Are we over-cautious about cat food going spoiled?

taty caty · May 9, 2014

Hello,

I have always wondered what is the safest time to keep wet cat food outside. I googled, and found answers ranging from 20 minutes to four hours upto 12 hours!

Stray cats eat food that is technically spoiled and that has been in the garbage for 24-48 hours, and nothing happens to them.

Some cats in the wild bury their food for later use. My cat does try to bury the remainder of his food. This means that the food is exposed to whatever "dirt" found in the sand, and they eat it back without problems.

And last but not least, cats eat raw food. I know they eat it fresh, but still it has loads of bacteria and other danger factors (for us humans) but does not seem to affect cats, generally speaking.

So, really. How long can I keep cat wet food outside in an air-conditioned room?

For the time being, I just put it back in the fridge once my cat is done. But he tends to come back in 1-2 hour asking for the rest. So I though, why not keep if outside and let him eat the rest when he wishes?

What about you? How long do you keep wet food outside?

Thank you.

GemsGem · May 9, 2014

I think it depends on the temperature of the room or outside where the food is.

I live in England its pretty cold here most of year so food can be left down for much longer than say in a hotter country.

oneandahalfcats · May 9, 2014

Taty Caty said:
Hello,

I have always wondered what is the safest time to keep wet cat food outside. I googled, and found answers ranging from 20 minutes to four hours upto 12 hours!

Stray cats eat food that is technically spoiled and that has been in the garbage for 24-48 hours, and nothing happens to them.

Some cats in the wild bury their food for later use. My cat does try to bury the remainder of his food. This means that the food is exposed to whatever "dirt" found in the sand, and they eat it back without problems.

And last but not least, cats eat raw food. I know they eat it fresh, but still it has loads of bacteria and other danger factors (for us humans) but does not seem to affect cats, generally speaking.

So, really. How long can I keep cat wet food outside in an air-conditioned room?

For the time being, I just put it back in the fridge once my cat is done. But he tends to come back in 1-2 hour asking for the rest. So I though, why not keep if outside and let him eat the rest when he wishes?

What about you? How long do you keep wet food outside?

Thank you.

As a matter of our routine, I don't leave food out period as my cats are on controlled feedings. If someone doesn't finish, it goes back in the fridge if wet food. If I left this out, someone else (who has had their apportioned feeding) would eat it.

If you have just the one cat, you could leave it out, but personally, I prefer wet food to be fresh and moist when my cats eat, whereas leaving it out, dries it out. If feeding raw, you should never leave this out.

lisahe · May 9, 2014

GemsGem said:
I think it depends on the temperature of the room or outside where the food is.

I live in England its pretty cold here most of year so food can be left down for much longer than say in a hotter country.

It's cool enough in New England, too, (especially this year!), that I leave our cats' wet food out for hours, particularly their bedtime feeding. Though I've gotten better at predicting how much they'll eat and controlling their feedings, Ireland is a grazer and a cacher, so it would be tough to take up her dishes!

fhicat · May 9, 2014

My cat doesn't eat the whole bowl in one sitting. He'll come back, eat a little, saunter off, come back a little later. Generally he finishes it over the course of 3 or so hours, and I feed raw. No issues. He also likes his food with lots of water, so it rarely dries up and becomes crusty (I throw it away if it gets to that).

lisahe · May 9, 2014

Fhi09 said:
My cat doesn't eat the whole bowl in one sitting. He'll come back, eat a little, saunter off, come back a little later. Generally he finishes it over the course of 3 or so hours, and I feed raw. No issues. He also likes his food with lots of water, so it rarely dries up and becomes crusty (I throw it away if it gets to that).

Do you feed commercial raw or homemade, Fhi09?

I ask because I feed our cats quite a bit of commercial raw food, including Primal (frozen and freeze-dried) and a little Stella & Chewy's, and neither of them says anything on the packaging about how long the food can/should sit. (Nature's Variety, by contrast, says to take it up after a half hour.) Most of those brands' foods that I feed is processed to kill bacteria... Stella & Chewy's doesn't really say much of anything about handling but Primal still has lots of safe handling instructions. (Including a video!)

fhicat · May 9, 2014

I buy frozen meat in bulk from Hare Today, then mix in the missing nutrients, refreeze them, and serve a little every day. I wouldn't recommend leaving food out though; better to err on the safe side. It's just that my cat doesn't seem to have issues.

What follows is completely my opinion with no sources. Some cats may be more tolerant to bacteria. Stray cats, for example, spend much of their lives getting exposed to contaminants, it could be possible that they have built up an immune system that can deal with that, compared to, say, a kitten raised indoors. My cat was a stray most of his life before he ended up in the shelter and before he adopted me.

oneandahalfcats · May 9, 2014

Quote:

Fhi09 said:
I buy frozen meat in bulk from Hare Today, then mix in the missing nutrients, refreeze them, and serve a little every day. I wouldn't recommend leaving food out though; better to err on the safe side. It's just that my cat doesn't seem to have issues.

What follows is completely my opinion with no sources. Some cats may be more tolerant to bacteria. Stray cats, for example, spend much of their lives getting exposed to contaminants, it could be possible that they have built up an immune system that can deal with that, compared to, say, a kitten raised indoors. My cat was a stray most of his life before he ended up in the shelter and before he adopted me.

I too would err on the side of caution, in not leaving raw food out. A cat may have an iron-clad digestive system allowing it to withstand a high bacteria count, but this doesn't mean that they are automatically immune to getting sick. Especially as they get older. Common sense suggests that the longer raw food is left out, the greater the chance for bacteria to produce. It doesn't matter how fresh meat is, all meat contains bacteria which can multiply quite rapidly when left out unrefrigerated.

autumnrose74 · May 9, 2014

Fhi09 said:
My cat doesn't eat the whole bowl in one sitting. He'll come back, eat a little, saunter off, come back a little later. Generally he finishes it over the course of 3 or so hours, and I feed raw. No issues. He also likes his food with lots of water, so it rarely dries up and becomes crusty (I throw it away if it gets to that).

Shelly does that too, only over the course of 15-20 minutes, not hours. And she cleans her bowl almost to the point where you'd think it doesn't need washing.

Willowy · May 9, 2014

Kibble is made with meat, is never refrigerated, and is just teeming with bacteria. And, IDK, you never hear of cats getting sick from kibble bacteria.

I don't worry about it. I leave canned food out until it's eaten. Raw food gets eaten faster but I'll leave that out too.

oneandahalfcats · May 9, 2014

Willowy said:
Kibble is made with meat, is never refrigerated, and is just teeming with bacteria. And, IDK, you never hear of cats getting sick from kibble bacteria.

I don't worry about it. I leave canned food out until it's eaten. Raw food gets eaten faster but I'll leave that out too.

Well, if the dry food got wet and was left out, I could agree with you. But dry food versus wet canned or raw, not the same thing at all.

Willowy · May 9, 2014

oneandahalfcats said:
Well, if the dry food got wet and was left out, I could agree with you. But dry food versus wet canned or raw, not the same thing at all.

What's the difference? Except that canned food is sterile out of the can, and kibble sits in the bag breeding bacteria even before being placed in the dish.

fhicat · May 9, 2014

Willowy said:
What's the difference? Except that canned food is sterile out of the can, and kibble sits in the bag breeding bacteria even before being placed in the dish.

The difference is moisture. Bacteria needs moisture to grow (Troller & Stinson, 1981).

peaches08 · May 9, 2014

Fhi09 said:
The difference is moisture. Bacteria needs moisture to grow (Troller & Stinson, 1981).

I would have thought oxygenation. The canned food is "closed" whereas an unopen bag of kibble still has gas exchange.

Willowy said:
Kibble is made with meat, is never refrigerated, and is just teeming with bacteria. And, IDK, you never hear of cats getting sick from kibble bacteria.

I don't worry about it. I leave canned food out until it's eaten. Raw food gets eaten faster but I'll leave that out too.

I agree. When I was trying to diet control Grey's diabetes (RIP), she nibbled on her canned Fancy Feast classics all day and all night. But it beat continuing to give high-carb kibble to graze, insulin, and hoping for the best while I went to work for 12+ hours. Oh, and how we discovered her diabetes was she all of the sudden became covered with ringworm yet was an indoor only cat. Her compromised immune system allowed for that but not digestive issues due to bacteria in kibble left out all day?

thanosreignz · May 9, 2014

I go with 8 hours, not for any specific reason as it just happens to work with my schedule. If not eaten all the way i will toss, but after researching and trying many brands if i rotate between her favorites its never down for a period of time where I become uncomfortable and feel a need to discard.

fhicat · May 9, 2014

peaches08 said:
I would have thought oxygenation. The canned food is "closed" whereas an unopen bag of kibble still has gas exchange.

Could be both. Some kibble bags have the air vacuumed out before sealing though.

Like Willowy, I don't worry about leaving my cat's food out, but at the same time, I am hesitant to tell others, "It's definitely safe, you have absolutely nothing to worry about." I think it's one of those things that's up to the caregivers and their pets, and how they react and interact with food. Many cats live on 100% kibble diet and live long lives, and we can agree that kibble isn't ideal. I would not use my cat as "proof" that it's safe; just because it works for my cat, does not mean it works universally.

oneandahalfcats · May 9, 2014

Willowy said:
What's the difference? Except that canned food is sterile out of the can, and kibble sits in the bag breeding bacteria even before being placed in the dish.

Most high quality dry food is vacuumed sealed and contains mixed tocopherals to preserve freshness. Provided that it is not exposed to air, light or heat, it should stay fresh and free of bacteria for some time. As for wet canned food, it may start out sterile, but obviously it doesn't stay that way the longer it remains unrefrigerated.

Willowy · May 9, 2014

I understand that moisture does encourage bacteria growth. But that doesn't mean that dry kibble doesn't have a lot of bacteria, even if it's sluggish until moistened.

Mixed tocopherols prevent it from going rancid for a certain amount of time, but have no anti-bacterial properties.

I am not convinced that kibble has any less bacteria than canned food left out all day but if anyone wants to do a petri dish test that would be fun

.

raintyger · May 9, 2014

I treat it kinda like people food. So if I'm comfortable with picnic food being out for a couple hours, I'm OK with cat food being out for a couple hours.

My husband's parents leave both wet and dry out all day. I assume there hasn't ever been problems since it's been that way for decades.

taty caty · May 25, 2014

Thank you all for your insightful inputs.

Are we over-cautious about cat food going spoiled?

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