[LilasMom]

So I have been reading around and researching before I go 100% raw. And from what I gather, the ratios for dogs and cats are pretty much the same (80%-10%-5%-5%). If this is right, I was thinking that I make their food together and then when it comes time to eat I add in their separate supplements. Like they are all going to get a bit of fish oil, and maybe some vitamin b complex and vitamin e (from what I have been reading, they can be beneficial), but the cats will get a taurine supplement.

Does this sound okay? Every where I have read says the 80/10/5/5 ratio so I don't see the harm in making it together.

 

[Amaryllis]

It'd probably be okay, but make sure your research is solid. Dogs are carnivores, but cats are obligate carnivores, unable to synthesize a lot of the nutrients they need to survive. I'm used to dogs, so I was pretty surprised at how little time cats can go without eating due to this fact.

 

[Willowy]

What do you mean by "making" their food? Are you going to grind it? As far as I know, if you're doing prey-model raw, yes, the ratios are the same for cats and dogs (a rabbit is a rabbit, whether a dog eats it or a cat eats it!). Taurine won't hurt dogs and may be beneficial, so you might not even have to supplement separately. The biggest problem with cats is getting them to eat it. . .but since your cats are young it might not be such a huge problem. Variety is also more important for cats. You might want to join a cat-specific raw feeding group since their needs are so particular, just to make sure you're doing it right.

 

[Sibe]

Cats tend to need slightly less bone, like 8% instead of 10%. Also make sure the cat is getting plenty of taurine. Taurine level are highest in well-exercised muscles, such as heart. Rodent brains are also high in taurine, consider getting mice or small rats from an exotic pet supply store.

You also MUST make sure your cat eats every day. Not all cats will want to dive right in to the raw so you may need to transition. Cats must eat or they get hepatic lipidosis, a form of liver disease. As they try to make use of the fat stores in their body, their liver becomes overloaded and they can die. This site has a great transition guide if your cat is resistant: http://www.rawfedcats.org/practicalguide.htm

 

[LilasMom]

Sorry! Lol when I said making I should have said preparing. Every few days I put a days worth of raw medallions (commercial) into separate baggies. It just makes it easier so I don't have to spend time doing when they are hungry. My cats refuse to wait more than a minute for food once it is out so I have to do the time consuming stuff ahead of time.

I have been giving the cats raw meaty CGH bones every few days as half of their dinner (to help keep their teeth clean), with occasional meaty meat chunks. I think I lucked out with this, probably because they are so young, because they LOVE raw. They cry and cry and cry while I prepare their meals. I bought a whole cornish game hen at whole foods, and since I am doing commercial raw right now it has lasted me a long time as treats. I gave them each half of a rib cage thing (with some extra meaty meat since it was pretty bone-y) and they went right to work. Whole foods sells these little packs of organs for like 30 cents but you have to ask for them especially because they don't keep it out. One pack has a gizzard, lungs (I think), liver, heart, and kidney. This has also lasted me a long time since I am just doing it as treats. I cut the organs up into bit size pieces, put them back in the freezer, and then when the furbabies want a treat a snap a little piece off and they just go crazy for their frozen treat. The pieces are so small that my fingertips partially defrost them enough to be chewed on by the time I hand it to them.