Is Friskies Good For Cats?
Friskies are a brand of cat food from Purina, one of the world’s most well-known pet companies. But is it good?
To answer that, we need to look at several areas:
- The ingredients of Friskies
- Where Friskies are made
- Are Friskies safe?
- Which Friskies are the best
- What do customers think about Friskies
The Ingredients Of Friskies
When looking at the ingredients, it’s not just about what Friskies have, but how much of each ingredient they have, and the quality too.
Ingredients in Friskies are listed in order of quantity.
So the first 5 ingredients usually form most of the product.
Friskies can contain:
- Chicken
- Liver
- Turkey
- Water
- Wheat gluten
- Meat and poultry by-products
- Artificial ingredients
- Vitamins
- Minerals
Most of the Friskies classed as wet food have good amounts of water in them.
The presence of chicken and liver is also positive, as cats need meat to thrive. The same goes for vitamins and minerals.
Friskies typically have vitamins A and E, and minerals like zinc, calcium, and phosphorus. All these help ensure your cat is fit and healthy.
But by-products and artificial ingredients are concerning. There should be as little as possible, but some Friskies have both.
In particular, artificial ingredients such as BHA and food colorings like Blue 2, Red 4, and Yellow 6 are a big problem. These should be avoided, and you should choose Friskies that don’t contain these.
The problem with by-products is that it’s difficult to know where they’ve come from and what effect they can have on your cat.
Some can cause allergic reactions which you could have avoided if they’d been labeled properly. So make sure you read the label on a pack of Friskies to make sure they specify where any by-products come from.
If you’re not sure, the manufacturer’s website does contain a lot of nutritional information that can help you judge the ingredients.
Where Friskies Are Made
Friskies are produced in factories spread throughout the United States. The Purina company has many hired employees who work to ensure the food is processed properly, and they also own the factories they use.
Ingredients used in the making of Friskies are also procured from within the United States as much as possible. That means Friskies are entirely American.
Is Friskies Safe?
The short answer is yes.
There are a range of quality and safety standards that have to be met before a pack of Friskies is sent out for delivery to supermarkets.
According to Purina, there are thousands of checks that Friskies are put through during the production process to ensure nothing is wrong.
This avoids them being recalled later on, although in June 2011, Friskies were subject to a recall.
There was a risk of salmonella in the food, so they had to be recalled urgently. It involved 870 packs of Friskies Grillers Blend.
However, no cats were reported ill as a result of eating this food around this period. So it seems to have been a one-off.
But if you’d like to check the recall status of Friskies now and in the future, you can visit the FDA website to do this.
There were some rumors in recent years about certain batches of Friskies cat food. These include packs stamped with 1157, 1159, and 1161.
Some people thought those were batch codes, but they simply illustrate which factory the Friskies came from.
There were no recorded problems with Friskies coming from those factories.
So consumers can trust any Friskies cat food stocked in supermarkets or other pet food stores.
Which Friskies Are The Best?
When it comes to deciding which Friskies will benefit your cat the most, there’s a lot of choices.
Purina has over 60 varieties of Friskies in the wet food category alone. These include brands like Extra Gravy Chunky, Prime Filet, and Shreds.
They also have 6 kibble varieties and 4 treat varieties.
Deciding which one to use is partly a matter of what your cat likes the most.
But beyond the tasting experience for your cat, there are also the ingredients.
We covered that earlier in this article, but here’s how to compare different Friskies brands.
You’ll want to look out for 3 things in particular.
- Protein
- Fat
- Carbohydrates
Protein levels should be high.
Fat levels should be moderate.
Carbohydrate levels should be low.
The food should also be wet, and meat-based.
If you do choose dry food, make sure your cat has plenty of water as well.
What Customers Think About Friskies
A handy way to check product quality is to see what others are saying about it.
If you just rely on company statements, you’ll always hear positives.
If customers are positive too, that’s a good sign.
There are mixed reviews so far. Some are good and some are bad.
This could be because there are many brands of Friskies, and some are not as good as the others.
As you’ll now know, the ingredients can make a real difference. If a cat has an allergic reaction, that’s obviously going to trigger a bad review.
That’s why it’s always best to check the label before you buy.
For example, reviewers complain about the artificial coloring and by-products that we warned you about earlier in this article.
So avoid any of that if you can.
But there’s one review we saw that stood out. The person said their cats lived for over 21 years eating mostly canned Friskies.
Those are the two types of reviews that are out there. Some question the ingredients, and some say the food did a good job and kept their pets nourished.
Conclusion
Friskies are good for cats and will keep your cat alive and nourished.
But it’s definitely worth taking the time to consider which brand of Friskies you’ll be buying. Some have more artificial colors and by-products.
If you avoid those, you should be able to get a good brand of Friskies that satisfies your cat and keeps them going year after year.
