Natural Balance Original Ultra Chicken Formula For Kittens Review

This product is manufactured by Natural Balance Pet Foods. Natural Balance Pet Foods is a subsidiary of Big Heart Pet Brands. In addition to Natural Balance, Big Heart Pet Brands also owns Nature's Recipe, Milk Bone, Meaty Bone, Meow Mix, PupPeroni, Ally Cat, and several other brands.

According to our data, this Natural Balance recipe provides complete & balanced nutrition for growing kittens. In other words, this formula is AAFCO approved.

Natural Balance Original Ultra Chicken Formula For Kittens is formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO Cat Food Nutrient Profiles for growing kittens.

Ingredient Review

We'll begin this review of Natural Balance Original Ultra Chicken Formula For Kittens with a detailed discussion of the ingredients.

The first ingredient is chicken. Although chicken is an excellent protein source, raw chicken contains more than 60% moisture. After cooking, the relative meat contribution of chicken is dramatically reduced. Therefore, it's important to ensure that other meat sources are included within the first few ingredients to ensure the product derives most of its protein from meat.

The second ingredient is chicken broth. Chicken broth provides both flavor and moisture; however, as with other broths, chicken broth does not provide any notable nutritional contribution.

The third ingredient is chicken liver. Chicken liver is an excellent organ meat which provides high quality protein and fat. In addition, chicken liver provides many essential vitamins and minerals.

The fourth ingredient is canola oil (preserved with mixed tocopherols). Canola oil is a plant-derived oil from the seeds of canola plants. Although fat is an essential component of any diet, canola oil is controversial in pet food. Proponents claim that canola oil provides a better fat profile in comparison to other plant based oils. However, opponents claim that canola oil is typically produced with genetically modified rapeseed and that rapeseed oil has multiple adverse health affects.

The fifth ingredient is dried egg product. Dried egg product consists of shell-free eggs which are easy to digest and contain high quality protein. Egg protein is often given the highest biological value (BV). The BV metric measures the usability of the ingredient's protein.

Because ingredients are listed in order of pre-cooked weight, the remaining ingredients in Natural Balance Original Ultra Chicken Formula For Kittens are not as important as the first five ingredients.

However, collectively they still have a significant impact on the overall quality of the product. Therefore, we'll continue discussing the remaining ingredients in this Natural Balance recipe.

Next we have natural flavor, which is likely included to improve palatability.

The next ingredient is dicalcium phosphate. Dicalcium phosphate (misnomer for dibasic calcium phosphate) is commonly used in pet food and treats as a dietary calcium supplement. It can also be found in breakfast cereals, enriched flour, noodle products, pharmaceutical tablets, and toothpastes.

Then we have salt. Salt is an important mineral for both humans and cats. Depending on the quantity of salt used (which we cannot determine), salt may or may not be a nutritious addition in the recipe.

Moving on, we have salmon oil. Salmon oil is an outstanding source of omega-3 fatty acids, an important part of a cat diet.

Moving on with this review, we have calcium carbonate. Calcium carbonate is a naturally occurring mineral supplement. Although it's often used as a dietary calcium supplement, it can also be used as a preservative or color retainer.

The next ingredient in this review is potassium chloride. Potassium chloride is a potassium supplement.

Our next ingredient is taurine, which is an amino acid. As with other amino acids, taurine is required for the proper functioning of the body.

flaxseed is the next ingredient in this recipe. Flaxseeds are an outstanding source of omega-3 fatty acids and dietary fiber. They also provide a notable amount of protein, B vitamins, and various minerals.

The remaining ingredients in this Natural Balance Original Ultra recipe are unlikely to affect the overall rating of the product.

Our analysis of the ingredients show that this product derives most of its protein from animal based sources. This is an excellent property because meat based protein contains all of the necessary amino acids required by cats. In our option, this is one of the most important properties to judge when reviewing pet food, therefore we believe this is an exceptional product in this regard.

Final Thoughts

In summary, we recognize that this product does not contain any artificial colors, artificial preservatives, or anonymous meat ingredients.

The official PawDiet rating for Natural Balance Original Ultra Chicken Formula For Kittens is 4.5 out of 5.