Domesticated cats are beloved pets to many people and truly inspiring and extraordinary animals, at the same time. You’re probably heard about cats’ amazing skills and instincts. They are blessed with beautiful, shiny fur, bright and magical big eyes, extraordinary night vision, velvety soft paws and silent pace and many more. They move graciously and fast; they are amazing hunters and lovely purring fur balls at the same time. Did you know there are cats that survived falls from 32th floor to concrete pavement? Yes, you heard right. Cats are known for their ‘righting reflex’, which has been saving them from really dangerous situations since their earliest days on Earth.
Cats are often considered extremely skilled animals. You’ve surely heard the popular saying cats have nine lives. Those graceful and elegant animals are tough, indeed. They know how to take care for themselves and survive the cruelties of the world. However, taken as pets, cats could be very tender beings, especially those used to live with humans in their apartments.
So, a cat needs a lot of care, devotion, pampering and love. The only thing with pampering you need to pay attention is that they are not in the mood to cuddle and play with you all the time. Cats could get really attached to their owners, but they would always value their independency.
Cats are not easy to take care of, as you may think, due to their pride and cleverness. If you want to have it as a pet, you must be aware a cat will take a lot of your time, love and patience. Cats are not so interested in training, but they would easily learn basic house rules. They are not messy animals and they love their surroundings clean. They also take care about their own appearance and cleanliness.
On the other hand, you need to provide your cat all the necessary conditions for a long, healthy and fulfilled life. You need to take your dear feline to see a vet regularly, you need to provide it a lot of space and physical activity and, of course, a good diet.
Felines’ nutrition
Domesticated cats belong to a wide family of beautiful and amazing felines, tail to tail with lions, tigers, cougars, panthers and others of their big relatives. All those animals are obligate carnivores. They eat meat from different prey animals, birds and fish, mostly. Proteins of animal origin that come from meat are essential to all feline family members. They provide essential and valuable fatty acids that are the most important building element of cats’ muscle tissue and their entire bodies. Almost 60% of a cat’s daily calorie intake consists of healthy fats, coming from meat food. Even if domesticated cats got used living with humans a long time ago, they’ve kept their original habits, in terms of nutrition.
Unlike dogs, cats’ digestive system had never adapted to process and utilize any food other than meat. Cats do sometimes crave for some plant food, mostly herbs and grass, but only if they experience some stomach problems. Even catnip should only be given in moderation and is not necessary for a cat’s diet. Nutrients from plant food are not particularly useful to cats. They don’t need extra vitamins and minerals or other elements, as we do. So, your lovely furry ball is an obligate carnivore and you should provide it food it needs to develop and stay healthy and strong.
The best option to feed your cat is commercial granulated food. Most of veterinarians would warmly advise you to use it as a main, regular ingredient on your pet’s daily menu. Commercial cat granules are carefully composed to provide your cat all the essential nutrients it needs for a safe and healthy growth. You can make some food by yourself on occasions, of course. You could cook some high quality meat for your feline, serve it plain and with all the bones removed.
As for other food, a few occasional bites of fresh fruits or vegetables could be a healthy and beneficial treat, if your cat finds it tasteful. Spreads like peanut butter can be too, but some might be allergic to it.
Healthy carrots for your feline
While cats naturally don’t crave for any vegetables, there are some that can actually do them good. They don’t require any veggies to balance their nutrition, but it is always better option to treat your pet vegetables, rather than some spicy snacks or sweets. Remember, a cat is a carnivore and its body is simply not meant to utilize nutrients coming from other types of food.
As for carrots, they are ok for cats, given in moderation. Carrots are considered very healthy for humans and many animals, especially because of their beta carotene content. In the most mammals, beta carotene naturally converts to vitamin A, which is essential to good vision. You surely know cats are given with extremely good vision and this sense is very precious to all cats.
However, they cannot benefit from vitamin A gained from carrots. Their bodies could never convert so much of beta carotene to vitamin A to actually benefit from it. In fact, if a cat’s only resource of vitamin A comes from carrots it would most likely end up with vitamin deficiency!
So, carrots are not particularly nutritional to cats, but they are not harmful or toxic, either. There are good cat food products containing carrots, formulated in a way your dear feline could benefit from them. Fresh or cooked, carrots could be a nice treat for your pet. If you stick to regular cat food, some healthy carrot bites could be good for your pet’s digestion and make a fine, low calorie treat. Just keep to very small amounts and don’t serve it too frequently. Carrots are some of the rare veggies a cat would actually eat with delight.
