Homemade Cat Food Recipes

I grew up in a home where the standard fare for our kitties was dry kibble and, occasionally, canned cat food for a treat.

At that time the idea of researching cat food recipes so we could make homemade cat food wasn’t even a consideration — this was well before the internet became as useful and accessible as it is now. But today responsible cat lovers can learn far more about general cat health and how to develop a natural feline diet to fit their cat’s needs.

If you’ve decided you want to start making a natural cat food from scratch just remember that they need a balance of specific nutrients to keep their systems running properly. Deficiencies in certain nutrients can cause health problems. To help with this you might consider adding a cat supplement to the food. There are some cat supplements specifically made to incorporate with raw food diets for cats.

Another way to assure your kitty has a balanced diet is by feeding a variety of foods. You may want to alternate between homemade cat food, premixes for homemade cat food, and a high quality organic cat food, canned and/or kibble.

I feel there is enough information and evidence to prove a raw food diet is best for cats, but some people still have concerns with this so I’ve added one cooked cat food recipe. Any of these can be turned into organic cat food recipes by simply using organic ingredients.

If your cat normally eats kibble you may want to mix the homemade cat food with the kibble for a while to let her and her body adjust to the new diet.

Note: You should always consult your veterinarian before changing your cat’s diet.

Raw Cat Food Recipes:

Feline Feast

With this basic cat food recipe you can alternate the type of grains and meat you use to add a greater variety of nutrients to the overall diet.

  • 2 cups either cooked millet, cooked rolled oats, or cooked brown rice
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 lbs (= 4 cups) ground free-range turkey or chicken (or lean chuck, lean hamburger or other lean meats).
  • 2 Tbs bone meal or 4000 mg calcium or 2-1/4 tsp eggshell (finely ground)
  • 2 Tbs olive oil or flax seed oil
  • 10,000 i.u. vitamin A
  • 100-200 i.u. vitamin E
  • 500 mg taurine (optional)
  • 1 tsp fresh vegetable with each meal (such as finely grated carrot, zucchini, yellow squash or peas)

Stir egg into the cooked grain of choice. Let cool slightly if you’ve just cooked the grain. Mix in the remaining ingredients. Separate what will be eaten in the next 2-3 days and freeze the rest immediately. You may want to freeze in single serve proportions to make it easier to thaw and serve.

Dr. Pitcairn’s Feline Diet for Kidney Problems

  • 1 1/3 cups (2/3 pound) ground chicken, turkey or lean heart
  • 4 cups cooked white rice
  • 4 eggs
  • 2 tablespoons cold-pressed safflower, soy or corn oil
  • 1,500 milligrams calcium
  • 1/8 teaspoon iodized salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon potassium chloride (optional, for a saltier flavor)
  • 1 teaspoon parsley, finely grated carrot or other vegetable (optional)
  • 5,000 IU vitamin A
  • Taurine and other cat vitamins (about 5 days’ worth)
  • 50 milligram level B complex (or 10 milligrams per day)
  • 2,500 milligrams vitamin C (½ teaspoon sodium ascorbate)

Mix everything together in a large bowl. Serve raw if the cat will accept it. Otherwise, mix all but the vitamins together, bake about 20 minutes in a moderate oven and then wait until it cools to mix in the vitamins. Occasionally, substitute 1 to 3 teaspoons of liver for part of the meat.

Note: This recipe is from Dr. Pitcairn author of Dr. Pitcairn’s Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs & Cats as well as the updated version: Dr. Pitcairn’s Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs & Cats.

Diabetic Cat Food Recipe

  • 1/2 cup raw ground organic chicken
  • 1/2 cup raw chicken liver
  • 1/2 cup cooked grain (brown rice or oatmeal)
  • 1/4 cup finely grated raw zucchini, or carrots, or cooked green beans, or winter squash
  • vegetable broth to moisten

Anitra Frazier states, “The goal of this diet is to strengthen the pancreas, reduce scarring, reduce insulin needs, stimulate insulin production, replace nutrients lost in urine or because of stress, and prevent the main complications associated with diabetes.”

Note: This recipe is from Anitra Frazier author of The Natural Cat, The New Natural Cat and her latest update of this book called The Natural Cat: A Comprehensive Guide To Optimum Care

Cooked Cat Food Recipe:

Stew For Kitties

  • 1 whole chicken, preferably free range or packaged with “no hormones or antibiotics” on the label
  • 2 cups brown rice
  • 6 stalks celery
  • 6 carrots, scrubbed but not peeled
  • 2 yellow squash
  • 2 zucchini
  • 1 cup of green peas
  • handful of green beans

Wash chicken, then cover with water in a large stew pot. Cut vegetables into pieces and add to pot. Add rice. Cook until chicken almost falls off the bone and vegetables are tender. Completely de-bone the chicken. This is very important because cooked chicken bones can splinter and cause serious intestinal damage. Pour the stew into a blender and blend or chop until mixture is coarse (about bite-sized). Freeze in singe serve proportions what won’t be eaten in the next 2-3 days.

Note that there are a few things you shouldn’t feed your cat. Onions and garlic can be harmful to cats. Bones are also questionable, unless ground. Cooked bones can splinter and get caught in their throat or cause serious damage to the intestinal tract. Some feel that raw bones are okay, but I personally stay away from them if they’re not ground.

I hope your kitty will enjoy these homemade cat food recipes. Remember it may take a little while to adjust to a new diet, so take it slow at first.