Eating Raw, now what?

[meursault]

My cat has had chronic diarhea or soft stools and I have tried many diets with no results until trying raw.

I've started feeding her a commercially prepared frozen raw food, and she took to it right away! It has been 2 weeks now and although her poop improved instantly, I haven't noticed much other changes. Her coat is still separating, although it is (and always has been) shiny. Am I expecting too many improvements to happen at once?

I would like to try other proteins, but right now she has just had the chicken. Is a commercially prepared whole ground frozen raw diet okay for the long term? I intend on introducing the raw chicken wing or neck for dental. I do not have the time, nor confidence, in preparing my own food, so I hope this is a healthy long term objective.

On a side note, I'm going to be moving to France and bringing her with me, does anybody know of commercial raw diets there? My french is limited, so a google search isn't giving me much information.

Thanks for reading!

 

[minka]

What brand is it? As long as it says it is nutrionally complete for all stages of life on the bag, then yes you can feed it long term.

If you were feeding her a fairly good diet before this, that could explain delayed results, but you also have to remember that the time it will take for her coat to grow out shinnier would be the amount of time it would take her to grow back all her hair if you shaved her bald. For my cat that would be months and months.

 

[meursault]

Hi Minka,

Thank you for your response. The food is Spring Meadows Natural Pet Food, it's made and sold in Canada. http://www.springmeadowsnaturalpetfood.com/

I was feeding her California Natural Chicken and Brown Rice temporarily and before that was Blue Wilderness Duck. She was also getting a wide range of grain free wet foods. I've started with the fish oil last night, so I'm hoping that will help her coat too. I will just keep an eager eye for improvements in her coat.

I tried giving her a chicken wing a few times over the past few days, with no sign of interest. Any advice to encourage her to try it?

Thanks again!

 

[luvmyparker]

When I changed my cats diet, it took a month or more before I noticed a difference in his coat.

 

[auntie crazy]

Originally Posted by meursault

...
...Is a commercially prepared whole ground frozen raw diet okay for the long term? I intend on introducing the raw chicken wing or neck for dental. I do not have the time, nor confidence, in preparing my own food, so I hope this is a healthy long term objective.
...
Thanks for reading!

Commercially-prepared raw foods run the same risks related to quality ingredients and issues as canned foods. I looked for an ingredients list on the Spring Meadows' website and couldn't find anything. Can you post the list on the bag of chicken product you're currently feeding?

If this food is indeed properly balanced, then you take a chance on causing constipation when you add additional bone-in meals to your cat's weekly diet. Watch his litter box behaviors closely; if he starts straining or doesn't poop for more than a couple of days, you might want to cut back or completely remove the bone-in meals.

AC