Questins about "No Dry Food" philosophy.

[steve a]

It's only been recently (since my Krystal was diangosed with FD a month and a half ago) that I started reading up on feline diet, etc. I've read on this and other sites that I should never feed my cat dry food, because my cat is by nature a carnivore. I believe the term I've seen used is "obligatory carnivore". It seems to make a lot of sense, although as I look more and more into it, two questions come to mind:

1. If my cats are "obligatory carnivores", then why is it that whenever I let them out into the back yard, the first thing they want to do is eat grass? Also, why is it that when I sit down for a balanced meal of people food, it's not just the meat that my cat tries to steal off my plate. -He's also been known to steal green beans and carrots from my plate and eat them. He knows they're vegetables.

2. The conventional wisdom that my vets have always told me is, "never feed your cat people food." But if the idea is that straight meat is the best thing for my cat, would it not be a good thing to feed him scraps from my Tyson boneless chicken breast that's part of my own dinner? And what about feeding them raw boneless chicken breast? My cat Kramer, being the troublemaker that he is, has been known to pull a package of uncooked meat out of my fridge if I forget to close the door right away, and rip it open and start eating the uncooked meat. Perhaps I should just feed it to him that way?

 

[BJM]

First, the best food in the world is worthless if the cat won't eat it. If you cat absolutely refuses to eat anything but dry, there are 2 which have 11% or fewer calories from carbohydrate - Evo cat & kitten, and Wellness core. You'd want to push water, though, to keep the cat properly hydrated. See http://catinfo.org for some really thoughtful analysis of feline nutrition.

I knew a cat that liked pineapple and lettuce. Doesn't mean it was the proper food for her, just that she liked it. Kind of like people and potato chips (or any other food with less than stellar nutritious value). I've seen cats chew on grass too. A lot of them promptly threw up, so perhaps it helps get a fur ball out? And if you put on butter on those vegetables, cats like the butter too, whatever it is on.

I'd be careful with the table scraps - onion can kill a cat (causes methemoglobinemia, I believe) - and if the chicken breast was injected with a broth of unidentified ingredients, in might have onion in it. Cooked chicken bones can be hazardous to a cat.

Raw chicken isn't something humans eat very often, but there are folks who feed a raw diet which includes chicken or rabbit, and they've made it at home for the cat, or purchased a commercial product which is raw. Any raw diet should be carefully produced to include the correct nutrients needed for a cat, so just raw meat by itself might not do that. It may be used to supplement a commercial diet, following the instructions on Cat Info.

 

[Deb415andNikki]

Dear steve a, and, of course, you too, sweet Krystal -- and Kramer,

Sometime I'll tell you about Gizmo's diet... Basically it defied any suggestion here -- and, was granted absolution!

BJM is right. "The best food in the world is worthless if your cat won't eat it."

Eating is key kind of hugs,
Deb and Nikki (who actually eats cat food) -- and Giz, forever whispering and ordering in my heart...

 

[Blue]

If your cat will eat wet food, forget about dry food.
I feed raw chicken to one of my acros, but otherwise they eat LOW CARB WET food, using Binky's list to check for the lowest and also considering other components. Oliver LOVES the raw chicken and if he had a choice, he chooses the chicken over any canned wet food. He also likes the raw food medallions I got as samples from a local pet store. In the new yr, I may consider switching him over to raw.
I have noticed my cats eat cat grass when not feeling well; Shadoe is usually at the grass when her numbers are higher. She refuses raw and neither show any interest in 'table scraps' unless it's meat, then they are lining up in hopes of getting a few samples.

Binky’s Food Lists
Feeding Your Cat: Know The Basics of Feline Nutrition

 

[squeem3]

1. If my cats are "obligatory carnivores", then why is it that whenever I let them out into the back yard, the first thing they want to do is eat grass? Also, why is it that when I sit down for a balanced meal of people food, it's not just the meat that my cat tries to steal off my plate. -He's also been known to steal green beans and carrots from my plate and eat them. He knows they're vegetables.

Grass is harmless, unless it has been treated with pesticides or is contaiminated in some way (dog poop, mold, etc). Some cats eat grass to soothe an upet stomach. Others just like the taste of it. Veggies aren't part of a wild cat's diet but some house cats do enjoy a litlte piece of veggie now and then. There's no harm in that as long as veggies are given once in a while like treats.

2. The conventional wisdom that my vets have always told me is, "never feed your cat people food." But if the idea is that straight meat is the best thing for my cat, would it not be a good thing to feed him scraps from my Tyson boneless chicken breast that's part of my own dinner? And what about feeding them raw boneless chicken breast? My cat Kramer, being the troublemaker that he is, has been known to pull a package of uncooked meat out of my fridge if I forget to close the door right away, and rip it open and start eating the uncooked meat. Perhaps I should just feed it to him that way?

Raw meat from the supermarket or butcher shop is fine for a cat to eat :smile: Some raw meats may contain extra broth or prservative or flavoring added so watch out for that. Some people prefer to feed their cats organic raw meats that have nothing added or raw meats bought from a raw pet food supply place (many online places such as Hare-Today.com)

Table scraps are ok as long as it is *plain* cooked, i.e. no garlic or other spices or flavorings or salt. Boiled chicken (no salt) is a hit with many cats.

If your cat likes raw meat, you can try feeding him a raw meat diet. You can do a partial raw diet or go completely raw. There are homemade recipies, commericially prepared raw pet food brands, and pre-mixes. Dr. Lisa's web site has a good homemade raw recipe, http://www.catinfo.org Another good web site is http://www.catnutrition.org If you go the commerical raw route, look for a brand that is grain-free. For a sort of homemade raw, you can use your own raw meats and add a pre-mix supplement to it. http://rawmeatcatfood.com/ is one brand.

 

[Sienne and Gabby (GA)]

The other issue with feeding table food is that if it is a significant part of a cat's diet, the cat will be nutritionally deprived. If you take a look at the feline nutrition site that was linked above, there's a recipe for making raw food. There are an impressive amount of supplements that need to be added to a cat's diet in order for it to be nutritionally complete if you are feeding your cat homemade meals. I suspect this is the issue with table food. Your cat may not want his food if you give table food and the cat won't get all of the vitamins and minerals that are essential to his diet. An obligate carnivore, such as a cat, cannot readily digest carbohydrates. They do get some if hunting and eating their prey since there will be a range of food in a mouse's (or bird, etc.) digestive track that is partially digested.

 

[Jen & Squeak]

Cats can have up to 20 percent of their diet unsupplemented. Meat either cooked or raw (including shrimp) is perfectly acceptable.