Kate Barrington / Cats.com
Providing an array of therapeutic and upkeep diets made with novel proteins, Rayne Diet is gaining recognition amongst homeowners of cats with power digestive points and meals allergy symptoms. However is it the precise alternative to your cat? Discover out on this unbiased, in-depth evaluate.
The Cats.com Customary—Score Rayne Diet Cat Meals on What Issues
We’ve rated the model on six key standards for high quality. Right here’s the way it charges in every of those six essential areas.
Scores
- Species-Appropriateness – 7/10
- Ingredient High quality – 8/10
- Product Selection – 7/10
- Worth – 5/10
- Buyer Expertise – 9/10
- Recall Historical past – 10/10
General Rating: 7.7/10
In whole, we give Rayne Diet cat meals a 46 out of 60 score or a B+ grade.
Why Belief Cats.com
Considered one of my cats has a extreme allergy to poultry (and suspected allergy symptoms for different proteins), so I’ve tried dozens of limited-ingredient and novel protein diets through the years. The one protein Biscuit has persistently tolerated is rabbit. Sadly, rabbit-based cat meals aren’t significantly widespread—particularly merchandise with out different proteins in them.
When a Cats.com reader requested us to evaluate Rayne Diet, I used to be keen to take action. Along with completely researching the model and brushing by way of buyer critiques, I ordered and examined three Rayne Diet merchandise with my two cats, Biscuit and Munchkin. They offered their subjective opinions concerning the meals whereas I utilized the feline diet experience I’ve gained over the previous 12+ years to evaluating the merchandise objectively.
About Rayne Diet
Based in 2009 by John Phelps and Dan Pitts, Rayne Diet is predicated in Kansas Metropolis, Missouri. Rayne Diet is a prescription pet meals model bought solely by way of the model’s web site (and by some veterinary practices). It’s marketed as whole-food diet for pets with “high quality that vets belief.”
Rayne Diet’s major objective is to offer full and balanced pet diets made with minimally processed substances. Their merchandise are formulated below the steerage of veterinary and animal well being specialists, a few of whom are listed on the Rayne Diet web site. Rayne additionally references scientific analysis on the corporate web site that gives additional context for the model’s dietary philosophy and product lineup.
The thought behind Rayne’s Entire Meals Philosophy is that less-processed meals are decrease in superior glycation end-products (AGEs). Medical analysis means that accumulation of food-derived AGEs may improve irritation and oxidative stress—two key elements that contribute to power illness.
Not solely are Rayne’s merchandise designed to assist stop power illness, however lots of them are formulated to supply assist for current circumstances like meals allergy symptoms, urinary stones, and diabetes mellitus. Lots of Rayne Diet’s cat meals merchandise are made with novel proteins like rabbit or kangaroo.
Sourcing and Manufacturing
In line with Rayne Diet’s claims that high quality substances matter, the corporate affords full ingredient transparency. Rayne Diet merchandise are made in america with substances sourced primarily from North America. Essentially the most notable exceptions embrace kangaroo from Australia and rabbit from France and Italy.
Along with sourcing substances from respected suppliers, Rayne Diet prioritizes high quality management. The corporate follows a hard and fast method coverage—ingredient proportions are saved constant in each batch (some producers alter ingredient ranges primarily based on value). Rayne Diet additionally makes use of third-party unbiased labs to check incoming substances in addition to the completed merchandise.
Essentially the most important aspect of high quality management for cats with meals allergy symptoms is Rayne’s thorough product line cleansing course of. Manufacturing strains are totally shut down, organically cleaned, and flushed out between recipes to stop cross-contamination.
Some on-line sources counsel the manufacturing strains are owned and operated by CJ Meals, a personal label firm. I reached out to customer support and was advised Rayne not makes use of CJ Meals, however they don’t personal their manufacturing strains both. They use third-party manufacturing amenities however implement their very own cleansing procedures earlier than and after manufacturing.
Recall Historical past
Within the firm’s 15-year historical past, Rayne Diet has not skilled a product recall. A publish within the firm’s weblog means that cautious ingredient choice and strict high quality management measures are the first purpose. Rayne particularly mentions mycotoxin contamination as a typical purpose for pet meals remembers and explains intimately what the model does to stop it.
What Sorts of Cat Meals Does Rayne Diet Provide?
Rayne Diet affords moist, dry, and freeze-dried merchandise for canine and cats. There are two methods to browse the cat meals product choice on Rayne’s web site: by featured ingredient or by the situation you’re in search of to handle.
All Rayne Diet pet meals merchandise are marketed below the model title TheraDiet. A lot of the recipes are made with kangaroo or rabbit as the only protein supply, although just a few merchandise function pork as a substitute.
Right here’s an inventory of the cat meals merchandise from Rayne Diet:
- Rabbit-MAINT Chunky Stew
- Kangaroo-MAINT Chunky Stew
- Grownup Well being-RSS Chunky Stew
- Development/Delicate-GI Chunky Stew
- Rabbit-MAINT Dry Cat Meals
- Kangaroo-MAINT Freeze-Dried Cat Meals
- Rabbit-MAINT Canned Paté
- Kangaroo-MAINT Canned Paté
- Rabbit-MAINT Paté Cups
The TheraDiet line is split between upkeep and diagnostic diets. The upkeep recipes listed above are nutritionally full; recipes like Kangaroo-DIAG and Rabbit-DIAG are designed to be used as elimination diets. They include a single protein and carbohydrate supply however usually are not full and balanced so they don’t seem to be designed for long-term feeding; they need to solely be used to verify meals allergy symptoms earlier than switching to a nutritionally full weight-reduction plan.
What Did Our Check Cats Suppose?
Kate Barrington / Cats.com
To check Rayne Diet, I ordered two rabbit-based and one kangaroo-based product. My choice included one dry meals, one canned meals, and one chunky stew.
Whereas my cats are used to consuming rabbit-based meals, they’ve by no means had kangaroo earlier than. They appeared to benefit from the kangaroo paté however not as a lot as they preferred the chunky stew made with rabbit. My cats’ opinion on the rabbit-based dry cat meals appeared to match what another clients have reported—their cats eat it however don’t appear significantly excited by it.
After I positioned my order, I used to be required to offer contact info for my veterinarian and the clinic I exploit. As a result of my order shipped virtually instantly, nevertheless, I can’t say for positive whether or not Rayne verified the data. I did obtain an e mail asking for a written copy of my cats’ prescription however there wasn’t any follow-up.
Rayne Diet Cat Meals – Prime 3 Recipes Reviewed
What Do Clients Consider Rayne Diet Cat Meals?
As a result of Rayne Diet merchandise are solely bought by way of the model’s web site (and a few veterinary practices), on-line critiques are sparse. Rayne Diet does permit clients to fee and evaluate merchandise on the web site, nevertheless it’s all the time arduous to inform whether or not a pet meals model publishes each evaluate or simply the optimistic ones.
Constructive Evaluations
Clients usually appear happy with Rayne Diet cat meals. Many glad clients remark that the novel protein diets work higher to alleviate their cats’ meals allergy symptoms and digestive points than different prescription merchandise they’ve tried. That stated, a number of clients famous that their cats began to lose curiosity within the meals after some time.
“My cat loves his rabbit-MAINT stew!! He has a number of meals allergy symptoms and I struggled to seek out meals that he preferred and was good for him. The vet advisable one other model and he selected this one. He’s wholesome once more!”—Juan P. on RayneNutrition.com, September 10, 2024
“Initially, our cats beloved this. After just a few weeks on a strict weight-reduction plan, they’ve been much less enthusiastic about it. General, it is a wonderful possibility, however remember the fact that it received’t be their favourite meal eternally.”—MG on RayneNutrition.com, August 16, 2024
Detrimental Evaluations
The commonest complaints about Rayne Diet cat meals contain the value (particularly the price of transport) and the chunky stew packaging. A number of cat homeowners additionally famous that their cats merely didn’t look after the Rabbit-MAINT dry meals—even when they beloved a few of the moist meals recipes.
“My cat has a meals allergy and GI points however has discovered this single supply protein weight-reduction plan to work nicely. Whereas she nonetheless tries to steal our different cat’s meals, she eats each morsel of this! Nonetheless, that is the WORST packaging ever!! I completely hate it! It’s extraordinarily arduous to open and really troublesome to get the meals out in an correct quantity.”—Acarl387 on RayneNutrition.com, January 13, 2024
“She completely loves the moist Rabbit-Maint, much more than her earlier moist meals (we didn’t even should do a transition hybrid-mix of the 2) however for no matter purpose she will not be pleased with the dry Rabbit-MAINT, and hasn’t touched it, even when combined with a beneficiant portion of her regular dry meals.”—Edward on RayneNutrition.com, October 13, 2024
How A lot Does Rayne Diet Cat Meals Value?
This model affords a restricted array of merchandise and pricing is comparable inside the identical product sort. Canned meals, for instance, common $0.67 per ounce whereas novel protein chunky stews value about $0.62 per ounce. Different TheraDiet chunky stews are barely cheaper and the Rabbit-MAINT paté cups are dearer—about $0.82 per ounce.
Dry cat meals is often less expensive than moist cat meals, however Rayne Diet’s solely dry meals has the identical per-ounce value as their canned meals. The product with the best price ticket is Kangaroo-MAINT freeze-dried meals, which prices greater than $2 per ounce. Even so, it’s roughly half the value of Stella & Chewy’s Completely Rabbit and about $0.85 cheaper per ounce than Open Farm’s freeze-dried cat meals.
Rayne Diet affords free floor transport on orders over $60, in any other case the transport payment begins at $7.99 and will increase on a sliding scale. Clients who select the AutoShip possibility will save an extra 5% on subscribed merchandise.
The place Is Rayne Diet Cat Meals Offered?
Rayne Diet cat meals merchandise are solely bought by way of the model’s web site. You possibly can place a one-time order or subscribe with AutoShip to obtain common deliveries. You possibly can customise your supply frequency to each one to fifteen weeks.
As a result of Rayne Diet prioritizes therapeutic diet, you may be capable of buy it by way of your veterinarian. Some vets may carry it, nevertheless it relies on the veterinarian.
General, Is Rayne Diet a Good Alternative?
Though novel proteins and limited-ingredient diets are extra available than ever, cross-contamination remains to be a severe concern for some pet mother and father. Even well-liked manufacturers like Weruva and Tiki Cat that supply poultry-free merchandise may use shared tools to make these meals. In case you’re on the lookout for a model that takes precautions to stop cross-contamination and prioritizes single-protein formulation, Rayne Diet may very well be the precise alternative.
The draw back of Rayne Diet is the meals could also be slightly expensive for some budgets (however nonetheless similar to different prescription manufacturers like Hill’s and Royal Canin). Availability is restricted to the model web site as nicely, however which may not be a problem in case you store for cat meals on-line anyway.
Comparable Manufacturers
Searching for different cat meals manufacturers much like Rayne Diet? Try a few of our different model critiques.
