Some supplemental source of calcium should be an essential ingredient in every home made catfood, especially if you are not feeding bones
One of the most common mistakes that people make when feeding a home made cat food is the failure to add calcium to the diet. In the wild, cats eat the whole prey animal including its bones. Muscle and organ meats are the most essential foods for cats and contain many nutrients, but lack calcium if you do not feed bones. When you feed a diet that does not include bones you must add calcium, since meat is very high in phosphorous which must properly balanced with calcium. A cat fed a meat only cat food must satisfy its calcium requirement by stealing from its own bones.
In the cat’s diet calcium needs to stand in a certain ratio to the mineral phosphorus.The ideal ratio of calcium to phosphorus would be 1,1-1.3 parts of calcium to 1 part of phosphorus. If the cat´s diet does not provide enough calcium to replenish the stores of calcium in the bone, deficiencies can occur.
Calcium from seaweed is a very pure form of calcium derived from Lithothamnion Calcareum, and is an excellent source of essential nutrients and trace elements, including calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, zinc, iron etc. Seaweed calcium is a natural way to add calcium to your cat´s diet, which is needed for good bone and overall health. It has the advantage of not coming from animal source and may be beneficial for cats with allergies to certain animal proteins. Please keep in mind, that, calcium is not optional but is an integral part of each recipe.
Calcium is needed for
- the maintenance of normal bones
- the muscle function
- the cell division and differentiation
- the regulation of the heart rate
- the neurotransmission
- the blood clotting
- the energy metabolism
Recommended use
Tatzenladen Organic Seaweed Powder is a pure and natural product free of artificial coloring, fillers or additives. Use as directed by a recipe.
Take care to maintain a Calcium to Phosphorus ratio of about 1,1:1 – 1,3:1 in the diet.
To balance the Calcium to Phosphorous Ratio in a homemade a typical dose would be 6 gram of seaweed powder per 1000 g of fresh boneless meat (with or without organ meat).
Other than Tatzenladen whole bone powder, Seaweed Calcium is pure Calcium providing only tiny amounts of Phosphorus. The minimum calcium requirement for an adult cat per kg body weight/per day is reported as Calcium 128 mg and Phosphorous 96 mg (NRC).
Like calcium, phosphorus is an important mineral in the homemade diet. How much dietary calcium is optimal for the cat, depends not only on the minimal requirement to maintain blood calcium, but also on the amount of phosphorus supplied in the diet. Please take care not only to balance the phosphorus in the diet, but to meet the overall calcium and phosphorus reuqirement of your cat.