Ingredients to look for/avoid in canned cat food

A cat needs several ingredients for their basic health. Cats need protein from an animal source, preferably chicken or fish or lean beef. A canned cat food should also have taurine, an essential amino acid. Cats also need a balance of vitamins, enzymes, fatty acids, minerals and enzymes. A canned food should not have corn, soy, colorings or artificial flavors. It also should have only 5- to 8% ash and a low grain content. Avoid foods with ingredients such as "bone-meal", added sugars or any kind of corn meal. Chemical preservatives such as ethoxyquin, propyl gallate, BHA and BHT or more than 8% grain are definitely bad for your cat. The best cat food contains at least 78% moisture. This helps your cat get the hydration it needs because a cat ingests moisture through the intestine. Some preservatives are necessary in canned cat food. However, the more natural the preservative, the better. Many natural cat food formulas use vitamin E as a preservative. Canned cat food should still be refrigerated and used within 3 days.

Fussy kitty!

Every cat is an individual and like people, each cat can have taste preferences. Cat foods are available in many different forms such as chunks in jelly, chunks in gravy or a meatloaf type. If your cat is a very fussy eater, warming the food slightly will help to release the natural aromas, which should entice your kitty to its bowl. Hand feeding your cat can also be very useful to tempt him/her to eat. This method is particularly helpful when trying to feed a cat that is on the road to recovery after an illness. One trick is to try offering a "platter" (yes this does sound ‘spoilt’ but if you are desperate it may be the best solution!) with a little of each different type of food on it and watch for the one your cat shows a preference for. Don't forget that some cats prefer crunching on a dry food, so do consider this when your cat pulls its nose up to the other types of cat food available.

Can cats eat eggs?

Many people all over the world feed their cats eggs. Scrambled eggs, in particular, seem to be the pet favourite. As we know, cats should not be indulging in milk and dairy, so how can you make scrambled eggs safe for cats? And can cats eat eggs in the first place?
- Cats can eat eggs, but they should always be cooked. Raw eggs can lead to salmonella poisoning, and will cause skin and coat problems because it is loaded with a particular enzyme that retards biotin absorption.
- cooked eggs should not be seasoned; do not cook for your own taste buds!
- do not mix your 'scrambled' eggs in with milk: water is a great substitute and will not harm your cat.
- The protein in eggs is really good for your cat's hair and overall coat.
- you can find cat egg recipes quite readily on the Internet, but be wary of these as they can be posted by just anyone - always make sure that there is no dairy involved. If you are unsure, pop down to your local vet and check in if they have any tips. Alternatively, send us an email with your cat's particulars and we'll be able to assist you.

Caffeine in your cat food?

Returning to the topic of cat food, I heard a disturbing fact the other day. Apparently, what some pet manufacturers have done in the past to increase their sales (and hopefully they do not do this today) is to put trace amounts of caffeine in their food products. So, you start feeding your cat a particular brand of food, and the cat actually becomes slightly addicted to the food. Then, when you try and change the food for whatever reason, the cat refuses to eat anything else, and so the pet food manufacturers have just conned you into staying with their products for life. Next time you’re buying food for your cat, make sure you check the label to confirm that there’s no caffeine in there. Ingredients should be natural, wholesome, and healthy.

Losing a bet

I once lost a bet with some friends over a game of backgammon, the punishment for which was that I had to eat an entire tablespoon of cat food. Just the smell of certain types of cat food is enough to almost make me gag, but now I was required to take a whole tablespoon! My friends decided to film it on camera. Instead eating piece, I put the entire portion in my mouth and once and began chewing. My human taste buds are clearly not accustomed to cat food, because it was absolutely awful. I ended up running to the bathroom and almost retching. So, while I’m not sure what my cat sees in her food every evening, I’m grateful that she enjoys it nonetheless, because it’s something that I never ever could.

Cat food information

It has been contended that feeding your cat dry foods is the number one cause of diabetes in cats, as well as being a huge contributing factor to kidney disease, obesity, crystals, urinary tract infections, and a host of other problems. Food allergies, so the argument goes, are very common when feeding dry foods. Rashes, scabs behind the tail and on the chin, are all symptoms of food allergies probably from the grains in these types of foods. Constipation, for instance, is sometimes blamed on dry food because it does not provide enough moisture. Cats, unlike dogs, are obligate carnivores, and so unlike dogs they don’t need cereal or fibre. The problems associated with dry food are that they are loaded with carbohydrates, which many cats (carnivores) cannot process. Also, most of the moisture a cat needs is supposed to be in the food (cats are not naturally big drinkers), but in dry food 95% of the moisture is zapped out in the processing. Finally, most dry foods don't use muscle meat as the primary ingredient, but use vegetable protein: not good for an animal that has to eat meat to survive.

Good Nutrition for your pet

What role does good nutrition play in your pet’s overall health? Though they are cheaper, many of the foods that are found in grocery stores do not quite make the grade when it comes to adequately meeting your pet’s nutritional requirements. Specifically, grocery store pet food often contains a lot more fillers such as corn (often listed as maize) or corn gluten meal (which is just a cheap way of increasing the protein content of pet food) than the more expensive kind often available only at your veterinarian. Food purchased at your vet often contains higher amounts of quality, meat-derived protein such as chicken and beef. Also, it’s better to try and avoid animal by-products, which are those parts of the animal that are not intended to be eaten by humans. All in all, remember that better nutrition for your pet generally translates into less frequent visits to your vet for medical check-ups later on in life.

Cheap Tips

Recently there has been a terrible rise in cat food prices and the steep incline has steadily been increasing throughout the last year. There seems to be no stopping the horrible eventuality of starvation. What steps could we as struggling pet owners take to ensure that neither members of our family waste away this year?

Firstly, it could be very plausible to try to substitute your expensive food with cheaper competitive products. There is always a product out there that contains the exact same ingredients, without the benefit of a label.

Another idea is to stick to dry food, for not only do we save money, but our cats’ digestive systems get an overhaul.

Take advantage of your vets sample counter. While you may feel slightly cheap, remember that you are viably testing out new products, purely for your cats’ health, with the benefit of cat nibbles for about 3 days.

Try these tips and you might just save a few rand this month.

Cat food for your new little kitten

Cat food can be a little complicated if your cat is a particularly fussy. That is why it is rather important to start your kitten off on eth right cat foods when you first start to feed your kitten whole and shop bought foods. Kittens will start off their dietary life on milk and they will slowly start eating cat foods as they wean off of their mother. By the time that you get your kitten they should be around the age of 6 to 8 weeks old and you should be able to start feeding them on kitten appropriate cat food.

Many well known cat food brands make specially formulated kitten cat food that contains the extra and necessary nutrients that your kitten requires for a good and healthy start to life. These cat foods have extra calcium and other minerals to ensure that your kitten gets all that they need from their cat food for strong and healthy bones and for a good immune system that acts as a base for their health for the rest of their lives.

Finding the right cat food for your kitten is essential and an occasional treat here and there does wonders for their playfulness too!

What if your cat won’t eat?

Have you noticed that your cat does not eat properly? Or does not eat quite as much as you think they should be? Cat food packaging does give directions as to how much food cats of certain ages and sizes should be eating but you need to keep in mind that these measures are a generalization and your pet may differ from the norm. This is not necessarily a cause for concern but if your cat is refusing to eat their cat food or seems to be underweight then your best bet is to visit a vet and change around your cat’s food until the problem levels out.

Remember that cats, like children—and even some adults—are at times just being fussy. In this case their eating is not something to be too worried about, but you may need to invest some time and effort into finding a good cat food that your cat is happy and willing to eat.

If you are having trouble or any concerns over your pet’s cat food or eating habits you can feel free to send us an email with any questions or be sure to pop into your local vet to ask some specific questions relating to cat food options.

Cat Food Tips

Next to good vet care the cat food your cat consumes is the best way to give them a healthy lifestyle, but when faced with deciding on whether to feed your cat dry or tinned foods how do you make the best decision? Here are some essential thoughts on dry and tinned cat food that may help you in the decision making process:

• Pellets are regarded as being ‘dry’ cat food, this should be available to your cat at all times for them to munch on whenever they feel hungry. However, if your cat has a slight weight concern then you can limit their dry cat food in take by giving them a certain amount of dry cat food each day which they can feed on until it’s gone and then not fill up the bowl until the next day.
• Tinned cat food is regarded as being a wet food for obvious reasons and should be used to form your cat’s staple meals. Depending on your cat’s age and size the food can or sachet should guide you in how much cat food to feed your cat. Generally you should feed your cat a staple meal twice a day – once in the morning and then again in the evening.

Cat Food

Choosing what to feed your cat or dog is something that can lead to lengthy periods spent hanging around the pet isles in local shops. Finding something that is both affordable, healthy, and is also enjoyable to your pet can be a bit of a challenge but there a few basic steps that can help make the choices around cat food much simpler. Cat food comes in an extremely wide range of varieties, not only can you choose between dry and soft cat food but within these two types there are innumerable brands and different varieties to choose from. The companies that produce these cat foods do of course have a pretty good idea as to what cats enjoy but as you might – and probably will – experience your cat may have a few fussy ideas of their own as to what their cat food should entail.

Starting out at the kitten phase you will likely be feeding your kitten softer cat food that they can easily digest. As kittens are young, they are more likely to try out foods that older cats may steer away from, so as your kitten starts to grow and moves onto more solid cat food you can experiment with different cat foods to see which ones meet their approval. By speaking to your cat’s vet and to other cat owners you can find out which cat foods are the healthier options and then be guided by your cat’s own delights in choosing flavours and treats to keep their cat food interesting and their diets in top form.

Animal eating habits: your cat

What your cat eats can have either a positive of negative impact on their health. Often animals do not get the right amounts of food and when they do eat enough they are not always getting the right vitamins and nutrients from their foods. Finding your cat the best cat food for them is the best place to start in finding a sure way to guarantee their good health that can also be sustained.

Visiting the local supermarket will offer you a wide array of cat food choices. And it is very important to carefully consider what your cat needs and enjoys in their cat food. Kitten cat food is great for very young cats as the food is specifically designed to give your kitten the exact nutrition that a growing cat needs. As your cat grows you will soon find that they can and will also want to eat more and other types of food. This includes chicken, meat, fish and specially formulated adult cat foods created especially to keep your cat in peak physical condition. As you pet ages however their needs from their cat food will change and this is when you might wan to speak to your vet and switch your cat from their adult diet to a cat food diet that designed to best suit a more senior animal.

Cat food treats

We all like to try new things, new exciting dishes and recipes and a little change in the regular routine diet can do wonders to perk up any appetite or interest in food. When it comes to your cat, their cat food need be no different. So here is a great new idea for a cat food recipe that will get your cat’s taste buds roaring!

Instead of cracking open a tin of the usual processed cat food try cooking for your cat once in a while just to keep their food interesting. Cat’s usually go crazy over fish, so get hold of a nice piece of mackerel or haddock (usually the stronger the smell of the fish the better!) and cook it up in the pan with a dash of oil, the smell alone will have your cats purring and possibly even meowing with watering mouths. Once cooked break the fish up into little pieces and allow it to cool off. You can also add stock or jelly or even gravy to their new meal just to make their new cat food experience all that more special!

You do not have to feed your cats like royalty everyday but once in a while a nice cat food treat would gladly be appreciated!

Cat food concerns

Organic foods and healthy living is at the front of so many issues at the moment and with our pets as affected by the foods they eat as we are by the foods we eat maybe we should be looking around to see what healthier foods are available to us for our cats and dogs. Dog and cat food has for while a while been standardized into tins and pellets. But that is definitely not all that is out there for them to feast on.

There are more and more studies going into the affects of over processed and unnatural foods and as responsible dog and cat owners it is our duty to make sure that we are aware of what we feed out animals. With new products continually entering the dog and cat food market all we can do is be sure to check labels, talk to our fellow pet owners and consult our animal’s vets about the new and better foods to be feeding our pets.

Whether your pet is healthy or dealing with a medical concern a large part of their mental and physical well being relies on the food that they eat, so be sure to find out what is in your animal’s dog or cat food and check with a vet which food is best for your pet to be eating as a regular part of their diet.

Cat Food F.A.Q.

We live in age that tells to watch what we eat and to be sure that we are not just consuming food but that we are consuming the right foods. Good nutrition is vitally important, eating the right foodstuffs means that our bodies are able to achieve a state of health and then maintain it. This means that we have to be sure that through the foods that we eat we are getting in the necessary vitamins and minerals and all the other nutrients that are essential to ensuring our good health. The same goes for our pets – cats and dogs are as in need of a healthy food plan as we, their owners, are. Cat food needs to be considerate of cat’s health and nutritional needs. This is made easy for us nowadays as we can walk into a shop or a vet and know that we can buy our cats food that is specifically formulated and produced with optimum nutrition and your cat’s health in mind.

If you are unsure about the food to be feeding your cat talk to your vet or don’t hesitate to contact Medipet for advice on the right cat food to be feeding your animal.

Cat food comments

As the saying goes – you are what you eat. The same, I would think, applies to the animal kingdom and more specifically to our pets. Cat food is about more than just making sure that your cat is eating. What you are feeding your cat is going to determine their growth ability, their day to day living and their overall health. This means that you can control your animals diet and in doing so you can ensure them a good state of physical health.

Shops make it very easy for us to feed our pets the correct foods. From tinned to dry foods, the shelves at shops offer us a wide variety of foods to choose from. In making this decision there are factors about your pet to be taken into consideration. These include your cat or dog’s age, their size and the amount of food that they consume. Along with making sure that your cat food is well suited to your pet you can also make plans for ensuring their good health and maintenance through covering their health needs with pet insurance.

So while you take care of your cat’s food and diet, Medipet will happily make sure that you and your cat are covered with reliable insurance.

Cat Food

Being sure that you are eating the correct foods is the first and a very important way of ensuring that your health is taken care of. Animal’s are no different, just as we need to take note of our diets and need to be sure that we are getting the right foods into our systems so we need to make sure that our pet’s are healthy and that, through their diet, their health is maintained.

Cat food and dog food is especially designed to provide your pet with their essential nutritional needs. There are however times when the food that we feed our pets is not quite enough to cover what their body needs from their food. Medipet understands this and therefore has made provision within their pet insurance coverage for additional food requirements for your pet.

Should your cat or dog be treated by a vet for a specific ailment the vet may recommend that you change your dog or cat food for a period of time. The vet may even prescribe a diet specific food. On this recommendation by your vet Medipet will pay out R100 per month for up to six months to cover the costs of the prescription diet.