Feeding Offal

[CC & The Pussycat Guys & Dolls]

I wouldn't feel so bad about the wasted food

You could put it out for the hedgehogs, Im sure one would sniff it out as they are wandering by 

[Kay and Penny]

thanks Gillian - I'll try mixing muscle meat in too

I could do with a stray or two round here and then I wouldn't feel so bad about the wasted food

[Gillian Harvey]

they quite like the shredded chicken cat food in a tin, like Porta, so I can mix that in too, but they won't eat cooked or raw chicken or mince

anyone know of a source of rabbit?

www.woldsway.co.uk is good for rabbit meat and www.back-2-nature.co.uk have rabbit meat plus lots of other meats which include the muscle meat, bones and organs - so are complete and balanced. Back2nature meats are very reasonably priced I think.

Offal on its own isnt a balanced diet if you were considering feeding completely homemade. You need the balance of muscle meat, bones and organs as Den mentioned. Heart is technically a muscle meat and contains large amounts of taurine. However, cooking depletes taurine considerably (can't remember the exact amounts offhand) - which of course is why pet food manufacturers add it back in. Raw would be better. If you were still planning on feeding other complete commercial foods as well there wouldnt be a problem with feeding heart as often as you like, with liver and kidney a couple of times a week. You might want to look at www.catinfo.org gives you lots of info about making your own food.

[Kay and Penny]

they quite like the shredded chicken cat food in a tin, like Porta, so I can mix that in too, but they won't eat cooked or raw chicken or mince

anyone know of a source of rabbit?

[Den]

I think offal should be 5-10% of the total weekly food intake. So no more than 1-2 times per week. Either heart or liver as one and different offal as the other. It needs to be varied weekly. Offal meat contains a lot of taurine.

If you are doing away with processed cat food then the diet needs to me mainly muscle meat, some raw meaty bones, and the offal once/twice a week in place of meat.

It is something like that anyway, but I'm sure someone knows a lot more.

BTW, I don't know how it would vary if you kept 50% of the diet dry ... but I think 3-4 times a week sounds a bit too much for offal.

Edit - important part, all the above is based on raw feeding, but I'm betting that its similar if the offal is cooked in regards to quantity.

[Kay and Penny]

I have wasted loads of cat food just lately trying to find a high protein wet food Trigger and Tiffany would eat. Today in Tescos I bought some lambs heart, kidneys and liver for much less than I have been paying each week for fancy tins and pouches. I know too much liver is not good, but is there any health reason why they should not have some heart and kidney three or four times a week instead, with white fish on the other days, and perhaps liver once a week,  instead of processed cat foods?

Half their daily food is quality dry, and I can add some of the liquor I cook the offal in. I am sure the cats would like this,  but are there drawbacks? Any advice would be most welcome.