Cat Food
 | "" If you are allergic to cats, then you will probably also be allergic to flea saliva, which is one of the most allergenic substances known to man." |
There are many discussions about which cat food is best to use.
The main problem that we initially saw when we looked into cat food was that there are no regulations in terms of what ingredients can be included. There is basically no real quality-testing going on. We have even seen reports that animal waste from slaughterhouses was ending up in the food.
Since the food is not tested, we would never know if there are any toxic contaminations, antibiotics, waste, etc., in our pet's food. Those are risks that we were not willing to take.
Then our neighbor's dog died, because of some toxic ingredient in a national brand dog food that may have been imported from China. They ended up on the local news with that story. You may have seen national coverage about it yourself - the big pet food scare of 2007.
It was much harder at that time to get vegetarian cat food and we usually had to cook up our own cat menu. (In a bind they will eat brown rice with a little cooked tofu, milk, cheese, butter, etc. - whatever you have - mixed in for flavor. Nutritional yeast is always good added to their food because it is full of vitamins and wards off fleas. It also takes cheesy and delicious).
I don't want to tell anybody that vegetarian cat food is the best diet for cats, as I don't know enough about the science of their dietary needs. But I do know that our cats - in the past and present - have always thrived on that diet.
I believe that every cat owner has to make their own decision about what is best for their cat, based on their own beliefs, circumstances, etc. You know what is best for your cat. Educate yourself and then go with your gut feeling.
We give our cats food in the morning and in the evening. They nibble a little in between. Our cats may live a secret life of adventure outdoors, but you can set the clock by them. They will show up at their usual meal time.
After seeing reports on TV about cat obesity and the connected health issues, our motto is very simple: Be consistent and keep it simple. Our cats are now over 1 year old and we rarely give them so-called 'treats'. Maybe a little milk or cream occasionally and in moderation. If we want to show them that we love them, we give them attention. That is the best supplement to any diet or cat food.