Looking For A Daily Supplement For Raw Meat Diet

[furbulousbunz]

Hello fellow cat lovers,
Is there a some sort of daily supplement I can sprinkle on my cats food, say if I feed them chunks of chicken breast, or just chunks of meat no organ? I've been doing that lately and I want a supplement since they don't go for fresh organs, and I have a hard time getting all 3 of my cats to enjoy crunching bones (except for my one cat who chomps through whole chicken thighs!)

I have a supplement called Daily Best (now Daily Multi) from Vermont Naturals that's been laying around since I first started feeding raw over 2 years ago. I sprinkled it on my pickiest cats chunks of chicken breast the other day to entice him to eat it (he's the most PICKY cat ever! UGH). It worked. But since then, I've seen on Chewy that they've changed the formula and I'm afraid that he will not like it since the first ingredient is no longer natural chicken liver flavor. The ingredients in the photo are the new ones, and the ingredients in the product description are what it used to be.
Pet Naturals of Vermont Daily Multi Cat Chews, 30 count

But I love the idea of just being able to crumble up a supplement pill onto their food (ESPECIALLY IF IT ENTICES THEM TO EAT IT) and call it a day. Or even just a powder, but with a set dose.. like a teaspoon, half a teaspoon a day.

Does anyone know of a good supplement that will fit this annoying criteria: makes the food enticing but gives them complete nutrition!

 

[LTS3]

What are you currently feeding the cats?

You can just use a premix such as EZComplete to turn the raw meat into a complete balanced meal, even if you are just giving the meat as occasional treats. lisahe says her cats love the EZComplete. TC Feline, Alnutrin, and Better In The Raw are other premixes you can use.

A premix isn't just sprinkled over meat. The instructions typically say to add Z amount of the premix to X amount of meat (cubed, chunked, ground, whatever your cats' preferences are) along with X amount of water. Mix to combine thoroughly and then portion out to freeze. Take out a portion every so often and let thaw in the fridge and then feed to your cats.

 

[furbulousbunz]

I've fed them whole meat grinds from My Pet Carnivore since I live 10 min from their warehouse, but I want to be able to feed them like my dogs eventually (chunks of meat, bone, and organ = little prep time). It' d be easy if they actually liked eating organs and bone, but they prefer just the meat.

So is my only option a pre-mix as far as supplements go?

 

[lisahe]

I've fed them whole meat grinds from My Pet Carnivore since I live 10 min from their warehouse, but I want to be able to feed them like my dogs eventually (chunks of meat, bone, and organ = little prep time). It' d be easy if they actually liked eating organs and bone, but they prefer just the meat.

So is my only option a pre-mix as far as supplements go?

I'm not sure what other supplements there are that could be used the way you're describing but you could use EZ Complete that way if you followed a slightly different procedure from what LTS3 described. You'd have to weigh the meat (EZ is only for muscle meat, no organs other than heart, no bones) and mix in the right amount of EZ for that amount of meat. I say "mix in" because the company recommends adding a little water. You can look at their directions here. The supplement does have chicken liver so if your cats like that, you may be in luck. They do have samples.

Our cats really do love EZ Complete: I feed it to them with cooked meat and it's one of their favorite meals of the day. As long as it's not turkey thigh, like today!

 

[maureen brad]

Hello fellow cat lovers,
Is there a some sort of daily supplement I can sprinkle on my cats food, say if I feed them chunks of chicken breast, or just chunks of meat no organ? I've been doing that lately and I want a supplement since they don't go for fresh organs, and I have a hard time getting all 3 of my cats to enjoy crunching bones (except for my one cat who chomps through whole chicken thighs!)

I have a supplement called Daily Best (now Daily Multi) from Vermont Naturals that's been laying around since I first started feeding raw over 2 years ago. I sprinkled it on my pickiest cats chunks of chicken breast the other day to entice him to eat it (he's the most PICKY cat ever! UGH). It worked. But since then, I've seen on Chewy that they've changed the formula and I'm afraid that he will not like it since the first ingredient is no longer natural chicken liver flavor. The ingredients in the photo are the new ones, and the ingredients in the product description are what it used to be.
Pet Naturals of Vermont Daily Multi Cat Chews, 30 count

But I love the idea of just being able to crumble up a supplement pill onto their food (ESPECIALLY IF IT ENTICES THEM TO EAT IT) and call it a day. Or even just a powder, but with a set dose.. like a teaspoon, half a teaspoon a day.

Does anyone know of a good supplement that will fit this annoying criteria: makes the food enticing but gives them complete nutrition!

Foodfurrlife EZ Complete, that reminds me I need to order it again,

 

[mschauer]

So is my only option a pre-mix as far as supplements go?

Well that is really what you are asking for. "Pre-mix" is just a label we apply to a nutrient supplement that provides what ever nutrients are missing from what we are feeding (our home-made foods). They are more appropriate for the use you describe than the product you provided a link to. That product is meant to be used in addition to a diet that is already nutritionally balanced.

 

[orange&white]

Alnutrin or EZ-Complete are probably your best options. For economy, I use the individual vitamin supplements from the feline-nutrition recipe: Recipe: Feline Nutrition's Easy Raw Cat Food. Obviously you can't sprinkle those, but perhaps a "cat gravy" with the supplements mixed with egg yolks and frozen in ice cube trays?

You might be able to sprinkle on the Alnutrin or EZ-Complete...if your cats will eat it dry, and you can get the proportions right so that each cat gets the right amount.

I think most prey-model feeders don't supplement, under the theory that there is less vitamin loss in whole cuts versus ground meats. On another thread, @1 bruce 1 mentioned that taurine, at least, might be helpful even with prey-model feeding. He said worst case scenario, you end up with expensive cat pee.

Prey-model won't work for you if you can't get your cats to eat the right ratio of meat, bone, organ though. I know my cats would pick out their favorites and not eat properly. So, I cube all their boneless meats and kidney, crush the bones and puree liver...plus stir in the egg yolks and supplements. Not as easy as prey model, but I know they're eating a balanced diet.