Original Pate Wet Cat Food, Grain Free Recipe - Variety Pack, 5.5 Ounce (Pack of 12)

After reading some of the reviews regarding dented cans, spoilage, and other issues I was hesitant to order. However, Amazon was my best option to try out this food. I'm glad they have a variety pack available so you can give your cat a taste of each kind before ordering a larger package. There's an odd thing with the cans though. The outer packaging seems untouched, but the cans have pretty similar dents on the bottom. Presumably from packing equipment? This was true for about half of the cans, while others were perfectly fine. The food inside was all the same though. So I wouldn't blame shipping for those issues. I would guess that the manufacturer is to blame for that. No mold, no maggots, no bones. And if any of these issues ever occur, I'll be sure to update this review. Bottom line seems to be pay attention to what you are feeding your pet. Don't just throw it on a plate and give it to them. I'd think maggots or spoilage should be obvious. Its canned food, sometimes cans break and bugs get in it. Food also spoils over time, so if that's the case, get a replacement.

My cat loves this pate. It's about the right size for her. She usually eats half a can every time so I could store the other half in the refrigerator for the next day if she still wants it. The texture is so good. When I pull it out from my fridge, add a bit of warm water, mix it, and serve it to her, she consumes it as if it's the best food in the world. I was a bit surprised (happily!) by how the texture stays the same even after 12 hours in the fridge. My cat loves all of the flavors and would eat them without hesitation. I would love to buy it again!

Since I've been feeding premium foods to my cats, my cats have been living into their mid-20s, and with very few veterinary bills. One of them was only a few months short of 29 years old. So, the ingredients are my primary concern. Of course, good ingredients aren't useful if my cats don't eat the food. The ingredients in Instinct recipes look very good. For example, the first five ingredients in its Real Salmon Recipe are Salmon, Fish Broth, Beef, Beef Heart, and Beef Liver. That's great; all of the first five ingredients are real proteins from fish or beef, and there's nothing that looks scary in the rest of the ingredients. The first ingredients in cat food should always be meat, fish, or poultry, and broth is good too because cats get a large part of their liquid requirements from their food, which is particularly important as they grow older and generally drink less water. Real Duck Recipe: Duck, Chicken Broth, Chicken Liver, Egg Product, and Dicalcium Phosphate as the first five ingredients. Perhaps not quite as good as the Real Salmon Recipe in that respect, but still very good. Real Chicken Recipe: Chicken, Chicken Broth, Chicken Liver, Egg Product, Dicalcium Phosphate. This is pretty much the same as the Real Duck Recipe, only with chicken rather than duck as the first ingredient. I look for cat food without corn, soy, wheat, gluten, or by-products. While the heart and liver might be considered a by-product in one sense, it's a named by-product. When an ingredient is simply listed as "by-products" or "chicken by-products," the actual ingredient could be any scrap that would otherwise go to waste, so I don't buy cat food that lists "by-products" as an ingredient. On the downside, Instinct is far from my cats' favorite food, for reasons that only cats can determine. Sometimes they refuse to eat it, but, at other times, they'll walk away from it in protest only to return to eat it later. On that end, they prefer the Chicken and Salmon recipes to the Duck, and I've found that to be true for other cat food brands as well. They just don't care for duck. For some reviewers, this might warrant a poor rating. After all, if your cats don't like it, why give it a good rating? However, cats are fickle, and they are also individuals. The ingredient list is good, and your cats might love it. If this turns out to be the case, this will be a good choice for you. This isn't my first order. Besides my two cats (Ella, age 8, and Bubba, age 2), I feed a few feral cats as well, and, although they are not my cats, I don't want to feed them junk, so I look for something that has reasonably good ingredients and yet is affordable, and Instinct fits the bill. It's not nearly as expensive as some of the other cat food that I buy, and whatever my cats won't eat is set on the porch for the ferals, and they love it. Curiously, one of the most expensive canned cat foods I've ever bought was rejected even by the ferals, so it's not a given that the feral cats will eat anything. This is a good cat food. If your cats like it, you will be feeding them well without breaking the bank.

Oh my gosh, previously my furbies were such fans of Friskies Shreds. The purple boxed one. Now, if I give them that, while they will still eat it, it's apparent they prefer the Instinct. When I open the little can, I'm actually amazed how much product is jammed into each can. I easily feed both my cats with one can. After you purchase it, you'll see what I mean. No shame or blame though, cats are finicky critters. Just because my cats devour it won't mean yours will.

Has a really bad odor - one of our cats will eat it reluctantly, the other won’t touch it. Disappointed as this was fairly expensive

Photos: top can is newer formula (late 2025), bottom is old (late 2024-25) - no, neither are expired yet. Chicken recipe has my cat’s paw in the pic, other is the duck recipe. I’ve been buying Instinct’s Variety Pack of patés since early 2024 for my siamese girl (and previously her fur sibling). Previously, it was a fan favorite next to only one other brand, showing nearly immediate changes to my cats’ appetites, better coats, all things you want from a high quality wet food. My girls’ loved the old formula. Sometime in 2025 since my previous purchase, formula changed. I ordered again, and the cans are now gold, and you can see differences in the ingredients and feeding instructions (from 1 can to 3/4-1 can per 6 to 8 lbs). It’s chunkier, less soft to blend (my older cat used to need blended), with more liquid than previously (I assume due to the lack of gums). While I think the switch to clay could be great, my current cat and her stomach do not agree. I switched her properly, and she threw up. Attempted again (for 4+ weeks each time), and throw up plus diarhea. While this might work for others, my siamese was already picky about cat food, especially texture and smell. She’s the only one who would try the new formula, my other cat ran from it after a sniff. She’ll lick it, but commonly vomits it within an hour now. Still, I recommend the brand — just wish consumers would have received better notice on the change to give us a better chance to switch over, if needed. After call, cats are cute, but picky

Really good quality and my cat loved the different flavours 😸

my cat wont eat it has so much fat

had ordered this item many times.. and usually it is MADE IN USA.. but this lot, 3 cartons, is MADE IN THAILAND.. the quality of the meat is different for the 3 flavours.. The one made in USA is more meaty, and the one from Thailand is more like a paste. My cat does not like this change... he walked away when this food is placed near him. Cats are very sensitive to taste. .. i might need to return these if my cat keep rejecting it. . Note to Amazon.. how to indicate the country of manufacturer in the order page? Now i need to find another source of wet food for my cat., unless Amazon can send me only MADE IN USA.. the reason why i order from AMAZON is that is MADE IN USA.

Excelente producto a mi mascota le encantó y llegó el mismo día de pedirlo

Tiene puntitos negros en la lata de salmón pero no le hizo daño a mi gato. Me gusta esta marca. Relación calidad precio es muy buena con respecto a su lista de ingredientes; me informe durante mucho tiempo y tanto aquí en Amazon como en mercado libre siempre está a muy buen precio comparada con otras de calidad.