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Jean Hofve,
DVM june 2005
Source:
www.littlebigcat.com
A lot of cats love fish, but it's really not a good idea to feed your cat
very much of it!
Why
not?
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The
fish used in canned foods usually includes bones. This greatly increases
the ash content of the food. Many cats are sensitive or even allergic to
fish; in practice I have seen quite a few develop urinary tract
infections or even blockages if they eat very much of it.
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Predatory fish at the top of the food chain, such as tuna and salmon,
may contain very elevated levels of heavy metals (including mercury) as
well as PCBs and other toxins.
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Fish
tends to be "addictive" to cats. They love it, and will often stage a
"hunger strike" by refusing their regular food in favor of fish, which
should be reserved as a very occasional and special treat; absolutely no
more than once a week, and even then in very small amounts only.
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There
is a known link between the feeding of fish-type cat foods and the
development of hyperthyroidism in older cats.
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The
vast majority of salmon in the U.S. comes from farm-raised fish. These
unfortunate animals are kept in overcrowded pens in polluted coastal
waters. They're fed anti-fungals, antibiotics, and dyes to make their
flesh that salmon color--otherwise it would be gray. These contaminants
will then be in any food made with farmed fish. Salmon who escape their
pens (and they do) outcompete and interbreed with wild salmon, as well
as transmit diseases. It is feared that they may ultimately decimate the
wild population in the Atlantic. The meat is toxic and the industry is
environmentally destructive--need we say more?
In general, the small amounts of "fish meal" included as a flavoring
and/or source of oil in cat foods are generally not a problem, but fish
should not be a mainstay of a cat's diet.
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