Can an Indoor cat survive on tuna alone?
Thursday, March 4th, 2010 at
4:43 pm
My cats get alot of gas from their dry food and I was told that indoor cats should eat wet food. So I wanted to switch them to just canned tuna. Can they get all their all their nutrients from this? What else can I give them with the tuna.
If I give them any other meat, should I cook it or can they eat it raw? How about hams?
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NO! they will most deffinatly NOT get the proper nutrition from just tuna. it also has high levels of mercury that will harm them and not having the vitamins and stuff they need will make them sick as well. RARELY if ever should you give cats tuna.
get a high quality food, I would recomend natural choice complete care indoor: http://www.nutroproducts.com/ncccprod.shtml
I usually give my cats once a month some beef or pork that I heat up in the microwave. Your cats CAN survive on just tuna but it might be healthier to vary their diets a little.
All cats are very different… one certain food makes my cat have awful diarreah, and other make them throw up.. even the expensive brands… You cat may just have a sensitive stomach.. Try changing the food one more time, if the gas seems to still be pretty bad, it is definately something to talk to a vet about.
About eating tuna all the time.. i’m really not sure.. I don’t see how it could hurt, but i’m sure there other nutrients found in cat food, that are not found in tuna alone. You could give your vet a call and they should be able to tell you though.
NO!!! There are nutritional differences and cats will not last long on just tuna. It is ok occasionally like when you run out of canned food but it can cause anemias and other imbalances in cats longterm.
Cats must eat cat food. They do make wet cat food that is appropriate for them. Plain tuna does not have the vitamins and minerals cats need to survive, such as taurine.
There are raw food diets where chicken or beef, etc., is mixed with appropriate vitamins and supplements. Cats can survive on that, but it must be done correctly and it takes a lot of work.
If your cat hasn’t been checked by a vet, that’s a good place to start. They can tell you if the gas is a health problem or strictly dietary. But I would certainly stick with cat food instead of human tuna.
please stop feeding your cats tuna right now!!!!!!!!!!! big mistake we did that to our cat once and it killed him the stuff that’s in tuna shuts down the kidneys bad… try 9 lives or and other type of wet cat food
Canned tuna is very fatty – it can be used for a treat, but shouldn’t be used as the only source of food for your cats. As a treat, it should even be used sparingly. It’s not imperative that you feed your cats wet food, but any change in food, especially to a higher quality food, will help with the gas problem. Just make certain that you’re not making a sudden change in the diet – always mix the new food with the food you’re currently feeding to avoid any tummy troubles.
My cats love tinned tuna, however this is the catfood version, and is a red colour. After a day or so though, they seem to get a little bored. One of my cats will only eat fish, and will not touch any cat food!! He also loves tinned sardines, or pilchards in tomato sauce…..he loves the sauce!! These both are in a catfood version, and 70 percent of it is pure fish.
Try giving them some biscuits, most of them are good for there teeth, plus they make sure there eating something a little bit more solid. I agree about the gas though!!
No–tuna is a good treat.
Dry cat foot is the best as wet cat food can cause teeth issues. I was feeding my 2 indoor cats Purina Indoor formula and it gave them gas—so I switched to Purina One indoor formula and the gas disappeared. Stick with the dry—you just need a better brand.
I wouldn’t keep them on an all-tune-diet because they need other things they wont find in tuna. Tuna is not meat and cats need to eat meat. Meat is good for everything. Besides, tuna is extremely low in fat and cats need animal fat. Their bodies can synthesize animal fat and protein to perfection so it is best to feed the cat a combination of foods which they would normally find in nature, one day they’ll eat mice, next day a dove and so on. If you vary the cat’s diet, as long as the foods are acceptable, the kitty will be healthier, happier and you will be doing it a great favor. Let them enjoy chicken, turkey, liver, duck, lamb, pork, beef etc…..they deserve it…
My cat could survive on tuna!! Make sure you also have a bowl of crunchies on the side (to strengthen their bones and teeth), and don’t forget to always have a bowl of water out at all times, for these darlings get thirsty now and then!!!
what I do with my cats is mix both the dry food and the wet tuna they really like that.
No it is not nutritionally balanced try giving them half the amount of kibble you were giving them and a bit of tuna but no they can’t just have tuna.
Tuna is horrible for your cat and should not be given to them. In fact, most vets agree that fish in general is not good for cats. Switch to a high quality dry food along with a high quality wet food without a lot of fillers. No ham either!