View Single Post
  #2  
Old April 22nd, 2008, 07:25 AM
sugarcatmom's Avatar
sugarcatmom sugarcatmom is offline
Senior Contributor
 
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Calgary, AB
Posts: 5,357
Quote:
Originally Posted by SnooperBlabber View Post
My question is (or questions--I seem to have many):

1. Do I freeze the beef, thaw it when the ingredients come, mix the batch and freeze again? Or...
You can freeze and then partially thaw the meat for mixing, then freeze again in meal-size portions.

Quote:
Originally Posted by SnooperBlabber View Post
2. Should I freeze the pieces in small packets and just thaw and give pieces to them as a treat until I use this up?
That's certainly a good option. Make sure the treats don't make up more than 10-15% of their daily diet since they aren't balanced.

Quote:
Originally Posted by SnooperBlabber View Post
3. Has anyone ever tried grinding beef bones?
Depends on your grinder, but beef bones do tend to be too much to handle for most grinders.

Quote:
Originally Posted by SnooperBlabber View Post
Has anyone ever used liver powder and bone meal with beef or pork to make meals? If not the powdered ingredients, what do you use?
If not using actual bones, I prefer to balance the phosphorus with either egg shells or calcium carbonate. The problem is that bone meal has phosphorus as well as calcium, so the calculations of how much to add to balance the phosphorus in the muscle meat gets tricky. The proper calcium-phosphorus ratio for cats should be between 1.2-1.4:1.

Also, are you adding taurine? And you might want to consider a cat multi-vitamin to CYA. It can be a bit tricky making food for cats because they have a fairly narrow range of nutrient requirements, so it's important to get the balance just right. There isn't as much leeway with the feline diet as there is with canines. Have you seen Dr. Lisa Pierson's recipe? http://www.catinfo.org/makingcatfood.htm It might give you some good guidelines for proportions.

Quote:
Originally Posted by SnooperBlabber View Post
My ultimate goal is to find some variety to just the chicken meals, and see if the cats like one meat better than another.
Have you thought of rabbit? Many cats like that one, and you should be able to grind the bones as well. There's also other poultry options like duck or quail. Check out your local farmer's market and see what's available.

Happy feeding!! And good for you for wanting to provide your cats with a good diet.
__________________
"To close your eyes will not ease another's pain." ~ Chinese Proverb

“We must not refuse to see with our eyes what they must endure with their bodies.” ~ Gretchen Wyler
Reply With Quote