Does anyone feed raw?

[JustineNYC]

My two labs have been raw fed for quite a while. One suffered from severe allergies for years and year after year all the doctors did was put him on Prednisone. 3 weeks after I switched him to raw, the bald "hot spot" hair on his belly grew back and he hasnt had allergies since.

My question is about my cat Irwin, Ive posted about his urinary problems here before.

He has a history of blockages from urinary crystals. He got better when they put him on Science Diet CD, temporarily.....then he had another flare up, (couldnt urinate, blood in urine) and he went on anti inflammatories, and we switched him to Royal Canins Urinary SO. He is also on Glucosamine powder as a supplement.

Because his problems are food related....Im really interested in putting him on a raw diet, seeing how it worked so well for my Labs...

The Urinary SO can food ingredients are

"Water, meat by-products (what are 'by-products'?), chicken by-products, animal fat, natural flavors (natural flavors of what?), trace minerals, calcium sulfate, potassium sulfate, magnesium sulfate, zinc sulfate, taurine"....etc etc...


To me, this stuff sounds like JUNK.

Wouldnt he be better on a meat, chicken hearts, gizzards diet?

[shepgirl]

My dogs have been on raw for years. although I don't have cats I do have friends that do and when they saw how my dogs were so healthy on raw they decided to switch their cats. So far not one of them would ever go back to cat food of any kind. The cats have no health issues, had no problem with the switch either. They eat hamburg, chicken hearts and giblets, beef,chicken pieces, eggs, and some mashed veggies 2X per week. Any meat the family has they eat it raw. Also get tuna and salmon often. Might be something else they feed them that I am not thinking of, but I do notice how shiny and well fed those cats are, less shedding too and I had no clue cats shed. No hairball problems ever, not quite sure what they meant when they explained hairballs.

[catmandu]

BY PRODUCTS , I HAVE THE FEELING ARE PARTS OF THE ANIMAL THAT ARE NOT USED FOR HUMAN FOOD LIKE BEAKS, CAWS AND HOOVES.
AND ANYTHING THAT SCRAP FROM THE HUMAN FOOD PROCESSING.
I AM GIVING THE FOUND CATS A LOT MORE GRILLED GROUND CHICKEN, VEAL AND BEEF AND THEY REALLY SEEM TO LIKE IT.
I MAY START WITH HEARTS AND LIVERS IF THEY LIKE IT, I WILL ASK AUNT JANICE FOR ADVICE.

[Queen of Poop]

I've been feeding the kittens raw all summer. Their favorite is Amore brand rabbit/salmon combo. It took a lot of trial and error to find one they'd eat. Their coats are noticeable softer these days. We have a store here called tailblazers, they have a great website where you can research all kinds of raw foods.

[JustineNYC]

Thank you everyone. I noticed Irwins hair changed (for the worse) when he was put on this food, his mom is a long haired cat, very silky, and he was too, now his hair is hard. I just dont like the way he looks on it.

[shais_mom]

I've had my golden on raw for over 2 years with great results.
I would LOVE to switch my cats but they are quite finicky and kibble addicts.
And unlike dogs who will eat after they get hungry enough cats just won't so you have to be very careful when switching over b/c if they go too long without eating they can go into liver failure.
Yahoo has a lot of message forums on raw feeding for both dogs and cats and with a little time and research you can go thru them and get some ideas.
good luck!