Going to try for raw feeding

[zohdee]

Wow, I must start off by saying there is a huge wealth of information here

.

All my cats are kibble eaters and I just started them eating wet and really would like for them to eat raw since that is much better for them. I was always told that kibble should be fed to keep their teeth clean, the crunching.

I realize I have to make a slow transition from kibble to raw as to not upset them much. I read a great article posted here that helped with that.

I do have a question about bones. Do small bones in chicken pose any choking hazard? I understand that a cats eating habits are different from a dogs, but I always heard never give small bones to a dog due to choking. Am I correct that a cat is able to eat bones better than a dog due to their..for lack of better words, hunters?

If so, eventually would it be good to just give them a chicken breast or leg and just let them tear at it?

Sorry if I seem daft about this. I have had cats all my life and never thought to feed them raw food until I came here. The vet NEVER mentioned the benefits of raw feeding. I am excited to embark on a new nutritional avenue with my kitties!!

 

[sharky]

Generally most cat are fine with smaller bones like wing tips and necks..

mine love the tear and carry away method

 

[auntie crazy]

I feed my cats fresh raw chicken wings and ribs three times a week with no problems at all. :-)

Never, ever feed cooked bones, in any size - cooking makes them brittle and dangerous.

Congrats on coming over to the raw side of things!

It's a bit more work than scooping out canned or pouring out kibble, but the pay-off far exceeds the extra effort.

 

[kitty2cat]

Congratulations on making the switch. I am a raw feeding newbie myself. Getting my cats to eat raw food has been easy. Getting them to eat raw bones has been (thus far) impossible. If they have trouble eating raw bones, just remember to give them a calcium supplement. If you don't, they will suffer bone loss/weakening.

I have really liked using home-made eggshell powder. I've read a couple of good things about it on different forums (it doesn't raise calcium serum levels, so "overdosing" is not as big of a risk, it contains trace elements similar to what is in bone, etc.) I have also heard of people making their own bone meal, but that sounds a little harder.

Here is a simple how to for the eggshell powder:
http://www.natural-pet-care.com/natu...r-for-calcium/