There's a Raw Feeding Resources sticky at the top of the forum. It needs updating. I'll make a separate post for that.
Now that the former raw feeding forum includes home cooked meals, anyone have suggestions for what should be in the Home Cooked Resources thread?
This is what I've pulled together so far, with mschauer's input. But others may have more ideas, so include them here, and eventually we'll get it edited into one post the mods can put up and sticky.
Recipes
One option is to start with meat or meat and organs and add a commercially available premix of nutritional supplements that will make the food nutritionally balanced.
By Dr. Donald Strombeck: http://www.dogcathomeprepareddiet.com/feeding_a_normal_dog_or_cat.html#cats
Donald R. Strombeck, DVM, PhD, is Professor Emeritus, University of California, Davis, School of Veterinary Medicine, and an honorary member of the College of Veterinary Internal Medicine. He is widely published and has received numerous awards. The home page: http://www.dogcathomeprepareddiet.com/
From TCFeline (a manufacturer of Premixes) http://tcfeline.com/2010/08/16/cooked-meat/
At IBD kitties: http://www.ibdkitties.net/Homecooked.html (requires a grinder)
Nutritional Supplements (Premixes)
Note: some are designed to make just meat complete; others require liver and/or a source of calcium to make the recipes balanced & complete. For most, a source of fiber is optional (which can be important for IBD kitties or as a method to lower fat for specific medical reasons). Some of these were designed with raw feeding in mind, but provide appropriate supplemental nutrition for home cooked food. Please ensure you purchase the correct supplement for the recipe you intend to use.
Alnutrin http://www.knowwhatyoufeed.com/
Balance IT https://secure.balanceit.com/
Call of the Wild http://www.wysong.net/products/cotw-dog-cat-supplement.php
TCfeline http://tcfeline.com/
U-Stew http://www.knowbetterpetfood.com/cat_food_u-stew
Alnutrin and Balance IT have online calculators and recipes.
Sources of Calcium
Warning: Never feed cooked bones; these can splinter and harm your cats.
Most home-cooked recipes will include either bone meal, calcium carbonate, or eggshell.
If you want to create your own diet using real bone, this thread describes a method that does not require a grinder, just a food processor: http://www.thecatsite.com/t/261751/bone-question-dr-piersons-ground-recipe
If you want to use a source of bone other than bone meal, there is a freeze dried bone option. It is called Microcrystalline Calcium Hydroxyapatite (MCHA). In the U.S., there is only one supplement available that has no other ingredients. It is manufactured by NOW, and is called just "NOW calcium hydroxyapatite." Note that MCHA costs considerably more to use than bone meal or eggshell powder.
How to balance meat (and organ) for just calcium using eggshell or MCHA: http://www.thecatsite.com/t/263426/...hydroxyapatite-to-balance-meat-or-meat-organs
Impact of Cooking
Even for carnivores, cooked meat requires less energy to digest: Bobeck et al. 2007. Cooking and grinding reduces the cost of meat digestion, Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol. 2007 Nov;148(3):651-6. Epub 2007 Aug 16.
Carmody & Wrangham 2009. The Energetic Significance of Cooking, Jour Hum Evol 57 (2009) 379–391. http://www.anthro.utah.edu/PDFs/CarmodyWrangham09cookingHumEv.pdf
Nutrient Retention, various cooking methods (PDF file). USDA Table of Nutrient Retention Factors http://www.ars.usda.gov/SP2UserFiles/Place/12354500/Data/retn/retn06.pdf
Summary table of USDA Nutrient Retention Factors: http://nutritiondata.self.com/topics/processing
Food Safety & Proper Cooking Temperatures
Revised Recommended Cooking Temperatures, FoodSafety.gov: http://www.foodsafety.gov/blog/meat_temperatures.html
How to keep your food safe: http://www.epicurious.com/articlesguides/howtocook/primers/foodsafetymeatpoultry
New York Times article, Bending the Rules on Bacteria, with information about reheating previously cooked food.
Discussion of digestive enzymes in cooked vs raw foods. The article is not about pet foods, but provides balanced information, and something to consider: because it requires fewer calories to digest cooked food, cats fed home cooked food may need less food than cats fed homemade raw food: http://www.jonbarron.org/article/food-raw-versus-cooked
Now that the former raw feeding forum includes home cooked meals, anyone have suggestions for what should be in the Home Cooked Resources thread?
This is what I've pulled together so far, with mschauer's input. But others may have more ideas, so include them here, and eventually we'll get it edited into one post the mods can put up and sticky.
Recipes
One option is to start with meat or meat and organs and add a commercially available premix of nutritional supplements that will make the food nutritionally balanced.
By Dr. Donald Strombeck: http://www.dogcathomeprepareddiet.com/feeding_a_normal_dog_or_cat.html#cats
Donald R. Strombeck, DVM, PhD, is Professor Emeritus, University of California, Davis, School of Veterinary Medicine, and an honorary member of the College of Veterinary Internal Medicine. He is widely published and has received numerous awards. The home page: http://www.dogcathomeprepareddiet.com/
From TCFeline (a manufacturer of Premixes) http://tcfeline.com/2010/08/16/cooked-meat/
At IBD kitties: http://www.ibdkitties.net/Homecooked.html (requires a grinder)
Nutritional Supplements (Premixes)
Note: some are designed to make just meat complete; others require liver and/or a source of calcium to make the recipes balanced & complete. For most, a source of fiber is optional (which can be important for IBD kitties or as a method to lower fat for specific medical reasons). Some of these were designed with raw feeding in mind, but provide appropriate supplemental nutrition for home cooked food. Please ensure you purchase the correct supplement for the recipe you intend to use.
Alnutrin http://www.knowwhatyoufeed.com/
Balance IT https://secure.balanceit.com/
Call of the Wild http://www.wysong.net/products/cotw-dog-cat-supplement.php
TCfeline http://tcfeline.com/
U-Stew http://www.knowbetterpetfood.com/cat_food_u-stew
Alnutrin and Balance IT have online calculators and recipes.
Sources of Calcium
Warning: Never feed cooked bones; these can splinter and harm your cats.
Most home-cooked recipes will include either bone meal, calcium carbonate, or eggshell.
If you want to create your own diet using real bone, this thread describes a method that does not require a grinder, just a food processor: http://www.thecatsite.com/t/261751/bone-question-dr-piersons-ground-recipe
If you want to use a source of bone other than bone meal, there is a freeze dried bone option. It is called Microcrystalline Calcium Hydroxyapatite (MCHA). In the U.S., there is only one supplement available that has no other ingredients. It is manufactured by NOW, and is called just "NOW calcium hydroxyapatite." Note that MCHA costs considerably more to use than bone meal or eggshell powder.
How to balance meat (and organ) for just calcium using eggshell or MCHA: http://www.thecatsite.com/t/263426/...hydroxyapatite-to-balance-meat-or-meat-organs
Impact of Cooking
Even for carnivores, cooked meat requires less energy to digest: Bobeck et al. 2007. Cooking and grinding reduces the cost of meat digestion, Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol. 2007 Nov;148(3):651-6. Epub 2007 Aug 16.
Carmody & Wrangham 2009. The Energetic Significance of Cooking, Jour Hum Evol 57 (2009) 379–391. http://www.anthro.utah.edu/PDFs/CarmodyWrangham09cookingHumEv.pdf
Nutrient Retention, various cooking methods (PDF file). USDA Table of Nutrient Retention Factors http://www.ars.usda.gov/SP2UserFiles/Place/12354500/Data/retn/retn06.pdf
Summary table of USDA Nutrient Retention Factors: http://nutritiondata.self.com/topics/processing
Food Safety & Proper Cooking Temperatures
Revised Recommended Cooking Temperatures, FoodSafety.gov: http://www.foodsafety.gov/blog/meat_temperatures.html
How to keep your food safe: http://www.epicurious.com/articlesguides/howtocook/primers/foodsafetymeatpoultry
New York Times article, Bending the Rules on Bacteria, with information about reheating previously cooked food.
Discussion of digestive enzymes in cooked vs raw foods. The article is not about pet foods, but provides balanced information, and something to consider: because it requires fewer calories to digest cooked food, cats fed home cooked food may need less food than cats fed homemade raw food: http://www.jonbarron.org/article/food-raw-versus-cooked
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