An Overview of Raw Food Diets for Cats

Feeding your cats a raw diet can be a slightly daunting prospect at first, but it is also an extremely rewarding one. Many people would consider feeding their dogs a raw food diet but for whatever reason, cats sometimes get lost in the fray.

It's true that cats have slightly more stringent dietary requirements than dogs. While many people consider dogs to be carnivores, they're technically omnivores- dogs in the wild do eat some grasses and other plants, including the stomach contents of their prey. Domestic dogs, as many dog owners can attest, also seem to enjoy a variety of vegetables and fruits. Many raw food dog diets include ground vegetables and fruit because they seem to be part of a healthy canine diet.

Cats, on the other hand, are obligate carnivores. Lacking the dogs' tendency to scavenge, they hunt, kill, and eat their prey. Rarely will you see a healthy cat snacking on grasses in the wild if there is any sort of meat product around for consumption.

Because dietary requirements are slightly stricter for cats, the raw food diet should be well planned to assure that there are ample nutrients. Generally, making large quantities of food at once and freezing it is a good way to ensure quality control. Supplements such as B vitamins, salmon oil, and taurine can be added to an acceptable proportion of organ and muscle meat (about 15-20% organ meat and very meaty bones such as chicken legs) and then ground together to form a sort of mixture which resembles wet cat food. An electric meat grinder makes this task a pretty easy and quick one, and all that remains is to freeze the mixture in containers and defrost as the cat eats. All supplements can be purchased from any well stocked health or grocery store and are relatively inexpensive.