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Chicken - Is there ever too much?

4K views 17 replies 7 participants last post by  Auntie Crazy 
#1 ·
Hey guys,

Is it possible that a cat can have too much chicken? And if so, what can happen to the kitty? Can it give them a poopy bum, i.e., diarrhea?

We usually try have variety in their diet, but we ran out of high-quality canned fish food (I'm not sure what else to feed them for their Omega3's) and the supermarket didn't have any beef heart so we've been feeding them a chicken drumstick for one meal and a 1-day old chick for their second meal for the past few days. (Sometimes they get a small bit of fish before bed so they won't bother us in the morning.) So, is it possible they are getting too much chicken? Sigma's tummy seems upset so I'm taking him to the vet this morning - I'd just like to know if the chicken may be to blame.

Thanks!
 
#2 ·
I've never heard anything about chicken being bad for cats. So I don't have a definite answer to your question.

But too much fish is definitely bad for them. Fish-based foods can lead to FLUTD/urinary issues in some cats. Sadly, I didn't learn that until it was too late, after my male cat developed oxalate stones.

So thats something you should cut down on, and only give as an occasional treat.

Read here for more info on why fish is bad: Little Big Cat
 
#3 ·
Yeah, I've read about the dangers of too much fish before. They don't get it very often - one or two meals a week. Like I said, I'm not sure how else to get them their Omega3's (and if that's even enough). Any suggestions other than fish?
 
#6 ·
Are there differences between Omega3 capsules for humans and for pets? Or is it just the dosage? I have some human capsules that I take myself, but after searching the petstores in Holland, I haven't been able to find Omega3 capsules for cats. If I have to, I suppose I can order online from North America but shipping is always so expensive and takes so long...
 
#8 ·
I think Laurie (laurief) probably knows more about the dosage and how often, and kittens... Maybe she'll post here tomorrow (well, later today).
 
#9 ·
Great, thanks! I hope so! I just looked at the Nordic Naturals ingredient list and it's the same as the ingredient list on my human pills - the EPA and DHA are actually a bit higher in my human pills but there is Vitamin E in there too (1mg in a 1000mg capsule). According to Nordic Naturals that is a preservative so it looks like these pills might work.

Do you happen to know how big the pills from Nordic Naturals are? It says to feed 1 capsule for every 20lbs of body weight - is that per day? And how many mg?
 
#10 ·
Sorry, I don't have answers for you. And Laurie would know better than what I could Google right now.
 
#11 ·
Marie is right, Laurie will definitely have the answers for you. She's very knowledgable with that type of stuff.

You can also give your vet a call and ask about the human vs pet capsules, and if the vet gives the ok for the human capsules, they can give you the proper dosage amount as well.

If you do use the capsules, I would suggest using Greenie's Pill pocket treats to easily administer them. Another trick I learned from Laurie, that finally allows me to pill my cat 2x's daily with no stress! She gobbles the treat right up each time, without even knowing the capsule is inside.
 
#12 ·
As much as I appreciate everyone's faith in my "expertise", I'm really no expert where dietary issues are concerned. All I can tell you is what I do for my own cats, and that is to prick the end of a human-dose fish oil gelcap, then squeeze 3-4 drops of oil over each cat's breakfast meal every day. I really don't know if that's enough or too much, but it seems to work fine for my cats.

Laurie
 
#15 · (Edited)
There is no amount that is 'too much' that I've ever heard of. Unless of course they're allergic. However if they are getting chicken meat for most of their diet and it's not balanced out with other foods over time it could be 'too much' in that respect. I've read that the ratio of meat to bone is better on wings than drumsticks. I do know some people who only feed chicken for their dogs/cats.
I would also be sure there is not a large amount of fat on the meat you're feeding. Some chicken is really fatty, and that could cause upset stomachs and similar issues.
 
#16 ·
Thank you for all of your replies! I guess it's not that he gets too much chicken, but I think I'll definitely try chicken wings next time.

Anyway, when we took Sigma to the vet on Thursday with his stool sample, they gave us some anti-diarrhea medication but said there was otherwise nothing wrong with him. We tried to get a pill into him but were unsuccessful and the coating really made his mouth foam. (Those pill-pockets sounds great! Though, I'm not sure I'll be able to find them in Europe.)

Since then, he's had some harder stools but they are still softer than they should be, and he's not eating with his usual gusto - he's never turned down his chick before and he's usually very possessive about them but he wouldn't touch it yesterday and only ate a little bit of cow heart. Does this sound like something I should be concerned about? Or is he still feeling a little under-the-weather and isn't up to eating a whole lot? (I felt the same way while recovering from the stomach virus I had a couple of weeks ago.) He otherwise acts normally but there is a new 12-week old kitten in the house as of Wednesday afternoon - I noticed his diarrhea on Wednesday night.

Thanks for your advice :) I'm going to call the vet and see what he says, but it's always nice to have a few more opinions.

Oh, and thanks for chiming in Laurief! I'll see how they react to the supplement today :)
 
#17 ·
I've heard that the medications vets prescribe to control diarrhea situations often don't work for cats. However, I've read excellent reviews on a product called Purina FortiFlora. Its a probiotic thats supposed to help cure diarrhea and promote intestinal health, and you can just sprinkle it on their food.

It's also highly recommended in many articles for usage in transitioning cats from dry to wet food, because its supposedly extremely palatable which entices many cats to eat the wet food (made from the same stuff they use to make dry food so enticing for cats to eat). I just bought some to try to transition my kibble-crackhead from dry to wet food, but haven't tried it yet, so the jury is still out on if it works or not.

But you may want to ask your vet if its ok to try. Maybe you'll get a double win - cure the diarrhea and entice him to eat at the same time. Check out the reviews on it here:

Amazon.com: FortiFlora FELINE - Box of 30 (1 gram packets): Kitchen & Dining
 
#18 ·
If you're feeding a raw diet with no commercial product at all and your cat's stools are soft, generally, it's because you simply don't have enough bone in the diet.

A chick has a balanced meat/bone/organ content, so you still need to feed bone to balance the meat-only meals you're offering; maybe start feeding a single chicken wing (just the tip and the middle piece) once or twice a week on days you don't offer the chicks.

I also haven't seen you mention organs as part of your cats' diet?

In ref. the Omega's - my cats get 3/4s of a Sardine once a week. Sardines - since they're so small, grow very fast, and are way down on the food chain - are among the safest fish to feed. To be honest, though, if there wasn't a specific need of Omega 3s to counter the excess of Omega 6s in our grain-fed farm animals, I wouldn't feed even them. Fish can definitely be problematic.
 
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