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10 Foods Not To Give Cats
Check if your pets are eating right.
Cats are as picky about food as people are. They can not always make it clear that they want to eat certain products. Therefore, all owners need to know how to properly compose the diet of their pet.
Scientific Support Expert Royal Canin, Specialist in Veterinary Dietetics
Cats are very different from dogs and humans. For physiological reasons, they are much more sensitive to the action of certain chemicals, including those found in foods, medicines and plants. Poisonous ingredients can enter their body not only with food, but also through the skin and hair – the cat can lick them off, caring for itself. You need to be very attentive and responsible owner in order, on the one hand, to create a safe habitat for the cat, and on the other hand, to detect the symptoms of poisoning in a timely manner and seek qualified help.
Did you know cats don’t taste sweet? Moreover, many human products are not only tasteless for them, but harmful and even poisonous. Therefore, before indulging your four-footed friend with another tasty treat from the table, it is better to make sure that he will definitely not feel bad from it. So what shouldn’t you really give your cats?
Milk and dairy products
Most adults are lactose intolerant. While some people may like the taste of milk, this product negatively affects their digestion. Even a small portion for them can result in vomiting or diarrhea. So if your cat is thirsty, give it water.
Plain or green onions and garlic
Even small amounts of these foods can be very dangerous for cats. They cause not only hemolytic disease (destruction of red blood cells), which is accompanied by vomiting, diarrhea, mucosal anemia, shortness of breath, dark urine, but also acute renal failure.
Chocolate and sweets
There are two harmful ingredients in chocolate at once: caffeine and theobromine. The human body digests them easily, but for cats they can be toxic and cause liver failure. It should be strictly limited for them access to all sweets that are attractive to the animal by smell: waffles, cookies, sweets, ice cream, and so on.
Raw meat and fish
The parasites often found in these foods are resistant to heat treatments (freezing and cooking). Therefore, the consumption of such meat for food can cause illness not only for the animal itself, but also for the owner. And the enzyme thiaminase, which can be found in some types of raw fish, decomposes vitamin B1 (thiamine), causing a severe deficiency of this vitamin. Plus, meat contains antibiotics (in agriculture, these animals and birds are treated with them). They are harmful to pets and to you and me.
Raw eggs
They, like meat and fish, can contain harmful bacteria that negatively affect the intestines of the animal. In addition, raw eggs contain the difficult-to-digest protein avidin, which interferes with the absorption of biotin (vitamin B7). This leads to the development of vitamin B7 vitamin deficiency, which is essential for the normal functioning of the nervous, digestive and cardiovascular systems.
Grapes and raisins
These are healthy snacks for humans, but definitely not for cats! Grapes and raisins are very toxic to them and can cause kidney failure. That, in turn, runs the risk of developing into severe kidney disease. And the reasons for this reaction are still unknown.
Nuts
First, in some nuts (for example, in macadamia), there is a toxin that causes poisoning with damage to the digestive and nervous systems. Secondly, they are fatty and can affect the functioning of the digestive system. Thirdly, a large unregulated amount of minerals.
mushrooms
They also contain toxins that can negatively affect the feline body. Therefore, when your pet once again begs for them, think about whether such a treat is worth his health.
Tomatoes
Unripe tomatoes are ignored by cats, but a tomato bush can become the main cause of poisoning: it contains substances that are toxic to them.