Glutten Strays

[matt1991]

I started feeding 2 stray cats that are starting to warm up to me i can pet them at times and they run into my house to steal my cats food at times lol but today i got them a can of sardines 4 oz of pure meat then a can of tuna and they still were trying to run in my house to get some dry food wtf? how could they still be hungry after all that? and i feed them regularly 1 t 2 times a day

 

[momto3cats]

That really isn't all that much for two cats, especially since they live outdoors. Canned fish for humans tends to be low-calorie, and it isn't a balanced meal for cats if that's all they're eating. It might be better (and almost certainly cheaper) to feed them cat food, if you are their main source of food. The canned tuna and sardines can be a nice treat for them.

 

[lisahe]

That really isn't all that much for two cats, especially since they live outdoors. Canned fish for humans tends to be low-calorie, and it isn't a balanced meal for cats if that's all they're eating. It might be better (and almost certainly cheaper) to feed them cat food, if you are their main source of food. The canned tuna and sardines can be a nice treat for them.

I agree!

 

[matt1991]

well i try to feed them rice with chicken stock but they are getting spoilt by me meat is 70% of there diet id say now

i need to make a chicken gravy sauce maybe get chicken stock broth and put corn starch to thicken it up

 

[lisahe]

well i try to feed them rice with chicken stock but they are getting spoilt by me meat is 70% of there diet id say now i need to make a chicken gravy sauce maybe get chicken stock broth and put corn starch to thicken it up

It's great that you want to feed these cats, matt1991 , but store-bought chicken broth generally has much higher salt content than cats should eat and most kinds also have other ingredients that cats shouldn't eat. As momto3cats said, here:

That really isn't all that much for two cats, especially since they live outdoors. Canned fish for humans tends to be low-calorie, and it isn't a balanced meal for cats if that's all they're eating. It might be better (and almost certainly cheaper) to feed them cat food, if you are their main source of food. The canned tuna and sardines can be a nice treat for them.

I realize that these are stray cats you're feeding and they may not be getting much else to eat but might it be better to buy even the cheapest food you can find so they get a balanced meal? A diet of rice and chicken broth doesn't contain nearly enough nutrients like taurine, which cats need a steady supply of. I agree with momto3cats, too, that buying some food at the store would probably be cheaper (and certainly less time-consuming!) than cooking something for them.

 

[orange&white]

Do other people in the neighborhood feed the stray cats some cat food? It doesn't sound like what you are feeding them are the right foods to sustain their long-term health. I'm sure they appreciate the treats though.

 

[miagi's_mommy]

If they’re friendly why not trap them and try to find them a nice home? Winter is coming and it gets very cold. They’d be safer indoors.

 

[matt1991]

id put them indoors if theyd want to they only try to bust into my house to steal catfood lol when they are done eating they run out so yeah i cant keep them inside


i make homemade chicken broth from a boiled chicken usually i tried to make some today i added in a spoon of corn starch but didnt work at all just had clumps of corn and didnt thicken at all id like to somehow make a thick paste cause my cat loves it and is picky

 

[matt1991]

Do other people in the neighborhood feed the stray cats some cat food? It doesn't sound like what you are feeding them are the right foods to sustain their long-term health. I'm sure they appreciate the treats though.

i do feed them dry food at times too i just like to fill them up since they eat so damn much more than my boy does and hes bigger one cat could eat 9 oz of pure meat then still try to get some dry food i find that crazy given the cats maybe 9 pounds

 

[LTS3]

For Human cooking, corn starch works best as a thickener if you dissolve the corn starch in a spoonful or two of water first and then mix the slurry into hot liquid while constantly stirring.

But cats don't need starches in their diet, although some pet foods do contain them in some form.

Strays are often hungry because they often can't find enough food to eat. They may hunt and eat what they kill and maybe whatever they can scounge up from strangers and trash cans.

Have you looked into home cooked diets to feed the strays? There are recipies and info here: Home-Cooked Cat Food Resources

 

[orange&white]

They're hungrier because they get more exercise and burn more calories than an indoor cat. If humans aren't giving them enough nutrition, they burn a lot of what they do get chasing down prey animals and insects.

To maintain my cats' weight, my indoor senior at 13.5 pounds eats 140 kcals/day, my indoor 1 year old at 9 pounds eats 180 kcals/day, and my backyard outdoor feral at 7.5 pounds eats 225 kcals/day. So outside kitties do eat more for their size. I often see my backyard cat leaping through the branches at the top of a 25 foot tall tree, trying to catch a bird or squirrel. I've never seen her catch one, but she sure builds up an appetite.

I agree with others that it would cost you less time and effort to give the outdoor strays 200 or more kcals/day of a nutritionally balanced kibble. Corn starch will thicken chicken broth, but it will add zero nutrients to a cat's diet.

 

[dahli6]

My strays eat the same food as my cats. Sometimes I give them raw meat too.