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Usha Skvl's Questions & Answers

in Food & Drink, Beauty & Fashion& Exams, Education & References

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Questions Asked: 7

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What cat food ingredients should I look for?

Asked by arun kumar in Food & Drink at 2:11 PM on March 05, 2009

Usha Skvl's Answer

well arun

As a general rule, the order of ingredients is just as important as the kind of ingredients. Unless a cat is on a special diet for a medical reason, the protein source will always be listed first, followed by other ingredients listed in the order of their percentage to total weight. Here are some quick guidelines (after the protein source, the order may vary from product to product.:

1. Named Protein Source
This is by far the most important ingredient to look for in cat foods: a specific protein source other than "meat." Look for chicken, turkey, lamb, salmon, etc. (May be followed by named organs, e.g. chicken liver, chicken heart, both rich sources of taurine.)
2. Specific Carbohydrates aka "fillers"
Cats are obligate carnivores, i.e., they must have meat to survive, and they do not need carbohydrates. In fact, cats have problems digesting some carbohydrates, and many food allergies are triggered by the carbohydrate content of foods. However, most dry foods depend on carbohydrates as the "fillers" needed to hold the other ingredients together for dry cat food. Look for whole grains, such as brown rice, barley, or wheat (wheat may also trigger allergies in some cats).
3. Named Fat Source
Look for a named fat source, such as "chicken fat." You may also see sunflower oil, or other oils listed, usually in premium foods.
4. Vitamins and Minerals Vitamin C (calcium ascorbate) and/or Vitamin E (alpha tocopherol) are often added as preservatives, along with other vitamins and minerals.
5. Taurine
Taurine is an amino acid that can be readily produced by the human body, however, cats need a dietary source of taurine for good health. In a 1974 study, it was found that a diet deficient in taurine contributed toward retinal degeneration in cats. Taurine deficiency can also cause a heart disease called dilated cardiomyopathy. For several decades cat food manufacturers have added taurine to cat food.

These are basically the types of ingredients you will look for in cat foods, and they can be found in most premium foods. For more information on selecting the right food for cats, please read "Tips for Choosing Cat Food," and "Understanding Cat Food Labels." Or, you might be interested in enrolling in my free email class, "The Importance of Food to Your Cat's Health."

bye gud luck

Answered at 2:17 PM on March 05, 2009

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What cat food ingredients should I avoid? ?

Asked by arun kumar in Food & Drink at 2:11 PM on March 05, 2009

Usha Skvl's Answer

well arun

Pioneers such as Ann Martin, with her book, "Foods Pets Die For," have raised new consumer awareness about the ingredients in commercial pet foods, including cat food. Although much more information can be found about choosing quality cat food for your cats in my article, "Tips for Choosing Cat Food," I'll synopsize the ingredients you should avoid here:

* BHT, BHA, and ethoxyquin
These are chemical preservatives which are very effective at preserving dry cat food, but are suspected to be potentially cancer-causing agents. In recent years, many pet food manufacturers have moved toward using more "natural" preservatives, such as Vitamins C and E.
* Meat By-Products
The AAFCO (American Association of Feed Control Officers) defines meat by-products as " The non-rendered, clean parts, other than meat, derived from slaughtered mammals. It includes, but is not limited to, lungs, spleen, kidneys, brain, livers, blood, bone, partially defatted low-temperature fatty tissue and stomachs and intestines freed of their contents. It does not include hair, horns, teeth and hooves." Besides the fact that you don't know what species of animal the "meat" comes from, by-products as a rule are considered an inferior form of the protein which cats need.
* Meat Meal, Meat By-Product Meal
"Meal" is generally produced by rendering, a process which raises a red flag to cat enthusiasts. I would definitely recommend avoiding cat foods containing these ingredients.
'
bye gyd luckl

Answered at 2:16 PM on March 05, 2009

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Should I try a vegan diet for my cats?

Asked by arun kumar in Food & Drink at 2:10 PM on March 05, 2009

Usha Skvl's Answer

well arun

Cats are obligate carnivores - that is, their digestive system is totally unsuited to break down the cell walls to release the nutrients in vegetable foods.

Food will only remain in their system for a couple of hours, as compared with about 24 hours for omnivores like ourselves or days as in most herbivores. They are adapted to eat relatively small amounts of highly digestible, energy-dense food, with an optimal level of vitamins, minerals and micronutrients. Proteins derived from vegetables are much less easily digested, lack many of the vitamins, minerals and micronutrients that are necessary for complete absorbtion and must be consumed in much greater quantities to obtain sufficient energy for healthy functioning.

Humans, whose need for high-quality protein is far less than those of cats, have a difficult time remaining optimally nourished on a solely vegetable-derived diet, and must pay particular care with food types, quantities and combinations, as well as take a variety of supplements, to avoid becoming malnourished or suffering from various deficiencies. I find it highly unlikely that any vegan diet could supply all the nutrients a cat needs to thrive.

While I can appreciate the philosophical stance that can lead to a human's eschewing all animal-derived products, and recognise that they have a perfect right to opt for this for themselves, it can only be regarded as cruelty, and ultimately abusive, to force a cat to follow such practices. They need meat not just for the protein, but for all the other factors that are found in it, for its concentrated energy and for its speed of digestion. For a cat, plant-derived foods are simply not good enough.

bye gud luck

Answered at 2:14 PM on March 05, 2009

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What's wrong with by-products in cat food?

Asked by arun kumar in Food & Drink at 2:09 PM on March 05, 2009

Usha Skvl's Answer

While it's true that cats in the wild eat the whole bodies of their catch (including the heads in some cases), the term " meat by-products" has become a "dirty word" to many cat experts, because of its misuse by some members of the cat food industry. As a result, we have traditionally counseled our readers to avoid all by-products for this reason. (If you get a chance to read Ann Martin's gruesome but eye-opening book, "Food Pets Die For," you will see examples of the sort of things food manufacturers can legally put into their foods under the classification of "meat byproducts."

My opinions about certain byproducts has evolved somewhat since I first wrote the article on Tips for Choosing Cat Food (by the same reasoning process you have used), and I will soon edit that page to reflect those changes.

The founders of the Feline Future web site analyzed the ingredients and nutritional properties of foods cats eat in the wild over a period of a decade or more, and the result was their "recipe" for the Feline Future raw food diet for cats - one which has set the standards for raw feeding, to this day. Actually, they do use a larger proportion of meat to internal organs, so it would appear that part of your premise is incorrect (not much meat on a mouse). In addition, chicken hearts and livers (which are excellent sources of taurine) are added in limited quantities, because of the dangers of "overdosing" with Vitamin A.

In a nutshell, today I would say that a *named* by-product may possibly be acceptable, e.g. " chicken by-product meal" but it should not be listed as the first ingredient in cat food. Unfortunately, labeling laws being what there are, there is no way to my knowledge to know the exact proportion, by weight, of any individual ingredient. Although it is possible to define "protein" as 30% of the product's weight, that protein will include meat, by-products, eggs, certain grains, and other forms of protein in the can or bag of cat food. As a result, I would prefer to see the named by-products relatively far down on the label.

Carbohydrate "Fillers"

As for the "cheaper brands," unfortunately most of them do contain large amounts of carbohydrate fillers in dry cat food, usually in the form of corn, which is commonly known to be a) difficult for cats to digest and b) implicated in food allergies, probably as a result of "a."

However, in fairness to the "cheaper brands," many premium brands of dry food contain large amounts of carbohydrate fillers. It's the nature of the beast. In the manufacturing process of extrusion (which is a heat-based process), it is necessary to have these dry ingredients in order to effectively shape the dry food nuggets. Some brands of "dry" food do not use grain fillers. Notable examples are a relatively new food on the market: Innova EVO, made by Natura; Wysong Archetype and BalanceDiet Supreme V Feline. The latter both use fermentation, rather than heat for processing. A distinct advantage of these products is that they are all very low in allergy-causing ingredients

Answered at 2:12 PM on March 05, 2009

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How much food do I have to feed to meet an adult cat's daily requirements? ?

Asked by arun kumar in Food & Drink at 1:44 PM on March 05, 2009

Usha Skvl's Answer

Unfortunately there is no hard and fast answer to your question. Nutritional requirements for cats vary, even for cats of the same age. Factors that may affect nutritional requirements for cat food include:

* The Cat's Weight
A 17 pound cat with a muscular build and large bone structure will require more calories and associated nutrients to maintain his weight than a nine pound cat with a more slender build. Likewise, a cat who needs to gain or lose weight will need differing quantities of food.
* The Cat's Activity Level
Likewise, two identical 17 pound cats as described above will vary in their requirements, depending on their activity. A three year old cat who races around the house may require more than an eight year old who sleeps most of the day.
* The Cat Food Content
Fish flavors in particular, should be fed in minimal amounts. Although most cats love the taste of fish, an exclusive fish diet has the potential for harm. The Cornell Feline Health Center says, "Diets containing large quantities of fish can cause yellow-fat disease (steatitis), a result of vitamin E deficiency." This is especially true with the lower quality fish protein often used in cat food. If your cat enjoys fish, try eliminating fish-flavored cat food; instead, give him a small treat of human-quality albacore tuna occasionally.
* Quality of the Cat Food
As a rule, many cats fed a high quality premium cat food will eat less than they did on poor-quality "grocery store" food. Their bodies have an innate ability to judge when they have reached the proper nutritional level, and they will stop eating when they reach that level. As a result, feeding these high quality foods has the added result of making them actually more economical.
* Supplemental Dry Food
Cats that are "free-fed" with dry food in addition to their regular meals of canned food, will eat less of the canned food.
well arun

To make it easier for you, most cat food cans and packages give you a feeding guidelines printed right on the package. Alternatively, you can check the web sites of the food manufacturers. PetSmart has a calculator for the basic foods it sells. You can input the cat's age, weight, and activity level, and it will give you the results for your specific cat.

Generally, if your cat seems healthy and active, and is not constantly begging for food, you can assume that he is getting the proper amount of food, especially if the quality of food is superior.

Answered at 2:04 PM on March 05, 2009

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If you feed cats dogfood, can it cause them to go blind?

Asked by arun kumar in Food & Drink at 1:43 PM on March 05, 2009

Usha Skvl's Answer

well arun

It's not a strange question at all. There's nothing in dog food that will directly harm a cat within a short period of time, but the point is what is lacking. Simply put, dog food does not provide the nutrients required by cats. Eating a little bit of dog food won't kill a cat. But a cat fed exclusively on dog food can not only go blind, but can develop a heart condition, called feline dilated cardiomyopathy.

The difference primarily is taurine, found in muscle meat, heart, and liver. Studies have also been done that showed pregnancy failure in queens with long-term taurine depletion, including increased resorption of fetuses, reduced litter size, and increased incidence of stillborn kittens.

Taurine supplement has been added to commercial cat foods for several years, for these reasons.

I would never suggest feeding cats dog food, but rather food specifically formulated for their own, unique nutritional needs.

gud luck

Answered at 1:59 PM on March 05, 2009

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What kind of food can I get for my allergic cat ?

Asked by arun kumar in Food & Drink at 1:43 PM on March 05, 2009

Usha Skvl's Answer

well arun

"Limited ingredients" cat foods were developed to help cats with food allergies. They are generally used for three purposes:

1. For purposes of eliminating allergens to discover which ingredients cats are actually allergic to.
2. As a long-term diet for cats with IBD (Inflammatory Bowel Disease)
3. As a long-term diet for cats with food allergies

The brand with which I'm most familiar, because one of my own cats has eaten it, is IVD (Innovative Veterinary Diet), manufactured by Royal Canin. IVD foods contain a single protein source (duck, lamb, venison, rabbit) and a single carbohydrate source (whole green peas and green pea fibre). These foods are also supplemented with "Omega 6 and 3 EFAs to provide the optimum in anti-inflammatory effects these nutrients can provide," according to the manufacturer.

If your veterinarian does not stock these other products, they can be ordered, but only by prescription.

bye gud luck

Answered at 1:55 PM on March 05, 2009

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Can feeder mice substitute for a raw food diet for cats ?

Asked by arun kumar in Food & Drink at 1:42 PM on March 05, 2009

Usha Skvl's Answer

well arun

You are to be commended for wanting to give your cat the best diet possible. However, while cats might enjoy an occasional mouse to supplement a raw food diet, in my opinion, a diet of only feeder mice would leave out essential nutrients needed by cats. While your premise is partially correct, in the wild, cats would not eat only mice. They would also eat chickens, birds, rabbits and other rodents, as well as the occasional bug. These other protein sources form a well-rounded diet for cats.

Raw food diets, such as the one Michelle T. Bernard suggests in her book, Raising Cats Naturally, were carefully researched and refined, and each supplement used in the "recipe" is there for a specific purpose.

While you might be able to design a similar raw diet for cats, using mice instead of chicken or rabbit, it really would not be worth the effort involved, and would probably be more costly in the long run. Remember that these raw diets came about after years of research, and are carefully designed to include exact amounts of each ingredient for optimum nutritional value for cats.

If you are serious about a better diet for your cat, I'd suggest reading the book. If you do not want to mess with buying and measuring out all the supplements, you can buy them ready-mixed with Instincts from Feline Future, the originator of the raw diet for cats. Alternately, you could mix a week's supply of all the dry ingredients at one time, then measure out the amount needed each day. Either way, you would be assured that you are giving your cat the best diet possible.

bye gud luck

Answered at 1:52 PM on March 05, 2009

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Is there a rule for the use of "Formula" on a pet food label?

Asked by arun kumar in Food & Drink at 1:41 PM on March 05, 2009

Usha Skvl's Answer

Great question! To my knowledge, there is no AAFCO requirement for "formula," but I'll have to research that further. Your best bet for now is to look at the list of ingredients. If the formula is "Chicken and Salmon," then those two ingredients should be pretty high on the list, and I'd like to see "chicken" listed first. With the high liquid content of canned food, the salmon might not be listed next.

As an example, Natural Balance Turkey & Giblets Formula lists, in order, "Turkey, Turkey Broth, Chicken Liver, Poultry Giblets, Carrots, Brown Rice Flour, Fish Meal, Lecithin, etc." The actual word "giblets" appears 4th on the list (although I personally consider liver a "giblet.")

On the other hand, Evolve Canned Seafood Formula lists "chicken" as the first ingredient, then "salmon broth," followed by "ocean fish." Still, the "seafood" ingredients are fairly high on the list.

This whole topic obviously needs further exploring. I'll investigate further and at a later date, let you and my other readers know the results.

Answered at 1:48 PM on March 05, 2009

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Why the protein content discrepancy on your top pick canned kitten foods?

Asked by arun kumar in Food & Drink at 1:40 PM on March 05, 2009

Usha Skvl's Answer

Since canned cat foods contain a high percent of moisture (usually 78%) the true percentage of the "good stuff" is easier to understand if that moisture factor is removed. Thus, the "11%" on the label converts to 50% when converted to dry matter.

Here's the formula:

100% minus 78% = 22%
11% divided by 22%= 50%

Converting both canned and dry foods to "dry matter basis" levels the playing field so that you get a true picture of the nutritional value of the ingredients. Hope this helps!

Answered at 1:47 PM on March 05, 2009

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