Is one way better than the other for a cat who likes to eat both ways? Whether you buy raw food that is already made up or DIY with your own meat and regardless of what supplements you use (if any), how did you decide the best way to feed your cats?
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Commercial raw vs. frankenprey
- Thread starter emilymaywilcha
- Start Date
My cats decided. First I noticed they did better on the foods without veggies, and there aren't a lot of commercial raw options without that 5% "other stuff." I was using Nature's Variety, and it targets 15% bone content. That was too much for my kitties (they were getting constipated, which too much calcium can do), so I started giving them some slices of just meat to "thin out" the ratio of meat:bone they were eating. Then three of the boys decided they no longer wanted to eat ground food.
So I had no choice but to move to frankenprey if I wanted them to eat raw. Once I made the switch, I really enjoyed having the complete control over their diet.
So I had no choice but to move to frankenprey if I wanted them to eat raw. Once I made the switch, I really enjoyed having the complete control over their diet.
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #3
Fifteen percent looks like too much bone to me. I thought it was supposed to be only 10 percent.
Apparently, 15% is what it takes for NV to meet AAFCO standards for calcium content :dk:. I don't know what's up with that.
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- #5
How do you give your cats calcium?
Kind of the same thing that happened to me, but I gave them meat to give them the benefits of chewing..... then that was it...... bye bye ground - they said nope, thank you, but no thank you :lol3:
Nothing I could do about it, but to go along with their wishes :nod:
Me, personally? I don't feed raw. Or not enough raw to have to worry about calcium anyway. Yet. I'm working up to it. I sort of like that Bengal guy's recipe. If I feed all raw it has to be ground and all mixed together because otherwise I have no way of making sure everyone gets the proper amounts of organs and calcium. Anyhoo, if I can find a way to go all raw I'll decide what calcium to use then. I'd probably go with some ground bone, some eggshell, some MCHA. . .variety is best!
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- #8
The only way I would ever feed raw is already ground up so I have nothing to worry about. I agree with you doing it Laurie's way would be too risky (no offense to her).
OMG I just noticed I am a Super Cat now! Is 700 the minimum for that title?
OMG I just noticed I am a Super Cat now! Is 700 the minimum for that title?
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Why? What do you think the difference is? Because as I see.... And I feed the same diet as Laurie.... pretty much..... is that the meat is served in chunks.... aside from that...... there is not much difference really :dk:
If I only had one cat, or 2 or 3, or maybe even 8 (like Laurie), I could feed chunks with supplements/organs/etc. But I'm really not willing to feed 21 cats individually. I could, I'm sure, but I don't wanna :tongue2:. So I'd have no way of knowing who ate the liver and who licked the calcium off, etc. So I want everything mixed together so each cat gets a balanced meal. But if you feed your cats individually, why is it riskier? They're eating everything they should be eating, what does it matter if it's ground or not?
Shoot.... the worst for me would be to transition them - what a nightmare to even think about it
:lol3:Haha! I've been feeding raw as a "treat" for a while now, and most of them seem to at least recognize it as food now. There might be one or 2 holdouts---Silka (the bedroom cat) seems especially resistant but she actually ate some pre-made raw tonight! You offer it every night and they kind of get used to it, then one time they decide to take a bite. . .
Let's just say I'm more hopeful.
Let's just say I'm more hopeful.
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Yeah..... that's what happened to Lucky..... 35 days to even lick.... At first if it was even on her plate she would RUN from it :doh3:
Then on day 35..... she took a lick...... and lo and behold - next thing you know.....
didn't want kibbles anymore! 
She is nuts that one! :lol3:One thing that helped me a lot though, on making sure they eat everything, and controlling what they eat, is having set feeding spots for each of them - down to their plates, place mats, etc. When the food is ready, they run to their spots, and stay there - and eat it all in there, until they are done. This helps a lot, as Lucky eats a bit differently, and for a while there Bugsy was eating a bit more..... Now he eats the same. They all know though that their food is their food (Bugsy is kind of a problem on that department, clearly, at 18lbs, but I can still manage him :lol3
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- #14
The difference is Laurie needs to chop it up herself, then add the supplements. I want all of that work to be done for me to prevent the risks of doing it wrong.
But then you're trusting other people to balance it for you. . .and then you run into the same problem as with commercial cooked foods--how much do you trust those other people to do it right?
Yes, pre-made is easier. Most people start with it for that reason. But why say that frankenprey is "riskier"?
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- #16
Increased chance of not giving them the right amounts of all nutrients they need when I start out. If you did not know you need lots of veggies, a little bit of meat, and no desserts, would you eat a lot of hamburgers and cookies and avoid salad bars?
And how many people in the U.S. do just that? Eat a lot of carbs or protein and few fruits and veggies? Quite a few, given 40% of us are "obese."
All cats need are meat, bones and organs. :dk: They're designed to get all they need from just that. As Willowy says, our nutritional requirements are more complicated.
Feral cats aren't out there thinking "I ate rabbit yesterday, I'd better look for some mice today." They eat the prey that is available. In some feral cat diets, mice were up to 90% of their diet.
I know most of us aren't feeding whole prey. So if you provide a nice rotation of proteins, ensure they get the calcium to balance the meat whether via bone or supplement (and the amount of calcium they need is well documented, easily available, and used in the correct ratios in various online recipes), and provide some organs... what's the danger?
IMHO the issue here is not that is riskier, or more dangerous.... the issue here, is that you don't want to put on the work, and the time to get to know enough about the diet. IMHO this is the isse.... You want to do it the easy way..... Nothing wrong with that.... But it is not about the risks - it is about the work, IMHO.
I remember a thread when you said all the meat cutting is done by your mom... all the cooking, etc. You only cut cooked meat, when it's served and in your plate.... So.... yeah. I think that commercial ground is probably a better fit for you.
But riskier? No. (as long as you are willing to put in the time to learn about the diet, and the work too)
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The only supplement I add that they need to meet AAFCO is calcium. And that's because I don't use bone.
The rest is "tweaking" the diet to approximate, as closely as possible, what they eat naturally. (A probiotic and an omega 3 supplement).
:dk:
As the others have pointed out, the only difference is that Carolina and I balance at mealtime, not preparing the food in advance.
My cats don't share their food, they eat out of their own bowls.
...and if I had 21 cats, I wouldn't be individually preparing meals either! :lol3:
