Stella & Chewy's nutrition analysis

I couldn't find any S&C's freeze dried food for cats, so I emailed the company and discovered they have discontinued all their cat-specific products. They plan to reformulate them and relaunch cat products in the future, date unspecified. The rep said the dog food options were all low carb. I asked her for the "as fed" values but she couldn't provide them. Here's what she sent to me:

>>>>>>>>>Hi Laura,

I don’t have the % of calories for fat, protein and carbs, but I do have the percentages for the diet as a whole. I can assure you that the carbs are VERY low…0.5% in the frozen and 1.5% in the freeze-dried. If you were to rehydrate the freeze-dried, which we recommend doing when you’re feeding it as a complete diet, then it too becomes 0.5%.

The other levels are stated below. Again, as I mentioned above, it’s important to know that all of the freeze-dried levels look elevated due to the low moisture content. If you were to rehydrate them, the levels would be almost identical to those in the frozen dinners.

% Protein
% Fat
% Carbs

Frozen Stella’s Super Beef Dinner
15.96
12.83
0.5

Freeze-Dried Stella’s Super Beef Dinner
45.81
36.83
1.5

Frozen Chewy’s Chicken Dinner
16.44
10.59
0.5

Freeze-Dried Chewy’s Chicken Dinner
50.29
32.40
1.5

Frozen Duck Duck Goose Dinner
16.17
11.71
0.5

Freeze-Dried Duck Duck Goose Dinner
47.76
34.58
1.5

Frozen Dandy Lamb Dinner
16.29
17.33
0.5

Freeze-Dried Dandy Lamb Dinner
41.41
44.05
1.5 >>>>>>

What, if anything, can I conclude from this? I use the freeze-dried patties as a snack and for some timer feeder meals that won't be served until 9 or 12 hours after loading into the timer. Was wondering if I could use any of these freeze-dried dog options.

 

I would suggest going by their ingredients then...

 

What to make of ingredients such as this, for the freeze-dried chicken?

Ingredients: Chicken (ground with bone), chicken liver, chicken gizzard, pumpkin seed, organic cranberries, organic spinach, organic broccoli, organic beets, organic carrots, organic squash, organic apples, organic blueberries, calcium carbonate, potassium chloride, direct-fed microorganisms (Pediococcus acidilactici, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Bifidobacterium longum, Enterococcus faecium), magnesium oxide, natural tocopherols, vitamin E supplement, biotin, potassium iodide, vitamin D3 supplement.

No grains, but veggies like squash in particular certainly have carbs...

 

THere are differing opinions as to whether the addition of fruits and veggies are all that beneficial for cats....

I'd suggest that they would be healthy treats for cats and for dogs; I've no idea the nutritional analysis for taurine, etc. and whether it would be ok as an actual meal.

 

Some places may still sell the freeze dried chicken/beef patties for cats. Here is one: http://www.pawnaturals.com/Stella_Chewy ... l00080.htm

Farm-Fresh Ingredients USDA-inspected beef, USDA-inspected chicken (ground including bone), beef liver, beef kidney, beef heart. Fortified with vitamins and minerals. Vitamins & Minerals Zinc sulfate, manganese sulfate calcium carbonate, copper sulfate, ferrous sulfate, sodium selenite, calcium iodate, cobalt sulfate, choline chloride, vitamin E (di-alpha tocopherol acetate), niacin, calcium pantothenate, ascorbic acid, vitamin A supplement, vitamin B-12 supplement, thiamine mono nitrate, riboflavin, vitamin D supplement, folic acid, pyridoxine hydrochloride, biotin

OnlyNaturalPet.com still sells the frozen feline diet: http://www.onlynaturalpet.com/products/ ... 00012.aspx

The freezed dried patties for dogs are ok as treats and an occasional meal. Personally, my cat loved the dog patties better than the cat ones :razz: It didn't have any effect on bgs.

Nature's Variety has freeze dried patties, too, if you want to look into that.

OnlyNaturalPet.com sells their own brand of freeze dried patties: http://www.onlynaturalpet.com/products/ ... 99325.aspx but it comes with this disclaimer: Only Natural Pet Freeze Dried Patties are intended for intermittent or supplemental feeding only for cats. They may be fed as a meal or used as a supplement, treat, training aid, or flavor enhancer, but should be rotated or combined with other food that is formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO Cat Food Nutrient Profiles for All Life Stages.

 

I use the freeze-dried patties primarily as a treat, only occasionally as a meal substitute for one of Quincy's daily 6-7 mini-meals. Sometimes I'll crumb a little over his regular food too.

I saw that some online websites still have S&C's for sale, but I am guessing they are close to or at their expiration date, so was reluctant to order them. I'm currently into my last package, and it's past its expiration date.

Will probably look into other freeze-dried options for cats.