The Best Wet Food For Bengal Cats

What is the best wet food for Bengal cats?

A tricky question, as there is quite a lot of conflicting information regarding the best Bengal cat diet.

But it does seem the consensus is that wet cat food is better at meeting nutritional needs and keeping your cat healthy than dry cat food.

So then, which wet food is best for Bengals?

How I Chose The Products or ‘Method‘

To choose the best wet food I used a method different to the one I’d normally use to go about selecting products.

Instead of relying on reviews from Amazon, I selected products from this in depth list of cat foods:

Food Chart 2017 FIX NATION 12-3-18 (catinfo.org)

Those I selected had to meet the following criteria with regards to calorie content:

• Over 50% protein (ideally over 70%)
• Between 20-40% fat
• 1-2% carbohydrate maximum

All cat foods selected were considered ‘complete’ (met nutritional needs), and had sufficient moisture. It turns out those selected had higher moisture content than the target range, but this just means your cat may get hungrier that little bit quicker.

I didn’t choose any wet cat food that listed seafood based meat in its ingredients (for reasons discussed later) or dairy- as cats are actually lactose intolerant.

The descriptions for each are those stated by the manufacturers.

The chart used is very thorough but dates back to 2017 so I’ve only listed those I could actually find/are still made.

It also contains a column for phosphorus which I’ve left out although this is important to know if your Bengal has kidney disease.

 The Best Wet Food For Bengal Cats

Tiki Cat Luau Wet Food with Poultry in Consomme

Calories From Protein: 77% Calories From Fat: 23% Calories From Carbohydrates: 0%

Notes: This tops my best wet food for Bengal cats list. It comes in various weights and pack sizes. You can buy this with fish instead of chicken, but this is best avoided for reasons mentioned later in this article. Never heard of a consommé, but apparently it means ‘a clear soup or broth.’ Always learning.

Purina Fancy Feast Gourmet Naturals

Calories From Protein: 77% Calories From Fat: 23% Calories From Carbohydrates: 0%

Notes: Second only to the Tiki offering due to this product containing more phosphorus. There is a gravy based version and also one with chicken and beef.

Weruva TruLuxe Quick N’ Quirky

Calories From Protein: 70% Calories From Fat: 30% Calories From Carbohydrates: 0%

Notes: 3 oz or 6 oz cans in packs of 24 available. If you’re interested, carrageenans are compounds extracted from red edible seaweeds used as food thickeners.

I had hoped to make this list longer but it seems much of what’s available doesn’t cut the mustard.

There were two additional products that would have featured, but I could not find them as being for sale:

• Soulistic Aromatic Chicken
• Nature’s Recipe Grain Free In Broth Indoor

Can Bengal cats eat wet food?

Clearly, the answer is yes- Bengal cats eat wet food and this is preferential to any dry cat foods.

Indeed, if a raw food diet (mentioned below) is not for you, then one based around complete wet food that adheres as closely to the criteria listed above is the next best option.

Of course, even the best laid plans can go astray and just because you’re trying to provide the best wet food for your Bengal, it doesn’t mean kitty is going to like it.

Which probably means it’s a good idea to trial any new wet food you introduce in small amounts alongside that which your cat currently consumes.

Having said that, even this strategy may fail.

Our Bengal, Hazel, has a knack of picking out the food she wants from the mixture and leaving anything unpalatable behind.

We do give her dry food as a snack, however, it’s believed that dry cat food is inferior to wet and long term can cause health problems- especially those associated with kidneys, due to insufficient moisture content.

What does Grain-Free Mean?

Grains (such as wheat, corn, oats) contain carbohydrates which a cat’s diet should contain very little of.

Therefore, by claiming their product is grain-free a company hopes you will think it is a healthier choice for all cats including Bengals.

However, instead companies often replace grains with carbohydrate-containing vegetables, which are equally unsuitable in high amounts.

There’s also the idea that vegetables are good for health- which they are, but not really for cats.

To avoid problems here, simply look out for wet food with an appropriate carbohydrate content, ignoring any grain-free claims.

What is Ash?

You may see in a list of ingredients, or may have already seen, that cat food contain ‘ash’.

But what is ash exactly?

Put simply, when all the organic matter (that is fat, protein, carbohydrates, water etc.) in food is heated and burnt off, the remnant is ash.

This ash contains important minerals needed to maintain health.

What is Taurine?

Taurine might also be a cat food ingredient you are unfamiliar with.

It is a natural organic compound, called an amino acid and these bond with other amino acids to build proteins.

It is found in fish and meat.

Many animals can make taurine, however cats are not one of these animals.

Therefore cats need food that contains taurine or has it added to it.

Any cat food labelled ‘complete’ should contain sufficient levels of taurine, which is again vital to your cat’s overall health.

Should I feed my Bengal cat wet food that contains fish?

Cats stereotypically love fish- to the point where you can even buy cat toys that look like and mimic a struggling fish’s movement.

I’m sure most Bengals would not refuse fish or food containing fish if appears in their bowl.

But should fish feature?

Fish has typically been considered a healthy choice, especially for humans, however this belief is slowly being eroded.

This is partly because as our seas become increasingly polluted, heavy metals such as mercury and lead are concentrating in the bodies of higher organisms including fish.

Thus, anyone or anything that eats fish risks consuming these potentially health damaging elements.

My personal opinion is that I would avoid Bengal cat food that lists fish and other seafood ‘meat’ as one of its ingredients.

There is an article on the health risks associated with eating fish at nutritionfacts.org. It’s about human consumption but you get the idea.

Canned Food or Pouches?

This may come down to personal preference, price or even something as simple as storage space.

I have read that pouches generally contain more water than canned food options, which means less calories for your money and therefore a greater volume is needed to keep kitty satiated.

Canned food offers a different problem in that there’s the potential for BPA contamination.

It’s never straightforward is it?

What’s the best food to feed a Bengal cat?

There is much debate with regards to the best diet for Bengal cats.

From what I’ve read, it appears that a diet closest to a natural cat diet is the most healthy- that is, one a cat that lives in the wild would eat, is likely to be the best food to feed a Bengal cat.

This to me sounds logical.

But a raw food diet isn’t without potential pitfalls and some point to the potential for microbial infection in both cats and humans alike.

Additionally, a balanced, nutritionally correct raw food diet can be hard to get right.

It’s not simply a case of throwing your Bengal a supermarket chicken breast at mealtimes as food must contain the right balance of muscle meat, organ and bone alongside appropriate levels of vitamins and minerals.

There are also other factors to take into consideration such as time, money and even storage space for all that frozen raw food.

So although a balanced, natural, raw food diet may be the best wet food option for Bengals, it may not be practical for you.

If a raw diet is something you wish to try or at least, gather more information on, then this site has lots of information.

You can buy pre-made, complete, raw food, which we have used ourselves, especially when Hazel was a kitten and occasionally since.

It is quite expensive though and needs to be cut up into meal size chunks/cubes (usually straight after purchase), then frozen (that’s what we did anyway).

What we (currently) feed our Bengal

Once Hazel reached adulthood, we decided to move her onto the adult equivalent of her kitten food.

This didn’t go to plan, as she would more often than not, just smell it and walk away.

Even mixing didn’t help.

So this meant quite a lot of wasted cat food.

We decided to return her kitten foods until we could find a suitable alternative.

Eventually, we settled on Webbox Naturals– but just the meat selection in gravy (we haven’t tried the jelly).

She’s been contently eating this for a few months now and we liked the variety in flavours as well the content.

I like to look out for alternatives now and again to see if there’s anything better, but for now this particular brand will suffice.

Summary

Although a raw food diet replicating what a cat in the wild would eat seems to be the best diet for Bengals, it may not be practical for owners feed their Bengal one.

Fortunately, there are good complete wet cat food options for Bengals available at varying price points and in a range of flavours.

You should find something to suit.

Always remember, companies look for profits first, so always read labels to check you are purchasing healthy foods nutritionally suitable for your cat.

And then hope kitty actually eats it.

So which offering takes your, or rather your cat’s fancy?

Further Reading:

Please note, Amazon links on this page are affiliate links from which I’ll receive a small percentage if you purchase at no extra cost to you. It all helps. Thanks.

Featured Image by Paul Hanaoka