by Loretta Cardinale

Created on: July 30, 2009   Last Updated: August 05, 2009

Cats in the wild once hunted for the best food available. People, owned by cats, hunt for cat food savings. Maintaining a high level of quality at affordable prices challenges everyone who loves cats. Carefully monitoring the quantity of food offered to a feline family saves money and regulates kitty's weight. Free-feeding can be both expensive and unhealthy. High quality foods, rich in feline nutrients and protein, tend to be expensive up front but save on veterinary bills later.

Home made cat food saves loads of money. Recipes abound on the web. Feline chefs can purchase most ingredients from any organic meat supplier or grocery store. But, not everyone has the time and expertise to create edible and healthy meals for their cats. If a feline family has already shown a preference for kibble, they may never get used to fresh food. It's worth a try, but there are other ways to save.

Store discount cards, or courtesy cards, give shoppers a chance to save money. Discount cards keep track of purchases. While that seems like an invasion of privacy, it also allows a vendor to issue specific coupons based on a shopper's history. PetSmart issues a PetPerks card. It entitles shoppers to a discounted price. Members also receive e-mails announcing sale items and website links. Coupons e-mailed to PetPerks card holders add to the savings. A recent campaign sent a coupon for ten dollars off of a thirty dollar purchase. That's quite a savings. PetSmart carries Science Diet, Royal Canin, Blue Buffalo, and more. But, their own Authority brand costs almost half the price of Science Diet.

The Internet has become kitty's new best-friend. Visiting store websites before shopping saves money. Vendors often have lost leaders to entice shoppers. Sometimes, these items only appear on the store's website. Cat food producers feature information, coupons, and free samples. They save money and give cats a new treat. PriceGrabber, Shopping.com, and other comparison shopping websites show prices offered by a variety of vendors along with shipping costs. Depending upon where the feline family lives, gasoline savings might make ordering on-line a bargain.

Loving cat-people can buy organic sprouting wheat grass seeds at most health food stores. Organic potting soil and a small, heavy plant container add to the expense, but last a long time. Sunshine is still free. At WheatGrassKits, five pounds of seed costs $7.50 before shipping. Five pounds would last a year or two. Quite the bargain that satisfies feline cravings. Chubby kitties won't gain weight. Wheat grass also helps with hairballs and other feline distresses. In the wild, cats eat grass contaminated with worm eggs and nasty things. Sprouting wheat grass indoors prevents worm infestations.

Along with newspapers, magazines, and fliers, manufacturers often include coupons inside of cat food packages. Boxes of canned cat food may have a coupon on the cardboard separators. Bags may have a coupon mixed in with the kibble. They're easy to miss. Expiration dates are critical. The best deals happen when a coupon further reduces the price of a sale item. Some stores double coupons or accept competitors coupons. A sample of one type of food may be included with another.

The bargain hunter's quest for quality cat food knows no bounds. After a feline family trains their human, it's just a matter of finding the best food for the lowest price. Leaving no stone unturned, savvy shoppers track down the best buys in stores and on the web. Small savings add up over the course of a year. With all that left over money, another perch or toy would make everyone happy.

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