Australian raw feeders?

Hi,

I'm looking to transition my cat to a raw diet, and would like to start by trying raw meats with a supplement, and then hopefully to a prey model doing everything myself.  I just want to make sure I get it right.

Is anyone adding a supplement to raw food? The only one I can find so far available here in Australia is:

http://www.vetsallnatural.com.au/complete-mix-for-cats/

Which looks quite different to the ones available in the US and elsewhere:

http://www.foodfurlife.com/store/p3/EZComplete_Fur_Cats_-_130_Servings.html
http://tcfeline.com/tcfeline-canada/
http://knowwhatyoufeed.com/alnutrin_supplements.html

It seems there's some issue with customs seizing these items, so I don't think they ship here.  If someone knows a brand that ships here I'd be interested.

I'm also interested if anyone is sourcing fresh meats specifically for cats.  Again, the options here seem limited and I haven't found much.  From what I understand they have benefits over butcher/supermarket meats based on the fact they are frozen sooner and less likely to have spent time in higher temperatures.  

Any advice/thoughts appreciated,

thanks!

Hi

I am in AUS and am feeding my Siberian kitten raw. My vet recommended the All Naturals mix. As for importing any of the others you cited I would be careful. I recently ordered bone meal from the US as over there pure bone meal is available at a reasonable price (unlike here). The shipment was seized by Customs as is an animal product.

Cheers,

Fumbi 

Hi,

Thanks for the reply.   Where do you get the meat that you feed?  I still don't know about the supermarket vs. other sources topic.

I asked someone about the all natural mix but they did not recommend based on the fact it has garlic in it.  It seems like a lot of commercial products have garlic in the though.

A search on the matter just made me more confused.

Yeah I checked about products the could be imported.  Anything that has animal ingredients is basically impossible.   There is a supplement, balanceit, that I'm going to try that ships to Australia, although this

requires you add it to cooked food. 

Yes, I also didn't go for the Vetallnaturals mix for the garlic and some other unnecessary and potentially harmful ingredients. I make my own mix following the recipe on http://feline-nutrition.org/nutrition/making-raw-cat-food-for-do-it-yourselfers. I also feed wing nibbles every other day to make sure she gets fresh bone marrow.

I just buy locally from my butcher (best as is frozen) and Woolies (always the longest use by date as their meat is thawed). I use chicken thigh, lamb heart and chicken liver. My kitten also loves veal and Kangaroo. I try to mix the meats so she gets a variety of nutrients. Once I made the food and put in little freezer containers I freeze for at least one week before using. I have not had any problems so far (Salmonella etc). Personally, having researched he topic to death before deciding to feed raw, I believe much of the scaremongering on the Internet regarding the risk of contamination when feeding raw is by the pet food industry and also some vets strangely.   

It has gone very well so far, even my vet said she looks great. The only concern I have with feeding raw is what to do when she needs to go into cat boarding. They only feed commercial food, of course. I recently tried to feed my kitten Ziwipeak as it is supposed to be the next best thing to raw but she got soft stool from it, almost liquid and

green. Went back to normal as soon as I switched back to raw.

Thanks again.

What are wing nibbles? 

I'll have to ask around if I can get any frozen.  There is one butcher near me who does a frozen 'pet mix' which I think is beef/lamb/pork in frozen bags.   I think I'm more concerned about getting the balance of nutrients right.

I feed my cat ziwikpeak at the moment and have also had some issues with softer greenish stools.   

Do you have a preffered place to buy the required supplements i.e taurine powder etc. ? I guess that's the bit I feel like I could wrong the most.  I assume if it says 'taurine powder' you can't go too wrong?