Natural Cat Food: Market Speak?

Natural Cat Food: MarketSpeak?

Most 'natural cat food' merchants are selling image and lifestyle choices rather than healthy cat foods.

I'm old enough to remember many cat food advertising campaigns and just like any other commodity involving huge sums of money, truth often takes a back seat to manipulating the cat lovers' heart strings.

It would seem that on the face of it, natural cat and pet foods should be the best. Unfortunately it is often the same old commercial cat food, with a few ingredients changed to give it a 'green' angle'. I feel sorry for those few manufacturers trying to supply the genuine article, because everyone is trying to get in on the 'natural' food craze - even if there's not much that's natural about it.

Cat food, the genuine article, is NOT photogenic. Who would want to look at dreamy out of focus shots of a meat rendering plant?

Just like most of us can't bear to watch a cat crunching through its natural food (a mouse or bird, for example) we would also rather not see what goes into our cat's food. Just because you have a Siamese cat or other pedigree doesn't make your cat insensitive to 'natural tastes' - she'll still love those mice and birds, just like any other cat.

The only way to supply your cat with genuine natural cat foods is to offer him food that is closest to that eaten in the wild.

I'm not suggesting you store quantities of frozen mice from the reptile and exotic animal food supplier, but you can feed your cat raw meat - chicken, rabbit or turkey, ground bones and all. And if you don't believe me, try reading some of the experts on cat nutrition, people like Tom Londsdale author of the book Raw Meaty Bones and vet Elizabeth Hodgkins author of the book Your Cat. Fancy a website rather than a book? UKRMB might be well worth a look.

At least your cat won't be eating some of this so-called natural cat food - which in some cases includes rosemary oil preservative and added carrots, peas, wild rice, potatoes and yes, even cranberries and wild honey - which is in no way similar to what your cat would eat if it were still living in the wild.

After the major cat food recall scares manufactures had to find other ways to bulk out the meat. To keep prices down and competition at bay, they haven't always used premium meats and meat by-products. If they did, they'd probably be priced right out of the market and put out of business.

Unfortunately the cat food-buying public often doesn't know the difference - it either buys the cheapest food, not knowing it may be mostly cereal, or may not be able to afford healthier alternatives. Making a really healthy cat food that costs more and doesn't sell is no way to run a business.

Until manufacturers are forced by law or public opinion to provide a better diet for our cats, this will carry on and our cats will be in and out of the vet's with all kind of ailments from skin problems to diabetes and weight issues.

What choices do you have when it comes to natural cat food?

Buy tinned wet food with the highest meat content. Avoid dry food. This already will already be a vast improvement. In fact, replacing dry with canned wet food has demonstrated its health benefits. According to at least one cat food expert, cats raised on canned food are far less prone to diabetes (read more in diabetic cat food ) than cats on dry food. A diabetic cat is hugely expensive in vet fees, to say nothing of the ongoing stress and worry on your part.

Even better than tinned wet foods, research if a local supplier can deliver a quality, human grade, and balanced raw meat cat food without the carb-based bulking agents. Make sure the meat has additional vitamins and minerals (like Taurine) needed by cats for health. If only raw meat is available, source your own cat food supplements and minerals and add them to the meat just before serving. It'll probably cost more than commercially available food but if you invest in a good meat grinder - essential to grind bones and organs, which are good for cat health - you'll need fewer supplements and quickly recoup your investment. You'll be making your own raw cat food in no time.

As an added bonus, many cat owners say that after the change over their cat's personality has improved, its fur glows with health and those horrible cat tray smells have all but disappeared!

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