We’ve been working in alternative feline health for some thirty years now and have founded Cataid as a means of sharing some of the things we’ve learned. In this first piece we’re going to break down some of the key health supplements you might wish to give your cat, and why. Although, of course, genetics and life history has a strong part to play in any cat’s journey, we’re confident that by helping them consume the very best nutritionally dense stuff on the planet, you can significantly extend their active life spans. Just as important, their quality of life rises, and their fur, eyes and teeth gleam with vitality. For us, that’s our primary motivation.
Cat Multivitamin
Although there are a number of gruesome looking pastes which people squeeze into their cat’s food, so far we haven’t used one of these we felt was necessary or appropriate. In many cases, giving your cat a multivitamin could actually do more harm than good so we favour wholefood supplements in all cases, except potentially if your cat is extremely infirm or aged.
Grow Your Own Cat Grass Kits
As with humans, some of the intense green foods can have tremendous health benefits for cats. Watch any cat or dog chewing grass when their stomach needs tonifying and you’ll see that they have an innate wisdom about these things anyway. For urban cats, we recommend a cat grass garden such as this one:
Marine Phytoplankton: the best feline wholefood
Just this year, we’ve discovered phytoplankton which is a very fine green powder (capsules or loose) from the single celled plant much loved by whales. Whales, as we know, live a heck of a long time and to generally superb health so it’s little surprise this stuff is good for cats also. Apparently, it can be very easily absorbed and we have to say that nothing has every made our cats so shiny. Packed with vitamins and minerals, antioxidants and anti-cancer properties, the only downside of phytoplankton is the price (around £60 for 50g) For our cats that lasts 3 months, however, so it’s not the end of the world. We’ve tried a lot of these but a British company called Plankton for Health have by far the best one here.
Which Cat Probiotics?
There’s little doubt now that the concentration and diversity of healthy gut flora has a profound impact on pet health, as well as humans. This is where cats which have the ability to gnaw on branches and forage from wild places have the advantage on their urban counterparts, because eating dry food from a sterile packet can’t really compare. Fortunately, savvy holistic pet manufacturers are now cottoning on and some of the better foods contain probiotics. Or you can buy a supplemental powder like the one below, which you just sprinkle on to your pets food.
Omega 3 Fatty Acid Supplements for Cats
Cats love fish as we know and part of the reason for this may be their innate sense that healthy oils are something their body cannot produce by itself. These days, eating fish from the ocean presents both ethical and ecological questions, however, since as we all know our oceans are in a sorry state. Exciting, some clever scientists have realised that marine algae is the thing the fish eat in the first place in order to get their high fatty acid levels. So it is now possible to buy a true vegan omega 3 supplement which is grown on land, but which mimics those very healthful oils your cat needs. Again, we have spent a good amount of time and money researching this and have concluded that the best source we know comes from here.