What d'you feed your cats?

[NajaNivea]

@Anne Neville

Mine (well, my most compelling one) is that I keep kosher. The cost of feeding kosher meat to my cats would be astronomical, not to mention that I wouldn’t feel comfortable making them dishes that included both milk or milk products and meat. If I wanted to feed them non-kosher meat, I’d have to be comfortable with bringing non-kosher meat into the house (I’m not), and would have to have a whole separate set of utensils, bowls, et cetera for preparing it.

There’s also the fact that I have had many nights where I wished there was people chow, so I didn’t have to think about what I’m going to eat or cook it.

Yikes, you’re right. I don’t feed my cats (or dog) any dairy, so that bit isn’t a concern, but I do imagine a kosher meat diet would be a wallet-killer.
For the people chow nights, a raw egg or some canned sardines (haven’t a clue about kosher rules) work nicely.

[NajaNivea]

Out of curiosity (keep in mind that I know zero regarding kosher rules), is it a concern that the meat in pre-packaged foods isn’t kosher, or does pet food get a bye?

[Fetchund]

Innova has come out with an Evo for cats. I believe it, like their Evo Dog food, does not have grains. We have just switched one litty over to it this week, so I don’t know how it will pan out. The dogs do GREAT on it, though!

The Kitties also get Wellness, although with the recent manufactuing changes, it is not the high-quality food it was. They also get a little canned (Merricks) and some pumpkineach day. With this routine, Fat Cat is slimming down, Skinny cat is maintaining/maybe gaining, and both are in excellent health.

[harmless]

One eats hardly anything but wet food, usually Whiskas.
One eats a little wet and a lot of dry.
The last is a vegetarian by choice, so she sticks to dry Whiskas.

[Anne_Neville]

@MixieArmadillo

Out of curiosity (keep in mind that I know zero regarding kosher rules), is it a concern that the meat in pre-packaged foods isn’t kosher, or does pet food get a bye?

For some people who keep kosher it is, for me it’s not. I figure kitties aren’t required to keep kosher (though they are Jewish kitties- they love gefilte fish) I’d probably have to import cat food from Israel if I wanted to feed them kosher food.

I feed the cats using dishes and utensils that are used only for cat food- never for human food. So I have a separate can opener that I use only for cat food, and I don’t use forks or spoons to get the food out of the can (I usually use the can lid if I need something to get the food out). I have a scoop for the dry food that I use only for that. I feed canned food on paper plates, and when I wash the bowls I use for their dry food and water, I wash them with a paper towel in the bathroom sink.

If I gave them non-kosher raw food, I’d need a totally separate set of dishes and utensils for that, and I’d have to wash them all in the bathroom sink.

Yikes, you’re right. I don’t feed my cats (or dog) any dairy, so that bit isn’t a concern, but I do imagine a kosher meat diet would be a wallet-killer.

The nearest kosher butcher is about a 30-minute drive away, too. I can get some pre-packaged kosher meats (usually poultry, sometimes steak or ground beef) at Trader Joe’s or some supermarkets.

I do give the kitties raw treats sometimes, though- there is a “kitty tax” on fish, poultry, and beef at our apartment (they don’t seem to like duck or lamb). If it’s at all practical, I will cut off a little bit of whatever it is before we cook it, and give it to the kitties. If we forget to do this, they will remind us