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Cat Food Ingredient

Copper Sulfate

Our ingredient score: 3 / 5 · Mineral · How We Score

Copper is a trace mineral needed for the body to use iron, for blood formation, for building connective tissue and for keeping coat color. Copper sulfate is the most common form of copper used in pet foods. Chelated copper is often said to be absorbed better, but this has not been shown in cats; copper sulfate meets daily needs. Because cats are sensitive to copper building up in the body, though not as much as some animals, the amount in foods is carefully adjusted.

Common Questions

Is chelated copper better than copper sulfate?

Chelated copper may be absorbed somewhat better, but studies in cats are lacking. Copper sulfate still meets a cat's daily copper needs.

Is copper sulfate safe for cats?

Copper sulfate is a copper salt that FDA lists under 21 CFR 582.80, its GRAS list of trace minerals added to animal feeds. Cats need copper for red blood cell formation and connective tissue, and complete cat foods add it in measured amounts. If your cat has liver disease or a copper-related condition, ask your veterinarian about the copper content of its food.

Source: ecfr.gov

Why is copper sulfate in cat food?

Copper sulfate is added to supply copper. The Merck Veterinary Manual notes that a deficiency of iron or copper is marked by a microcytic, hypochromic anemia. Copper sulfate is a common, inexpensive copper source in pet food mineral premixes. It appears on most of the dry foods we track.

Source: merckvetmanual.com

Is copper sulfate the same as the copper sulfate used in pools?

It is the same chemical compound, but the grade differs. Pool and garden copper sulfate is used at high concentrations for algae and fungus control. Feed-grade copper sulfate is purified and added to cat food in milligram amounts per kilogram.

Why do some cat foods use copper sulfate instead of copper oxide?

FDA lists both copper sulfate and copper oxide in 21 CFR 582.80 as copper source compounds for animal feed. Copper sulfate is the more common of the two in the dry cat foods we track, appearing on 119 of them. Some foods use chelated copper instead, which Pettings scores on its own page.

Source: ecfr.gov

How does Pettings score copper sulfate?

Pettings gives copper sulfate 3 out of 5 and lists it as a mineral. It appears on 119 of the 149 dry cat foods we list. Our How We Score page explains how ingredient scores are set. Each food's page shows how it scores overall.

How Foods With Copper Sulfate Compare

Copper Sulfate is on the label of 119 of the 149 dry cat foods we list. Their average Ingredients score is 53 out of 100. The 30 foods without it average 73.

An average describes the foods, not this ingredient alone: one ingredient is only a small part of a food's score.

Top-Ranked Foods Without Copper Sulfate

  1. Orijen Guardian 8 (91)
  2. Orijen Kitten (91)
  3. Orijen Original Cat (91)
  4. Acana Highest Protein Wild Atlantic (90)
  5. Instinct Raw Boost Kibble Real Chicken Recipe (88)

Ranked the same way as our best lists: nothing on the Avoid List and a Nutrition score of at least 6/10 first, then by Ingredients score.

Foods With Copper Sulfate (119)