Special considerations for cats

For those of you who didn't already know it, cats are much different from dogs. If allowed free access to food, cats will consume many small meals throughout the course of a day. In the wild, these meals will vary in content from mice to lizards and small insects. It is important to note that the cat is an obligate carnivore and requires a source of animal derived protein to meet its nutritional requirements. This fact can be proven anatomically by the fact that the digestive tract of the cat is relatively short, and the teeth (for those of you who have never been bitten by a cat) are designed for the capture and eating of live prey. Other proof of this fact is provided below.

Cats are unique in that they require the amino acid taurine to be included in the diet. Most other animals, humans included, are able to convert cystine and methionine to taurine and do not require it to be supplemented. Cats lack this ability and without supplemental taurine, will develop problems with their reproductive functions and with their eyes. This situation was first diagnosed in cats fed a diet low in sulfur amino acids. These cats developed irreversible retinal degeneration, which did not improve when the diet was switched to an animal based protein source. Taurine is regularly added to commercial diets intended for cats, and is not present in diets for dogs. This is important to note since most cats will gladly eat dog food.

Another unique feature the cat is its requirement for Vitamin A. Cats require that the vitamin A in their diet be preformed. This is due to the inability of cats to convert b-carotene to vitamin A in the liver. Vitamin A is required for bone formation and is also involved with vision. Diets deficient in vitamin A will ultimately result in blindness. Vitamin A is termed a fat-soluble vitamin meaning that having a certain amount of fat present in the diet increases absorption of this vitamin. In the wild, cats would meet their vitamin A requirement by eating the liver of their prey.

The last consideration for cat owners is probably the most frightening one. In the past few years, the interest in quantifying the requirements for cats has increased. This, however, does not detract from the fact that much of the data that is used by veterinarians and nutritionists alike come from a combination of published data, and practical experience. In fact a large body of the data used in cats comes from swine research, but most of the nutrient requirements are based on the best information available.

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