Hmm... Maybe I can try that. I have a large plastic bowl. He weighed 8 and a half pounds last week, and my scale only goes to 11. Won't be able to do that for long!
Yeah - it is pricey! Don't feel bad if you can't afford it. But it is worth checking to see if there is stuff that they can't sell or sell for really cheap - chicken feet, organs, etc might be things that they don't have a market for and will give you or sell for a really low price. All of that is good for cats, in the right portions. It might be a good way to stretch the budget. Can't hurt to ask about it at least!
I really wish I had more income. I live by several farms and from May through August, my neighborhood hosts a Saturday evening farmer's market. I'm also a minute walk from an organic/local market. It's just all so pricey!
That's a good idea. I buy the chicken organs, but maybe I could get better variety. Or better quality for a good price. I'll have to check it out.
Yeah - it is pricey! Don't feel bad if you can't afford it. But it is worth checking to see if there is stuff that they can't sell or sell for really cheap - chicken feet, organs, etc might be things that they don't have a market for and will give you or sell for a really low price. All of that is good for cats, in the right portions. It might be a good way to stretch the budget. Can't hurt to ask about it at least!
Just to expand on that a bit...Cats need a balance of muscle, organs, skin, fat, bones, etc. as they provide various vitamins, minerals, calories, and the rest. When they catch prey in the wild, they get all that and more. So when feeding raw, you can give 15% of the diet where you're just giving them whatever... breast meat, dark meat, liver, chicken wing tips, whatever! But when you're feeding more than 15% raw, you want to make sure they're getting that full balance of nutrients by either providing all the various parts in the correct ratios (called frankenprey/prey model raw) or by supplementing the meat with the necessary nutritional supplements (vitamins, taurine, fish oil, etc.).
I used NV for a while as well, I agree that it is high in bone, but easy enough to dilute with a bit of extra meat, like you say.
I can't comment on the other brands, but I use Nature's Variety and I'm happy with it. One thing to note is that it is quite high in bone - you may want to watch to see if kitty is getting constipated. It is easy to add a few chunks of muscle meat in on occasion to dilute the bone a bit and very healthy for their teeth to eat chunks of meat.
Hmm - I have a wonderful butcher that I get lots of strange things from... but I haven't requested testicles! I'll have to try those, my cats seem to eat most anything so those will likely go over well.I'm able to order lamb kidneys (no one likes these, I have to grind them up and use small quantities in the food, but they are nutritious so worth it) and testicles (for some reason they like these) from my butcher.
Secreting, actually. Remember their primary function....I assume they are in the 'muscle meat' category, and not a secreting organ?