Perth.
- Raw Meow Frozen Meals 3.6% carbs (only available in Perth)
- Raw Meow Mix 3.6% carbs, which is a meal completer (you add to your meat)
- Raw Meow Freeze Dried Meals 3.6% carbs which you just add water to rehydrate.
- Low Mix which is the low phosphorus Raw Meow Mix for CRD kitties, which when added to raw meat has 5.2% carbs. It has pumpkin, spinach, cranberries and psyllium in the mix.
- Freeze Dried Kangaroo
- Raw Chicken Breasts
- Raw Chicken Necks
- Raw Chicken Hearts
- Raw Sardines
They also have a very friendly Facebook page which is very active, and the owner of the business is lovely and will answer any questions and help you if needed. The Facebook page is Australian Raw Fed Cats……just ask to join.
Frankenprey Raw Diet
This is another raw diet for cats that is becoming increasingly popular. For information on how to prepare this, google ‘Frankenprey Diets for Cats’ for information. It has zero carbs.
If you are uncertain of the carb content of any food on this page, or any canned food you might find in the store, or if the carb content is not mentioned, look it up on these 2 links by Lisa Pierson
Cat Food Protein-Fat-Carb-Phosphorus
https://catinfo.org/docs/CatFoodProteinFatCarbPhosphorusChart.pdf
If you need more help with food options, the following people live in Australia and may be able to help. Just tag them. Bron and Sheba, Tucker, Girlie’s mom, Laura and Gremlin. Myrtlesmum, Auora.
Sources:
Bron and Sheba (GA). “Updated Australian Cat Food List Suitable for FD Cats.” Feline Diabetes Message Board, 16 July 2019, https://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/updated-australian-cat-food-list-suitable-for-fd-cats.216897/