The cat is a wild animal perfectly adapted to life in a human home, but this feline descends mainly from the African wildcat (Felix libica), which alone hunts small prey such as mice and birds, the cat continues to keep its predatory instincts intact and this also gives us a lot of information about how its diet should be.
The cat's diet is a determining factor for its he alth and it is our responsibility as owners to provide our pet with a balanced diet that covers all the nutritional requirements of its body.
To make this task easier for you, in this AnimalWised article we show you how to recognize the best balanced food for cats.
The nutrients that a balanced food for cats should contain
Although there are various human foods that a cat can eat, the truth is that it is impossible to cover all its nutritional needs through homemade food, since its requirements are far from ours.
Any balanced food for cats must contain the following nutrients in its composition:
- Proteins: It is the most important macronutrient for the cat, in fact, an adult cat needs 2 to 3 times more protein than a dog. Obviously these proteins must be of animal origin.
- Taurine: Taurine is an amino acid, therefore its content will depend on the protein content, however, the intake of taurine must be reinforced, since a cat needs 1.000 milligrams of taurine daily for each kilogram of body weight. A deficit of this amino acid causes heart problems and blindness.
- Fats: Fats should account for 40-50% of the daily energy intake and should be of animal origin, especially cats need alpha-linolenic, linoleic and arachidonic fatty acids.
- Carbohydrates: They are an important nutrient but should not account for more than 35-40% of the daily energy intake, in fact The best balanced foods for cats are those that contain between 5 and 12% carbohydrates. It is important to use whole grains such as oats, rye, barley, or brown rice.
- Vitamins: The balanced food must contain vitamin A directly, since the cat cannot transform carotenoids of vegetable origin, Some vitamins of the B complex will also be essential, such as thiamin, niacin and pyridoxine, since the cat's body cannot synthesize them.
- Minerals: The cat especially needs phosphorus, calcium, magnesium and potassium.
The quality of the nutrients in the cat's balanced food
If we want to choose the best food for our cat, it is not enough to make sure that it contains the nutrients that we have mentioned above, it will also be necessary to consult the nutritional compositionto look at the following aspects:
- The protein content must be at least 35% and the protein sources must be specified, do not buy any balanced food that contains "meat by-products" because you really won't know what your cat is eating.
- You must ensure that it contains less than 10% ash, a term used to refer to what would remain after burning the food balanced, that is, the minerals.
- It is also important that the nutritional labeling specifies that chelated minerals have been included, as these improve the absorption process and are less toxic.
Always remember that the more the content of the feed is specified, the better, as it will allow us to properly assess its quality.
Substances that must not contain
A good balanced food for cats should not contain the following substances:
- Sugar
- Artificial colors
- S alt
- DL-Methionine
- Glycerol monostearate
- Vitamin K
These substances are neither nutritious nor adequate for our cat, therefore, the fact that a balanced food includes them decreases the quality of it automatically.
What is the best balanced food for cats?
We can conclude that the best balanced food for cats is the one that meets the following requirements:
- It belongs to a premium range, which, although it is the most expensive, is also the most energetic (exceeding 4,000 calories per kilo of feed), therefore, it spreads more
- It is moist, as it requires less processing and consequently is of higher quality
- It is well tolerated by our cat's digestive system and it is tasty for him
- Adapts to specific needs (obesity, kidney disease, diabetes, urinary stones…)
It is also important to mention that the transition from one type of feeding to another should last approximately 7 -10 days, the new balanced food will be included in the cat's diet progressively until it represents its entire diet.
If the food we give our cat has good digestibility and quality, we will be able to observe little fecal material and practically no smell.
