Why is corn the primary ingredient of expensive cat food, whereas beef is the primary ingredient of cat food from the supermarket?

Because veterinarians are brainwashed by the pet food industry.

And you got to read the label – there are pet foods that are beef or chicken as the first.

Expensive doesn’t mean good quality. A good pet food will list meat as the first three ingredients. Fancy Feast is actually better quality than Iams or Hill’s.

I avoid the supermarket and the vet and go to Petco, petsmart or ask friends if they know an independent place.

This doesn’t really answer your question, but please do some research on animal by-products before you consider feeding them to your furry friend.

@marinelife is right- many vets receive kick backs from food brands, so they might be recommending what’s best for their bank account rather than their patient.

High quality tends to be expensive, but doesn’t have to be. Check out this brand (stupid name, very good products)..

I always thought it would be best to buy live mice for the cat to hunt.

You should decide upon a dog or cat food by studying the ingredients and choosing the one that comes close to approximating the animal’s natural diet, with the fewest chemical additives.

Corn is probably the main ingredient of the meat in the expensive stuff, too. Maybe they’re just cutting out the middlecow?

We don’t feed either type of food, supermarket or vet’s office. We feed Blue Buffalo, which is corn-free. Many animals have or develop allergies to corn, specifically itchy skin rashes.

However, if your cat is having urinary issues, then it needs a low ash food – that is one that can be broken down almost fully by the body, not leaving an excess of minerals, vitamins and other things that can increase the formation of crystals in the cat’s bladder. Magnesium levels are particularly important, as is the pH of the cat’s urine.

High quality cuts of meat, as in ones people would eat, produce less ash. Supermarket cat food is often made out of low-quality scraps and innards, thus providing a higher amount of ash. Corn, while not an ideal food for cats, does have in its favor a lower amount of minerals and vitamins, thus producing a lower amount of ash.

Rather than look at the first ingredient only, take a look at percent ash and levels of magnesium and phosphorus, as well as whether the food produces an acidic urine (a good thing) or not.

Not the one I use.

The added nutrients are the important part of the vet prescribed food. When you buy off the shelf, you never know what level of quality control is used, but the prescribed food is required to have strict quality controls in the amount and variety of nutrients, formulated specifically for the treatment intended.