Here is a direct link to the Flint River Ranch site if you would like to buy directly.

SIBERIAN CATS

of LOS GATOS, CALIFORNIA


Cat Food

You can feed wet food, dry food, raw food, or make your own from ingredients. Some of my concerns apply to any food.

MEAT:

Cats are obligate carnivores and must get meat. The meat industry is a huge economic force and wants to dispose of its products that it cannot sell to humans to the petfood industry. You can read more about this most objectively at the Animal Protection Institute website: (1), or (2), or (3) or (4).

Look at the third letter down to read Veterinarian Walt McCall's belief about truth on ingredients in premium pet foods, based on empirical evidence in cats he was closely observing. For well researched information on the meat industry, read The Food Revolution by John Robbins if you dare. In it he points that euthanized cats and dogs become animal feed at times, and many lies and fallacies in the meat industry. Another book exposing the meat industry today is Slaughterhouse by Gail Eisnitz.

SOY:

Soy demonstrably effects the cats thyroid, at least in the short term. Some compounds are in high enough concentrations to cause adverse biological effects. Very high levels of soy cause taurine malabsorption.

BEEF: [BSE RISK]

I've grown more concerned about the finding of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy, Mad Cow Disease, in the USA. 126,000 cows in 2002 were downers, cows that went down on their own, with symptoms that could have been due to BSE. The US does not routinely its downer cows and less than one in four was tested then. Now we are not testing them. Cows killed prior to downing are not tested. Since we don't test the downers any more at all, we have *no knowledge* of how far BSE is spreading. None of them even then were tested with highly reliable tests such as those that are used in Europe.

Remember it took two weeks to get the answers back when they finally really believed they had identified BSE here, because they had to ship the meat to Britain for testing? In the meantime what happens to suspicious samples? What does the word meat byproducts mean when you see it on a pet food label?. It can and does include the parts most at risk for transmitting BSE, brains and spinal columns.

An epidemic of FSE, feline spongiform encephalopathy was recognized at the height of the BSE epidemic in Great Britain. All evidence points to the reason being that BSE is transmissable to cats in pet food. It is not usually picked up because we don't routinely pay for autopsies on cats and testing for BSE. This a link to a current journal reporting ongoing case reports, but this will only be reported in areas where they do test for it. The US will be far far behind in even recognizing it. Current reports about FSE: (1), (2).

There is clear proof that prions (the cause of mad cow/BSE) are not confined to the brain and spinal chord. See this summary of an article originally published in Nature.

As another mad cow case is discovered, (1), (2), the federal government plans to test fewer cows and it seems less likely that they will be found before they end up in the food chain, especially of pets. Organic beef only please!

More references to FSE: (3), (4),(5),(6), (7), (8), (9).

CANNED FOOD:

Hyperthyroidism: Hyperthyroidism in cats has grown explosively for the past 25 years. This study suggests that the incidence that incidence in female cats is linked to increasing number of cans of cat food consumed, and male cats to cans of poptop canned cat food consumed. This study stated that eating canned cat food doubled the risk of hyperthyroidism.

Enteritis: This article suggests that canned food may be poor for cats with enteritis/bowel disease.

Taurine malabsorbtion: This paper linked taurine malabsorbtion to rice in canned cat food but not in dry cat food.

Squamous cell carcinoma: This paper links a high incidence of canned cat food to a three times greater risk of this common cat cancer.

DRY FOOD:

Diabetes: The leading problem has always been that they are prepared with grains, meaning more carbohydrates. Cats in nature eat little (not zero) grains/carbohydrates. They eat both grasses and the contents of rodents stomachs. The higher carbohydrate content is presumed to lead to the modern epidemic of cat diabetes. This paper suggests that the fat content in the diet, rather than the carbohydrate of the diet may be more relevant in determining diabetogenic factors.

Intestinal microflora: This paper suggests dry food may lead to lower intestinal microflora.

RAW FOOD:

Pottenger demonstrated that raw food had superior proteins for cats. This was not the same as a complete well rounded diet with vitamins and minerals, other ingredients added and long term feeding trials that have been down now, but it certainly has great value. The meat industry did not crowd livestock then the way they are now, raising the risk for infectious problems either. Modern BARF diets address many of those concerns but do use organ meats, see the toxins sections. Propenents of BARF often dismiss the risk of germ transmission.

GERM transmission is my primary concern with raw diets. In following the news of raw diets I've become concerned that there is a very real risk of substantial germ transmission. This risk would be decreased using only free range animals as food.

SALMONELLA: This study is an example of septic salmonellosis in which two cats died. This study showed salmonella transmission from raw chicken. Not specific to cats, this research documents multiple salmonella in ground beef. Finally, this paper lists salmonella transmission occurring in fish, seafood, and poultry.

YERTSINIA: This is a documented transmission of Yersinia enterocolitica 4/0:3 from raw pork.

TOXOPLASMOSIS GONDI: This shows that pets are infected from raw food and can infect their owners. Humans are also infected by contact with the raw meat on their counters, knives, etc. Here is a link showing raw meat carries toxoplosmosis.

E.COLI O157:H7: Here is a study showing that freezing does not eliminate this germ.

LISTERIA MONOCYTOGENES: This pathogen can be found in raw meat. Listeria is not usually pathogenic in healthy cats, only a colonizer but is pathogenic in humans and in FIV infected cats it can be pathogenic. There are case reports of cats with listeriosis (1) and (2).

SHIGELLA: There are many Shigellas. Cats, people; both are vulnerable to P. shigelloides. These are hideous proofs that cats can get sick from shigella: (3) and (4) and (5).

CAMPYLOBACTER: Campylobacter causes severe painful diarrhea in humans. This paper shows campylobacter is transmitted in food. This one reports that shows that campylobacter is related to substantial pathology in cats. This one shows that campylobacter causes diarrhea in cats and dogs.

VIRUSES: The most dangerous virus infection to be transmitted to cats and dogs via raw pork leftovers is Aujeszky's disease . The dog or cat, which is the last link in the infection chain, suffers an agonizing death.

NONSPECIFIC: Here the FDA warns of germ contamination and possible dental damage. Another article I can't get to is this one titled Public Health Concerns associated with feeding raw meat diets to dogs.

TOXINS: Animals that encounter toxins will have residues of these in their bodies. Tuna concentrates mercury. Pesticides are concentrated by the animals that eat the plant on which the herbicide resides. The next animal receives a concentrated dose. The liver, being the bodies cleanup agent often has the highest dose of toxins. This study links fertilizers, toxins, smokers in the house, consumption of canned food with giblets, liver, or fish (all of which concentrate toxins) to hyperthyroidism in cats. This study discusses toxins produced by bacteria carried primarily in beef, but in other foods and water.

ETHOXYQUIN: This is a common preservative in cat foods. In other animals it has been tied to chromosome aberrations, renal toxicity, mitochondrial inhibition and several other problems (6), (7) and (8).

BHA, Butylated hydroxyanisol: also a common pet food preservative, suspected of causing abnormalities in endocrine funtion. It is also noted to have cytotoxic effects.

BHT, butylated hydroxytoluene: noted to have cytoxic effects. Noted to promote various tumors and pulmonary inflammation (9), (10) and (11).

PROTEINS: All proteins are not equal with cats. This study shows that substituting corn protein only for meat protein causes calcium loss/bone loss and nitrogen loss, and lower digestibility and is less palatable. This article did not find large differences between fish meal and corn gluten meal.

CARBOHYDRATES AND FATS: Higher carbohydrates had been the primary suspected agent for increasing feline diabetes but later research has suggested that higher fats may be a/the main player in promoting diabetes in cats. This article suggests neutered males get fat and are at risk of diabetes primarily from high fat diets. A fat cat is at risk for diabetes before his glucose tolerance test is abnormal.

CARBOHYDRATES: Not all carbohydrates are created equal for cats. A petfood industry study, no link available, showed that cats' blood sugar showed more abrupt rises from wheat and rice in pet food, and slower more sustained rises from corn or sorghum in pet food in isocaloric quantities. No one argues that ideal cat food is not high in carbohydrates.

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER

Organic ultra-healthy food for our felines

At one time we fed a rotating diet of Science, Iams, MaxPro, Avoderm and Flint River Ranch. The kittens and cats did very well. We shifted to a diet of pure Flint River Ranch, and thought they did even better. We no longer use wet food except for special problems. I believe I have seen improvement in condition and signs of improvement in immune system with the complete changeover. The latter is why I did this, and I am satisfied I found what I wanted.

I now recommend Flint River Ranch as the primary food for your cat and do not believe you need to add wet food. In fact there is evidence that wet food with rice in it is bad for your cat, causing malabsorbtion of taurine, which is a critical nutrient for cats.

FRR is diet with higher grade protein and fats and no preservatives (other than vitamins). Call 800-354-6858 and use Jamie's distributor number 3vz4 to have it delivered freshmade to your door when you need it. It comes in 6, 9, or 20 lb bags. I have 20 lb bags here if you want to pick those up from me . Shipping is free-included in the price. It is made fresh on order in California, and is subject to California sales tax.

Most cats will not get fat if allowed to free graze with fresh food. If there is a problem, or if you prefer, feedings can be limited to specific times..

FRR comes in a basic cat and kitten chow that has enough protein for growing kittens-32% all of which is human grade, with 20% human grade fats, vitamins A , D, E, C, B1, B2, B6, B12 , Niacin, pantothenic acid, biotin, and 12 minerals . It is all organic and designed to help prevent feline urinary syndrome right from the start. Our cats love it. Since we have become so pleased we have become distributors, and you can often pick it up from us also. Call to find out. Or if you prefer, you can order it directly from the COMPANY WEBSITE. They also make:

You can find a list of ingredients in Flint River Ranch catfood in the following file.

In the meantime, I don't want my cats or kittens fed anything which has any beef byproducts whatsoever fed to them. That's in addition to recommending an all organic product. Cats must eat meat, and lots of it. FRR is doing very well by my cats, and I'm not afraid of what I'm doing to them with it, which is a big step up.

If my research has been of use to you, feel free to let me know.


  • Do a challenging Jigzone puzzle of one of our kittens in his food dish!!

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