Kitten and human food

magycmyste

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Hi, I'm new to the site and I'm glad to see there'a a place I can ask questions - I just got a kitten this weekend - a 3-month old, grey and black striped tabby cat named Cleopatra, and I love her.

My question is this: Is it alright for a kitten to have "human food" if it's in tiny, tiny doses every once in awhile? I've only had her for a couple of days, but yesterday, she ate a tiny piece of tofu (less than a centimeter long, diameter of a few millimeters), and didn't seem to have any problems. This morning, I made spaghetti for lunch at work, and she was hovering around me, and I let her lick a tiny bit of spaghetti sauce off of my finger. I was careful to make sure she didn't have much, and otherwise, her diet since I've gotten her has been dry Iams kitten food. For some reason, it didn't occur to me until after I left for work that maybe it was a bad idea for her to have spaghetti sauce, even if it was only a little bit. She did seem to like it, but I know that doesn't necessarily mean it's good for her.

I don't plan to make a habit of giving her table scraps - just wondering f a little bit every once in awhile was ok. (I had an adult cat several years ago, and my family used to reward him most of the time with cat treats, but every once in awhile with a tiny piece of cheese. My kitten won't touch the cat treats we got her, though. I'l have to find something else.)

Thanks in advance for any answers!
 

zorana_dragonky

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Be careful with spaghetti sauce, though. It usually has onion and garlic in it, and those are toxic to cats! Tiny amounts shouldn't kill them, but very much onion or garlic can be really bad for your kitty!

Otherwise, tiny bits of people food are usually safe.
 

sharky

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the aspca website has lists of KNOWN toxic stuff and Thought to be issues
 

tamgirl99

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Here is the list I found from the ASPCA site:

Experts at the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center urge you to avoid feeding the following foods to your pet:
- Alcoholic beverages
- Avocado
- Chocolate (all forms)
- Coffee (all forms)
- Fatty foods
- Macadamia nuts
- Moldy or spoiled foods
- Onions, onion powder
- Raisins and grapes
- Salt
- Yeast dough
- Garlic
- Products sweetened with xylitol

My kitten stole a french fry off my plate the other day before I could catch her.
This falls under two of the categories above (salt/fatty) but she seemed fine.
 

vampcow

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my black cat likes to sit in the kitchen when I cook and if something looks interesting he walks over and gives it a try. He usually just goes after stuff like chicken, beef or shrimp but I did catch him eating zucchini once and he seems to like veggies.

my sis is a vet tech with 2 cats and when I asked her about moo sampling raw chicken (he ripped open the freezer bag and stole a chicken breast as it was defrosting!) she said it wouldn't hurt him but its better if he was fed cooked meat since they can get the same diseases as we do from undercooked food.

I mentioned moo's habit of eating everything in sight or licking it and my vet said usually that is ok...but to watch houseplants. He said some of them are toxic to cats!
 

mrblanche

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My brother has cats that everything from pizza to grapefruit. But only in small amounts, of course.

At one time, there was no such thing as cat food, and people just gave them milk or table scraps. Today, we know both of those can cause trouble.

We have often joked that our cats are the "kitchen gods" who have to have a sniff at everything we eat or cook. They don't eat any of it, but they want to know what it is.
 

optionken

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I don't see anything wrong with even giving table scraps many times a week. I do however do not like what you have been giving. Your cat is an obligate carnivore
Snacks like plain chicken, turkey even ham are fine. Pasta and sauces are not.
Many cats have trouble processing carbohydrates
 

buzbyjlc10

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Oliver has been known to steal steak off of my plate
He used to be a giant cream cheese thief too - like I'd have a bagel with it on a plate on my lap on the bed and I'd use my hand for 2 seconds to take a drink and he'd jump up, swipe some licks of cream cheese and dart off - he's since given up that obsession though

I will offer him unseasoned chicken or beef when I'm having some - sometimes he eats it, sometimes he doesn't (he's a picky pants though) but he always has to "kill" it first, which usually leads to the dog stealing whatever it is
 

yosemite

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Whatever meat we are having for dinner, Bijou gets his own serving. John cuts a small piece into small bits and puts it down so Bijou can eat with us.
Last night he had filet mignon and tonight he'll have pork tenderloin with Grand Marnier sauce.
Mika is particularly fond of Cheesies and our two previous cats went nuts for my spaghetti and meatballs.

Both cats get a high quality diet of Orijen dry and Merrick's wet food but love to taste what we are having and I don't feel it's a problem personally. Like the old saying goes - everything in moderation. I wouldn't give them a lot of any human food and don't give them cold cuts of any kind because I just think they are too salty and too "processed".
 

alleygirl

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Riley is a beggar. He generally gets a bite of whatever we're eating, although we do avoid onions, chocolate, etc.

His favorite is mandarin oranges
 
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magycmyste

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Thanks for all the answers! I feel a lot better about letting Cleopatra have little tidbits from time to time. My cousin was with her yesterday and said she'd hadn't had any problems, so all's good for now. I'll just need to be careful about it.

Another question, if it's ok (or maybe I should start a new thread for it). I've heard that it's not good to sort of leave food for the day for your cat. The thing is, I'm at work from 8 to 5 (so out of the house from about 7:30 to 6), and Monday through Thursday, at least, there's no one to feed her. I got her the feeders where you can put food and water in a bottle that pours out into the dish as she empties it (although, honestly, it doesnâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t look like sheâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s emptying it much – I know sheâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s only a kitten, but Iâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]ve been worrying about her not eating enough – hopefully itâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s just her adjusting to a new place and sheâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]ll get over it soon. Iâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]ll probably talk to the vet about it on Saturday, anyway). Is it really bad for me to use those feeders?

Thanks again!
 

robertm

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Originally Posted by Magycmyste

I've heard that it's not good to sort of leave food for the day for your cat.
This is true for adult cats who have demonstrated that they don't have the ability to self-regulate the amount of food that they eat. Most cats do not overeat.

As a kitten, Cleopatra should be free-fed kitten food, so not only is there nothing wrong with leaving dry food out all day, it's actually a good idea until she reaches physical maturity.

I am referring to dry food, of course; it is not a good idea to leave canned food out for longer than half an hour to an hour, depending upon climate. This is due to bacteria issues.
 
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magycmyste

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Originally Posted by RobertM

This is true for adult cats who have demonstrated that they don't have the ability to self-regulate the amount of food that they eat. Most cats do not overeat.

As a kitten, Cleopatra should be free-fed kitten food, so not only is there nothing wrong with leaving dry food out all day, it's actually a good idea until she reaches physical maturity.

I am referring to dry food, of course; it is not a good idea to leave canned food out for longer than half an hour to an hour, depending upon climate. This is due to bacteria issues.
I've only been feeding her dry food, other than the instances mentioned above. I've bought a couple of cans of Fancy Feast, but I'm saving those for a treat/special occasion (like maybe a reward after she has her booster shot). It's good to know that it's ok for her, right now, at least. I'm positive she's not overeating, as she's pretty much skin and bones.

She was also spayed recently (less than a week ago, and apparently the day before I adopted her), so I think that might account for a few of the things I was worried about, if not all. Agains, I'll probably have a long list of questions for the vet on Saturday.

Thank you!
 

bodhi utah

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Lately, my 14-weeker has been sampling the foods I eat. He has shown he likes baked beans in tomato sauce! 

Most evenings, I would take him across the hall to my bestie's apartment and cook dinner for us both. Whilst eating mine, I lie on my friend's bed in his bedroom so I can watch TV (my friend eats in his livingroom) and I keep Beetle with me so my friend can eat in peace.

Because as soon as I lie down (or even sit) with my plate or bowl, Beetle is straight up onto the bed to have a nosey to see what I'm eating. If I'm eating baked beans, I leave a little drop to one side of the plate and eat the rest as he's enjoying his share. Then when I'm finished, I let him lick the sauce off the plate before washing it (in hot water, obvs).

He also likes the usual chicken and deli ham but doesn't seem to like pork sausage. Last night I had some Frosties with skimmed Lactofree milk and he quite enjoyed the spoonful of milk I gave him.

There are other human foods he likes but I can't remember them right now. lol
 
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