The best raw cat food ingredients are meat, bones, organs, and whole food supplements. And it’s important to use the right ingredients to feed a balanced raw diet.

These are my favorite ingredients to use when I’m formulating cat food recipes.

I love using whole foods and a variety of ingredients so that we don’t have to use a lot of supplements.

However, some supplements are necessary to fulfill nutrient requirements.

But there are whole food supplements that we can use instead of synthetic supplements.

diy raw cat food diet plan bones recipe jess caticles

I’m breaking down each category of ingredient along with the nutrients each provide.

Keep in mind that most meat ingredients can fulfill amino acid and most vitamin and mineral requirements. So I’m focusing on nutrients that are typically missing in BARF and PMR diets.

diy raw boneless recipe in mixing bowl jess caticles

PS – If you’re ready to switch to a healthy raw diet, my Raw Feline Foodie course is for you!

My Raw Feline Foodie course includes balanced raw cat food recipes, meal prep video, food safety tips, transition plans, and so much more, so you can feed your cat a healthy raw diet easily and confidently.

Best raw meat ingredients

This ingredient category includes boneless muscle meats.

These are foods most people eat, like thighs, tenderloin, seafood, and ground meat.

IngredientNutrient
Lean beefZinc
Pork tenderloinB vitamins
Turkey thighPotassium
Beef stew meatPotassium
OystersZinc
SalmonVitamin D
SardinesVitamin D
Blue musselsManganese
DuckFat

Best raw meaty bones for cats

Raw meaty bones provide calcium. But they also provide a lot of mental stimulation and teeth cleaning benefits.

Never feed cooked bones as they can splinter and cause harm.

Appropriately sized raw meaty bones, however, are great additions to a raw diet.

cat grabbing rabbit raw meaty bone

Best raw meaty bones for cats:

  • Chicken wings, necks, and feet
  • Small duck necks and feet
  • All quail bones
  • Small rabbit front legs
  • Cornish game hen
  • Whole prey

It’s important to balance the right amount of bones in the raw diet. You will still have to use a calcium supplement (ingredients below) to balance the calcium to phosphorus ratio because there is also phosphorus in meaty bones.

Best organs for raw cat food

There are two types of organs we use in raw cat food. Muscular and secreting.

Muscular organs are hard-working muscles, whereas secreting organs secrete.

Best muscular organs

IngredientNutrient
Chicken heartZinc
Green tripeManganese
Turkey heartSelenium
Chicken gizzardChloride

Feeding muscular organs chunked into larger pieces is great for chewing benefits.

It’s not the same as chewing raw meaty bones, but it’s something. Gizzards are especially chewy.

Best secreting organs

IngredientNutrient
Veal, beef, or lamb liverCopper
Pork pancreasSelenium
Beef, lamb, or pork spleenIron

Secreting organs are a small part of the diet, but they provide a lot of nutrients.

cat eating homemade raw cat food

Best supplement ingredients in raw cat food

Supplements make up the smallest part of the diet. For example, my raw recipes are only about 1-2% supplements. The same with Jericho’s diet.

And these are the same supplements I use for him!

IngredientNutrient
Nutritional yeastB vitamins
KelpIodine
Egg yolkCholine
Eggshell powderCalcium
Bone meal powderCalcium
Seaweed calciumCalcium
Vitamin E oilVitamin E
Wheat germ oilVitamin E

The vitamin E oil we all use is food-derived even though it is an isolated version of vitamin E.

Most come from soy and are bottled in olive oil.

Unfortunately, vitamin E is the trickiest one because it’s highest in plant foods.

But using the E oil or wheat germ oil is better than using seeds or other plant sources.

homemade raw cat food diet jess caticles

Best raw cat food ingredients

We can balance our cat’s diet with whole food ingredients. Variety is key here. Both in proteins that you feed and the ingredients within each category that you feed.

Whole food supplements are necessary to fill in gaps and balance your cat’s diet over time.

But these supplements make up a very small amount of your cat’s diet.

PS – If you’re ready to switch to a healthy raw diet, my Raw Feline Foodie course is for you!

My Raw Feline Foodie course includes balanced raw cat food recipes, meal prep video, food safety tips, transition plans, and so much more, so you can feed your cat a healthy raw diet easily and confidently.