A Healthy Diet for Your Cat

Following our discussion of exercise techniques for your indoor cat, it’s only natural to take into consideration a healthy diet for the little guys/gals. Overweight kitties are kitties that are at risk for many of the factors that trouble their overweight owners. Diabetes, arthritis, and other diseases await the overweight cat. Exercise is the part of the cure, but a good diet must necessarily follow.
Cats are carnivorous creatures, so they need to eat meat. There are basically three ways that your cats are going to get the protein they need to be healthy: raw foods, canned food, and dry food, listed in order of their beneficial effects. Most people probably feed their cats dry kibble, but if you do this be sure that the protein content is at least 30%, preferably higher. Canned food is most likely the happy medium between raw and dry. Canned food has a lot of the water content that cats need to get from their food, so a good quality brand could be the solution you’re looking for. Raw food is great for cats, but the expense and time often need for preparation if off-putting to some. If you’re going to go the raw route, make sure that you are up to speed on what kinds of raw food your cat needs and the appropriate methods of preparation.
Cats get most of their water from their food, but they all need a source of fresh water as a supplement. This is especially true if you’re feeding your cat dry kibble – be sure that they have access to all the water they need. Some cats will drink from a bowl with no complaints, while others will prefer to drink from running water. If you have a cat who is constantly in the sink lapping at the tap, then you might want to consider purchasing a specially made water fountain they can drink from. One of these might cost you $20-30.
With a little attention paid to your cat’s nutritional needs, we can all be sure we’re doing all that’s possible to prolong the time we spend with them.