Ash is the dry part of pet food left after everything else is removed, or when the food is totally incinerated. Burning pet food removes most elements through smoke, leaving mineral residue in the form of ash. Ash is calculated by percentage and it’s important to have it in mind for several reasons when choosing food for your cat.
The two main reasons are the balance in mineral intake. A disbalance in mineral intake can lead to further complications since some minerals can inhibit the intake of others. A large chunk of ash traveling through the cat’s kidneys and urinary tract can leave its mark on your cat’s health in the long run.
To prevent this from happening to your cat, we’ve come up with a list of the best low ash cat food you can feed to your furry friend, and rest assured they’ll stay healthy!
Low Ash Cat Food For Everyday Use
Below are three of the highest quality low ash cat food you can feed your cat with on an everyday basis. The foods reviewed here were chosen because they provide all of the necessary nutrients to keep your cat healthy, have good palatability, and low ash content.
1. Purina ONE Hairball for Adult Cats Chicken
The r
eason we chose the Hairball chicken formula is that Purina uses real chicken in their ONE product line. This means there are no derivatives added instead of chicken meat and chicken protein; and all the meat ingredients stem from nutritional chicken meat, often graded for human use.
The formula itself provides all the necessary nutrients for healthy body functioning, and it’s packed with good proteins that absorb well. None of the ingredients are used just as fillers, which means every ingredient in this kibble has at least one purpose.
Take a plant-based ingredient, rice flour, for instance. This ingredient is used to add structure to every bite of kibble, improve digestion and nutrient absorption, and it remains completely anti-allergenic and on the low side of glycogen levels.
This specific line is meant to improve hairball-related conditions by reducing hairball aggregation and helping the cat evacuate hairballs easier.
Specifications
- Ash content (dry): 2%
- Protein: 34%
- Fat: 4.5%
- Taurine: 15%
- Contains ingredients that help with hairballs
- Palatable
- Significantly low fat content
- Contains corn, beef, and other allergens
- Rice and Wheat flour-based
View On Amazon
2. Royal Canin Veterinary Urinary SO Moderate Calorie
This cat food sells itself, and there’s no need to praise it too much because almost every veterinarian will prescribe a bag of Royal Canin Veterinary (well, it’s among the top three options at least) all over the world.
The moderate calorie option is great for young and adult cats with normal energy expenditure outdoors, or the more energetic indoor cats.
Specifications
- Ash content (dry): 9.1% (well-balanced)
- Protein: 32%
- Fat: 9%
- Taurine: N/A
- Protects kidneys and urinary tract
- Moderate calorie content
- Highly palatable
- Grain-based
- Needs veterinary approval to improve feline health conditions
View On Amazon
3. Lives Daily Essentials
The last best low ash cat food option on our list is the budget-friendly 9 Lives Daily Essentials blend. This cat food can help your furry friend improve its vitality, immunity, and friskiness. It has all of the 22 essential amino acids along with a wide palette of micro-elements necessary for the healthy function of your feline companion.
This option contains high-quality protein that improves the cat’s muscle growth and repair, as well as a balanced mix of fibers that improves the cat’s digestion. The best thing about this choice is that this cat food is approved for all life stages. This is a great option for those that take care of or own several cats and need a family-sized bag for everyday care.
Specifications
- Ash content (dry): 7%
- Protein: 30%
- Fat: 9%
- Taurine: 0.10%
- Great choice for all life stages
- Above-average palatability – cats love it
- 100% complete and balanced diet
- Low protein content
- Low taurine content
View On Amazon
Why Ash Content is Important
Ash content is a rather controversial topic among pet nutritionists. Some say it says a lot about the quality of the pet food product, while others interpret the numbers as misleading. All in all, ash content should measure the amount of less digestible food parts, overall mineral content, and other residue left after incineration.
It’s shown that high ash content correlates with renal issues as well as a few other conditions. The secret lies behind the difference in amounts of various minerals. These minerals, like iron, copper, phosphorus, and zinc, are essential parts of a cat’s diet.
The problem arises when too much of one or more than one mineral builds up in a cat’s body. The built-up minerals can hinder the absorption of other essential minerals, leading to conditions that are related to the lack of other minerals (anemia, for example)
To prevent this from happening, pet owners must inform themselves about the ingredients in their pet’s food, the amount of each mineral, and the impact that these minerals have on their cat’s overall health.
Conclusion
From this top 3 list, we can confidently conclude that the Purina ONE Hairball for Adult Cats is the best low ash cat food you can buy for a healthy adult and juvenile cat.
Should you need to treat urinary and renal issues, the Royal Canine Urinary SO Moderate Calorie is the best option.
Finally, 9Lives Daily Essentials provides the best nutritional value as a budget-friendly variant and comes in large bags for those that have more than one cat.