Uncomfortable about the meat in my cat's food

[autumnrose74]

Unfortunately, cats are obligate carnivores, so they MUST have meat in their diet. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. I would expect someone who is concerned enough about animal welfare to go vegan would be aware of the fact that an animal described as an "obligate carnivore" has its own dietary needs that, in spite of thousands of years of domestication, have not changed. 

If you are concerned about the source of the meat in your cat's food, stop feeding commercial food, find a source for organic meat, and make your own food.

And please read the following websites, that explain in further detail WHY cats cannot exist on no-meat diets.

http://catinfo.org/

http://feline-nutrition.org

http://healthypets.mercola.com - this site has an extensive article library, so you'll have to do a search for the proper articles.

http://www.littlebigcat.com/nutrition/vegetarian-cats/

 

[oneandahalfcats]

 
Unfortunately, cats are obligate carnivores, so they MUST have meat in their diet. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. I would expect someone who is concerned enough about animal welfare to go vegan would be aware of the fact that an animal described as an "obligate carnivore" has its own dietary needs that, in spite of thousands of years of domestication, have not changed. 

If you are concerned about the source of the meat in your cat's food, stop feeding commercial food, find a source for organic meat, and make your own food.

And please read the following websites, that explain in further detail WHY cats cannot exist on no-meat diets.

http://catinfo.org/

http://feline-nutrition.org

http://healthypets.mercola.com - this site has an extensive article library, so you'll have to do a search for the proper articles.

http://www.littlebigcat.com/nutrition/vegetarian-cats/

I think the OP gets the point that her cat needs meat. Her concern regarding the source of her cat's food, is quite valid. What she needs now are suggestions, rather than more admonitions! ..

 

[ldg]

Well, the problem with "organic" meats in commercial cat foods is that doesn't mean the animals were raised humanely. It's like... "cage free." Doesn't mean they see grass or sunshine.


The only way to ensure you feed humanely raised meat is to buy locally raised animals and make your own food.

If in the U.S., you can check http://www.eatwild.com to see if there are any farmers or farm markets near you.

 

[lilin]

 
I personally am a vegan and I've never really thought that was a good idea for cats. But I definitely don't feel good about the meat in my cat's food--not on an ethical level but just a health level because I know the types of things that happen in slaughterhouses/to meat in general. I've found a lot of vegan and vegetarian foods online but I'm still kind of unsure about that choice for a cat. She's currently eating Blue Wilderness and always has. She has really sensitive skin so she can't have food with gluten, soy, or wheat. Also I recently switched to wet food because it seems to be better since she has bad teeth. 

I guess I'm just wondering if anyone has any suggestions for cat food that meets those requirements that has either no meat (if that's healthy) or meat that they know isn't full of antibiotics, hormones, and whatever else gross that goes on in meat production.

Thanks! 

First of all, your instincts are right about vegan diets for cats: it is absolutely terrible for them. Some can survive for a while, but many times it kills them pretty quickly. Cats are obligate carnivores.

I think as far as trying to obtain a diet that was as ethically sourced as you can reasonably manage, you might want to look at various raw food companies (I'm assuming you probably don't want to make it yourself) or premium wet foods. While it is true that you cannot guarantee with 100% certainty that the meat was obtained in a way that is satisfactory to you, it is certainly substantially better than the factory farm scraps that go into big box cat foods.

Foods certified as organic will come from animals that weren't pumped full of drugs, and if the meat is treated for bacteria, it's treated using pressure, not synthetic chemicals. Some also say their animals come from ethical farms.

A prepared raw diet doesn't look all that different from wet food. It actually smells less, and they look like little patties of meat. So hopefully that will be easier for you to handle than having to prepare your own from intact animal parts.

 

[stephanie42]

i still eat meat (90% ovo-lacto veg) but am very concerned about where it comes from - for both me and my cats.  i've fed nature's variety instinct and pride before.  be aware that they source their rabbit from a 'trusted source in china'.  my cats love the rabbit so much and i'm so happy with everything else about nature's variety that i trust it as well.  my cats don't get the rabbit more than a couple of times a month (i feed three times a day, two times are canned).

most of the raw (frozen or freeze dried) seems to have fruit and veg added.  while cats don't need fruit/veg, they do add some nutritional value and i think the convenience of prepared raw foods are worth it.  i fed stella & chewy's freeze dried raw and was very happy with the ingredients and sourcing.  my cats did not really like primal raw stuff as much.  as someone else had mentioned, check for local companies that make raw food.  another option is to make your own, which might be a bit much for you.  but that way you could buy your own ingredients and know exactly where everything is coming from.  tc feline makes a powder you add to raw meats to make it nutritionally appropriate... you could check that out as well.

blue buffalo sources their vitamin/mineral additives from china.  they were not forthcoming with that information when i asked for it, and i had to press them and send numerous emails.  i didn't like that, so i will not feed anything from blue buffalo.  

because all three of my cats have different needs now, including one in kidney failure, i feed a wellness kibble for their bedtime snack and wet food for breakfast and dinner.  i am currently feeding some nature's variety canned, some wellness core canned, and weruva.  my cats are very, very happy with the weruva.  i love the ingredient list on most flavors and it doesn't smell horrible.  and my cats love it!

 

[loganregina]

hello. I am also a vegan, so I understand.  Currently, my cat eats Tiki Cat  Chicken in Chicken Consomme- I do not feed him the fish varieties because of my concern about toxins. The website is Petropics.com.  They provide alot of information about their food sources, etc.  I do know that the food is processed in a human grade facility.   But, if you have any further questions, you can email them and they will get back to you within a few days-I use this email- [email protected].  This is the email for the representative that I have contacted with questions.  Also, I left a voicemail with the company regarding what type of fish oil was used in the food, and I received a return phone call within a week.  It is human grade food- the chickens used are fed non genetically modified feed.   The food does not contain gravy-which is high in carbs.  It is a high protein zero carb food.  I eventually plan to switch to raw, because that is the healthiest diet I think- I am considering Rad Cat.  However, since I do not handle/cook/prepare meat, I am a bit nervous about this, so I am going to research it further first.  I hope this information helps!