Is raw worth it?

[catsarebetter]

I was just reading something.. I think I might have posted the link (I went link hopping so, who knows?).. anyway, it was whole raw v. ground. This site suggested.. that grinding breaks down nutrients, and.. it's better for the teeth and gums to chew whole raw. They were also saying that there's less potential for bacteria that way. It seemed to make sense to me..of course, I do like the thought that I'm not spending several hours grinding and bagging.

Any thoughts on this?

 

[sharky]

Originally Posted by CatsAreBetter

I was just reading something.. I think I might have posted the link (I went link hopping so, who knows?).. anyway, it was whole raw v. ground. This site suggested.. that grinding breaks down nutrients, and.. it's better for the teeth and gums to chew whole raw. They were also saying that there's less potential for bacteria that way. It seemed to make sense to me..of course, I do like the thought that I'm not spending several hours grinding and bagging.

Any thoughts on this?

carcass feeding or whole animal is a way to do raw /./// MANY cats wont eat the meat and bone in that fashion a modified version would be like a chn wing that many folks give... I tried a whole BBQ lightly fish as my vet suggested and my girls just looked at it

... I would think some bacteria would be less on a whole carcass but grd at least here is accepted as food

 

[white cat lover]

You know, I looked at the NVP pre-made raw. They essentially had "sausages" that must've been ground & then they had the medallion. Right now, I'm putting Damita's raw into a blender, so I wish I had gotten the ground stuff!

Would've saved me some work for now....

 

[littleraven7726]

i don't feed raw, i feed mostly canned with some dry kept out to nibble on. i did think about feeding raw, when raven and nabu were younger and having UTI problems. i later found out raven has interstitial cystitis so by managing his stress levels & diet he's been stable for almost 3 yrs now (without drugs). also, my cats had crystals when they were fed an all dry diet. once i switched to a 2/3 wet, 1/3 dry diet; i was able to get them off of prescription foods.

i had food poisoning in spring of 2004, and i can't risk having that again. i was in the hospital, and my stomach has been touchy ever since then. i have been really paranoid about raw meat since then.

so that's my take on raw feeding. i would do it if i thought that commercial foods weren't working at all for my cats.

 

[jcat]

Originally Posted by CatsAreBetter

I was just reading something.. I think I might have posted the link (I went link hopping so, who knows?).. anyway, it was whole raw v. ground. This site suggested.. that grinding breaks down nutrients, and.. it's better for the teeth and gums to chew whole raw. They were also saying that there's less potential for bacteria that way. It seemed to make sense to me..of course, I do like the thought that I'm not spending several hours grinding and bagging.

Any thoughts on this?

If you buy fresh ground meat, you're supposed to consume or freeze it immediately, i.e., the same day, so the same should apply to meat fed to cats.
I know some cat guardians who, while they don't feed a raw diet, give their cats chunks of raw stewing beef once a week to clean their teeth. I tried it, even buying filet, but Jamie wouldn't touch it raw.

 

[catsarebetter]

Once I got off work last night, I swang by the store and picked up some meat for chunks. As it turns out, the kitties that are already on raw didn't mind the chunks so much (smaller ones) and they worked on the larger ones. They both tried ripping meat off the bone (but it was chicken..I'll try game hens next). I don't think I'll have too much trouble working up to it with them.

Noel and Bagheera ran out of dry sometime during the day, apparently, and they were *hungry* by the time I got home. Bagheera even tried the raw bits (licked it, much like she does to wet), and seemed to like it, before the kitten shouldered her out of the way and started gobbling it down. I think they'll probably be easier to switch than I originally thought. I may try this evening to combine some raw small chunks with some wet and see how it goes over.

I think I'm liking this idea. I need to go visit my vet and talk to him about different food related viruses, or leave a message for him to call me. (I've got a great vet... got in when the practice opened so he knows all the little brats by name and personality...)