Wysong Au Jus Chicken

Wysong makes several kinds of cat and dog food, but its Au Jus meats get particularly good reviews. They're basically just meat and organs in a can, designed to mimic cats' wild diet (Wysong says its Au Jus varieties are suitable for dogs, too.) But missing vitamins and minerals mean you'll need to add supplements or use Au Jus foods in rotation with others.

Ingredient quality

No veggies, no grains -- just meat. Wysong Au Jus's ingredient list is pretty short: Its Au Jus Rabbit, for example, has just one ingredient (rabbit). The other flavors (chicken, duck, turkey and venison) contain only four or five ingredients: meat from that animal, water, liver from that animal (except for the duck variety, which contains no liver), animal plasma (part of the blood, which Wysong includes to mimic prey) and guar gum (a thickener). No grains -- and experts like that, as cats are obligate carnivores that aren't physically equipped to digest much grain.

But unlike other cat foods, Wysong adds no vitamins or minerals -- so you can't feed your cat only the Au Jus meats, or it won't get enough of certain nutrients like calcium (which wild cats get by eating bones). That's because Wysong designed the Au Jus food to be rotated with other foods, including fresh foods.

Tracie Hotchner (author of "The Cat Bible" and host of the syndicated radio show "Cat Chat") names Wysong Au Jus to her favorite-foods list. She notes that you'll need to add a supplement if this is your cat's main food.

Product safety

A member of the Pet Food Recall First Alert program. Wysong cat foods are made in Wysong's Wisconsin and Michigan plants, using U.S. Department of Agriculture-inspected and approved meat and vegetables (but taurine, an essential nutrient additive, from China), one source notes. Its small 5.5-ounce cans (not the bigger cans) are bisphenol A (BPA)-free. BPA is a chemical that studies have linked to reproductive problems, cancers and other diseases.

A search of the Food and Drug Administration's online recall database -- which lists pet food recalls back to 2007 -- shows no recalls for Wysong cat food. Wysong did pull some of its dry dog food from store shelves in 2009 because of mold.

Wysong is now one of 16 pet food companies that have joined the Pet Food Recall First Alert program. Customers can sign up on participating companies' websites to get email notifications if the food is ever recalled.

Value

All-meat comes at a premium price. Wysong Au Jus is one of the priciest canned cat foods -- just as costly as Halo Spot's Stew Wholesome Chicken Recipe (*Est. $1.60 for a 5.5-oz. can), one of the best regarded cat foods in reviews. Both cost 10 to 30 cents more per can than foods that score just a little lower in experts eyes, including Wellness Chicken Formula (*Est. $1.50 for a 5.5-oz. can), Merrick Cowboy Cookout (*Est. $1.40 for a 5.5-oz. can) and Evo Cat and Kitten Food (*Est. $1.40 for a 5.5-oz. can).

Natural Balance Indoor Cat Formula (*Est. $1.20 for a 6-oz. can) has its fans as well, and costs even less. However, unlike Wysong Au Jus, Natural Balance contains grains.

The bottom line

Cats are carnivores, and experts appreciate that Wysong Au Jus is basically just meat -- the ideal staple of a cat's diet. However, Wysong Au Jus doesn't have all of the vitamins and minerals cats need, so it has to be fed with other foods or with added supplements. If you want to feed a single canned food that is complete nutritionally, experts recommend Halo cat food, which does contain all of the necessary supplements.