Are there any supplements that could be good to give?

[Karty]

Hi everyone,

My cat Loke is slowly shifting over from wet food to raw frozen nuggets that I defrost. Turned out that he loves raw food and he go crazy for his food now. After feeding raw food my boy got more energy and do cat zoomies every day. He won’t play with toys yet but we do hide and seek where you pop around a corner at him or he do it to you, so we play like that.

The frozen nuggets are complete meals and they have added sunflower oil and seaweed.

Background info: Loke is 6+ years old, easily get constipation, fur look a bit sad but becoming better, need daily brushing of his teeth and need to become more flexible (quite clumsy) but he’s building muscles. Loke also get a small severing of dry food as to keep his tummy normal, otherwise he gets constipation.

 

[JamesCalifornia]

~ Brewers yeast is a very good supplement for pets — people too . Good if kitty will eat some lightly cooked liver — or desiccated liver powder/tablets .

 

[platty]

Turine is a good suppliment too

 

[Karty]

~ Brewers yeast is a very good supplement for pets — people too . Good if kitty will eat some lightly cooked liver — or desiccated liver powder/tablets .

Would he need more liver when his food have
minched beef liver in it? Otherwise I can fix it for him. I’m focusing on feeding him what he will eat and get energy.

 

[Astragal14]

Fish oils (essential fatty acids) are one of the best supplements to take.

Essential fatty acids for felines

Because of their ability to decrease inflammation in the body, Omega-3 fatty acids are helpful for numerous inflammatory conditions that occur in cats. These conditions include, but are not limited to, skin diseases (especially allergies), asthma, gastrointestinal disease (especially inflammatory bowel disease), arthritis, diseases of the immune system, and any kind of cancer.

Two things to keep in mind about raw diets, constipation & poop:

1. A raw diet will lead to smaller, and maybe less frequent, poops
Constipation: Real Help for Your Cat

One of the immediate results when feeding kitty a raw cat food diet is less cat poop, and cat poop that smells less. While some owners welcome this change, others are concerned that their cats might be constipated.

2. You may want to ask your vet about alternatives to dry food for managing constipation. There are many options and many are supplements that can easily be mixed into food. This includes things like psyllium husk, Miralax (polyethylene glycol 3350) and several others.

 

[Karty]

Fish oils (essential fatty acids) are one of the best supplements to take.

Essential fatty acids for felines



Two things to keep in mind about raw diets, constipation & poop:

1. A raw diet will lead to smaller, and maybe less frequent, poops
Constipation: Real Help for Your Cat


2. You may want to ask your vet about alternatives to dry food for managing constipation. There are many options and many are supplements that can easily be mixed into food. This includes things like psyllium husk, Miralax (polyethylene glycol 3350) and several others.

1. I also learned about that but in the beginning he was struggling, so I add water to his raw food while keeping his dry food. At least he’s not over eating and all the food is measured up for him.

2. The dry food Loke gets are specific for constipation but I’m planning to try psyllium for him. We are going to the vet next week to check his ears, so I’ll ask them for advice on his diet.

 

[lisahe]

If Loke's raw food has bone in it, I'd suggest contacting the company to find out how much bone there is. Some cats (including one of ours) get constipated if there's too much bone in their diets. Ireland's diet didn't include any foods with bone over 10% (some commercial foods have significantly higher bone content) but she had trouble anyway, despite the fact that her diet included egg yolk, pumpkin, and psyllium, all of which should help constipation.

I think Ireland has always been predisposed to having constipation but the two things that have eased it for her are taking all the raw food out of her diet and giving her Vet's Best Hairball Relief Digestive tablets, which contain, among other things, psyllium. They're like treats for her (they have chicken flavor) and they help keep her regular!

 

[Box of Rain]

If Loke's raw food has bone in it, I'd suggest contacting the company to find out how much bone there is. Some cats (including one of ours) get constipated if there's too much bone in their diets. Ireland's diet didn't include any foods with bone over 10% (some commercial foods have significantly higher bone content) but she had trouble anyway, despite the fact that her diet included egg yolk, pumpkin, and psyllium, all of which should help constipation.

I think Ireland has always been predisposed to having constipation but the two things that have eased it for her are taking all the raw food out of her diet and giving her Vet's Best Hairball Relief Digestive tablets, which contain, among other things, psyllium. They're like treats for her (they have chicken flavor) and they help keep her regular!

This!

Assuming you are actually dealing with constipation--as opposed to the expectly small, firm, and nearly odor-free stools one can expect with a raw diet--the issue may be excessive bone.

As lisahe rightly suggests many commercial formulas aim for 10% bone, which is great for dogs, but not optimal for cats. 6% being a better target.

Check with the manufacturer. If the bone content is too high, I'd add some dark meat poultry or other high taurine protein and a little organ meat.

Best to get carbohydrates out of the diet entirely IMO.

Bill

 

[Karty]

If Loke's raw food has bone in it, I'd suggest contacting the company to find out how much bone there is. Some cats (including one of ours) get constipated if there's too much bone in their diets. Ireland's diet didn't include any foods with bone over 10% (some commercial foods have significantly higher bone content) but she had trouble anyway, despite the fact that her diet included egg yolk, pumpkin, and psyllium, all of which should help constipation.

I think Ireland has always been predisposed to having constipation but the two things that have eased it for her are taking all the raw food out of her diet and giving her Vet's Best Hairball Relief Digestive tablets, which contain, among other things, psyllium. They're like treats for her (they have chicken flavor) and they help keep her regular!

I don’t have the percentage but I’m giving the lowest bone content food for him. Which they advice to give if the other nuggets don’t work. Thanks for the tips, I’ll see if I find similars ones. I also have the problem with Loke being picky, so he can be hard to eat certain things, the reason why I went with raw food even though I prefer wet food.

I have a lot of treats from dehydrated to semi moist to hard treats. I even tried more cooked meat and other treats but turned out he’s only eating a hand full of liquid treats and 2 hard treats. At least I can give away all the food and treats to friends & family.

 

[Karty]

This!

Assuming you are actually dealing with constipation--as opposed to the expectly small, firm, and nearly odor-free stools one can expect with a raw diet--the issue may be excessive bone.

As lisahe rightly suggests many commercial formulas aim for 10% bone, which is great for dogs, but not optimal for cats. 6% being a better target.

Check with the manufacturer. If the bone content is too high, I'd add some dark meat poultry or other high taurine protein and a little organ meat.

Best to get carbohydrates out of the diet entirely IMO.

Bill

These should be specific for cats the nuggets but I will check with them. I’m slowly changing his diet and the dry food is the one that still helps his tummy. I’m trying to find supplements that can help with his tummy before I phase it out again. Thanks for the tips.

 

[JamesCalifornia]

Would he need more liver when his food have
minched beef liver in it? Otherwise I can fix it for him. I’m focusing on feeding him what he will eat and get energy.

~ If liver is already in kitty's food you may not need to supplement. We don't know exactly how much liver in included in prepared pet food. A woman in Japan told me her cats do well when she gives them fresh cooked liver. I give my own cats cooked chicken liver once a week.

Best to get carbohydrates out of the diet entirely IMO.

~ I agree

 

[maggie101]

Hi everyone,

My cat Loke is slowly shifting over from wet food to raw frozen nuggets that I defrost. Turned out that he loves raw food and he go crazy for his food now. After feeding raw food my boy got more energy and do cat zoomies every day. He won’t play with toys yet but we do hide and seek where you pop around a corner at him or he do it to you, so we play like that.

The frozen nuggets are complete meals and they have added sunflower oil and seaweed.

Background info: Loke is 6+ years old, easily get constipation, fur look a bit sad but becoming better, need daily brushing of his teeth and need to become more flexible (quite clumsy) but he’s building muscles. Loke also get a small severing of dry food as to keep his tummy normal, otherwise he gets constipation.

Raw & Home-Cooked Cat Food
This thread might help you more if you want to switch to raw. Many people use ez complete to be sure he gets all the nutrition needed

 

[catlikesbusiness]

Omega-3 (if your kitty doesnt eat oily fishes like salmon, tuna)