For Americans everywhere, a shopping trip to Costco is one of the highlights of the week. Stocked to the brim with miscellaneous items galore, you never know what you’re going to discover next when walking down their aisles. Its this “sheer serendipity” that results in Costso lovers spending 150% more in an average shopping trip when compared with the average shoppers’ expenditures at other retailers – you never really know what item you you’ll come upon that you never knew you needed until that very moment. However, what we believe to play a major factor in Costco’s success is its affordability for essentials such as cat food.
Kirkland Signature cat food isn’t just convenient to purchase – rather than patiently waiting for an online order containing your cat food, you can just head on down to the store whenever you run out of stock – every bag is packed full of probiotics, prebiotics, and minerals to ensure your beloved cat remains happy and healthy. Switching won’t only be advantageous for your cat’s immune system, you’ll feel productive carrying out the weekly shop that benefits every member of your family – furry or otherwise. So, why not take a peek below at our Kirkland Signature cat food review that contains all the company and nutritional information you need to decide whether to make the switch?
Kirkland Cat Food Review
As one of Kirkland Signature’s most popular bags from their Super Premium collection, their Chicken and Rice formula has been curated to meet cats’ needs. Even the kibble’s size and shape has been constituted to help cats’ digestion and dental hygiene. Your cats will sit by their bowls waiting until, finally, they taste the natural chicken flavor gushing from every bite they take of this delectable formula.
Kirkland Signature’s decision to include essential antioxidant selenium in their cat food boosts our felines’ immune systems and minimizes the risk of them suffering from selenium deficiency – with symptoms of the disease including severe fatigue, muscle weakness, and even heart disease. Selenium certainly isn’t the only beneficial mineral that this Kirkland Signature cat food includes. The commendable amount of amino acids, taurine, and chelated minerals contained in each and every bag is the reason delighted customers can always place their trust in Kirkland Signature cat food.
Calorie content: N/A
Minimum crude protein: 30.0%
Minimum crude fat: 20.0%
Maximum crude fiber: 3.0%
Maximum moisture: 10.0%
First three ingredients: Chicken, Chicken Meal, Whole Grain Brown Rice
- Brand: Kirkland
- Weight: 25.49 pounds
Is your cat looking a little on the chubby side? Kirkland’s indoor adult cat food will monitor your cat’s weight as well as providing them with the aromas and meat they crave. Regarding weight loss, one cup of this kibble only contains a mere 285 calories. And combined with the effects of vitamin E and selenium, your indoor cat will find it easier than ever to maintain a healthy weight.
Plus, just because this cat food contains fewer calories than an average bag doesn’t mean it doesn’t provide the same amount of nutrition. Taurine, dried chicory root, and antioxidants work together to ensure that your cat’s heart and eyes are kept in prime condition. What’s more, your cat’s tubbiness will be transformed into muscle in only six weeks, all thanks to the added L-Carnitine that changes the fat into energy. And your cat can enjoy all these incredible benefits for only $25. Go on, what are you waiting for?
Check out our review of the Best Cat Food for Weight Loss.
Calorie content: 325 kcal/100g
Minimum crude protein: 32.0%
Minimum crude fat: 9.0%
Maximum crude fiber: 10.0%
Maximum moisture: 10.0%
First three ingredients: Chicken Meal, Ground White Rice, Peas
- Brand: Kirkland
- Weight: 20 pounds
We’ve shamelessly decided to save our premium product for last as, well, a bag of this luxurious kibble could easily sell itself. Kirkland Signature’s salmon meal and potato formula sits amongst other cat food bags as part of the esteemed grain free product line Nature’s Domain. Ideal for feeding every life stage, it’s precise blend of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids that encouraged us to list this kibble as our premium pick.
Certainly, the amount of “superfoods” this formula contains, that is, dried chicory root and other ingredients, will effectively nurture your cat’s immune system. However, what we regard to be the most impressive feature of this cat food is the praiseworthy amount of protein. Boasting a minimum crude protein percentage of 32%, any nimble, athletic cat will reap the benefits deriving from this formula’s high-quality protein sources such as salmon meal and ocean fish meal.
Calorie content: 3,564 kcal/lg (333 kcal/cup)
Minimum crude protein: 32.0%
Minimum crude fat: 14.0%
Maximum crude fiber: 3.0%
Maximum moisture: 10.0%
First three ingredients: Salmon Meal, Ocean Fish Meal, Sweet Potatoes
- Brand: Kirkland
- Weight: 18 pounds
Kirkland Cat Food Buying Guide
Company Information
The Kirkland name certainly has an interesting backstory behind it. Kirkland Signature aren’t a stand-alone brand, far from it. The brand are actually a private label belonging to Costco who have enjoyed plenty of success in recent years.
Founded in 1992 with the name inspired from the company headquarters at the time, Costco’s founding of Kirkland was, as a matter of fact, an extremely tactical co-branding move from the multinational company. As people are more keen to purchase a label they’ve seen before like Kirkland rather than some obscure label belonging to an unknown company, Costco decided to congregate several of these lesser-known label to create the Kirkland Signature label. Another objective of the distinguishable Kirkland Signature brand was so Costco was able to market good products at reduced prices. However, products that are dubbed with the Kirkland Signature name are usually manufactured by third parties, not by Costco. After doing a little research of our own, we can confirm that Kirkland Signature dog food is made in Diamond Pet Food’s plants in Meta, Missouri. This isn’t just a well-informed guess; Kirkland Signature’s recalls speak for themselves. As part of the Diamond’s mass Salmonella recall in 2012, cans of Kirkland pet food were simultaneously requested to be returned. However, Diamond Pet Food is a reputable pet food name in its own right, and it’s thanks to them that Kirkland Signature cat food is also such an esteemed brand today.
Why Choose This Brand?
Kirkland’s pet food products include two separate product lines – The variety of food Kirkland offer their customers is a large part of why shopping Kirkland makes buying cat food fun. On one hand, we have Kirkland’s Super Premium line: the first two bags in our buying guide belong to this category. Featuring chicken as their primary protein source, the delectable taste derived from this ingredient is compliment by grains and carbohydrates. On the other hand, Nature’s Domain contains no ingredients made from gluten or grains, substituting these for high-quality ingredients like proteins and healthy fats.
Every Kirkland cat food bag is packed with probiotics – In every bag that we’ve reviewed of Kirkland’s cat food, plastered all over the front is a label alerting a customer to the fact that this specific kibble contains probiotics. These live bacteria and yeast microorganisms will provide your cat with the nutrition they require for passing loose stools and aiding chronic digestive issues in general.
Ingredient Analysis
DL-methionine: Dietary methionine functions as an antioxidant in pet food. Although too much DL-Methionine can harden the arteries and increase the potency of liver disease, DL-Methionine has been proven as effective with regard to reducing the risk of allergies.
Take a look at our article on the Best Hypoallergenic Cat Food.
Dried Chicory Root: Functioning as a fantastic source of prebiotic fiber inulin, Dried Chicory Root regulates insulin levels and improves diabetes control in humans and cats alike. The antioxidants it contains work to combat inflammation, liver damage, and provides your pet with plenty of vitamins. As it’s uncommon to find fresh chicory root available in the US, Kirkland have actually specified that their dried chicory root is obtained from Belgium, making it one of their only ingredients not sourced in the United States.
Folic Acid: Although cats only require a small amount of this essential vitamin, this doesn’t stop the inclusion of folic acid in pet food from being any less necessary to create a properly fortified diet. Otherwise referred to as vitamin B12 supplement, a folic acid deficiency in cats can often lead to anemia, so it’s very important to choose companies that include this vitamin, which ensures the metabolism of fat, proper growth, and the elevation of blood oxygen levels.
Manganous: As health nutritionists don’t often discuss manganese, customers often turn a food bag over, register the presence of this ingredient, and run the other way. However, this essential mineral is, in fact, beneficial to your cat’s health, ensuring the proper formation and maintenance of connective tissue. There are many types of manganese such as, for example, sulfate manganese, and the only distinction is that each possess different rates of absorption.
Riboflavin: Otherwise referred to as vitamin B2, riboflavin aids a cat’s body in breaking down carbohydrates and fat content present in their kibble. Vitamins that are soluble in water like riboflavin are essential for the nutritional management of cats due to the high risk of a deficiency leading to head and neck alopecia – when your cat experiences hair loss.
Sodium Bisulfate: This ingredient is often found in high-quality cat kibble as a result of its ability to rapidly reduce and stabilize pH levels. Another major perk of adding sodium bisulfate to cat food is the improved palatability of the kibble for our cats! Who knew?
Taurine: Every long-time cat owner has heard about the magical powers of taurine by now. This fantastic amino acid grows and repairs tissues inside your feline’s body, thereby playing an integral part in the body’s metabolic processes. Feeding a pregnant cat a kibble that contains optimal amounts of taurine is especially important: the mother requires the amino acid to ensure her kittens structurally develop in the womb and so she maintains her own health.
Zinc Sulfate: Worried that your cat’s coat doesn’t have the same shine to it as before? A sufficient amount of zinc sulfate should do the trick. The essential mineral is also fundamental for including in cat food due to its role in maintaining cell membrane integrity.
Check out some of our cat health guides, such as Vitamins For Cats and Probiotics For Cats.
Pros & Cons
- Costco's private label offer premium food as discounted prices: Arguably, one of this popular cat food label's major perks is its price. You're likely to find a bag of Kirkland Signature priced at around $30, in comparison to other premium pet food bags that often sit around $50
- All Kirkland dog food is made in US facilities: As previously confirmed, Kirkland Signature cat food is manufactured in Diamond Pets Foods' facilities. Managed by the Schell and Kampeter family, the US-based company ensure their pet food is made in the USA in places such as Ripon, California; Gaston, South Carolina; and Lathrop, California
- The incredible flavors Kirkland create will drive your felines wild!: Whether it's chicken rice or salmon flavored, every formula Kirkland create has received rave reviews from delighted owners all over America. Without a doubt, if you wish for your cat to remain lean and active while simultaneously loving the multitude of flavors found in their food bowl, Kirkland's cat food is the best choice
- The Kirkland brand has had recalls: Arguably the most serious recall was of the Salmonella scandal of 2012, when the Center for Disease Control reported that fourteen people in nine states became sick after handling contaminated dog food made in Diamond headquarters, some of this food with the Kirkland Signature label plastered over the front. Likewise, cans of Kirkland Signature Premium did not get off scot-free in the melamine pet food recalls of 2007 when 150 brands of pet food were recalled due to the deaths of numerous cats and dogs from developing kidney failure
- Many Kirkland dry cat food contains sweet potato as a filler. Be told, sweet potato is popular in cat kibble formulas due to the food source functioning as a canine superfood. This is as a result of dogs' bodies being able to convert beta-carotene successfully into Vitamin A, whereas cats' bodies are unable to modify the pigment and must consume Vitamin A to actually obtain it. Therefore, this misconception has resulted in many sore feline stomachs over the years! Sweet potato should not be regarded as a superfood in cat food, but simply another filler – albeit one of the healthiest fillers out there to include for cats.
