Whats actually in Cat Food?

[catslave]

In response to Elismom's "dangers of raw feeding" thread and other comments by others as well, I thought I would post my feelings and research on mass produced cat food. I quite agree with Candes that people should have all the facts so here are some from the other side of the fence. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion and this is mine.NB. I strongly advise not reading this thead whilst eating, and if you have a weak stomach a bowl or bucket may be useful.The advertisments and packaging show fresh plump chickens, juicy steaks and fresh caught fish; unfortunately none of these are likely to end up in the tin. One pet food manufacturer actually claimed it was better than others as its food was based on poultry carcuses whilst its competitors used feathers. In fact cat food contains all the icky bits of animals that have been passed fit for human consumption, ie. all meat is removed then what's left becomes cat food, eyes, brain, stomach etc. There is nothing wrong with the icky bits of the animal. Offal contains vital nutrients. In the wild cats will eat the skin, eyes and stomache of its prey. Humans often eat these icky bits as well, cleverly disguised in sausages, burgers, pies etc. It is not unheard of for diseased animals and spoilt unsold meat to end up in cat food, although this normally only happens in countries with lesser controls. Cat food has to have the nutritional value of one mouse per can, icky bits included.In some places ground up cats and dogs can end up in cat food as well as road kill. Rendering these carcuses is an efficient and environmental friendly means of disposal. Sanimal in Quebec use mainly pig and chicken carcusses but also use 18000 kg of cat and dog flesh a week. This meat protein product is then sold on to the pet food industry to be manufactured into cat and dog food. In reality that tin of food you fed your cat this morning could well have contained the meat of a dead cat. Erm isn't that canibalism? There are also genuine health concerns about feeding meat products back to their own species.Every one, at least in England, will remember the outbreak of Mad Cow Disease a few years ago. This outbreak of BSE was caused by feeding cattle by products back to cattle. The causative agent (a prion) survived rendering. In humans vCJD is caused by eating BSE infected beef, the feline version FSE is caused by cat food.The Waltham Book of Dog and Cat Nutrients is a fantastic source of information on what is actually in cat food and what is vital and missing from it.Most pet food comes from large international companies that also deal in human food. This allows them to profit from what is effectively waste products by turning them into pet food. This process starts by rendering the animal carcusses to remove fat and fluid. This is then mixed with the skin, organs, brain, stomaches etc. It is possible for the euthanasia drug pentobarbital to still be present in these. Condemned slaughter house waste, including animals who have died and reason unknown, heads, hooves, more internal organs, and all meat unfit for human consuption. Before leaving the slaughterhouse this meat is denatured to prevent it ending up in the human food chain. In Canada the denaturing chemical is Birkolene B (composition of which is secret). In the USA they use any of the following, carbolic acid (corrosive, disinfectant, toxic), creosote (wood preservative, disinfectant, toxic), fuel oil, kerosene or citronella (insect repellent made from lemon grass). In the UK it is dyed blue or green. These all end up in cat food.Animals breed as a food source are routinely given antibiotics due to the increased infections of cramped accomodation and walking about in there own mess. The later causes e-coli. Both are passed into the food chain and into pet food. (As my battery is about to die I will charge it and continue as a reply)

[Howlinbob]

Well I knew some of this but certainly not all the detail. I find it fascinating how big the gulf is between what actually happens in pet food manufacture and the glossy blurb on the packs and on the websites. That we are now so conditioned to think that feeding this rubbish is the best way is a masterstroke of marketing. I am certainly much more comfortable with feeding raw meat than with feeding any commercial pet food. Of course there are risks involved with raw feeding but it is quite easy to minimise those risks with good supplies and good practice.

Looking forward to your continuation, Catslave! Thanks.

[candes]

Actually this is an excellent post that proves that one needs to do their homework. It also proves that you often get what you pay for. If a brand is inexpensive, why? But not all expensive brands are a good choice either. So you have to be diligent.

And if you have followed our threads you will see that that Elismom and I have done just that. We both serve our cats nice wholesome human grade food. With no preservatives, artificial coloring, meat by products, melamines, grains, etc.... This food is actually so tasty looking and smelling, I caught myself, nearly licking my fingers while dishing up his food. Almost... In fact Teddy even gets peas and carrots in his food. Not that I had chosen this particularly. In fact it was my last choice on the list. But what picky Teddy wants to eat (from the long list that his mom selected) he gets. The lil cutie likes his veggies.

I would like to think that Teddies unusual growth and beautiful coat is an end result of good quality food. You won't find stunted growth, a ratty coat, nor the dull eyes I have observed in pictures of cats fed a different type of diet. Which brings me to something I had noticed over the years. Kittens fed a quality dedicated kitten food grow much larger. Good nutrition during this delicate growth phase is essential.

Another thing we looked for in food was that we wanted food made with ingredients strictly from the US and Canada. That proved to be a little more difficult since Teddy loves his Avoderm tuna and crabmeat and sardines, shrimp and crabmeat. This comes from Thailand. Large yummy chunks of tuna or sardines and whole petite shrimps. All with plentiful crabmeat scattered throughout it! YUM!! If allowed, Teddy will eat nothing but this. But after much effort I have him eating his platefulls also. You see a strict seafood diet is a no no.

Testing is also beneficial. We also chose food that goes through regular nutritional, bacterial,and ingredient testing with every lot. They don't even do this for human food. But it is something I feel is important to ensure my babe is getting good quality food.

Another thing we avoid is food manufactured at Menu or Diamond foods. Those 2 places cater to the majority of US and Canada cat food companies. And have very little integrity.

There is so much more to this. And when I remember anything else, I will post it.

[Antonia]

I find it fascinating how big the gulf is between what actually happens in pet food manufacture and the glossy blurb on the packs and on the websites.

That’s exactly what bugs me. No pet owner knows what happens inside those plants. They keep their doors closed. The public are not allowed access.
Not only the ‘cheap’ brands are tight-lipped, but the so-called premium/high premium/super premium (or whatever marketing term they will come up with next) are equally secretive.

Now, I feed a frozen raw mix made by a Dutch company. They welcome visitors and are happy to give you a tour around their facilities. No secrets, nothing fishy… except for the mackerel that goes into some of their mixes.

Makes you wonder.

[candes]

Antonia, that is another good point brought up. Once a company starts spouting off, "we can't tell you, that is proprietary," for simple ingredients, they get scratched off our list. I even spewed off an angry email to one of such companies. There should be no secrets!

You will find reputable and non reputable companies in all branches of consumerism. This includes human food too. I think given the opportunity, even human food companies will cut corners. If they think getting caught will not impact them adversly. By adversly I mean lawsuits. That is the only thing that keeps them in check. I think when the day comes that we can value our pet relationshiops for what they are really worth in court, cat food companies will start to listen.

[catslave]

Continuation ... and I now have a laptop back so this is going to be easier, first post was made on a mobile phone so apologies for the lack of paragraphs and spacing, I will try and correct it.

Waltham who make Whiskers website states that they add more nutrients into their food than the minimum recomendations to compensate for the losses in the processing of the food. However, this itself can cause problems and be potentially dangerous to cats and leads to hypervitaminosis.

Vets have also found a link between canned foods, particularly fish varieties, and hyperthyroidism in cats.

Some contaminents may survive the rendering process, therefore a tin of cat food can conttain antibiotics, hormones, the chemicals used at the slaughterhouses and barbituates. Even more less desirable contaminents can be found as well.

To make thhe naturally bland kibble appealing to cats it is sprayed with fat mixed with flavour enhancers. This fat will have been treated with ethoxyquin to stabilise it. This product has never been certified as safe for cats. Antioxidants are also added - yeah more chemicals. High wheat content kibble is known to cause vomitting and diahroea in cats, Persians appear to be most susceptable to this.

Have a look at the ingredients in cat food, do you find cellulose or cellulose pulp, any idea what it is? Blood soaked sawdust. So your feeding your cat wood. Sawdust is a by-product and the timber will have been treated with chemicals.

(As I keep getting logged out I will coninue in another reply, cheating this time going to type it in Word and copy and paste it as I've lost about five times whats here)

[candes]

Have a look at the ingredients in cat food, do you find cellulose or cellulose pulp, any idea what it is? Blood soaked sawdust. So your feeding your cat wood. Sawdust is a by-product and the timber will have been treated with chemicals.

I agree with everything you are saying. I did forget to mention rendering. That is something else to be avoided. And with human grade foods you will not have any rendered fats or meat products.

And about the wood business. None of the products we have chosen on our naughty or nice list have wood in them. But I advise you not to check the ingredients on every high fiber product you have in your human food cupboard. There is the possibility you may find wood. And perhaps even the hair of chinese woman. So yes, even when shopping for humans you must be diligent.

[candes]

Vets have also found a link between canned foods, particularly fish varieties, and hyperthyroidism in cats.

Any diet that is predominantly seafood, human or animal will do this. Since seafood is rich in iodine. Another reason not to feed strictly seafood to cats. Although you will find that certain seafood items will have less iodine. Along with the possibilities of mercury poisening. An added benefit of testing done by the better cat food companies is knowing that mercury levels are at a safe level. This is something we also researched.

The iodine content of fish is quite variable. In general, marine fish have more iodine than fresh water fish, and a significant part of the iodine is in the head of the fish (where the thyroid is). Here are some typical amounts for some common fish, in mcg/100g: Cod (110), Haddock (250), Herring (29), Mackerel (140), Sardines (29), Tuna (30), Atlantic Salmon (76), Rainbow Trout (13). Here are a few ranges to give you a sense of the variability of iodine in fish (mg/100g): Haddock (60 – 920), Pollack (23 – 266), Cod (18 – 1270).

Iodine in Food

[candes]

To make thhe naturally bland kibble appealing to cats it is sprayed with fat mixed with flavour enhancers. This fat will have been treated with ethoxyquin to stabilise it. This product has never been certified as safe for cats. Antioxidants are also added - yeah more chemicals. High wheat content kibble is known to cause vomitting and diahroea in cats, Persians appear to be most susceptable to this.

I am with you on this one for certain! Mine and Elismoms suggestion is to feed food without grains. There are 2 excellent kibble brands that we suggest.

Orijen

INGREDIENTS
Fresh boneless chicken*, chicken meal, fresh boneless salmon*, turkey meal, fresh chicken liver*, herring meal, russet potato, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols), sweet potato, peas, fresh boneless walleye*, fresh whole eggs*, fresh boneless turkey*, fresh boneless lake whitefish*, sun-cured alfalfa, pea fiber, fresh boneless herring*, organic kelp, pumpkin, chicory root, carrots, spinach, turnip greens, apples, cranberries, blueberries, licorice root, angelica root, fenugreek, marigold flowers, sweet fennel, peppermint leaf, chamomile, dandelion, summer savory, rosemary, vitamin A, vitamin D3, vitamin E, niacin, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, d-calcium pantothenate, pyridoxine, folic acid, biotin, vitamin B12, zinc proteinate, iron proteinate, manganese proteinate, copper proteinate, selenium yeast, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Enterococcus faecium.

* DELIVERED FRESH, preservative-free and never frozen

Beforegrain

Chicken Deboned, Chicken Meal, Potato Dehydrated, Turkey Meal, Chicken Fat
(preserved with mixed tocopherols – a source of Natural Vitamin E), Sweet Potato
Dehydrated, Dried Egg, Natural Flavor, Yeast Culture, Dicalcium Phosphate, Lysine,
Sea Salt, Alfalfa, Salmon Oil, Choline Chloride, Acai Berry Freeze-Dried, Blueberry
Dried, Yucca Schidigera Extract, Rosemary Extract, Taurine, Zinc Amino Acid Complex,
Chondroitin Sulfate, Glucosamine Hydrochloride, Chicory Root, Marigold Extract,
Lactobacillus Plantarum, Enterococcus Faecium, Lactobacillus Casei, Lactobacillus
Acidophilus, Iron Amino Acid Complex, Vitamin E Supplement, Manganese Amino
Acid Complex, Vitamin A Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Copper Amino
Acid Complex, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin D3, Niacin, Lecithin, Riboflavin
Supplement, Biotin, Ethylenediamine Dihydriodide, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Cobalt
Amino Acid Complex, Folic Acid, Thiamine Mononitrate, Sodium Selenite.

[Antonia]

Waltham who make Whiskers website states that they add more nutrients into their food than the minimum recomendations to compensate for the losses in the processing of the food.

So what they are basically saying is: they process the meat to such an extent that they need to add lost nutrients.
Or they use so little meat that they need to add nutrients that weren’t there in the first place.

Wouldn’t it be simpler to just feed the cat the … ehmmm… meat?