I have developed a recipe for feeding my darling kitties that is of course NOT vegan, and not even really vegetarian (unless there's an "ovo-fisho" category :think: I may not have been aware of), but about as close as a layperson can get while still feeding cats a healthy diet. This is cheap, nutritious, environmentally responsible, and the little beasts adore it!

Homemade Cat Food

(Makes enough to feed 2 average-size adult cats for 1-3 days, depending on whether or not you supplement with dry food)

1 12-oz can jack mackerel (preferred) or cheap canned salmon
2 cloves garlic
1/2 cup fresh sprouts, especially chickpea (avoid alfalfa, not good for cats)
1 raw egg
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
Dab of mayonnaise
Spritz of Bragg's Aminos
Sprinkle of salt
Fresh catnip for garnish(!)

Open the can of fish and dice finely with a sharp knife in a good-sized bowl. Chop sprouts fine and add to fish. Crush garlic and mix in with fish and sprouts very thoroughly; add a spritz of Bragg's Aminos.

Combine nutritional yeast with mayo and raw egg. Add mixture to fisn/sprouts and mash together until well-blended. Salt very lightly (cats like salt, but shouldn't have too much of it).

When serving: Garnish each kitty bowl with a sprig of fresh catnip. . . they will love you!

Take the GARLIC out. Garlic is TOXIC to cats......

raw egg? and I *think* that canned tuna shouldn't be fed to cats regularly...

I don't think this is a very good recipe. :(

cats shouldn't eat canned fish because of the high mercury content. and I'm not sure about feeding cats sprouts, either.

Garlic causes anemia in cats, a bunch of fish isn't good for cats in general canned or no, there are no organ meats, bones, or any of the other parts of mammals/birds cats need to eat and because the meat is all cooked there is no taurine. This diet WILL KILL a cat longterm and I really hope you rethink feeding it before your cats become ill/dead.

Garlic causes anemia in cats, a bunch of fish isn't good for cats in general canned or no, there are no organ meats, bones, or any of the other parts of mammals/birds cats need to eat and because the meat is all cooked there is no taurine. This diet WILL KILL a cat longterm and I really hope you rethink feeding it before your cats become ill/dead.

Meat in conventional kibble/canned is all cooked, too. There's no issue with taurine there, is there? I mean, unless they supplement it, but even then, is the supplement raw?

I think her homemade recipe is better than most bagged/canned. If it was changed up once in a while, it would be even better. The whole garlic thing is controversial, but aside from a few nips and tucks, I think it's an ok recipe compared to conventional catfood.

taurine in canned food/kibble is supplemented, cooking destroys taurine naturally found in meats. A diet of only cooked, unsupplemented foods will kill your cat, there are no if ands or buts about it.

Wow -- I am going to make several changes to my recipe after reading everyone's comments!

I should point out, I have mostly made this as a once-in-a-while treat, not as staple diet. But if one were to use this as everyday catfood, I can see how, say, garlic could start causing health problems. (My cats, alas, like lots of things that aren't good for them -- potato chips, for one! -- and they have always liked the taste of garlic when they lick spaghetti sauce off my plate. But then, don't we all like some things that aren't good for us?)

I appreciate the education, and I will re-post this recipe after some research. Thanks all!

best,
BeanLady

as a treat it's probably fine (minus the garlic) I thought that was all you were feeding them and was very concerned, lol.

I used garlic to d'worm my cats. And a very very minimal amount of extract only. They can smell it! Well maybe the catnip lessened its smell. But yes they can have anemia if given regularly and they can also have diarrhea. I used it also once every three months. So removing it from your recipe will do more good.

I used garlic to d'worm my cats. And a very very minimal amount of extract only. They can smell it! Well maybe the catnip lessened its smell. But yes they can have anemia if given regularly and they can also have diarrhea. I used it also once every three months. So removing it from your recipe will do more good.

I had no idea garlic was good for deworming. That is interesting, valuable info.

I like the recipe. Though i would omit the mayo, braggs, and yeast and make sure the salt is a natural sea or mineral not TABLE salt. And change the protein source to fish twice a week, and alternate with others like beef, chicken etc.

I would recommend that anyone wanting to raise their pets as close to natural as possible get the book The Encyclopedia of Natural Pet Care by CJ Puotinen ISBN# 0-658-00996-6. If you own cats you must read this part....Dr. Pottenger's Experiment

Can I also make my pet a vegetarian?

I never though about that, but my cat adore fish, like all cats do. Is vegetarianism applicable for animals also?

Can I also make my pet a vegetarian?

I never though about that, but my cat adore fish, like all cats do. Is vegetarianism applicable for animals also?

There is not enough nutritional research to prove that a vegatarian diet is safe for cats. Felines are MEANT to eat meat they are carnivores! Feeding them only veggies will not only stunt them but will have long term BAD side effects. There stomachs are made to digest disgusting stuff....and yes they do like to hunt.

I have done a bit of my own research and a lot of conventional cat foods have too much veggie stuff in them. A cat should only consume about 10% of their entire intake in veggie form. The other 90% should be from animal fat, bones and other such parts (ewwww)

^^ what they said. I've said it before and I will say it as often as need be.

If you want a vegetarian pet, get a rabbit/guinea pig/horse.

And the reason that people haven't heard of using garlic as a wormer is because it doesn't work. It will give your cat anaemia, but the cat will still have worms.

my husband feeds our cat some leftover fish form his sushi bar. lol, but her fav snack is my sweet potatos! :D I hope that's not bad for cats. I was thinking of making her homemade food. they sell dry vegan/veg cat food at the health food store, and I can mix that in with some other things (use it for the vaitamins like taurine), then add some sweet potato, the fish, eggs, peas/beans (I heard cats like peas/beans, never tested that), and cat grass (I got it from wal-mart, says cats love it).

This thread is from 2006. :p