What Is Iron And Its Roles
Iron is a mineral ormore preciselya micromineral, also called a trace element because its present in the body in very small amounts: generally 0.005% of the body weight.Iron is mainly a component of the protein molecule hemoglobin, which is found in red blood cells, but also of the protein myoglobin, which is found in muscle. They both have a role in the transport of oxygen. Iron is also a component of several enzymes in the body that are important for energy metabolism.
Like in humans, an iron deficiency in cats will cause anemia and it manifests with lethargy, weight loss, pale mucous membrane, and blood in the urine or feces. Iron deficiency can happen because of blood loss, which is often caused by blood-sucking parasite infestation like ticks or fleas, or in case of injuries. Other symptoms of iron deficiency include a rough coat and decreased growth in kittens.Ironlike other micromineralscan be toxic when fed in excess: symptoms of iron toxicity include weight loss, liver dysfunction, and excess iron in the organs.However, before reaching toxic levels of iron, a diet high in iron can have negative consequences such as reducing the absorption of zinc and copper.
Features To Consider While Choosing A Top Rated Raw Diet Cat Food
Following are some important factors which we need to consider before deciding to buy the best organic raw cat food for our beloved furry pets.
Prescription needs
Prescribed diets are a great option after your cat has been thoroughly examined. It gives you an insight into their inner functioning and dietary requirements for possible deficiencies in them. A thorough examination through a veterinarian doctor will help you set a menu for your pet and help you choose the best raw cat food brand tailored and hand-picked for its well-being.
Supplements
A broad section of additives mixed in a raw cat food recipe no grinder is supplements. It contains vital vitamins, minerals, and amino acids. These supplements are necessary as they act as building blocks of a cats body. One primary deficiency that cats are susceptible to is Taurine deficiency. Lack of taurine can harm their functioning by blinding, teeth decay, and in some cases, even lead to death. Thus, checking for supplements becomes crucial when you are buying raw cat food.
Food consistency
Compatibility
Should You Try Freeze Dried Raw Cat Food
Like most things in the world of cat care, some people swear by the raw food diet, and people who dont like it at all. As always, Id recommend talking to your vet before you start changing your pets diet.
Its also worth noting that feeding a raw cat food diet can come with some risks. For instance, raw foods can contain pathogens if theyre not properly prepared and stored. While cats often digest raw foods better than humans, its worth doing your research. Remember to look at:
- Ingredients: Cats need important ingredients in their meals, including protein from fish or meat, and amino acids. Check the ingredients for essential fatty acids, vitamins, and minerals too. Any extra like grains and vegetables arent always necessary.
- Flavors: Even if your vet agrees that a raw cat food diet is right for you, your cat might not feel the same way. Youll need to find something that appeals to your moggy, so make sure that you explore a range of flavors.
- Formulation: Most raw cat foods are freeze-dried to help with storage. However, there are other options out there. Its best to avoid making your own raw food if you can, as its hard to know exactly what combinations of meat and ingredients are right for your cat.
If you do decide to experiment with freeze dried raw cat foods for your furry friends, then make sure you have the right plan in place. Usually, its best to add small amounts of a new food to your cats existing meals to help them get used to the new flavors.
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What Is Raw Cat Food
Raw cat food is just thatunprocessed food made from raw ingredients.
Cats are obligate carnivores that have some unique nutritional needs that can be met by eating a diet composed primarily of animal tissue. Raw cat foods accomplish this by placing uncooked meat, fish, and internal organs at the top of their ingredient lists. Ground bone is often included as a source of calcium and phosphorus. Vitamin and mineral supplements and other ingredients are added to round out the diet and prevent nutritional deficiencies.
Cats require high dietary protein levels because, unlike most animals, they use protein rather than carbohydrates as their primary energy source. Certain amino acids, most notably taurine, as well as arachidonic acid, vitamin A, vitamin D, and many B vitamins, must also be present in sufficient amounts.
Evidence Concerning The Benefits Of Raw Feeding
The wolf has been used as a model by proponents of raw feeding, and much has been made of its limited capacity to digest the carbohydrate that forms a substantial part of conventional dog food. However, the domestic dog is genetically altered from its wild ancestors, with increased starchdigesting capacity owing to different patterns of gene expression . Other differences between domestic and wild canids include the balance between energy and other nutrient needs, plus longevity . These further highlight the limitations of attempting to closely model domestic carnivore diets on those of their ancestral wild counterparts. Furthermore, the relevance of diets eaten in the wild to the health and longevity of domestic and captive mammals may be challenged more broadly. Indeed, contemporary expertise in feeding zookept canids, including wolves, emphasises the benefit of using conventional processed dog food for the majority of the diet .
A critical review by Schlesinger & Joffe concluded that the evidence advanced for the many claimed health benefits of raw feeding amounted to opinions and claims that were, at best, supported by data that was of low relevance. Claims for improved oral health in diets with raw bones find support in studies showing less calculus among feral or wild dogs and cats yet, on balance, the limited published evidence does not support claims of reduced periodontal disease with raw feeding .
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Myth : This Is What Animals Eat In The Wild
FACT: Lynxes and other animals in the wild, like wolves, do eat raw meat . However, the average lifespan for an animal in the wild is only a few years. Therefore, what is nutritionally optimal for a wild animal like a lynx is not optimal for our pets that we hope will live longer and healthier lives.
Avoid Introducing New Foods To Your Cat
Its important to avoid introducing new foods to your cat suddenly. Its a good idea to introduce new foods gradually, and gradually increase their amount. Cats can become very picky about the type of food they eat. If you introduce a new food too suddenly, your cat may develop fatty liver disease, which is very dangerous.
One of the easiest ways to avoid introducing new foods to your cat is to set a timer to introduce new food. You can also mix the new food into your cats current meal, or simply set it next to the old. The idea is not to force the cat to eat it you should only make it associate it with food, so make it as appealing as possible.
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Mix Everything Together In The Biggest Mixing Bowl You Own
This stage can get messy, so choose a huge bowl to minimize spillage. Use a large spoon to gently and thoroughly incorporate the vitamin slurry into the muscle meat and organs. Its very important to mix wellyou dont want your cat to have one nutritionally deficient meal and another thats excessively supplemented. The idea is for everything to be fully incorporated for a balanced diet.
Safety For The Owners
Meat and eggs for animal or human consumption carry microorganisms . Raw pet food poses similar risks for pathogenic bacteria as do raw meat and eggs for humans . Freezing, freeze-drying, or dehydration results in a reduction in bacterial counts but viable pathogenic bacteria survive . This is of real concern if the household includes, or is planning, pregnancy, children under 5 y of age, the elderly, or any person who is immuno-suppressed . Information about safe meat handling is readily available from several sources . When safety is a concern for the owner, the family, or the pet, but a RMBD is preferred, an HPP food can be recommended .
In my many years of experience, I have found that most owners who feed raw commercial or home-prepared diets are informed and safety conscious. They practice safe food handling, dispose of their pets feces with care, and wash their hands frequently. Everyone needs to practice personal, pet, food and fecal sanitary habits due to the numerous recalls of human and pet foods because of bacterial contamination and the fact that some healthy humans, dogs, and cats excrete Salmonella and other pathogens in their feces . With respect to zoonotic transmission of intestinal pathogens, numbers matter. The keys to understanding are 2 perceptive phrases: The solution to pollution is dilution and size matters. This is why washing with water, and a little soap, is usually effective, and is so widely recommended by public health experts.
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What You Should Know About Preparing A Raw Food Diet For Your Cat From Scratch
Preparing your cats diet from scratch is NOT to be taken lightly.
Dont just wing it and throw togetherraw meat, ground bone and a few supplements.
Ask your holistic vet for a recipethat is sound and will be a good choice for your cat. There is a delicatebalance of muscle meat, ground bone and organ meats that goes into the pre-preparedfoods.
If you dont follow a proper recipe you will make your catill as he wont get the proper nutrients he needs to be healthy.
Not all raw food diet recipes for cats are suitable
Ifyou find a recipe for making raw cat food, run it by your vet , for approval. There are recipes on the internet which are NOT properly balanced. There could be an overabundance ofsome nutrients or an understated amount of nutrients of other nutrients, whichwill definitely cause health problems over time.
Can be difficult to find a good, clean source of meat.
I personally found it hard to find agood source of meat that I could rely on consistently, to make my own cat food.
Grinding meat and bone can be, well, kinda gross.
It may not bother you much at all, but grinding meat and bone through a meat grinder at home, is not the most pleasant task. It looks and also sounds gross. So this may be something you should consider if you find yourself a bit squeamish.
Tricky to Manage
If the raw food needs to thaw, time and planning are necessary so your kitty isnt left licking frozen meat hockey pucks. Thawing food in your fridge, will also take up valuable space.
Raw Food Can Be Unbalanced Meaning Cats Dont Get The Nutrition They Need
It may seem crazy that cats eating what they’re naturally designed to eat could lead them to have unbalanced nutrition. Still, the truth is that raw diets have caused nutritional deficiencies for pets in the past. The difficulty in balancing a raw diet comes from the lack of consistency. Because one liver or one meat type is not nutritionally the same as the next, even if you carefully balance a diet, the balance will be undone when you have a new carcass. One study in 2002 fed one group of growing kittens ground-up rabbit and another group regular cat food. All was well until one kitten in the rabbit-fed group died a few months later.
Investigation showed severe heart disease caused by a taurine deficiency which affected 70% of the cats in the rabbit-fed group. Despite there being lots of taurine in the rabbit diet, it seems the cats could not access it – it was not bioavailable. This shows just how difficult it can be to balance a diet, even when that diet is natural or what a cat is supposed to eat.
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How We Offer Raw Meat To Our Cats
Raw or cooked boneless meat can be offered in large chunks or diced small. Dicing meat and putting a little under a spoonful of canned food may encourage your cat to try it. Or, add a splash of bone broth! Increase the chunk size until they are excited to eat it plain! Here’s how we prep our raw meat snacks.
Chicken gizzards – Tough muscle meat. Great for jaw exercise! They’re cheap and often available at the butcher. I cut these into small pieces and hand feed for snack time.
Chicken hearts – High in taurine which is an essential amino acid for cats. Feed a couple a week or a couple a day. Do some research to figure out what’s best for your cat. Great article on chicken hearts from Feline Nutrition Foundation.
Chicken livers – These are great to add to heart or gizzard. Feeding too much liver might cause diarrhea so approach slowly and a little at a time. I’ve never gone wrong when I start small. Doing some of your own research will help you become confident.
Venison chunks – Venison isn’t exactly budget meat, but offering some venison for snacks helps with providing variety. We buy ours from Hare Today. Remember, cats who eat the same proteins everyday are at risk for developing allergies.
Other muscle meat to try:
Duck
Final Thoughts: Should I Feed My Cat A Raw Diet
A raw food diet can benefit your cats overall health and wellness. Many cat owners have been pleased with the positive changes they have seen in their cats physical appearance and overall health. However, switching to a raw food diet should not be taken lightly.
You want to consider a few things before changing the cats diet. If you do not think you have the time to clean up after raw food preparation safely or if you do not think you have the money to either get the proper ingredients to make raw food or buy it from the store or online, you might want to reconsider this meal plan.
However, if you are aware of the risks of improper raw food preparation and clean-up, as well as understand the time commitment and costs, reach out to a raw savvy-vet about how to switch to a raw food diet for your cat.
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Which Raw Cat Foods Ranked Highest
Taking all key factors into consideration, we rounded up our favorite raw food options for cats. Curious about what made our list? Here it is:
| Meets AAFCO Standards? | Yes |
For raw cat food thats nutritionally complete, delicious, and easy to serve, you cant go wrong with Instinct Raw. For 15 years, Instinct known as the raw brand has been perfecting a variety of raw cat food options. But we like Instincts Freeze-Dried Raw Cage-Free Chicken Meal best overall because it combines unbeatable quality and convenience with complete and balanced nutrition. The recipe is packed with 85% raw animal proteins, including responsibly sourced chicken meat and nutrient-rich organs like chicken livers and hearts. Plus, it features GMO-free apples, carrots, sweet potatoes, and butternut squash, so the meal is super tasty, too. The ingredients are never cooked to ensure your cat gets the full nutritional benefit and are freeze-dried right in company-owned facilities in Lincoln, Nebraska. The kibble-shaped morsels are shelf-stable, making this food easier to store and serve, whether you opt to feed it to your cat as-is or mix it with water for a moist, tasty meal. Best of all, Instinct is the ONLY raw pet food company in North America with an Excellent Safe Quality Food Food Safety rating, so you know youre getting the best of the best.
Highlights:
- No fillers, by-product meals, artificial colors, or preservatives.
- Satisfaction guaranteed or full refund/exchange.
Things to Consider:
What Do Cats Need To Eat
As obligate carnivores, cats need certain food to thrive such as taurine, a type of protein and fatty acids such as arachidonic acid.
Carbohydrates are not a must in a cats diet and in fact have been linked with chronic health issues. However, small amounts are fine and it is always good to have some fibre in its diet to help with bowel movements and gut health.
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Delicious Homemade Raw Cat Food Recipe
It is without a doubt that cats benefit from a raw diet and many pet owners actually choose to make cat food themselves. However, if you are a newbie at preparing cat food, it may be a bit intimidating as you would only want the best for your cat and do not want any nutritional imbalances.
There are probably many questions that plague your mind regarding raw cat food recipes and this article aims to address these concerns.
What Is A Raw Food Diet For Cats
A raw diet consists of uncooked, unprocessed food. Typically, commercial raw diets, like Stella & Chewys, are formulated to mirror a cats ancestral diet with 98% raw meat, organs, and bone. These diets are packed with protein and nutrients that support healthy teeth and gums, optimal digestion, vibrant skin and coat, and stamina. A raw diet also contains a high moisture content that helps keep your cat hydrated.
You may have concerns about the potential dangers of raw cat food for your cat but there are safe ways to feed raw. Learn more about safe raw feeding and Stella & Chewys food safety.
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