Last Updated on September 10, 2020
There has been a lot of wonders and worry over a Facebook post that seemed to have blown way out of proportion. The cat treats from MARS known as Temptations are being considered a deadly treat to a lot of caring cat lovers out there. While the treats aren’t “deadly” I wouldn’t consider them to be healthy either. You still need to be aware of the ingredients!”
Creating the Issue
A lot of cats out there can handle some of the worst diets there are. From over-processed canned and dry food to unhealthy snacking and treats. The issue is, while a lot of cats “CAN” eat this stuff, many will suffer health consequences from it. Just like humans, if we eat more junk and processed foods then we should, our bodies will let us know by creating what we consider to be “symptoms” of some illness or disease. These so-called symptoms are actually your body’s way of trying to correct a problem. If you work against your body’s ability to heal itself by continuing to put the same crap in it, it will continue to have more problems. A cat’s body is no different!
Read the Ingredients Label
Temptations Mix-ups – Backyard Cookout
Looking at the ingredients on any cat product, there are a few you want to either minimize or completely get rid of depending on your cat’s health. These include corn, wheat, by-products (including meat meals), saturated oils, yeast, and heavy grains. The first 5 ingredients are the most important because they are labeled from the most to the least as far as quantity in the recipe.
If we look over the Temptations ingredients (I am reading off of the Backyard Cookout flavor), we will see the 5 following ingredients listed first and in this order: Chicken By-Product, Ground Corn, Animal Fat, Dried Meat By-Products, and Brewers Rice. Noting what I had just mentioned above, these treats are not “healthy” by a long shot. If we were to compare human food to cat food, consider something like this the McDonald’s of cat treats. No cat food or treat should EVER have all 5 ingredients from the no-no list.
Cats Love Them
Part of the reason many cats love them is down to the number of preservatives and additives in the ingredients. My cats love these treats and yes, I do give them to them but I also consider them for what they are. They basically are fast-food grade cat treats that should be just that, TREATS. Would you eat McDonald’s every day and consider yourself eating a healthy diet? I would certainly hope not! I am not telling you to stop feeding these to your cats but you really need to consider the ingredients and the amount you are feeding them. Small amounts here and there will be fine but don’t consider this a daily treat for your cat. Always consider your cat’s health as well. These treats may actually cause them some harm, especially cats sensitive to grains or those of them who have corn allergies. It is in the best interest of your cat that you be sure they are on the proper diet (including treats) for their own needs.
UPDATE & WARNING
Since writing this post I have noticed my cat doing something many have complained about and that is pulling out his fur. He did this on a few of his legs and the bald spots were not tiny, they were very noticeable. He is an indoor cat and only goes out while on a leash under my supervision. I also do not leave any kind of cleaner or pills out where he can reach them. The only thing I had changed was buying him a different flavor of Temptations, the Catnip Mixup flavor. I have stopped giving these treats to him altogether several months ago and the fur has grown back. He no longer pulls out his fur either. He does have food sensitivities and it was likely down to an allergy. If you are wondering what I feed my cats now, it is PureBites freeze-dried treats . For many people experiencing issues like this, it is best to try another type of treat with limited ingredients. Getting your kitty tested for allergies will help to determine which food/treats are best.
For those who have experienced sudden changes (illness or death), it is likely due to your cat getting into something poisonous.
You really have to pay attention to what you keep in your home and if you allow your cat to go outdoors, it should be in an enclosed area or under your supervision. Many people use rat poison outside their homes. Cars also leak anti-freeze which is known to taste sweet to cats and dogs. I have done research on several treats, several cases, and other than food allergy symptoms which will get worse over time, there is nothing in these treats that will cause sudden death. So unless some poison was added to the treats by mistake, we have to assume the sudden illness and death cases are caused by something else.
Conclusion
Whether you choose to continue to feed your cat Temptations treats or not, that is up to you. While most cats will be fine eating treats like this, not all of them will. For my cats, it came down to allergies and I had to stop buying them. If you suspect for any reason the treats are causing issues with your cat, it is best to stop providing them and take them to a vet to get tested for food allergies. One of the most common food allergies for cats is corn. Cats can also have bad reactions to plastic bowls, perfumes, and even fleas (some cats are deathly allergic to fleas). To find healthy alternatives, please read Healthy Treats for Cats.
Interesting. By the way, cats can’t taste “sweet” so maybe that anti-freeze issue only applies to dogs.
Thanks for your comment Maxanito. You are correct but they do taste the bitter end of sugar which is appealing to some cats.
Thanks! Meanwhile, my cat won’t eat anything but Temptations. I gave it to him because he wouldn’t eat anything after our recent move. It was a treat I knew he liked, but that I never bought after I learned how bad it was. I was desperate. Now he won’t eat anything else. It’s been 3 months. I don’t know what to do. I hate to do the tough love thing and give him nothing, but I may have to. Anyway, my issue, my problem to solve! ?
It may help to cut him off from treats all together to reset his palate. What you can do is use plain chicken breast cooked in a bit of olive oil on the stove or in the oven and cut it up into small pieces, then use that for treats. You will have to store the rest in the fridge and it should hold for 4 or 5 days. If you want to make a large batch, just freeze the rest after cooking it. It is a nice treat that is actually healthy for kitties and most of them will not snub it.
He won’t eat that either. I’ve tried everything. He’s funny. My other guy loves tuna, so I can give him canned tuna, the expensive wild caught type stiff, and he eats it! But not Max. He’s a head case. I think I need to do the tough love thing and just not give him anything until he’s actually hungry. He could lose a pound or two anyway. We’ll see. Thank you!
I hope whatever you decide, it works out well for Max 🙂
“Cars also leak anti-freeze which is known to taste sweet to cats and dogs.” I don’t know about dogs, but cats can’t taste “sweet,” so I’m not sure about the source for this statement or anything in this article, for that matter.
What do you think about homemade treats? I made a recipe from one of those Facebook videos and my cat loved them (basically, oat flour, tuna and catnip). I have since modified the recipe and she loves them even more.
Thanks for your comment Angie. Sure! Homemade is always an option and would cut down on ingredients but you have to be careful of what you use. Tuna for example can be and often is loaded with mercury. This can cause kidney and liver issues, specially later in life for cats. I don’t eat tuna myself so I do not do research on it but you can look at this post here ( http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/oceans/tuna-guide/ ) for information on the best brands.
Cat was obsessed with temptations. No longer playing and only interacting with me for a treat. Switched to a filled blue buffalo 3 months ago. She still wants the treat, but not obsessed & she is playing with her toys and me again. Also noticed not drinking as much water. Was getting worried because she had doubled her water consumption.
Thanks for your comment Lisa. I am happy your cat found another kind of treat she enjoys. The water consumption was likely caused by the high corn and by-product content in the treats. A lot of kitties who have sensitivities to certain food products will get a mild reaction which can show up as dry mouth, acidic stomach, puking, gas, or general fatigue. I too noticed an increase in play and energy for my cats since stopping Temptations as well.
i have fed my cats the temptations for the last year with no problems so far. However, one of my cats refuses to eat them so i have been giving her the soft chew irrisistables treats and the last batch I purchased and tried to give her, after eating one or two she then refused them. One week later she still refuses them. they’ve always been her favorite treat. I ALMOST LOST HER THIS PAST SATURDAY! just maybe 2,3 or 4 days after giving her the initial treat of the new package she became so ill that she almost died. I took her to the vet just a few days after the initial ingestion and my vet sent us straight to the vet hospital. She had to have a blood transfusion and stay in the hospital over night. She’s not out of the woods yet, every day is still touch and go and we are still waiting for the parasitic results from the lab (other labs showed she had severe anemia but so far the cause is unknown.
Thanks for your comment B. Beach. It is easy to jump to the conclusion of the treats causing this. If it was down to the treats, it would have likely been an allergy and she would have gotten sick over time, not suddenly. If she is an indoor/outdoor cat, she may have gotten into anti-freeze. That is usually what happens when a cat licks that up. Even a small amount. If it is parasites, she would not have gotten them from the treats unless they were alive in the bag. I hope she has a full recover. I recommend having your vet test for allergies if the optional is available.
Thank you for sharing Kat and I am sorry you and your kitty had to go through that. Have your cat tested for allergies when he is feeling better. I am noticing a pattern with issues involving these treats and he may very well have an allergy to one or more of the ingredients they use.
While the general idea of advocating an overall healthier diet for a pet is a noble effort (and certainly one that any pet owner keen on spoiling their pet should prioritize), it seems like singling out a specific brand (be it these Temptations or any other) is having a more negative impact than necessary (and as a result is spreading a lot of paranoia without verifiable/credible factual evidence – not to say that’s what the intent of this article was).
Thanks for your comment suitablecustard. My original intent was to express that they aren’t deadly, but they are not healthy either. Then my cats started showing strange symptoms and the only thing I had changed was the temptation flavor. I stopped those completely and everything went back to normal. I am not saying that everyone NEEDS to swear them off, but I made the choice to based on my experiences. What owners choose to feed their cats is down to them, no judgement from me.
It was actually the comments that led me here, mainly the “I fed my cats these, mere hours later they were dead” types.
So many factors are very relevant when it comes to losing a pet suddenly (a truth I had to learn the hard way many years ago) that it’s often easier to blame the obvious (be it treats or otherwise) in order to cope with the loss. When people comment on articles similar to this with stories of losing their pets, I sincerely wish they would consider being thorough about it instead of merely agreeing with a passing notion that (possibly) a product was to blame, if only to avoid causing further panic from people who have fed their pets the “bad” treats for years and have noticed no adverse health effects (or critical ones, at least).
The best responses to articles like this are the ones that showcase people willing to consider alternatives if they find themselves in agreement that the current product they use could be replaced by something inherently better for their pet.
I agree with you. It is easy to get people to do anything through fear. It is how the news works and why I don’t watch it. It is also easy to blame a small dietary change as a whole brand issue rather than an individual ingredient. There are a lot of cats who have issues digesting corn, soy, ect. and while most don’t show signs other than weight gain and puking, some will actually get deathly ill from these allergies. If someone is experiencing health changes with their cat they should do the same thing we should do for our own bodies and go to a basic diet, slowly introducing different thing to see what is causing the issue and if it is food related at all. I don’t know my commenters personally but a lot of other factors can be relevant here. A cat can easily get into poison in and outdoors if it is available to them. Things like antifreeze, for example, can leak from a car and it tastes and smells sweet to cats. It causes death within 48 hours of digestion.
So yes, researching things is key here and working with a vet should be something a person should do if they believe a specific treat or food is causing their cat issues. Getting them allergy tested for one will help.
My cat is an indoor cat….isn’t treated with flea poison as he does not have fleas (receives a bath with a little DAWN dish soap when he does do some scratching). No poisons are used in my home. Have used the same cat litter since I picked him up 2 years ago. Have used the same cat food (Friskies…different varieties) and tuna (in water) sometimes boiled chicken breast….he does not like canned cat food. Nothing changed except I bought some of the Temptations treats…counted out 5 and he ate them up. very soon after he begged for more and I gave him 5 more. next morning he was begging at the door to my bedroom at 5 a.m. for treat (new behavior) and did not want cat food or tuna….all day long he begged, very insistently for the treats. I gave him 5 (yes, we counted them out)…..he immediately begged for more….I mean VERY insistently. he refused all other food for the rest of the day and followed me and my husband around all day begging. Would only settle down after he received the treat. (I’m sorry, THAT is addiction….as a Psych RN that worked units filled with drug and alcohol addicts I can see it/recognize it.) Next morning he was begging, even more insistently than before…non-stop…..gave him 5 more…..he refused all other food and begged constantly for the treat. That evening we gave him 5 more…..next morning, we refused to give him any more…the vomiting started…..diarrhea….begging…..vomiting….diarrhea….begging….then went to a corner and went to sleep…..would not interact with us at all….refused food…refused water, broth, tuna juice (which he loves). Was a couple of real bad days like this before he started eating and drinking and allowing any interaction. I do not know what is in the treats, but, there is something. The treat stopped and return to normal after a couple of days of withdrawal. I am not one to “panic” and “freak out”….after 25 years of various types of nursing, I have learned to observe “changes”. Thus “treat” acts like a very addictive drug and needs a thorough investigation. There have been lots of recalls for dog and cat foods for causing “reactions and death”. I DO believe this food is dangerous (my opinion) and needs to be investigated…..and people using this food should stop (my opinion).
I’m not saying (nor was I suggesting previously) that the stories people have given about their pets being distressed, ill or otherwise dying are untrue.
My issue was, however, that those people just immediately assume one avenue to be the cause of their worries and if that avenue happens to be a specific brand of treat or food that has yet to have a wide recall, then their insistence on saying “I KNOW this was the cause of the problem” doesn’t help ease other pet owners who haven’t had the same experiences with the products that caused the issues.
Why would you wash your cat with dish soap?? If your cat is itchy it may be due to allgery. Try the oatmeal bath. It worked great when my dog broke out in hives. If you bathe your cat often it removes the natural oils from their skin and fur and can cause dry skin and dander.coconut oil is good for dry itchy skin and does not hurt them. Just a bit rubbed into their fur and skin.
I had absolutely no idea about the issues with Temptations until recently when our cat came within hours of losing his life. One month he was given a perfect checkup by his longtime vet; The next, he was admitted half dead to everyone’s shock at the veterinary hospital. The only change between his perfect checkup and his illness? We started giving him chicken-flavour Temptations treats daily.
The illness started with very unusual behaviour. I found him trying to defecate in our living room, which he has never done. When I called his name, he looked at me like he was drunk. He then began stumbling around, clearly disoriented, and began trying to defecate all over the house, dripping tan-coloured sludge all over. (Thinking back on it now, this sludge was the same colour as the Temptations treats.) Then he began vomiting violently, first in his litter box and then all over the house. A few hours later it stopped and he started sleeping. We decided to let him rest to see if maybe it was just an isolated incident. The next morning, we checked on him at 6:00 am and he had a fever (his ears, head, nose, and tongue were extremely hot) and was barely responsive. His pupils were dilated and he wouldn’t get up. I took him to the veterinary hospital that morning.
He’s an indoor cat that has never shown any interest whatsoever in garbage or foreign objects, even as a youngster, so naturally all X-rays came back showing no unusual objects and no abnormalities in his intestines. What they did show was an enlarged heart. The blood and urine tests came back with horrifying results. He was experiencing renal failure and signs of infection that were likely causing the fever. He was placed on an IV, given antibiotics and other medication, and we were prepared for the worst. Everyone was baffled as to how a perfectly healthy cat could be on death’s door for no apparent reason.
He spent several days in the hospital and was released back into our care after fighting back into a stable state. We stayed home with him 24 hours a day for over a week nursing him back to health. He will be returning for follow up blood and urine analysis soon to see how much of his original health he has recovered.
When I isolated the one change in his lifestyle as being the Temptations cat treats, I casually googled “Temptations renal failure.” I was HORRIFIED at the hundreds of stories out there just like ours. People can say what they want about this being an exaggerated smear campaign against the Whiskas brand, but those of us that have lived through this nightmare know the devastating truth.
My deepest condolences go out to the cat owners out there whose cats weren’t as lucky as ours. Their stories are broke our hearts.
Thanks for sharing with us Beamer. I agree, it is a shame these companies can sell products that can risk our cat’s lives. I find that most issues are down to allergies. More often than not, it is prolonged exposure to the same kinds of food/product that increase the severity of said allergies. That is likely what happened with your kitty. Find some safer treats that do not have any fillers, soy, corn, or grains. That is where most issues come from with cats and allergic reactions to treats/food.
I’d been giving my cat Temptations for several years moderately… he is 16 and was in good health. He all of a sudden stopped eating and drinking and nearly died. I brought him to the vet who did extensive testing and found only his liver enzimes off. I nursed him back to health with some prescribed Lactulose to help relieve constipation and some Mirtazapine ( apetite stimulant).. then he seemed to be getting well and I eased back on those meds… and I’d continued to feed him treats in moderation as he would always eat them… then a few days ago he began to act more addicted to them than usual and began to refuse all food, waking me up at night and standing where I usually give him treats. I’ve been trying to wean him off but it’s like he’s a real addict and he seems so distressed. I’m so sad that this could go on for so long and nothing is being done about it. I am not going to give him any more. It’s just sick that anyone would make such a product and it makes me think if this is happening to animals, what is happening to people? If anyone started a truly organic animal food and treat product they would be rich… I did find freeze dried all natural minnows that he was relishing but then he stopped everything but begging for treats… when I put a few of the horrific treats in his real food to tempt him to eat it , he acted like he was repulsed by the smell of the real food and would not eat them out of that dish. Something is fishy here and its not healthy!
Since I have given my cats Temptations Cat Treats they act like drug addicts when they do not have Temptations! Its scary! They basically freak out and meow for them and are very active when they do have Temps. When they do finally get the Temps one of the cats(Odie 3 years old) goes right into the closet to lay down for hours like’s high on something, and the other (Noodles, 1 year) acts normal. Odie has been on Temps for 3 years. He is addicted now and I see it. I just read the storys about Temptation Cat Treats and I am horrified about what I have seen but I am here to tell you people there IS something in those cat treats, do research, save your cat. I am weaning my cats off of Temptations right away, I suggest you do the same!
Thanks for your comment Natalie Lin. I cut the treats out of both of my cat’s diets since updating the post. I feel like both my boys are doing better. I don’t think any kind of treats should make a cat act like an addict. That is a sign that something is off.
I hope all is well with your cat now that you’ve winged her off the temps. I gave in and started giving mine temps again, Odie wouldn’t stop bugging me for them, but I am winging them off so that no big health issues come up, I suggest that everyone does the same, God bless
After mine threw up for while, he sat in the corner and began licking the wall.
There is something wrong with these treats in my opinion.
You are so right
I’ve been feeding my 3 year old Tabby, Cookie these treats since she was a year old. She is spayed, healthy, and all that. But she’s always been addicted to these treats. She seemed healthy, so we didn’t worry about it. But it got to the point she refused to eat anything else. Dry food, wet food, not even table food. Again, she remained very healthy, and playful. So we didn’t worry too much about it. About four days ago, we found out she’s most likely constipated. She cries by her litter box, and hides alot during the day. We have tried safe laxatives, but so far not much improvement. Since this started, we completely stopped giving her these treats. I googled it, and I find all this shitstorm about these treats! I am both shocked and horrified that Temptations HASN’T been investigated! Cats are dropping dead because of these treats, and yet they’re still selling them!
Omg, my cat is constipated also, I have seen signs of her crying in the cat box. These treats are evil. Everyone, wake up. The Illuminati is trying to kill our animals too!
my cat also gets constipated if i give her too many of these treats. last night i heard her howling a few times. in the morning i found her stool in a few spots in my apt. i have decided to give her one, once in a while.
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/147eb7faf7cb92247fd38c8cc9cf7ccbaa35ebed55b6ba9eb728edd134e493b4.jpg
My cat was addicted and obsessed with these. He refused to eat anything else. He started gaining a lot of weight. No more Temptations
Thanks for your comment ClassOneCanines. They can cause weight gain for sure. The corn in them alone can do this. They may not be that high in calories but when you consider a cat’s weight and the amount of corn and filler… Well, they aren’t healthy. Heck – even humans have trouble with it anymore because it is basically all lab created vegetable (GMO). Corn is best left out of a cat’s diet if possible or at least very limited.
I AGREE TOTALLY. Our cat is addicted and refuses to eat anything else. It’s time to pull the plug on these things. WE have noticed knots down her spine. When you stroke her, she starts licking in the air over and over again. When stroking her and you run across these knots she is in pain and meows loudly. We got her these for Christmas last year and have been feeding her ever since with them. She kept throwing up on the Meow Mix dry we were giving her. So once we found these and she was able to swallow them without throwing them up, we just kept buying box after box of them. So I really think this is what is causing all of these knots. What they are I don’t know. But I think it’s time we stop this merry-go-round. We are constantly feeding her these all day long. Thank you all for all of the comments and suggestions. Time to stop the madness to see if we can get her back to being healthy and out of pain.
Thanks for your comment Suzanne. I understand. If you are not having issues at all and your cat is enjoying them, then by all means continue use. Both of mine were having issues and the only thing that I can pin point that to was their treats. Since I have stopped, my younger cat has stopped pulling hair out so there is improvement there. I will be watching over his diet better just to be on the safe side.
But like you said, that was probably a food allergy.
Where you making major changes in your home? Renovations?
The calmest most laid back cat I have ever known went bald on his belly when when we did renovations.
Vet checked him out.
Once the renovations were finished Taffy grew back his Belly fur.
Thanks for your comment Grace. Nope, no renovations here. I had thought of this as well. Unless it is something down to the water supply, the only thing I can come to a conclusion with was the treats. I would imagine it is likely down to an acute food allergy.
My cat is 16 years old and loves Temptations and has been enjoying them for years so I am perplexed about people who said their cats died. I really don’t think it was the treats. If you look at other brands, I think you will see they are not the best either. I will keep buying them unless they are recalled.
I have been giving these treats to my cats for years they love them not daily of course but never had a problem with any of my three babies I’m worried now should I never give them again
Thanks for your comment Maja. If you have not experienced any negative issues, it is up to you. I personally do not recommend them based on my own experiences with my cats. I just wish we could pin point the issue and help get it resolved. My cats did enjoy these treats a lot.
I just bought 2 tubs of tempations from Sam’s club on March 18, 2017. Fed a few to my cat on March 19 and he was dead on the 20th. He was healthy and happy then dead within 24 hours of eating these treats. On another consumer report site people mentioned their cats having seizures then dying. The vet said my cat looked as if he had a seizure. He had pulled out fur and licked is paws almost raw.
we gave our cat some Temptations Mix Ups yesterday as a treat, one hour later our cat did throw up and a other hour later she was dead.
Thank you for your comment Bruno. I am sorry to hear that. Have you taken her to the vet prior to this? It sounds like she may have has an allergy to something in the treats. As I mentioned, they are not considered healthy. They are like junk food for cats.
OMG I’m so sorry. I’m definitely going after this company. Our babies are dying ;( my cat just died on the 20th within 24 hours of eating these treats. He was perfectly healthy too.
I am sorry to hear this Jennifer. I am not sure what happened to the treats but I never had issues up until this year. I know a few people who’s cats are pulling out their hair. Other cats seem to be unharmed so I am thinking something in the ingredients that is new or a certain mix/recipe is causing issues. If you get in touch with the company, let me know!
I’ve been reading reviews dating back as far as 2013 of these issues. I’ll post a link for you to read them. It’s very disheartening on how many cats have died from where I left off from now back to 2013!
I have seen many of the complaints online. Even vets don’t know what is going on and can’t explain it. I think the cats who are reacting badly are sensitive to something in it. I have not gotten my cats any Temptations since posting this and my cat’s hair is growing back on his legs. I think for anyone who notices their cat reacting badly to the treats (or any food for that matter), the best thing to do is to stop and have them tested to be certain nothing else is wrong internally. Thanks for the update on contacting them. Hopefully you hear back soon.
I sent them an email. No response as of yet. I posted on their fb page and no response as of yet. But feel free to find me on fb using my name on here to follow along.
BALONEY !!!!!
Yeast is not a grain. It’s a living microorganism. 🙂
I love your adorable cat pictures!!! Precious!!! But I have to question why you would say that Temptation treats are not deadly? How do you know that? Just because you give your cats “some” and haven’t had negative symptoms appear….yet, thank god….many people I personally know have, including myself, family members, many friends, co-workers and their families and friends. We might consider that a recent particular batch of temptations had a bad ingredient, much like foods such as certain batches of ground beef or cases of baby food. I never immediately believe all those annoying posts on facebook that get blow out of proportion (especially the stories lacking total common sense or the ones that have been around for years and are known hoaxes), but when it comes to my fur babies I take no chances and do some research. But I hadn’t even seen this Temptations info on facebook, I was told by a co-worker who went through it with her cat and then immediately I was shocked because it was exactly what I was going through with my cat getting sick! I talked to my husband and found out that he was giving our cat Temptations treats every day from a brand new opened package! It made sense and after three days of getting no treats, my cat hasn’t thrown up at all. I told all my friends and family with cats and of those that did use Temptations five said their cats had been getting sick and even though they never had with Temptations before, these were all new recently purchased packages. The other friends that used Temptations were still on a package they’ve had for weeks. Thankfully all the kitties I know who were sick are better now that the treats are thrown out but it could’ve gotten worse in a short amount of time and makes me sad. A few of us are having our veterinarians look into it and also waiting to hear back from the FDA. As you stated, and I agree, cat treats are mainly junk food anyway but as for Temptations nowadays, it’s not worth taking the chance to use them “in moderation” because if it’s a bad ingredient in the batch no one would know and it’s just not worth putting any animal through any pain or suffering when they can’t even trust us to care the best for them. Please post if you come across any new information on Temptations causing illness or worse in cats.
Thanks for your comment Catthy. I can understand why you would be worried.A lot of the pet products are not healthy. While I am a firm believer they wont kill, as mentioned, that doesn’t mean they wont cause health problems that can shorten their lifespan. They may have done something as simple as increase the corn % in the ingredients. Or they are getting an ingredient from over seas and it was contaminated.
I have never had an issue with my cats and temptations. I do not buy bags, I buy the big containers 16 oz I believe. It could be that batches of the bags were bad. I have not come across anything on this but they will likely try to cover it up (or already have) if this was the case. I will update the post if I find any more information so check back periodically. I am more curious now that you have mentioned more cats becoming ill. I know that puking isn’t a sign of sickness but detox which means its body is trying to protect it. Likely something the cat is allergic to in the treats. Many cat owners believe puking is normal and it isn’t. Even frequent hair balls is not normal. Temptations are the least of my worries as far as cat nutrition goes. You would not believe what they sell in pet stores that passes as food.
Here are a few other posts to explain what I mean :
What is in most cat food: https://purrfectlove.net/2014/07/all-cat-food-is-not-created-equal/
Wet food vs dry food: https://purrfectlove.net/2015/11/wet-vs-dry-which-is-the-best-option-for-your-cats-diet/
Healthier budget options: https://purrfectlove.net/2015/08/healthy-cat-food-that-is-budget-friendly/
And why cats puke: https://purrfectlove.net/2014/07/my-cat-pukes-too-much/
Good to hear your reply and you can see there may be a possibility of a bad batch of bagged treats, perhaps some type of change in an ingredient, whether it be an increase of more junk, a change of place where an ingredient is made/purchased, or an ingredient gone toxic. And true that the puking is the body’s defense of ridding something the body is rejected, which is why my kitty didn’t act sick yet, just the puking. I had a bag in the closet basket of all-natural no-preservative treats for my kitties but they didn’t really like them so my husband got the temptations and before leaving for work he was having his sweet bonding moments with our one cat who does like some treats. So that quickly evolved into me seeing puke here and there around the house for a few days, and then being told from friends about their cats’ reactions to Temptations. So in the trash they went and the puking is done. I stick to the couple foods that I’ve researched online and with my vet, that are real meat as the main ingredient and then other natural ingredients, no bi-products, no corn-meal, no gluten, no wheat, and no preservatives. They are canned wet food, high in protein and moisture and low in carbs, which is so healthy for both my kitties especially my diabetic cat to whom I have to administer insulin injections twice every day. 🙁 But his blood sugar levels are back down in the normal range from the daily insulin. Plus I also give my cats a little of the dry diabetic prescription food from a bag, which is also good crunchy stuff for keeping plaque sticking to their teeth, and perfectly healthy for non-diabetics because it’s low in carbs and fat to maintain a cat’s healthy weight. Like you, I wish every cat owner knew more about the junk in cat foods and what would be healthiest for cats’ nutritional needs. My diabetic cat (age 11) and my older senior cat (age 18) both are so healthy and run around playing multiple times a day like they are 3 year old cats, climbing the cat tree, chasing each other up and down the cellar stairs so fast, and I know the healthy food is keeping their body parts from declining rapidly with age. I will never go back to giving them junk food. Thanks for your posts and for your love of cats!!
Thank you for sharing your story. I think it is important for people to not only consider what they put in their own mouths, but what they allow to go into the mouths of their cats. I had my fair share of medical scares and specialty diets for my younger cat. I spent weeks researching and trying every “healthy” food their was. Only one stuck with him. He loves the Wellness pouches. The only issue is they are expensive and the older cat has trouble chewing it. It is so much easier to start a cat out as a kitten on a healthy diet than to feed them the junk marketed for “kittens” that just installs this sick addiction to preservatives, fats, and artificial junk so many of us humans struggle with.
I will continue to update this post as news comes out. If something did go wrong, I will be posting it here. They need to own up to the change or the mistake if they did it!