How Does
How Does Homemade Cat Food Affect Cats?
By Mer
eHow Contributing Writer
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Basics
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Making your own cat foot allows you to control what goes into it, but it is rarely beneficial to cats. Unless you are an expert, it is difficult to attain the right balance of nutrients. Making food that will sustain a healthy cat is much more complicated than making homemade dog food.
Nutrients
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Cats need very specific nutrients in very specific quantities. Name brand companies use formulas created by experts in cat health to ensure cats get the right amounts of all nutrients. It would be difficult for a home cook to accomplish this balance without professional knowledge.
Variety
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Cats need a careful balance of food groups. Cats' diets are often varied in the wild and they eat primarily meat with occasional greens. Their needs are different than the needs of dogs or humans. Additionally, ingredients that humans eat and even dogs can eat can be dangerous to felines' delicate systems.
Side Effects
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Indigestion is the most common side effect of homemade cat food. However, feeding cats homemade food in the long term can result in an unbalanced diet that could result in severe health problems ranging from blindness to organ failure.
Not getting enough taurine can lead to heart problems and blindness. Eating food without a high enough moisture content can lead to dehydration because cats are seldom big drinkers. In turn, dehydration can lead to bladder and kidney problems. An inadequate balance of fat and carbohydrates can lead to chronic diarrhea.
Cats need over 40 vitamins in their diet. Without these vitamins, there are countless possible negative consequences.
Real and Perceived Benefits
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While the risks of homemade cat food are great, those knowledgeable about cat nutrition will find numerous benefits to homemade cat food. Making cat food allows the owner to determine what goes into the food. For example, if you want your pet to eat only organic foods, you can ensure that. Additionally, some pets have allergies to products in some mass-produced cat foods. Preparing the cat food at home allows you to avoid these allergens.
Some people also believe that a raw food diet is better for pets, as animals in the wild eat exclusively raw food. However, the American Veterinary Medical Association says that this puts animals at increased risk for bacteria and parasites. AVMA also says that popularly perceived "benefits" are merely anecdotal stories and are not scientifically valid. As a general rule, premium cat food will yield many more benefits and fewer risks than homemade cat food.
eHow Article: How Does Homemade Cat Food Affect Cats?
