Are You Giving Your Cat A Proper Diet?

By Melinda Kempenich

Following that evolutionary chain that gave rise to all life, those first mammals sprang from reptiles about 200 million years ago. About 70 million years ago mammals began assuming the dominant role they currently hold. And, they also began to develop into many of the families that exist today.

One of the early meat-eating groups arose to fill the niche of hunter. These were the Miacis. At first the Miacis were small, weasel-like animals, but they had what it took to survive and develop further. As the evolutionary process progressed, about 45-50 million years ago they developed into the ancestors of today’s carnivore families, including, yes you guessed it, cats.

Spurred on by their hunting prowess, the cats evolved into many different forms. Few of these survive today. It’s been at least 13,000 years since the saber-tooth tiger roamed the earth. The giant tiger of Asia and the cave lion of Europe are gone, becoming extinct before the saber-tooth. Some say the oldest known fossilized record with a strong similarity to today’s cats has been aged at about 12 million years ago. Wow.

Today’s cats are divided into three categories: The Acinonyx, which are the cheetah, the Felis, which are the small cats, including our domestic breeds. And the Panthera, the great cats such as lions. In all there are probably about 40 different species of cats that exist today.

So, taking you back to the original question, are you giving your cat a proper diet? Although they are domesticated kitty-cats, cats are carnivores. That would mean they do eat meat, and when they eat their prey, they eat it all! Muscle, skin, bones, and internal organs I’m afraid. So guess what, it’s our job as responsible owners to try and duplicate that diet. A good cat diet should contain 25 to 30 percent protein and 15 to 40 percent fat.

On average most cats do fairly well on prepared cat foods. There are many good ones on the market. Canned meats store easily and have lots of water in them. This is great since water is so essential for a cat’s diet. Soft, moist cat foods are also good. Some dried foods are suspected of causing bladder problems because of the lack of water. If you do use them, just be sure to provide plenty of fresh water. My only concern about prepared cat foods would be the lack of natural ingredients.

Since cats don’t chew, their teeth aren’t constructed that way, it is important to chop food or serve it in lumps so they can tear it up. Some cats may even take veggies and fruits. However, cats cannot live on vegetarian diets alone. Sometimes you may see your cat eat grass. Actually grass is good for cats because it acts as an emetic to make them regurgitate furballs. Be sure your lawn-care products are nontoxic if your cat regularly indulges.

Here are some other things you don’t want to feed your cat. Liver, as it can upset their bowels. Fish is good, however, if you feed only fish it can cause Vitamin B1 deficiency. If you feed only prime lean meat there is a chance your cat won’t get enough calcium and vitamins. Water is an essential of course. Some water directly from the tap has strong chlorine odor and may irritate your cat’s nose. If you do have chlorine in your water let it sit for 24 hours before giving it to your cat. Raw egg whites are another no-no as they contain avidin, which neutralizes biotin. Another no-no is to feed your cat prepared dog food. The meat content is not nearly high enough.

It is important that your cat’s diet includes active food enzymes, naturally balanced whole vitamins and minerals, and a good source of chlorophyll. These are heat sensitive nutrients and nutritional properties can be destroyed with high heat processing or improper storage. It is unfortunately, still common practice to use inferior ingredients and damaging procedures in most animal foods production in order to reduce costs. Enzymes are important for proper digestion and absorption of nutrients. When enzymes are not available to the animal from food, the body must compensate and may risk depleting its own enzyme supply. This can happen when diets are fortified with synthetic vitamins and vitamin isolates instead of whole, natural vitamins. If these needs are unmet over an extended period of time your cat may develop an impaired immune system. Remember cats of the wild thrive on a diet of natural, raw foods. These foods provide all of the nutrients, vitamins, minerals, and chlorophyll their bodies were designed to have.

So, are you really meeting your cat’s nutritional needs? I sure hope so. They deserve the best from you. Pets are one of the greatest stress reducers. Young and old alike derive such simple pleasure from interacting with cats, dogs, and other pets. I know my family wouldn’t be the same without our beloved pets. Kids, cats, kittens, dogs, fish, rabbits, and wild finch birds fill my home. They make life worth living out here in good ole North Dakota. Yes, North Dakota, (we’re on the map) where the deer and the antelope roam.

Sources: Cell Tech, Cat Facts by Marcuss Schneck & Jill Caravan, Encarta Encyclopedia

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