HOW TO MAKE HOMEMADE CAT FOOD

The range of benefits that come with homemade cat food are vast, and can help improve your cat’s health immensely. Understanding your cat’s dietary needs and nutritional requirements can give any pet owner peace of mind. In this blog, we teach you important tips for making homemade cat food. But before we dive into the article, we want to highlight some important notes about feeding your cat.

IMPROVING YOUR CAT'S HEALTH WITH A HOMEMADE DIET

To ensure your cat’s health is in top shape, an optimal diet must be considered. Balancing the diet is a fundamental part of ensuring your cat is healthy. The risks of your cat failing to eat the proper meals can lead to long-term complications. However, careful production of your homemade cat food can result in a better meal for your cat and long-term health. Know Better for Cats provides everything your cats’ needs.

We only work with high-quality ingredients and include essential nutrients and protein for health and longevity. Our whole food premixes provides your cat with all the essential vitamins and minerals needed. We make it easy for feline caregivers to balance a raw or cooked meat diet at home to improve their cats’ health. Our premixes are ideal for all life stages and we use 100% human grade ingredients. Know Better for Cats contains no grains of any kind. Just add raw or cooked meat and water.

Choosing The Meat For A Homemade Cat Food

Raw or cooked meat is the main ingredient in homemade cat food. Cats are true carnivores and need a protein-based diet. If your cat is new to a raw or cooked meat diet, it may take some time before they will fully accept it.

Poultry is generally more accepted by cats at first, you could also try other meats, including beef, lamb, pork, venison, rabbit, ostrich, etc. Meat should be fresh and fit for human consumption. The ideal fat content should be between 8 and 15%. Here is a list of meats to choose from:

Beef: Lean pre-ground stewing meat, heart, boneless steak or roast.

Lamb: Pre-ground boneless stewing meat shank, leg, or butt.

Poultry: Pre-ground boneless, skinless breast fillet, or thigh.

Venison: Pre-ground stewing meat neck, shank, or shoulder.

Things To Avoid When Making Cat Food At Home

The cat is an obligate carnivore and thrives on a raw or cooked meat-based diet. They do not have any need for fruits and vegetables.

Avoid Feeding Carbohydrates (corn, wheat, rice & potatoes): Cats don’t metabolize these foods very well and carbohydrates can put a strain on the liver and pancreas.

Feeding carbohydrates (especially when included in dry cat food) for an extended period can be the cause of many feline diseases. Including inflammatory bowel disease, allergies, struvite crystals, oxalate stones, lower urinary tract infection, diabetes, kidney disease & obesity.

Homemade Cat Food Recipes

Making Holistic vet-approved cat food at home is easier than you think. You can also make larger batches and freeze them for convenience. You can add more water if desired, especially when preparing the food using ground meat. You can see below two recipes, one with raw meat and one with cooked meat:

Prep Time: 5 min

Cooking Time: 7min

Total Time: 12min

Servings: Makes a 3lb serving of cat food

Ingredients

- 2lbs. (900g) meat of your choice
- 1 1/2 cups of water
- 1/2 cup Know Better for Cats

Raw homemade cat food recipe

1. Add 1 1/2 cups of cold water into a bowl.

2. Add 1/2 cup of Know Better premix and incorporate it well.

3. Combine 2lbs (900g) of meat of your choice

4. Mix it well and serve.

Cooked homemade cat food recipe

1. Pour 1 1/2 cups of water to 2lbs (900g) of ground meat.

2. Cook for 5 to 7 minutes on medium heat until it turns brown.

3. Wait until the meat cools down to room temperature.

4. You can then add 1/2 cup Know Better premix to the meat, stir and serve.

How To Portion Homemade Cat Food

Portion into daily servings.

· 1/2 -3/4 cup will feed one adult cat. This can be split into two servings.

· 1-2 days worth can be kept in the fridge.

· Freeze the rest for storage.

· Thaw as needed.

Tips for Homemade Cat Food

· Thaw frozen cat food by warming to room temperature in a warm water bath before serving.

· Remove uneaten food within 30 minutes to be refrigerated again.

· Do not leave the raw food out at room temperature.

· Avoid microwaving on a regular basis.

KNOW BETTER PET FOOD INGREDIENTS

Egg yolk, calcium lactate, chicken or beef liver powder, gelatin, whey protein isolate, psyllium husks, EFA from fish oil, taurine, kelp, Vitamin B complex.

The ingredients we use to make Know Better for Cats are without exception of human grade quality. All materials are 100% natural, and no preservatives, colours, or other artificial additives are used.

The Chicken Recipe Premix contains chicken liver powder, whereas the Beef Recipe Premix is made with beef liver.

SIZES AVAILABLE

Know Better for Cats – Chicken & Beef Recipe is available in 3 sizes:

Trial size 4.8oz - makes 6lbs of finished food

24oz. pouch - makes 30lbs of finished food

5lb pouch - makes 100lbs of finished food

The average adult cat (weighing 9-12lbs) will require about 1/4lb (1/2 cup) of cat food per day.

All products are made fresh weekly and the shelf life is one year for cat food (if stored in a cool, dry place). The shelf life can be extended to 1 1/2 years if the product is stored in the fridge or freezer.

*Holistic Veterinarian Approved

How To Switch Your Cat To A Healthy Diet

When transitioning cats from commercial foods to the raw diet, they can occasionally show some reluctance. If this is the case we recommend that you mix their favourite canned food into the raw or cooked mixture. Over the next week or two gradually decrease the canned food until it is eliminated.

Furthermore, when you are preparing the food, using ice cube trays to freeze the meat mix is a good way to waste less food. Dry cat food should be removed from the meal plan.

Homemade Cat Food for Feeding Kittens

Kittens do not usually require a transitioning period as they have not been programmed to identify only with commercial foods.

They can be fed this diet as young as 4 weeks of age, however this does not replace the necessity of nursing. Kittens should be fed 4 meals per day until 4 months old, and then 3 meals per day until they are 12 months of age.