Hello,

Does anyone else feed their Bengals cats a raw food diet?

Before getting my Bengal I did a lot of research prior to getting her. A lot of topics came up for giving your Bengal a raw food diet. A lot of forums, discussions, and breeder blogs came up with the raw food diet being the best and healthy diet for the Bengal cat. It talked about health benefits of having them on a raw diet and even how their "waste" (poop) doesn't smell as much. Once I changed her over to a raw food diet I actually did notice a significant difference of her waste not smelling as much.

I took Aurora (my bengal) to the vet today cause she's been sick and the Dr. had asked me what she mainly eats. I told him a raw diet which includes chicken, beef, turkey, and venison.

He kind of freaked out and said that I need to stop feeding her a raw diet because it doesn't give her any nutrition and can make her sick. He said that chicken especially she will catch a disease.

Can I get some opinions from other bengal owners?

Thank you all!

-Anna & Aurora

Hi Anna. Welcome to our forum! Many bengal owners feed a raw diet. Your vet is incorrect as a raw diet can be totally nutritious for your cat as long as you include crushed bones for calcium, and the heart and liver for taurine, which is a requirement for cats. There are also supplements you can add to the raw feeding giving your cat the essential vitamins and minerals. Vets are not trained in nutrition! Most raw food consists of chicken simply for the bones and organs. I'm not sure your baby would get all the nutrients from beef. There is a topic here on Raw Feeding that you might want to read. There is a lot of great information online.

You might want to read this article:http://rawfed.com/myths/cats.html

You can purchase raw food at a pet store and even some grocery stores carry refrigerated raw food. Others buy a grinder and grind up the meat and make individual or daily portions and store the rest in the freezer. Read up and make yourself as knowledgeable as you can and then do what is best for your kitty. If you find a particularly GREAT article ... make sure to give your vet a copy!

Bengals also do fine with manufactured cat food. Most bengals are many generations removed from the asian leopard cat who has to eat raw in the wild. Do not let your vet discourage you. Knowledge is very powerful.

Hello Anna!

I feed my boy, Quasar, a totally raw diet. He was weaned on raw.
Please make sure you include bones (never cooked) or ground eggshells for calcium.
Taurine is available in organ meats as well as in a powder form for sprinkling on top of the food.

Vets do not receive much in the way of education in nutrition. Most of what they do receive is provided by pet food companies.

Raw meats do contain certain organisms that would cause illness in humans but cats have such a short digestive tract that they do not contract diseases from the same organisms that could kill a person.

There are so many benefits to a raw diet. These include a healthy, sleek pelt as well as reduced frequency, size and DEFINITELY reduced odour of faeces.

There are Facebook groups that specialize in raw diets and can help you with information on making your own balanced food.
Cat CRAP (completely raw and proud) is a great example.

Good luck!

_________________
~ Kyenta

Thank you, Kyenta for posting. I know you feed Quasar a raw diet and you have been a true advocate of the diet for a very long time. I saw your post on Bengals The Beautiful Cat, Anna. I don't recall there were many comments on it. Hopefully, you have decided to stick with the diet for your baby because it's what you want to do, regardless. I'm guessing your vet also sells manufactured cat food at a very high price!