Raw as a treat?

[wishiwas]

Is there a benefit to feeding raw as a treat of sorts, maybe once or twice a week? Maybe if it was something with some bone? I know a little about raw and dogs, but not much about cats. I used to give my dog raw turkey necks once every week or two to keep her teeth nice and clean.

I'm definitely not looking to switch to raw at this point. It just wouldn't be practical. But I would like to give Cici a little something here and there. She is about as far from picky as you can get, so I don't foresee any problems getting her to eat it. Is there something easy to get that could serve a purpose similar to what I was doing with the dog?

 

[auntie crazy]

Feeding raw snacks to cats is as beneficial as giving apples to kids - so go for it!

I'd be careful feeding bone-in meals as snacks, however, because commercial products are engineered to keep poo consistency firm - adding a fresh raw bone-in meal might be too much and there's the potential your kitty could become constipated.

AC

 

[sharky]

Many of the Raw feeding vets I have talked with recommend either chicken necks or just stew like meat chunks for snacks... the necks are a no go here...Auntie brings up a interesting point , never experienced it nor heard it but good hypothesis

 

[missymotus]

Many vets over here recommend raw at least a few times a week for good dental health. chunks/strips of meat, chicken necks or wing tips.

 

[chris10]

If you are able to source them out and if your kitty accepts them, I would try chicken necks. They have a fair amount of small segmented bones that normally require teeth to really get down in between to break apart. If bones are a no go then my next suggestion is to try gizzards. They are very tough and require a fair amount of chewing. Last is big chunks of beef. You can do chunks of chicken but chicken is a softer meat, so it may take a little longer to see results. My meat eating veterans slice through chicken like its butter.

 

[wishiwas]

Her teeth are in good shape right now, but I'd love to help keep them that way. And with the way she tears into food, I think she might enjoy something that required some good gnawing. I'll have to look into where to get some of this stuff. I think there's a butcher nearby..

 

[mimosa]

Apart from what other people mentioned, my cats love lamb heart. It's a bit tough so they have to chew ot really wel and it's got lots of taurine.

 

[addiebee]

Originally Posted by chris10

If you are able to source them out and if your kitty accepts them, I would try chicken necks. They have a fair amount of small segmented bones that normally require teeth to really get down in between to break apart. If bones are a no go then my next suggestion is to try gizzards. They are very tough and require a fair amount of chewing. Last is big chunks of beef. You can do chunks of chicken but chicken is a softer meat, so it may take a little longer to see results. My meat eating veterans slice through chicken like its butter.

To quote Shakespeare, aye, there's the rub!! I CANNOT FIND CHICKEN NECKS!!!

 

[kara_leigh]

My Nora loves a treat of raw chicken or beef. We usually have one of those at least once or twice a week for dinner, so we give her whatever we trim off while we are preparing it. Whenever we get the cutting board out she is right there waiting for her share (she gets treats of fruits and veggies also when we prepare them for meals, so she knows the cutting board well lol), and lets us know if we aren't going fast enough for her. lol I have pictures up in the photo section right now about her getting chicken.

She seems to only do well with chunks of boneless meat, though. We've tried giving her chicken wings (couldn't find chicken neck either) and livers, and she vomited after each one. The liver actually made her really sick and she vomited multiple times. No more of that for her. She wouldn't eat the chicken heart. Her favorite is beef (we call it "cow" and she knows what that means) and she loves chicken, she'll eat bacon but won't eat other pork meats.

 

[nekochan]

I give my dog raw bones as a treat when she is eating kibble, and it keeps her teeth sparkling and clean.

 

[2coolcats]

my kitties get raw treats usually whenever I cook a meat. I would feed them raw totally but I have not been able to get them to eat bones...not even small wing tips....so I give chunks every so often.

They like the meat okay, but for chicken wings and necks they won't work too hard. If the meat doesn't come off easily for them, they usually lick it and walk away. If I pull most of the meat off, they really like it.

 

[sunstruck]

This is going to sound bad, but have you tried a mouse? My vet swears by mice. He said they contain 85% of a cat's daily nutrients. He suggested going to a pet store and getting frozen mice for snakes. Thaw them out to room temp before giving it to the cats.

My guys love rabbit. I feed the dogs the rabbit, and give the cats cut up chunks. Lamb, turkey, and chicken are all good too.

Good luck! There is also the option of using a dental wash, either on your finger, or a few drops in their water.

Penny

 

[chris10]

Originally Posted by Sunstruck

. He said they contain 85% of a cat's daily nutrients.

What are the 15%, of nutrients, they are supposedly missing? First time I have heard of this. While its difficult to predict what a perfect natural diet is for a cat, since they eat pretty much anything that moves. Generally most raw feeders, if not feeding whole prey, try to adhere to a prey model diet. Which is, in theory, close to what a mouse is made up of.

I also could have miss read your post. Did you mean that one mouse contains 85% of a cats daily nutrients, or that mice in general contain 85% of a cat's daily nutrients?

 

[wishiwas]

So far no luck finding chicken necks, unless we want to buy 40 lbs at once. Which is obviously a no go with just a tiny freezer. Several places with turkey necks, but I assume those are too large?

 

[chris10]

Originally Posted by wishiwas

So far no luck finding chicken necks, unless we want to buy 40 lbs at once. Which is obviously a no go with just a tiny freezer. Several places with turkey necks, but I assume those are too large?

That seems to be the normal thing some people run into. Either can't find it or can only order boxes of them. My local Co-op, health food store, sells them in small packages of 4-6. But chicken necks are part of my kitties main diet, so I usually buy the 40lb boxes of them.

I have heard of some people feeding turkey necks. IMO they are pretty big and I wouldn't normally recommend feeding them to a cat. Turkey neck bones are still somewhat the same consistency as a chicken neck. The actual bones look like they have thousands of tiny air pockets, I sometimes say solid spongy material, in them. Sorry for the weird explanation, but when you cleave one in half you will know what I am talking about. This just means that neck bones are not a solid bone and can be crushed when a small amount of force is applied to it. So there is a chance, as well as some claiming, that cats can consume turkey necks.

But the biggest hurdle will be motivation. My meat veterans will give up on parts of large chicken thigh bones. Those are small but fairly solid bone. Where as turkey necks are large but not as solid. I am speculating that most cats will just scrape off as much meat as they can, off of turkey necks. Which still provides some teeth cleaning.

Give them a shot and let us know.

 

[furryfriends50]

When I feed turkey necks I smash them to break the bone. Mine love them that way! Plus it makes a very cheap meal with the price of turkey necks here - $0.33 a lb!

 

[2coolcats]

Is it okay to feed the same organ as a snack over the course of time? I can get chicken liver and giblets cheaply, and my cats love it. I usually give 1 giblet or liver each evening until we are done with the pack (2-3 weeks). Is this too much of the same organ?

I've read that in an all raw diet organ meat should be limited so that is why i'm asking.

 

[sharky]

Originally Posted by 2coolCats

Is it okay to feed the same organ as a snack over the course of time? I can get chicken liver and giblets cheaply, and my cats love it. I usually give 1 giblet or liver each evening until we are done with the pack (2-3 weeks). Is this too much of the same organ?

I've read that in an all raw diet organ meat should be limited so that is why i'm asking.

Organs fed in Large amounts can cause issues... Ie just like lot of sugar and salt is not good for us... For many many years I feed raw organs once a day to the animals with great results ...

 

[2coolcats]

Originally Posted by sharky

Organs fed in Large amounts can cause issues... Ie just like lot of sugar and salt is not good for us... For many many years I feed raw organs once a day to the animals with great results ...

Thanks Sharky! They love their evening snack and it's so budget friendly I can consistently provide them.

 

[cat connection]

Greetings,

I think it is great that you want to offer raw cat food.

However, several things to keep in mind. First, never give a cat anything with bits of bone, no matter how small. Although your cat may not be a picky eater, the digestive system may. I would suggest starting with a very small portion and observe the reaction.

There are several high quality RAW discs designed for cats. You can buy a bag of say 25. Keep them in the freezer and the night before remove one and place it in a plastic bag and store in your refrigerator. The next day it will me soft enough to serve.

If your cat does not like cold food, (many do not), just place the serving portion in a microwave for say 8 seconds. Adding a like water prior to heating will help to make it mushy.

I hope that helps.

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