Most pet cats still use cat food as their staple food.
Not only is it convenient, but good cat food can also provide adequate nutrition for cats.
In order to keep your cat healthy, it is important to choose a cat food that your cat loves and that your owner is comfortable with.
The most important thing when choosing cat food is the ingredients list, the ingredients determine the quality.
So today we will look at the essential ingredients and content of good cat food.
1. Crude protein
Cats are pure carnivores and need a lot of protein to sustain their life activities.
Cats need three times more protein than dogs and more than five times more than humans, while only 2% of carbohydrates are needed.
If cats do not consume enough protein, the body will break down muscle to release the protein in order to continue protein metabolism.
For adult cats, the daily protein content of the food starts at 25%, while kittens need more than 30% to meet the needs of growth and development.
So the first thing to look at when assessing cat food is the protein content.
Of course for cats, animal proteins are better suited to their body needs and absorbed better than plant proteins.
Plant proteins tend to lack 1-2 essential amino acids and are much less nutritious than animal proteins.
The order in the recipe list is in descending order of content. If plant protein is listed first.
Then the protein content of this cat food is probably made up of plant protein.
The source of meat should also be stated, e.g. chicken, not vague words like poultry meat.
Avoid animal by-products as much as possible and prefer pure fresh meat to meat meals.
2. Crude fat
The fat content of cat food is generally 14%-20%, and the exact amount can be chosen according to the cat's own body type.
If the cat is thin, it can choose a cat food with higher fat content.
If it is an elderly cat, it needs to choose a cat food with a lower fat content, about 10%.
3. Taurine
Taurine is an essential amino acid for cats and cats need to supplement it continuously through their diet.
Cats need large amounts of taurine to maintain many important functions in the body, such as vision, fertility, and immunity.
If taurine is deficient for a long period of time, cats will be at risk of blindness, as well as loss of appetite, rough coat, and stunted growth.
4. Crude ash
Crude ash is an important indicator to control the quality of the feed. It is not added as an extra, it is an ingredient that will already be contained in the feed.
It is mainly inorganic substances such as mineral oxides or salts, and sometimes a small amount of sediment.
The purpose of the crude ash indicator is to prevent the artificial addition of mineral ingredients that do not have a nutritional effect, such as bentonite, zeolite powder, etc.
If the crude ash content in cat food is too high, it means that the quality of the cat food is poor and the crude ash should be less than 10%.
5. Trace elements
The calcium-to-phosphorus ratio in cat food is also very important, generally speaking, the calcium-to-phosphorus ratio is 1:0.8, and the ideal ratio is close to 1:1.
Calcium and phosphorus are in balance with each other, more of one will affect the absorption of the other.
Good cat food will have the vitamins that cats need, which is good for their nutritional balance.
We must choose regular brands and buy cat food from regular channels, and three or no products are not acceptable.
As long as it is a regular cat food then its promotional slogans and promotional diagrams, directly looking at its back ingredients list is the most direct and effective.
