Author Topic: Stella & Chewy's freeze dried raw  (Read 12852 times)

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Offline Middle Child

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Stella & Chewy's freeze dried raw
« on: May 30, 2012, 12:04:01 PM »
I am considering using this food to supplement my Little Cat (to start).  She is so darn picky, and she has some sensitivity and intolerance issues. There are a lot of things in commercial canned foods she can't tolerate.

I may decide to use it for my struvite kitty too.  These are the two cats that can only tolerate certain foods, in a very narrow band of variety.  My third girl can and will eat anything.  Because she can and does, since the S&C is so costly, she will have to stay on her wide variety of canned foods, for now.  It's the two who are eating basically only one food day in and day out, with only a slight varietiuon now and then, that I want to try adding the S&C to their diet.

No fruits and veggies added either. No salt, no carrageenan, no menadione sodium bisulfate  bananamiddlechild

http://www.stellaandchewys.com/cat-products.php

Offline Pookie

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Re: Stella & Chewy's freeze dried raw
« Reply #1 on: May 30, 2012, 01:26:50 PM »
Hi MC!

I've been giving Pookie some of the Stella & Chewy's just to see if 1.  he'll eat it and 2.  he'll keep it down.  I've only been giving him 1/4 to 1/2 of a patty and only as a bedtime snack, and he seems ok with it.  So far he's had the duck and the chicken.  I'm not comfortable trying beef yet, but I did get a sample of the beef.  I just haven't worked up the nerve to feed it -- he'd been developing a problem with beef wet food right before I stopped feeding kibble, and I've just been very nervous about giving it to him since then.

Crossing my paws that your kitties like it and you can add it to the rotation! Cats3 kittybutterfly kittyball
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Offline Middle Child

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Re: Stella & Chewy's freeze dried raw
« Reply #2 on: May 30, 2012, 07:56:26 PM »
Thanks Pookie.  Well I ordered a package of the chicken. $20.99 on Amazon, fulfilled by Gulf Coast Pet Supplies. PetCareRX had it listed too, for a more honest listing of $18.99 plus $2 shipping, but they won't ship it to my PO Box and Gulf Coast will. I have ordered from PetCareRX before, but not food.

Of course now I worry she'll like it, and decide she won't eat anything else, but that's not likely for her. I'd like to use if for one meal a day for her. 

How much food does 1/4 of a patty make once you add water to it?  How much water do you add?

Offline Middle Child

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Re: Stella & Chewy's freeze dried raw
« Reply #3 on: May 31, 2012, 06:20:42 AM »
Good grief.  I had a bad night sleep wise and every time I did start to doze I was dreaming about Stella and Chewy's freeze dried raw food.  Either I was adding water and the contents of the dish turned into dead baby mice, or slimey limbs of rabbits, or I was touching the food and forgetting to wash my hands, then touching everything else in the house, arrrrgh.  Bad night, very bad night, LOL.

Offline Pookie

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Re: Stella & Chewy's freeze dried raw
« Reply #4 on: May 31, 2012, 01:37:36 PM »
How much food does 1/4 of a patty make once you add water to it?  How much water do you add?

I'm not sure what the answer is to the 1st question.  The back of the bag advises how much to feed (I use the dog S&C -- they just came out with a version for cats but don't see why you can't feed the original) based on body weight, though I don't know if they play the same game as wet/dry food labels that tell you to feed more than you really need to.  Anyway, patties aren't very big - maybe smaller than the palm of your hand (it looks like they're about 2 oz/patty, according to the website).  I don't weigh his food so I don't know how many ounces a rehydrated patty makes.  And since I'm only giving it to him as a snack, I'm only using maybe 1-2 tablespoons of hot water for 1/4- 1/2 patty.  But I don't know if that's too much or not enough . . . :-\

From their website:

Feeding Guidelines: Serve as is or rehydrate by adding warm water. Your pet should consume 1/4 cup of water per patty daily. New Users: Mix Stella & Chewy's with your current brand for the first 5-7 days. Click here for transitioning guidelines.

To protect yourself from bacteria that may be found in raw food, be sure to keep raw meat and poultry separate from other foods. Wash hands, working surfaces, bowls and utensils that come in contact with raw meat with soap and hot water.

Available in:
6 oz. (approximately 12 small patties); 16 oz. (approximately 32 small patties)

Good grief.  I had a bad night sleep wise and every time I did start to doze I was dreaming about Stella and Chewy's freeze dried raw food.  Either I was adding water and the contents of the dish turned into dead baby mice, or slimey limbs of rabbits, or I was touching the food and forgetting to wash my hands, then touching everything else in the house, arrrrgh.  Bad night, very bad night, LOL.

I hate it when I have bad dreams about faw feeding!   :D  I'm just teasing you, MC.  I'm sorry you had a bad night.   grouphug  It'll be okay.

Sorry for the long post!
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Offline Lola

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Re: Stella & Chewy's freeze dried raw
« Reply #5 on: May 31, 2012, 07:13:29 PM »
Sorry to butt in...

Got a kick out of their product description:
Quote
Product Description
It may come as a surprise, but your cute kitty is still a carnivore. She must consume meat to survive. Thats why every Stella & Chewys Cat Dinner is made with raw, natural meat, poultry or fish, without added hormones or antibiotics, sourced from USDA-inspected facilities. Chick, Chick Chicken Dinner, for example, contains farm-raised chicken as the first ingredient. Plus just the right amount of taurine, which is essential for feline health. Just like all Stella & Chewy products, its made without grain, fillers, artificial preservatives or colorings. They didnt even add sugar or salt! And every ingredient they use is sourced from reputable suppliers.
http://www.amazon.com/Stella-Chewys-Freeze-Dried-Chicken-Dinner/dp/B0052OUX60/ref=sr_1_1?m=A28XQUUJU6SODD&s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1338509433&sr=1-1

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Offline Middle Child

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Re: Stella & Chewy's freeze dried raw
« Reply #6 on: May 31, 2012, 10:25:14 PM »
You're not butting in.  I like that this food does not have any fruits or vegetables either.  However I received an answer to my e mail questions.  I was told, on average, one 12 ounce package will feed an 8-9 pound cat for 7 days.  That is way out of my budget.   I am hoping to use it for one meal a day, for my Little Cat.  Or, since she doesn't like to eat the same foods every day, one meal every few days. I am just....desperate.... to find more foods for her to eat, that do not contain carrageenan or other undesirables.

Offline Pookie

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Re: Stella & Chewy's freeze dried raw
« Reply #7 on: June 01, 2012, 09:06:55 AM »
I got to thinking (scary, isn't it?  :D) -- if you feed, say, 1 3 oz can a day, wouldn't you feed the same amount of the rehydrated S&C?  I'm not sure how you'd weigh it, unless you have a scale for that, but I'm thinking that might work as a starting point and then over time you feed less or more (if needed), depending on if the cat gains or loses weight.

Or am I oversimplifying?

If 1 patty = approx. 2 oz, add 1/4 water (2 oz) water per patty = 4 oz rehydrated patty.  If you feed 1 3 oz can per day, than 1 patty a day would be more than enough.  Hmm . . . I wonder if I'm missing something . . .
« Last Edit: June 01, 2012, 09:09:36 AM by Pookie »
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Offline Middle Child

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Re: Stella & Chewy's freeze dried raw
« Reply #8 on: June 02, 2012, 08:23:47 AM »
I don't know.  I am trying not to think about it, until the food comes and I try it out, as it is giving me nightmares.  She is only 6.5 pounds, most of the time. But  anyway the purpose is to widen the variety of her diet, so I wouldn't ever be feeding only this to her anyway.

Offline Pookie

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Re: Stella & Chewy's freeze dried raw
« Reply #9 on: June 04, 2012, 09:10:58 AM »
The Universe works in mysterious ways . . . Sunday night I dreamed about feeding Pookie the mice . . . I don't remember the specifics anymore, just that I was thawing mice for Pookie for breakfast and I think I was worrying if he could handle 2.

So that's what I get for teasing you, MC!   funny2
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Offline Middle Child

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Re: Stella & Chewy's freeze dried raw
« Reply #10 on: June 04, 2012, 10:44:55 AM »
The Universe works in mysterious ways . . . Sunday night I dreamed about feeding Pookie the mice . . . I don't remember the specifics anymore, just that I was thawing mice for Pookie for breakfast and I think I was worrying if he could handle 2.

So that's what I get for teasing you, MC!   funny2

 funny2  funny2

Offline Middle Child

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Re: Stella & Chewy's freeze dried raw
« Reply #11 on: June 04, 2012, 07:23:16 PM »
The S&C came today.  I gave each cat one nugget, hydrated.  THEY ALL LOVED IT! bananamiddlechild

I'm concerned about my struvite kitty.  It's a bit high in phosphurous and contains bone. Plus, since it has to have water added, and I am positive my high mineral water has something to do with her crystals.  So I would have to use purified or distilled water.  Hmm. But for now, it's just a snack for her.  I'd like to use it as one meal a day for Little Cat.  Maybe just a snack for the other girl too.

Offline Lola

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Re: Stella & Chewy's freeze dried raw
« Reply #12 on: June 05, 2012, 06:33:31 PM »
The S&C came today.  I gave each cat one nugget, hydrated.  THEY ALL LOVED IT! bananamiddlechild


Thanks for letting us know!!! 
Now that I have the dogs eating a bit of something similar, I'll try it for the cats. 
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Re: Stella & Chewy's freeze dried raw
« Reply #13 on: June 05, 2012, 07:36:57 PM »
Later that same night I gave Little Cat two more nuggets rehydrated and she ate them again, but needed coaxing (by coaxing I mean I shut her in the bathroom for a few minutes)

Today, she has had more appetite for her regular foods than I have ever seen, ever.  She will get three nuggets (rehydrated) again tonight for her bed time snack.

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Re: Stella & Chewy's freeze dried raw
« Reply #14 on: June 05, 2012, 09:55:34 PM »
I decided to only put two nuggets (rehydrated) down.  She declined to eat them.  I might be using too much water.  Or it might be she just wasn't hungry, having already eaten more than she normally eats in an entire day.

So I will have to make sure she is hungry, when offering the raw.

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