Debunking the Myths
MeOW-llo Furiends, welcome to another Service Cat Furiday where we discuss all things feline. Ifin you’ve missed any post in this series, you can ketch up or refresh your memory by clickin’ the links on our Training Tips and Everything Feline page from our menu above. And, ifin you have any questions or topic suggestions you’d like to see here, just leave ‘em in the comments below or send us an email via our Contact page. When askin’ behavioral questions, purrlease be specific and give examples of the behavior in question. Over the next few weeks, we’ll be addressing Feline Nutrition and Raw Feeding. The purpose of this mini-series is NOT to pass judgment on anyone, but to merely explain the benefits of a Species Appropriate Diet and dispell many of the myths that go along with it. We know that Raw Feeding is still a bit controversial and can be confusing to many, so purrlease, ifin you have any questions, let us know.
The following post will be written in human English for reader and translator ease. Our Service Cat posts aren’t intended to be an all inclusive Training Manual but rather Tips, Tricks and Techniques used/developed by mommy A thru her many years of animal training, cats in purr-ticular. And to offer insight into your questions about Everything Feline. Always remember, successful Training is all about Repetition and Rewards.
We just wrapped up a mini-series on Pet Food/Feed Ingredients, which you can find on our Training Tips and Everything Feline page in the menu, and received quite a few questions about how to switch kitty from kibble to a better food and what food we recommended. As we stated last week, we believe kitties would be at their optimum health if they ate appropriate diets for the Obligate Carnivores they are. Simply put, Cats should eat food representative of their natural prey, mice, birds, etc.. Yes, that means Raw. WAIT!!! Don’t run off!!! We’re going to break it down into it’s simplest form over the next few weeks.
When talking about Raw Diets, we often hear things like, “It’s too expensive/cost prohibitive”/”I have too many cats to feed”, “I don’t have time”, “What about salmonella and other food related illnesses/parasites”, My cat doesn’t have teeth and can’t chew”, “My cat’s too picky/set in his/her ways”, “My cat has a health problem and has to eat a prescription diet”, “It’s just all too confusing”, “At least with kibble/cans I know my cat’s getting a balanced diet”, “I wouldn’t know where to start”, and many more.
Uh, This ain’t me’s kibble, mommy.
Kibble Argument:
So, let’s look at these statements and find the truth. Kibble, is certainly more convenient than any other food; open bag and pour. But, is it balanced? Is it an appropriate diet for an Obligate Carnivore? Do you trust the manufacturer? We’re always hearing about some food related illness and recalls with regards to kibble. If the ingredients we discussed recently weren’t enough to make you think twice, right now many companies, including those who make prescription feeds, have feed on the market with too much Vit. D that is causing heart problems and pet deaths. Kibble is also responsible for more than half of the UTI’s diagnosed in cats. Feeding kibble to kitty is much like you eating nothing but Twinkies. Not truly balanced, and certainly not healthy or appropriate. One big argument for kibble, is that it can be left out for extended periods of time without spoiling. What if we told you that a kitty’s raw meal could be left out all day too? Would that make a difference to you? While canned feed may have a higher moisture content, it contains many unnecessary ingredients/supplements and the same questionably sourced and manufactured proteins.
Prescription Diets:
Prescription diets are often the exact same feed as non prescription feed with the exception of a minor change in one or more ingredient percentages. All prescription diets are based on the studies performed by one feed company and often only included studies relating to canine health. Did you know that many illnesses, including food allergies, IBD, Diarrhea, and more can be alleviated by feeding kitty a more natural and species appropriate diet?
The Older, Finicky or Toothless Kitty:
So, your kitty’s picky? Most cats are. Me can tell you, me’s name could have been Finicky Dezi will only eat one type of kibble or starve. Kibble was literally killing me and making me miserable and sick along the way. We’re all dying. Mommy always says, your first breath got you one breath closer to your last; but, there’s no reason to rush it. Like Training of any kind, you have to be resolute and stay the course. Remember, Repetition, Repetition, Repetition. Kitty will get hungry enough to eat. All sentient life has a desire to live at all costs; a deep rooted instinct for life preservation.
These might be tasty on top of our noms; don’t ya’ think sissy?
Tasty Temptable Food Toppers:
There are always things one can add to help kitty make the switch easier, such as pre/probiotics, bonito flakes, crushed treats, crumbled freeze dried chicken/rabbit/salmon/liver, tuna juice, sardines, cooked/roasted chicken, and many more tasty niblets sprinkled on top of or mixed into kitty’s new food. As we mentioned in an earlier post, cats don’t actually chew up their food like humans and other omnivores do, and many a kitty without teeth happily and successfully eat raw meat and even bones. Y, sis Lexi never liked mush of any kind and started losing her teeth at age 5. That girl loved chuncky meat bits even when she didn’t have a tooth left.
Food Born Illnesses:
You’ve heard cats and humans can get Salmonella from raw food. You’re worried kitty might get worms from eating raw food. Firstly, let’s look at the digestive tract of a kitty. It’s really really short. While a human’s intestines might be 25 feet long, a cat’s are only the length of a kitty’s body. And it’s full of acids and other tummy juices to eat up and destroy any nasty bacteria that might pass along, so to speak. MOL It can take humans up to 3 days to fully digest food; while kitty takes less than a day. The risk of food born illnesses are no more and actually less than you preparing food for human consumption. Just remember to clean before, during and after preparations. As for parasites, the only real danger comes from wild meat, not store bought. Just be sure to freeze any wild meat for 2 weeks before feeding to kitty. The freezer will put your worries on ice. Me’s got to tell you, me’s on a roll today, huh? Anyways, kitties who are allowed outside are at more risk of contracting parasites and food born illnesses than indoor only, raw fed cats.
We’re gonna wrap it up fur today. We have a lot of great infurmation we’ve yet to share. And purrlease stay with us. We think you’ll find this not only interesting but a tad bit entertaining. Me seems to be goin’ thru a comic phase, so you never know what me might meow. MOL We’re gonna truly enter the world of cats and show you how anypawdy can afford to feed raw. And, not only afford it, but we’re gonna take all the guesswork out of it and make it so simple, even mommy can do it. And trust me, that’s meowin’ somethin’.
I’s can’t believe what you just implied ‘bout mommy, sissy. You better hope she doesn’t see it.
No worries Raena, mommy knows, she ain’t the smartest purrson on the planet.
Ifin you meow so sissy. Anyways, we’re joinin’ Comedy Plus fur Feline Furiday, so I’s gonna go link us up right quick.
You do that Raena. Ifin you’ve missed any of the posts in our Service Cats series, you can check them out on our Training Tips and Everything Feline page. Don’t furget to leave your comments, topic suggestions and/or questions in the comment section below or send us an email via our Contact page in our menu.
Till the next time……………………………………………………….Be Blest!!!
Dezi: Vibrant Blue/Black
Raena: Navy Blue
Luv and Hugs and Kitty Kisses
Service Cats U.S. 
Sudden diet changes are not welcomed by anyone – human or animal. (In horses, it’s downright dangerous) If you’ve been cooking, gradually cook it a little less….over months….so they don’t notice the difference. Cats may become ‘addicted’ to one type of food but they also appreciate a subtle change. Dry food can be reduced down to next-to-nothing with small portions of other protein gradually introduced. Some variety is needed. Remember, dogs can live on cat food but a cat will die if fed a dog’s omnivorous diet for long.
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AT LAST!!!! Someone who is not hoodwinked by the dry food industry & other associated industries! Vets may recommend the kibble they sell (surprising?) They know it will be readily adopted because it’s convenient. Vets need wide knowledge to cover different species & quite a bit of surgery but are unfortunately not experts on diet. Their clients are not their patients – remember that. (That’s why some recommend the barbaric practice of declawing) Cats drink little. A large proportion of cats end up with kidney disease. A connection? You betcha! Protein costs money so companies that want to make a profit cut down on it. Raw meat may or may not be 100% balanced so I give a small amount of ‘wet’ food each day. I follow it up wit a SMALL scoop of kibble – ONLY to clean their teeth. If you can wean a kitten onto chopped up raw chicken necks, it gets them chewing. It’s low on fat (though cats tolerate fat better than dogs. It’s just that dogs like it better). I know mine get plenty of good muscle-building protein. Don’t forget the heart is a muscle! My vet is blown away by the slender, well-muscled cat with strong, clean white teeth I bring in. He stole his father’s (whole) necks from the age of 8 weeks. Fresh egg is good too but cook the whites raw egg white blocks vitamin B absorption. The ONLY vegetable a cat will consume in the wild will be the contents of their prey’s stomach. You are NOT doing your cat a favour by feeding them carbs & veggies. Dry food is full of meat by-products (think ears, nostrils, ground-up hoof & other cheap ‘wastage’. Check your label!), fats, salt, carbs, vegetable & artificial flavours. Think about it – if your cat has diarrhoea, the vet will recommend 12…anything up to 48 hrs’ fasting to rest the gut. Cutting back or missing a meal in the retraining of diet habits is not going to hurt. More likely to benefit as so many cats are obese through dry food. Diabetes is rife today. It was all but unheard of before the incidence of dry food.
Thank-you, Audra, for the chance to voice my belief. I am 72, have fed cats for 60 years & only once, have had a sick cat. When we found him, Sweetie was already addicted to Fancy Feast (fish). I was afraid to let him go without food. Because of that, he was already drifting away from his (problem-causing) food but unused to anything more nutritious. Finally, we had to have him put down to spare him more pain. Never again!
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What kind of raw diet doest your momma have you eating? When Mom put down some raw meat on my plate I told her it needed to be cooked before I would eat it. Tee hee hee. She offered it to me a couple of more times, but then quit after that.
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We’ll be postin’ more ’bout all this Val. But, we typically eat freeze dried raw at the moment. Mommy says fur cats older than a few months, it takes purrsistance to get them to switch. But, ifin ya’ keep at it, they’ll eventually eat it and luv it. big hugs
Luv ya’
Dezi and Raena
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