Wellness Cat Food Review [2021]

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Ratings

Species appropriate diet: 4/5
Quailty of ingredients: 3/5
Variety of recipes: 3/5
Pricing: 3.5/5
Customers experience: 3.5/5
Recalls history: 2/5

3.5/5

What Is Wellness Story?

Wellness is a pet food manufacturer aimed at not just filling the cat’s bowl with food to eat. They craft delicious and healthy natural recipes that help felines live a longer life together with their pet parents.

Wellness company was established in the 1990s by a team of nutrition experts, scientists, and vets to formulate the food that would make a difference in the pet food niche. Now this organization is owned by Wellpet LLC (which is a daughter company of the Berwind Corporation), headquartered in Tewksbury, Massachusetts.

The brand believes that it has created a new generation of healthy pet food. Along with that, they make a contribution to environmental conservation by supporting recycling efforts. Wellness encourages its customers to recycle their packaging and has teamed up with the recycle leader TerraCycle to help eliminate waste and allow people to do good stuff and get rewards for that.

Wellness also launched Wellness Foundation in 2019. This is a charitable organization that helps pets in need by providing them with quality meals.

Today, Wellpet is among the top 10 pet food companies in the world, including Wellness, Holistic Select, and other brands.

What Is Manufacturing Facility Location?

Wellness assures that pet’s health is at the core of everything it does. That is why they pay special attention to the Wellness cat food manufacturing process and ingredient quality.

All dry formulas are made in the company-owned facility in Indiana, the USA. Wet recipes are made both in America and Thailand. There’s no information about this on their website, so I had to check the Q&A section on different marketplaces to get to the truth.

Regardless of the manufacturing location, Wellness promises that all dog and cat wet recipes go through rigorous safety and quality programs, so you get only the best food for your feline. They follow the same manufacturing process used for the production of almost all wet pet foods. However, Wellness warns that as it adds natural ingredients that behave differently in every recipe, the textures of the same product might differ. They also add some artificial thickeners to create an appealing look of the meal so that your felines enjoy their food.

As I was searching for information about the manufacturing facilities, I came across the data about ingredient sourcing. Wellness cat food ingredients mainly come from North America. As the brand is concerned about the quality of all products it uses for pet food manufacturing, it sources some of the ingredients globally. For example, lamb, venison, salmon are sourced from Italy, Chile, New Zealand, and Australia. They get several ingredients, like tocopherols and green tea extract, from China. The quality assurance team tests and inspects every ingredient before it goes to any of the recipes.

What Is Wellness Recall History?

There were some Wellness cat food problems that led to food recalls within the history of the brand’s existence.

The first Wellness cat food recall happened in February 2011 because of the inadequate thiamine levels found in all canned cat recipes within a specific date range. According to the FDA report, 21,6 million cans were utilized.

In January 2012, Wellness treats were removed from the shelves of pet stores in New Mexico because of the use of amaranth, a type of grain. The company changed the formula, but this ingredient was approved for humans only, not for pets. So all the dog treats containing that ingredient were forbidden for sale in New Mexico.

Later, in May and October 2012, some more recalls followed. The first one happened due to the excessive level of moisture in dry dog food; the other was because of potential salmonella contamination.

And finally, in February 2017, the company found a small amount of metal in 12.5 oz. cat recipes manufactured outside of WellPet facilities. So, they voluntarily recalled a small amount of that canned cat food.

What Kind of Cat Food Does Wellness Offer?

Before we dive into detailed Wellness cat food reviews, let’s see what the company has to offer in general. The brand’s philosophy is to provide decent cat food that would support felines at any life stage and health condition. They promise to supply families with cat meals their pets love.

That is why all the Wellness cat foods are made of wholesome ingredients. They focus on the quality of proteins so that the diet looks natural for carnivores. There are also grain-free and grain-inclusive options to meet the needs of every cat. The brand does not add wheat, soy, corn, by-products, or fillers. You won’t also find artificial colors or other unknown substances.

There are two Wellness cat food line-ups: Core and Complete Health. I will give you a general understanding of these two cat food series.

Wellness Core cat food includes grain-free recipes focused on premium quality proteins to promote the utmost pet’s vitality. Because cats need animal proteins to survive, all the formulas are packed with proteins and other nutrients that ensure the well-being of the feline. The Core line includes kibble, RawRev (a combination of kibble and raw meat pieces), and wet foods (pâté, Core 95%, Simply Shreds Snacks, Tiny Tasters, Hearty Cuts, Signature Selects).

Wellness Complete Health cat recipes formulated to support pets with different health conditions and at various life stages. These are grain-free and grain-packed meals that include quality proteins and other essential nutrients to support the immune and urinary system, promote healthy digestion, and control energy levels. The company offers kibble and wet food in a great variety of textures (pâté, gravies, minced, sliced, morsels, Healthy Indulgence). There are crunchy bites for kittens called Kittles that will help the kitty clean teeth and have a snack in the between-the-meal time.

As there are so many product series within every line-up of Wellness cat food, let’s take a shortcut and take a closer look at dry and wet food varieties.

Wellness Dry Cat Food Review

Wellness is one of those rare brands that offer a huge selection of kibble. I was surprised, really, because the choice is often limited to 7 positions in a best-case scenario. Wellness provides 17! dry food recipes so that every feline could find their favorite flavor.

If you feed your cat with grain-free meals, there are 14 formulas to choose from. They include recipes for kittens, adults, indoor cats, senior felines. Wellness offers Core kibble that has a high protein level and supports felines at different life stages. You can also get the mix of raw meat pieces and kibble if you would like to add some raw food to your cat’s diet.

There are also recipes with wholesome grains like rice, barley, oatmeal to provide your active kitty with enough energy.

Wellness Core RawRev Original + 100% Raw Turkey

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As I was browsing through the product list, I was intrigued by the Core RawRev recipes. They are the most sophisticated in the whole collection, so see no reasons to review one of the formulas. The Wellness Core RawRev Original + 100% Raw Turkey recipe is a mix of grain-free kibble and bites of freeze-dried turkey liver. According to many Wellness dry cat food reviews, cats love these raw pieces as that’s the natural way for the carnivore to eat. This formula gets the best of both worlds: the highest-quality protein-packed kibble domesticated cats got used to and raw meat pieces all carnivores crave in the wild. This meal offers an optimal balance of fat and calories, just what the indoor cat needs.

Ingredients
Deboned Turkey, Deboned Chicken, Turkey Meal, Chicken Meal, Peas, Herring Meal, Chicken Fat (preserved with Mixed Tocopherols), Turkey Liver, Dried Ground Potatoes, Tomato Pomace, Ground Flaxseed, Natural Chicken Flavor, Salmon Oil, Cranberries, Chicory Root Extract, Choline Chloride, Taurine.

This is a grain-free formula with many quality sources. The primary ingredient is deboned turkey. Deboned chicken, turkey meal, chicken meal, herring meal, chicken liver are other products that are rich in animal proteins. The recipe includes peas, potatoes, tomatoes, cranberries that deliver carbs, vitamins, and minerals.

Warning!
As the recipe contains raw meat, the pet might have digestive disorders if not introduced gradually.

Good Stuff About This Wellness Core RawRev Original + 100% Raw Turkey Recipe:

No grains, soy, wheat, by-products
Includes quality protein sources
Contains raw meat bites

What You Might not Like About This Wellness Core RawRev Original + 100% Raw Turkey Recipe:

Many plant ingredients
High in carbs

Wellness Canned Cat Food Review

Wellness wet cat recipes deliver all the nutrients, vitamins, minerals your cat needs for happy and healthy well-being. There are formulas for all life stages and health conditions, as well as flavor preferences. Wellness wet recipes are packed with antioxidants and enzymes to support the immune system, digestion, urinary tract health, and others.

You’ll be surprised by the variety of wet food recipes Wellness offers. There are Complete Health pâté, gravies, morsels, minced, sliced textures. You can also choose between different product line-ups like Health Indulgence and Core recipes.

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I would like to continue the Wellness wet cat food review with a breakdown of Wellness Healthy Indulgence® Morsels with Tuna. These are chunks of tuna and chicken cooked with other quality ingredients and packed into a small pouch. This formula is loved even by finicky eaters due to the natural ingredients and the texture felines love, which is proved by numerous Wellness canned cat food reviews. The meal will make a complete and balanced diet so that your furry friend could enjoy every day of their life.

Ingredients
Chicken Broth, Water Sufficient For Processing, Chicken, Tuna, Potato Starch, Eggs, Carrots, Chicken Liver, Natural Flavor, Salt, Guar Gum.

Just like in any wet food, the broth is the first ingredient on the list. Wellness also adds water to process other ingredients. Chicken is the main source of proteins, which is strange for the tuna recipe. Tuna takes fourth place, and I hope its amount is enough to add enough taste to the meal. There are vegetables like potatoes and carrots, which bring enough carbs to the recipe. Carbohydrates are also received through starch and guar gum, so their amount is higher than expected. The good news is that there are no by-products, grains, or fillers in the formula.

Warning!
Refrigerate the unused portions of the Wellness wet pet food to avoid the leftovers spoiling and cat’s poisoning.

Good Stuff About This Wellness Healthy Indulgence® Morsels with Tuna:

High moisture and protein levels
Delicious chunks in gravy
No grains and by-products
Blueberries and cranberries as an antioxidant source

What You Might not Like About This Wellness Healthy Indulgence® Morsels with Tuna:

High carb level

Is Wellness Good For Your Cat?

Wellness is a pet food brand that offers cat meals for every taste and budget. There are super-premium quality recipes that might be slightly pricey for some pet parents, along with budget-friendly quality formulas packed with natural and healthy ingredients.

The company provides meals for cats made of animal proteins and then complemented with plants, grains (in some recipes), and essential vitamins to ensure healthy welfare and long life of your feline. There are formulas for any life stage of your feline, so you can start feeding your kitten with Wellness recipes and then switch to adult and senior ones when the time comes. The wellness team has also formulated cat food for those felines who need to stick to a diet, so there are meals with low carb content, for digestion support or urinary system health. You can even try raw & kibble mix if you think that raw meat must be a part of the feline’s diet.

Wellness uses natural, wholesome ingredients that are carefully processed at the facilities. There are no by-products, red-flag ingredients, or artificial colors that are not welcomed in the cat’s diet.

All in all, Wellness is a good brand, and you should give it a try if you would like to feed your car with high-protein meals.

What Are Pet Owners Saying About Wellness?

If you don’t have enough time to browse through Wellness cat food reviews Reddit, don’t be upset. I’ve done decent research and gathered the most popular ideas about Wellness cat food here. You can get the general impression about the quality of their food from direct sources without spending lots of your precious time.

There are both positive and negative talks about Wellness cat food, but the first ones prevail. For example, the pet parent of a cat with a sensitive stomach had issues with cheaper food. As they switched to Wellness Core grain free cat food, the situation has significantly improved, and the feline tolerated those meals.

Another customer also had a good experience of Wellness morsels. The recipe helped the cat with the vomiting issue and improved the fur condition.

Pâté also works great for many felines, so customers say many good words about the pâté recipes. Cats love the taste of the meal and always clear the plate. This pet parent ordered only three cans to check if the food works, and since the results were great, she’ll be ordering more.

Wellness Signature Gourmet Recipes please even finicky cats. It’s a rare thing when several picky cats love the same recipe, and the Signature formulas cope with the customer’s request to find the food all felines will love.

Those folks who didn’t like the Wellness food complained about the same thing - their cats didn’t like the new meal. That happens, and trying other flavors might help. This customer had an intention to switch his cat to a healthier diet and ended up wasting money since the furry friend didn’t appreciate his efforts. That’s sad, but here we are. Cats have their own taste preferences we can’t comprehend.

Wellness Complete Health Natural Dry Cat recipes are pricey for some pet parents, but they still love them for quality ingredients.

Is Wellness Worth Trying?

What can I say? Try Wellness if you would like to feed your feline with protein-rich and balanced food only. Wellness has products to satisfy the needs and desires of every pet owner and their cats. In terms of variety, this company is hard to beat. There are diets for any taste, wallet, and ingredient preferences. So, whether you have a finicky feline or you are concerned about the quality of every ingredient on the list, Wellness will have you covered.

But the diversity is sometimes tricky. You might be overwhelmed with the choices offered and might not know what recipe will work for your cat. For this reason, you can ask the Wellness support team to give you their recommendations based on your criteria.

If you have the final question, “So, I want to try Wellness cat food where to buy it?” let me answer it. Of course, the widest assortment of all the tastes and recipes will be online. Walmart, Amazon, Chewy, PetSmart sell cat food of this brand. They even offer an auto-ship option, so you will never run out of your cat’s favorite meals. You can also get it through independent retailers in your location.