Special Kitty Cat Food

By on January 28, 2011 in Main, Special Kitty

Special Kitty Cat Food

Special Kitty is just one of the many cat food brands that are sold exclusively at a retail location. In this case, Special Kitty is sold exclusively by Wal-Mart stores. As a ‘budget’ food, many cat owners have questions about Special Kitty, especially after it was involved in the recent pet food recalls. Is Special Kitty cat food a good choice for your cat? What are some other cat owners saying about Special Kitty cat food? Learn more about Special Kitty brand cat food here!

Who is Special Kitty Manufactured By?

The company who makes Special Kitty cat food is Menu Foods. However, Menu Foods seems to manufacture the foods exclusively to be sold in Wal-Mart stores. Also, it’s interesting to note that when Special Kitty was recalled, many sources stated that Mars PetCare was the one announcing the recall. Because of this, it’s a bit difficult to understand how exactly the Special Kitty foods are manufactured, though Menu Foods does have the Special Kitty brand listed as one of the brands they manufacture for Wal-Mart.

Special Kitty Cat Food Recall

Special Kitty was one of the major pet food brands that was affected by the 2007 pet food recall, after it was discovered to be contaminated with melamine. Special Kitty has also been recalled several times due to contamination with salmonella. In order to make sure that your cat’s food is safe, it’s always highly recommended that you check the FDA’s pet food recall website. This will help you to stay updated on the latest pet food recall information.

Special Kitty Cat Food Reviews

Special Kitty Ingredients

Most Special Kitty formulas have corn as their first two ingredients, which means that this is a very corn-heavy formula. The main source of protein seems to be chicken by-product meal, followed by animal digest. Ground wheat is present in Special Kitty, as well as animal fat that has been preserved with BHA. Salt is added to most Special Kitty cat food formulas. There do not seem to be any fruits, vegetables or herbs added to any Special Kitty cat food formulas.

Special Kitty Allergies

Special Kitty cat food is filled with ingredients that could cause allergic reactions in cats. Since corn makes up the majority of the formula, it is not appropriate for cats with sensitivities to corn ingredients. Wheat is also present in Special Kitty, which is another common allergen. If your cat has a specific allergy, you should always read the ingredients of any cat food formula.

Special Kitty Recipes

Special Kitty Dry Recipes:

  1. Special Kitty: Premium Adult Care Urinary Tract Health

Special Kitty Consumer Info

Special Kitty Cat Food Coupons

Sometimes, pet food manufacturing companies will offer us coupons to share on our site. Are you searching for Special Kitty cat food printable coupons? We will let you know when they are available!

Please check back soon for Special Kitty cat food coupons!

Special Kitty Cat Food Ratings

Customer reviews of Special Kitty cat food are mostly negative. The ingredients in Special Kitty are low-quality, and many cat owners state that they avoid these formulas when purchasing cat food. In general, it seems that Special Kitty is regarded by consumers as a low-quality, inexpensive cat food formula that does not contain good sources of nutrition.

Have you fed your cat any of the Special Kitty cat food dry or canned formulas? Do you have feedback that could help other pet owners? Please share your review of Special Kitty cat food!

  • Ginny

    This is the second time feeding my cats the Special Kitty Complete Nutrition cat food, and this is also the second time thata few of my cats have ended up with, what I can surmise as, Stomach issues. With me being on a limited income, I, stupidly, bought the cheaper of the cat foods, Special Kitty, again. This will also be the last time because seeing how poorly it effects my cats quite upsets me, so I’d gladly spend the extra money it takes to buy a brand that I trust, instead of this garbage.

  • Halo

    Just because your cat seems to prefer a certain brand that doesn’t mean its better for them. A child will choose cake and soda over green beans and milk but that doesn’t mean it’s better for them. ‘No grain’ foods are the only ones that are healthy and safe long term for cats. Blue Buffalo, Merrick, Wellness Core,Natures Instinct, Spots Stew, Halo and a few others are excellent and safe. yeah they cost more but your cat will eat a LOT less because its more nutrient dense. Also less cat pooping and scooping.

  • Lisa

    I do rescue and foster for the humane society and I usually have anywhere between 10-15 cats at any given time. I have been feeding them all Special Kitty for years and never had any problems. Recently my husband brought home a bag of Pet Pride from Krogers and within a matter of days my oldest cat (12 yrs old) was dead from kidney failure. I immediately dumped the Pet Pride and went out to buy more Special Kitty. My Mysti Blue had eaten Special Kitty for all those 12 years and was never once sick. So I tell everyone NEVER EVER buy Pet Pride. Special Kitty may be one of the lower cost cat foods but with all the cats I keep, I cant afford to buy anything that is $10.00 for a 5# bag, but it has always been a good dry food for all my cats, I even buy the SK kitten formula for the babies, I just mix it with a bit of water to soften it. Its only when I’ve tried to switch brands that I had any problems. I’ve even bought the more expensive products and within hours, there is cat puke everywhere. I stick with what I trust. But, I beg everyone to NEVER buy Pet Pride. It will kill your babies.

  • Patty Hopkins

    I have been feeding my Cats Special Kitty Cat food for several mo. now, both dry and wet. I have had NO problems with it. The reason I went to Special Kitty, was because Purina dry foods were making my Cats throw up all the time. That stopped when they got the Special Kitty. Well, 3 days ago I went to Walmart and they had NO Special Kitty dry, not the one that I have been giving my cats. SO, I had to get Purina dry, the Cats have been throwing up ever since ……..To much of any dry food will give a cat crystals, cats need to drink lots of water, and have wet food often…..

  • that guy

    Just lost my 3 year old cat due to bladder crystals caused by this crap. Fuck you special kitty

  • tAINTED bRIGHT

    I bought some soft food Special Kitty last week from Walmart. MY cat had the runs all over the floors of my apt. I brought it back the next day and got a full refund. Went back to Friskies, which never makes my cat SICK.

  • Kat

    My cats must be very weird… I have one who can eat whatever and nothing seem to affect her but my other one is so different. I used to paid a lot of money on high quality food ($45/2.5lbs) and after a year, she begin to be sick so I tried various kind of food (following vet advice) and she couldn’t stand them more then couple months but since I try this one, she feeling good. I decided to try it as I try all the high quality one. One day, I was passing in front of a fast food restaurant and I said to myself, why not?!?! Perharps she’s a fast food cat at the end lol and until now, it’s working. I can’t complain, she is top shape and of course the other one too.

  • catcat

    It is making all 3 of my cats sick and the oldest one is the worst

  • Kitty

    We have use it before but you never know when your gonna get a bad batch ,my husband just bought it the other day,we normally use nine lives but he said it’s was on sale,now my poor cat can’t stop throwing up the cat everywhere,he must of caught something from it,also the x shapes causing choking and death to lots of cats if you do a research on the brand!!!!

    • Big Alpha

      did you read the directions…I think like most people who post about their cat vomiting or having diarrhea didnt read the directions or understand a basic concept of introducing new foods to your cat slowly. you should not change your cats food from one brand to the next – even within the same manufacture of cat foods i.e. brand XXY gourmet seafood dry food to say something labeled as brand XXY – so same brand manufacture- but named XXY gourmet indoor beef or something. You MUST add a little of the new dry food to their bowl (say 20% and 80% of your current brand) then the next week you do a 50% to 50% mix then maybe 75% 25% and then 100% the new food after a few weeks of slowly adding it in. Doesnt matter what brand you have you have to break your cat into it slowly so its easy on their digestive system.

  • Boycotting China

    Where can you go to totally shut down the production of canned Special Kitty cat food? IT NEARLY KILLED MY CAT YESTERDAY after an hour of eating a table spoon of the turkey and giblets. She convulsed like electricity was going through her, she fell over and could not walk and one could not touch her and she was spitting up slime and saliva – it lasted about five minutes.The food is from CHINA and like every that comes from there is contaminate; lead paint in pet and kids toys as well as clothing and flip flops that cause open ulcers that never totally heal and you are scarred if not dead. This is not a laughing matter and yet the governing agencies that are suppose to control this is doing NOTHING, allowing the importation of these murderous items. Research the food you and your pet eat, especially fowl products as the animals are raised in filthy Chinese pens with salmonella and bird flu viruses are present plus many other deathly viruses. Spend a little more on pet food that is made locally or at best in Canada and do not buy anything that is IMPORTED, PACKED FOR, PROVIDED FOR any company, especially WALMART by CHINA. BOYCOTT PRODUCTS FROM CHINA. THEY MAME OR KILL!

  • Sam

    I just got a 12 week old kitten a few days ago, I bought a bag of dry special kitty food and some cans of wet special kitty food. I’ve only had her for 4 days and last night she started having terrible diarrhea. At first I thought it was because she is so young and still nervous, but I looked up reviews on the food and I just couldn’t believe it. Everyone that has problems with it is having the same problems that I am having. I will never feed my cat this brand ever again, and I advise anyone else not to either. I am taking her to the vet tomorrow just to make sure that everything is fine but this is so ridiculous. Special Kitty should be shut down for good.

  • zorro

    There is a difference in some name discrepancies here. Special Kitty is available in any super market as well. However, Walmart now has a Special Kitty Cuisine Premium cat food which is gluten free. Still has corn, which I wish it didn’t, however first ingredient is chicken. Also has rice & beet pulp. Cats with allergies usually have issues with gluten and the cheap, non healthy formula IS an X shape. The Special Kitty Cuisine is oval, round & triangular shaped. Key: Gluten free. If you find gluten free at Walmart, I wouldn’t be afraid to try it & I am anal about my cats. One with severe allergies/skin problems. I buy high $ brands exclusive to pet stores, however my local pet store gave me a bag of the Gourmet gluten free to try. My cats love it & if any adverse reactions they will go back to Natures Recipe. But gluten free is a must and this is in blue glossy plastic type bag, & not X shaped. That is def the cheap, not worthy of buying type.

  • genecorpus

    I just saw many of the comments posted here….and I cant believe all the BULLSHIT I am seeing here…I have used special kitty brands for over 20 years….I mix about 1 teaspoon of special kitty wet food…(beef and liver) with about 1/4 – 1/3 cup of dry food….add about 3-5 tables spoons of water….and mix thoroughly for a good 5 minutes….this makes a creamy hardy gravy ….I have raised oodles and oodles of cats and kittens on this stuff…and they love it…..and every single one of them have grown up to be very fat and healthy cats…as they tend to eat quite a lot…of course I also feed them the scraps from the table as well…which adds to their variety of their diet…even chicken bones which many cry babies out there will protest…but they eat those too without any problem….in fact my cats tend to eat onions….tomatoes…peas…corn….eggs….they have even been known to eat hot sauce….and in this process….I have had not one problem with any of my cats vomiting….or getting sick…as described here in these comments….but also take note…. neither have any of my cats ever been sent to any vet….subject to any vaccinations…medications…or even get flea medicine…which I probably assume all of you and your cats have been subjected to….which raises questions to me that…while my cats are not subject to human intervention of chemicals….drugs and treatments….and who knows what else you give your cats…my cats are kept well away from all that….and have all turned out to be very healthy……which in turn it would raise high suspicions as to the real cause to much of all your sickness by exposing them to the vets….chemicals….drugs….and all that other malarkey….in case you all have forgotten cats and dogs…and all other animals have lived and survived on this planet for almost 6000 years without the need of vets…..and their man made pharmaceuticals…probing….invasive cutting and removing body parts…and other biological tampering….to which I have no need to expose my cats to such things….and by that….they are very healthy….instead of blaming simple corn products….I would take a look at all the unnatural crap that all of you are doing to your pets….by exposing them to all that man made bullshit…I believe god knew what he was doing when he made them….he doesn’t need your help making things worse…..than what they already are…..

    • jjm6786

      Not all cats can tolerate eating garbage full of carbs. I have raised plenty of cats on the stuff without problems too. But I have also seen cats fight for their life. Just because they can eat it doesnt mean they should. We shouldnt be eating Mcd’s cheeseburgers. But we do.

    • cats&onionsdon’tmix

      you say you feed your cat table scraps including ONIONS – Onions are Poisonous to cats and dogs…

  • dana

    I am upset. Special Kitty is not a brand I would normally buy. My niece ran and picked up cat food, bringing back a large green bag. Two days later, I have two dead cats and one very sick one. I am really upset. No recall in effect.

    • Allen

      I am VERY upset with Special Kitty cat food(green bag). We just started using it two weeks ago,and my cat Jasper(RIP) choked to death on the X shaped pieces.i saved my girls cat(choking also).Special Kitty has five different shapes. If your cat is unlucky enough to get 3 or more of the X shaped pieces in a row(like Jasper)The X’s turn into straight pieces(/)half an x,or a V,or even any of the 4 smaller pieces,thet make the x. your cat Will choke,as these pieces lodge in the throat sideways.you would think it would be common srnce not to use X shaped hard food.I called the phone # on the bag and told them what happened to my cat. our cats have all the food & water they need all the time,and eat casually.they told me they would reemburse the money for the bags we bought.after i send them pics of the info on the bags.How nice of them.Oh!and get this. on the bag it has pics of the different shapes and what they are for. The X shaped ones are good for the eyes. I told them when I called my cat did die with his eyes open. If I would Have been there when he started to choke,i could have maybe saved him.this is for u Jasper. Hope it goes somewhere.

      • Nat

        I would not recommend this food to any cat. I bought the dry food in 2009 cause I had 5 cats and was not working so I needed to save money. After just 1 month on the dry food my male cat was sick and I found out he had urinary blockage and could have died. It cost me over $1000 at the vet. Luckly my female cats did not get sick. I know there was a lawsuit in 2007 if I remember right for the wet food but never the dry. It angers me that company’s keep getting away with this when they know they are indangering animals

  • mary

    I have a cat that is 28 years old, and no that is not a miss print L.O.L. (my other cat was 25 when she passed away)
    I took her to the veterinary because she was throwing up, but except for some vitamins problems (which is not unusual for her age)she is in almost prefect health. Her doctor suggested trying a different food, I have been giving her this brand of cat food there has been no problems at all.

  • cc

    people are saying “oh, they only get a little diarrhea”… uh, diarrhea or vomiting are major issues for animals. special kitty will make their digestive problems worse because it has wheat in it. wheat has no business in cat food. it’s all fillers and very little good quality meat. cats aren’t meant to be fed on such a high corn diet or have wheat at all. don’t own pets if you’re going to feed them garbage. they’ll eat what you give them eventually because otherwise they’ll starve but it doesn’t mean it’s good for them or that they’re happy. special kitty has also been frequently contaminated with salmonella leading to sickness and death so why even take the risk?

  • James MacDonald

    I bought 2 assorted packs of Special Kitty tins feeding 4 differnt tins to my 2 cats and even put it down for my dog but they didn’t touch it so I put the rest in the garbage. I dont know what they put in this brand but my animals now something isn’t right.

  • María

    I regularly buy the dry cat food Special Kitty offers, and until now it hasn’t given me any problems. The canned wet food is another story, when I first bought it it made ALL my cats and Kittens vomit, so I switched to Friskies and 9Lives. Unfortunately WalMart want’s to sell their own product first so the variety in canned foods they offer has dwindled notably. I accidentally bought a 4 pack of Special Kitty several years after the first vomiting incident, and I thought maybe after the years the recipe might have changed, but no, one of my cats tasted it and a few minutes later she threw up, so I got rid of all the cans. What the heck is in those cans? x_x

  • Pauline

    I have a 7 year old indoor purebred male tuxedo rag doll cat. He has been on Special Kitty for the last 6 years, both dry & canned. He only eats the seafood brands. He is so healthy. He has never had to go to the vet for any health issues. The only time he ever had any health issues is when he was given Whiskas beef flavoured dry food & he pooped blood for the whole time he was on it. As soon as I put him back on the Special Kitty, he was back to normal.

  • Rus

    I have been feeding my male cat Special Kitty Premium Gourmet Cat Food for the eight years I’ve owned him (he’s twelve) and he is perfectly healthy except for being slightly overweight. I have experienced none of the problems mentioned in this thread.

  • kit

    The wet food that comes in the pouches do not have corn, animal digest or soy. They are far from the highest quality, but for the price (37¢ here), certainly acceptable. Still do contain meat by-product and wheat gluten high on the list, but real meat, broth and water are the 1st ingredients. However, the recalls are making me reconsider, a pet’s health is never worth saving a few dollars on…

  • Hans K

    Our cats love it , after weeks on fancy feast . The small pouches , they inhale their serving . I don’t understand how they make fish – duck – crab – from chicken based protein . As long as it’s not a steady diet ,this seem to be a great food to mix in the cats menu . Our two cats are outsiders and have gained 1 pound over 9 years in their full adult
    years .

  • ChristinaWeiss

    I find that younger cats get diarrehea from Special Kitty Wet cat food..but that older cats don’t and they in turn love it!. I feed my two 8 yr old cats Special Kitty Wet twice a week-each gets half a can and they cant get enough of it. We also have a 2 yr old cat and she gets diarrehea from it-so we switched her to friskies-same problem-so we switched her again to Fancy Feast and she loves it! We don’t use Special Kitty dry though-instead we feed Purina Indoor Cat Chow and they all love that!

  • Bill

    I adopted my friend’s cat after he and his wife relocated out of state. I was given a bag of Special Kitty which he had been the brand he had been fed the majority of his life. When I got him his hair was dull and flat looking, he was skinny and he had the worst smelling dumps I’ve ever smelled from a cat and I’ve been around cats my entire life. I switched his food slowly to the best grocery brand I could get and noticed a huge change in his health and the smell of his litter box. I transitioned him after that onto a very expensive cat food and now he’s very healthy and happy, his coat is very shiny and soft and he’s got a lot more energy. Finally his litter box doesn’t have any smell at all now. Please don’t feed your cat Special Kitty its complete garbage as I’m concerned its the worst possible cat food out there.

  • JJ

    I have a very old cat who turns her nose up at almost everything except special kitty in pouches. She loves the juice and has never had any problems with it. I am having trouble finding it in large quantities though. I am not worried about the ingredients. The ones in the wild will eat ANYTHING, so I feel confident that this food is safe for my pet. I have been feeding this to her for many years as well as dry food and most importantly FRESH WATER!

  • Julie

    I have been feeding my cat Special Kitty since 2008. I went through a whole bunch of brands when I first got him to see what he liked. He seemed to like this one a lot and his poo stank less than with the others. He seems generally healthy, but a couple recently abscesses (infection after getting in neighborhood fights) have made me start considering a switch and doing further research. I had two outdoor cat growing up that lived 18 years each and never had problems with abscesses. I am going to see if he will switch foods and hopefully get healthier.

    • chris

      I really did not understand your review. Your cat fought aand has an abcess so now you are thinking of changing foods??????
      Why don’t you keep your cat or cats inside so they are safe? Most people keep them indoor these so they are safe from fights, cars, dogs and illnesses.
      I do not think abcess or whatever has a
      thing to do with switching foods. I think you need to bring him to a vet and fix abcesses and keep him safe.
      I think many people would agree.

      • Taylor

        I do agree with Chris on the abscesses! Take him to a vet! Neglect is a horrible thing to do! or at least go and get something to ease his pain! Please! Switching his food isn’t going to do ANYTHING about his fighting! Maybe getting him fixed will! Male cats will fight over female cats, or just fight in general! Keep your cat safe!

  • Xylie

    I been using special kitty now for over 6 yrs.We have a LOT of cat’s/kittens.Only had to take 1 cat to the vet 5 yrs ago from crystals caused by friskies canned felieghs brand.My vet said to never give them friskies,but TO give them SPECIAL KITTY as it was nutritious and had all the vitamins etc they needed.He was right.Our cats are all healthy and have not had any problems with the dry or the canned.I too would order it by the case,as I buy it by the case anyway.We have a LOT of cats,and love each one of them.We do also fix and neuter them.I guess we’re what you call a rescue for cats,as most got dumped on us as we live in the country.Please don’t DUMP your animals.Oh ya,my dog also likes the kitty’s food,she was getting pretty chunky,but now she’s thinned down again.I put her on hearty pulled mighty dog!

  • Jack A.

    Special Kitty wet cat food is now made by Del Monte as is 9 Lives. The labels of Special Kitty are not correct. Label says sliced and it is chunks or shredded. Del Monte claims they are correct and give a bunch of phoney info when questioned. This brand is very suspicious, and the customer service of Del Monte are phonies.

  • ellen

    i purchased special kitty food wet and dry a couple weeks ago. my dogs always perferred cat food as well. now all my animals are very sick. vomitting everywhere. my new puppy got a hold of a little of the wet food and is now gravely ill. diarea smells like gasoline and now refusing to eat. im getting ready for a law suit. i dont recommend this food to any animal.

    • Concerned

      Please do some research. It is quite known that dogs should not eat cat food. Their nutritional needs are different. I hope that you have taken your dog to the vet. It sounds like something else may be going on besides the puppy eating a little of the wet food.

  • Luis

    I feed my cat with dry food but I put on top of this a little bit of the wet food Special Kitty.
    My cats loves this combination and he seems to be very healthy so far.

  • meme

    i was looking up safe cat foods and found special kitty dry cat food that walmart owns/sells has the same chemicals it takes to put a cat to sleep because they use dead cats for its meat content that where put to sleep. no joke. i also searched into it more walmart wont list the ingredients online and ive read several posts/reviews of it killing their cats. DO NOT BUY THIS CAT FOOD! http://www.petfoodratings.net/cats.html

    • jim

      that is a myth that has been around for years and is 100% untrue the FDA tested many brands of cat food and found no cat or dog DNA in canned cat food, it is only a lie spread by ignorant people and spread by equally stupid people who believe everything they read on the internet.

  • Scarlet

    It has been difficult over the past few years to find a wet food that my 18 year old Calico will eat. She was raised on dry but due to her age, I was advised to switch her to wet. She loves the Special Kitty pouches and had actually almost doubled her weight from 4 pounds to 7 over the past 2-3 months of eating both the Chicken and Beef Special Kitty pouches. Now my Walmart shelves are completely empty of the pouches and she is losing weight again because she turns her nose up at everything else. Please someone, tell me when it will be available again!

  • Robert Barrett

    I would order four or five cases a week delivered to my home.
    I use the green-and-pink usually with a smaller amount of the green-and-purple. I breed and show Turkish Angora cats.

  • BaileyAnn

    I have been using special kitty for our older cat for a long time, and she has not had any problems with it, and is really healthy. However, my new kitten has had some VERY stinky digestive problems with it, and has not gained any weight from their kitten formula. (ANY. she still weighs 4 pounds after 4 months of owning her) I wouldn’t recommend it, it doesn’t have very good ingredients and although she eats a good deal of it, it seems to go right through her.