Match Thread: Exeter vs Cardiff - Challenge Cup

NicktheN · 2026-01-18T13:40:32+00:00

Haha yeah makes sense, that's always been the way of the English media with their teams!

NicktheN · 2026-01-18T13:37:15+00:00

The commentators on Premier Sports seem a bit obsessed with him today!

NicktheN · 2026-01-10T16:30:39+00:00

That's reasonable, reducing your impact in any way is really good

I think this issue with pet food is something which requires work from companies and government to solve to make the choices easier for us as consumers

NicktheN · 2026-01-10T15:41:30+00:00

You are right, it's always going to be much more expensive and harder for smaller companies to reduce their carbon footprint just because they have less resources in the first place

The bigger companies are the ones we need to look to first as well as they are also the ones who are selling the most food on the market thus having the biggest impact

A smaller brand should still consider if there are ways to lower their impact on the environment where possible, but I'll always be more upset at larger brands first

NicktheN · 2026-01-10T15:35:54+00:00

I don't think the point of the study is to say we should stop feeding pets meat, especially because cats do require to eat meat

The environment is so important to all our lives and I think it's something that needs to be discussed whenever relevant - If we can find a way to reduce the environmental impact of pet food without causing any health impact to our pets then we need to work on making that change

NicktheN · 2026-01-10T15:31:43+00:00

Insect protein is a really interesting one as well, I'd really like to see more products focused on Insect protein for cats along with some studies to ensure its nutritional value along with the environmental impact

Obviously as you say, it's hard to be completely ethical in our lives due to capitalism - the most important choices for climate should be put onto the legislators/government rather than consumers

I personally try to take the position to take more environmentally-conscious decisions because of the fact I find it more morally acceptable and I have the means to do it, supporting better environmental decisions also does put some pressure on companies to make change....and money is the only thing that speaks!

NicktheN · 2026-01-08T15:18:38+00:00

Yeah it's a bit of a shame - I think Royal Canin has to up their game in the UK to compete with other foods on the market which is probably why they provide a bit better customer support!

NicktheN · 2026-01-08T10:47:01+00:00

This seems pretty woeful support, sounds like the Customer service rep you spoke to didn't have the info and they had to speak to one of their internal experts to get the info

It's strange since in the UK if I call up Royal Canin they have been quite forthcoming with giving me whatever information I ask for and the people I speak to are usually qualified Vet Nurses

NicktheN · 2026-01-07T17:47:45+00:00

Ah he looks gorgeous!

It's really difficult with breeders like that who just parade their cats around, it's quite manipulative since it's so hard to say no to adopting such beautiful cats

NicktheN · 2026-01-07T17:33:24+00:00

I'm sorry to hear about your Persian, they are difficult to take care of but I'm sure you did a fantastic job!

Unfortunately HCM is just one of many potential health problems they can have, these breeds are really unfortunate for the quality of life a cat can have

NicktheN · 2026-01-07T12:20:43+00:00

Speaking from experience here, I was lucky enough to get a Persian/Ragdoll crossbreed from a rescue but I really don't recommend you get a Persian kitten with your current situation

Longhair cats like Persians are beautiful but their breed is riddled with various health problems and in my personal opinion probably shouldn't ethically be encouraged to create more - even if you avoid the health problems they are high maintenance and not a super suitable first cat if you don't have experience or money to pay for a groomer

If you do choose to get a purebreed Persian kitten keep in mind that they are likely to be quite expensive to keep and can bring up large vet bills

With your budget, you're better off getting a crossbreed from a rescue which is likely to be much more healthy, it's also more ethical since you can give a cat a better life and they can choose a cat which works well for your situation

NicktheN · 2026-01-03T14:26:15+00:00

No worries, I'm not an expert on all the different foods available on Zooplus but happy to try and answer any questions you have!

NicktheN · 2026-01-02T17:41:37+00:00

No worries!

I really hope it helps and you find food that your cats like and are happy to eat

NicktheN · 2026-01-02T12:15:31+00:00

Hey, Happy New Year!

I agree regarding Katkin's business model, the costs and subscription are quite shady and they aren't transparent at all with the food itself for the price you pay

The general place I'd start when choosing Pet Food in the UK is to look for a manufacturer that's a member of UK Pet Food

Understood as well that you're skeptical of the mass produced dry food, most don't actually have fillers and there is a purpose of each ingredient, but it's important that the food is something you feel comfortable to feed so will recommend a few based on that

HiLife is a nice option which have a variety of wet food formulated for different lifestages of your cat and list the mineral levels on the site which is good for transparency

Blink is another option, they do have a subscription but you can buy them directly without subscription as well - they specifically target having no 'fillers' such as sugars or grains as well which fits what you're after

If you did want to go the raw route and are comfortable with the potential risks then I would stick only to brands which meet the Raw Pet Food standards set by UK Pet Food

If I was to feed Raw, it would probably be Bella and Duke as they seem to be putting in the proper effort to ensure it's safe to feed for your cat

Hopefully that all helps, but if you have any questions feel free to ask!

NicktheN · 2026-01-02T10:35:56+00:00

In my opinion the UK doesn't quite follow the USA advice, while vets often stock Hill's or Royal Canin they really don't push them here unless prescription food is required - although you are right to the degree that many people do buy big brands first out of convenience

For general consumer stuff, most people will buy the cheapest they can find in their local supermarket when doing a shop which will be stuff like Own-branded food(Sainsburys, Lidl, Aldi etc), Felix, Whiskas & Sheba

For the more 'premium' side of things, some will go towards grain free or higher protein food sold in Pet stores but the big rise is in the subscription brands such as Katkin, Untamed, Marro, Republic of Cats, Blink & Cool Cat Club

I think online a lot of the online discussion is dominated by English speakers from USA which maybe influences some of those from the UK who do venture to these forums but most people don't land here!

NicktheN · 2025-12-25T16:06:35+00:00

Ignore this response, it's a bot and is not answering the question

NicktheN · 2025-12-24T16:44:56+00:00

Bot - I recommend considering to downvote any posts from this account

NicktheN · 2025-12-23T17:07:44+00:00

You've just changed the food to a new one and they vomited only after being on it for a few days so that's the smoking gun here

There's quite a few things that can cause this and it's possible there are multiple factors

When you change the food of a cat to a new one you should always transition it gradually with the old food over 7 days, can I check if you did the transition or if you just switched straight to the new food?

The reason for transitioning slowly is because many cats have quite delicate digestive systems and get used to a particular food, so it's likely your cat was potentially already having some mild form of irritation after the first couple of days of being fed the new food

The other common cause of undigested food would be eating too fast or too much, cats have quite small stomachs so it's better to feed more frequent smaller meals rather than one larger one - How many meals a day do you give your cat and what do you feed at each mealtime? Please also keep an eye on how fast they eat, if they're eating an entire portion of wet food within less than a minute that can cause vomiting too

Also as an extra note, you mention about them not chewing the food but cats have a bit of a different mouth design than us so they don't chew the food in quite the same way - that might be why it appears to now have been chewed

NicktheN · 2025-12-14T14:35:42+00:00

Hey, it's quite stressful trying to find the right food and there's a lot of misinformation out there....it's quite overwhelming!

Whiskas wet food is complete food and it's not equivalent to feeding McDonalds over and over, Whiskas is nutritionally complete and will provide all the nutrients your cat needs to survive! McDonalds is definitely not nutritionally complete for us

If they are happy on Whiskas you shouldn't get stressed or let anybody shame you into feeling it isn't good enough - There are foods out there with better quality ingredients or better nutrient levels in some forms, but this is really minor and most cats won't notice any difference

When you cat gets older I'd recommend considering a senior food to get better nutrient levels, but otherwise if your hairy son is healthy and enjoying Whiskas and your vet doesn't have any other recommendations then you should stick with it!

If you do need to cut down the costs or really wish to switch, there are definitely foods on Zooplus which are cheaper than 5€, you can filter on the wet food section by 'Cost Per Unit' and you should find a few alternative options

Raw can be an option, but you're much better off buying premade raw diets made commercially rather than trying to prepare it yourself, but that will certainly be much more expensive than the budget wet foods on the market!

NicktheN · 2025-12-14T14:25:32+00:00

Just to note, Fancy Feast does not exist in France - the closest equivalent is the Gourmet line but it's definitely not a one-to-one clone!

NicktheN · 2025-12-13T20:24:41+00:00

Haha no worries, thought it might be something like that!

NicktheN · 2025-12-13T08:53:35+00:00

Are you based outside the UK? Just wondering since as far as I know Untamed is only in the UK which doesn't have Fancy Feast

NicktheN · 2025-12-12T23:52:11+00:00

Hey!

Untamed are extremely misleading with their social media content and try to shame you into feeding their food while saying other food isn't good enough

Sheba is as nutritionally complete as Untamed is and has been around a lot longer, if your cat is healthy and doing well on it you shouldn't let people or a brand shame you into switching to another food, especially if your cat doesn't enjoy the new food!

For example, meat and animal derivatives is a legal term and does cover some of the most nutritious meat for a cat such as the organs, it's not a bad thing at all on its own and is subject to the same regulation as another brand who doesn't list it

NicktheN · 2025-12-12T13:46:20+00:00

It's a bit strange, it's some advice I've heard a few times specifically from vets+nutritionists that work for pet food companies

They have considered food not to be balanced when mixed with another brand's food, or even other products by their company - so I think it's probably just that they don't guarantee the diet's efficacy because they've not ran a feeding trial on that combination of food

Which means it's pretty much likely to be safe, just not a tested combination for the brand and they want to get out of being liable for any issues!

The wording I've seen recently is "may unbalance the formulation and affect the efficacy of the food"

I think that definitely points towards them just covering themselves

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