Homemade cat food

The Diabetes crisis

2010-03-30T08:20:00.000-07:00

“We see diabetic cats every week—new cases as well as chronic, recurring cases. It’s the second most common feline disorder that we treat at our hospital.”

Richard Goldstein, DVM at Cornell University Hospital for Animals (qtd. in Ewing)

Grim words indeed and a warning for us all.

This disease has become an epidemic in cats in the same way that obesity and consequent diabetes has become to humans in the west. The sheer abundance of food, particularly junk food and convenience food has become a curse to us as we see ourselves as time poor. Commercial cat food is mostly 'junk food' that our pets become addicted too, frequently poor in nutrition so our cats eat more to satisfy themselves and so pile on the weight just as we do.

The symptoms of diabetes can be mistaken at first glance for other diseases, especially in the older cat. A cat might not possess all the warning signs, but one or two are enough to warrant further investigation. If a cat begins to lose weight while maintaining an appetite, increases the amount of water it ingests, and increases urine output, a trip to the vet is in order. For most cats, these are the early signs.

What has happened? Well we overfeed our cats who in return become 'couch potatoes', take little exercise if any, become bored and demand food which we give them and they don't need. They become overweight and lethargic and move even less and develop diabetes in the same way that we do.

What can help prevent diabetes in your cat?

Don't let your cat become a couch potato!
Do not give your cat treats, most are groaning with calories.
Remember the domestic cat came out of the savannahs of Africa and was and still is, a natural hunter, its diet should be comprised of raw meats.
You can feed your diabetic cat a diet of fresh natural foods using lean meats, low carbohydrates, absolutely no sugar and a few vegetables.
Always feed your cat on a regular schedule.

Thanks to your help and a diet of fresh natural foods, a cat with diabetes can still live a regular happy, healthy life and even be cured of this devastating disease.

For more information on how to feed and look after a diabetic cat, how and where to source food that is quick to prepare, effective and how to introduce it to your diabetic cat without expensive waste and fuss,

Click here to find out more

Raw Feeding Cats For Optimal Health

2009-11-20T09:48:00.000-08:00

I found this at the brilliant site, Feline Future, its more on the subject of feeding our cats the most natural diet of al, raw food, for maximum heath, vitality and a long life. I fear many cat lovers unwittingly loose a whole decade of life with their pet through feeding commercial cat food. Feline Future do a very nice range of supplements to add to your homemade cat food in the form of their premix pouches. They guarantee that your cat gets all the vitamins and nutrients it needs for maximum health. Read on.

How to feed a True Carnivore?

February 4, 2009 by admin
Filed under Cat Nutrition

Cats have evolved to fit their prey. Prey does not evolve to suit a predator. The way cats look, function, and act is because of what they eat. Therefore it is not only an assumption that a wild diet meets all their nutritional needs, but a fact. They are because of it.

Learning about the nutritional needs of cats means to understand the dramatic distinction between their needs and our needs as humans. We have to come to terms with the fact that what is good for us is not necessarily good for cats. Their radical differences from us are simply the result of choosing a different evolutionary pathway and the adaptation into a different niche in the ecosystem. Fresh, raw fruit and vegetables just don’t cut it for our feline friends, and the ingestion of such foods could in fact result in painful indigestion. Over many millions of years, the ancestors of the modern domestic cat have evolved to be carnivores, and are perfectly and totally adapted to a lifestyle of predation on herbivores and the consumption of their flesh for sustenance. In fact, all feline species are so successful as predators, that in the course of their evolution, they never needed to develop the ability to metabolize and synthesize nutrients from plant matter - making them into obligate or true carnivores who can not survive without the ingestion of meat. When we compare the physiology and behavior of the domestic cat to her ancestor, most likely to be Felis Silvestris Libyca - the African Wildcat, only mere changes in appearance can be noted - the result of selective breeding by humans. Otherwise, 3000 years in our company has had little effect on the cat and, after only one generation, cats are capable of reverting to a completely wild state.

In more recent years however, the well being of Felis catus left much to be desired, and statistics indicate a dramatic decline in health and. One of the most significant and primary changes in the domestic cat’s existence has been the source of her nourishment. Both a move from the fields and woods of rural areas into the city, as well as a desire for convenience by the care giver, condemned the cat to dependency on pre-prepared foods as sustenance - products which in no respect compare to her natural diet. Good nutrition is the foundation of good health, and good health provides for survival of the individual and therefore of the species. When providing for cats under human care, it is justified to observe and adapt the behaviors and dietary habits of wild-living relatives. Long term observations have proven that domestic cats thrive on a diet comparable to that of wild cats of similar size, which comes as no surprise considering they are anatomically identical (even producing fertile offspring when hybridized). The opinion that domestic animals adapt to a more human like diet through the process of domestication is false. Domestication will impact social behavior patterns of animals, and influence appearance through selective breeding, but can not alter the nature of an animal.

The ideal scenario would be for all cats to posses the luxury of hunting for their own food, but, as it is for their human companions, life is hardly ever perfect. Small felines such as the more known Felis Silvestris Libyca - African wild cat, Felis Silvestris - European wild cat, Felis chaus - Jungle cat, Felis margarita - Sand cat, Felis nigripes - Black-footed cat, Prionailurus bengalensis - Asian leopard cat, Leopardus pardalis - Ocelot, Leopardus wiedii - Margay, Oncifelis geoffroyi - Geoffry’s cat, and Felis catus - Domestic cat, prey predominantly on small mammals such as mice, voles, rats, and sometimes hare. Young ungulates such as fawns, lamb, and antelopes are taken by some idividuals, as well as birds and reptiles. Insects are included in the diet of all of them, whereas only the Leopard cat and the Geoffry’s cat will prey on fish. Amphibians are eaten occasionally. To meet their caloric requirements and due to the relative small size of their prey, small Felidae must hunt several times a day eating, for example, five mice per day. An ideal diet for captive wild and domestic felines is captive raised whole rodents. For added variety day-old chicks and various insects could supplement the diet. However, the raising of live quarry is very inconvenient for the majority of care givers and not an acceptable practice in our society. Alternatively, whole prey is obtainable frozen through specialty pet stores which supply reptile fanciers, or directly from a breeder.

Most adult cats if not raised on whole prey - especially mice, will want nothing to do with such a natural diet. Being so specialized in their dietary needs, and nutritionally dependant on specific foods, it is natural for cats to become fixated on any main staple during their first year of life. In a natural setting, this programmed behavior insures that the young cat will have learned which foods are appropriate to eat before becoming independent. During weaning at an age of approximately 8 -12 weeks, if given the choice, cats appear to instinctively favor rodents, but will readily accept other foods if rodents are not made available. This means, in a domestic setting a cat weaned and maintained on a commercial cat food will become fixated on this type of product and reluctantly, if at all, accept other foods - no matter how natural. This however, does not imply that later in life the cat can not learn to accept other foods, although only reluctantly and under severe circumstances. In the wild, a cat may need to learn to hunt other prey if her usual prey becomes unavailable; likewise, domestic cats can be transitioned from a commercial diet to a more natural diet - with greater difficulty, however, if the cat had no chance to explore different foods during kitten hood.

The most readily accepted alternative, by cats and care giver alike, to a truly natural diet of whole prey, is a raw meat based diet. Made from muscle and organ meats meant for human consumption, supplemented and balanced with a variety of ingredients, it is a satisfactory replacement for whole prey. In its nutritional composition, Feline Future’s raw meat based dietary formulations come very close to that of the cat’s natural diet. Some supplemental feeding of whole prey is highly recommended, because the soft texture of the raw meat based diet may not involve enough chewing action to exercise the jaw muscles. Food that does not require shearing through flesh can also result in tartar deposits on the carnassial teeth (molars) in some cats. Day-old chicks, whole quail, or chicken necks are recommended for cats resisting the acceptance of rodents. In addition, the therapeutic effect on the cats’ mental well being when eating whole prey should not be underestimated.

Formulating an ideal diet for domestic and captive wild cats begins with the straight forward study of their diet as wild-living animals and the following analysis of the prey. Laboratory conducted feeding trials, used to measure minimal nutritional requirements by withholding nutrients and observation of the ensuing deficiencies, are unnecessary. It is a cruel method, and the acquired knowledge of minimal requirements leads to development of dietary formulations of non-optimal nutritional quality. Also, the simple analysis of nutritional composition is insufficient if the nature of the food and the way it is consumed remains unexplored.

Cats consume small prey whole. Larger prey is only partially eaten, leaving digestive tract, skin, hair, larger bones, or feathers. Larger prey may be eaten over several days, although cats seldom take carrion. Most importantly the food is consumed as is: raw - an important fact when considering that heat processing, even at low temperatures, will destroy or alter most essential nutrients and food components, such as amino acids, fatty acids, vitamins, and some minerals. The phobia of raw meat and homemade meals for companion cats appears to be a North American phenomenon, as to this day it remains practice in European countries, especially Germany, where it commonly receives full veterinary approval.

The raw meat diets suggested by Feline Future are the result of many years of research into the natural diet of wild-living small felines, the adaptation of human grade ingredients to the nutritional composition of prey animals as well as nutritional needs of cats, and the careful, long term monitoring of its nutritional soundness for the growth, maintenance, and reproduction of domestic cats on a study group. Other research into nutrition for companion animals in recent years has focused on development of supplements for commercial pet foods in order to achieve a more balanced diet. At the same time, various home-made recipes available to cat owners call for extensive supplementation with foodstuffs meant for improvement of human health. Most often, these supplements represent a completely unnecessary addition to the cat’s meal plan and can sometimes be harmful. Feline Future has always believed in taking feline nutrition back to basics with minimal necessity for supplementation and to many our formulation may appear too simplistic. However, we can help you to rediscover the true carnivore in your domestic feline friend, and re-invent the mouse to feed him or her.

Fresh Homemade Cat Food

2009-11-11T09:21:00.000-08:00

I found this useful article at http://petshealthmatters.com and have to say I agree wholheartedly with it. Many cat owners are searching for something safe to feed their feline companions after the revelations and continuing horrors of the petfood recalls.

Homemade Pet Food: A Healthy Alternative to Store-Bought Food

Approximately one in every four pets suffers from obesity. Obesity in pets can result from lack of sufficient exercise or unhealthy foods in their daily diets. Many of the health problems pets have could easily be alleviated through proper diet. Most commercial pet food recipes offered on the market today are not good for your pet. They contain chemical preservatives, dangerous by-products, indigestible fillers, high levels of carbohydrates and high levels of unhealthy fats.

If you are willing to spend hundreds or thousands of dollars to prevent common pet ailments, then why not spend a little extra on their food to keep them healthy? An unhealthy diet causes many health issues, from digestive disorders, food allergies and joint problems to diabetes, arthritis and heart disease.

Just about any unhealthy result you can think of that a human would suffer due to improper diet and exercise, your pet can suffer from as well. You have the power to change your lifestyle and become healthier. Your pets do not have that luxury. They depend on you to feed them and keep them healthy and content.

Cute, pudgy dogs may look happy and content, but their bodies aren't healthy or happy. Have your vet provide a thorough check-up. Discuss a complete nutrition plan for your dog that includes proper food and exercise. Once its been given a clean bill of health, start following the new regimen by feeding ithomemade dog food. Help your pet to become your cute and fit companion.

Cats require twice as much protein as their canine counterparts. Their bodies fuel cells with energy from protein instead of carbohydrates. High-carbohydrate cat foods can cause a lot of digestive problems for your cat. They also can turn your healthy and active cat into an obese and lazy one. While we all love a chubby, sleepy kitty, this isn't healthy for them.

Overweight cats are much more susceptible to feline diabetes and many other health problems. The best regimen for your cat includes nutritious and healthy meat-based recipes. You can find these types of recipes or create them yourself and provide your cat with homemade food that will keep them fit and healthy for life.

Providing your pets with healthy and homemade pet food designed to maintain ideal weight and health is the best gift you can give them. You bring your pets home to provide you with companionship and to give them a good home to live in. Why would you turn around and feed them unhealthy and dangerous foods that could make them sick?

A nutritious diet provides your pet with a balanced and healthy food supply that will keep them fit for life. Taking a holistic approach to caring for your pets with homemade pet food will keep them healthy, happy and living a long life. There are many dog food recipes and cat food recipes available for daily meals, treats and dietary supplements.

Take the time to talk to your vet and find out what types ingredients and supplements are best. To learn more about natural pet food recipes for meals, supplements and treats, contact a qualified and reputable source. Give your beloved pets the quality of life they deserve and keep them with you for a long and healthy lifetime.

Cat Food Supplements

2009-11-10T09:21:00.000-08:00

Here is some useful information regarding supplements from http://www.littlebigcat.com. Add the supplements carefully for a balanced natural and homemade diet.

Particular amino acids that can be supplemented and may be helpful for many conditions

• Arginine
• Lysine
• Carnitine
• Taurine

Excess nutrients/minerals in many pet foods: copper, zinc, iodine – be careful with adding vitamins A, D and K, and minerals to commercial pet food.

The 4 supplements every pet needs:

1. Antioxidants

There are many kinds of antioxidants. They are important in the neutralization or scavenging of "oxygen free radicals" which are normal by-products of body metabolism. Controlled amounts of free radicals are necessary as weapons against viruses and bacteria, as well as for their role in hormone production and numerous enzyme-catalyzed reactions. However, excess free radicals can damage cellular DNA, destroy cell membranes, and lead to long-term immune system damage and cancer. Excessive amounts of free radicals are formed from exposure to radiation, including sunlight, environmental pollution, and high-fat diets. In people, a diet high in fresh fruits and vegetables may contain adequate natural antioxidants. Dogs and cats eating commercial pet food, however, may not get enough appropriate antioxidants in the diet.

Common antioxidants include Vitamins C and E, which do indeed have significant antioxidant activity as well as many other important metabolic functions. These vitamins are excellent supplements to the diet in any case. The Ester C form of Vitamin C is buffered, and is the best choice for animals. Vitamin C may be dosed to "bowel tolerance." That is, you start off adding just a little Vitamin C (50-100 mg) to the food, and increase the dose very gradually until the animal develops diarrhea. At that point, you back off to the previous dosage amount that did not cause diarrhea, and stay with that dose. The animal's tolerance may vary depending on diet, time of year, and stresses such as changes in the home, pollution, and exposure to radiation (UV light, x-rays, power lines, etc.). Natural Vitamin E comes in the form of d-alpha tocopherol, but a supplement containing mixed tocopherols (alpha and gamma) may have more benefits. (Avoid dl-alpha tocopherol, which is a synthetic form of Vitamin E.) It is very safe to give. Give 100-200 IU per day for a cat or small dog (less than 20 pounds), up to 800 IU for giant breed dogs. Vitamin E is very safe and most cats love the taste of the oil; just prick the capsule with a pin, squeeze out a few drops on your finger, and let the cat lick it off.

There are many other good antioxidant supplements. Where dosage information is not specified, give a cat or small dog about 1/10 to 1/6 the human dosage, as specified on the label, per day. (Human doses are based on a 150 lb. person)

2. Probiotics

Probiotics, which include L. acidophilus as well as a number of other beneficial bacteria, are of special importance in animals with any type of digestive problem as well as animals who are, or have been, taking antibiotics. They help keep the bacteria population in the gut balanced and healthy, and prevent "bad" bacteria from gaining a foothold. Live-culture yogurt, which contains a small amount of acidophilus, while not harmful, is not an adequate source of probiotics for the average animal.

3. Digestive Enzymes
With any cooked or commercial food, it is essential to add digestive enzymes. Plant-based enzymes work in the widest range of pH and temperature, and are better for the majority of animals than pancreatic enzymes or pancreas extracts. There may be a few instances where pancreas products work better, but these should be prescribed by your veterinarian. It does not take much, just a little bit with each meal. Some sources suggest using brewer's yeast or nutritional yeast, because they contain enzymes as well as B-vitamins and other nutrients. If your animal likes and tolerates yeast, it is a fine addition to the food. However, some animals will develop an allergy to yeast, and not all of them like it. I would still recommend adding a specific enzyme combination even if you are also using yeast. Make sure that the product you select contains at least protease, amylase, and lipase (some also contain cellulase, which helps digest plant materials containing cellulose).

4. Omega 3/Essential Fatty Acids

Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids are "essential," meaning that our bodies cannot synthesize them, and they must be obtained in the diet. The modern American diet contains far more Omega-6s than Omega-3s, and many studies are showing that this imbalance is potentially harmful. No one knows the "ideal" ratio, but less than 5:1 is probably adequate. Commercial pet foods contain 10-20 times as much Omega-6 as Omega-3, because Omega-6 oils are less expensive and more stable than Omega-3's. Most fatty acid supplements for pets contain too much Omega-6 and/or too much vitamin A and D.

The first sign of a fatty acid imbalance or deficiency is most likely to show up in dogs and cats as dry, dull fur, or itchy, irritated, or flaky skin.

The best source of Omega-3 fatty acids for animals is fish oil. Most cod liver oils contain too much Vitamin A and D, but those without those added vitamins are also a good choice. You can get fish oil capsules at the health food store, variously labeled "Salmon Oil," "Marine Fish Oil," "Deep Sea Fish Oil," or "Cold Water Fish Oil." These contain the specific Omega-3 fatty acids, EPA and DHA, which can be used directly by the body. However, the capsules are large, and the oil not very palatable, especially to cats. Farm-raised salmon (usually called "Atlantic" or "Norwegian" salmon) are fed dyes, antifungal drugs, and other substances that may accumulate in body fat; avoid fish oil from these sources. "Molecularly distilled" oils are also safe.

Homemade natural food

2009-11-10T03:14:00.000-08:00

Here is an interesting selection to start the day and get us all thinking about what we feed our cats! What wins is an all natural and homemade diet. Some great advice on the dangers of dehydration and diabetes. Great to hear from fellow cat lovers.

CATS AND WEIGHT LOSS.

We were talking about food with our vet last week when we took our twenty-pounder in for his checkup. The vet said one of his other customers built a 3-4 foot tall staircase and put the dry cat food at the on the top step, and it worked. The cat went up the stairs several times a day to eat and lost a pound over six months.

THE ADVANTAGES OF WET FOOD.

Long day.

Question for you all. I’m thinking about moving Tunch to all wet food rather than the kibble, because even though we have been dieting for a year we have only lost 3/4 of a lb. Many of you said your cats were much leaner and more active on an all wet diet, so I think I might try it.

Today, I gave Tunch his morning kibble and then for dinner I gave him some wet food. I gave him 100% salmon, and he loved it. I thought he was going to choke to death because I have never heard him purr that loudly while eating, and afterward I got a rare look that didn’t seemed like he was sizing me up for a casket. I don’t want to go overboard, but he almost looked happy.

A RECCOMENDATION FOR SOME DRY AND WET FOOD FOR HEALTHY TEETH

asiangrrrl, must disagree. Eating some kibble every day absolutely does help retard tartar buildup on the teeth. The only cat we ever had that got a wet/soft food diet exclusively lost all her teeth. On the other hand, she did live to 18… but significantly, that was the only cat we ever had that lost any teeth…all of the others got kibble along with wet food, and two of them are now in their 17th and 15th years of life.

I would suggest supplementing the wet food with a small amount of kibble just for the teeth-cleaning benefits. If that means reducing the amount of wet food by a slight amount to maintain or reduce his weight, just feed a little less of the wet stuff and a small quantity of the dry.

DIABETES AND DRY FOOD

I absolutely recommend the change. One of my cats became diabetic, and after considerable research I’m convinced that dry food caused or at least triggered it. When I changed both cats to wet food, both slimmed considerably and just seemed more healthy. The diabetic one actually went into what seems to be permanent remission.
Please check out this article: http://www.catinfo.org/felinediabetes.htm and a few others on the site.

ORGANIC FOOD AND CLEAN TEETH.

I’ve been feeding multiple generations of cats wet food (5.5 oz can, split between 2 or 3 cats) for breakfast and dinner, with crunchies available at all times for snacks. I do watch the ash content in the wet, and avoid the poor quality stuff, but otherwise give them lots of variety.

In the 35 years I’ve had cats, have never had one be overweight or get a urinary blockage. All have lived to 16-18. They do get outside for some exercise though.

Teeth cleaning, yes—every 1-3 years, but that seems to depend on the individual cat—I have 3 from the same litter—one needs his teeth cleaned annually, his brother hardly ever, and the sister needs it every couple years.

The new favorite around here is Paul Newman’s organic chicken and brown rice. Pricey, but man, they love it.

THE IMPORTANCE OF MEAT & MOISTURE

Cats are obligate carnivores, and are supposed to ideally have a diet that is around 3% carbohydrate, the rest being protein, fat and water. Cats who eat a lot of dry food, especially high carb dry food made from grains and simple starches, will be more likely to be obese and develop diabetes, liver and kidney diseases. They are just not made to metabolize that much carbohydrate.

They can tolerate a little more than than 3%—even up to 10%—but it needs to be in the form of wet food as much as possible. This is because they are physiologically adapted to getting a large proportion of their H20 from their food/prey (think of how few carbs you find in a mouse, for instance, and just how much of it’s tissue is water) and tend to be chronically underhydrated on a dry diet. You may see your cat drinking, but they may not be getting enough to compensate. Also, some vets think that the upsurge of kidney, liver and urinary tract issues in cats is directly related to their low protein/low water diets.

The main thing with wet food – or any cat food, FTM, that’s going to be the sole food source – is to make sure it has the proper amount of taurine. That’s the one amino acid cats can’t manufacture and it’s only found naturally in meats.

Our cats all go outdoors, and their depradations on the local vole and squirrel population are legion, so we don’t worry about them. We supplement their diet of tasty rodent brains with kibble always available and a little wet food once a day. Keeping their teeth clean through diet is a big point. Cats have to be anesthetised to clean their teeth and anesthesia with animals that small can be rather dicey.

One of our cats had a horrible urinary problem. One day, he literally became a statue, because he had so many crystals in his track that he could not move from the pain.

The vet told us that cats need water, as they don’t always drink enough. I give both of our cats wet food in the morning—i add water to the wet food sort of a gravy thing—and dry food in the evenings for the teeth. This has been extremely helpful. No more urinary problems for Diesel. I will say that both of our cats are overweight, and as a result I have cut way down on any cat treats.

With tuna when I give it, I add water to the tuna, and they go crazy with happiness.

THE PERILS OF DRY FOOD AGAIN

@Annie: I was feeding my cat primarily dry food thinking it would prolong dental health. Eventually she started having kidney problems and my vet told me to do exactly what Annie says here and I think it bought her another year at least to make it to the cat milestone of 20.

ANOTHER FAN OF HOMEMADE FOOD AND RAW FEEDING FOR HEALTH.

I agree with Ella in NM, but even better would be to feed 100% raw.

Feed the lower part of the chicken breast, WITH BONE (for calcium), and with skin of course. Feed raw wild sockeye salmon with bone. Feed grassfed beef, with fat but not bone.

A raw diet should be based on raw prey ratios—roughly 5-10% bone (they crunch right through it like potato chips after their jaw muscles get used to it, as long as the bones are small—again, lower end of chicken breast, salmon bones, or quail or cornish hen), roughly 10% organs (heart, liver, tongue, kidneys—and half should be liver) and the rest raw meat.

See http://www.rawfedcats.org/index.htm for the details, including excellent advice on the transition to raw, and join the rawfeeding newsgroups for more advice. You can find links at the web site.

You should raw feed Lily too.

Don’t get hung up by the raw feeders who follow complicated recipes, with veggie mixes and the like. That’s not what they’re built to eat. Go simple. It’s very easy, and they not only thrive, they love it.

IF YOU EVER WONDERED WHERE THE WILDLIFE WENT!

My cat eats birds, squirrels and rabbits, although he seems to prefer birds to mammals. He is in excellent health as catching his own food requires plenty of physical effort. When he gets stuck in the house and cannot get outside to eat, he will often attack and eat a portion of a loaf of bread.

ANOTHER COMMENT ON THE ADVANTAGES OF A RAW FOOD DIET.

I’m with Ella in NM (27/28) and Moe Gamble (47) – raw is the best, and the link Moe gives is a good one. http://www.rawfedcats.org/index.htm

We have been feeding a raw diet to the kitten we found a few months ago. She loves it!! And it is so easy. You being a chef and a foodie will have no problem at all with it, and probably have a good butcher, too, which is a bonus, though not necessary. Our little kittie eats mostly raw chicken with the little bones included (crunches right through – great for the teeth!), all the tasty organs (liver, heart lungs, kidneys, etc.) plus some beef heart occasionally, fish, eggs, and sometimes or a bit of the yogurt we make at home (or just the whey). She is health and happy. Actually, there was one day she seemed strangely lethargic and looked visibly bloated. The neighbor came by later to tell us proudly that she had fed the kittie some kibbles earlier. It was a very graphic demonstration for us that raw is the way to go.

Also, you can always keep some wet, meaty food around just for backup when you don’t have the raw on hand. That’s what we do – we keep a bunch of Friskies wet kitten food, which at least in Mexico where we are is just fish and vitamin supplements.

SOME GREAT COMMENTS HERE ON FEEDING A CAT A RAW DIET WITH SOME GOOD COMMENTS ON THE ADVANTAGES/DISADVANTAGES EXPLORED.

We converted to a 100% raw diet (with occasional cans of Wellness or Instinct as treats) several years ago after we lost the old man to complications from diabetes. For the most part, everyone’s at their ideal weight. The girls were grossly obese on kibble, but after 6 months of raw they were 90% of the way to their ideal weight. It is possible for a cat to get a little overweight on a raw diet; couple a slow metabolism with a touch of food aggression and you’ll get a fluffy cat.

Advantages of a raw diet:

1. Everyone poops less, and the poop is much less stinky;
2. Skin and coat problems have gone away;
3. Everyone’s energy level went up a notch; the 10-year-old still tears through the house gurgling periodically;
4. Weight issues went away;
5. Haven’t had urinary tract issues;
6. Teeth have stayed in fairly good shape;

Disadvantages of a raw diet:

1. Food safety does come into play—you are dealing with raw meat; you have to keep it frozen until you serve it, you can’t just leave it out all day, and whatever isn’t eaten needs to be disposed of promptly;
2. If you prepare your own (as we do), you have to pay attention to nutritional issues like calcium/phosphorous ratios, amino acid content (taurine especially);
3. You can’t just buy a chicken from the supermarket and throw it at the cat; meat should be bought fresh from a known, trusted supplier;
4. It’s expensive compared to dry food, although the cost is comparable to high-quality canned food;

We’ve heard too many horror stories about peritonitis, so we grind the bone through the medium die (raw chicken bone is no safer than cooked chicken bone). We’ll leave chunks of meat in the mix (half-inch cubes or so) which helps keep the teeth clean. If you don’t want to go through all that, there are several suppliers of premade raw food, though you may have to go to smaller, independent pet stores to get it.

It’s a lot of work, but I think it’s been absolutely worth it; our kids are healthy, they’re at the right weight (mostly; Milo and Gracie remain on the fluffy side), and are very active for their respective ages.

RAW FOOD DIET FAN.

I don’t fuss with a grinder. That helps with the food safety factor a lot, too. I just put pieces like half the size of my palm on the plate and the little kitten attacks it! A wing, for instance, I’d chop into buffalo wings pieces – done.

She has no problem with taurine because in addition to the chicken heart she always gets with each chicken, she gets occasional beef heart (gracias, carniceria!) and we just follow the general rule of thinking about their prey in the wild for ratios, like Moe said: mostly meat, then ~5-10% small meaty bones, ~10% organs, about half of that being liver. easy peasy.

We just move some raw down to the fridge from the freezer the day before we need it. our kittie will eat it cold from the fridge. of course, it’s also extremely hot where I live, so maybe that’s why.

THE PROBLEMS OF DEHYDRATION

After my big cat got those urinary crystals and one nasty expensive UTI, I bought a table-top running water fountain (brand name Drinkwell) made for cats to drink from, and switched both my cats to mostly wet food with special Science Diet crunchies thrown in. Both cats have lost weight, and they both drink a lot more at the fountain then they ever did from a bowl. I recommend the water fountain strongly.

THE NATURAL FOOD FOR CATS - RAW

What Ella in NM and Moe Gamble said.

Cats are supposed to eat meat. All meat, all the time. Raw best. But canned for convenience. (Though people make their own and store in portions in freezer.)

Dry food is a treat. It’s basically junk food for cats. For dogs, it’s healthy. That’s how people—and some misinformed vets—get confused.

The better the food, the less you have to feed.

A CAT’S MOOD AND DIET

My vets recommend wet food due to help avoid kidney problems and control weight. The extra moisture in wet food helps keep them hydrated and they feel fuller too. We switched over to grain-free wet food and the personality changes in our cats were amazing. One kitty that was in constant “bitch-mode” and thin became much more friendly. The other kitty that has a little weight problem has also become more friendly. The one kitty may be allergic to grains and that impacted her mood so I highly recommend any “grain-free” food (we used Wellness and then switched to Blue Buffalo because it was less expensive).

You can give Tunch “Greenies” to help with his teeth. Our kitties get their treats every morning and they go nuts for them.

I bet you will see a marked improvement in Tunch’s overall disposition if you switch him to wet food.

Jeez, John, I thought you switched him months ago after another of these interminable IS TUNCH FAT threads.

ANOTHER RAW FOOD FAN.

Cats eat meat, as has been pointed out repeatedly. Kibble is the equivalent of Doritos and Ruffles. I feed my cats, no kidding, ground up chickens. Bones and all. That’s the closest I can get to their normal diet in my house. My cats are all svelte and healthy with shiny coats and tons of energy.

DRY FOOD AND DIABETES

I’m a little late to this discussion, but wet food basically saved my cat’s life.

My cat was 18 years old, obese and newly diagnosed with diabetes. We had our insulin for a while, but we also switched her to wet food, and after a couple months, she lost all of her weight and now she no longer requires insulin to maintain her blood sugar levels. I had fed her dry food all her life, and this one switch made all the difference.

We feed her half a can of wet food in the AM and one half can in the PM. During the day, we give her a very small amount of dry kibble to help her with any munchies and to help her maintain dental health. It’s a very small amount, though. She doesn’t have too many teeth left.

WEIGHT LOSS AND DIET.

If you really want him to lose weight, you need to get him a little girl kitten to pal around with. The kitten will want to play a lot & since it’s a girl, Tunch should tolerate her much more than he would a young male cat. That way he’ll get more exercise than just holding the couch down all day.

Also, you need to find out what his minimal diet needs would be (for his age, etc.) & just put that out each day. If he eats it all in 3 mins, then it’ll be a long wait until next meal. Wet or dry or a combo, but only so much & no more. Make sure he has plenty of water (which I’m sure you do).

Dry Cat Food - The Dangers

2009-11-09T09:39:00.000-08:00

More evidence emerges daily on the dangers of feeding cats only dry food, (http://www.cat-o-rama.com), but how to you wean a cat off the infernal dry food it has become addicted to? Read on to find out, the same way you gradually wean a cat off commercial food and onto fresh homemade natural food. Has anyone done this successfully out there? If you want a balance that is healthy why not use your own homemade dry cat food?

"I’m ashamed to admit but in the last few months (due to a combination of human illness, time, and budget constraints) we’ve been feeding our sweet feline friends only dry food (Science Diet). I know this is terrible so you don’t have to remind me of that. All the press on the cat food recall has now got me thinking again about their nutritional needs. So, we are planning to return to an exclusively wet food diet (we’ve tried raw, which I know is best, but they won’t go for it and honestly, as a 2 x full-time student household with an infant, it’s not sustainable.) So, I have a two-part question for introducing a fully wet diet: 1) How should we transition from dry kibbles to canned foods? 2) What brands are best? I’m trying to strike a balance between quality and cost.
Wow. Um, dry cat food is really bad for cats … I’d prefer to get some answers from people with vet training and/or who have done research into feline nutritional needs. Thanks.
By the way, the recall problem was with wheat-gluten. This is a primary ingredient in dry foods.

Yeah, uh, by the way. Cat dental problems are usually the result of insufficient protein of which dry foods are sorely deficient. If you are serious about their dental health, you need to brush your cats’ teeth.
I never thought that I’d be the one doing the educating on this question. I’d encourage you all to visit: http://www.catinfo.org/
So, if anyone is else is actually interested in getting the answer to this question. Here is an essay about the very issue. How to make the transition from dry to wet food and why:

http://www.catinfo.org/#Transitioning_Dry_Food_Addicts_to_Canned_Food_
I made the choice to feed our cats wet food based on scientific research on the evolution of feline diets and vet essays. If anyone has any scientific/medical vet essays that argue that a dry food diet is better, I’d be really eager to see them (after all, I do want the best thing for the cats). Please post the sources. I have access to medical journals and if given the complete citations, can easily find them. Thanks!
A few people have asked, what’s wrong with dry food. If you are really interested, there are some good books out there about it. But, we are all pretty busy (as for me I’ve got to get to campus to teach) so here’s some quick info. Basically, the the three key negative issues associated with dry food are: 1) type of protein - too high in plant-based versus animal-based proteins; 2) carbohydrate load is too high; 3) water content is too low. Cats are carnivores (not omnivores like us) they are evolved to eat no more than 3-5% carbs in their diets (usually fresh grass to clean their digestive tract from time-to-time. (Sure they can tolerate more - just like you can eat only Wonder bread and vitamins.) Diseases linked to insufficient animal protein in cat diet include: diabetes, kidney failure, bladder problems, IBD, obesity, fatty liver disease, and dental disease.

To Batgirl: thanks for the link. I actually visited the site and it confirmed everything else I’ve read. I’m not sure how familiar you are with that site but it is about some cats who died from Chronic Renal Failure (CRF). That site links to another site on CRF which states that diet (in particular low protein diet) is linked to CRF. It looks like this information is posted to show people why dry food is insufficient and actually contributes to disease. They state: "In the past, it was believed that a low protein diet was essential in controlling CRF. The idea behind this is to cut down on the kidneys’ load. However, studies done on dogs in renal failure, show that a low protein diet did not help the GFR or BUN of said dogs. Since cats have an even higher protein requirement than dogs, it seems unlikely that they could thrive on low protein diets." They recommend feeding your cat organic meat to prevent/help resolve CRF. (Source: http://www.holisticat.com/crf.html#feed)
You know why your cat prefers dry food to wet foods and raw meats? It’s because it’s sprayed with animal digestive enzymes. Think kitty potato chips!

Good for you! It’s good to see more and more people doing right foodwise for their cats.

As for the transition, it took me about 2 weeks. I started out looking for the ones on this list, but I also tried some others that met the ingredient requirements. I continued to offer dry food although I might have cut it back just a little.

She turned up her nose at just about everything! It was very frustrating, but I just kept at it. Again, I still offered her regular food, but it had been cut down by about a 1/4 or 1/3.

I eventually stumbled across the ONE type that she would eat, so I just kept presenting that, and gradually phased out the dry food. My other cat ate anything I put down, so she wasn’t a problem.

Most of those from your list are on mine as well. I wouldn’t have any compunctions about feeding any of them, although one was rather heavy on the veggies!"

Raw Feeding Cats

2009-11-09T07:28:00.000-08:00

I found this great little snippet recently from eHow.com by Leigh A.Peterson which supports the increasingly popular view that your cat is best when fed its most natural diet, raw food. We have discussed this before in a previous post and as the article says ....

"Many veterinarians prescribe a dry kibble that is "low carbohydrate" for cats with diabetes or "low protein" for cats with renal failure. Kibble is low-quality, while the quality of protein rather than the quantity is what matters in feline nutrition."

I know that for some people the idea of feeding your cat raw food is abhorrent but remember it is as close to its natural diet as you will ever get, why not try it out, say once a week to start with? Has anyone else has success with feeding their feline raw food?

Raw Food Diet for Diabetes & Renal Failure in Felines

Feline diabetes and chronic renal failure (CRF) are two common diseases that can be brought on by a lack of proper nutrition. By understanding your cat's nutritional needs and providing optimal food choices, both conditions can be successfully managed or even reversed.

Causes

A dry kibble diet can be the cause of feline diabetes and renal failure, also known as kidney disease. The high carbohydrate content causes weight gain and diabetes, while the low moisture content causes dehydration and kidney disease.

History

Cats have existed for thousands of years. Processed cat food was invented in the mid-1900's. As obligate carnivores, cats were naturally designed to digest high levels of natural, unprocessed meat protein and low levels of carbohydrates (i.e. prey).

Misconceptions

Many veterinarians prescribe a dry kibble that is "low carbohydrate" for cats with diabetes or "low protein" for cats with renal failure. Kibble is low-quality, while the quality of protein rather than the quantity is what matters in feline nutrition.

Recommendations

Raw food offers the highest level of nutrition for felines because it is not processed and is naturally high in protein and moisture. A balanced raw meal can be achieved with a commercial frozen mix or by utilizing the prey model of 80 percent meat, 10 percent bone, 5 percent liver and 5 percent other organ. Grains, fruits, and vegetables should be avoided or given in minimal amounts.

Warnings

When lowering the amount of carbohydrates in your cat's diet, he will immediately also require a reduction in his dosage of insulin.

Cat Diabetes and Diet

2009-11-09T06:34:00.000-08:00

Hello again everyone, sorry for the long silence, I have been off sick but am now happy to say I'm OK again and return to the fray. The controversy continues, just what to feed your cat for a long, happy and active life. I came across this useful snippet on icattreats.com and supports what I believe is the only safe way to feed your cat. An only dry food diet is clearly disasterous....so read on.

"Dry foods are the number 1 cause of diabetes in cats as well as being a huge contributing factor to kidney disease, obesity, crystals, u.t.i’s and a host of other problems. Food allergies are very common when feeding dry foods. Rashes, scabs behind the tail and on the chin are all symptoms
The problems associated with Dry food is that they are loaded with grains and carbohydrates which many cats (carnivores) cannot process. Also, Most of the moisture a cat needs is suppose to be in the food but in Dry, 95% of it is zapped out of dry foods in the processing. Another thing, most use horrible ingredients and don’t use a muscle meat as the primary ingredient and use vegetable based protein versus animal. Not good for an animal that has to eat meat to survive."

I think we would all agree that feeding cats only dry food is very far removed from what would be their natural diet. We need to understand that cats are natural carnivores, they need meat as well as the moisture in it to survive and thrive......and keep out of the vet's practice.

Organic Cat Food Diet

2009-08-24T06:58:00.000-07:00

Those of us who truly value the companionship of our pets and are now well versed in just what does go into those tins of commercial food with their glossy labels, are questioning how we live a healthy life. We also question how and what we feed our pets. We learn that for us diets high in sugars and fat do us a heap of harm, they also do our pets the same harm. We know that it is important to feed a diet that is as close to nature as possible. When we feed our cats a natural diet as close as it would get in the wild then long life and good health can be expected hence the organic cat food diet.

Is feeding a diet of fresh natural food complicated or time consuming? The answer is a resounding NO! The diet of a wild cat is pretty darn simple. In the wild they eat a high protein diet with a high moisture content and and meat based of course with a moderate level of fat and approximately 35 percent of its diet being carbohydrate. Cats obtain most of their water with their diet because their prey contains 75% water. Beware dry food with VERY little moisture!

To make your food you need ideally muscle meat rather than organ meat as the prime ingredient. Chicken and turkey are great but avoid chicken by products or by product meal. By products are items like feet, intestines, feathers, egg shells and other "fillers". Unbelievably this lot goes into commercial pet food and is not illegal. It all gets heated to high temperatures and its very hard for you to know when its canned just what it is. The smell alone might tell you though!

Organic cat food is the reverse of all this. Its easy to get meat that is drug and chemical free and NOT heated up to high temperatures to disguise it. When you feed this to your companion just see the result, more energy, glossy coat and bright eyes. You'll never want to open another can of so called "cat food" in your life. Even if your pet is ill now its not too late to ban the cans and start your pet on the road to recovery with an organic cat food diet.

Healthy Cat Food

2009-08-16T11:42:00.000-07:00

We are nothing if not practical on this blog and today's offer is from our good friends at about.com.cats and below is their website, cut and paste into your browser.
http://www.ehow.com/how_5087982_make-healthy-cat-food.html

We focus once again on the many benefits of homemade cat food for your cat's health and how simple a task it really is.

How To

How to Make Healthy Cat Food

Contributor

By Sunny
eHow Contributing Writer

Article Rating: (1 Ratings)

Making your own cat food is a simple task. It is generally healthier than feeding your cat store-bought food because it contains mostly natural ingredients. It's also a cost-effective way to make sure your cat gets all of its nutritional needs met. Cats have a very high protein requirement, so the bulk of homemade cat food recipes consist of high-protein foods. According to Astro Star, certain foods must be avoided when making cat food recipes because they can be harmful to cats. These foods include onions, bones, pork and chocolate. Cats seem to love natural foods, and with simple food preparation techniques, they are easy to accommodate.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

Mixing bowl 4 oz. ground beef 1 oz. oatmeal Seasonings (optional) 500 g fish oil Skillet (optional)

Healthy Cat Food Recipe

Step 1

Put 4 parts of a high-protein food into a large mixing bowl. Good options include 4 oz. of either ground beef or cottage cheese.
Step 2

Add 1 part of a natural carbohydrate to the protein. A healthy, inexpensive choice is 1 oz. oatmeal, but there are plenty of other good options, such as barley, spinach, tomatoes and brown rice.
Step 3

Add any desired seasonings to the mixture. Examples of tasty additions include small amounts of garlic powder, dill weed and nutritional yeast powder. Seasonings are optional, but they add variety to your cat's meals.
Step 4

Add 500 g fish oil to the bowl. VetLord.org recommends fish oil as a supplement for healthy cats. It is available at most health food stores and adds essential fatty acids to your cat's diet.
Step 5

Mix all ingredients thoroughly. You can feed this meal to your cat raw. If you find your cat doesn't like raw foods, however, cook the mixture in a skillet over medium heat until cooked through.

Weight loss cat Food The Natural way

2009-08-07T12:09:00.000-07:00

Our cats are becoming increasingly obese. What happened? We moved out cats indoors, we reduced the amount of exercise we gave them and we changed their diet 100%. A recipe for disaster. What resulted was an epidemic of cats ranging from overweight to grossly obese.

What then happens is what we experience ourselves. Just a few of the many problems.

The more overweight the cat, the less it moves around.
Its lifespan is shortened.
Overweight cats develop diabetes, stiff joints, arthritis and so on.

Just a few on the things that result from being overweight. How on earth did all this happen? Well quite simply, it is lack of exercise and part diet. Cats have become house cats and seldom venture outdoors, what is worse is that their diet has become a carbohydrate one which gets broken down into sugars and fats. A wild cat by comparison converts protein into energy, not carbohydrates. Carbohydrates take a cat's metabolism on a wild ride with ups and downs, easy to see why a cat piles on the weight.

How to correct all this? Well the best way is to stop feeding your cat commercial food with all its flaws and instead put your cat on a diet of fresh natural food you prepare yourself. The diet should be 60 -70% protein with plenty of moisture and rounded out with small amounts of vegetables or minimal grains like rice. Returning it to a natural diet will show changes such as a glossier coat, more energy and vitality and a real bounce in its step.

Weight loss starts at home and does not come from a tin or bag, remember there are no fat cats in the wild! Weight loss and health come from your own knowledge and your own kitchen.

To help you all further please read the article below from this excellent website, copy and paste into your browser.

http://www.google.co.uk/search?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.littlebigcat.com%2Findex.php%3Faction%3Dlibrary%26act%3Dshow%26item%3Dtherightweightlossprogramforcats&sourceid=navclient-ff&ie=UTF-8&rlz=1B3GGGL_enGB311GB312

The Right Weight Loss Program for Cats!

By Jean Hofve, DVM

A reader recently emailed us to ask how she could help her cat lose weight. Indeed, obesity is a serious problem for our feline friends. Many serious health problems can result from obesity, such as arthritis, diabetes, liver disease, heart failure, and kidney disease.

In most feline cases, obesity occurs when tasty, high-carbohydrate food is available 24 hours a day. Single cats may eat out of boredom; when there are multiple cats, when one eats, the others may be inspired to also eat, just to keep the playing field even.

Research has shown that, left to their own devices, cats will "nibble" from a bowl of dry food up to 20 times a day. The researchers conclude that this is "normal" behavior. Well, it may be common—especially when cats are left alone in a cage with nothing else to do!—but it surely isn't "normal."

As carnivores, cats are designed for a feast-famine lifestyle. They have a large stomach and short intestinal tract that can take in a large meal and process it quickly. Think about all those nature shows on Animal Planet. The big cats make a kill, stuff themselves until they can't take another bite, sleep for a couple of days, then go out to hunt again. Our domestic cats are, anatomically and physiologically, identical to their big cat cousins. Clearly, the "grazing" lifestyle is not natural for cats of any size!

When cats "graze" on dry food, many problems will result. First of all, dry food is dehydrating, and thus contributes to bladder and kidney problems.

Also, most dry cat foods contain from 30-55% carbohydrate. Cats use mainly protein and fat for energy, unlike humans who can utilize carbs directly. This means that the carbs in a cat's diet are basically unusable, providing only calories and little or no nutrition. And we know what happens to excess calories—they get converted to fat!

Another problem with carbs is that they cause wide swings in insulin. Over time, this can lead to diabetes. One researcher bluntly calls dry cat food "diabetes in a bag." Studies have repeatedly proved that most diabetic cats will reduce or even eliminate their need for insulin shots if they are put on a low-carb diet.

The other major issue with dry foods is the processing. The ingredients are subjected to high heat twice during the manufacturing process, which can denature proteins and potentially trigger food allergies.

The famous "Atkins Diet" is actually ideal for cats. It's high in protein and fat, and also high in moisture—which is important for cats' urinary tract health. The "Catkins" diet typically consists of either canned cat food or low-carb homemade food. This diet is the key to weight loss for your tubby kitty. Feed as much as she will eat in 1/2 hour, two or three times a day. A handful of cats will initially gain weight on the Catkins diet, but nearly all cats will ultimately re-regulate and lose weight easily, and more importantly, in a healthy way.

When choosing canned foods for your feline pal, in general stay away from those that contain "by-products", giblets, or large amounts of fish. Also, some pop-top cans have been linked to the development of hyperthyroidism, so it's best to go for the large multi-serving cans (or get a few more cats—mine will down an entire 15-oz. can in one meal!).

A word about the new "low-carb" and "no grain" dry cat foods. While they are clearly a step up from the high-carb brands, they are still not so great for cats. These high-protein dry foods are even more dehydrating than regular dry foods; and they are still heat-processed. Cats will still gain weight if the food is left out all the time.

If your cat is a total dry food junkie, converting her to one of the low-carb dry foods may be a good first step, but the ultimate goal should be to move the cat to an all-wet food diet fed in meals. (For more on how to get your cat on a better diet, see "Switching Foods" in our Library.)

For a more detailed report on this issue, see "Fat Cats" in our Bookstore.

Recessionary Times For Cat Lovers

2009-08-04T01:29:00.000-07:00

Here is a brilliant article from http://www.hsus.org/pets/pet_care/what_you_can_do_if_you_are_having_trouble_affording_veterinary_care.html, longer than I usually post with lots of suggestions and help for those feeling the pinch in these recessionary times where we all need our pets to live as healthily as possible and where better to start than with their diets.? Article is from The Humane Society Of The United States, a great place to get help with all your pets large or small. How many of us have health insurance for our pets to ward off the worst of those vet's bills?

	What You Can Do If You Are Having Trouble Affording Veterinary Care

©iStock.com

Help for Pet Health Care Costs

Many pet owners, at one point or another, are faced with unexpected veterinary bills.

Veterinary medicine has advanced to such a degree that caregivers have new, and often expensive, options for the care of their ailing pets. Although the cost of veterinary care is actually very reasonable in comparison with the much higher cost of human health care, an unexpected medical emergency can present a major financial dilemma for an unprepared pet owner.

Having Trouble
Affording Your Pet?

There are groups that can help.

The Humane Society of the United States recommends that, in addition to preparing for routine pet-care costs, you regularly set aside money to cover for unexpected veterinary bills or consider pet health insurance. For example, create a special "pet savings account" and contribute money to it on a regular basis.

Another great option is to purchase a pet health insurance policy. The HSUS has partnered with Petplan USA, to offer great saving to our members. Petplan USA is affiliated with Petplan UK—the world's largest and most trusted pet insurance company. It's recommended by more pet owners and veterinarians than any other. Use whichever option works best for you. The important thing is to have a plan and stick to it.

If, despite your planning, your pet incurs major veterinary expenses that you have trouble affording, consider these suggestions:

• Ask your veterinarian if he or she will let you work out a payment plan. Many veterinarians are willing to work out a weekly or monthly payment plan so that you do not have to pay the entire cost of veterinary care up front.

• Contact your local shelter. Some shelters operate or know of local subsidized veterinary clinics or veterinary assistance programs. You can find the name and number of your local shelter in the Yellow Pages of your phone book under "animal shelter," "animal control" or "humane society," or by calling Information. You can also go to Pets911.com and enter your zip code to find a list of animal shelters, animal control agencies, and other animal care organizations in your community.

• If you have a specific breed of dog, contact the National Club for that breed. (The American Kennel Club, akc.org, has a list of the national dog clubs.) In some cases, these clubs offer a veterinary financial assistance fund. Additionally, The HSUS has a list of breed-specific assistance groups.

• There are some organizations that offer assistance locally (by state or community). See our state-by-state (including Canada) listing.

• The HSUS also has a list of organizations that provide assistance to senior, disabled or ill pet owners.

• Ask your veterinarian to submit an assistance request to the American Animal Hospital Association's (AAHA) "Helping Pets Fund." In order to qualify, your animal hospital must be AAHA accredited. To learn more about the program visit the AAHA web site. To find an AAHA accredited hospital in your area, search online at Pets911.com.

• If you bought your dog from a reputable breeder, check your contract to see if there is a health guarantee that covers your pet's ailment.

• Check with veterinary schools in your state to see if they offer discount services to the public. You can find a list of veterinary schools in the Education section of the American Veterinary Medical Association's (AVMA) website, avma.org.

• Use your credit card. Ask for a higher credit limit or a cash advance.

• Call your bank. Ask about loan programs or other options they can suggest that might be helpful in your situation.

• Ask your employer for a salary advance.

• Alert family and friends and ask them each for a $25 loan.

• Consider taking on a part-time job or temping.

• Contact Care Credit at www.carecredit.com

• Apply for a Citi Healthcard at www.healthcard.citicards.com

• Start your own fundraising collection at www.fundable.com

Given the current state of the economy, many pet caregivers are in need of basic necessities such as pet food. If you find yourself in this position, be sure to contact your local humane societies as some organizations have started their own pet food bank program. In addition, you can visit petsofhomeless.com/members.htm to view a state-by-state listing of food banks that are offering pet food for the pets of the homeless and disadvantaged.

The following is a list of organizations that provide financial assistance to pet owners in need. Please keep in mind that each organization is independent and has their own set of rules and guidelines. Therefore you will have to investigate each one separately to determine if you qualify for assistance:

IMOM Inc., IMOM.org
Help-A-Pet, help-a-pet.org
The Pet Fund, thepetfund.com
Good Sam Fund, goodsamfund.org
United Animal Nations LifeLine Fund, uan.org
Angels for Animals, angels4animals.org
Brown Dog Foundation, browndogfoundation.org/home
Feline Veterinary Emergency Assistance Program, fveap.org
Feline Outreach, felineoutreach.org
Cats In Crisis, catsincrisis.org
The Perseus Foundation (Cancer specific), PerseusFoundation.org
Canine Cancer Awareness, caninecancerawareness.org
Cody's Club (Radiation treatments), codysclub.bravehost.com/
Diabetic Pets Fund, petdiabetes.net/fund/
The Mosby Foundation, themosbyfoundation.org
Magic Bullet Fund (Cancer Specific), themagicbulletfund.org
The Binky Foundation, binkyfoundation.org
God's Creatures Ministry Veterinary Charity, http://www.all-creatures.org/gcm/help-cf.html

Please remember that, depending on the severity of your pet's illness or injury, you might still lose your pet even after great expense. Discuss the prognosis and treatment options thoroughly with your veterinarian, including whether surgery or treatment would just cause your animal discomfort without preserving a life of good quality.

Also remember that a little preventive care can go a long way. Having your pet spayed or neutered, keeping her shots up to date, and keeping your pet safely confined can prevent serious and costly health problems. If you have trouble affording the cost to spay or neuter your pet, contact your local animal shelter. They might operate a clinic or know of a local clinic that offers subsidized services.

Unfortunately, due to our limited resources as a nonprofit animal protection organization, The HSUS does not provide direct financial assistance to pet owners for veterinary or other expenses. If you know of any veterinary assistance programs or services that we have not included here, please let us know by calling 202-452-1100.

Breed Specific Assistance Programs
The Boston Terrier Rescue Net, bostonrescue.net
CorgiAid, corgiaid.org
Special Needs Dobermans, doberman911.org
Disabled Dachshund Society, ourdds.org
Dougal's Helping Paw (Scottish Terriers, West Highland White Terriers and other small, short legged terriers), http://www.welcome.to/dougalsfund
Labrador Harbor, labradorharbor.org/
Labmed, labmed.org
Labrador Lifeline, labradorlifeline.org
Westimed (West Highland White Terriers), westiemed.org
Pyramedic Trust (Great Pyrenees), http://www.angelfire.com/bc2/pyramedic/summary.html

Working/Service Dogs
Helping Harley Cancer Treatment Grant, http://grants.landofpuregold.com
Assistance Dogs Special Allowance (ADSA) Program, http://www.cdss.ca.gov/cdssweb/PG82.htm

State-Specific Programs
CANADA
Animal Cancer Therapy Subsidization Society Lucky Moffat Memorial Fund, actssalberta.org/lucky/lmmf.asp (Alberta Canada Only)
The Farley Foundation, farleyfoundation.org (Ontario Canada Only)

CALIFORNIA
Actors and Others for Animals, actorsandothers.com
SF/SPCA Animal Hospital, sfspca.org/hospital/index.shtml
Animal Health Foundation, http://animalhealthfoundation.net/
Peninsula CatWorks (cats only), www.peninsulacatworks.org

COLORADO
Max Fund, maxfund.org
Harrison Memorial Animal Hospital, www.hmah.org

CONNECTICUT
Connecticut Humane Society Fox Veterinary Clinic, cthumane.org/site/PageServer?pagename=About_Fox

MARYLAND/WASHINGTON, D.C.
Washington Animal Rescue League, warl.org

MASSACHUSETTS
Alliance For Animals Metro Action Clinic, afaboston.org/clinic.htm
Massachusettes SPCA (Provides financial assistance for pet owners receiving services at one of its three medical centers, mspca.org/site/PageServer?pagename=AAMC_Boston_Financial_Assistance):

Angell Memorial Animal Hospital-Boston
350 South Huntington Ave.
Boston, MA 02130
617-522-7282

Angell Animal Medical Center-Nantucket
21 Crooked Lane
Nantucket, MA 02554
508-228-1491

Angell Animal Medical Center-Western New England
171 Union St.
Springfield, MA 01105
413-785-1221

The Sampson Fund
PO Box 1756
Orleans, MA 02653
sampsonfund.org
The fund is to benefit companion animals of Cape Cod and the adjacent Islands of Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard.

MICHIGAN
Michigan Humane Society maintains three veterinary clinics:
michiganhumane.org

Detroit
MHS Detroit Center for Animal Care
Veterinary Center:
7401 Chrysler Drive
Detroit, MI 48211
313-872-0004

Rochester Hills
MHS Rochester Hills Center for Animal Care
Veterinary Center:
3600 W. Auburn Road
Rochester Hills, MI 48309
248-852-7424

Westland
MHS Berman Center for Animal Care
Veterinary Center:
900 N. Newburgh Road
Westland, MI 48185
734-721-4195

NEVADA
Shakespeare Animal, shakespeareanimalfund.org

NEW JERSEY
Save U.S. Pets Foundation (Veterinarian must apply on behalf of pet owner), www.saveuspets.org

NEW YORK
NY S.A.V.E Inc., nysave.org/index_2.html
ALL 4 PETS, all4petswny.org (Limited to Western New York)

NORTH CAROLINA
Ashley's Angel Fund, ashleyfund.org/

OREGON
The Bearen Foundation, bearenfoundation.org/funding.htm

PENNSYLVANIA
Animal Care & Assistance Fund, http://www.animalcarefund.org
The Animal Rescue of Western PA, animalrescue.org/Clinic.htm
The Humane Society of Berks County Veterinary Hospital, berkshumane.org/vets/vets_services.asp

RHODE ISLAND
RIVMA Companion Animal Foundation, companionanimalfoundation.org

TEXAS
Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine "The Capper and Chris Save the Animals Fund," cvm.tamu.edu/capperchris/index.shtml

Organizations Offering Assistance Programs for Senior, Disabled or Ill Pet Owners
CALIFORNIA
Voice for the Animals Foundation, Helping Friends Program, http://vftafoundation.org
AniMeals Helen Woodward Animal Center, animalcenter.org/animeals/
SF SPCA Animal Hospital, sfspca.org/hospital/index.shtml
SHARE Marin Humane Society, marinhumanesociety.org/ProgramsServices/SHARE.html
PAWS San Diego, pawssdc.org/
PALS - Pets Are Loving Support, http://sonic.net/~pals/index.html
PAWS Los Angeles, pawsla.org/
PAWS San Francisco, pawssf.org

CONNECTICUT
Manchester Area Network on AIDS AID-A-PET, mana-ct.net/Aid-A-Pet.html

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
PETS-DC, petsdc.org/

GEORGIA
PALS - Pets Are Loving Support, palsatlanta.org

HAWAII
Hawaiian Humane Society: PALS Program, hawaiianhumane.org/programs/pals/

MASSACHUSETTS
Phinney's Friends (MSPCA), mspca.org/phinneysfriends

MICHIGAN
Pet Support Services, petsupportmi.org/

NEVADA
Shakespeare Animal, shakespeareanimalfund.org.

NEW JERSEY
PetPALS of Southern New Jersey, petfinder.com/shelters/NJ151.html

NEW YORK
Humane Society of Lollypop Farm, lollypop.org/orgMain.asp?ssid=&storyID=105&orgID=14&sid

PENNSYLVANIA
Pittsburgh PAWS (Pittsburgh AIDS Task Force), andrew.cmu.edu/user/natashat/PAWS/

TEXAS
SPCA of Texas, spca.org/site/PageServer?pagename=programs_socialservices_2004#petomeals

UTAH
Pet Samaritan Fund, www.petsamaritan.org

WASHINGTON
Pet Project: Seattle-King County Humane Society, seattlehumane.org/petproject.shtml and seattlehumane.org/foodbank.shtml
Washington State University College of Veterinary Medicine Good Samaritan Fund, www.vetmed.wsu.edu/depts-prd/GoodSam

CANADA
Pet Program (Toronto PWA Foundation), pwatoronto.org/what.htm#pets

For more information, visit cdc.gov/healthypets/resources/local_organizations.htm.

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Commercial Cat Food Dangers

2009-08-01T05:31:00.000-07:00

Here is a golden nugget I'd like to share with those of you who have not read the articles by the brilliant Dr.Lisa Pierson DVM at her site http://www.catinfo.org they are well reasoned and converted me entirely to feeding my cats her way and understanding the link between homemade cat food and health.

The Dangers of Commercial Pet Food - Especially Dry Food

With regard to the safety of raw meat diets, you will no doubt hear varying opinions on this issue. Many of my colleagues are adamantly opposed to the feeding of raw meat yet they think nothing of supporting the common practice of leaving bowls of dry food sitting out for pets to free-feed from and supporting the feeding of treats which can be contaminated with fungal mycotoxins, bacteria, or chemicals. It is very frustrating to witness this narrow-mindedness and lack of knowledge as it pertains to the contamination issues regarding dry food and treats.

I would like to see my colleagues stop reflexively telling their clients that all raw meat diets are dangerous and understand that there are ways to prepare this diet that will actually make it safer than the commercial foods that they continue to recommend without any thought as to feline illnesses that these foods contribute to, and to the contamination issues.

I don't think that a single cat or dog caregiver in the US is not aware of the thousands of cats and dogs that suffered tremendously and died - or have been left with failing kidneys and a shortened lifespan/diminished quality of life - due to the contamination of commercial foods processed by Menu Foods in the summer of 2007.

While the Menu Foods recall was the largest pet food recall in the history of commercial pet food, make no mistake in thinking that this was the first time that many cats and dogs have died after consuming commercial pet foods that have been contaminated with chemicals, bacteria, and bacterial or mold toxins.

However, keep in mind that the vast majority of these contamination disasters (outside of the Menu Foods tragedy) have involved dry food or treats - not canned food. Therefore, if you decide that you don't want to make your cat's food, please feed canned food and keep the dry food out of your cat's food bowl.

Dry food is simply not a healthy or safe diet to be feeding to any cat.

There have been many instances of mold toxin-related deaths of pets after eating contaminated commercial dry food. I have listed a few below but these tragedies are too numerous to list all of them.

The regulatory body for the commercial pet food industry does allow a certain level of mold toxins (found in grains) to be present in your pets' food. For me, this is unacceptable - especially when feeding cats - since grains have no business in their diet to begin with.

With regard to the extremely dangerous and life-threatening fungal toxins found in commercial dry food, this issue will never be a worry when feeding a grain-free diet - either in the form of canned food or the diet discussed on this page.

And if mold toxins and bacteria in dry food are not enough to cause us worry, please consider the fact that the fats contained in dry food become rancid over time - even with the preservatives that are added to the food. Heat, oxygen and light are all factors involved in fats becoming rancid. Keeping dry food in the refrigerator will help with the issue of heat but that still leaves the oxidation issue unaddressed.

Dry foods that are fed to pets sit in warm warehouses and pet food stores before they even reach our pets' bowls - promoting rancidity of fats, bacterial growth, mold growth, and toxin formation, and proliferation of storage mites.

See this link for an abstract that discusses the issue of storage mites that were found in 9 out of 10 bags of tested dry food.

This link will take you to an article on a website maintained by the pet food industry. This article discusses the use of ethanol by-products in pet foods.

There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that many cats and dogs have died as a result of consuming commercial pet foods. These deaths include the various illnesses (diabetes, etc.) that manifest themselves due to the species-inappropriate composition (composition = percentage of calories coming from proteins/fats/carbohydrates) of the diet, as well as out-and-out contamination issues as discussed above and below in the Pet Food Recalls section.

Unfortunately, humans just don't recognize these illogical and unsafe diets as the cause of the pet's illness. Humans - including veterinarians - often fail to put 2 + 2 together in many instances of ill health or death. Food is often the last thing to even be considered as a cause or contributing factor in the event of an illness or death.

It never ceases to amaze me when I hear people (both lay people and veterinarians) caution people about the hazards of raw meat diets but then ignore the bowls of kibble sitting out in many homes. Dry food is far from safe and pathogen-free. Both food forms - raw diets and dry kibble - carry risk. However, I feel much safer feeding the diet that I prepare myself versus any dry food in terms of cleanliness and overall safety.

As stated above, we all must work within our comfort zone. If you find that you are not comfortable feeding a raw meat - or lightly cooked - diet even when implementing the tips in my safety section, then please feed a high quality canned food and remove all dry kibble from your cat's diet. Although my cats primarily eat a carefully prepared raw (or lightly cooked) meat and bones diet, I do feed some canned food on occasion (a few times a year) as a treat since some of my cats really like canned food.

Homemade Cat Food and Health

2009-08-01T05:01:00.000-07:00

It may take a long time for cat owners to make the connection between homemade cat food and health and to change their pet to a natural diet free from the many contaminants found in commercial pet food. The advantages of putting your cat on a diet of fresh natural food you source and prepare yourself soon become clear. Who else is bothered by waste? I reckon I used to throw away at least 3/4 of every tin of cat food that I opened. The cat would eat a bit then refuse the rest, it was seriously expensive, annoying and frustrating. Once I switched to homemade food I soon learned just what my friend would eat and have six different meals I can alternate, that way the cat never tires of the same old food day after day. That is an end of the waste. My cat's health improved dramatically, especially with the raw food they both love. Their coats became more glossy and they are both far more active. It was as if I was feeding them a diet of junk food before, making them overweight and slothful.

Popping the lid on a can is almost effortless but a pet owner must truly consider if continuing to poison their pet in exchange for convenience is a road they really want to go down.

For me the real payoff for my efforts is that once my cats were on a proper diet of quality fresh food they now only go to the vet's once a year for a checkup, compared to the frustration and expense of taking them down for numerous allergies they developed from the commercial food. Once they both had the required nutrients and enzymes their bodies needed, their ailments cured themselves.

I reckon I can feed a cat a quality fresh pure meal for just 64cents and I don't spend any more time at the pet food store, rather I save money while at the same time seeing my cats way healthier than they ever were on tinned commercial cat food. The scary thing is that I realise now that it cost me serious money to feed my pets food that slowly poisoned them and guaranteed I would spend even more money at the vets trying to put all this right. Remember, its never too late to change and you may well save your pet's life.

Cat Health and Diet

2009-07-27T04:04:00.000-07:00

Some more thoughts on feline health from the brilliant Dr.Lisa A.Pierson, DVM http://www.catinfo.org and the connection between your cat's health and it's diet. Its a factor we ignore at our peril so please read on.

Common Feline Health Problems and Their Ties to Diet

There is a very strong and extremely logical connection between the way that we are currently feeding our obligate carnivores and many of the life-threatening diseases that afflict them.

Diabetes: Diabetes is a very serious – and difficult to manage – disease that is very common in cats. Why is it so common? The species-inappropriate high level of carbohydrates in dry food (and some canned foods) wreaks havoc on the blood sugar level of an obligate carnivore. The blood sugar level rises significantly upon ingestion of carbohydrates. With chronic hyperglycemia (high blood sugar) the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas down-regulate, or “burn out,” leading to diabetes.

Many cats have been successfully weaned off of insulin - or had the dosage significantly lowered - when transitioned to a low carbohydrate canned food. Please see this thread on the Feline Diabetes Board to read about many caregivers' success with their diabetic cats once all dry food was removed from the diet.

In addition to the issue of carbohydrates, dry food - because it is very calorie dense and is often free-fed - is the main reason why a very high percentage of cats are overweight or obese.

Fat cells produce a substance that makes the other cells in the body resistant to insulin. This promotes the diabetic state.

It is very important to understand the impact that a low carbohydrate diet has on the insulin needs of a diabetic cat.

If you have decided to start feeding your diabetic cat a low carbohydrate diet, please review my Feline Diabetes page first.

Please also be aware that many veterinarians underestimate the favorable impact that a low carbohydrate diet has on the insulin needs of the patient and they do not lower the insulin dose enough. If the insulin is not lowered accordingly, an overdose of insulin will occur which can be life- threatening. I strongly suggest that all caretakers of diabetic cats home-test to monitor blood glucose levels using a standard glucometer as a matter of routine, but careful monitoring is especially important when implementing a diet change.

Many veterinarians prescribe expensive diets such as Purina DM (Diabetes Management) and Science Diet m/d but you can do much better for your cat (and your pocketbook) by feeding other more nutritious - and lower carbohydrate - canned foods such as Wellness, Nature's Variety, etc. See the Proteins/Fats/Carbs chart. You should aim for a diet that derives less than 10% of its calories from carbohydrates.

Kidney Disease (CKD - formerly called "CRF"): Chronic kidney disease is probably the leading cause of mortality in the cat. It is troubling to think about the role that chronic dehydration may play in feline kidney failure. And remember, cats are chronically dehydrated when they are on a diet of predominantly dry food. The prescription dry 'renal diets' such as Science Diet k/d - which is commonly prescribed by veterinarians - contain only a small amount of moisture leaving your cat in a less than optimal state of water balance.

I must say that I find it truly amazing when I hear about the very large numbers of cats receiving subcutaneous fluids while being maintained on a diet of dry food. This is extremely illogical and unhealthy and every attempt should be made to get these cats on a diet that contains a higher moisture content. Please also note the following list of the first four ingredients of Science Diet dry k/d after reviewing this section on reading a pet food label - and bearing in mind that your cat is a carnivore. This is a diet that would never find its way into a food bowl owned by any cat in my care. The first three ingredients are not even meat and the fourth ingredient is a by-product meal which is not necessarily an unhealthy source of protein but it would be nice to see some muscle meat ("chicken") in this product.

Brewers rice, corn gluten meal, pork fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid), chicken by-product meal

The purpose of this prescription diet is to restrict protein which, unfortunately, it certainly does. However, please understand that there are no studies showing that restricting protein to this level will prevent further deterioration of kidney function. k/d restricts protein to the point that the cat will often catabolize (use for fuel) his own muscle mass which results in muscle wasting and weight loss. The level of protein in this diet is not only at an extremely low level, it is in an incomplete form for a carnivore. Note that it is made up mainly of plant proteins - not meat proteins.

Cystitis (bladder inflammation) and Bladder/Kidney Stones: Cystitis and stones are extremely common in the cat and can be very painful and life-threatening. Cystitis can lead to inappropriate urination (urinating outside of the litter box) and stones can cause a fatal rupture of the bladder by blocking the outflow of urine.

Any cat that is repeatedly entering the litter box but not voiding any urine is in need of IMMEDIATE medical attention! This is one reason why it is so important to use a clumping litter. Clumping litter allows you to see just how much, if any, urine is being voided.

It is important to note, however, that "crystals" are not the same thing as stones. Crystals are often a normal finding in a cat's urine and it is not appropriate to put the cat on a "special urinary tract" formula when these are found in the urine.

Important: I often see too much clinical significance placed on the identification of crystals in the urine without regard to how the urine sample was handled. It is very important to understand that crystals will often form once outside of the body within a very short (one hour) period of time. If the veterinarian does not examine the urine right away and either sends it to an outside laboratory or uses a free-catch sample that the owner brought from home, an erroneous diagnosis of crystals may be made. This is called a "false positive" report and results in unnecessary worry on the part of the owner and often leads to the cat being placed on an inappropriate, low quality diet.

With regard to overall kidney and bladder health, I cannot stress strongly enough how important WATER, WATER, WATER is in both the prevention and treatment of diseases involving this organ system.

When a cat is on a diet of water-depleted dry food, they produce a more highly concentrated urine (higher urine specific gravity - USG) and they produce a lower volume of urine which means that a higher concentration of crystals will be present in the urine. This increases the chance of these crystals forming life-threatening stones. The concentrated urine and the lack of volume production can also be very irritating to the lining of the bladder wall predisposing them to painful cystitis.

Please keep in mind that a cat has a very low thirst drive and is designed to get water with their food. A diet of canned food will keep a proper amount of water flowing through the urinary tract system and help maintain its health.

If leaves keep falling on your driveway and you don’t regularly hose down or sweep your driveway, those leaves will build up and cause a problem. If you picture crystals as the leaves in this analogy, it is easy to see how canned food does a better job of ‘hosing down’ your cat’s bladder than dry food does.

Urine pH is also often considered when discussing urinary tract problems but we really need to stop focusing on pH. Again, a proper amount of water in the diet is the important issue here - not urine pH. Many of the so-called feline lower urinary tract diets are formulated to make the urine acidic but it is thought that these low magnesium, acidifying diets may actually exacerbate painful cystitis. Also, these acidifying diets, which are so often prescribed, may end up promoting calcium oxylate stones and hypokalemia (low potassium in the blood).

It is also important to note - for those people still stuck on worrying about the urine pH - that there are many factors which determine the pH of urine and only one of them is diet.

With regard to dry food and urinary tract health, aside from the lack of water in this type of diet, there is also a correlation between the consumption of a high carbohydrate diet and the formation of struvite crystals as shown by this study.

Veterinarians often prescribe Science Diet dry c/d and x/d for urinary tract problems but again, these diets are only ten percent water and contain a high level of species-inappropriate ingredients and questionable preservatives. They are also very high in carbohydrates with dry c/d containing 42 percent of its weight as carbohydrates. Please note the first few ingredients in c/d while remembering that your cat is a carnivore:

Brewers rice, chicken by-product meal, corn gluten meal, pork fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid), chicken liver flavor, taurine, preserved with BHT and BHA

Diet is not the only issue involved with cystitis but it is an important one and one that we can control. Stress is also thought to play a very significant role in cystitis and even cats that are fed a 100 percent canned food diet may experience bouts of cystitis. This is a very frustrating disease to deal with and one that the veterinary community does not have all the answers for. What we do know is that decreasing stress and increasing the water content of the diet are the most important management issues to address. The water content of the diet is easy to control. The stress issue is another matter and is not always easy to address since cats can be very sensitive and are often 'silent' in their stress.

Cystitis can be extremely painful and it is very important to address pain management in these cats. Remember: pain = stress and we are trying to minimize the stress in these patients. Buprinex is a good choice for a pain medication. This is superior to Torbugesic which has been used for pain management in the cat in the past. (Burprinex is a prescription medication that you must get from your veterinarian.) Unfortunately, many veterinarians overlook pain medications as a very important part of the treatment of this common feline problem.

A note on antibiotic usage in these cases. Most cases of cystitis are sterile. In other words, they are not the result of an infection and should not be placed on antibiotics.

Only ~1% of cats with cystitis that are under 10 years of age have a urinary tract infection, yet many veterinarians place these patients on antibiotics when these drugs are not warranted. Most cats under 10 years of age produce a very concentrated urine (USG greater than 1.030) and bacteria do not grow well in concentrated urine.

In cats over 10 years of age, infections are more common but that still does not mean that older cats with cystitis should automatically be put on antibiotics. The reason that an older cat is more prone to urinary tract infections is because kidney disease is more common in this age group and so these cats will have a more dilute urine which is not as hostile to bacterial growth.

Diabetes and hyperthyroidism are also more common in cats over 10 years of age and both disease make the patient more prone to urinary tract infections.

A urine culture and sensitivity (C & S) should be run to check for an infection if the patient has a low urine specific gravity or is diabetic. It must be kept in mind that even with a low USG, most cases of cystitis are not due to an infection. This is why it is important to run a C & S before placing the patient on antibiotics. Antibiotics should only be used when the presence of an infection can be established.

A C & S test identifies the bacteria (if present) and tells the veterinarian which antibiotic is appropriate. The urine for a C & S needs to be obtained by way of cystocentesis which involves using a syringe and needle to obtain urine directly from the bladder. This is not a painful procedure for the cat and this method is the only way to obtain a sample for accurate information in order to properly treat with antibiotics. One problem, however, is that a sample may be difficult to obtain without waiting a few hours since cats with cystitis urinate frequently and often do not have enough urine in their bladder to get a good sample.

To get around this problem, some veterinarians will give the patient a dose of subcutaneous (just under the skin) fluids. The cat is then put into a cage without a litter box. Within a few hours, the bladder is usually full enough to obtain a urine sample via cystocentesis. This usually only takes 2-3 hours.

We have to stop treating all cases of cystitis with antibiotics without supporting evidence of an infection!

Cystitis will often recur in these patients and this painful health problem can be very frustrating to deal with. On a good note, most cats will have their clinical signs spontaneously resolve even without any treatment. In fact, it has often been said, somewhat jokingly, that a cat with cystitis will often stop exhibiting clinical signs within in seven days with treatment and in one week without treatment.

Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD): IBD can cause vomiting, diarrhea, and/or constipation in the cat. IBD can also present with weight loss as the only clinical sign. There are many unanswered questions with respect to this disease process, but it seems logical to start to “treat” a gastrointestinal problem in the cat with a species-appropriate diet. Too often these cats are treated with a high level of steroids and a prescription grain-laden, dry food diet. I feel very strongly that this common therapeutic regimen needs to be abandoned. There are an impressive number of anecdotal reports of cats that were terribly ill with IBD exhibiting dramatic improvement when ALL dry food was removed from their diet. Taking it even one step further, there are many reports of cats with IBD that improved tremendously on a balanced, grainless, raw-meat diet without any vegetables added. (See www.catnutrition.org for more information on IBD and diet. Also, see Making Cat Food for a balanced recipe.)

Robbie had severe diarrhea for two years until put on a grainless, vegetable-free, raw-meat diet.

Obesity: Obesity is an extremely common and very serious health problem in cats. For instance, overweight cats are four times more likely to develop diabetes than cats that are at an optimal weight. Obligate carnivores are designed to meet their energy needs with a high protein, moderate fat diet with little to no carbohydrates. Carbohydrates are minimally used for energy and those that are not used are converted to and stored as fat. The so-called “light” diets that are on the market have targeted the fat content as the nutrient to be decreased, but in doing so, the pet food manufacturers have increased the grain fraction, leading to a higher level of carbohydrates. Hence, many overweight cats eating these diets are still obese. These "light" products are among the most species-inappropriate, unhealthy diets available to cat caretakers. Many caretakers feed very small amounts of these diets hoping that their cat will lose weight but feeding a small amount of a diet that is inappropriate for the species is NOT the answer! The caretaker simply ends up with a crabby, overweight cat.

(See Molly’s story at http://www.catnutrition.org/obesity.html and also on this site's Feline Obesity page to read how this sweet cat went from an inactive obese cat that could barely walk and could not even clean herself, to a very active and happy cat simply by transitioning her to canned Wellness. Molly now runs through the house playing like a normal cat. She can finally clean herself, and no longer limps.)

Molly had great difficulty walking and cleaning herself due to her obese condition which was brought on by the consumption of dry food. Kittens, however, loved using her for a pillow.

Molly’s veterinarian had prescribed Science Diet dry r/d for her and instructed her caretaker to feed Molly only very small portions - and to put a shock collar on her to keep her away from her housemates' food. This is not sound - or humane - obesity management advice. Science Diet r/d is an illogical and poor quality diet that contains 33 percent carbohydrates and the following - less than optimal - ingredients:

Chicken by-product meal, corn meal, powdered cellulose 18.5% (a source of fiber), corn gluten meal, chicken liver flavor, vegetable oil, taurine, L-carnitine, preserved with BHT, BHA and ethoxyquin

There are much healthier and more logical ways to address feline obesity.

Hepatic Lipidosis (Fatty Liver Disease): This is the most common metabolic liver disease of cats. Overweight cats that go longer than 48 hours without eating, for any reason, are in danger of developing this serious, and often fatal, disease. Feeding a high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet helps keep cats at an optimal, healthy body weight and, in turn, makes them less likely to end up with fatty liver disease.

Dental Disease: Long-standing claims that cats have less dental disease when they are fed dry food versus canned food are grossly overrated, inaccurate, and are not supported by recent studies. This frequently stated (among veterinarians and lay people) myth continues to harm cats by perpetuating the idea that their food bowls need to be filled up with an unhealthy diet in order to keep their teeth clean. The idea that dry food promotes dental health makes about as much sense as the idea that crunchy cookies would promote dental health in a human.

First, dry food is hard, but brittle, and merely shatters with little to no abrasive effect on the teeth. Second, a cat's jaws and teeth are designed for shearing and tearing meat - not biting down on dry kibble. Third, many cats swallow the majority of their dry food whole.

There are many factors – known and unknown - that contribute to dental disease in the cat such as genetics, viruses, and diet. There remain many unanswered questions concerning the fact that cats often suffer from poor dental health. However, feeding a high carbohydrate, species-inappropriate dry kibble diet is a negative factor, not a positive one.

Dry kibble does not even come close to mimicking a cat’s normal diet of mice, birds, rabbits, etc. Given what a cat does eat in nature, it makes much more sense to be feeding part of the diet in the form of large chunks of meat (as large as you can get your cat to chew on) or gizzards which a cat’s teeth are designed to chew. Raw meat is ‘tougher’ to chew than cooked meat so I prefer to use raw meat to promote dental health. (See Making Cat Food - Dental Health.

Notice the phrase “part of the diet” in the above sentence. It is very important to understand that plain meat (ie - without bones or another source of calcium) is very unbalanced since there is minimal calcium in meat. Remember that when a cat eats his normal prey, he is consuming the bones along with the meat.

When fed as a supplement to most commercial canned foods, it is safe to feed ~15% of the daily calories in the form of plain meat. For example, if a cat is eating 6 ounces of canned food per day, you could feed him 5 ounces of canned food plus 1 ounce of chunked muscle meat per day.

When people ask me “how often should my cats be fed chunks of meat?”, I reply “how often do you brush your own teeth?”

Please understand that I am not saying that canned food is necessarily better for teeth than dry food. For optimal dental health, a cat should not be eating either canned or dry food since neither food type promotes healthy teeth but we have to work with what is practical in a typical home setting and feeding a cat a 'whole carcass prey' diet is not terribly practical - even if it would be great for their teeth. The compromise is to at least give them some muscle meat to chew on and stop fooling ourselves into thinking that dry food promotes dental health in our cats.

Feline Asthma/Allergic Airway Disease: Many cats have had their respiratory symptoms (coughing/difficulty breathing) subside considerably, or disappear completely, once they are placed on a canned food diet, or a meat-based home-prepared diet. Some of these struggling cats may have been reacting to storage mites or cockroach antigens that are present in dry foods, or they may have been reacting to the gluten (protein fraction) part of the grains that are present in dry foods. Sadly, many cats exhibiting debilitating lung disease are simply put on an immunosuppressive dose of steroids - while still being fed an inappropriate diet. While steroids are necessary in some cases of airway disease, they are not addressing the root of the problem which can, in many cases, be an allergy to proteins in the form of species-inappropriate grains, and insect antigens. Steroids commonly cause diabetes in cats and also render them vulnerable to infections from viruses, bacteria, and fungal agents so it is very important to make sure you have ruled out diet as a cause of the cat's respiratory symptoms.

Robbie and Calvin flexing their muscles

The Safety of Dry Food

Dry food is far from a clean, safe, and pathogen-free source of food for your cat. Please see this section on my Making Cat Food page which details just a few of the many pet food recalls due to contamination with deadly chemicals, bacteria (salmonella, etc.), fungal mycotoxins, and storage mites.

The issue of rancid fats in dry food is also discussed on my Making Cat Food page.

Preventative nutrition

2009-07-27T03:45:00.000-07:00

I found this gem recently from the brilliant Dr.Lisa A Pierson http://www.catinfo.org/ who has forgotten more than most of us know about feeding our cats, she is the authority on how to feed your cat home cooked cat food. Have a read of this article below, does this apply to any of us? Words of wisdom follow.

My Cat is Doing Just "Fine" on Dry Food!

Every living creature is “fine” until outward signs of a disease process are exhibited. That may sound like a very obvious and basic statement but if you think about it……

Every cat on the Feline Diabetes Message Board was “fine” until their owners started to recognize the signs of diabetes.

Every cat with a blocked urinary tract was “fine” until they started to strain to urinate and either died from a ruptured bladder or had to be rushed to the hospital for emergency catheterization.

Every cat with an inflammed bladder (cystitis) was “fine” until they ended up in pain, passing blood in their urine, and missing their litter box.

Every cancer patient was “fine” until their tumor grew large enough or spead far enough so that clinical signs were observed by the patient.

Every cat was ‘fine’ until the feeding of species-inappropriate, hyperallergenic ingredients caught up with him and he started to show signs of IBD (inflammatory bowel disease).

Every cat was "fine" until that kidney or bladder stone got big enough to cause clinical signs.

The point is that diseases 'brew' long before being noticed by the living being.

This is why the statement “but my cat is healthy/fine on dry food” means very little to me because I believe in preventative nutrition - not locking the barn door after the horse is gone. I don’t want to end up saying “oops……I guess he is not so fine now!!" when a patient presents to me with a medical problem that could have been avoided if he would have been feed a species-appropriate diet to begin with.

Of course, in order to be on board with the 'preventative nutrition' argument, a person has to understand the fact that carbohydrates wreak havoc on a cat’s blood sugar balance, that a urinary tract system is much healthier with an appropriate amount of water flowing through it, that cats inherently have a low thirst drive and need water *with* their food, and finally, that cats are designed to get their protein from meat – not plants.

Cat Nutrition

2009-07-21T02:03:00.001-07:00

Here are some interesting facts to ponder when considering cat food with thanks to Jodie from:-

http://organicpetmall.blogspot.com/2009/07/truths-and-myths-about-feeding-your-cat.html

Truths and Myths About Feeding Your Cat

While I was learning about feline nutrition I was astounded at what I thought I knew that was not true. Here are a few of the things I have learned on the way that I thought I would pass on.

Dry Food helps your cat prevent dental disease

False. Dental disease has no correlation to food choices. Studies have shown there is no difference between cats fed canned cat food or dry.

Most cats that get Feline Urologic Disease eat dry cat food

True. FUS can be prevented by feeding your cat a quality pet food with high protein as this type of food tends to raise your cat’s acidic urine. Acidic urine prevents the growth of germs that cause Feline Urologic Disease.

Feeding your cat a high quality food is expensive

False. The lower the quality of food you feed your cat the more you have to feed of it. Most obesity in cats comes from feeding your cat a low quality food. In order for your cat to get the nutrients they need in these foods they need to eat more. The more they eat the more calories they ingest the more weight they gain.

A Grazing Cat is a Happy Cat

False. In nature a cat makes a kill and eats it. They do not have a refrigerator or ability to can. They kill and eat. Automatic feeders cause your cat’s metabolism to slow and cause obesity (my own cat Slakk in his kitty crack days used to fall asleep with his head in the food bowl). As noted above, there are health implications such as Feline Urologic Disease as well.

Cats can get addicted to food

True. There are a couple of the low quality canned foods that I have fed in the past and it was tough to get the cats off of them. Artificial flavors, tuna, salt and sugar are the main culprits.

A few seriously interesting facts that are food for thought for all of us cat lovers

http://organicpetmall.blogspot.com/2009/07/truths-and-myths-about-feeding-your-cat.html

Kidney Failure in Cats

2009-07-19T02:42:00.000-07:00

Kidney failure in cats is the most common form of death for cats. Sadly 75% of kidney damage and loss will occur before the cat shows any sign of illness or symptoms. What are the reasons for this sad loss? The latest research shows that this disease is diet related. Commercial cat food is thought to have serious deficits in nutritional content. Pet food comes from rendering plants where dubious "meat" is heated to high temperatures and where animal fats are added to make the food taste better, as well as colouring , preservatives and other chemicals.

Does all this sound a far cry from what your cat would eat in the wild? Eating this processed and unnatural food causes a buildup of toxins in your cat's immune system, weakening it and making it susceptible to disease and drastically shortening its life.

How to avoid all this is the important issue, so how? There can be no doubt that putting your cat on a diet of fresh natural food, free of all additives, will supply it with all the nutrition it will ever need for a long, happy and active life with you. Your cat will cease being a couch potato almost immediately and you will notice the changes very quickly from a glossy coat to bright shiny eyes as nature intended. To continue giving your pet tinned commercial food is, in reality, to agree to keep poisoning it and who on earth among us would do that if we knew about it?

Even if, sadly, your cat is ill right now, it is not too late to turn to a diet of fresh natural food, this will certainly ease its sufferings. For sure, prevention is better than cure and starting your cat on the correct diet from day one is the real answer.

Homemade Cat Food

2009-07-17T04:48:00.000-07:00

A little over half a century ago commercial pet food was unheard of. I grew up with cats that seemed to be part of the very fabric of the house, they were there as I grew up and when I left home and returned. Instead of heart disease, diabetes and kidney ailments that now end a cat's life by the age of seven to nine, it was common for our cats to see two or three decades of vigorous life before old age took them.

Cats are now frequently obese and lethargic as they are fed a diet of tinned and dry commercial food and frequently too much. It is akin to feeding them junk food and in the way that we too become ill if fed a junk food diet with all it's risk of obesity and diabetes, so too do cats.

The result is a premature death and before that a lot of seriously expensive visits to the vet. By comparison with the cats I grew up with, it was a very rare event when one of them had to go to the vet at all.

So what happens if we dare ourselves to take a step back in time and pretend that commercial cat food does not exist? We will feed them homemade cat food and know where it comes from.

We will all now source our own fresh natural food and find ourselves with at least six different recipes and this way we will waste far less as we now know exactly what our pet will eat - and finish. A natural diet boosts the immune system; it does not, unlike commercial food, prompt unwanted visits to the vet. In addition it is immediately noticeable how the cat's health improves with bright eyes and shiny coat and real energy. Cats were never meant to be couch potatoes.

So you now have the choice before you, continue the commercial "junk food diet" or wean your feline off it before it is too late. If you knew that you can give your pet real human grade safe and natural food, some of which is even free and save money and time you would surely do that wouldn't you? Even more so if you knew you could add up to eight extra years to it's life?

Remember it is never too late to decide to make the switch to fresh natural homemade cat food which is simple to make, stores well and is inexpensive. In these recessionary times we can all make an instant saving. The reward is in your cat's eyes! Lets take thay step back in time together!

Homemade Cat Food And Health.

2009-07-16T03:28:00.000-07:00

Most cat owners know that there is a direct link between their cat's health and it's diet and that ninety percent of cat diseases are diet related and that homemade cat food and health are directly related. Switching your cat to a natural diet is easy when recipes are readily available, one great benefit is that your cat does not get bored of the same old meal and then start wasting the food.

Once cat owners realise what has been making it's way into their cat's food bowl and have read the full horrors of the pet food recalls of 2007/08, a natural diet is the obvious choice. Opening yet another can is efforless but most cat owners would not want to continue to poison their pet for the sake of convenience.

Once people know how to easily resource their cat food and even get free human grade food as I do, then how to easily prepare, store and serve the food, they soon develop an easy system. Going to the pet store becomes a chore of the past and if you have time to do that you definitely have time to make your own cat food.

The real payoff is the result of course. Once your cat eats fresh, natural and wholesome food free of additives and chemicals, its health positively rebounds and the the cat's digestive system will be able to gain the essential nutriets and enzymes its body has been craving.

Seeing your favourite feline truly healthy and full of energy is a reward in itself, even the most slothful couch potato is quickly reformed.

Preventing Cat Diease Through Natural Diet

2009-07-13T05:15:00.000-07:00

Preventing cat disease through natural diet is the way that informed cat owners have turned to, to keep their pets healthy and out of the vet's examination room. Prevention is better than cure as we all know, so why wait until your pet is sick to change its diet? It is now widely acknowledged that ninety percent of cat illness is directly related to the food it eats. A natural diet is a blessing for cats with health problems because a diet of fresh food works as nourishment and also as a medicine.

A natural diet can be most helpful for the following health problems.

Obesity, a constant problem for cats, especially house cats who are fed too much and seldom if ever go out and exercise. A natural diet has high quality protein and no added fats, sugars and carbohydrates. Your cat's weight should balance out on its own.

Diarrhoea, soft stools and foul smelling stools. What goes in must come out. If a cat is fed unnatural ingredients as in commercial food, the chemicals and toxic additives can produce a very smelly house. On a natural diet of fresh food the cat's digestion system works as nature intended and the cat will assimilate all the necessary nutrients it needs and dispose of the rest.

Vomiting, is a way of getting incompatible food out of the body quickly. Natural diets have everything they need to help your cat soothe and repair a digestive system damaged by chemicals in commercial food.

Temperament issues, when a cat's behaviour changes, its time to ask why and revue what it eats. The chemicals found in commercial diets are known neurotoxins. A diet of fresh food contains no toxins or additives, is composed of necessary vitamins and fatty acids that increase and support brain function.

Coat & Skin Problems One of the first ways we recognise that a cat is not well is that it looses it normal glossy coat. One of the reasons for this is that chemicals found in commercial food will be excreted through the skin leading to coat and skin problems.

Other diseases that greatly benefit from a diet of fresh natural food are, arthritis, peridontal disease and diabetes, thyroid and kidney ailments. Even if your cat has spent years on commercial food it is not too late to stop and turn to a natural diet. A sick cat can benefit hugely and have its suffering eased. The great lesson to be learned is to start off as you intend to go on, leave the tinned food in the store and turn to your own resources. You can easily add up to eight extra years to your cat's life and a life full of energy and vigour not lethargy.

The Pet Food Industry and Vets

2009-07-10T06:09:00.000-07:00

The pet food industry and vets, what many cat owners do not know is that pet food companies are large contributors to vetinary programmes. In a vetinarian's office it is not uncommon to see a cat and dog food brand with various advertisements about as well. Did you know that your vet is receiving a monthly or quarterly payment to promote the brand whether he or she uses it or not? The vetinary organisation your vet belongs to has made its own deal with the pet food company and your vet now counts on this promotional fee as part of their business income. In the end it is all about profit and not whether your cat is getting the best nutrition possible.

There have been many renowned vetinarians who have lost their license to practice for speaking out against pet food companies and the quality of food they have been foisting on the general public and their animals for over fifty years.

Luckily attitudes are changing and many vetinarians are choosing to study feline and canine nutrition on their own and practicing holistic medicine. The plain fact is however, your vet simply can't have all the answers if he or she has never made a study of natural diets. With the pet food recalls of 2007/2008 and later ones too, there is a growing awareness and demand for a natural approach to feeding cats.

For the sake of your pet, do not allow pet food companies and ill trained vetinarians to make choices for you on your cat's dietary needs. The decision should only rest with someone who is invested in your cat's day to day well being, not someone whose main concern is the bottom line of their business.

Raw Food Diets for Cats

2009-07-06T09:04:00.000-07:00

We should be realistic and not expect our feline friends to be in perfect health always, equally there is no need to constantly affravate their health with a less than adequate food source. Unfortunately chemicals are soemething that nature never intended a cat to process. There can be over thirty chemicals in a single can or packet of commercial food. Multiply this by the number of times a cat is fed in just one week and you will see that the poor cat is overexposed by day one!

What can a caring cat owner do? The answer is to feed your cat a homemade diet, especially a raw food diet for cats. This is as near as you can get to its natural food. Many cats eat commercial food year round and conventional knowledge now tells us that ninety percent of cat health issues are diet related. This leads inevitably to visits to the vet and some very steep bills. Most cat owners have to wait until their cat is visibly sick to see the damage that is being done.

Your cats digestive system is still geared to that of its wild counterparts who still eat a natural diet of raw food every day. It still needs those essential nutrients that are lacking in commercial food.

Many cat owners have noticed a remarkable rebound in the health of their pets when they do finally have the correct nutrients. Where there are health issues there is a serious drop in symptoms. The cat's coat becomes fuller and shinier, their eyes bright and overall disposition more well rounded. Once your cat is on a natural raw food diet there is simply no going back.

Cat Diabetes and Natural Food

2009-07-03T06:26:00.000-07:00

With many cats over eating and becoming overweight we are seeing a huge increase in cat diabetes. If your cat has been on a diet of commercial food all its life then it will have ingested an incredible amount of grains and sugars. The grains come from the corn, soy and rice that tends to make up the base of a good many commercial cat foods. The problem with this is that cats were never meant to have a diet high in grains or sugar. Just because most cat owners have been duped into sixty years of using grain based pet food does not mean that feline physiology will change.

If your cat has developed diabetes all is not lost, you can care for your cat properly, there is an answer in cat diabetes and natural food and the key is fresh natural food you source and prepare yourself. Your cat's digestive system and its many organs will have the opportunity to finally work in perfect harmony. You will notice an almost immediate change in your cat's health, it will loose weight if obese, become more vigorous and its coat more glossy.

Natural Cat Food Recipes

2009-06-29T06:47:00.000-07:00

Natural cat food recipes attract those cat owners who have had enough of the scares of the pet food recalls and really wonder what goes into those cans and packets. The pet food recalls of 2007/2008 finally cued the masses to the fact that they had been duped. The billions spent on a skilful campaign to convince cat and dog owners that pet food companies cared about pets and that their product was superior was proven utterly false.

Many people turned to natural cat food recipes and were surprised to find that the ingredients were easy to find, easy to put together and cost less than the commercial product. Some of ingredients are amazingly free!

Cats on natural fresh food thrive from the variety offered to them, their health improves and the owners save money on both trips to the vet as well as on the expensive commercial food.

Fresh Homemade Cat Food versus commercial

2009-06-26T08:49:00.000-07:00

The arguments for fresh homemade cat food versus commercial continue unabated and for good reason. Many cat owners have grown utterly frustrated and weary of seeing their favourite feline in poor health. The more so when they are knee deep in vet bills. There really is a simple way to keep your cat out of the revolving door of your vetinary practice.

When you feed your cat yourself and source its food, you know exactly what goes into your pet's bowl. Knowing that ninety percent of cat health problems are diet related, cat owners are rightly suspicious of exactly what goes into those tins and packets of food with their glossy labels and a picture of a cat on the front, obviously in great health. There are thirty or so man made chemicals that can end up in your cat's meal that can lead to everything from diabetes to arthritis. The "meat" that goes into tinned food has come from a rendering plant and been heated up to high temperatures, a far cry from what your cat would eat naturally.

A diet of fresh natural food will enable you to skip the harmful chemicals of commercial food and the rendering plant with its diet of dead feed lot animals and other disturbing waste products. Most importanly you will see a marked improvement in your cat's health, a drop in vet bills as well as adding up to an extra eight years to your cat's life. It is never too late to turn to a diet of fresh natural food especially when you know that not only is it human grade food, but amazingly some of it is even free!

Low Protein Cat Food

2009-06-22T04:02:00.000-07:00

Cats on special diets have special needs; and recipes for low protein cat food using natural ingredients can be a great way to get your feline friend everything he or she needs. Why would a cat need a low protein diet? Well one of the most common reasons is CRF or chronic renal failure. Sadly once the kidneys are damaged, that damage is ireversable but with a diet of fresh foods you can provide premium nourishment to your cat.

With a diet of low protein cat food you can help your cat cope with it's disease in a humane manner. With a diet of fresh homemade food your cat's system will be able to break down the protein and be able to gather a vast store of nutrients not found in commercial food.

Low protein cat food is the best way to ensure that a cat with kidney problems gets what it needs in every meal. It's kidney issues should improve along with its coat and temperament plus of course it's lifespan.

Homemade Cat Food for Cats With Sensitive Stomachs

2009-06-18T03:45:00.000-07:00

An important issue for any cat owner is just how do you set about making homemade cat food for cats with sensitive stomachs? The usual merrigoround is for a cat with a sensitive stomach to just be moved from one commercial food brand to another hoping for the best. Needless to say this leads to a huge amount of waste of both food and money

Vets will often assume the problem lies with the cat not the food. The reality of course is that commercial food contains a number of chemicals, toxins, preservatives, sugars, fats and waste products. If you saw these laid out on your kitchen table to feed your friend you would be rightly shocked. When combined in a tin with a fancy label you would assume it was good honest fare.

The answer of course is to source and make your own delicious food your pet will love and NOT waste. Unbelievably all of this food is human grade and some is even free, yes I hear your disbelief, but each week I collect two bags of free food so good I have made a pie from it and eaten it myself!

For sure in a recession there is not much given away but pet food still is, an immediate and welcome saving for any pet owner. This is just part of the answer to helping feed a cat with a sensitive stomach.

Homemade Dry Cat Food

2009-06-15T10:28:00.000-07:00

How to set about making your own home made cat food?
Well why would anyone want to? Why go to all the trouble when there is such a vast array of brands and flavours sitting on store shelves to choose from?

I guess we would all choose a natural diet for our cats if we knew he or she:

Could live up to two decades or much longer?
would have a naturally boosted immune system?
Would not be ingesting toxins that break down its health?
Is already naturally attracted to the ingredients?

Making your own cat food whether dry or wet is simple quick and easy and gives you peace of mind. You'll know for the first time what your friend and companion is really eating. What is more the food your cat eats is no longer wasted. My neighbour compains that she throws away at least three quaters of every can she buys her cats! In these recessionary days that really adds up.......

Welcome to my blog

2009-06-15T10:25:00.000-07:00

Hi there
Welcome to my very first blog. I'm really excited to be able to share with you some important information on an alternative and safe way to feed our feline friends. Importantly how to understand what really goes into commercial pet food, vital information on how to protect your cat. How to ensure your cat stays healthy and vital as nature intended and NOT in the vets.