Updated on January 6th, to add more info.
Before ordering and reviewing Republic of Cats, I did not know much about the company. Over time, however, many people have stated that this cat food might be a re-branded, expensive version of Gourmet Cat. Though I have no way of telling, Gourmet Cat does have shares in the company, so it may be a similar product. Either way, these were my opinions and how my cat felt about the food. Gourmet Cat food is low in protein, and currently Republic of Cats does not have a breakdown of their cat food, so there isn’t an easy way to compare the two.
There are so many pet food brands out there and many of them are online! We decided to try one of the food subscription services, as Republic of Cats is a brand I have never heard of, and the Republic of Cats had a two week trial box for just £5, we wanted to see how Pancake got on with it! Republic of Cats allows you to put in a bunch of information on your cat, like the breed, if they are neutered, their allergies, weight and more, as well as what your goal is with your cat’s food. You can choose from options under weight management, fur/coat care, and health management support, as well as list any medical issues your cat has – which is great if you do need special food!
Once everything was submitted, we waited for our package of foods. We went for both dry and wet food, as Pancake is currently on dry food, with a bit of wet food from time to time. Both dry food and wet food have different benefits for your cat, which you can read more about from ShedHappens! Republic of Cats stated that you should slowly integrate the cat food in with the old cat food, so we started doing that, but hit a bit of a hiccup. The bag of dry food was all uniform, not different in their look as we normally get. Pancake started just eating this new dry food out of his old dry food, really enjoying it! This was a bit surprising, and we kept integrating it little by little, until it was completely what he was eating!
In our taster box, we got two weeks worth of wet food and two weeks worth of dry food, as long as you followed the amount they recommend. The bag had Pancake’s name on it, and the cans of food had so many different flavors – some having bits in gravy while others being full pate! This was very exciting for Pancake and I – we hadn’t really experienced such a variety and haven’t seen such a large variety offered with other services. Pancake really enjoyed the variety, I think, shying a bit away from pates and keeping up with the bits in gravy. You can actually customise your subscription when it’s time to order your next batch, ticking off that your cat didn’t like one of the foods and really liked others. It’s a great system for picky eaters!
Along with being able to customise your order, you are provided with a WhatsApp number, so if your cat is ever acting weird with their food or if you have questions, you can get a really quick reply! This members only WhatsApp is a really lovely concept and can help new cat parents have a connection to someone that can really help them.
Overall, I have mixed feelings about Republic of Cats. The food is something that Pancake really loves, but I am not sure if the company is being as straight forward or if they are giving me products that actually would help with my cat’s specific goals. As this product is marketed as good for cats with medical needs, I guess I would want a bit more out of it to ensure it is correct, compared to what others are saying. I am unsure if his poo has been less stinky (as that’s one of the options we picked!) But, I do find it convenient to get the food shipped right to me, and Pancake does really love the flavors!
You can check out more of our reviews and recipes to do with our cat, Pancake, in his category.
Never heard of this, but we definitely need whatever one makes their poop smell less! Thanks for the recommendation.
It’s a very good reason!
I love that there was a variation of canned food options. I always wonder if our pets get bored with the same food day after day the way that we do. I know that mine fall into a rut if we don’t change something up for them from time to time – and you see the excitement when there’s something new in their dish!
They do get so excited!
I had this and then discovered its just rebranded gourmet cat food at a markup (check chicken compared to chicken cake gourmet same tin same contents I believe), guess its good they deliver but seems like a bit of a scam
That does sound really sketchy!
Fully agree with this. My cat needed to put on a bit of weight, I used to given him a mix of applaws and gourmet cake, when I spoke to the vet he pulled a face at the gourmet, thought the applaws was fine and was happy when I suggested he could get freshly cooked chicken each day. However, I saw an advert for this tailored diet and thought I would give it a go for my little furball. When it came I was suspicious about the tin but passed it off as a common design. My heart sank when I opened it, the smell was the same, the texture the same and my cat loved it the same. I then tried to find information online about the composition, nothing without contacting them which is really odd. Gourmet are generally low protein so not that great. I gave away the rest, have kept him on Applaws plus fresh chicken and he has happily gained some weight. I think it is really misleading as they make out that it is a tailored diet which can come across as something that is especially prepared, it isn’t, they’re doing the equivalent of choosing whether to give them chicken or beef, gold or cake, which we can all do already, on top of that they’re charging a premium. Incredibly dubious. I’ve just this evening seen another advert for them which has sent me down a rabbit hole to see if there is further information.
My cat had not had that brand before, it is really terrible that they are not being truthful about their food.
Is pancake still having the food? I’m tempted for my cat as I’m always forgetting to pick it up and end up paying double from the local shop when she has ran out anyway 😂
Did you look at the ingredients?
As another comment mentions, this is exactly the same as. Purina Gold. I have a tin of savoury cake chicken in my cupboard and there’s no difference between that and the chicken ROC tin.
The meat content is 4%, definitely not tailored or worth the hype.
I got this on a promo for £2.50 the full pack. Included 1 bag of dry and 3x taster packs of wet. I am veeeery fussy about what I feed my boy. He’s a 2 y/o, sterilised Maine Coon at 8.5 kg and I monitor his weight gain closely. I haven’t yet opened the dry food pack, because he’s on Wellness Core dry which has a lot of meat protein and no grains (and he’s been doing great on it – miles better than Royal Canin). Buuuut I fed him about a tbsp of the wet every day, which he likes a lot – now I see why 😐 – and I noticed an uptick in weight.
Based on what everyone else is saying, it makes sense that this is Gourmet rebranded! Which is very upsetting because if I wanted supermarket crap, I would have bought supermarket crap. My vet doesn’t endorse Gourmet either, and I certainly don’t.
I will be going back to Edgard & Cooper. At least it has some good quality ingredients.
This review highlights the variety and customization offered by Republic of Cats, especially for cats with specific dietary needs, and the convenience of direct delivery. However, there are concerns about transparency regarding the product’s actual benefits and its alignment with specific cat health goals. Overall, it offers a great range of flavors and options, but some doubts linger about its promised functionalities.
I used the Republic of Cats subscription model for my cat Leo for around one year. While he often proved fussy and would ‘go off’ various brands he continued to accept the Republic of Cats product and obviously enjoyed it.
He maintained good health throughout despite being relatively mature.
When Leo went missing, never to return, a subscription order arrived which remained unopened. I eventually contacted R of C with a view to returning the box and possibly receiving a refund.
The lady who dealt with the enquiry was extremely sympathetic and went to the length of contacting me personally. She resolved the situation by not only refunding the cost in full but stating that I did not need to return the unopened box and could keep it.
This was an extremely kind gesture considering that the value of the box was almost .£50.
The member of staff then subsequently contacted me again in person after the matter had been resolved to offer her condolences.
I was able to give the box to a cat owning neighbour who was of course most grateful.
I would have no hesitation in recommending R of C to others both for the quality of the product but also for their customer service which, in my case, went far beyond anything I could have expected.
I am now expecting to take on two kittens and immediately looked up Rof C to start a new subscription. Unfortunately the service does not cater for kittens. Perhaps this is something that R of C will address in the future.
Otherwise a 5 star company on the basis of my experience.