Is it ok to give my cat tuna fish?

Question

ran out of cat food.
cant buy her food till tomorrow.
shes hungry.
Is it ok if i give her tuna?

Answer 1

If she is hungry yes, definately. I asked my vet about this cause my cat LOVES tuna (both do actually, but one moreso) and he said it is alright once in awhile, but only the tuna in water because the oil is bad for them. That is from my vet too.
I almost always give my cats the water from the can when I drain it to make my own sandwiches... they absolutely love it and come running when they hear me taking a can out. They got mad at my aunt once when she drained tuna in the sink and wouldn't go near her the rest of the day. Hehe, I love cats.


Don't mix it with mayo and celery and put in on bread though ;)

Answer 2

If it's only for one day, I think she'll be fine. But because of some of the other responses here, I'd still like to share what I learned about tuna. I researched it a lot when I first got my kitty.

As an occasional treat it won't be harmful, but as a meal tuna lacks or contains too little of many vital nutrients that cats need. Too much tuna could cause health problems due to a lack of those vitamins. Tuna in oil actually depletes Vitamin E levels in your cat. Long-term, tuna also depletes the calcium stored in your cat's bones.

Tuna also lacks several important amino acids; it contains no taurine, an essential nutrient (especially for kittens--it helps them develop properly). Cats' bodies can't synthesize taurine, so they must get it from food. (Lots of cat food contains it). This is one reason feeding people food to cats is not a good idea.

In the wild, cats (even domestic ones) consume almost the entirety of their prey, including bones and organs. It is those that house much of the essential nutrients the cat needs, so it makes sense that processed tuna would be an insufficient meal for a cat.

Surely people do feed tuna to cats with no noticeable ill effects, but it certainly does nothing to help and it may even harm your pet. I would liken it to a person eating dessert in place of a meal; you wouldn't want to do that very often or you'd risk health problems. We wouldn't do that to our kids, so why our pets?

The mercury could be harmful too. Even canned/dry foods aren't totally mercury-free, but the amounts in those are much smaller.

Answer 3

People tuna is not a good food for cats, but it certainly won't do the cat any harm at all and will provide nourishment for a day or so. Over time, it would deprive the cat of nutrients like Taurine that she needs. The big problem with giving a cat people tuna is that they usually love it and then never want anything else! I keep it around for giving pills to difficult cats.

Answer 4

Sure!!! Go ahead... just don't give tuna as her main diet from now on. Once in a while is OK. I used to give my cat tuna all the time when we ran out of cat food. He's OK.

Answer 5

Yes of course, some cat food is made from tuna.

Answer 6

Yes, but she might lose her appetite when her regular cat food comes back. ; )
I have a friend that spoils her cat with tuna on a regular basis. She has happy cats.

Answer 7

Sure, not a problem, just costs more. Cats have the most amazing stomachs, they can eat most things and not get sick. I've had cats eat bread, corn, beef stew (the veggies), what ever. My neighbor's cats loved fruit. So, don't worry, it's protien, it's fine for the cat.

Answer 8

So long as it's not mixed with anthing (ie, tined tuna with sundried tomatos is popular for some strange reason...) you'll be fine.

All our cats have eaten tuna, and absolutly loved it.

Answer 9

My cats love tuna for an occasional treat.

Answer 10

Yes it is fine and is NOT harmfull in any possible way! anyone who has told you tuna is not good for cats is not that smart.
What is NOT ok is feeding ONLY fish to her ALL the time because they just dont get enough nutrients out of JUST tuna.
they are like us they NEED variety!
I've raised and bred cats for 20+years.