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Why???

post #1 of 6
11/18/10 at 4:16pm
Thread Starter 
I've been doing a lot of research on cat nutrition because of Chumley's allergies and a debate about coconut oil in helping treat the problem.

Obviously everything I've learned means I want to feed my cats a raw food diet. But that's out of the question with our 8cu ft refrigerator and 8 cats... apart from the fact that we can't afford the cost of grain feed meat for ourselves (at $12/pound for chicken and $16/pound for beef) let alone our cats.

But I've learned that cats can't process carotene into vitamin A. So why are carrots or beta carotene added to ANY cat foods?

And cats are missing enzymes to process certain fats into the essential fatty acids they need - and the EFAs in fish meal aren't stable enough to be available as omegas in processed food, so... ???

And flax is frequently found up there in the ingredient list in the grain-free foods... and it is approximately 42% fat, and that fat is comprised of 72% LA and LNA (Linoleic acid and Alpha Linoleic acid). Most people and dogs can convert these into the necessary omegas - but cats CANNOT. So why would ANY cat food - especially the "high end" or "quality" cat foods contain flax?

I am really bewildered by the cat food industry!!!!!
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post #2 of 6
11/18/10 at 4:47pm
This is just my opinion, so, I am not here to preach, by any means. I've had a lot of cats in my 60 years. Three died of cancer - though they were all over 10 years old. One died of heat exhaustion, one of pneumonia after being neutered, and one fell out of a tree. The rest of them lived long, healthy lives. They all lived to 17-20 years old.

They didn't have the best cat food. For a long time in my life, there wasn't good cat food, and we didn't know any better. We did the best by them that we could. I was thrilled when I started feeding my cats Hill's Science Diet, about 20 years ago, because after I started that, I have never had to take a cat in for teeth cleaning. And for some, that was traumatic. And I never think anesthesia is a good thing. I don't brush their teeth, or anything like that.

Now I know that Hill's - or any high grain food - is not so good. But I had cats live to nearly 20 on Hill's for most of their lives. I've had cats live to nearly 20 on an all dry diet. I didn't know any better then, either.

I'm a vegetarian, and I'm totally, and I mean totally, grossed out by meat. I can hardly read the food section of the newspaper. And I am careful who I have dinner with. I avert my eyes from the meat section at the supermarket.

I realize that cats are carnivores, and frankly, it is about the only distasteful thing about them to me. I will always do my best to provide my cats with the healthiest diet I can afford. But I will never have raw meat, of any kind in my house, ever. The cruelty of the meat processing industry is beyond comprehension or any justification, in my view.

I know that my cats don't have a perfect diet. Also, in a perfect world, they would be outside and experiencing all the wonders of the world and enjoying life a lot more than in the confines of my house - no matter what I provide to entertain them. But, if let outside, they would soon die. And I can't accept that. I make the compromise of keeping them inside and safe, and hope that I am doing right by them.

So, I guess I'm saying, that it isn't worth it to get obsessed with trying to make everything perfect and natural - even if it were possible. My diet is far from all that it should be. Even as a vegetarian, I eat too much fat, and too much of the wrong kind of fat, and too much processed food. I'll probably live to be 85 anyway, and that's plenty long enough for me.

My guess would be that the pet food industry does what every industry and business does that I know of - make a lot of compromises to make profits and get the job done. It is worthwhile to be informed and try one's best. But unless you want to do all that it takes to provide a perfect raw diet, it's going to be less than perfect. And the cats will probably be fine. Most of them, anyway. And even if they all are not, and all don't live to be 20, how can anyone know that a less than perfect diet is the cause of most illnesses in cats - anymore than poor diet is the cause of terminal illnesses in humans? Medical science doesn't know enough yet. The time may come, but not yet. Probably not in our lifetimes.

These are just my thoughts and opinions, LDG.

Robin
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post #3 of 6
11/18/10 at 4:58pm
Thread Starter 
Robin, I'm not currently a vegetarian, and meat doesn't gross me out.

But I agree with everything you've said, and it's a wonderful post.

I think, continuing your thought process, that part of it is that the diets are designed to appeal to US. Who doesn't love carrots or think they're good for you?

Just one off-topic comment:

Quote:
Originally Posted by bastetservant View Post
But I will never have raw meat, of any kind in my house, ever. The cruelty of the meat processing industry is beyond comprehension or any justification, in my view.
Yes, the cruelty of the meat processing industry is beyond comprehension. But there are MANY local organic farms - and because of consumer demand, these are growing. In our area alone, there are three farms within half an hour of us where you can buy-in on a co-op basis, and have organic, grass fed, free-range meat and a host of organically grown vegetables. I don't know if you think it's cruel to kill an animal to eat it for meat or not, but not all meat is derived from situations where how the animals are raised is cruel.
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post #4 of 6
11/18/10 at 5:16pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by bastetservant View Post
This is just my opinion, so, I am not here to preach, by any means. I've had a lot of cats in my 60 years. Three died of cancer - though they were all over 10 years old. One died of heat exhaustion, one of pneumonia after being neutered, and one fell out of a tree. The rest of them lived long, healthy lives. They all lived to 17-20 years old.

They didn't have the best cat food. For a long time in my life, there wasn't good cat food, and we didn't know any better. We did the best by them that we could. I was thrilled when I started feeding my cats Hill's Science Diet, about 20 years ago, because after I started that, I have never had to take a cat in for teeth cleaning. And for some, that was traumatic. And I never think anesthesia is a good thing. I don't brush their teeth, or anything like that.

Now I know that Hill's - or any high grain food - is not so good. But I had cats live to nearly 20 on Hill's for most of their lives. I've had cats live to nearly 20 on an all dry diet. I didn't know any better then, either.

I'm a vegetarian, and I'm totally, and I mean totally, grossed out by meat. I can hardly read the food section of the newspaper. And I am careful who I have dinner with. I avert my eyes from the meat section at the supermarket.

I realize that cats are carnivores, and frankly, it is about the only distasteful thing about them to me. I will always do my best to provide my cats with the healthiest diet I can afford. But I will never have raw meat, of any kind in my house, ever. The cruelty of the meat processing industry is beyond comprehension or any justification, in my view.

I know that my cats don't have a perfect diet. Also, in a perfect world, they would be outside and experiencing all the wonders of the world and enjoying life a lot more than in the confines of my house - no matter what I provide to entertain them. But, if let outside, they would soon die. And I can't accept that. I make the compromise of keeping them inside and safe, and hope that I am doing right by them.

So, I guess I'm saying, that it isn't worth it to get obsessed with trying to make everything perfect and natural - even if it were possible. My diet is far from all that it should be. Even as a vegetarian, I eat too much fat, and too much of the wrong kind of fat, and too much processed food. I'll probably live to be 85 anyway, and that's plenty long enough for me.

My guess would be that the pet food industry does what every industry and business does that I know of - make a lot of compromises to make profits and get the job done. It is worthwhile to be informed and try one's best. But unless you want to do all that it takes to provide a perfect raw diet, it's going to be less than perfect. And the cats will probably be fine. Most of them, anyway. And even if they all are not, and all don't live to be 20, how can anyone know that a less than perfect diet is the cause of most illnesses in cats - anymore than poor diet is the cause of terminal illnesses in humans? Medical science doesn't know enough yet. The time may come, but not yet. Probably not in our lifetimes.

These are just my thoughts and opinions, LDG.

Robin
Like LDG, I am not Vegetarian either (although I was for a while as I felt too bad for the animals I was eating... I guess I like meat too much thought).... I have to say this is one of the best posts I have ever read on the nutrition forum about cat diets, "rights and wrongs", dos and don'ts etc.
Very, very well put.
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post #5 of 6
11/18/10 at 6:15pm
Thanks, LDG and Carolina. Really, I'm glad for your reaction to what I wrote. I was nervous.

Cat food, like all products, are marketed. Just look at the new Wellness TV ads and how they are trying to appeal to the current craze for buying at farmers' markets and making more local food choices (not that that's a bad craze). Yeah, carrots have to be healthy, right? I'm not even sure they are that good for rabbits.

I make no judgments about other people eating meat. It's just not for me, no matter what the circumstances of how it is raised and processed. I just brought up my vegetarianism (for over 25 years, by the way) because I wanted to say that I wouldn't be able to do a raw food diet, even for my beloved cats - who I like better than I like anyone - human or other.

I'm really glad that this site has given me the opportunity to become acquainted with other people who care as much about felines as I do. Us ailurophiles are often not appreciated in the larger society. I really admire you two and the many others here who are so devoted to good care of their own cats, and work to benefit the lives of cats that aren't their own. It fills my heart with gladness.

Robin
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post #6 of 6
11/19/10 at 7:17pm
just to add my 2 cents on carrots no they aren't healthy for rabbits, too sugary. We only give ours 1 or 2 baby carrots a week.
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