What should you feed your cat to make sure he or she will have the necessary nutrition? What is the ideal mix of food to help your cat live to the limit of it's life span? To answer these questions, one should look at the diet of a feline in it's natural habitat. In the wild, a cat eats almost exclusively animal tissue. However, they would normally eat the entire body of the animal, including it's stomach contents, which has many nutrients that are simply lacking in an animals muscle tissue. Another question some cat owners have is: Is fresh meat the best possible food for cats? Not necessarily. Fresh meat will not provide a balanced diet for a cat, as they are extremely protein dense while being very low in vital nutrients such as calcium. Conversely, some cat owners have asked, "Is it alright to feed my cat a completely vegetarian diet?" The answer to that question is a clear cut no. Cats cannot produce the nutrients it needs from an exclusively vegetarian diet in the same way that humans can. Being a very specialized hunter, it has actually lost that ability during the course of it's evolution. Certain skin problems are sometimes the result of a deficiency in certain essential fatty acids which can be found in animal flesh alone. Another problem is that a deficiency of the amino acid taurine, a major building block for proteins of the body, which can cause both blindness and heart failure. Cats are simply born carnivores. Is it o.k. to give a cat only dry food? According to petshub, the answer is yes, providing that you ensure that fresh water is available at all times. Dry food is generally more convenient, hygienic, and affordable than canned or fresh food. It also exercises the teeth and reduces the buildup of tartar, which can grow into a severe problem in cats that are fed a soft and mushy diet. |
