Reheating chicken for cats?

[BeccaT]

Hi! I'm sorry to be posting today, and I'm also sorry if this is a silly question, I'm just a very paranoid cat parent.

I have some boneless chicken breasts that I bought specifically to make for our cats for a little Christmas Day treat. We're not doing the traditional turkey today so we can't share our meal with them. Anyway, I'm aware that I should be boiling the chicken for them and not cooking it in any other way, but to avoid taking up more room on the stove when Christmas Dinner is underway, I was planning on boiling the chicken in advance and refrigerating it and reheating it in the microwave before I give it to them. Is this safe to do? Should I also (or instead) add some warm water to the pieces of chicken when serving it? Any extras I can add to make it nicer for them are welcome too!

Thank you and Merry Christmas!!

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

I think it's fine to reheat it in the microwave, just make sure you don't overheat it. Chicken can really dry out quickly, so when you poach it, you might want to slightly undercook it so it can finish up in the microwave.

There is nothing wrong with cooking it completely in the microwave. There are no rules that say poaching is the only way to cook it for cats. The only rule is that you should not use spices, onions or garlic. I have roasted thighs often for my guys. You can probably broil them too, but if you do that I would think you would probably need to add back in some liquid. I guess that really depends on what your cats are used to eating. If they normally eat wet food, then I would want to make sure the chicken is nice and moist.

 

[BeccaT]

I think it's fine to reheat it in the microwave, just make sure you don't overheat it. Chicken can really dry out quickly, so when you poach it, you might want to slightly undercook it so it can finish up in the microwave.

There is nothing wrong with cooking it completely in the microwave. There are no rules that say poaching is the only way to cook it for cats. The only rule is that you should not use spices, onions or garlic. I have roasted thighs often for my guys. You can probably broil them too, but if you do that I would think you would probably need to add back in some liquid. I guess that really depends on what your cats are used to eating. If they normally eat wet food, then I would want to make sure the chicken is nice and moist.

Thank you for this!

They used to eat both pate and dry food but have recently mostly moved onto dry only due to our new automatic feeder and the food that they liked being unobtainable now, but I do still try to give them wet food when they'll eat it. (They drink plenty so I'm not worried about that)

I only asked because I see a mix of things online about reheating food for cats. When I fed them wet regularly, I'd refrigerate half of the can and the next day reheat it in the microwave for only a few seconds with some warm water mixed in. They've been fine so far with me doing that but I wasn't sure when it came to chicken. They don't like any wet food other than pate but I have fed them little pieces of unseasoned chicken in the past so I know they like it at least!

 

[Kat0121]

Hi! I'm sorry to be posting today, and I'm also sorry if this is a silly question, I'm just a very paranoid cat parent.

I have some boneless chicken breasts that I bought specifically to make for our cats for a little Christmas Day treat. We're not doing the traditional turkey today so we can't share our meal with them. Anyway, I'm aware that I should be boiling the chicken for them and not cooking it in any other way, but to avoid taking up more room on the stove when Christmas Dinner is underway, I was planning on boiling the chicken in advance and refrigerating it and reheating it in the microwave before I give it to them. Is this safe to do? Should I also (or instead) add some warm water to the pieces of chicken when serving it? Any extras I can add to make it nicer for them are welcome too!

Thank you and Merry Christmas!!

I don't boil the chicken or turkey that I give to the cats. It's either roasted or baked and they love it. I make sure it's fully cooked, has no seasonings on it and they don't get the skin. You can add the pan juices to their food as a "sauce".

 

[daftcat75]

Hi! I'm sorry to be posting today, and I'm also sorry if this is a silly question, I'm just a very paranoid cat parent.

I have some boneless chicken breasts that I bought specifically to make for our cats for a little Christmas Day treat. We're not doing the traditional turkey today so we can't share our meal with them. Anyway, I'm aware that I should be boiling the chicken for them and not cooking it in any other way, but to avoid taking up more room on the stove when Christmas Dinner is underway, I was planning on boiling the chicken in advance and refrigerating it and reheating it in the microwave before I give it to them. Is this safe to do? Should I also (or instead) add some warm water to the pieces of chicken when serving it? Any extras I can add to make it nicer for them are welcome too!

Thank you and Merry Christmas!!

It's a Christmas treat portion, right? If this isn't their daily food, make it however you want. The recommendation for boiling chicken is to maximize nutrient retention. But for a treat portion? As long as they're still getting their regular food today, don't worry about how you prepare (or reheat) their treat.

 

[mani]

My cats adore baked chicken as a treat.
I hope all went well and they're very happy with their treats.

 

[Cat McCannon]

You can reheat chicken (or anything else) by putting it in a zip block bag and placing it in a bowl of hot water from the tap. You don’t have to worry about drying anything out or the food being too hot for your kitty.

 

[BeccaT]

You can reheat chicken (or anything else) by putting it in a zip block bag and placing it in a bowl of hot water from the tap. You don’t have to worry about drying anything out or the food being too hot for your kitty.

This is very helpful for the future, thank you!

& Thank you everyone else!