Is it safe to feed raw thats made for cats and dogs in one?

[violetxx]

 I will be leaving home for two years (I'll be home on and off) to do my Master's abroad so my cats will be under my parent's care until I get back, so I'm trying to make sure they are eating right before I leave. If your interested in catching up on Black Bear's food issues that I'm trying to solve visit this link: http://www.thecatsite.com/t/243305/advice-for-transitioning-foods. If not, skip to the 3rd paragraph.

Currently, Blackie who I mentioned above, had a bout of issues about a month ago where she stopped eating and vomited, so we took her to the vet and they gave her Cerenia injection and she started eating again. I stopped the Omega 3s because the bottle said not to use the oil for more than three months otherwise it would go rancid, and we were close to that. I have a feeling that her body has a hard time dealing with the extra fat, hence why the Ziwipeak caused her to have fatty liver.

So I am 100% ready to put her on raw, but convincing my mom to feed it to her is like talking to a brick wall. We went to a small pet food shop and looked at Carnivora, which I was quite satisfied with, however the lady who helped us was saying that since its for dogs too it may not be ground as much which equals bigger bones and big pattes (this scared my mom) and the lady was trying to get us to put Black on dry food saying they need to crunch for their teeth (she was shocked that we feed wet food alone), and told us the NV rabbit is good too (even though the meat comes from China), and ultimately wanted to convince us to try something else instead of raw (I was seriously annoyed)

. I could also tell she knew nothing about it because she had to look everything up. I looked at their Probiotics (by Holistic Blend) as well, and the ingredients listed digestive enzymes and literally said the word "probiotics' and did not say what kind of bacteria so I did not end up buying it.

They also have Spring Meadows and Healthy Paws raw that they can order if need be.

I desperately want to start adding some raw to her diet, basically making it supplemental, because convincing my mom to feed raw only would never happen especially while I'm away.

My question is: Do you think there would be an issue in feeding a raw food that is made for dogs as well as cats?

Any advice would be much appreciated!!

 

[ldg]

The answer: you have to look up each manufacturer, and if the information isn't listed, you have to contact the manufacturer. I've already done the work on Nature's Variety, and it is appropriate for cats. It does target 15% bone, which can make some cats constipated. But if used in rotation with other commercial raw products, it shouldn't be a problem, and it's a good quality food. :nod: Nerdrock explained about the chinese rabbits (she used to work for NV). I don't remember the explanation, but I was satisfied that it's safe for our kitties. :lol3: (You can also comfort your mom by letting her know that Nature's Variety guarantees the food is pathogen-free by using a process called High Pressure Processing that retains nutrient quality: (just expand the FAQs) http://www.naturesvariety.com/learning/questions/5 )

What you're looking for in frozen raw pet foods marketed for both species is something that is 95% meat/bones/organs and only 5% "other stuff" (usually veggies/fruits). The other thing to look for is taurine. It's OK if not ALL the foods have them if they're used in rotation. :nod: Taurine is NOT degraded by the freezing process, but it is water soluble. That means some will leach out in that "juice" that collects when food is dethawed. So just mix that juice back in before feeding, and you're good to go.



Carnivora is an EXCELLENT food from the look of it: http://www.carnivora.ca/html/FAQs/index.cfm When I was first looking into commercial raw foods, I was disappointed it's not available in the U.S. :lol3: It's whole ground animals, and a WIDE variety of proteins. I would avoid anything called "meaty bones" for cats. But that salesperson was wrong - their frozen raw meal products are meant for dogs AND cats, and I doubt very much it's coarse ground. There are many small breeds of dogs, after all.

If you're otherwise feeding grain free wet food, including raw in whatever amount isn't a problem.

 

[carolina]

 I will be leaving home for two years (I'll be home on and off) to do my Master's abroad so my cats will be under my parent's care until I get back, so I'm trying to make sure they are eating right before I leave. If your interested in catching up on Black Bear's food issues that I'm trying to solve visit this link: http://www.thecatsite.com/t/243305/advice-for-transitioning-foods. If not, skip to the 3rd paragraph.

Currently, Blackie who I mentioned above, had a bout of issues about a month ago where she stopped eating and vomited, so we took her to the vet and they gave her Cerenia injection and she started eating again. I stopped the Omega 3s because the bottle said not to use the oil for more than three months otherwise it would go rancid, and we were close to that. I have a feeling that her body has a hard time dealing with the extra fat, hence why the Ziwipeak caused her to have fatty liver.

So I am 100% ready to put her on raw, but convincing my mom to feed it to her is like talking to a brick wall. We went to a small pet food shop and looked at Carnivora, which I was quite satisfied with, however the lady who helped us was saying that since its for dogs too it may not be ground as much which equals bigger bones and big pattes (this scared my mom) and the lady was trying to get us to put Black on dry food saying they need to crunch for their teeth (she was shocked that we feed wet food alone), and told us the NV rabbit is good too (even though the meat comes from China), and ultimately wanted to convince us to try something else instead of raw (I was seriously annoyed) . I could also tell she knew nothing about it because she had to look everything up. I looked at their Probiotics (by Holistic Blend) as well, and the ingredients listed digestive enzymes and literally said the word "probiotics' and did not say what kind of bacteria so I did not end up buying it. They also have Spring Meadows and Healthy Paws raw that they can order if need be.

I desperately want to start adding some raw to her diet, basically making it supplemental, because convincing my mom to feed raw only would never happen especially while I'm away.

My question is: Do you think there would be an issue in feeding a raw food that is made for dogs as well as cats?


Any advice would be much appreciated!!

No....... Most are for for both cats and dogs.... But I want to address one thing with you, for different reasons -

I have a feeling that her body has a hard time dealing with the extra fat, hence why the Ziwipeak caused her to have fatty liver.

Ziwipeak did NOT give her fatty liver. I can tell you that.... I am not sure why you think this..... . Also, know that fatty liver happens when a cat stops eating... a food will not cause fatty liver, in other words. Your cat stopped eating, and was vomiting - it was getting no nutrition - that was what caused.... not ziwipeak.

Normally, when a body is undernourished or starved, the body automatically moves fat from its reserves to the liver to be converted into lipoproteins for energy. Cat's bodies are not designed to convert large stores of fat, so when a cat is in starvation mode, the fat that is released to the liver is not processed efficiently, resulting in a fatty and low functioning liver. As the fat accumulates in the liver it becomes swollen and turns yellow. Because it is not able to process red blood cells efficiently, the yellow pigment that makes up a portion of the red blood cell is released into the bloodstream, causing a yellowing of the eyes. If not treated promptly, hepatic lipidosis can lead to various complications and eventually death.http://www.petmd.com/cat/conditions/digestive/c_ct_hepatic_lipidosis#.UAHLQpGZxas

More in formation here http://www.acvim.org/websites/acvim/index.php?p=214 and here too http://www.marvistavet.com/html/body_hepatic_lipidosis.html

Again, Ziwipeak did not cause her to have Fatty liver -stopping eating did....
It is important that you understand that, so you watch carefully your baby's food intake when you transition her to raw.... Especially since she is on the heavier side, which puts her on a higher risk level for HL.

 

[violetxx]

Thanks for the input. I've been wondering about NV raw for a while, but every time I see the Fruits and Veg listed I put it back on the shelf, and then there's always the 15% calcium, however if she's only eating it as a supplemental food it may not be too bad. If I can't convince her to feed Carnivora, I should be able to pull off NV at least

@Carolina

Yup I am aware the fatty liver is caused by not eating. I am only speculating at this point, but when she developed fatty liver she was eating exclusively Ziwipeak. I think Ziwipeak is an awesome food, however it caused her to stop eating as did the Omega 3s over time, which is why I am thinking FOR HER (because she has such an ultra sensitive digestive system and only one functioning kidney) and Ziwipeak has 67% fat high quality canned = high fat, that she stopped eating because her system couldn't tolerate all the fat (in both scenarios when more fat was introduced she stopped eating and starting vomiting). I am definitely not discrediting Ziwipeak or supplemeting with Om-3's at all, whoops!

 

[feralvr]

I feed the same raw to my dog's and my cat's. The raw I feed (commercially made ground) does have taurine added which if fine for dogs too. I use Nature's Variety, Stella & Chewy's, Hare Today, Nature's Menu (which uses bone meal) and Rad Cat. All well liked by my dogs and cats.