Cat Health Problems – More on Diet
In the previous article we looked at some of the ingredients in a well-known brand of cat food and learned how unhealthy and even positively harmful these ingredients can be for our cats.
I know from my own experiences with my pets just how important diet is. In my first article, I mentioned how my dog, Benji, died of congestive heart failure. It wasn’t until it was too late that I learned the role that diet played in his illness. Like many people, I fed him what I thought was one of the healthiest foods. It was one of the most popular brands and it certainly wasn’t the cheapest. He ate it, so I thought it was good for him – it wasn’t.
My cat Tinkerbell was returned to the shelter (before I found her) with a severe urinary infection – the direct result of being fed a very poor, exclusively dry food diet. When I adopted her she was being fed a special science diet for the urinary tract and I was advised to keep her on that diet for the rest of her life. Fortunately, I now know better and I consulted my own veterinarian, who has a holistic approach. She advised me to feed her food that was grain free to keep her urinary tract healthy. As we saw in the previous article, most of the cat foods that are available mainly consist of grains. I’ve been feeding her grain-free food for the 2 ½ years that she’s been with us and she is as happy and healthy as can be. She’s never had a litter box problem, her coat is healthy and she’s very energetic and happy (as you can see).
So what is the healthiest food to feed your cat? Most experts who understand the role of diet in pet health (unfortunately that doesn’t include the majority of veterinarians) agree that the best food is food that you prepare yourself. In particular, most dietary experts recommend a raw food diet for your cat or dog. Raw meat in particular – fish is probably better cooked because of the level of toxins in fish these days. They also recommend some raw vegetables, such as zucchini, asparagus (my cat Flugel loves asparagus), carrots and even lettuce. Fruit is also good – Flugel also loves bananas, grapes, cantaloupe and other fruits!
The meat or fish doesn’t have to be raw. It can be cooked, but vegetables should be raw as many important nutrients can be lost through cooking.
There are some healthier foods available now in pet stores, and we’ll look at those in a bit more detail later on. The most important thing is to be aware of how diet affects your cat’s health problems. Feeding your cat a healthy diet will support a strong immune system and provide the nutrients needed for every body function.
