April 10th begins the observation of Passover, an 8-day Spring celebration of the freedom of the Jewish people from slavery in Egypt. Through certain rituals, modern day Jews have the ability to relive and experience the true freedom their ancestors gained.
From the evening of April 10th through the evening of April 18th, in recognition of the unleavened bread that the Israelites ate when they left Egypt, Jews do not eat – or keep in their possession – any chametz, or grains that can become chametz. This includes any food or drink that contains even a trace of wheat, barley, rye, oats, spelt or their derivatives.
Because cats are family members, sharing our homes and mealtimes, joining us in celebrations, and because Jews cannot be in possession of these grains during Passover, we’ve compiled this list of Passover-approved cat foods that are highly recommended for quality, healthfulness, and taste.
Please note. There are many other cat foods that do not contain chametz in them. This is the only HEALTHY Kosher For Passover list. We have eliminated companies with a history of recalls or products that include corn – which although permitted in cat food on Passover – is actually bad for your cats.
The Catington Post Kosher For Passover Cat Food List
Blue Wilderness Grain Free (dry): Chicken, Kitten, Duck, Mature, Salmon, Indoor.
CANIDAE (dry): Grain Free pureELEMENTS, Grain Free pureSEA
CANIDAE (canned): Grain Free pureELEMENTS, Grain Free pureSEA
Dick Van Patten’s Natural Balance (dry): Alpha Grain-Free Dry Cat Formulas, LID Limited Ingredient Diets Dry Cat Formulas
Dick Van Patten’s Natural Balance (canned): Ultra Premium Canned Cat Formulas, LID Limited Ingredient Diets Canned Cat Formulas
Earthborn Holistic (dry): Primitive Feline, Wild Sea Catch
Earthborn Holistic (canned): Harbor Harvest, Monterey Medley, Catalina Catch, Chicken Catcciatori
Fromm (dry): Grain-Free Beef Liváttini Veg, Grain-Free Game Bird Recipe, Grain-Free Salmon Tunachovy, Grain-Free Surf & Turf
Fromm (canned): Chicken, Duck, & Salmon Pâté, Chicken & Salmon Pâté, Duck & Chicken Pâté, Salmon & Tuna Pâté
Go! (dry): FIT + FREE Chicken, Turkey + Duck
Go! (wet): FIT + FREE Grain Free Chicken, Turkey + Duck Pâté, FIT + FREE Grain Free Chicken, Turkey + Trout Stew, SENSITIVITY + SHINE Grain Free Duck Pâté, SENSITIVITY + SHINE Grain Free Freshwater Trout Pâté
Instinct (dry): Chicken Meal Formula, Duck & Turkey Meal Formula, Rabbit Meal Formula, Salmon Meal Formula, Limited Ingredient Diet: Turkey Meal Formula, Limited Ingredient Diet: Rabbit Meal Formula
Instinct (canned): Chicken Formula, Beef Formula, Lamb Formula, Duck Formula, Rabbit Formula, Venison Formula, Salmon Formula, Limited Ingredient Lamb Formula, Limited Ingredient Duck Formula, Limited Ingredient Turkey Formula
Halo Grain Free (dry): Healthy Weight Whitefish & Salmon, Hearty Chicken
Halo Grain Free (canned): Spot’s Choice Shredded Recipes, Spot’s Stew Recipes, Spot’s Pâté Recipes
Castor & Pollux ORGANIX (dry): Grain Free Chicken and Potato
Castor & Pollux ORGANIX (wet): Grain Free Organic Chicken & Chicken Liver Pate, Grain Free Organic Chicken & Chicken Liver Shredded, Grain Free Organic Chicken Pate, Grain Free Organic Chicken Shredded, Grain Free Organic Turkey Pate
Merrick Backcountry Grain Free (wet): Kitten, Real Beef, Real Chicken & Trout, Real Chicken, Real Duck, Real Turkey, Real Whitefish
Merrick Purrfect Bistro Grain Free (wet): Beef Pate, Duck Pate, Grammy’s Pot Pie, Salmon Pate, Surf + Turf Pate, Tuna Pate, Turducken, Turkey Pate, Gourmet Shreds Braised Beef, Gourmet Shreds Ocean Whitefish + Tuna, Gourmet Shreds Oven Roasted Chicken, Gourmet Shreds Savory Duck, Gourmet Shreds Tender Turkey
Merrick Limited Ingredient Diet (dry): Real Salmon, Real Turkey, Real Chicken
Merrick Limited Ingredient Diet (wet): Real Chicken, Real Duck, Real Turkey
Whole Earth Farms (dry): Grain Free Recipe with Real Salmon, Grain Free Recipe with Real Whitefish & Tuna, Grain Free Recipe with Real Chicken, Grain Free Recipe with Turkey & Duck, Grain Free Recipe Healthy Kitten
Whole Earth Farms (wet): Grain Free Real Beef & Salmon, Grain Free Real Beef & Turkey, Grain Free Real Chicken & Salmon, Grain Free Real Beef, Grain Free Recipe Real Duck
Orijen (dry): Cat & Kitten, Six Fish, Regional Red
Solid Gold (dry): Indigo Moon
Solid Gold (canned): Blended Tuna, Sardine & Tuna Recipe in Gravy, Mackerel & Tuna Recipe in Gravy, Shrimp & Tuna Recipe in Gravy, SeaBream & Tuna Recipe in Gravy
Taste of the Wild (dry): Canyon River Feline Formula, Rocky Mountain Feline Formula
Taste of the Wild (canned): Canyon River Feline Formula, Rocky Mountain Feline Formula
Wellness Core Grain Free (dry): Original, Kitten, Turkey & Turkey Meal & Duck, Indoor, CORE Air Dried Original, Air Dried Indoor
Wellness Core Grain Free (canned): Original, Kitten Formula, Beef & Venison & Lamb, Salmon & Whitefish & Herring
Wellness TruFood (canned): Tasty Pairings – 6 varieties, all grain free
Weruva (canned): All varieties, including classic cans, TruLuxe, Best Feline Friend, Cats in the Kitchen, and Pumpkin Patch Up
Please note that Evangers Pet Food offers products under Rabbinic Supervision. However, with their recent recalls and FDA Warnings, we cannot recommend you feed your pets Evangers foods at this time.
There are other Passover-friendly cat foods available in addition to this list. Look for grain-free options or those with rice as the only grain. While corn is an acceptable grain to feed during Passover, it is proven to be an unhealthy ingredient for cats and should be avoided. The Passover-approved cat foods on this list would all make excellent choices for feeding your cat year round, too!
Don’t forget to find grain-free treats for your furriest family members, too! Great options are Halo Live-a-Littles Treats in chicken, beef and salmon varieties or Wellness Kittles Grain Free Crunchy Treats in salmon, chicken, or tuna.
If you’d like to learn more about feeding your pets during Passover, check out this Q & A from Star-K on the topic:
Q. Are “grain-free” pet foods acceptable?
A. There has been a proliferation of “grain-free” dog and cat foods on the market. While we still recommend checking the ingredient panel on those foods, they are a good place to start your search for an appropriate food.
Q. Is it necessary to buy a new food bowl for your pet for Pesach?
A. No. However, the bowl used year-round should be thoroughly cleaned before Pesach.
Q. If I am going away for Pesach, what should I do with my fish?
A. Vacation blocks often have chometz. One can purchase a block without chometz or use an automatic fish feeder and fill it with non-chometz food.
Q. During a Pesach visit to the zoo, may one purchase the animal feed?
A. No. This feed is often chometz and should not be purchased or fed to the animals during Pesach.
Q. Must pet food with chometz be put away and sold before Pesach?
A. Yes.
Q. Can kitniyos, such as rice and beans, be fed to animals on Pesach?
A. Yes.
Q. What are some common chometz ingredients in pet food?
A. Wheat (cracked, flour, germ, gluten, ground, groats, middlings, starch), barley (cracked, flour), oats (flour, groats, hulled), pasta, rye, and brewer’s dried yeast. Any questionable ingredient should be reviewed by a competent rabbinic authority.
Q. What are some common ingredients which may be kitniyos but are permitted in pet food?
A. Beans, buckwheat, brewer’s rice, corn, grain sorghum (milo), millet, peanuts, peas, rice, sesame, soybeans, soy flour, and sunflower.
Q. Is pet food “with gravy” permitted?
A. Most often gravy contains chometz. Read the ingredient panel carefully.
Q. Are the vitamins or minerals in pet food chometz?
A. They may be chometz, but are batel (nullified) due to the small amount added.
We wish all of our Jewish friends a Happy (and Kosher) Passover.
