Homemade raw cat food recipe FAQ

My homemade raw cat food recipes are formulated to AAFCO nutrient profiles. There are options for kittens & adults and options for adults & seniors.

You can buy recipes and printables individually on my Etsy shop.

Or, you can get the best raw feeding resources all in one place inside my Raw Feeding Blueprint course. I’ve created the most supportive plan inside this course! Think, every week is planned out for you with printable trackers, 50+ balanced recipes to choose from, meal prep hacks, and so much more. If you’re ready to make your cat’s raw food at home, my Raw Feeding Blueprint course is for you!

I’ve listed quick bullet points for my cat food recipes below. Plus answers to FAQ below that.

DIY raw cat food recipe overview:

  • Formulated by a Clinical Pet Nutritionist
  • Beginner, intermediate, & advanced options
  • Complete for kittens, adults, & seniors
  • One main protein recipe options & variety protein options
  • Boneless & raw meaty bone options
  • Recipes that include poultry & poultry-free recipes
  • High moisture, high protein, low carb
  • Free from grains, gluten, & fillers
  • Complete for healthy kittens & cats only (no special needs)
  • 96% meat, 4% superfoods (the only non-food supplement is taurine in recipes where naturally occurring taurine is lower)
  • Options for kittens & adults have higher mineral amounts because kittens require higher amounts of minerals
  • Options for adults & seniors have lower mineral amounts because adults & seniors require lower amounts of minerals

Click on the questions below to see the answer.

Homemade Recipe FAQ:

cat eating homemade raw cat food
Griffen used to run when he heard the kibble dispencer!

Why buy a recipe when I can use a free recipe online?

You’re more than welcome to use a free recipe instead! This might be a better option for complete beginners.

However, I’ve found that many free recipes online are just different variations of the same recipe. And/or they include inappropriate ingredients for cats.

I’ve also plugged in “vet-approved recipes” into food formulators and found that many of them are not even complete. And these recipes do not provide a nutritional analysis. So we have no idea!

I’d suggest reaching out to the recipe creator to confirm the recipe is formulated to meet the nutritional guidelines set by the NRC, AAFCO, and/or FEDIAF.

All of my recipes are formulated to meet the nutritional guidelines of the AAFCO. And I provide a full nutritional analysis of the recipe.

My cat is so picky, will this work?

I prefer to say that cats are cautious (not picky!) because this is a survival instinct that all cats have. On top of that, most cats are addicted to dry/wet food because processed food is high in carbs and companies add flavor enhancers to make cats want to eat more of it.

This is exactly why my switch to raw plan focuses on one upgrade at a time. So your cat can get used to eating healthy food gradually.

Fresh or freeze-dried meats?

You can use freeze-dried hearts, green tripe, liver, etc. if you cannot buy fresh ingredients locally. However, this is not ideal in the long run.

Please rehydrate with water before making the recipe.

A good rule of thumb is to take the total wet weight that you need and divide it by 3.5. This is the amount of dry weight that you would use to rehydrate.

For example, if you need 7.5 ounces of total wet weight…

7.5 / 3.5 = ~2

You would weigh out 2 ounces of the freeze-dried ingredient. Then rehydrate with water. Keep it in a sealed container in the refrigerator for a few hours until it is fully rehydrated.

Weigh the rehydrated amount to make sure you use the correct amount in the recipe.

You can save leftover water to mix in with the supplements.

Can I substitute the ingredients?

You can use either raw, cooked from fresh, or canned salmon (in water, no salt) instead of canned sardines. That is the only substitute.

Are the supplements necessary?

Yes. The recipes are complete as is with the ingredients included in the recipe.

What about too much iodine in kelp?

The kelp product that I use in my recipes provides a nutritional analysis including iodine content. It is true that this amount may vary from batch to batch since this is a whole food.

However, the iodine amount in all of my recipes is right at the minimum recommended level, and it is under the maximum safe upper limit.

Other recipes may use iodized salt. But iodized salt is bleached, stripped of natural minerals, extremely processed, and has added synthetic iodine. Some may also have anti-caking agents.

I prefer to use whole food sources of nutrients in my recipes. After all, isn’t that the reason we’re ditching processed food for homemade?

This study and this study both show that prolonged use of iodized salt causes thyroid disorders in humans.

Where do I buy the ingredients?

You can buy the ingredients anywhere that sells meat. Check your grocery store, butcher shop, Asian market, local farm, farmers market, etc. Some meat producers (farms, etc.) also have online shopping options. Or you can buy from raw pet food suppliers.

Please check if superfoods and supplements are available to you (including shipping costs) before purchasing my recipes.

You can make your own eggshell powder or buy it online.

All superfoods are available on Amazon US

iHerb ships internationally (please check shipping costs first):

Yes, you can use the K9 Natural beef tripe for dogs for your cat.

What about vitamin A toxicity from too much liver?

None of my recipes exceeds the vitamin A maximum safe upper limit set by the AAFCO.

The amount in the recipe and nutritional guidelines from the AAFCO are listed in the recipe analysis (included with every recipe).

What about taurine?

Taurine comes from hard-working muscles like thigh and heart plus the secreting
organ liver. You will see that chicken and turkey recipes do not include added taurine.

That’s because the thigh meat is very high in taurine. Beef, pork, lamb, and duck are lower in taurine. And sometimes taurine is not even included in USDA databases for these proteins. That’s why these recipes include added taurine.

Taurine is water-soluble so any excess will flush out in the urine.

How much taurine do I add?

I suggest using NOW taurine powder for my recipes.

The back of the label states: 1/4 teaspoon is approximately 1 gram. 1 gram = 1,000 mg of taurine.

For each recipe amount:

  • 500 mg, add 1/8 teaspoon
  • 1,000 mg, add 1/4 teaspoon
  • 1,500 mg, add 1/2 teaspoon

Please always use the label information.

What about fiber?

If your cat needs more fiber, you can give psyllium husk powder or slippery elm. Try 1/8 teaspoon daily and adjust as needed.

A better source of fiber would be fur or feathers which is part of the cat’s natural diet. You can buy dehydrated pieces from raw pet food suppliers.

Where do carbs come from?

Carbs mainly come from liver. As you can see from the ingredients list on each recipe, there are no grain or gluten ingredients.

What egg yolk do I use?

Chicken or duck egg yolk.

Why only egg yolk for the recipes?

Raw egg white contains a protein called avidin. This can prevent the absorption of Biotin so we use the yolk only to avoid this.

Can I feed too much toppers?

Original question: “Are there any other vitamins/minerals/etc. that I should keep an eye on? For example, can I feed too much nutritional yeast, green tripe, or blue-lipped mussels as a treat or food topper?”

Treats and toppers should not exceed 10% of your cat’s total daily intake of food.
Additionally, you would remove equal parts of your cat’s meals so that you are not overfeeding your cat.

For example, let’s say you are feeding 4 ounces of food total to your cat daily. The
maximum treats and toppers you would feed is 0.4 ounces, and the complete meals would be 3.6 ounces.

If you stick to these guidelines and provide fresh, natural foods you should not have any issues.

B vitamins in nutritional yeast, for example, are water-soluble. That means excess will come out in the urine.

Vitamins A, D, and E are fat-soluble. Excess of these will not come out in the urine. You’ll see in all of my recipes that these vitamins are within the safe limits.

Keep in mind that natural vitamins and minerals are different than synthetic ones. Synthetic nutrients are much more bioavailable and are much easier to overdo. Natural nutrients are not as bioavailable and are more difficult to overdo.

Why do recipes with bone still include eggshell/bone meal powder?

Chicken and duck bones have both calcium and phosphorus. Meat is also high in
phosphorus. So our phosphorus will always be higher than calcium even with raw
meaty bones.

But eggshell powder is mainly calcium. We still need eggshell powder to bring the calcium amount up so that the calcium-to-phosphorus ratio is what’s recommended. Calcium would be too low without eggshells
powder even though there are bones in the recipe.

Adding more meaty bone will increase the amount of calcium but will also increase phosphorus. So we will continue to have more phosphorus than calcium. That’s why eggshells and bone meal powder are necessary.

What about too much phosphorus and kidney health?

The problem with phosphorus and kidney health is the type of phosphorus. It all comes down to natural vs synthetic.

Synthetic aka an isolated, man-made version of phosphorus is called phosphate.
Phosphates are used in commercially processed foods as a flavor enhancer and
phosphorus supplement. Phosphate (the synthetic version of phosphorus) is much more bioavailable and easier to overdo. This type of phosphorus is bad for the kidneys because it can cause problems when fed in excess over long periods of time.

Organic, natural phosphorus that comes from meat, bone, and other meat-based ingredients is less bioavailable and therefore harder to overdo. Plus, since you’re feeding fresh, whole foods, your cat gets other nutrients in the right ratios.

In other words, you do not need to worry about natural phosphorus that comes from food as long as the Ca:P ratio is what’s recommended. The recommended ratio is 1:1 or with slightly more calcium than phosphorus. All of these recipes meet this recommendation with a little bit more calcium than phosphorus (which is acceptable).

Why is there a need for sunflower seeds for vitamin E when feeding salmon/sardines?

Salmon and sardines do not provide enough vitamin E to fulfill the minimum
requirements set by the AAFCO.

How do I know the recipe is complete?

Original question: “It seems to me that the raw food cat diet needs to be strict to meet their needs if you don’t feed whole prey. It looks like whole prey feeding can be really expensive so I want to make sure my homemade raw is complete.”

All recipe PDFs include a nutritional analysis based on AAFCO guidelines. And I
formulate with professional software called Animal Diet Formulator.

Most ingredients are “ADF Typicals” which means this is an average that considers different variables like where and how animals are raised. Plus there is a lot of variety.

Having said that, yes a variety of whole prey would be ideal. There are a lot more parts in whole prey that we cannot provide in DIY diets.

But keep in mind, commercial cat food brands also do not include these parts and do not match whole prey.

Can I feed this one recipe long-term?

Ideally, you would feed your cat a variety of proteins and cuts. I try my best to include as much variety as possible in each recipe.

But you will have to decide if one recipe is enough variety for your individual cat.

Can I feed mixed proteins in one meal?

Yes. Wild cats consume 5-7 proteins to complete their diet.

This could include mice, rats, voles, other rodents, rabbits, insects, birds, reptiles, invertebrates, fish, and other mammals. This study proves it.

What if I don’t have a grinder for bones?

You can feed the raw boneless recipes or feed bones whole. Feeding whole raw meaty bones is great for mental stimulation and dental health. But if your cat cannot eat whole bones and/or you don’t feel comfortable feeding whole bones, there are many boneless recipes to choose from.

You can use a food processor to grind down boneless meats very easily.

Commercial-grade grinders can typically handle chicken bones. However, I do not have personal experience with this. So you will have to find this out on your own.

What about bacteria and pathogens?

Practice the same food prep and cleaning methods as preparing human foods.

General advice:

  • Buy meat ingredients from clean, trustworthy sources
  • Practice proper food safety hygiene when prepping and serving food
  • Wash your hands after you clean the litter box

Veterinary advice from survey results:

  • Don’t mix dry food with raw (unless you clean dishes between each meal – most cat parents do not clean dishes regularly when feeding dry food)
  • Feed a variety of proteins (most cat parents who do this are more experienced and educated on raw feeding)
  • Prepare raw cat food in the same area with the same utensils as human food prep areas

The veterinary conclusion from survey results: confirmed pathogen transmission from MP diets (raw) to humans appears to be rare

We conclude that potential or probable cases of pathogen transmission is likely dependent upon hygiene and food safety measures, and more education surrounding food safety should reduce risk.

Additionally, the FDA says that salmonellosis is uncommon in cats and dogs. The issue, again, is proper human hygiene.

Can I cook your raw recipes?

No. The recipes are complete as is and must be fed raw. The only cooked ingredient is blue mussels for the recipes that include blue mussels.

How do I make DIY raw cat food?

Follow the recipe’s instructions and practice proper food safety and hygiene. I have a complete guide on how to make DIY raw cat food.

Where can I buy your recipes?

You can buy recipes and printables individually on my Etsy shop.

Or, you can get the best raw feeding resources all in one place inside my Raw Feeding Blueprint course. I’ve created the most supportive plan inside this course! Think, every week is planned out for you with printable trackers, 50+ balanced recipes to choose from, meal prep hacks, and so much more. If you’re ready to make your cat’s raw food at home, my Raw Feeding Blueprint course is for you!

Please read the pages and details in full before buying.

You are responsible for determining if the recipes are a good fit for your individual cat. And checking to make sure ingredients and supplements are available to you.

I do not offer refunds since this is an instant download digital product.