Cats and chemicals, natural foods, vaccines?

Question

Do you or people you know try to treat cats more naturally ? I'm trying to assess how popular this is now in the usa.

Do you read pet food ingredients or feed real foods?

Do you give yearly vaccines, use natural alternatives for illness?

Do you try to limit or avoid using strong chemical household cleaners, pesticides, flea treatments?

Answer 1

For really detailed information about these questions, I highly recommend a book titled "The Complete Guide to Natural Health for Cats and Dogs." The author is a holistic/homeopathic vet with twenty plus years of experience in the field, a couple masters degrees and a Ph.d in addition to his vet school training.

As for personal experience, my sister feeds her dogs a raw diet slightly different from what is recommended in the above mentioned book. I'm in the process of attempting to switch my cat onto a raw meat/eggs/fish diet. Personally, I don't think that veggies should be a regular part of a cat's diet but the author of the book does think so. It really comes down to what works for your animal. Some do great on meats eggs and fish with no veggies, extra fats or suppliments. Other animals need one or more of these included, in correct proportion to meat. There's a good layman's check up described in the book that can help you figure out if your animal is getting all the nutrition it needs.

Though I'm a semi believer in raw diets, I also have healthy respect for the vet profession. My cat got vaccines at her first check up (she was a year plus at the time and I knew she was healthy enough to deal with it) but I won't have her vaccinated every year. If my vet has issues with that, I ask to have titers done. This basically means her blood is tested to see if there are acceptable levels of antibodies present. If yes (so far always the answer) she doesn't need bosters. She hasn't been sick yet but I would trust a vet rather than trying to go it alone at home.

I don't avoid flea treatment at this time. My husband is out in the field a lot and brings fleas home in the natural course of things. I'm more comfortable with a once a month preventative than some of the more holistic alternatives that are available.

Answer 2

Just because something is "natural" doesn't mean it is safe. People need to be every bit as careful treating naturally as they do traditionally.
Vaccinations aren't needed or recommended yearly any more. The current protocol is for distemper every 2 years and depending on the rabies vaccine used it may be yearly or it may be every three years. If your cat is indoor only and has had all of the kitten series and the booster one year later for distemper it may not need any more vaccinations other then rabies.

As for foods fed..in an ideal world cats 7 dogs would be fed homecooked or raw diets, but realisticly that isn't going ot happen. The key is to become an avid label reader, keeping in mind that cats are carnivores. They NEED meat..they do NOT need veggies/grains nor can they properly process them. Foods that contain corn, wheat, soy, beet pulp, chemical preservatives & dyes should be avoided at all costs. Look for quality foods that have meat as at least the first 2-3 ingredients. Foods such as Science Diet, IAMS/Eukanuba, Purina Cat Chow, Friskies, Meow Mix...are low quality foods and are very poor choices. They contain way too much cheap fillers and things cats don't need & don't easily utilize and very little of the meat protein sources cats need and can utilize. It takes up to 3 times as much of the low quality grain laden foods for a cat to obtain proper nutritional value as it does a food that is high in meat proteins. There is also more waste produced.

Flea treatments..ALL OTC products should never be used.They are highly concentrated pesticides, they can cause serious skin burns, neurological issues, seizures and death. They also absorb into the bloodstream and organs. Topical products such as Frontline or Advantage are effective and safe to use and don't absorb into the bloodstream or organs.
Strong cleaners such as Lysol, Pinesol, etc should be avoided. They can be absorbed through your cats paws and can cause toxicity.
Cats are very sensative to a lot of things so care must be used when using any lawn pesticides, household cleaners, fragrences, etc.

Answer 3

I am just starting to "awaken" to these things that you've mentioned:

1) I always read pet food ingredients now and make decisions based on protein source and quality, ash content, calories

2) I have read much literature on kitty vaccinations and based on what I've read and my cats' lifestyle, I am inclined to space my cats' vaccinations at 3 yr intervals

3) If I need to use harsh household cleaners, I make sure that my cats stay away from the cleaned item for several hours even a day and I out away these chemicals in a place where my cats and kids can't get to them.

4) I avoid using flea meds as much as possible... I mean, I treat my cats only when they have fleas - once fleas are gone, I don't use any "preventive" flea treatments like flea collars or powders or shampoos.

Answer 4

1 I very rarely use chemical cleaners - I laugh at the commercials with kids sneezing on toys then the parent sprays some chemical on the toys then smiles when the next kid touches the toy... wouldnt you rather have your kid exposed to germs - something which their bodies are naturally prepared for.. than harsh chemicals and unnatural poisons???

2 not yearly.. I give vaccines every 2-3 years

3 yes I read the ingredients

4... ok Obviously I did this backwards NATURAL foods are not always the best... interestingly enough you will note some NATURAL foods do not use "human grade" ingredients....Nutro Natural Choice for example - NOT human grade...

I am in Canada and have 2 favorite foods here.. NUTRAM and ACANA.. both are all Natural AND use human grade ingredients...

NEVER NEVER reply on your vet to tell you what to feed
beaware that vets often receive little or NO education on food brands or ingredients.. if the food they are reccommending is one they sell then thats why they are reccommending it = they are PAID to...its not necessarily a good food...
Science Diet is NOTORIOUS for being a crappy food but by using vets to reccommend it.. it sells.. but really its terrible stuff.. as are many others which vets reccommend...

Answer 5

I do all those things. I feed my cats a raw meat, home-prepared diet of organic chicken and turkey and quality canned foods which don't have chemical additives for "flavor" or color.

I do not vaccinate my cats. I have a holistic and a homeopathic vet for their health needs. Infections are treated with antibiotics - most recently a rescue cat had a tooth abcess.

Fortunately I don't have to treat for fleas and use mostly dish soap for cleaning.

Answer 6

No I don't read the labels, I purchase what my Vet says is the best.
I don't have my cats vaccinated yearly, they do go the the Vet for their yearly exam. They get the 3 year shots.
I use cleaners that can not harm either my cats or my children.

Answer 7

I was appalled that I went to this out of the way place in Burbank and found vegan dog and cat food. People are whacked out. It may not be as bad as feeding cows beef, but its still unnatural.