Organic Raw Cat Food Recipe

Most commercial foods lack the variety of taste, texture and nutrition necessary for fulfilling the needs of a housecat. You may choose to supplement your cat's diet using organic, homemade meals, which can fill nutritional gaps and provide animals with a flavorful, earth-friendly treat. Some veterinarians like Dr. Ian Billinghurst (inventor of the Bones and Raw Food [BARF] diet) advocate the use of raw meats and bones in homemade cat foods. Raw foods must be selected, blended and prepared carefully to ensure proper nutrition.

  1. Selecting Ingredients

    • Cats derive very little, if any, nutrition from fruits and vegetables. However, some cats enjoy the flavor and texture of plant-based foods, and there is no risk in adding them to homemade preparations in small amounts. Ideally, a high-protein, lean meat--such as rabbit, chicken or tuna-- should be the main ingredient in a cat food. Select lean, boneless cuts with the longest possible shelf-life. Kelp, nutritional yeast, raw egg, powdered probiotics and yogurt can add flavor and nutrition to raw cat food. Under all circumstances, the homemade food should contain a liquid multivitamin made for cats and an Omega-3 supplement made from fish oil.

    Blending

    • Some cats prefer raw foods that have been very thoroughly blended, but others like to eat larger chunks of meat. A blender is usually sufficient to blend cat food, but tough meat may require a more durable food processor. Some cat owners like to dip meat in condiments like nutritional yeast and egg before adding the strips of meat to the blender; this can prevent extra ingredients from clumping together. Always wash the blender and serving dishes within minutes of preparing the meal-- traces of raw meat can become rancid very quickly.

    Considerations

    • Cats benefit from eating homemade, organic foods. However, a raw-food diet can be risky if it is not approached responsibly. Cats should be given human-grade meats only--not a butcher's leftovers or a chicken breast that was left in the car overnight. If you feed seafood, use only products labeled "sushi-grade" as this assures the safety of the raw product. Long-term feeding of an unsupplemented raw food will often cause nutritional deficiencies; multivitamins are essential to a raw-fed cat's vitality. Use caution when feeding a raw diet to an old or FIV-positive cat, since they are most prone to developing foodborne illness.