Honest Weruva Cat Food Review: The Best Choice For your Cat’s Health?

Disclaimer

As a Chewy and Amazon affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This does not impact our reviews and comparisons.

Weruva is a line of healthy cat food products that use premium animal-based ingredients. In this cat food review, we find out whether this food is the best choice for you.

The goal of this website is to help cat owners learn more about taking care of their cats. I am not a veterinarian and I recommend seeking the advice of a vet for any further questions.

The advice in this article is not intended as medical advice.

Let’s get into the article.

Weruva Cat Food Review: A Short Summary

Weruva is a good cat food, but it falls short in a couple of ways. I recommend Weruva for adult cats only as an occasional food source.

Beyond the fancy cat food labels and names, what does Weruva offer in the tin with their range?

A lot of animal-based foods which is great.

Lots of moisture. Also great!

Low in carbohydrate and grain-free. Cool.

But it’s the lack of information that frustrates me most. Are these cat foods suitable for senior cats? Can I rely on them as a sole source of nutrition?

Some products don’t list the taurine content. The company also has a history of recalls, so missing info doesn’t fill me with confidence.

Still, the customer reviews are positive. There’s no by-products. It’s a meat rich product.

Then there’s the added gums and sunflower oil. Some products use a bit of potato which raises the carb content a little.

All things considered, Weruva is a middle-of-the-pack cat food. Good…not great.

This is why I recommend it to adult cats as an occasional option.

In this article, I’ll break down the products in the Weruva cat food range.

I will look at three areas:

• Ingredient quality
• Nutrition
• Taste

Finally, I’ll go over some frequently asked questions about Weruva cat food.

Weruva Cat Food Range

Weruva offers a range of wet cat food options.

Nulo Product Range	Food Type	Description
Weruva Classic	Wet (pate, stew)	Grain free dry cat food
Cats in the Kitchen	Wet	Fancier cat food recipes
Best Friends Food (BFF)	Wet	Tuna rich cat food
Truluxe	Wet	Wet cat food with unique protein sources (e.g. Australian beef, saba)

In the following sections I’ll take a look at one cat food option from each category of food.

I’ll look at the ingredients, nutrition quality and how cats are liking each product. Where available, I’ll have testing data from my own cat testing team.

Weruva Cat Food Ingredients

Based on our scoring system, Weruva contains good cat food ingredients. There are no animal by-products and the majority of ingredients are meat based.

Weruva don’t use plant based protein, which means the protein quality is high in the product. This is great for cats that need a high protein diet to maintain muscle (e.g. senior cats).

Our best rated product was Weruva Best Feline Friends (BFF). This food doesn’t have any grains, potato, or plant protein, which are known to cause food intolerance. It looks a great simple product for cats.

Weruva use a variety of different descriptors like dinner, recipe, and with. This makes it hard for people to find out what they want.

The main knock on Weruva is the use of potato starch in a few products. Truluxe also uses pumpkin and sweet potato. These can raise the carb content and interfere with digestion.

Another issue is the use of sunflower seed oil. Cats aren’t able to convert plant based fats to active form (arachidonic acid).

In short, cat’s don’t get a benefit eating plant based oils.

Another possible issue is the use of gums. AAFCO pointed out that the taurine absorption in canned cat food is lower than dry. They suggest that gums may the cause of this.

Gums thicken up a cat food product, and usually get used in moisture rich gravies. Since this is Weruva cat foods main draw, it’s easy to see why they use a bunch of gums in their products.

We score cat food out of 100. The score can over or underestimate the true ‘quality’ (which is why it’s important to look at my nutrition section for a full picture).

A higher score is a sign of a better quality food. The weighing of ingredients based on the labelling as these words equate to different quantities of food. That’s taken into account with scoring.

Read more about what that means over in my cat food labelling guide.

Weruva Product Range	Selected product	Label type	Ingredient quality score	Ingredients
Weruva Classic	Mideast feast with grilled tilapia in gravy	With	63/100	Tuna, Water Sufficient For Processing, Tilapia, Potato Starch, Sunflower Seed Oil, Calcium Lactate, Xanthan Gum, Tricalcium Phosphate, Choline Chloride, Taurine, Vitamin E Supplement, Zinc Sulfate, Thiamine Mononitrate (Vitamin B1), Nicotinic Acid (Vitamin B3), Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin A Supplement, Manganese Sulfate, Riboflavin Supplement (Vitamin B2), Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B6), Copper Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Folic Acid, Potassium Iodide, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Menadione Sodium Bisulfite Complex (Source of Vitamin K), Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement
Cats in the Kitchen	Chicken Frick ‘A Zee Chicken Recipe	Recipe	72/100	Chicken, Chicken Broth, Sunflower Seed Oil, Locust Bean Gum, Calcium Lactate, Guar Gum, Xanthan Gum, Tricalcium Phosphate, Potassium Chloride, Fish Oil, Choline Chloride, Taurine, Zinc Sulfate, Vitamin E Supplement, Nicotinic Acid (Vitamin B3), Ferrous Sulfate, Manganese Proteinate, Thiamine Mononitrate (Vitamin B1), Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin A Supplement, Riboflavin Supplement (Vitamin B2), Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B6), Copper Sulfate, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Folic Acid, Potassium Iodide, Sodium Selenite, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement
Best Friends Food	Chicken & turkey topsy turvey dinner	Dinner	92/100	Chicken, Chicken Broth, Turkey, Dried Egg, Natural Flavor, Calcium Sulfate, Guar Gum, Locust Bean Gum, Xanthan Gum, Potassium Chloride, Taurine, Vitamin E Supplement, Tricalcium Phosphate, Choline Chloride, Zinc Oxide, Thiamine Mononitrate (Vitamin B1), Reduced Iron, Niacin Supplement (Vitamin B3), Vitamin A Supplement, Sodium Selenite, Manganese Sulfate, Copper Amino Acid Complex, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B6), Calcium Pantothenate, Riboflavin Supplement (Vitamin B2), Folic Acid, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Potassium Iodide, Biotin
Truluxe	Steak frites with beef & pumpkin in gravy	With	57/100	Beef Broth, Beef, Pumpkin, Sweet Potato, Potato Starch, Carrot, Sunflower Seed Oil, Tricalcium Phosphate, Xanthan Gum, Potassium Chloride, Choline Chloride, Salt, Taurine, Zinc Sulfate, Vitamin E Supplement, Nicotinic Acid (Vitamin B3 Supplement), Ferrous Sulfate, Manganese Proteinate, Calcium Pantothenate, Thiamine Mononitrate, Vitamin A Supplement, Riboflavin Supplement (Vitamin B2), Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B6), Vitamin D3 Supplement, Folic Acid, Copper Sulfate, Menadione Sodium Bisulfite Complex (Source Of Vitamin K), Potassium Iodide, Sodium Selenite, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement

Our score for Weruva cat foods ingredient quality is below.

Ingredient Quality Score: B

Weruva Cat Food Nutrition

Most Weruva products are low in carbohydrate and high in protein. Their products are species appropriate to an adult cats dietary needs. However, there is some missing information about some products.

There’s no information on whether the products are AAFCO approved for all life stages. This means I can’t say whether these products are the best option for seniors, adults, and/or kittens.

For this reason I had to use estimates for the nutrition by reading through online summaries. So use these estimates with caution.

When given the choice, cat’s choose a food with around 52% protein, 12% carbohydrate, and 36% fat.

The Weruva cat food products range between 43.8-71.4% protein on a dry matter basis. This is above what cats need as a minimum (30% per AAFCO guidelines).

Most of Weruva’s protein content is from animal based products. I’m confident your cat will meet their protein needs and enjoy the meatiness (if that’s a word) of Weruva.

It’s best to limit your cats diet to 12% carbohydrate or less on a dry matter basis. This is helpful for good digestion and blood sugar control. Weruva products range from 1.4-12.5% carbohydrate on a dry matter basis which is great.

The BFF product is highest in carbs despite not having listed carbohydrate ingredients on the label.

Despite this, the carbohydrate of Weruva cat food products is at or below the limit. This is good if you’re concerned with your cats digestion and blood sugar control.

The fat content of Weruva falls between 9.3-18.8% on a dry matter basis. This is a bit lower than what cats prefer based on research.

I’ve mentioned this but some of the fat comes from sunflower oil. This isn’t the best choice as it doesn’t contain essential fatty acids cats can use.

Weruva’s cat food products with a neutral or positive calcium to phosphate ratio. This is good for kidney and bone health, particularly with older cats.

Taurine content meets AAFCO guidelines for canned food. Our reviewed BFF product didn’t have taurine information which is of concern.

The main problem with Weruva is the missing information. There’s also conflicting information with ingredients and nutrition content.

Still, the high protein and low carbohydrate content is a great sign of a good food. As a sole source of nutrition, I can’t say with confidence that Weruva will meet your cats needs.

Weruva cat food product range	Selected product	Life stage	Calories/kg	Kcal/g dry matter basis	Protein	Fat	Carbohydrate	Fiber	Ash	Moisture	Taurine	Calcium: Phosphate Ratio
Weruva Classic	Mideast feast with grilled tilapia in gravy	Not specified	746	4.0	64.9%	15.1%	7.6%	5.4%	7.0%	81.5%	0.3%	1.2:1
Cats in the Kitchen	Chicken Frick ‘A Zee Chicken Recipe	Not specified	841	5.6	66.7%	16.7%	3.3%	3.3%	10.0%	85.0%	0.3%	1.3:1
Best Friends Food	Chicken & turkey topsy turvey dinner	Not specified	1,083	6.7	43.8%	18.8%	12.5%	6.3%	18.8%	84.0%	N/A	N/A
Truluxe	Steak frites with beef & pumpkin in gravy	Not specified	731	5.2	71.4%	9.3%	1.4%	3.6%	14.3%	86.0%	0.4%	1:1

Our score for Weruva cat foods nutrition quality is below.

Nutrition Score: B

Weruva Cat Food Taste

Weruva cat food has positive reviews online. Their best rated product is Weruva classic Mideast feast.

Our cat taste testing team hasn’t had the chance to test Weruva cat food yet.

The lowest rated product is the Truluxe range (still positive though).

My thought is this is due to extra plant based ingredients in the tin putting cats off. Or it could be due to ‘exotic’ meats used, as opposed to common food sources like chicken in the classics range.

If you give your cat Weruva, there’s a good chance they will enjoy the food.

Taste Score: A-

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Weruva sourced and manufactured?

Weruva products are made in Thailand. Ingredients are sourced locally, or in some cases via Australia and New Zealand.

Weruva claims to use state-of-the-art facilities to prepare the meat used in their products. They have an A grade based on food standard audits from the British Retail Consortium (BRC).

Weruva uses boneless chicken and fish pieces and doesn’t use unnamed leftover meat pieces.

When was Weruva founded?

The family-owned brand was founded in 2007. The company focuses on creating species-appropriate cat food and dog food products. 

Their slogans are ‘Because we luvya’ and ‘Awesome happy. Awesome healthy.’ Their brand features bright colors and a family-friendly appeal.

Are There Weruva Cat Food recalls?

A check of the US Food and Drug (FDA) database reveals no pet food recalls for Weruva classic products. However, their product offshoot Best Feline Friend was recalled due to links to deaths in Australian cats. 

At least 20 cats died from April 2007 due to neurological and movement complications related to thiamine deficiency. 

The level of thiamine, an essential B vitamin, was not detected in many Best Feline Friend canned products. The problem was linked to one facility and localized to Australia.

The problem seems to have been resolved as of 2017.

Is There Weruva dry cat food?

No. Weruva only make wet cat food options and treats (pumpkin patch).

Can I use Weruva cat food with kidney disease?

Cats with kidney disease need a high calcium and low phosphate cat food. The ratio of these ingredients should be over 1:1.

Most Weruva cat food products are at or over this amount. They are also high in moisture which may benefit cats with kidney disease and prevent dehydration.

Some sources claim that cats with kidney disease need protein restriction to help extend lifespan. Since Weruva cat food is high in protein, that means they aren’t the best choice.

There is dispute over whether protein needs restriction.

Check out my best cat food for kidney disease to learn more about the topic and my food recommendations.

Learn More:

• Best Cat Food for Kidney Disease

Does Weruva have carrageenan?

All Weruva cat food products are carrageenan free based on the writing of this article.

Is Weruva BFF healthy?

Our review results show the BFF is a good cat food choice. It contains a high amount of protein and minimal fillers.

There are some gums in the tin which may reduce taurine absorption. Since there is no information on the taurine content online, that is the main concern with BFF.

Is Weruva the healthiest cat food on the market?

Weruva provides a range of above-average cat food products that have a range of species-appropriate meats.  Their canned cat food range is high in protein and moisture.

There are healthier cat food choices in the market.  However, those choices may cost more than Weruva cat food.

Like many pet food brands, Weruva makes dog and cat food.  This may explain the ‘doggier’ formula of food which contains more plant foods to homogenize food production.

The main finding from examining product reviews is inconsistency in the product.  Some cans contain more water and less meat than others.  

Learn More:

• What is the Healthiest Cat Food?
• 6 Best Wet Cat Food for Weight Loss

Is Weruva a good and trustworthy company?

The main controversy Weruva has experienced was the recall of Best Feline Friend products in 2017.

The products were found to be deficient in thiamine, leading to neurological problems in cats that resulted in some deaths (due to euthanasia).  They offer a selection of cat foods that are above average in quality.

They claim to be aware of cats being obligate carnivores but use plant-based ingredients in many products.  

Who owns the Weruva cat food brand?

Weruva is owned by the founders David and Stacie Forman in 2007. The name Weruva is based on the names of their adopted pets Website, Rudi, Vanessa, and Baron. 

Why does good cat nutrition matter?

Diet influences your cat’s health and lifespan.

A poor quality non-species appropriate diet may lead to early diseases.  These include kidney disease, diabetes, obesity, arthritis, and macular degeneration.

In the 1980s for example, a lack of taurine (an essential amino acid) in the cat food supply leads to many cat deaths related to heart disease. 

Selecting the right cat food brand for your needs is important for your peace of mind that your cat is getting what it needs.

Learn More:

• 9 Tips to Feed Your Cat for Awesome Health

Conclusion

Weruva is an above-average cat food brand. They provide a range of high-protein wet canned cat food products with real meat pieces you can see.

Weruva uses fewer fillers in their products. They don’t use gluten or grains at all, and most products don’t use carrageenan. 

Weruva products tend to contain small amounts of vegetable foods such as potato, pea, and pumpkin. They have a wide range of products that include chicken, tilapia, tuna, salmon, and beef. 

The main downside of Weruva is the inclusion of plant-based foods in many cat formulas.  This may impair digestion. Weruva also uses sunflower oil, which is high in polyunsaturated fatty acids and may deplete vitamin E if over consumed.