Hundreds of store-bought cat food options are on the market, but many owners want to make homemade cat food for their cats. Whether it feels more personal or because they believe it is healthier, it is not uncommon to want to cook for our pets. Are there any noticeable differences between these two options? Is it healthier or safer for your cat? This is what you need to know!
At a glance
Cat food I bought
- Nutritiously balanced
- It may be formulated by a board-certified veterinary nutritionist
- Subject to quality control practices
- Many formulas available
Homemade cat food
- Customizable
- Options available to board-certified veterinary nutritionists to develop
- Human grade ingredients are affected by quality control practices
- Diversity depends on the availability of the components
Overview of store-bought cat food
What types are available?
Store-purchased cat food offers a wide range of options. Cat food comes in many textures, including dry kibbles, freeze dry timber, and putty. If you’re interested in a homemade style or raw diet for your cat, commercial foods are more nutritionally balanced than most people can make at home. Even the most surprising cat foods have flavor and ingredients for store-bought cats. There are also formulas available at all prices.
All pets have unique nutritional needs, so we recommend contacting your vet for advice.
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Commercial brands include all cat recipes, regardless of age, breed or health. Some formulas are designed for indoor cats, certain breeds, cats with urinary tract problems, and cats requiring prescription foods. A wide variety of textures and flavors are available so you can find what your cat likes, regardless of your preference.
Safety Considerations
Store-buyed pet foods can get bad names due to recalls, but most recalls are spontaneous. Companies identify the problem and pull out the product as soon as it becomes clear, saving the lives of pets that would have been affected.
Factory manufacturing cat food is subject to multiple regulations and quality control practices. Your cat will get a nutritionally perfect and balanced diet and feel confident knowing that your cat is in excellent odds of being safe.
However, some owners are opposed to commercial brands because they are concerned about the materials. Some brands add fillers to their products in the form of carbohydrates (cats are usually not needed in the amounts found in such foods).
Strong Points
- It is often perfectly balanced through a board certified veterinary nutritionist
- Many textures, flavors and diet types are available
- Suitable for all cats
- Subject to quality control and safety regulations
- All available prices
Cons
- You may experience a recall
- Nutritional quality varies by brand
- Often, it doesn’t feel natural
Homemade cat food overview:
What types are available?
The great thing about homemade cat food is that you can customize your diet to suit your cat’s preferences and needs. You can choose the protein your cat likes, but it is limited to what is available in your area. If your cat likes dry food, you will have a hard time making something at home.
It may also be difficult to achieve different wet food textures. Homemade cat food is not ideal for people with limited pet food budgets as it is difficult to properly formulate on a tight budget.
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Homemade cat food is appropriate when you talk to a board-certified veterinarian or veterinarian about your cat’s nutritional needs. Cats who like wet, meaty foods can be soothed with homemade cat food. If your cat is a kitten, an elderly person, or is experiencing a health condition, preparing homemade foods gives you the flexibility to create a meal that meets their needs. However, we recommend providing professional assistance in dietary development to fully meet your cat’s needs and prevent nutritional deficiencies.
Safety Considerations
As for safety, homemade cat food can be very hit or miss, especially when feeding a cat’s raw meat diet. Commercial meat also has different nutritional yields depending on the age of the animal, the cuts in meat, and the source of the meat. Most vets believe that homemade meals are at some risk, as it is difficult to balance the ingredients well.
If you are feeding your cat raw food, you are at risk of foodborne illnesses passed to your family from your cat. Immunodeficiency, the elderly, and very young people are particularly at risk. Cats intended to be used as emotional support are often closer to people whose animals are not healthy, so they cannot be placed in raw diets for legal reasons.
Strong Points
- Can be customized
- Many ingredients available to meet your cat’s preferences
- It can be developed through the Board of Directors’ Certified Veterinary Nutritionist Services
- It can meet the needs of many cats
- Good options for cats who like wet and meaty foods
Cons
- It’s difficult to make it on a budget
- It’s difficult to balance nutrients
- Safety risk
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Which of your cats is healthier?
Homemade and store-bought cat food is equally healthy for cats. The advantage of store-bought foods is that they meet the minimum standards required for nutrition for cats (but check the labels that refer to the compliance of established standards by the regulatory body you live in). . Many brands also meet the World Small Veterinary Association (WSAVA) recommendations for global nutritional requirements. That’s why you’re confident that you know that you’re nutritionally good.
WSAVA approval is not essential for brands to sell cat food, but compliance with local regulations is the case. For example, formulations of US cat food brands claiming to be nutritionally complete must meet AAFCO requirements.
Many people underestimate how difficult it is to balance a homemade pet food diet. It may seem like you can cook meat and feed it to your cat, but there is a very careful balance of nutrients you get through food and supplements. Specially formulated meals can be obtained through special services that enable board-certified veterinary nutritionists to develop cat foods, but the service is expensive and it is difficult to follow the recipe.
You should also consider the risk of foodborne diseases that may be accompanied by homemade diets, particularly raw diets. Commercial cat foods meet a variety of safety standards and during incidents they occur at very low rates compared to the amount of food produced daily.
Inappropriately prepared homemade meals can hurt your cat, and raw ingredients (especially raw meat) are extremely dangerous if processed inappropriately. However, risk can be reduced by proactively sourcing from butchers and suppliers who meet high hygiene and safety standards.
How much food does my cat need?
The exact amount of food a cat needs daily can vary greatly based on age, size, current and ideal weight, activity level, and health status. Your vet will help you decide how much your cat should eat every day, but if you’re giving them store-bought cat food, a package feeding suggestion is a great departure for most cats It’s a point.
The global pet nutrition committee, WSava has a feeding chart explaining the number of calories an adult cat needs per day at an ideal weight. Multiple calculators are available to help your cat determine the amount he needs. Most adult cats require 180-300 calories per day. If you are working with experts to create a homemade diet for your cat, they will help you determine how many calories your cat needs.
The exact amount of calories an individual animal needs to maintain a healthy weight varies and is influenced by many factors such as genetics, age, variety, and activity level. This tool is intended to be used only as a guideline for healthy individuals and does not substitute veterinarian advice.
It is important to remember that cats need to adjust their diet, whether they are homemade or store-bought. Any changes in weight gain or loss, medical condition, aging, and activity levels can all affect the cat’s need to eat to some extent.
Regardless of the cat’s needs, their daily meals should consist of at least 90% of their meals. It should consist of more than 10% of your daily meals and if your cat is overweight, it should be significantly less. All table scraps and food you take from other pets should also be counted.
Keeping your treatment intake low will likely help your cat maintain a healthy weight and prevent health problems that can occur in obesity. Treats are usually less nutritious than cat food. This should be the main source of nutrition for cats.
Conclusion
In most situations, store-bought cat food is safe and nutritionally healthy for cats. However, homemade cat food is healthy and safe when prepared and processed correctly. Homemade meals can be very difficult to balance properly, and expert help is essential for the formula to be completed.
Commercial cat foods are usually designed to meet at least the minimum nutritional needs of cats, but despite their popularity, they are not ideal for the minds of some owners. Ultimately, this is an important decision that should not be underestimated and requires considerable thought and dedication.
Featured Image Credits: (l) 279photo Studio, ShutterStock | (R) 8H, Shutterstock
