Raw Homemade Recipes for Cat?

[Chris]

Hi Thompson, I would consider very carefully before following this particular course for a couple of reasons. First, there are many causes for diarrhea, and not all are strictly dietary. You should work with your vet on at least ruling out some basic possibilities.

If your cat has had chronic diarrhea (meaning longer than only a week or two) and other (non-dietary) causes have been ruled out, you could consider a diet change, but usually it’s a matter of ruling out a protein sensitivity and either doing protein elimination trials with limited ingredient diets, or using a prescription diet.

Of all the different meat proteins, chicken is one of the most common protein allergens, so changing to a diet primarily chicken-based may not be the right choice.

The other problem with chicken is that it is not taurine-rich. Taurine is an amino acid cats require in their diet. Deficiencies will lead to a condition called dilated cardiomyopathy. DCM has been virtually eliminated with commercial diets ensuring taurine is properly supplemented. Naturally, it is more often found in red meat sources.

In general, properly developing a homemade diet for a cat is challenging because they have more unique nutritional needs compared to dogs or humans, in part because cats are obligate carnivores. There was a study from 2019 that I often share that looked at over 100 homemade diets for cats and every single one (even those created by GP doctors like myself) had nutrient deficiencies. The only ones that typically don’t are formulated by board-certified veterinary nutritionists. Here is a link to that study: https://avmajournals.avma.org/view/journals/javma/254/10/javma.254.10.1172.xml

It’s not that homemade diets are impossible, only that they should not be considered casually. Vitamin and mineral deficiencies are common. You also need to understand the importance of proper ratios of carbs, fats, and protein, minerals like calcium and phosphorus, and avoiding not only deficiencies but excesses as well. Even when folks work hard and utilize a proper diet recipe, it’s common to stray from planned recipes by supplementing something similar (but not nutritionally the same), also leading to problems.

With raw diets, I always recommend staying with commercial ones because they still need to meet safety standards and many meet AAFCO feeding recommendations.

Buying raw food from the grocery store is not a good choice. People often think that meat you buy in the store is the same as game meat that wild cats hunt and eat, but it’s not. Fresh game is free of bacterial contamination. Raw meat has gone through processing facilities, handling, and is not intended to be eaten raw. Bacterial contamination with E. coli and Salmonella is a significant risk with this kind of raw food, even to humans prepping it for their pets.

That said, if you want to consider making food at home for your cat, I would first start with this article about 5 homemade diet recipes for cats. There is some great discussion about things to think about, different diet types, how to critically assess homemade recipes you come across, and 5 actual recipes you could consider: https://cats.com/homemade-cat-food-recipes

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5 Homemade Cat Food Recipes (Vet Reviewed & Approved) - Cats.com

Looking for homemade cat food recipes? After hours of research, we've collected six of the best-trusted recipes on the web.