Purina Muse Natural Cat Food + Cat Box Giveaway!

We took all 3 of our cats to the Vet a few months ago. Bruce & Oliver needed their annual checkups and booster shots and we were concerned about Harley’s weight. While the boys are both in excellent health – lean, lots of muscle, beautiful coats… Harley was obviously more than a little overweight although healthy (and of course super pretty) otherwise. And so we sought out answers to her weight problem and considered the idea of changing cat foods,

Serious pet owners put a lot of thought and research into what they are feeding their animals. Personally, we wanted to feed our cats something we felt was affordable, easy to purchase (meaning we could get it during trips to the grocery store), and reasonably healthy. We chose Purina Cat Chow Naturals Indoor Cat Food. It fit into all of those categories and it’s done pretty well by our cats. But not every food is for every cat (let’s be honest here: my cats are indoor only and their diet needs controlled) so while the boys have done very well with this food for over 2 years now, it may not be the right one for Harley.

But how could I change their food at this point? If I changed Harley’s diet, it would mean changing Bruce & Oliver’s diet as well since all 3 cats are grazers. With the reassurance of our Vet, we decided that after we were well settled into our new house, we’d start the process of changing their food. According to the Vet, Harley may do better on foods that do not contain gluten or other unnecessary byproducts. And while she loses weight, the boys won’t necessarily. They have done well maintaining their weight and we don’t have to worry so much about that. The goal is to help Harley lose the excess weight while feeding our cats something good for them!

Oddly enough, I received an email from Purina that same week (I can’t even make this stuff up y’all) about a newer cat food line they’ve created called Muse. They were interested in sending me what they called a “Cat-Centric Box” full of product samples and goodies for both me and our cats to enjoy. Of course I said YES! Oh kitty goodies… I love cat stuff!

 

So About This Food…

Purina says: “Muse offers 26 delicious recipes including With Toppers, In Broth, In Chowder, In Gravy, Paté and Dry”. Personally, I just really like that there are options for every cat’s specific taste. And then there’s this:

• All of the recipes are made with real fish or poultry
• There are Grain free and Gluten free varieties
• They contain No corn or soy
• Absolutely No artificial flavors, colors or preservatives.

Dry Food

Okay, so I’m interested in learning more about this product. They totally have my attention at this point. But what about their dry food? What’s in that? My cats are grazers and accustomed to dry food and I’m just going to be real with you… it’s convenient for us to keep them on dry food instead of constantly dishing out wet food and washing plates daily (something I recently learned is a huge pain thanks to the kittens we’ve been fostering). They have 2 flavor options:

It all comes down to the details (and the incredible, raving reviews these foods have received on every website I can find). These foods may sound weird, but cats seem to love them and they are really good for them too. Here’s a run down about the dry food specifically:

• Grain free and gluten free
• Real chicken or salmon is the #1 ingredient
• No fillers or chicken by-product meal
• No corn, no wheat, no soy
• No artificial flavors, colors or preservatives
• Natural + essential nutrients
• Crafted in Clinton, Iowa, USA
• Antioxidants help support a strong immune system
• Linoleic acid, an Omega-6 fatty acid, helps promote healthy skin and a shiny coat

Unfortunately, I didn’t receive a sample of the dry food for the cats to try. However, I did get a coupon for a free bag which we picked up over the weekend. SUCCESS! All 3 of our cats ate it without hesitation. It helps that it looks almost exactly like their old food – color and all. The cats seemed fine with the change and haven’t experienced any upset tummies from the change.

My only concern is the price. You can only purchase this food online or in specialty pet stores such as PetsMart where we got our 4 pound bag. It was on sale for about $18 – twice the cost of a similarly sized bag of the Purina Naturals Indoor Cat food we were feeding them previously. Of course if you know how much your cats eat in a week (we go through a 4 pound bag every 8-10 days for our 3 cats), then you can purchase Purina Muse online in bulk and save a little bit of money.

 

Wet Food

We don’t normally do the whole wet food thing. I feel like it creates a sense of urgency and stress for our cats – Bruce especially. He’s prone to overeating quickly if he’s feeling stressed out about food, such as those rare moments where Mommy doesn’t realize they have emptied their food bowl. He will eat too much, too fast and he will throw up. So, I don’t know that wet food even on a rigid feeding schedule is right for our cat family.

Regardless, I checked out the samples and I’ve gotta say… for wet cat food, I’m kind of impressed by it. I might still consider setting some out as a treat. We received a few different types of the wet food to try out of the 5 (yes can you believe it…FIVE) types of wet food offered under the Muse branding. We received 2 cans – one Pate, one In Gravy and 2 tubs of wet food “with toppers” – a fancy way of saying that there’s basically a special treat for kitties along with the dominant flavor profile.

I decided to give the Natural Chicken & Tuna a shot. It didn’t smell gross and it’s real pieces of chicken in what appears to be some sort of gravy. For cat food, it doesn’t look half bad (hell, I’ve cooked worse looking food). I used the adorable little plate that came in my box and set it down for all 3 cats (plus 2 foster kittens) to sniff at.

Harley took right to it which is no surprise to me. She’s always had her little nose in anything that resembled human food. The boys were a bit hesitant but that may have everything to do with the fact that it was one tiny plate for 3 adult cats and 2 kittens. They never got around to trying it. The foster kittens on the other hand… LOVED it. I had to pull them away from it a few times so Harley could even get it it. Oops!

 

The Goodie Box

Okay, okay… now that I’ve told you all about the food, I’m going to show you all of the awesome goodies that came in this box. I’ve received several boxes over the last couple of years of having this blog, but this one is definitely my favorite so far. Purina took my love of my cats to heart and sent me the coolest stuff!

Yes, that is one of the most awesome rolling pins EVER! I have wanted one of those for years now and I can’t wait to make some cookies with it! I’m going to make the cutest kitty cookies. And then there’s that ridiculously adorable mug. It’s so simple, but cute. It makes you look like a kitty when you drink from it. Haha!

Can we take a moment however to appreciate the nail polish. Yes… that’s nail polish in the box of goodies so that I could have my own “cat-ticure”. No joke. That’s hilarious to me. They really thought of everything and made this box fun for me.

Okay fine… the cats got some goodies too. Those catnip tea bags are genius. Each of my cats had one of their own to play with and they had a BLAST with them! The foster kittens have been enjoying the crinkly balls.

 

Win a Cat-Centric Goodie Box!

Purina is letting me give away this awesome box to one of you, my fabulous readers! Where my cat lovers at!? Raise a paw! Winning is so super simple. All you have to do is use the giveaway widget below and gain entries following the directions. The lucky winner will receive the box directly from Purina.

This giveaway is open to residents of the United States only. You must be 18 or older to be eligible to win. This giveaway begins on July 5th, and ends on July 19th 2016. Entries will be verified.

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