Do cats really love milk or is it a myth and if so what kind of food cats like?

Answer 1

Hi there...some cats do love milk, however cow's milk actually isn't good for cats nor nutritionally beneficial. A lot of this began when Hollywood began feeding milk and fish to cats which glamourized the two.

Milk causes diarrehoa and vomiting in cats because they lack enzymes to break down the sugars in milk called lactose. Cats essentially are lactose intolerant. Here are a couple web about this:
http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=0&cat=1276&articleid=1183
http://www.fabcats.org/feeding.html

Cats benefit best from eating foods designed particularly for them in mind. However, feline nutrition is complicated and most commercial grade cat food and treats are substandard. The reason is to keep the cost of the products affordable to the public, however in the long run many cats suffer the ill-results from the lower quality. If you are interested to delve into this statement further here's a webpage which explains in very great detail about the truth about cat food...canned vs. dry, free feeding vs. scheduled portions, commercial vs. premium brands, etc.

Anyhow, other reasons why cats should only eat foods designed for them rather than human food and fish: feeding human tuna to cats causes steatis (aka yellow fat disease) and enteritis and over time the consumption of this will cause vitamin E and B1 deficiencies which can be fatal. Another reason why cats should eat only cat food is that contains essential minerals felines needs such as taurine (for vision) and a diet alone of human food cannot provide this which will in the end up causing more health problems in the long term. Many human foods tend to include ingredients which can be toxic to cats is the primary reason. I'll include a link near the end of this answer which lists some of the human foods that are toxic to cats. Here's more on the details of why tuna and other fish can be dangerous for cats:

http://www.felinefuture.com/nutrition/fish.php
http://www.lenhumanesoc.org/Tips/ASPCA-Tuna.htm
Tuna can be fatal to cats and is not something to be fed to them...The human variety of tuna fish contains an enzyme that destroys vitamin B1 (thiamine). Cats who regularly eat tuna can develop a vitamin B1 deficiency, which results in neurological symptoms like dilated eyes, loss of equilibrium, seizures and death if this vitamin is not replaced. The scientific name of this disease is polioencephlomalacia.

Clearwater veterinarian Richard Brancato said that though most domestic cats do enjoy fish, feeding them a diet of only tuna can cause serious disorders.

Although it is high in protein, tuna lacks sufficient amounts of certain amino acids, mainly taurine, to maintain feline health. There is insufficient calcium to balance the phosphorus; the ratio in canned tuna is 1-to-14.8. This results in bone disease.

Many essential vitamins such as A and most B vitamins are also lacking, Brancato said. A common disease in cats fed a mainstay of canned tuna is steatitis, or yellow fat disease, an inflammation of the fat tissue in the body due to a deficiency of vitamin E.

Source: St. Petersburg Times, published May 14, 2000"

Here's another answer by a veterinarian just recently about the dangers of tuna: http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AnXV7g3jq309q2QXly7n9WLsy6IX?qid=20061018194725AAzYqfz


A Veterinarian Answered:
... Actually, it is.

I've had to treat numerous cats over the years for pretty severe enteritis resulting from eating tuna meat. One of my own babies got so ill from it when someone else left it sitting out on the counter for 5 minutes while he turned his back to take a phone call, that I had to put her on IV fluids for 2 days, in addition to intestinal medications.

How many cats do you know who go swimming in the ocean to catch tuna and eat it as part of their natural diet???

Tuna-FLAVORED food....okay. Tuna meat.....bad.

I 'love' brownies....but that doesn't mean they're good for me. Cats also 'love' antifreeze....but we all know what it will do to them. :-/

The most you should do is to use the water that is drained off from the can of tuna (not the oil...for another reason), and drizzle it over their dry cat food once or twice a month. They'll think they died and went to cat heaven!....but without the danger.

Save the tuna meat for your sandwiches.
Source(s):
I'm a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine with 20 yrs exp in private practice (27 total years in the profession.)

Additionally, table scraps are recommended because it can turn consistent eating in to finicky eating habits. Here's more on this as well:
http://www.pets.ca/pettips/tips-78.htm
http://cats.about.com/od/catfoodandnutrition/f/tablescraps.htm

It's generally recommended not to feed cats any table scraps as it some of the food contains ingredients which can be toxic to their system as well as contribtue to obesity. Any vet can simply confirm these two facts.

Cats who are also fed a variety of foods will develop into very finicky eaters which may be why she's not willing to eat what the vet recommends.

Table scraps are a leading cause of digestive disorders.

The rich foods we eat can wreak havoc on your cat's digestive tract. A simple, consistent diet keeps their system functioning as it should. Throw in your very different foods and spices and do not be surprised if your cat has bad gas, bad breath, loose stools, etc. Therefore, you could end up with a finicky eater.

If your cat develops a taste for human foods, she may stop eating her own, which is very common with many strays. After all, which would you prefer, dry cat food or juicy steak and hamburger every night?

Therefore, it's truly important to continue making attempts to feed her one type of cat food and over time she will come around and discover that this food is fine. She may not eat for a couple days, but anything beyond that it's important to coax her to to try and eat some wet cat food mixed with dry as this could be dangerous since cats develop a condition called Fatty Liver disease which can shut down the liver and be fatal. Some people find that mixing ONLY the tuna juices from water packed packed tuna (not oil packed) will entice the cat to eat. Gradually then decrease the amount added and eventually she should be eating her cat food without having any tuna juice added.

Here's the list of foods which cats should avoid eating and why:
http://www.peteducation.com:80/article.cfm?cls=1&cat=1399&articleid=1029

Answer 2

As others have written, some cats like it and some don't, but most are lactose intolerant and will get diahrea from it. Kittens may be more lactose tolerant but become less so as they mature, so even if a kitten is OK with milk it might not be as it gets older.

As for what cats like - as with us, what they like is not always what's best for them! They don't have the taste buds for sweet, so at least they won't ruin their teeth with candy, but they may have other things they like that aren't good for them, such as kibble.

Here's a site I think you'll find interesting. It's all about feeding your cat, what it needs, what it can digest properly, what will cause problems and so on.

http://www.catinfo.org

Answer 3

Baby kittens of course love milk. However, I've found that once a cat discovers meat, they often lose interest in milk and general become lactose intollerant. (They do make milk now specifically for milk-loving grown cats.) And what kind of food cats like depend on each individual cat. One of my cats used to LOVE shellfish--he was a very well behaved cat until he smelled shellfish and then he beg for as much shellfish as he could. My current male cat love biscuits and french fries but also freshly cooked turkey, chicken and especially beef but he only wants a very tiny amount and he's satisfied. My female love any meat freshly cooked especially chicken (and, of course, olives). They refuse to eat canned fish and poultry cat food but like the canned beef with gravy. They only get this stuff as treats, not as regular fare (they have a bowl of indoor cat food at all times).

Answer 4

Some cats like milk. Some don't. Since most cats are lactose intolerent, it's probably not a real good idea to give the kitty cows milk. Instead, get a product called KMR, available at any pet store.

Answer 5

They do love milk, but whole cow's milk will give them diarrhea. Try buying powdered milk (it's less rich) and just reconstitute it w/water & only give it a couple of times a week. As for food, my cat only eats the Meow Mix Seafood Medley and some tuna or cheese as a treat. A lot of cats would rather have treats like that instead of storebought treats anyway.

Answer 6

I think its a myth, because I've tried to give my cats milk and they don't seem to like it.

Answer 7

Lots of cats love milk o' course, but it's not good in large amounts. Just like people though, every cat has likes/dislikes, so not every cat on earth will nessecarily LOVE milk. :/

Some food they typically like though:
Fish, cooked meat, cat treats/nip, and my aunt's cat loves cheese... strange, I know. x)

Answer 8

Cats do love milk, but if they drink full milk it will give them heartworms. If you want to give it milk, make sure to put more water in the bowl than milk. If it is a kitten and its mom won't feed it, you can go to a vet and get them to give you cat milk and a kitty bottle. Some cats will eat anything you give them. Some are picky eaters. My cat will eat a pepper if you give it to him. I have known cats to only eat certain foods. If you feed them table scraps too often, they will start taking food out of your hands wheather you were going to eat it or not. And some cats that are fed human food wouldn't eat cat food if they were starving to death.

I hope some of this was helpful.

Answer 9

cats hate milk it gives them a upset stomach they like cat food betta

Answer 10

My cats love milk.

Answer 11

I temporarily adopted a kitten and my dad gave it milk and the poor thing had terrible diarrhea. I think they'll drink it because it's food, but apparently they are lactose intolerant and will not be able to digest it very well.