Wet Cat Food: Which is the Best of 2023?

Discover the best wet cat food of 2023 and keep your cat happy and healthy. Check out our top picks and find the perfect option for your cat.

Your cat requires a quality and balanced diet to be healthy and happy. Having an animal at home is a great responsibility. A cat cannot eat human food because both organisms are not the same and need different nutrients. Therefore, you should buy your pet food that feels good and not skimp on money.

In this guide you will understand more about the nutritional needs of your cat. And we will focus on wet food, which is a type of food that these pets tend to like a lot. You can also understand many of your feline’s daily habits in the following lines. We want to help you get to know him better and buy his ideal food.

The most important

• Cats get the most hydration through food. They drink little and maintain the idea that the water must be obtained from their prey. And wet food fulfills this function.
• There is a wide variety of flavors and textures in the wet food market, which you should choose based on your pet’s preferences. The most important thing is that it contains the necessary nutrients to feed your cat well.
• These animals tend to like wet food more than dry feed. But both combined are very necessary for your pet. Wet food is not a treat or treat, but is a complete food.

The best wet cat food on the market: our recommendations

Wet cat food is a variant of kitty food that is becoming very fashionable due to its characteristics. Making a good choice when shopping for cat food is very important. In order for you to choose the product that suits you best, we present you this list of popular products on the market and their characteristics.

• The best wet mousse food for cats
• The best wet food for adult cats
• The most complete wet cat food
• The best variety of wet cat food
• Best wet multivitamin food for cats

The best wet mousse food for cats

These cans contain food with a mousse texture and are available in a variety of meat or fish flavors, such as beef, duck, chicken or salmon. In the case of beef, 4% of the total product is made up of this ingredient and the rest are by-products of vegetable origin, mineral substances and sugars. In total, it has 11% crude protein and 7% oils and fats.

With this purchase comes 24 aluminum food cans in a cardboard box and covered in clear plastic. If a flavor is chosen, all the packages will be of that choice, they are not mixed. Each jar has 85 grams. In general, most buyers say that their cats are very happy with this brand of wet food.

The best wet food for adult cats

This package contains 24 servings of 100 grams each. Of these, 6 packages are beef; 6 chicken; 6 salmon; and another 6 are cod, all of them with sauces. Each of the packages has a minimum of 4% of the aforementioned protein, although ingredients that come from meat or fish and their derivatives reach up to 32%. Buyers highlight its low price.

It also has sugars derived from caramel syrup and includes, according to the manufacturer’s firm, vitamin D3 for the health of bones and teeth and vitamin E. Each 100 grams of this food, that is, each sachet, provides your pet between 79 and 83 calories, it depends on the flavor you eat. There is also the option to buy a 96 bag pack.

The most complete wet cat food

These food sachets include tender bits of food combined with thin slices of sauce. It is for adult cats and there are different packages to buy, with more or less quantity of cans. Different flavors come with each order: beef and chicken; rabbit and liver; fish and spinach sauce or turkey and chicken. The food comes in aluminum cans.

In terms of ingredients, it has 4% of each of the main proteins. In total it has 10% protein and 81.5% water. It also brings extracts of vegetable proteins, cereals, fish and fish by-products, mineral substances, sugars and additives, among others. Buyers say their pets are very happy with its taste.

The best variety of wet cat food

This package of wet food with jelly comes with 120 sachets of 100 grams each. There are four different flavors. It is made up of pieces of food in a jelly sauce. The packages are available in dispenser boxes. The flavors are: tuna, shrimp, chicken and duck with lamb. You can also buy a batch with 80 envelopes.

This food from the Félix brand has between 4 and 8% fish or meat in each of the envelopes, according to the manufacturers. It depends on your cat, but you can give up to four of these sachets a day. It has no artificial colors, preservatives or seasonings. The packages should be kept in a place that is cool and dry.

Best wet multivitamin food for cats

This wet cat food is available in a tube. It can be purchased in two sizes: 50 and 200 grams. It works as a food supplement. Manufacturers say it is rich in nutrients, providing 12 essential vitamins, fish oil and beta-glucan to support the humanitarian system. It has no lactose, colorants, preservatives or flavorings.

This tube of wet food, which manufacturers define as an extra rather than a main food, should be stored in a cool, dry place. It has 5% protein, 36.5% fat content and 5.5% crude ash, among others. Being a complement, it is recommended to give 6 centimeters of this paste daily. Customers say they see their cats healthier.

Shopping Guide: Everything You Should Know About Wet Cat Food

Before deciding if wet food is what your cat needs, let’s review these much-needed products. And we are going to help you get to know your pet, its body, its habits and its nutritional needs better. Cats are very routine, so the product that they like will be their food as a general rule. It is very difficult for them to change.

Are there differences between dry food and wet cat food?

Wet cat food and dry food are two different types of food, although it is important to say that they do not compete and that many people complement them. The main difference is that the feed usually contains between 5-10% water, while wet cat food is generally composed of between 60 and 80% water.

These animals get most of their hydration from food, rather than water itself. Another big difference is that it is easier to find feed that is adapted to sterilized cats, which get fatter more easily. Most of the wet food is not created for this purpose. Wet food is best for the elderly, who have a harder time chewing.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of wet cat food compared to feed?

As we have already mentioned, rather than compete, both styles of eating are combined and complement each other in their functions and benefits. With the aim that you can be more clear about its characteristics.

What nutrients does wet food carry that is very necessary for a cat?

A cat cannot eat food for humans or food for dogs because there are very important nutrients that its body requires that will not be found in other diets. Below, you will be able to see which are the nutrients in cat food that cannot be lacking in their daily food to stay healthy:

• Vitamin A, D, E and B. If they come from animal fat. They are essential sources of energy for a cat’s body.
• Taurine. It is an amino acid that any diet for cats should contain, and it is that it favors the heart function and the vision of these animals.
• L-carnitine. It favors the use of body fat.
• Arginine. It is another important amino acid, abundant in animal protein and that participates in the elimination of nitrogen and in the urea cycle.
• Calcium and phosphorus. They are essential for bones and teeth.
• Ash. It is the term used to refer to the ‘residue’ that remains after having ‘burned’ the feed to generate energy. Cats by nature eat carcasses and their bones, which contain minerals. And this ash carries these substances.

How do you hydrate wet cat food?

Cats need between 60 and 90 milliliters of fresh water in addition to their food. Generally, feed contains only 10% water while canned food contains approximately 80% water. Therefore, if your pet eats wet food, he will drink much less water daily. It should be said that domestic cats are not very drinkers of water.

The cat is made up of approximately 80% water, so proper hydration is vital for it to enjoy good health. According to experts, this animal is one of the species that has evolved the least in its thirst drive and still maintains that idea that one hydrates through food. Therefore, you can help him by offering him wet food.

Why should I change my cat’s diet and wet food during different stages of his life?

Like people, cats change their needs as they grow. When they are babies during the first weeks of life, they are lactating and need only milk from their mother. From the fourth week of life, food can be incorporated, but it must be soft or in very small pieces. And that is intended for puppies.

From the eighth week you can eat only food. While they are small, they need more nutrients because they are growing and because they move more, since they are more playful. When it turns one year old, the cat is considered an adult and must eat food for these types of animals. The elderly have less physical activity and you must change their food again.

Can a cat feed only on wet food?

Normally, experts recommend supplementing dry feed with wet food in order to take advantage of both foods. Many of the wet food products do not usually have all the nutrients. You should check the label carefully, but an extended idea is to offer feed to one of the meals of the day and an envelope or can in another.

Therefore, the answer is no, as there are very few experts who recommend doing this. Wet food tends to provide less protein to cats than feed and it should not be forgotten that protein is essential for the body of a small feline. There are even scientists who believe that a diet based only on wet food can lead to thyroid disease.

What if my cat’s wet food does not contain enough protein?

Cats are carnivorous animals. They are hunters at their core, so even though they are at home, they require the nutrients their body is prepared for. This means that felines need a large supply of quality animal protein. If they do not take the necessary protein, their muscle mass will be weakened, with the consequences that this brings.

In addition, with little or low quality protein the immune system would be weakened and this would affect the skin, hair, bones and digestive, cardiac and respiratory systems of your cat. If the animal’s diet is deficient in protein, the growth of a pussycat would be altered. For them to fulfill their function, proteins must have essential amino acids.

Is wet cat food a treat or a treat?

Although it often happens that cats like wet food much more than dry, this is not a treat, but it is a complete food. What you can use is as a healthy treat, when you are educating your cat on issues such as using his harness, getting into the carrier, sleeping in his bed or taking any medicine that he needs and that he hates.

Try not to abuse it, because you must adjust to the calories your cat needs in a day. If you shower him with rewards, you are only making him fat, with the health problems that this entails. The downside to doing this is that if he misbehaves and you have to feed him his wet food, he may not associate the concept of reward with good behavior.

Is there wet food for a sterilized cat?

A neutered cat needs low calorie food. And it is that a neutered animal is less restless and will be hungrier, so it has three times more chances of gaining weight. Therefore, you need to eat low-calorie foods. Lowering your portion of food will only make you hungrier and have a hard time. In addition, you must motivate him to move more.

Although in most cases it is easier to find dry food created for sterilized animals anywhere, there are also brands on the market that offer wet food for a cat that has gone through this process. The popularity of cats as pets has increased the supply of varied products on the market.

What problems can an obese cat have when I do not give him adequate wet food or the animal moves little?

There are house cats that, having few stimuli inside the home, move less than necessary daily. At the same time, if you feed them too much or products that are not made for their body, they can develop obesity. This is a big problem in kitties that live indoors. Here we will see what health damages obesity brings in cats:

• Diabetes
• Liver disease
• Inflammatory bowel disease
• Skin and coat diseases
• High blood pressure
• Locomotion disorders, such as osteoarthritis or herniated discs

How can I prevent my cat’s obesity helped by wet food?

You are the one who decides the amount of food you give your pet and you choose the quality of it. If you want to keep your cat in shape and not suffer from excess fat problems, you should give him quality food with fiber and the amounts that experts recommend. Cat food cans will help, as they are made to keep your pet healthy.

Always look at the calories that are indicated on each package and give him the amount of food equal to his weight. In addition to food, try to have toys that motivate your pet to be active. If you do not have stimuli, you will tend to sleep more and have less physical activity. And even if you are indoors, you need to move to keep fit.

How many calories of wet food should my cat consume daily?

Veterinarians recommend that baby cats eat about 3-4 times a day in small rations and two for adults. When this animal is a puppy, it has a small stomach, so it is recommended to offer it between 20 and 25 grams per serving. From 4 to 6 months, you can increase by 10 grams per dose and you can increase slightly until their first year of life.

When he turns one year old, you can start giving him 2 feedings a day. And, in total, you should give the day a ratio according to its weight. According to expert information, if your adult cat weighs 4 kg you should give it between 200 and 250 grams daily. If you weigh 5 kg, between 250 and 300 grams. If he’s 10 kilos, give him between 410 and 570. Take into account his physical activity, too.

Does wet cat food need sugar?

Sugar is intended to sweeten products and make them taste better. Even most of the foods that humans eat, even salty, contain sugar to make them more palatable. Therefore, it is not needed and can lead to problems such as tooth damage, obesity, and diabetes. Look for foods with little or no sugar.

It has become fashionable that some cat foods contain beets that sweeten and provide high fiber content, which does not make you fat and helps intestinal transit and eliminates pathogenic bacteria. In fact, sugar beet pulp can be used even for diabetics. Fiber is also recommended to deal with cat obesity.

What food is toxic to a cat?

If human food is not recommended for cats, it is because it does not share the nutritional values ​​that a feline requires. And because there are foods that are toxic to your body. For example, garlic and onion, fruit seeds such as apple or nectarine or chocolate. Also, adult cats are lactose intolerant, so avoid milk.

Tomato, potatoes, and wheat won’t do you any good. In general, you cannot give your cat a vegetarian diet, as it will lack essential nutrients, which can lead to premature death. You also have to be careful with additives, which can make cats dependent on a food that does not provide nutritional value.

Purchase criteria

When you go to buy food for your cat, it is important to evaluate many aspects. You have already been able to discover in this article, the importance of making a good decision. Food is the basis of your feline’s health. Now you will find a list with the most important criteria to observe when choosing a wet cat food.

• Ingredients
• Packaging
• Textures
• Flavors
• Quality
• Ratings from other customers

Ingredients

In the following table you can see which are the main nutrients or components that are present in cat food. The goal is that you can understand the food label and know what to look for. Often times, due to publicity, the highlighted information can be confusing. And our goal is that you understand it so that the purchase is successful.

Packaging

The choice of packaging will influence the conservation of the food inside and in the environment. In the latter case, dry feed is more ecological, since it can come in paper bags, something that wet food cannot do because it needs insulating containers.

Textures

Within the wet cat food market there are different textures. Cats are maniacal animals in their habits and their tastes. For this reason, manufacturers have created different types of wet food so that even the most demanding palates can find what they want. The most common textures in this sector are the following:

• Mousse. Soft paste of different crushed ingredients. There is practically no need to chew it.
• Jellies. They are usually small pieces of food combined with sheets of gelatin.
• In sauce. They are pieces of meat in sauce. They allow the cat to chew its food.
• Soup. It is less common, but there are manufacturers that offer soups, that is, the liquid is pure broth, accompanied by food stumbling blocks.
• Pate. It is similar to the aforementioned mousse, only slightly more consistent and harder. Sometimes it comes with pieces of food and other times everything is already shredded.

Flavors

Manufacturers work so that the ingredient that is mentioned as the main ingredient, from some meat or fish, and sometimes with vegetables, is the one that provides the flavor. Among the most common we find chicken, turkey, salmon, beef or cod. To choose a flavor, you must be guided by the tastes of your pet. As long as the product has quality, any flavor will do.

A curiosity that can be very useful is that for cats bitter flavors are not pleasant, since they feel it in a much more powerful way than a human, At the same time, they cannot really appreciate sweet flavors, because of their taste buds. Choose the flavor of a product based on how you see your cat enjoying it.

Quality

Taking into account that, when choosing one or another food, we will influence the health of our pets and their well-being, we must focus on the quality of the product and not on savings. Within this wet food market, the division is usually made into three categories, which we will see below, and each of them has different characteristics:

• Premium Range: These have selected quality ingredients, have a higher meat content and do not use by-products of animal and vegetable origin. They usually include very healthy extra elements for a pussycat. In addition, you will distinguish them because on many occasions they bring elaborate dishes more typical of a demanding human than an animal.
• Mid-range: They have a lower price than the Premium category, since the product loses quality, but they are still recommended. Much of the protein comes from by-products of animal origin and are foods that a person does not eat, but an animal can eat it without problem.
• Low range: They are very affordable products, but they do not usually meet the nutritional needs of cats. Animal protein is extracted from parts of the animal such as feathers, cartilage, viscera, hooves, and beaks. It usually contains a high degree of cereals and other filling products, which suppress hunger to the pet. They are not recommended.

Ratings from other customers

You have to remember that cats are animals of habit and when you like a product a lot it will be very difficult to adapt it to other brands or flavors. Therefore, you need a purchase that is good from the beginning, so don’t just look at the score given by other buyers, but you should look at the comments to better understand the reasons.

You can always find comments that refer to technical specifications of the product and that may be useful to you. If you prioritize quality over economy, then you can look for comments from other users who are like you. Also look for ratings of people whose cats have similar characteristics to your pet.

Summary

The food you choose for your cat will be essential in its well-being and health. Today, the market for cat food has evolved a lot and professionals recommend that dry feed be mixed with wet food for optimal feeding. There are many different textures and flavors that will suit your cat. There are products of different quality.

Wet food is great for your pet’s body because it keeps him hydrated. When choosing a product look carefully at its label. After this guide that we have created, we hope you have a good understanding of the ingredients it registers, which ones are best and what can be dispensed with.