It is an erroneous and simplistic statement to declare that cats live longer in the 21st century than cats in previous centuries solely because of improved nutrition. In parallel to Western-society’s slow loss of life quality in association with adopting a ‘fast-food’ mentality, the argument that cats are showing an equal decline in life quality can be supported by the rising incidence of poor health prognosticators; diabetes mellitus, hyperthyroidism, irritable bowel disease, food allergy dermatitis and obesity[1].
It appears self-evident that what has been most contributory to feline longevity is behavioural changes of the care-givers by firstly adopting an indoor lifestyle for their pet and secondly, desexing, which together have significantly reduced death by overpopulation, territorial conflicts, infectious diseases such as FIV and various other misadventures such as motor vehicles accidents, gun shot wounds, etc. Feline longevity has also been augmented through the use of core vaccines, the eradication of parasites, and the eugenics of eliminating genetic defects[2]. Nutritional changes rank last on this list of radical improvements in feline longevity.
In an undomesticated environment, a wild cat will hunt small animals to survive. If we consider that the average human needs 1g protein/kg bodyweight/day, by comparison, a cat needs to eat approximately 10g protein/kg bodyweight/day. Nutritional analysis of a cat’s wild diet has shown that it contains approximately 90% protein, 5% fat and 5% carbohydrates, mainly from insects, rodents and small birds (August, 2006). This can be compared to a typical commercial dry cat food which contains 30% protein, 20% fat and 30% carbohydrates (remaining 20% minerals and water)[3].
By the nature of their cooking method, commercial dry cat food preparations are unable to provide higher protein diets as a ‘dry food’ preparation without ‘spoiling’ and bacterial contamination occurring. The low protein and high carbohydrate content of commercial dry food underpins their predisposition to inducing obesity in indoor-confined sedentary cats. Tinned cat food (using the ‘canning’ method which effectively sterilizes the contents) fair somewhat better in approaching ‘wild food’ by allowing a high-protein meal with a long-shelf life and thus more closely matches ‘wild food’ protein and carbohydrate percentages, however, there is a linear relationship between quantity of tinned food consumed by cats and the incidence of hyperthyroidism[4]. Commercial cat food-related toxicity is also another concern for cat owners.
Unlike an omnivore (e.g human, dog), whose digestive system consists of a fairly large small intestine and relatively large stomach, the carnivore’s system consists of a fairly short small intestine and relatively small stomach. Thus, a carnivore’s optimum diet must be concentrated, highly digestible, and low in residue because its body is designed to digest primarily protein. If an excess of carbohydrates is included in the diet, much of what the carnivore eats is only partially digested by the time it reaches the large intestine for fecal formation, overloading the digestive and excretory systems[5]. This is reflected in recent studies of the African wildcats, where feeding commercial kibble instead of fresh meat resulted in the cats needing to consume more kibble to meet their protein requirements, resulting in early stage liver disease (elevated liver enzymes)[6].
Although what a cat eats is determined biologically by hunger and the taste and smell of the food, what a domesticated cat actually consumes is determined by what it is presented with. In domestication, a cat’s diet is dictated by its care-giver’s bond with the cat, his/her finances, his proclivity for a fresh versus commercial food, the marketing-influenced predilections for the type of food purchased and the care-giver and cat’s daily moods. Surfeit to this diet are the cat’s ability to scavenge during its brief outdoor activities (neighbor’s cat’s bowl, hunting, etc) and what it can coerce a care-giver to give it.
Daily nutritional requirements
| Daily protein requirements | 10 g/kg bodyweight |
| Daily fat requirements | 2 g/kg bodyweight |
| Daily carbohydrate requirement | 1 g/kg bodyweight |
| Daily energy requirements | 45 kcal/kg bodyweight (adult) |
| 100 kcal/kg bodyweight (kitten/pregnant/lactating) | |
| Daily water requirements | 10 mL/kg bodyweight |
| Daily fibre requirements | 1 g/kg bodyweight |
Daily vitamin requirements
| Nutrients | Min requirement | Recommended daily allowance |
| Total Protein (grams) | 3.97 | 4.96 |
| Amino Acids | ||
| Arginine (g) | 0.19 | 0.19 |
| Histadine (g) | 0.064 | 0.064 |
| Isoleucine (g) | 0.11 | 0.11 |
| Leucine (g) | 0.25 | 0.25 |
| Lysine (g) | 0.067 | 0.084 |
| Methionine (g) | 0.033 | 0.042 |
| Methionine (g) | 0.067 | 0.084 |
| Phenylalanine (g) | 0.099 | 0.099 |
| Phenylalanine-tyrosine (g) | 0.38 | 0.38 |
| Taurine (g) | 0.0079 | 0.0099 |
| Threonine (g) | 0.13 | 0.13 |
| Tryptophan (g) | 0.032 | 0.032 |
| Valine (g) | 0.13 | 0.13 |
| Fats | ||
| Total Fat (g) | 2.2 | 2.2 |
| Linoleic Acid – Omega 3 (g) | 0.14 | 0.14 |
| Arachidonic Acid – Omega 6 (g) | 0.0005 | 0.0015 |
| Eicosapentaenoic & Docosahexaenoic Acid (g) | 0.0025 | 0.0025 |
| Vitamins | ||
| Vitamin A (µg) | 19.8 | 24.7 |
| Vitamin D3 (Cholecalciferol) (µg) | 0.14 | 0.17 |
| Vitamin E (alpha tocopheral) (mg) | 0.74 | 0.94 |
| Vitamin K (menadione) (mg) | 0.025 | 0.025 |
| Thiamin (mg) | 0.11 | 0.14 |
| Riboflavin (mg) | 0.079 | 0.099 |
| Pyridoxine (B6) (mg) | 0.05 | 0.06 |
| Niacin (B3) (mg) | 0.79 | 0.99 |
| Pantothenic Acid (B5) (mg) | 0.11 | 0.14 |
| Folic Acid (B9) (µg) | 15 | 19 |
| Biotin (B7) (µg) | 1.5 | 1.9 |
| Vitamin B12 (Cobalamine) (µg) | 0.44 | 0.56 |
| Choline (mg) | 60 | 63 |
| Vitamin C (mg) | 0 | 0 |
| Minerals | ||
| Calcium (g) | 0.040 | 0.071 |
| Phosphorus (g) | 0.035 | 0.063 |
| Potassium (g) | 0.13 | 0.13 |
| Sodium (mg) | 16.0 | 16.7 |
| Chloride (mg) | 23.7 | 23.7 |
| Magnesium (mg) | 4.9 | 9.5 |
| Iron (mg) | 1.98 | 1.98 |
| Copper (mg) | 0.119 | 0.119 |
| Iodine (µg) | 31.6 | 35 |
| Zinc (mg) | 1.9 | 1.9 |
| Manganese (mg) | 0.119 | 0.119 |
| Selenium (µg) | 6.95 | 6.95 |
See also
- Fresh food recipe
- Raw/all meat diets
- Dry Food vs Canned Food
- Commercial diets
- Prescription diets
- Home made recipes
- What to feed and how often
- Fats and essential fatty acids
- Carbohydrates
- Vitamins
- Minerals
Abnormalities of eating
- Pica
- Food fixation
- Anorexia
- Commercial cat food-related toxicity
- Diabetes mellitus
- Obesity, Dietary management of obesity
- Hyperthyroidism
- Atopy/Eczema
- Food allergy dermatitis
- Irritable bowel disease
- Hepatic lipidosis
- Dermatological risk factors which contribute to skin conditions.
- Essential fatty acid deficiency
References
- ↑ Dr Jim Euclid pers comm
- ↑ Malik, R (2009) Pers Comm with Euclid, J
- ↑ Hill’s Adult Original Feline Optimal Care, Hill’s, USA
- ↑ Pibot, P et al (2008) Encyclopedia of Feline Clinical Nutrition. Royal Canin, France.
- ↑ August, JR (2006) Consultations in feline internal medicine. Vol 5. Elsevier Saunders, USA
- ↑ Vester BM, Burke SL, Liu KJ, Dikeman CL, Simmons LG, Swanson KS. (2010) Influence of feeding raw or extruded feline diets on nutrient digestibility and nitrogen metabolism of African wildcats (Felis lybica) Zoo Biol Jan 21