Raw for cat

[BettinaT]

I now give raw turkey and chicken, i add vitamin powder from knowwhatyoufeed.com, and want to add in some more different kind of meat. But it is necessary to give different meat every day or how often to shift?

Raw rabbit meat for cats, its that a good thing to give also?


I also give a finish mix of raw, which is this :
This complete food "EasyBARF Poultry for cats" consists of
35% chicken
30% turkey meat
15% chicken necks without skin
12% chicken bellies/hearts
max. 5% pumpkin
Chicken liver
Taurine

 

[Dr. Jeff]

ecessary to give different meat every day or how often to shift?

No, it's not necessary. The frequency of switching depends on the availability of the food. If the food is balanced, e.g BARF or meat + Calcium + a vitamin mix designed for raw feeders.

Raw rabbit meat for cats, its that a good thing to give also?

By itself, no muscle meat is sufficient. But a balanced raw rabbit diet with bones, organs and glands is good.

@Dr. Jean Hofve might have more to say about your questions...

 

[BettinaT]

Thanks for your answer Jeff.
Will some days with only pure meat be okay, when i also often give this BARF :
´´This complete food "EasyBARF Poultry for cats" consists of
35% chicken
30% turkey meat
15% chicken necks without skin
12% chicken bellies/hearts
max. 5% pumpkin
Chicken liver
Taurine''


And what do you think of the mix of the BARF?

No, it's not necessary. The frequency of switching depends on the availability of the food. If the food is balanced, e.g BARF or meat + Calcium + a vitamin mix designed for raw feeders.

By itself, no muscle meat is sufficient. But a balanced raw rabbit diet with bones, organs and glands is good.

@Dr. Jean Hofve might have more to say about your questions...

 

[Dr. Jean Hofve]

Hi Bettina, I like to change the diet at least every three months. The meat combo looks fine but it's still the same food every day. Maybe you could find a mix of red meats to use now and then for a few weeks. You have to be a little careful with rabbit; like other red meats it is quite low in taurine (though this company knows to supplement!), and if a rabbit is ground whole, including the intestines, taurine quickly becomes depleted.

 

[Dr. Jeff]

Will some days with only pure meat be okay, when i also often give this BARF :

IMHO, yes.

And what do you think of the mix of the BARF?

Seems fine. But like Dr. Jean, I favor as much variety as possible.

 

[Dr. Jean Hofve]

Technically, no more than 10-15% of the entire diet should be outside the balanced part. So 10-15% of the time you can give just meat. But the lack of calcium and the vitamins and minerals provided by the liver and supplement are significant if overdone.

 

[Dr. Christina]

I would encourage you to offer "people food" on a regular basis so you can discover what foods are adored and hated. This will be useful if there is an illness with picky appetite - you will know that ice cream, or yogurt, or a fruit or vegetable will be particularly tempting. And it is useful for homeopathic prescribers as well.

Remember there are no "right" answers as each animal is unique. These are merely very good guidelines.

Do listen to the talks by Anitra Frazier as she points out that health is improved by your happiness with feeding!

Dr. Christina

 

[BettinaT]

Hi Bettina, I like to change the diet at least every three months. The meat combo looks fine but it's still the same food every day. Maybe you could find a mix of red meats to use now and then for a few weeks. You have to be a little careful with rabbit; like other red meats it is quite low in taurine (though this company knows to supplement!), and if a rabbit is ground whole, including the intestines, taurine quickly becomes depleted.

Thanks for answer.

My cats are 11 and 12 years old.
I have do raw for some years now. But just want to know what i can do better

I now know, they don't like to big pieces of for example chicken neck. And i have try to add chicken hearts and liver in small pieces, but they don't eat that. But in the BARF where its all blendende together like a wetfood, they eat that.

As I said, I give them pure chicken or turkey and rabbit.

When I feed only pure meat, I have added vitamin powder from knowwhatyoufeed.com

And then I also give them the BARF mix with added taurine.

Is there anything I should change here or pay more attention to?

My cats don't like other meats such as beef.


If i want to do my own BARF, i was thought about using a meat grinder and mixing the chicken and chicken neck together.

And then also do the same with turkey.

That way I could split it up more, so that my cats don't get chicken and turkey at the same time, as they do now when I use the ready-made BARF mix.

If I have to mix it myself, assuming that I want to make 300 grams of ready-made food. How many grams should be pure meat and how many grams should be chicken neck?

 

[Dr. Jean Hofve]

That question involves math, which I do not do, lol. Dogs Naturally magazine has a great course on raw feeding that covers calcium in great detail, maybe look into that?

 

[BettinaT]

That question involves math, which I do not do, lol. Dogs Naturally magazine has a great course on raw feeding that covers calcium in great detail, maybe look into that?

I also find it confusing, with the %, there are different meaning about that, where i did read.
Some says 80% meat, 10 % bone and 10% organs.
What do you think of that?

 

[Dr. Jean Hofve]

I'm not a nutritionist, I usually use 1 heaping TBSP of calcium per pound of meat, and 1 lb. of liver per 4 pounds of meat; but I don't know what that translates into for necks or other organs.

 

[Dr. Jeff]

What do you think of that?

Sounds good to me...

And plenty of variety is still key.

 

[GinnyW]

No need for higher math here...Lots of organs is good; too much will loosen stools. Lots of bone is OK, to the point where it constipates. Yes, prey animals seem to be about 80-10-10, but you may certainly vary this over time. Not everything has to be in each meal, and variety, as Dr. Jeff said, is the ruling principle. Keep on presenting different items in different shapes and proportions, and see what works for you both. It takes a long time to screw this up and I like to think that variety keeps one metabolically flexible: amount, type, shape, species, etc.

 

[BettinaT]

No need for higher math here...Lots of organs is good; too much will loosen stools. Lots of bone is OK, to the point where it constipates. Yes, prey animals seem to be about 80-10-10, but you may certainly vary this over time. Not everything has to be in each meal, and variety, as Dr. Jeff said, is the ruling principle. Keep on presenting different items in different shapes and proportions, and see what works for you both. It takes a long time to screw this up and I like to think that variety keeps one metabolically flexible: amount, type, shape, species, etc.

Thanks for answer.
I have my own challenges, so i dont' yet have enough focus to read and make sure my cats get what they need, if i have to make my own food for them.

As it is now, i give them this blend: EasyBARF® Geflügel für Katzen 1000g

´´This complete food "EasyBARF Poultry for cats" consists of
35% chicken
30% turkey meat
15% chicken necks without skin
12% chicken bellies/hearts
max. 5% pumpkin
Chicken liver
Taurine''


And i also give raw meat, like chicken, turkey or rabbit. And i add vitamin powder to that.

 

[BettinaT]

Also i want to ask, what can i add of vegetables and how much?

 

[Dr. Jeff]

can i add of vegetables and how much?

Kitties don't need the veggies in their food.

The added phytonutrients from fruits and veggies like wild blueberries and organic kale can be helpful.

However adding any veggies is not essential.

 

[Dr. Christina]

It can be fun to offer whatever vegetables, and even other foods, that you are eating to see what they may love as treats.

Also, encouraging them to eat bigger pieces can help their teeth, even if only a few times a week.

And one of our speakers said that just firmly rubbing their teeth with your finger (yes, you can train them to love that) cleans them quite well.

Dr. Christina

 

[RobinO]

I run a cat rescue that is raw-fed. One of our adopters just started feeding raw to their 15-year old cats a few months ago (who were on canned prior). One of the cats has been dealing with very elevated liver values and related liver values since this summer (maybe earlier). An internist has put the cat on clavamox on and off for months. It helps for a time, then the values go back up-we're talking into the 1700s, then "down" to 800 and trending down currently while on the antibiotics.
Is it safe for this cat to be on a raw diet OR should it be gently cooked? I'm getting push-back from the Vet (no surprise), but it does make some sense to me. They are feeding commercial raw brands like Primal, Steve's, Stella & Chewy. What can I tell my adopters?
Also, I need to post more about this cat's liver issues in the proper folder.

Thank you!

 

[BettinaT]

It can be fun to offer whatever vegetables, and even other foods, that you are eating to see what they may love as treats.

Also, encouraging them to eat bigger pieces can help their teeth, even if only a few times a week.

And one of our speakers said that just firmly rubbing their teeth with your finger (yes, you can train them to love that) cleans them quite well.

Dr. Christina

Thanks for answer that. Will it be enough just with the finger? And what if there are plaque on teeth?

 

[BettinaT]

No need for higher math here...Lots of organs is good; too much will loosen stools. Lots of bone is OK, to the point where it constipates. Yes, prey animals seem to be about 80-10-10, but you may certainly vary this over time. Not everything has to be in each meal, and variety, as Dr. Jeff said, is the ruling principle. Keep on presenting different items in different shapes and proportions, and see what works for you both. It takes a long time to screw this up and I like to think that variety keeps one metabolically flexible: amount, type, shape, species, etc.

And what kind of organs is good to give?
And what to do, if my cats dont like organs? I have try with chicken and turkey hearts and gizzards , but i have only see one time, one of my cats chew a little pieces of hearts.