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We all know that diet is the foundation of health. As we note in our article, Why Feed Your Cat a Raw Diet, our doctors and our governments tell us that we need to eat fresh food. We need 2-4 servings of fresh fruit per day, and we are advised to eat 3-5 servings of fresh vegetables each day. And yet we expect our cats, designed to derive ALL of their needed nutrition from ONLY small animals they hunt, to thrive on the most highly processed food there is, full of carbohydrates. Even if “real meat” is advertised as the number one ingredient in that food, the moisture was sucked out of it before it gets to your cat, or many of the vitamins need to be replaced synthetically because they were destroyed by high heat.
We are marketed cat food with advertising touting the inclusion of "healthy" ingredients like peas and carrots, cranberries or blueberries. Sounds delightful! ...to a human, for a human. Did we forget? Cats aren’t out there eating the grain stores of farmers. They eat the mice that eat the grain. Cats aren’t out there raiding the vegetable garden. They eat the rabbits that raid our gardens. Cats aren't out there snacking on blueberries. They eat the birds that eat the berries.
Now that cats have moved indoors full-time, and we have become 100% responsible for their diet, their health problems are telling. In fact, cats need fresh food, too in order to truly thrive. Our cats are dying of kidney disease and cancer, and they are afflicted with diet-induced illnesses: Feline Lower Urinary Tract Diseases (FLUTD), Diabetes, Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), Hyperthyroidism, Pancreatitis, and Megacolon. As with humans, time and research are bearing out the notion that fresh, minimally processed food is best for long term health.
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Our Feline Nutrition Articles Include:
The Natural Diet of the Cat
Why Feed Your Cat a Raw Diet
Cat Food and Cat Health
What is Digestibility and Why Does It Matter?
Digestive Disease in Cats: Diet Considerations
Water - An Essential Nutrient
Water - 15 Tips to Increase Your Cat's Water Intake