Raised Right Cat Food Review

Kate Barrington / Cats.com

We’ve rated Raised Right cat food on ingredient quality, species-appropriateness, recalls, and more. Read our Raised Right cat food review to learn how this brand stacks up.

The Cats.com Standard—Raised Right on What Matters

We’ve rated the brand on six key criteria for quality. Here’s how it rates in each of these six crucial areas.

In total, we give Raised Right cat food a 44 out of 60 rating or a B grade.

About Raised Right

Raised Right is a fresh pet food company founded and owned by the Ruud family. The family works alongside veterinarian Dr. Karen Becker to formulate recipes that are limited in ingredients and low in carbohydrates.

The company proudly states on their website that they were the first pet food company to voluntarily submit a recipe to be tested by Check Your Pet Food. The Original Turkey Adult Dog Recipe they submitted matched the guaranteed analysis on the label as well and met AAFCO standards for complete and balanced canine nutrition.

It’s worth noting, however, that this test was run in November 2019. Raised Right does not appear to have sent their food for retesting.

Sourcing and Manufacturing

Raised Right offers two recipes for human-grade, single-source protein cat food: chicken and turkey. Kate Barrington / Cats.com

All of Raised Right’s products are made with human-grade ingredients in USDA-inspected facilities. The food is cooked at low temperatures to kill food-borne pathogens while maintaining high levels of moisture. Every batch is lab-tested for pathogens.

Raised Right appears to source most of their ingredients from the United States and offers a map on their homepage where you can see the state from which each ingredient comes.

In addition to offering transparency on their ingredients, Raised Right is purposeful with their packaging. They have partnered with Climeco.com to offset the carbon emissions produced by their home delivery service through forest preservation and reforestation efforts.

While Raised Right’s packaging is not plastic-free, they’ve partnered with rePurpose Global to remove the equivalent amount of plastic from the ecosystem.

Recall History

In researching the Raised Right brand, we didn’t find any evidence of product recalls.

What Kinds of Cat Food Does Raised Right Offer?

Each batch of Raised Right cat food is made with a limited list of traceable ingredients and lab-tested before leaving the facility. Kate Barrington / Cats.com

Raised Right is a fresh pet food company that only offers their products online. Their foods are sold in 16-ounce bags and delivered frozen. Every Raised Right recipe is made with a single source of animal protein, either chicken or turkey.

For several years, Raised Right only offered two formulas. While they’ve doubled their selection, the two new recipes don’t appear to differ significantly in composition. The main difference seems to be the replacement of carrots and blueberries with pumpkins.

When placing an order, you can choose how many bags you want of each of the four recipes. The food is only sold in 4-pack sample boxes or full boxes of 16 bags.

What Do Customers Think of Raised Right Cat Food?

Both Raised Right cat food recipes have a similar appearance and texture which, unfortunately, our test cats didn’t find appealing. Kate Barrington / Cats.com

While Raised Right has over four hundred reviews posted on their website, a quick scroll through the list didn’t reveal many below a 5-star rating. Out of 46 reviews on the Raised Right Facebook page, the company has a 4.9-star rating and it’s hard to tell how much control the company has over which reviews are made public.

Though there are a few third-party reviews of Raised Right out there, I didn’t find a significant number I was confident were unbiased and the brand has no reviews on TrustPilot.

Here’s what one customer has to say about Raised Right cat food on Facebook:

“I highly recommend this product. Presley was having urine problems, I had to take her to the vet the vet said that she has crystals in her urine and that I need to put her on that science diet for three months to see how she does. I ended up going to Tom and hound. It’s a holistic organic pet store in downtown Redlands the owner, John and his wife are very strict on what they sell at their store this goes by quality and ingredients, I told him what happened to Presley and he recommended raised right it’s made by someone who is a veterinarian and has a little ingredients as possible. She’s been on it for the past six months and it’s amazing. Her fur is glowing. She doesn’t toot her turds don’t smell oddly enough she loves her food and she has no more issues with her urine. I told vet he should Sell this in his clinic to give people options instead of feeding prescription diets that have bad ingredients too I hope raised right can find a great type of food for cats my cat unfortunately had crystals needed surgery which was expensive thank God for pet insurance, she’s on the science diet C/D prescription,There’s not a lot of options for cats. I hope Raised right can make something for cats for low carbs as well that would be awesome.” – by Rochelle Nava reviewing Raised Right on September 3, 2024

Given the lack of negative reviews online, I’m not sure I got a balanced feel for the average customer’s experience with Raised Right cat food. The only negative reviews I could find were of Raised Right treats and toppers from Amazon.

“These treats are too sharp. I gave my dog one and she coughed and coughed.
I thought I might share them with a friend, but became concerned their dog might cough too. I wish I had returned them.” – by JT reviewing Raised Right Beef Meat Bites on August 20, 2024

“Purchased this item based on video that appeared to look like a chewy soft treat. Actual item is razor thin and could possibly cause choking or damage to throat and intestines. When broken into pieces are like shards of broken glass. My dog doesn’t always chewy but gobbles. It’s a great concern. I would use great caution before buying as it’s not returnable through Amazon and could lead to waste of money.” – by A.J. Williams reviewing Raised Right Beef Meat Bites on March 25, 2024

Raised Right Cat Food – Top 3 Recipes Reviewed

#1 Raised Right Original Turkey Adult Cat Recipe

Kate Barrington / Cats.com

Buy At RaisedRightPets

This fresh cat food recipe features turkey thigh as the first ingredient, followed by turkey heart and turkey liver. The only other main ingredients are carrots, blueberries, organic spearmint, and cod liver oil. You’ll also see flaxseed oil later on the list.

We have no complaints about the ingredients for this turkey recipe cat food. Not only does it start with a real source of animal protein, but it is a single-source protein recipe as well.

One thing we will comment on is the moisture content. Dry cat food generally contains about 10% moisture and canned food around 85%. Other fresh cat foods we’ve reviewed contain between 72% and 75% moisture, so this turkey recipe (at 68%) is a little low.

This is by no means a problem, but it makes the odd texture the product has make a little more sense.

Ingredients

Turkey Thigh, Turkey Heart, Turkey Liver, Carrots, Blueberries, Organic Spearmint, Cod Liver Oil, Egg Shell Powder, Flaxseed Oil, Organic Kelp Powder, Taurine, Thiamine Mononitrate

Ingredients We Liked	Ingredients We Didn’t Like	Common Allergens
Turkey Thigh Turkey Heart Turkey Liver Cod Liver Oil	None	None

Guaranteed Analysis

Crude Protein: 21%

Crude Fat: 8%

Crude Fiber: 2%

Moisture: 67%

Dry Matter Basis

Protein: 63.64%

Fat: 24.24%

Fiber: 6.06%

Carbs: 6.06%

Caloric Weight Basis

Protein: 49.49%

Fat: 45.79%

Carbs: 4.71%

Pros

• Limited number of human-grade ingredients
• Real animal protein as first ingredient
• Natural sources for key nutrients (fresh fruits and veggies)

Cons

• Lower moisture content than some fresh foods
• Some cats may dislike the flavor and texture

#2 Raised Right Original Chicken Adult Cat Recipe

Buy At RaisedRightPets

Nearly identical in appearance, this chicken recipe cat food follows a very similar formula with chicken replacing the turkey. Fresh chicken thigh is the first ingredient, followed by chicken heart and liver.

We appreciate the fact that Raised Right prioritizes natural sources for key nutrients like fresh fruits and vegetables rather than relying on synthetic supplements. The company also holds true to its claims of avoiding high-carb fillers and artificial additives like preservatives, colors, and flavors.

Unfortunately, our test cats didn’t care for either Raised Right cat food flavor.

We’ve reviewed their dog food recipes in the past and while our test dog showed a little more interest, we were a bit concerned that all of the dog food recipes appeared identical as well and looked just the same as the cat food formulas.

Ingredients

Chicken Thigh, Chicken Heart, Chicken Liver, Carrots, Organic Spearmint, Blueberries, Cod Liver Oil, Egg Shell Powder, Organic Dried Kelp, Flaxseed Oil, Taurine, Thiamine Mononitrate

Ingredients We Liked	Ingredients We Didn’t Like	Common Allergens
Chicken Thigh Chicken Heart Chicken Liver Cod Liver Oil	None	Chicken

Guaranteed Analysis

Crude Protein: 20%

Crude Fat: 9%

Crude Fiber: 2%

Moisture: 66%

Dry Matter Basis

Protein: 58.82%

Fat: 26.47%

Fiber: 5.88%

Carbs: 8.82%

Caloric Weight Basis

Protein: 44.59%

Fat: 48.73%

Carbs: 6.69%

Pros

• Real animal protein as first ingredient
• Limited number of human-grade ingredients
• Natural sources for key nutrients (fresh fruits and veggies)

Cons

• Lower moisture content than some fresh foods
• Some cats may dislike the flavor and texture
• Chicken is a common food allergen for cats

#3 Raised Right Turkey & Pumpkin Pate for Adult Cats

Buy At RaisedRightPets

One of Raised Right’s newer recipes, this turkey and pumpkin formula is very similar to the original turkey recipe. In fact, the only difference appears to be the replacement of carrots and blueberries with pumpkin (and the accompanying differentiations in micronutrient composition).

Pumpkin is often included as a source of dietary fiber in cat foods but the swap doesn’t seem to have significantly changed the fiber content of this formula in comparison to the original.

Again, this is a single protein fresh food that contains muscle meat and organs. None of Raised Right’s recipes contain ground bone, but they do get some animal-based minerals from egg shell powder. Cod liver oil is also the primary source of fat for all three recipes which, in addition to being an animal ingredient, contains plenty of omega-3 fatty acids.

Having not personally tested this new recipe, I can’t say whether the appearance or texture differs from the original recipe. Given the similarities in the macronutrient ratio, moisture content, and ingredient list, however, I have to imagine it isn’t all that different.

Ingredients

Turkey Thigh, Turkey Heart, Turkey Liver, Pumpkin, Organic Spearmint, Cod Liver Oil, Egg Shell Powder, Flaxseed Oil, Organic Dried Kelp, Taurine, Thiamine Mononitrate

Ingredients We Liked	Ingredients We Didn’t Like	Common Allergens
Turkey Thigh Turkey Heart Turkey Liver Cod Liver Oil	None	Beef

Guaranteed Analysis

Crude Protein: 21%

Crude Fat: 8%

Crude Fiber: 2%

Moisture: 67%

Dry Matter Basis

Protein: 63.64%

Fat: 24.24%

Fiber: 6.06%

Carbs: 6.06%

Caloric Weight Basis

Protein: 49.49%

Fat: 45.79%

Carbs: 4.71%

Pros

• High protein, single source of animal protein
• Made with a single ingredient (liver)
• Adds flavor to cat food

Cons

• Fairly expensive at $12.99/bottle
• Somewhat high in calories (376 kcal/cup)

How Much Does Raised Right Cat Food Cost?

Customers have two options when purchasing Raised Right. Choose an 8-bag box or go with a 2-bag sample box. Kate Barrington / Cats.com

You can purchase four 16-ounce bags for $53.95 plus $9.99 in shipping or buy a full box which includes 16 bags for $175.84 with free shipping.

While you’re not required to start a subscription, Raised Right does offer custom meal plans with schedule deliveries every 2 to 20 weeks. Shipping is free but there is no per-bag discount.

At $10.99 per 16-ounce bag, Raised Right fresh cat food costs $0.69 per ounce. Using the custom meal planner for a 10-pound, normally active cat, it would cost about $4.12 per day to feed a diet of 100% Raised Right. The meal planner also includes options to feed 50% or 25% Raised Right.

Per ounce, Raised Right is more affordable than Smalls fresh food but more expensive than Nom Nom. It’s also pricier than some raw brands like Smallbatch Pets and Darwin’s.

Overall, Is Raised Right a Good Choice?

Our opinion of Raised Right cat food is a mixed bag. On the one hand we love that they use human-grade ingredients, and their products have a very limited list of ingredients. We also appreciate that their formulas contain a single source of animal protein.

What we didn’t like was the odd texture and appearance of the food – our test cats didn’t either. The per-ounce price of the food is comparable to other fresh food brands like Smalls but what makes it expensive is the fact that you have to buy sixteen bags at a time unless you want to pay $9.99 for each 4-bag shipment.

Even more concerning, however, is the lack of negative reviews online. My own experience with Raised Right was lackluster and I have to imagine that other cat owners would give the brand less than 5 stars.

While the quality of Raised Right cat food seems high and the formulas are species-appropriate for cats, I’d caution against ordering a full-sized box until you know your cat likes the food.

Where Is Raised Right Cat Food Sold?

Raised Right is only available for purchase through the brand’s website, though you aren’t required to start a subscription to sample it. You can find Raised Right treats and meal toppers on Amazon, but this retailer no longer appears to carry their fresh food products.