Thread: My raw feeding experiment

Just read through this website:

Raw Fed Cats

and it goes further, saying that minced raw food is not good enough, it has to be in chunks! They have a whole page on this. They also say pork and raw fish are OK, which totally contradicts other advice. They also think vaccinations are evil. This all seems a bit extreme, especially as you've had such good results with minced raw food, but at the same time there is lots of good advice on there. They really emphasise that cats are superb carnivores, their entire physiology is geared up to hunting, killing and eating fresh meat, and if they are allowed to do that, as far as is possible, then they have the best chance of good health. They make the point that feeding a chicken leg or wing is also mentally stimulating for them, as it's not about instant gratification. The cat has to work out how to break it down and tear bits off, it takes time and concentration, and in that time their stomach enzymes are properly released and ready to digest. Fascinating stuff.

Originally Posted by Howlinbob

Just read through this website:

Raw Fed Cats

Yep, I've read through that one as well. You're right in saying they are a bit extreme... but if you read selectively there is a lot of useful stuff.

About the raw fish... there's a lot of confusion about that. I found out that some raw fish contain an enzyme that breaks down vitamin B... because of this, some people now think you should never feed raw fish at all. But there are many kinds of fish that do not contain this enzyme. Mackerel, salmon and cod for example. I found a list the other day... I'll see if I can retrieve it.

Anyway, the whole raw feeding concept is a bit like many other 'schools'... lots of confusing and contradicting ideas. I think it's best to trust your own judgment.

After doing a lot of research and joining forums etc, I've just ordered 3 and a half kilos of raw minced wild and farmed whole rabbit. Yikes! This is from a specialist supplier in the UK who only deals in rabbit, for pets and for humans.

I may also order some poultry necks and hearts, from the UK Barf club. But I'll see how I go on with the rabbit first. Last night I gave the lads raw liver with some chicken in gravy from a pouch, with some raw egg and ground eggshell mixed in. They loved it! So I am encouraged.

I also like the idea of buying some frozen mice to throw into the garden, so that they can pretend they've caught their own dinner...but ordering from reptile food suppliers is quite expensive (200 mice minimum order!) so that idea is on the back burner.....or do I not really have the stomach for that?? LOL!

Louisa, how great you managed to find your 'barf' supplies!
And also good to hear your boys aren't too averse...
I've had rather a rough day and tomorrow will be even worse, so I'm going offline again. But please keep me posted... after tomorrow I'll do some catching up.

OH just rang me at work. Said 'a package in polystyrene' has just arrived. The lads are jumping all over it, fighting. What is it? Oh, I said, that must be the raw ground rabbit. Right, he said. Shall I put it away? Yes, I said, probably a good idea.

Can't wait to open it later!!!

Perhaps I'm too late... but I do hope you have a camera on standby when the package is opened...

Originally Posted by Howlinbob

I also like the idea of buying some frozen mice to throw into the garden, so that they can pretend they've caught their own dinner...but ordering from reptile food suppliers is quite expensive (200 mice minimum order!) so that idea is on the back burner.....or do I not really have the stomach for that?? LOL!

My neighbours cats are most helpful like that and we often find dead mice out on the patio. It's been a pain for the last 4 years, and now they're just about to move away, you've found a practical use for their 'catch'!!

I've had to give up on the whole raw thing; even Wicca stopped eating it and that cat is a feline waste disposal unit. Freyja's expression when presented with uncooked food was of utter disgust and I'm sure I heard her huff. I like the idea of raw egg with crunched up shells though and might give that a go.

Package turned out to be the chicken necks, hearts and wings. Opened it away from the lads (just to be safe!) and took a few items out to defrost. When it came to serving up time, my goodness they were frantic. Had to throw them off the counter a few times as I chopped, scissored, and added some raw egg and shell to the mix, plus a bit of pilchard as a 'sweetener'. I have never seen them so enthused. When it hit the floor it took them a while to eat it, but they stuck at it, and even old Barney who's got a few teeth missing, fed on kibble all his life, really tucked in and did his best. All that was left was the chicken necks. They're not quite up to eating them yet, although if they just lick and chew them I suppose they are at least getting some benefit.

So, very encouraging!

I am really interested in this topic as I try to feed both Choo Choo and my dog a bit of raw. The dog prefers it, but Choo likes sachets with a bit of raw occasionally. Am going to try an egg.

My local butchers sells "pet mince" which looks and smells disgusting, but they both like it. It comes frozen and sometimes when defrosting it I accidentally cook it a little, which has helped get them interested.

I am squeamish and don't eat much meat at all, but I do my best wearing rubber gloves, lol. When I started experimenting I naively bought all sorts of meat, including deli scraps. BIG mistake! Choo was fine and loved it, but the dog was very ill so now meat only comes fresh from the butcher and never a supermarket. Choo seems to like raw lamb mince, also chicken and turkey, but not raw fish.

Frozen mice and chicks have been mentioned and having to buy them in large quantities. When I had a pet snake I bought both in ones or twos from local pet shops. I'm sure it must still be possible to buy them like that as snakes don't eat very often, so people with one snake wouldn't buy in large quantities. We used to defrost them in foil, near a radiator, rather than put them in the microwave, yuk.

Originally Posted by Pepsi2670

I am really interested in this topic as I try to feed both Choo Choo and my dog a bit of raw. The dog prefers it, but Choo likes sachets with a bit of raw occasionally. Am going to try an egg.

My local butchers sells "pet mince" which looks and smells disgusting, but they both like it. It comes frozen and sometimes when defrosting it I accidentally cook it a little, which has helped get them interested.

Well, it is an interesting subject. And there's lots of information available on the internet.
BTW, there are people who think you shouldn't mix raw food with cooked. You should stick to either raw or cooked, because the animal digests raw food differently than cooked food. Our vet is of that school. (We were very surprised about that because we always had him down as pro-commercial petfood / anti-raw feeding like most vets. Goes to show how badly you can misjudge a person.)

And be careful about defrosting in the microwave. If there's bone in the mince (is there?) and it gets cooked, the bone becomes brittle and can splinter.
I always defrost the mince in the basement where there's no heating. Just before feeding it to the furries I put it in the microwave for a few seconds just to take the chill off.

What a pity your Choo Choo doesn't go for the raw fish. It's a big hit over here, particularly chunks of salmon ... they even devour the skin!
I'm also planning to give the frozen chicks and mice a go. That is, when the weather gets warmer and we can take our little predators out onto the patio. Don't really want them to knock those things about all over the kitchen floor.