Instinct Original Grain Free Real Lamb Recipe Natural Wet Canned Cat Food by Nature's Variety, 3 oz. Cans (Case of 24)

I'm about ready to throw my vet out a window, but that's a whole other story. My cat Kojo was diagnosed with IBD, and my hunch has always been that he has grain allergies. The years of a watery nose and excessive grooming all led up to him refusing to eat, vomiting clear reflux stomach acid every 12 hours, not acting like himself, and laying around in pain. The vet put him on Mirtazapine as an appetite stimulant and Cerenia for nausea and vomiting. And she also put him on Hill's z/d food. I have to say that it's no surprise that Kojo wouldn't eat that crap if he wasn't spun up on the Mirtazapine. It looks like brown jello and obviously has no taste at all. The Mirtazapine has scary side effects, making him very aggressive and restless, unable to sleep. The Cerenia has been fantastic with no side effects. My vet has been a frustration because she insists I somehow have to get him to eat the z/d and didn't even want to discuss alternatives such as grain-free food or homeopathic treatments. As time went on, it got harder and harder to coax him into eating the z/d, so I started researching. First I went after the GI tract problems and I found some homeopathic products you can order through Amazon - the Three Part Program from Vitality Science to treat nausea and vomiting, Evening Primrose Oil in capsules - 1/2 a 1300 mg gel cap cut open and dripped on his food - to elevate the intake of Omega Fatty Acids which fight inflammation, and Slippery Elm Bark powder - to help coat and soothe the GI tract. All can be mixed into his food and he doesn't mind the taste. I also just started him on Ulcinex, a Chinese herbal supplement to help with GI tract inflammation that is available on Amazon as well. 1/4 tab ground and mixed into each meal. Kojo was dealing with so much inflammation that even his gums were inflamed. He checked out for no dental issues. My suspicion is allergies! So here's the best part - I decided to go with grain-free high quality food, and I found Nature's Variety Instinct and another brand called Wild Calling. I am mixing 50% Nature's Variety Instinct or Wild Calling with 50% z/d and he is off the Mirtazapine, eating everything I put in front of him. In a week his gums have gone back to a healthy light pink color, he's playful, rested, happy and purring like crazy. Since I just started the Ulcinex, I'm going to wait awhile to get him off the Cerenia. Fingers crossed. Lesson to be learned - vets don't know everything, the companies like Hills and Science Diet make crappy foods they sell to vet practices and vet practices are paid incentives to sell it, and vets are not familiar enough with nutrition to give sound advice or to discuss alternatives. Do your research, get educated, and help your cat.

We have 5 cats, all of whom are pampered and loved. I bought this food when one of my special guys lost a lot of weight and became sickly. His coat was ragged and sad looking, and he looked thin. Of course, we went to the vet, and got an infection treated (thank goodness it was treatable), but the vet thought that he might have a problem with wheat. So we tried this food, and although it is expensive, I count it as cheap because of the change that my guy has had. The food itself looks more like meat than usual canned cat food, but the real proof is in the excitement with which my boy eats! Now, his coat is sleek and healthy looking. Instead of nosing the food and then walking away, he eagerly eats it. He has gained weight. He is frisky again, which I never thought I would see. He had been so listless, and now with a little weight on him, he is playful and happy once more. I think that his antibiotic therapy did a lot for him, but I think that this food helped provide him the nutrition to complete his recovery. And the wheat issue? I have no idea if it is real or not, but now I'm probably not going to go back to our old food, at least for a good long while. Love the Nature's Valley food.

I just rescued a cat and have been trying to find a good food for him. I got him about 3 months ago. He was overweight and not very active. I had him on Blue Buffalo Wilderness, which he really enjoyed. His coat was better and he was losing weight and being more active. Then I read about how canned food is better for cats, because of the extra moisture, so I ordered Instinct for him. He's been on it for a month, and I haven't noticed any added benefits over the less expensive Blue Buffalo. Instinct canned food is so much more expensive, but I would have been willing to keep him on it if I had noticed a significant weight loss or behavior change, which I didn't. I think I'll be getting him the Blue Buffalo again. If you can afford to feed instinct canned food to your cat, it is a really high quality food. I'm just not sure it's worth the money. One tip, though, if you are trying to help your cat lose weight, definitely go with a grain-free food. He was on a Purina Prescription weight loss food when I brought him home. When I switched to grain-free, I noticed a huge difference in just a week. One big plus, the cat box doesn't fill up as fast because he eats less of the food, since it has fewer fillers and more nutrients.

I love giving this food to my cats, but more importantly, they love being fed this food! It is a coarse pate and I have learned that you have to be careful when you open it, or you will get the liquid surrounding the food on you and the counter. I just open it carefully and empty the liquid in the bowl first and then cut up the main food. I have read some reviews where customers didn't like it being so dry, but I'm OK with that. I always add a little water to my cats food anyway so I'm not worried about them not getting enough. I would rather pay for food and add my own water than to get some of the foods that are over 80% moisture. I feel like I am paying for water with those, but not with this. Good deal for a very good food.

She eats it