In natural conditions the cat is a predatory animal. The “domestic cat” diet must be adapted to natural needs to keep the body healthy. A cat mostly needs animal proteins and fats, as well as carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals.
In order to prevent symptoms of deficiency, high-quality ready-to-eat foods, consisting of selected raw materials, should be used to meet the nutritional content of cats’ needs and balanced in their composition.
It is also possible to feed the cat with self-cooked and composed food. However, preparation requires nutritional knowledge and time to produce a truly balanced diet in terms of protein, fats, carbohydrates, minerals, trace elements and vitamins. If you decide to cook for your four-legged friend, you should first study the relevant information and look for the advice of a veterinarian who specializes in nutrition.
Experience shows that the pet owner often uses the same ingredients over and over again, prepares them incorrectly, or combines them in incorrect proportions. This can lead to a deficiency or surplus of certain nutrients, which can lead to long-term developmental disorders, especially in adolescent animals. Therefore, anyone wishing to prepare the food on their own must have a scientific knowledge or meal plan developed by a veterinarian specializing in nutrition. This plan should also be reviewed at regular intervals and adjusted if necessary. To avoid digestive problems, food should always be offered at room temperature, not too hot and not directly from the refrigerator.
For starters, meat should not be served raw, as there is a risk of infection for cats and humans. Raw pork, for example, may contain dangerous bacteria, parasites or the agent causing Aujeszky’s disease, a rabies-like disease, which leads to the death of cats within hours.
Even if the cat has a chance to catch mice, the normal food ration should not be reduced, because it is unclear whether trapped mice actually eat and how many of them. If the cat is full, it will usually eat less by itself. If the cat does not eat everything, the remains of the wet food should be removed for hygienic reasons.
Of course, the pet owner should be careful and make sure his domestic cat is not overweight, which can happen with older castrated cats that no longer walk as much. Circulation and joint problems could be the consequences. However, cats should never starve to death. This can lead to life-threatening liver metabolism disorders.
Where to feed them?
The feeding place must be in a quiet corner of the apartment so that the cat can eat without being disturbed. If the feeding place is too close to the sandbox, the animal may refuse to eat or ignore the sandbox and go somewhere else on the floor to escape. Therefore, you should pay attention at a good distance. After eating, the cat finds a quiet place and wants to be left alone.
How often do we feed?
A wild cat eats ten times a day or even more, depending on the size of its prey. Therefore, the stomach is designed for several small meals a day. A cat that is not prone to overweight can receive food throughout the day, at least twice a day wet food and the rest of the day dry food.
Wet food is important for the cat to get enough fluids, because of its pedigree cats tend to drink relatively little liquid. This is mainly through the consumption of the prey and the associated body water content. For cats that tend to be overweight, feeding should be limited to two or three meals a day. In such cases exercise is the key factor. Feeding should be at regular intervals. Wet food should be divided into portions in such a way that it is consumed in a short time.
Drinking
The cat needs clean drinking water, which is always available and should be replaced regularly. Milk is not usually well tolerated by adult cats and is not considered a substitute for water, but rather food. Many cats welcome the fact that food and water are offered in different places in the house. This corresponds to the conditions that the ancestors of our domestic cats found in nature.
To encourage cats to drink, it is sometimes helpful to separate the food and water bowls. It’s also a good idea to install small drinking areas in various places. A drinking recipient is gladly accepted by many cats.
Nibbling the grass
Due to their extensive care, cats swallow many hairs, which are then grouped in the stomach and can make digestion difficult. In order to drown with these hairballs, cats eat grass. This acts like an emetic. As indoor cats rarely come to meadows, they can be offered cat grass from a bowl as a substitute. They get is where you buy the cat’s food. With this “meadow” in the house you can also prevent the cat from using indoor plants, some of which are poisonous.
The indoor plants that are dangerous for a cat are, for example:
- Dieffenbachie
- Hereda
- Christ Thorn – Christmas Star
- Amaryllis
- Cyclamenca
- Begonia
- Different species of cactus
