Why Freeze-Dried Cat Food Is the Best Cat Food in Malaysia?

Are you looking for the best cat food in Malaysia?  

In this article, you will learn about why freeze-dried cat food can be the best cat food option in Malaysia!

We are also going to make a genuine comparison between different types of cat food that are available in Malaysia.

Dry Cat Food

Pros of dry cat food

• Easy to feed
• Longer shelf-life
• Does not spoil as easily
• Cheap

Cons of dry cat food

• High cooking temperature can destroy natural food nutrients
• Contains preservatives, flavourings and other additives
• Most dry cat food tends to have many carbohydrates (grains)

Verdict

Dry cat food is the most common and affordable cat food that you can find in Malaysia.

Dry cat food allows for free-feeding as it can be left out all day when you are at work, your cat can just eat it anytime. However, it is important to monitor the amount your cat eats in a day because your cat can easily be over-eating the food since kibble is dense and does not contain much moisture.

As dry kibble typically has only about 10% moisture content, your pet is prone to dehydration if it does not drink enough water. Moreover, the high sodium content of kibble can cause even more dehydration. Chronic dehydration can lead to the urinary tract and kidney issues.

Studies have shown a correlation whereby cats fed with dry kibble tend to get obesity and diabetes mellitus. This is mainly because most dry cat foods have lots of carbohydrates as they contain grains such as wheat and corn. Therefore, it is highly recommended for a pet owner to look carefully into the ingredient list of pet food before buying it and ensure that it does not contain excessive grains or carbohydrates.

Wet Canned Food

Pros of wet cat food

• High water content
• Easy to feed
• Easy to digest

Cons of wet cat food

• High cooking temperature can destroy natural food nutrients
• Contains thickening agents, preservatives and other additives
• Can spoil easily after opening

Verdict

The main difference between kibble and wet canned food is moisture content.

Wet canned food contains more moisture than dry cat food which is good to prevent dehydration. In the wild, cats would receive most of their hydration from the prey they eat, which is around 70% of moisture. So, it is good to get wet canned food at around 70% of water.

Unfortunately, most of the time, the ingredients of kibble and wet canned food are similar.

Ingredients like pea, corn, soy and starch can’t be digested well by cats. For example, peas and grains are often included as ingredients to bump up the protein content of pet food, however, cats can’t digest plant-based protein properly. By this means, a high-protein pet food whereby the protein is significantly sourced from plants is probably not a good choice for your cats. Cats need high meat protein but not plant protein.

Dry kibble and wet canned foods are cooked at high temperatures, natural nutrients of the meat are destroyed. To compensate for this, synthetic vitamins and minerals which are cheaper than fresh meat nutrients are added to the recipe.

Both dry kibbles and wet canned food generally contain preservatives. You should stay away from cat food with harmful preservatives such as butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT), butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA), Bisphenol A (BPA) and Ethoxyquin. Try to look for natural preservatives like vitamin E (tocopherols) or vitamin C (ascorbic acid).

Also, wet canned food generally consists of thickening agents such as carrageenan, xanthan gum and guar gum that act as emulsifiers, stabilisers and to improve the texture. These are potentially harmful agents and it is probably a good bet no cat should be eating this.

Raw Cat Food

Pros of raw cat food

• Natural & wholesome
• High in moisture
• You control the ingredients and how it is made
• No preservatives, flavourings and other additives
• Easy to digest

Cons of raw cat food

• More time consuming to prepare
• May contain pathogens
• Spoil easily

Verdict

A raw diet is sometimes called “BARF” which stands for “biologically appropriate raw food”.

Cats are obligate carnivores. Meaning, they are restricted to a meat-only diet. They do not need carbohydrates and plants in their diets. In fact, they can only tolerate carbohydrates in a small amount.

Instead, cats need high-protein and high-moisture diets that are rich in substances only found in meat. This includes amino acids and other essential vitamins and minerals. Plants do not contain essential amino acids. Therefore, grains, vegetables, and fruits are unnecessary in a cat’s diet.

Supporters of raw pet food believe that cooked and highly processed meats such as kibble and wet pet food can destroy these important elements. There is where raw diet comes in, it is real, whole food that closely mimics what a cat would eat in the wild. All-natural and fresh!

However, feeding your cat raw food does come with some risks. Raw food may contain pathogens that can lead to life-threatening infections. Although cats’ digestive systems can digest raw food and handle pathogens better than human’s, those with immune disease or other health problems may not be able to tolerate it well.

These pathogens are not just a risk for your cat, they can pose a threat to the pet owner and the family too. The pathogens may be spread by your cat when grooming itself and then interacting with you, or they can remain in cat faeces.

Nevertheless, if you are planning to feed your cat a raw diet, you should discuss with a veterinary nutritionist to ensure that the diet is complete and balanced. Otherwise, there may be a risk of nutrient deficiencies.

Freeze-Dried Cat Food

Pros of freeze-dried pet food

• Natural & wholesome
• No preservatives, flavourings and other additives
• Easy to digest
• Easy to feed
• Longer shelf-life
• No parasite

Cons of freeze-dried pet food

• More pricey

Verdict

Freeze-dried cat food combines the pros of both dry cat food and raw cat food.

Freeze-dried food is minimally processed, uncooked, pure and high-meat.

A freeze-drying process removes the water content from the raw ingredient itself, up to 99%. This means that the original nutritional value and taste of the raw food are wholly retained, at the same time, the food is well-preserved because pathogens cannot function without water.

In short, freeze-dried food is a shelf-stable raw food with long shelf life!

The product is lightweight because most of the water is removed. The 5 kilograms of fresh meat will now weigh roughly 1 kilogram after freeze-drying but be the same in every other aspect. In other words, 1 gram of freeze-dried food is equivalent to 5 grams of fresh meat.

You can feed your cat freeze-dried food directly as it does not have to be rehydrated before it is eaten. Having said that, add some water to the food can make it more palatable and easier to digest. It also increases the water intake of your cat as cats need high moisture diet. It is important to make sure that your cat always has enough hydration.

Same as wet canned food, a rehydrated freeze-dried food should not be left out for a long time. Otherwise, bacteria might start growing on it with the presence of water.

Freeze-dried food might seem to be more expensive compared to others. However, bearing in mind that 100 grams of freeze-dried food are made from about 500 grams of fresh meat, the price is actually reasonable and justifiable. Since freeze-dried food is 5 times denser, a lesser portion of freeze-dried food should be fed compared to the other types of food. Moreover, it is wholesome raw food and ready to be served without hassle or mess.

Dry Cat Food vs Wet Cat Food vs Raw Cat Food vs Freeze-Dried Cat Food

Here is a summary of the comparison between dry kibble, wet pet food, raw pet food and freeze-dried pet food:

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Final Thoughts: The Best Cat Food in Malaysia

Raw pet food and freeze-dried pet food are real ingredients that can be seen with your eyes. On the contrary, you can’t really identify the quality of the ingredients used for kibble and wet pet food because they have already been highly processed.

For example, one may not be able to confirm whether there is real chicken meat in a chicken-recipe wet cat food or kibble. Inferior meat, meat by-products, animal waste or even “mystery ingredients” may have been used in manufacturing the food instead. These are definitely not good ingredients to include in pet food.

As a pet owner, you want to be sure that you are feeding the right food for your cat so it can stay healthy and happy. And freeze-dried cat food is going to be the best cat food in Malaysia, simply because it is wholesome natural raw food that is best for your cat and at the same time, safe and incredibly convenient to feed!

By the end of this article, we hope you have already gotten some ideas about picking out the best cat food.

“At Grace Cat, we believe that all pets deserve the longest, healthiest and happiest life possible, and this starts by feeding your pets the right food. That is why we are passionately committed to bring the real food with real love and real joy to your pets. Let’s satisfy our pets’ need for natural food and fill the bowls with the pure nutrition of raw.” — Grace Cat

Shop our GraceFull RAW Freeze-Dried Raw Pet Food here.