Author Topic: Introduction to Rad Cat Raw 9-1-12  (Read 29097 times)

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Offline Middle Child

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Re: Introduction to Rad Cat Raw 9-1-12
« Reply #15 on: September 04, 2012, 10:20:42 PM »
Tonight we tried the turkey. This afternoon I broke up the 8 oz chub into 1 ounce pieces (put them in freezer bags in the freezer). I let each cat sniff and then taste (if so inclined) a tiny speck of it. Top Cat and Little Cat went crazy, Struvite Kitty backed away.

However, when I actually served it, once dusted with two Wysong uretic kibbles crushed into crumbs, SK ate the entire 1/3 ounce. Unfortunately it was too much for her all at once, and it came right back up. SIGH. Tomorrow night I will give her 1/3 ounce in two half servings (1/6 ounce a serving)

Incidentally, since starting the RadCat, now Little Cat will no longer eat the Stella&Chewy's  funny2

GAWD how I wish I could afford to feed all three of them this food full time. I dread having to make the grind myself, I HATE to cook. Okay I know I won't be cooking, but you know what I mean. I HATE to make food.

Offline Lola

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Re: Introduction to Rad Cat Raw 9-1-12
« Reply #16 on: September 04, 2012, 10:27:41 PM »
Just doing a quick "drive by" ....

LOVE LOVE LOVE the pictures (and comments)!! 

Just wanted to mention that none of our cats will go near raw (of any kind) if it is touching their canned food.  Weirdos.
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Offline Middle Child

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Re: Introduction to Rad Cat Raw 9-1-12
« Reply #17 on: September 04, 2012, 10:32:40 PM »
Just doing a quick "drive by" ....

LOVE LOVE LOVE the pictures (and comments)!! 

Just wanted to mention that none of our cats will go near raw (of any kind) if it is touching their canned food.  Weirdos.

SK wouldn't either. 

But she is eating it, in a separate dish, as long as it is dusted with the Wysong crumbs first.  I have forti flora coming, I'll see if she prefers that.  The other two cats need no enticements. This was supposed to be affordable because only SK was going to eat it. But how can I not give it to the other two, they LOVE it.

I should start playing the lottery or something. SIGH


   
   I am still not able to see myself making the food at home.  In spite of reading and reading and reading, I am just too afraid of doing it wrong. We'll see.  If I could find a way to get the Rad Cat, without having it shipped...Friday I am going up to Albany to visit my sister, and before I come home I'll be stopping at the ONE store within 200 miles of me that carries Rad Cat frozen raw, and I will stock up then. I'll stop at a store and pick up a couple bags of ice first, to pack the cooler. Hope that will be enough to keep it frozen.  I guess I will find out.

Offline Lola

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Re: Introduction to Rad Cat Raw 9-1-12
« Reply #18 on: September 04, 2012, 10:45:59 PM »
Quote
In spite of reading and reading and reading, I am just too afraid of doing it wrong.

For me (sounds like you also), I'm most comfortable feeding "real" raw, commercial raw, and wet.  3 sources. 
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Offline FurMonster Mom

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Re: Introduction to Rad Cat Raw 9-1-12
« Reply #19 on: September 05, 2012, 01:47:37 AM »
ETA:
I did want to say, I think it is awesome that you are taking "the leap".
I truly think your loveys will amaze you with improvement with a bit of time.

BUT....

Vitamins and minerals are lost in the grinding.

Could you elaborate on this for me?
I keep seeing it, but it's really hard for me to buy into.
Can you give me an independent, scientific source of this information?

Here's why I don't buy it...
IF vitamins and minerals were lost in the grinding process, baby food would be useless.  
IF vitamins and minerals are lost in the grinding process, then any time you buy a fruit smoothie, you are wasting your money.
Dang, we should be suppementing ANY kind of ground food, if all those vitamins and minerals are lost just by grinding it up!  
Supplemented your guacamole and salsa lately?   :o

Now, if you were to say that using any kind of heat process destroys vitamins and minerals, I'd definitely be on board.
And even then, it depends on the level of heat we're talkin' about... otherwise canned foods would be pathetically useless, as would your gran'ma's meatloaf.   :P

.
« Last Edit: September 05, 2012, 01:55:25 AM by FurMonster Mom »
meow meow meow meow meow meow? -woof!
Translation: "I can has my raw food? -please!"

Offline Middle Child

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Re: Introduction to Rad Cat Raw 9-1-12
« Reply #20 on: September 05, 2012, 06:36:50 AM »
ETA:
I did want to say, I think it is awesome that you are taking "the leap".
I truly think your loveys will amaze you with improvement with a bit of time.

BUT....

Could you elaborate on this for me?
I keep seeing it, but it's really hard for me to buy into.
Can you give me an independent, scientific source of this information?

Here's why I don't buy it...
IF vitamins and minerals were lost in the grinding process, baby food would be useless.  
IF vitamins and minerals are lost in the grinding process, then any time you buy a fruit smoothie, you are wasting your money.
Dang, we should be suppementing ANY kind of ground food, if all those vitamins and minerals are lost just by grinding it up!  
Supplemented your guacamole and salsa lately?   :o

Now, if you were to say that using any kind of heat process destroys vitamins and minerals, I'd definitely be on board.
And even then, it depends on the level of heat we're talkin' about... otherwise canned foods would be pathetically useless, as would your gran'ma's meatloaf.   :P

.


I made a mistake.  Rad Cat is not supplemented with vitamins and minerals.  Sorry. :)  However I have read in Dr Lisa Pierson's site that taurine is depleted in grinding, and her recipe is supplemented with 5000 mg taurine.

Offline Middle Child

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Re: Introduction to Rad Cat Raw 9-1-12
« Reply #21 on: September 05, 2012, 06:39:17 AM »
For me (sounds like you also), I'm most comfortable feeding "real" raw, commercial raw, and wet.  3 sources. 

Yes, I like the idea of three sources, home made, commercial raw, and canned.  But I just don't know about making it myself. No matter how much I read about how "simple" it is, it never sounds simple to me.  It sounds complicated and difficult and a lot of work. Perhaps I ought to vary the commercial raw source with one other, if I can find one that doesn't add fruits and veggies.

Offline FurMonster Mom

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Re: Introduction to Rad Cat Raw 9-1-12
« Reply #22 on: September 05, 2012, 02:25:53 PM »
 However I have read in Dr Lisa Pierson's site that taurine is depleted in grinding, and her recipe is supplemented with 5000 mg taurine.

With all due respect to Dr. Pierson, she is not an independent scientist.   ;)

Also, I went through her Know the Basics and Making Cat Food pages again, and did not see anywhere that she stated taurine is lost through grinding.

However, I can certainly understand why she does supplement with taurine, vit. E, fish oil, and a few other things
  • she mentions that she partially cooks her meats (heat can destroy some nutrients)
  • she only feeds food sources that are relatively low in taurine (rabbit is especially low in taurine)
  • she does not feed a large variety of food sources (only 3 listed)

Don't get me wrong here, I love love love Dr. Pierson's site, and recommend it to anyone who is investigating alternatives to commercial cat food, or curious about raw feeding.  It's a great starting point... but it should not be the end point.  A lot more information has surfaced since she first wrote her articles.   :D
« Last Edit: September 05, 2012, 02:34:52 PM by FurMonster Mom »
meow meow meow meow meow meow? -woof!
Translation: "I can has my raw food? -please!"

Offline Middle Child

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Re: Introduction to Rad Cat Raw 9-1-12
« Reply #23 on: September 05, 2012, 07:08:21 PM »
Well she does update them, she says. I saw a few of those (she includes the date and the update)

 If I misread something about the grinding I'm not surprised.  She does tend to run on, and on, and on. I wonder where I got the idea that grinding diminishes the nutrients?  I am glad it is not so, anyway!

But here's the thing.  While I like Dr Lisa's site (with the exception that it is way way WAY too wordy) and also recommend it to people, especially if I am trying to help them understand why kibble is so bad,  I just don't trust ANY recipe.  Fortunately, for me, I am not ever going to be feeding exclusively raw. I don't intend for raw to ever be more than 15% of their daily intake.

One of the dangers I see, and I see this a lot reading in raw forums, is people start by following one recipe or another, but then they gradually tweak it here and there and there and here, until they are feeding their cats a diet that does not at all resemble what the cats should be getting.  I find that very very scary.  Especially when they start giving advice to people looking for info about raw feeding.

Because I have seen that, by following threads from the very beginning, I am leery of following anyone's advice too closely.  Since I don't trust anything I have read 100 %, I will not, ever, feed 100% home made raw, and I can't afford to feed 100 % commercial raw.

Tonight's update:  Struvite Kitty ate her 1/6 of turkey with every sign of enjoyment (still dusting it, but with only half a kibble smashed into crumbs) and kept it down.  A half hour later she had .75 ounces of canned food, I'll give her the rest of her turkey later.

I heard the Rad Cat Lamb is being discontinued, and I haven't even tried that yet.  I really wanted the lamb, for a different protein for her. :(

Offline Middle Child

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Re: Introduction to Rad Cat Raw 9-1-12
« Reply #24 on: September 06, 2012, 09:37:17 AM »
Later that night SK ate another 1/3 ounce of turkey.  It seemed to satisfy her enough that she only would eat a tiny bit of canned for her bed time snack. She was sure hungry at breakfast though!  Bumpurr1


Offline Pookie

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Re: Introduction to Rad Cat Raw 9-1-12
« Reply #25 on: September 06, 2012, 09:42:27 AM »
Could you elaborate on this for me?
I keep seeing it, but it's really hard for me to buy into.
Can you give me an independent, scientific source of this information?

Here's why I don't buy it...
IF vitamins and minerals were lost in the grinding process, baby food would be useless. 
IF vitamins and minerals are lost in the grinding process, then any time you buy a fruit smoothie, you are wasting your money.
Dang, we should be suppementing ANY kind of ground food, if all those vitamins and minerals are lost just by grinding it up! 
Supplemented your guacamole and salsa lately?   :o

Just to play devil’s advocate  :D  Bumpurr1:

1.   Would you please share an independent, scientific source of information that states that nutrients are not lost during the grinding process?

2.   As to the arguments about baby food and smoothies, etc. being useless, I don’t think that’s a fair comparison.  These are foods being fed to omnivores who have more enzymes to get break down their food than carnivores do, and who also have a more varied diet.  Also, while omnivores can grind their food (to break it down for better digestibility), carnivores eat their food in chunks or whole if the prey is small enough.  They’re not grinding their food into mush.

Ok, now I’m taking off the “devil’s advocate” hat and just giving my personal opinion.  Even though things like brains, eyes and stomach matter may be a very small amount of the total prey animal, I personally still think something is lost as a result and that supplementing can help replace that.  That’s just my opinion, and I don’t think we’ll ever know for sure.  Everyone has to go with what makes them comfortable.  Just my  2cents.

MC - Great job!  I'm so glad the cats are enjoying the Rad Cat!   thumbsup1 thumbsup1
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Offline Shadow

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Re: Introduction to Rad Cat Raw 9-1-12
« Reply #26 on: September 06, 2012, 05:56:42 PM »
I think we should have another thread for this subject about the grinding of raw pet food, anyone want to start one?
So then we can just go to that thread and not have to look around for it. Good plan?  As I am very interested in this subject as well.  Here is one point I know that when you do juicing that you basically have to drink it right away, or all nutrition is lost after the first few hours of refrigeration. hmmmmmmmm????
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Offline Middle Child

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Re: Introduction to Rad Cat Raw 9-1-12
« Reply #27 on: September 09, 2012, 07:40:43 PM »
I used my scale today! bananamiddlechild

When I drove up to visit my sister (100 miles one way) I stopped at the only store within 200 miles of me that carries Rad Cat.  Unfortunately all they had were a few 16 oz tubs of lamb.  I bought two, and broke the first one into 2 ounce packages tonight.    2 ounces in little cheap zip baggies and they are all sealed in one freezer baggie.

 One package is only 1.5 oz because Little Cat licked the edge of the frozen chunk so I cut a wedge off and split it between her and Top Cat.  Strivite Kitty does not like the lamb, even if it's been dusted with forti flora or crushed Wysong Uretic.  And of course she is the one I want to eat it, for a different protein.

She likes the chicken and the turkey though.

....
..

Offline Middle Child

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Re: Introduction to Rad Cat Raw 9-1-12
« Reply #28 on: September 14, 2012, 08:41:30 AM »
The raw meals are a bit sketchy.  I mean, they aren't getting one every day, because my schedule is so weird sometimes, I can't manage to fit it in.  But when they do get it, everyone is keeping it down.

Little Cat had some soft stool two days after her introduction to the Rad Cat Lamb.  Since I happened to be right there when she went, being me, I scooped it up and brought it to the vet, just to make sure there weren't any parasites. All was well.  ;D

Struvite Kitty is rejecting the lamb even if I sprinkle fortiflora, or wysong uretic kibble dust, or Vet's+Best hairball relief on it.  Top Cat eats everything, and never has a problem.  I keep forgetting to offer the gizzards and hearts, they are still packed away in the freezer.

Offline Middle Child

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Re: Introduction to Rad Cat Raw 9-1-12
« Reply #29 on: September 18, 2012, 07:43:44 AM »
I finally got SK to eat the Rad Cat lamb.  She promptly brought it back up.  Two days later I tried again, she ate it again, but again regurgitated it, this time with some retching several minutes later.  Yesterday I offered it to her again and she sniffed at it, then turned to me and said incredulously "You're giving me this again?  Didn't I tell you I can't eat this?"

Well...her look seemed to say all that.  funny2

 I whisked it away.  SK cannot tolerate red meat.  So it's chicken and turkey Rad Cat for her, forever, along with as much variety in chicken canned foods as I can manage, which isn't much. She can't tolerate very much variety, and the one other canned food she was enjoying and keeping down, Castor&Pollux chicken vegetable stew, the formula has been changed and they are now adding COD as the third ingredient.  Since I don't feed fish to my cats, ESPECIALLY Struvite Kitty, I have now lost that food as part of her rotation.

Little Cat loves the lamb and has no trouble with it.  Ditto Top Cat, but I limit the amount of raw she gets because it's so expensive and she already enjoys a very wide variety of canned foods with no digestive troubles.

I wish I had the energy and confidence to make my own.  I'm just not there yet, if ever I will be.

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