I’m not quite sure why it’s taken me so long to blog about these two guys but I’m about to rectify it with a blog post dedicated to them, as the lovely PR for Lily’s Kitchen has just sent them over a care package. More of which later, but at the risk of sounding like a ‘mad cat lady’, let me introduce you to the two other men in my life (yes, I have a house filled with testosterone):
First up, Guido. Our first adoptee from the incredible Mayhew Centre in West London.
He is all white and all deaf. Yep, profoundly deaf. He had been at the centre for a while when we catnapped him as no one wanted the burden of a disabled pet, but do you know what? It makes him the most BRILLIANT cat ever. He’s so relaxed and chilled out and, I’ll be honest, what with that white coat, a bit of a princess. You can take the dude out of West London but when it comes to ‘roughing it’ in the mud in rural Devon, Guido is not your man. He’d rather be curled up by the woodburner, gently toasting. Wouldn’t we all?
Next up is Graziano. The MONSTER cat.
This photo really doesn’t do his dimensions justice. He is a 6kg beast. We got him as a teeny, tiny kitten from the Mayhew 3 years ago and he just hasn’t stopped growing since. He’s not fat, but as our vet politely put it ‘a big boned lad’.
Hang on, I’ll go and dig out his ‘promo’ shot from the Mayhew…
I know, ridiculous isn’t he?
Perhaps due to being the size of a small dog, he isn’t the most nimble of chaps, in fact he’s rather accident prone and can usually be found lolloping around the veg patch trying (unsuccessfully) to catch butterflies.
So anyway, that’s the boys. And here’s their very special box of delights from Lily’s Kitchen:
Lily’s Kitchen is a brand I have a journalistic affinity with as I remember covering the launch of Lily’s Kitchen in Hampstead for NorthWest magazine 5 odd years ago. It’s always been a brand I’ve loved for our two, often buying them their individually portioned organic dinners as a treat. Interestingly, Henrietta was inspired to create a healthy, holistic pet food brand after her beloved border terrier, Lily, suffered itchy skin and ears that seemed to be exacerbated by processed dog foods. Starting from scratch, their all-natural recipes are made with raw, whole foods, including proper organic meats, vegetables and fish, as well as herbs that have been specially selected by a trained herbalist, to aid digestion, skin health, liver and kidney function and dental health.
To give you an idea, the ingredients list on the Merry Little Cat Treats (£2.99) includes: freshly prepared turkey (51%), potato, sweet potato, pea protein, potato protein, cranberries (4%), nutritional yeast, minerals, turkey fat, chicken gravy, salmon oil, linseed, fish stock, cheese powder, fructooligosaccharides (prebiotic FOS; min. 2,400mg/kg), seaweed, chickweed, milk thistle seed, cleavers, carrot flakes.
Sounds pretty good doesn’t it?!
Here’s Graz, inhaling a handful to prove their deliciousness:
To be honest, as taste testers go, Graz isn’t great. He’d eat roadkill given half the chance. Guido however, has a much more discerning palette and quite a delicate tummy, yet he has been equally enthusiastic about their new menu and interestingly, has had far fewer stomach upsets.
The full range of feline delights can be found here, and the doggy equivalent here.
They are stocked in Waitrose, Wholefoods and many independent pet shops and vets. Find your nearest stockist here.
