Cat Food - what is a good diet?

A cat’s health is dependent on good nutrition and a balanced diet.  The best cat food diet for your cats consists of raw cat food.  So what does a raw food diet for cats consist of and what are the benefits?  To answer these questions, it’s necessary to understand the basics of feline physiology.

Cats are obligate carnivores.  This means that cats are naturally designed to get a large percentage of their nutritional requirements from animal-based proteins, that is, meat.  Cats in the wild have a diet that largely consists of meat and contains little carbohydrates, and their biology is exactly the same as domesticated cats.  Both are metabolically adapted to utilize proteins and fats as energy sources.  Therefore, the best cat food you can give your pets is that which most closely matches what their bodies are designed for.

All cat food is not created equal.  The protein in dry kibble and canned food, made by the large corporate giants unconcerned with the health and well-being of your cats, largely consists of plant-based proteins, that is, grains.  Cats don’t have the metabolic, or enzymatic, pathways designed to utilize such proteins as they do for animal proteins.  The only reason your cat may eat such kibble is because such food is merely flavored to taste like meat.  As well, these corporate entities make cat foods largely based on carbohydrates.  In the wild, your cat would be eating a high protein, high moisture content, meat-based diet, with a moderate level of fat and with only 6 to 9% carbohydrates.  The average dry cat food on the market contains 35 to 50% carbohydrates.  Some of the cheaper foods contain even higher levels.  Cats not only have no dietary need for carbohydrates, but too many can cause health problems such as:

• Diabetes Mellitus
• Kidney Failure
• Cystitis
• IHL
• Inflammatory Bowel Disease
• Obesity
• Hepatic Lipidosis

So why do these corporations make such potentially harmful foods?  Simple.  Grains are cheap and convenient, enabling a higher profit margin.  That is their main concern.

The healthy alternative is feeding your cats a natural cat food diet.  It is only from raw cat food that your cats are able to receive their specific nutrient requirements:

Vitamin A

A cat’s source of vitamin A must come from liver, kidney, and organ meats.  Deficiencies include poor growth, weight loss, damage to cell membranes, and decreased resistance to disease.

Niacin
Cats are unable to synthesize niacin from the amino acid tryptophan.  Niacin requirements must therefore be met entirely from those present in animal tissues.  Niacin deficiencies include weight loss, loss of appetite, unkempt fur, and oral wounds.

Essential Fatty Acids
Cats require sufficient arachidonic acid, a fatty acid found only in animal tissue. Deficiencies include dermatitis and poor reproductive performance.

Taurine
A cat’s taurine requirements are very high and are obtained through muscle meats.  Fish and shellfish are exceptionally good sources.  Deficiencies include heart disease, CRD or blindness, and poor reproduction.

Only the finest healthy cat food can provide all of these nutrients that your cat needs.  We are proud to endorse Nature’s Variety brand cat foods that are specifically designed to maximize the health and well being of your cats.  We invite you to browse our on-line inventory of raw cat foods and read the details, read the ingredients, and you’ll discover this is the best alternative diet for your cats.  If you have any questions or need further assistance or want to shop online click here.