The reason I am most comfortable feeding Frankenprey in comparison to other raw or other commercial foods, is because I know what I put into the diet, and in what quantities. There are some ‘well-meaning’ (I presume) people out there who do offer raw for cats, but I won’t recommend or feed what they offer. Some come from a ‘dog’ position, and fail to realise that cats don’t need carbs and fibre (in most cases). Some clearly come from a ‘human health’ standpoint, and include ‘superfoods’ in their recipes without justifying, researching or conducting trials, about why such an ingredient would be good for a FELINE. One such company was espousing the benefits of chia seeds for example. Something healthy for humans does not mean it is healthy for cats, which makes me suspicious that they don’t know enough about feline nutrition – at worst case scenario, they will include something that is known to be toxic to cats (like garlic, and no, we DON’T know what is a ‘small dose that is safe’, or the cumulative effects of feeding this regularly over time). Another scenario is that they include something that is NOT YET KNOWN to be either healthy OR toxic to cats. And the presumption that ‘what is healthy for humans can’t hurt a cat’ is just plain wrong. We should be feeding what we know will be doing them good…and the simplest place to look for that answer, when there is little scientific nutritional testing on felines, is what they were biologically made to eat (and I don’t think cats go out harvesting chia seeds). Please also remember that the Australian pet food market is UNREGULATED.
Ok, so those are my general philosophies about feeding and my general thoughts about what I have seen in the commercial raw offerings currently available in Australia. This is not to say that commercial raw would be WORSE than feeding canned or kibble – it may well be, and in many cases IS, better – but simply that every pet owner has to make informed decisions for themselves and their circumstances.
I am constantly doing this, so please let me know of any commercial raw offerings that you know about! I might decide they are great and put them into the rotation of food for Kato and Ava…I’m always looking…Oh, and also, I find the hive mind over at the catsite tremendously helpful in helping me evaluate foods and my own feeding regime. Check out the discussion over there and feel free to post questions as there are some fantastically researched and experienced people active in the raw feeding forum.
And now for some specific comments on some of the better commercial raw (of which I’m aware) that is available in various parts of Australia:
1. BARF for cats. There are a few providers of ‘BARF’ so in general, check that it is formulated for CATS, as BARF is usually a dog thing. I will discuss Dr Billinghurst’s BARF for cats. In my experience, it can be a bit high in bone, and have some things cats don’t need. Thankfully nothing toxic (check ingredients, some ‘vet’ formulated ‘raw’ foods have garlic in them, and this is TOXIC to cats). I tried BARF with Kato a couple years back, and the bone also seemed to be crushed large. He was slightly panicked when he got a bit stuck between a gap in his teeth and I helped him dislodge it. With bones in a frankenprey diet, this is not an issue, as they are in their ‘natural’ unground state, so the cat seems to crunch through them well and with relish – ‘no surprising lumps in the mush’. What really decided me against BARF was simply that Kato took an aversion to ANYTHING minced. So I went with his preference -meat chunks. Were I to try BARF again, I think I would keep it in strict rotation, both because of the high levels of bone (too much, and the calcium in them causes constipation), and also because of the high carbohydrate and fibre level that cats just don’t need. Here is a thread that has some useful discussion on Dr Billinghurst’s BARF: http://www.thecatsite.com/t/252759/raw-feeding-or-barf-in-australia-need-some-food-advice.
2. Organic Paws. Available in some Australian States (QLD, NSW, VIC, WA at the moment). I have only read what is on their website, and I would generally be inclined to give this a try – in rotation. What I like about it is that it is made for carnivores, and that is what a cat is, so no veg or fruits in here. I also like that they include green tripe. What I don’t like, is that they supplement with cod liver oil, and kelp. Given that there is already liver in the diet, Cod Liver Oil could make the load of vitamin A excessive (and this is toxic for cats) There are some scientific articles used to talk about excess vit A associated with cod liver oil here: http://feline-nutrition.org/answers/answers-why-not-use-cod-liver-oil. (Actually, for our situation at the moment, I have to say I think I won’t try Organic Paws because we are needing to give Kato Lysine at the moment – and the medicine also contains codliver oil, so I think we won’t voluntarily give him more!)
As for kelp, this might be a lesser concern for me. It can have variable levels of iodine. Dr Pierson writes about this in relation to the recipe she uses for homemade raw: http://www.catinfo.org/makingcatfood.php
'Notes on why I omit/alter certain ingredients that you may see in other recipes:
Kelp - You will see recipes on the internet that use kelp. Kelp varies in its iodine content but usually contains very high levels of this mineral. The thyroid gland is very sensitive to iodine levels that are either too low or too high. Given the fact that hyperthyroidism is very common in the cat, I do not want to add too much, or too little, iodine to the diet. '
(and for this reason she uses Morton's iodized Lite salt so she can control the amount of iodine).
3. CanineCountry: http://www.caninecountry.com.au/ do some feline versions that (hurrah) don’t include fruit and veg, or garlic: ‘Feline Roo’ and ‘Feline Chicken’. Flaxseed COULD be a problem, given that cats are obligate carnivores, so you’d have to see if your cat is ok or not on this food. And just from a raw frankenprey feeders perspective…it is JUST meat and bones…no organs?? I’d probably write and ask them some questions about how balanced the food is, and what testing has been done to know. As always when it comes to roo meat for pets in Australia, I’d want to know what testing has been done to find out if sulphites are in the meat (see my posts on roo meat in the ‘poisons’ tag).
4. Feline Natural: http://www.k9natural.com/about-feline-natural. This is one to keep your eyes out for, because it isn’t yet available in Australia, although they tell me they are working on it. I haven’t been able to find an ingredient list yet either, but their philosophy is good, so it is something I am waiting on…and I have again written to them to find out more.
Update: Just got this from the K9 Rep: Unfortunately we cannot get the frozen product out here in Australia due to it being a Natural Raw Product. But we can get the Freeze dried product out here in Australia. Below is the ingredients for the Freeze Dried:
Chicken and Lamb: Chicken, Lamb heart, Lamb Liver, Lamb kidney, Green lipped mussle.
Chicken and Venison: Venison Heart, Chicken, Chicken bone, Venison Kidney, Venison Liver, Green lipped mussle.
We do have some stores that stock the Feline food. They are listed below:
NSW
Rupert and Dora – Paddington
Natural Pet store – Online store that delivers Australia wide
VIC
Murphy Brothers – Hawthorn
5. And now for some of the guys I personally avoid. These guys say they do raw for cats, but they include unnecessary ingredients, and ingredients that are known to be toxic to cats. Additionally, vetsallnatural declined to answer my emails where I asked some nutritional questions, and I noted that completepet sells ‘veganpet’ – which will KILL YOUR CAT (see my post on ‘vegetarian’ cat food under the ‘poisons’ tag). http://www.vetsallnatural.com.au/images/stories/Products/raw76sheet.pdf/
http://www.completepet.com.au/
So best wishes everyone! There will be plenty of providers I don’t know about, or haven’t fully checked out…use your judgement on whether they are adequately adhering to the principles of feline nutrition – and let me know of any good ones you find :)