Caring for a cat can be a challenge: making sure they’re happy, healthy, well stimulated, comfortable and secure is a big job with a big reward – a loving, purring cat to keep you company.
One of the biggest ways to affect your cat’s wellbeing is their diet. If you want them to be happy and healthy you need to know what to feed your cat, and if you don’t want to worry that your cat keeps throwing up then you need to know what not to feed your cat too, and today that’s what we’re looking at.
The Raw Diet
There’s a debate raging in cat nutritionist circles about whether you can or should feed your cat raw food.
While cats can digest raw meat easily (unlike humans, who benefit much more from cooking), there are a number of concerns around feeding your cat raw food you need to take account of to do it safely. Cats can be vulnerable to food poisoning just like humans, and bacteria can grow in uncooked or part-cooked food. To minimise the risk of contamination, if you’re feeding your cat raw meat buy it fresh and clean the countertop before and after preparing it.
Some prepared raw meat is sold with small bits of bone still attached, and these can be a choking hazard for cats. Check each piece carefully as you prepare it to remove any remaining bone fragments.
The final concern is nutritional completeness: simply feeding your cat on raw chicken breast won’t provide all the nutrients it needs to be healthy. You need to build a diet that contains everything your cat needs.
Taking all this into account, you may find it easier and safer to buy prepared cat food that’s labelled as nutritionally complete, and feel confident your cat’s getting everything it needs in its daily diet.
Age Groups
If you are buying prepared cat food, dry or wet, pay attention! Cats in different age groups have different dietary needs, and kitten food isn’t suitable for senior cats or adult cats – and nor would kittens welcome adult cat food. Check the packet and make sure you’re giving your cat the right food it’s level of development.
Milk and Cheese
Despite the popular image of a cat lapping at a bowl of milk, cats are in fact lactose intolerant. However much they might beg at the fridge, show interest in your cheese sandwiches or sniff at yoghurt, the consequences can be unpleasant for them – and for you if you have to clean up an attack of diarrhea. Resist those begging eyes and miaows, and keep your cat healthier!