Which Vitamins/Suppliments for food/where to buy?

[Sunny]

Speaking of UC Davis, I found this study useful that measures the taurine content of raw foods. While old, 2002-2003 it contains useful charts that outline concentrations in mg and weights in kg.

Department of Molecular Biosciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of
California, Davis, CA, USA

Taurine concentrations in animal feed ingredients; cooking
influences taurine content

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/29725782/Feline Nutritional Info - Taurine in Foods.pdf

 

[Louie'sDad]

EVO publishes their foods' nutritional/guaranteed analyses, and for taurine they are 0.25%/0.20%. Taurine is an amino acid found in animal protein, and since cats eat mostly animal protein, then it stands to reason that the taurine content would be sufficient if feeding a high quality product. Since processing apparently reduces taurine content, then wouldn't a high quality food be supplemented with the stuff? Why would a supplement be needed, unless feeding with low quality food? Are there "RDA's" established for animals, and since taurine is an essential amino acid for cats, shouldn't the "RDA" be known?

 

[John Popp]

The targeted needs are that of a domestic cat. The needs of a serval would not necessarily fall in line, nor would the resulting gene pool of a Savannah or Bengal. The important thing is to provide a safety net while also being aware of toxicity levels.

As humans we can certainly eat a balanced diet while still having needs for supplements and vitamins. Our activity levels aren't the same as our ancestors and just like our cats we don't have the caloric needs to take on all that we need. Something as simple as a daily multi vitamin helps us be healthier and live longer. Not sure why I wouldn't want the same for my cats.

 

[Sunny]

Also keep in mind supplements are not 100% absorbed, sometimes very high or very low %, after being ingested with food. A good idea is to plan on half being flushed out with excrement and not absorbed.

 

[Brigitte Cowell]

I think I answered the question about taurine on another thread this morning but shall add it here too, there was one study of ALCs in a zoo published showing that ALCs require a higher taurine content in their diet than the average domestic cat. Most exotic cat owners have found that taurine supplementation aids good health in their kitties... and anecdotal evidence in our breed has indicated that maybe some Savannahs also need a higher taurine level in their diet.

Given that taurine is water-soluble and any excess will be secreted, there is little danger in adding some to their diet, but taurine is essential for heart health and a number of other processes.

And remember that when they calculate what a cat needs, it makes business sense for cat food companies to err on the minimum level of things...

 

[John Popp]

Yep Brigitte, that is where my research led me a when I did my research. My vet in chimed in with the same recommendations on Taurine. Somewhere in a thread I also made mention of just where the toxicity levels of taurine were, and you just can't get there unless you are trying to poison your pet and that would take a lab rat style effort.

So for me a modest bump of Taurine and a healthy cat(s) I am not looking back.

 

[Louie'sDad]

From post #12:

"EVO publishes their foods' nutritional/guaranteed analyses, and for taurine they are 0.25%/0.20%."

I wonder what that means, and how it relates to a domestic cat's minimum daily requirement, or recommended daily allowance for taurine.

 

[John Popp]

If you were to hydrate the dry food to the same water weight as raw or canned, the taurine works out to be about half of what is in a typical raw food recipe. Domestic cats also carry as low as a third of the taurine levels as their wild cat relatives. I'm not a scientist or nutritionist, but things sure point to providing our Savannahs more taurine than can be found in commercially available cat foods.