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Opinions on Feeding RAW

post #1 of 41
9/6/05 at 1:32pm
Thread Starter 
I think most of us cat owners/ownees and breeders are forever in a learning mode when it comes to caring for our feline friends. Over the years I've found that there are very few good commercial cat foods available, so we switched our bengals to a 90% raw diet. The other 10% is a dry kibble that they all tolerate and seem to like the taste of.

What are your opinions and/or experiences with the raw diet? All comments and opinions are readily welcomed!
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post #2 of 41
9/6/05 at 1:34pm
I'm not sure, but I think there is another thread dedicated to this as well. I will look for it and let you know what I find!
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post #3 of 41
9/6/05 at 1:42pm
I am feeding raw about 1-2 days a week .. I found it great for the 17 yr crf kitty I have and the yorkie loves it ... my bengal cross is not thrilled at all she likes dry and very fresh as she killed a furry thing today..
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post #4 of 41
9/6/05 at 4:11pm
I'm totally in favor of it. IMO commercial cat food (even the really good stuff) is still sort of like drinking a meal replacement shake vs. eating a meal of real whole foods. I think all animals need real food to be their healthiest.
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post #5 of 41
9/6/05 at 9:40pm
It is only recently thats cats have been getting sickneses like humans do..cancer, diabetes, etc..Why is this? Could it be because they are being fed similar food? That is, highly processed, high carb and dead food? I think so. And, for the most part all these degenerative diseases our domestic cats get so frequenlty are almost unheard of in wild cats, big and small.
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post #6 of 41
9/7/05 at 7:33am
My one year old bengal kitty is being fed raw since he started eating solid, i give him 3 ozs. of raw and 1/2 cup of dry daily, he likes it.
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post #7 of 41
9/7/05 at 7:50am
I would love to feed mine a raw diet, but being in the UK makes this extremely difficult. The 'craze' of actually caring what your animals eat doesn't seem to have caught on very well over here yet.
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post #8 of 41
9/7/05 at 8:06am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Purity
I would love to feed mine a raw diet, but being in the UK makes this extremely difficult. The 'craze' of actually caring what your animals eat doesn't seem to have caught on very well over here yet.
Purity you could still be able to feed raw quite easily! You'd just have to find a recepie you like, and pick up the ingredients at your local butcher! Most suppliments can be purchased online if you can't find them in your area, but some recepies don't need much of that.

I am a supporter of the raw diet, but I'm still working on switching my kitties over. Cats are just SO picky! lol But if I ever get a dog, it will be fed a raw diet right from the start. I genuinley feel that this diet is the most natural thing for them, and is the best thing in the long run for their health and well being. I've yet to meet other raw fed cats in person, but the raw fed dogs I've met have all been the most beautiful examples of that type of dog I've ever seen.
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post #9 of 41
9/7/05 at 8:17am
Quote:
Originally Posted by lavender
Purity you could still be able to feed raw quite easily! You'd just have to find a recepie you like, and pick up the ingredients at your local butcher! Most suppliments can be purchased online if you can't find them in your area, but some recepies don't need much of that.
I have seen some receipes online, but many of the ingrediants aren't available here. Didn't really look into getting them shipped over. Will have a closer look!

Did anyone have trouble switching from processed food?
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post #10 of 41
9/7/05 at 8:34am
I think raw diets can be excellent, but you have to be careful and I would recommend cooking it. I've seen quite a few animals come in to my old bosses (vet) office with salminella (can't spell, sorry) like symptoms from eating raw foods.
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post #11 of 41
9/7/05 at 8:48am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mihoshi
I think raw diets can be excellent, but you have to be careful and I would recommend cooking it. I've seen quite a few animals come in to my old bosses (vet) office with salminella (can't spell, sorry) like symptoms from eating raw foods.
You do have to be cautious as with any raw meats, but cooking it would defeat the purpose and make it much less palatable to the cat.
I guess in our situation any risk is outweighed by the enormous benefit derived.
I think you hit on a key thing though.....keeping things sanitary and using proper precautions in handling the product.
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post #12 of 41
9/7/05 at 8:56am
Cupid's been eating raw food all his life, if you count his mommy's milk. There were short periods where I switched him due to other people's opinions, but I researched for about a year--that's before and after I got him--and when I switched I'd research some more and always ended up going back to raw, so I decided to stop second-guessing myself and believing people who haven't done research, and give him what I feel comfortable giving him and what nature intended him to have. It's hard to find DVMs who suggest raw food, but luckily mine has seen how well it's been for Cupid, so even though he doesn't feel comfortable feeding it, he doesn't discourage it if done right.

I wish I could switch to canned food, but I can't in good conscience.
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post #13 of 41
9/7/05 at 9:01am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mihoshi
I think raw diets can be excellent, but you have to be careful and I would recommend cooking it.
but if you cook it, it will not be a raw diet anymore.

i feed as much raw to my cats as i can get them to eat... i think that a properly prepaired raw diet is superior to any processed commercial food. but i also think that an inproperly prepaired raw diet is one of the worst things you can feed your cat... i cringe when i hear about people feeding their cats raw boneless meat or even raw hamburger and calling it a raw diet. so long as you do your homework, talk to your vet, and take all necessary saftey precautions a raw diet is, IMO, a great choice if you have the time and motivation to do it right. i have fed my dogs a completely raw diet for some time and the results, esp. with my older dog, have been incredible!

purity, what ingredients are you not able to find? my recipe is only contains chicken pieces, organs, and some human suppliments, none of the ingredients are specific to raw feeding.

but Kai Bengals, i have to disagree with you on one point... all of my 6 carnivores, dogs and cats (esp the cats, picky little boogers), find cooked meat to be MORE palatable... i just dont give it to them cooked because i think raw is better for them. but if you offered my dogs a cooked chicken vs. a raw chicken they would take the cooked every time. then they would come back and eat the raw for desert.
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post #14 of 41
9/7/05 at 9:13am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Avocado
but Kai Bengals, i have to disagree with you on one point... all of my 6 carnivores, dogs and cats (esp the cats, picky little boogers), find cooked meat to be MORE palatable... i just dont give it to them cooked because i think raw is better for them. but if you offered my dogs a cooked chicken vs. a raw chicken they would take the cooked every time. then they would come back and eat the raw for desert.
Yep, everyone's case will be different. We have bengals and only bengals and they seem to despise any cooked meats. Now granted, I haven't cooked up their specially prepared raw diet to see if they'd like it, but given their track record on the cooked stuff, it's a safe bet that they'd snub it.
Interestingly, they all seem to have different preferences for the raw as well. Some of them will only eat rabbit or chicken. Most of them dislike the beef diet and half of them refuse to eat the turkey. I'm going to try Ostrich this week for the first time. Rabbit is the prefered meal for all of them.
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post #15 of 41
9/7/05 at 11:01am
My dogs are on raw and do well on it. I started the switch to raw with the cats, but one absolutely refused to eat and started losing weight, so I went back to square one. Right now the cats are getting Prarie kibble food as their primary food and smaller meals of raw fish, octopus, chicken hearts, and gizzards.

I have a bengal too, and my mother has two (one the sister of mine), and all of them go for raw meat like you wouldn't believe. And a raw tidbit is the only type of food they will growl over and try to defend.
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post #16 of 41
9/7/05 at 11:06am
Unfortunately, I simply don't have the time to prepare food for my kits, heck I barely have time to cook for myself! I've found feeding them a mix of wet and dry VERY high quality, supplemented with an occasional raw or cooked "treat" has yielded good results. Would it possibly be better if I fed them raw? Who knows. I had a cat growing up who turned her nose up at everything except Friskies canned cat food--talk about low quality--she was tremendously fit and in good health til she eventually passed away at the ripe age of 18. So, who knows? I say feed what you can afford, both monetarily and time wise, to the best of your ability and in the best nutritional interest of your cats, as well as keeping in mind their likes and dislikes.
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post #17 of 41
9/7/05 at 11:28am
Quote:
Originally Posted by OllyExtra05
Unfortunately, I simply don't have the time to prepare food for my kits, heck I barely have time to cook for myself! I've found feeding them a mix of wet and dry VERY high quality, supplemented with an occasional raw or cooked "treat" has yielded good results. Would it possibly be better if I fed them raw? Who knows. I had a cat growing up who turned her nose up at everything except Friskies canned cat food--talk about low quality--she was tremendously fit and in good health til she eventually passed away at the ripe age of 18. So, who knows? I say feed what you can afford, both monetarily and time wise, to the best of your ability and in the best nutritional interest of your cats, as well as keeping in mind their likes and dislikes.
That's true. I've known cats who were fed grocery store brands and lived long , seemingly healthy, happy lives. That's why I try not to stress over it too much. I just do what I think's best and let other people do what they think's best. It's just like human nutrition--no one really knows what's "best" or everyone would be eating the same things.
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post #18 of 41
9/7/05 at 12:04pm
Quote:
my recipe is only contains chicken pieces, organs, and some human suppliments
:schocked:
Yikes "human supliments"! Is this what happens to neighbours who annoy you?
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post #19 of 41
9/7/05 at 1:17pm
Thread Starter 
Lol
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post #20 of 41
9/7/05 at 1:29pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by OllyExtra05
Unfortunately, I simply don't have the time to prepare food for my kits, heck I barely have time to cook for myself! I've found feeding them a mix of wet and dry VERY high quality, supplemented with an occasional raw or cooked "treat" has yielded good results. Would it possibly be better if I fed them raw? Who knows. I had a cat growing up who turned her nose up at everything except Friskies canned cat food--talk about low quality--she was tremendously fit and in good health til she eventually passed away at the ripe age of 18. So, who knows? I say feed what you can afford, both monetarily and time wise, to the best of your ability and in the best nutritional interest of your cats, as well as keeping in mind their likes and dislikes.

I agree. Those who have the time and the desire to prepare homemade should do it. But I'm not brave or knowledgeable enough to feed raw and the stuff at my grocery store is pumped with hormones and Rosie threw up the last time I gave her some raw hamburger meat as a treat. So I just feed a combination of dry food and canned food and some occasional cooked chicken. I also add halo's purely for pets Live a Littles freeze dried chicken treats to my cats dry food. I think it improves the quality of dry cat food by adding some extra animal based protein.
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post #21 of 41
9/7/05 at 1:37pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by pushylady
:schocked:
Yikes "human supliments"! Is this what happens to neighbours who annoy you?

LOL! thats right, grrrrr !
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post #22 of 41
9/7/05 at 1:50pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by moggiegirl
I agree. Those who have the time and the desire to prepare homemade should do it. But I'm not brave or knowledgeable enough to feed raw and the stuff at my grocery store is pumped with hormones and Rosie threw up the last time I gave her some raw hamburger meat as a treat. So I just feed a combination of dry food and canned food and some occasional cooked chicken. I also add halo's purely for pets Live a Littles freeze dried chicken treats to my cats dry food. I think it improves the quality of dry cat food by adding some extra animal based protein.
There are some alternatives to making your own.

Bravo! Bravo Diet
Oma's Pride Oma's

I use the Bravo brand..it's well packaged and has a good reputation.
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post #23 of 41
9/7/05 at 1:54pm
What raw foods do you feed? I might try to do half and half...if thats too out there for my budget, what canned foods are good?
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post #24 of 41
9/7/05 at 2:10pm
Thread Starter 
We use the brand called "Bravo!". Various blends and whole ground products.
I'm happy with them so far. The prices are reasonable from most of the distributors.
I'm not keen on any of the commercial canned foods, but the Fancy Feast canned seems to be pretty good, but it's pretty expensive per can if you're feeding a good sized cat.
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post #25 of 41
9/7/05 at 10:02pm
Kai Bengals, I have to disagree with you on the wet food reccomedation SOME varieties of Fancy Feast are not terrible but overall, it's not a very good quality food. Pretty much the same companies that make top quality dry foods (Wellness, Innova, Felidae, Chicken Soup for the Cat Lovers Soul, Wysong, Natural Balance, etc.) also make a great quality wet food.

I think a high quality wet food diet is the best thing you can feed your kitties, other than raw.

In terms of prepared raw diets that are available, I think it varies widely per area, as it's not practical to ship frozen raw food over great distances. My store carries Healthy Paws, Pets4Life, Amore and Urban Carnivore. But I'm in Canada. You'll find different brands depending on where it is you are
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post #26 of 41
9/7/05 at 10:27pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by lavender
Kai Bengals, I have to disagree with you on the wet food reccomedation SOME varieties of Fancy Feast are not terrible but overall, it's not a very good quality food. Pretty much the same companies that make top quality dry foods (Wellness, Innova, Felidae, Chicken Soup for the Cat Lovers Soul, Wysong, Natural Balance, etc.) also make a great quality wet food.

I think a high quality wet food diet is the best thing you can feed your kitties, other than raw.

In terms of prepared raw diets that are available, I think it varies widely per area, as it's not practical to ship frozen raw food over great distances. My store carries Healthy Paws, Pets4Life, Amore and Urban Carnivore. But I'm in Canada. You'll find different brands depending on where it is you are
Thank you for the wet food note... I have found anything without by products to be above fancy feast cept for a few flavors ... According to my girls authority , nutro and pro pac seem to be the best felidea recently bombed and I aint sure why..Here I can get things from Califonia which is strange since I am at least 900 miles in the prepared diet ... I am just unsure of those prepackaged things..
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post #27 of 41
9/8/05 at 4:48am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by lavender
Kai Bengals, I have to disagree with you on the wet food reccomedation SOME varieties of Fancy Feast are not terrible but overall, it's not a very good quality food. Pretty much the same companies that make top quality dry foods (Wellness, Innova, Felidae, Chicken Soup for the Cat Lovers Soul, Wysong, Natural Balance, etc.) also make a great quality wet food.

I think a high quality wet food diet is the best thing you can feed your kitties, other than raw.

In terms of prepared raw diets that are available, I think it varies widely per area,as it's not practical to ship frozen raw food over great distances. My store carries Healthy Paws, Pets4Life, Amore and Urban Carnivore. But I'm in Canada. You'll find different brands depending on where it is you are
My experience with canned foods is indeed limited, since I rarely use it. But when I do, I use the fancy feast fish varieties. What do you think of those flavors...good or bad in perspective?

Quote:
as it's not practical to ship frozen raw food over great distances.
In this day and age and with dry ice, it's very practical. Even after 2 1/2 days of travel, the product still arrives at my door frozen. And the shipping is very affordable with UPS.
I could get the food closer to home, but I like the service the company I buy from provides.
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post #28 of 41
9/8/05 at 6:32am
It's been so long since I've had to buy any FF (to tempt the kitties into eating, or in an emergency when I'm out of food), that I can't remember which ones aren't completley horrid I know there are only a few, but I believe it is seafood varieties. Not all of them, only some. I think I have a Trout Feast hidden in the back of my cupboard somewhere. I've found that FF has wheat in some varieties, which is completley unnecessary in wet food, as well as the usual "meat by-products" which are oh-so-sketchy. When I say certain ones aren't as bad, I mean they don't contain these things.
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post #29 of 41
9/8/05 at 7:07am
I think I'll pick up some wet food today and start mixing it in with their dry food in the evenings. My fear is that, should I be terribly short on cash, they'll turn their nose up at dry food....but my parent's dog tends to do that as well when there aren't any table scraps in his meal. After a day or so he'll begrudgingly eat the dry food alone (while casting you bitter looks) so I imagine the kitties will do the same.
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post #30 of 41
9/9/05 at 12:34pm
Both my kitties and one dog get a raw diet supplemented with kibble. They all LOVE it and it has done wonders for their coats and litter box smell too!! I buy the Natures Variety Prairie brand. I don't have the time or ambition to make it myself, so I spend the extra to purchase this brand. I can't say enough about it!!!
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