Are Home-Cooked Cat Meals Truly Nutritious?

For many cat owners, preparing homemade meals for their feline friends seems like a loving, healthy choice. After all, who doesn’t want to know exactly what their pet is eating? However, a recent evaluation of home-prepared maintenance diets (HPMDs) for cats raises important questions about whether these meals are meeting the nutritional needs of adult cats.

A study led by Dr. Sarah A. Wilson and colleagues examined 114 recipes sourced from books and online platforms to see if they matched the National Research Council’s (NRC) recommended allowances for essential nutrients in adult cats. The results are eye-opening.

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Vague Instructions and Missing Feeding Guidelines

Of the 114 recipes analyzed, 113 had unclear instructions for preparation, and nearly half (46 recipes) didn’t provide feeding directions at all. Even among the 94 recipes detailed enough for computerized nutritional analysis, most still required assumptions about ingredients, preparation methods, or supplementation.

Who Wrote the Recipes Matters

The study found that recipes created by nonveterinarians and those lacking supplement products were more likely to fall short of essential nutrients. Interestingly, even veterinarian-authored recipes were not perfect; only five met nearly all nutrient requirements, and even these still fell short in key areas like choline and possibly taurine.

Nutrients Most Often Lacking

Across the board, several nutrients were frequently below recommended levels, including:

• Choline: 89.7% of recipes
• Iron: 76.6%
• Thiamine: 62.8%
• Zinc: 61.7%
• Manganese: 57.4%
• Vitamin E: 57.4%
• Copper: 45.7%

Even crude protein, often assumed to be abundant in homemade cat diets, was below recommended levels in 6.4% of analyzed recipes.

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The Takeaway

This study clearly demonstrates that all home-prepared cat diets carry a risk of nutritional deficiencies. Proper formulation requires specialized knowledge in feline nutrition and the use of dedicated computer software to calculate nutrient levels accurately. Without this expertise, even well-intentioned owners may inadvertently create diets that could harm their pets over time.

For cat owners passionate about home-prepared meals, the key is careful planning and professional guidance. Consulting a veterinarian or board-certified veterinary nutritionist and using validated recipes with supplements can help ensure that your furry friend is truly receiving a balanced, complete diet.