Do cats need to add Taurine to their food?

As long as your cat is fed regular cat food, the specified dose of Taurine (not less than 0.105%) will be added. Generally, Taurine does not need to be supplemented separately. But if cat food is not regular or has absorption problems, additional supplements are still needed.

What is Taurine?

Taurine, also known as taurine, taurocholic acid, bovine choline, and bovine bilirubin, is a simple sulfur containing amino acid in animals. Its chemical name is 2-amino Ethanesulfonic acid or β- Amino Ethanesulfonic acid. Taurine is an organic osmotic regulator, which is functionally involved in regulating cell volume, providing a basis for the formation of bile salts, and also plays an important role in the modulation of intracellular free calcium concentration. Taurine is an active substance that regulates normal physiological activities of the body. It has a wide range of biological functions such as anti-inflammatory, analgesic, maintaining Osmotic pressure balance of the body, maintaining normal visual function, regulating calcium balance of cells, reducing blood sugar, regulating nerve conduction, participating in endocrine activities, regulating lipid digestion and absorption, increasing cardiac contractility, improving immune capacity of the body, enhancing antioxidant capacity of cell membrane, protecting myocardial cells, and so on.

What is the effect of cats lacking Taurine

In fact, Taurine is very important for people and all animals, but it is more important for cats than other animals. There is a fundamental reason why cats in nature like to eat mice, because mouse meat contains a lot of Taurine, which is much more than other meat. After human pets raise cats, cats basically say goodbye to mouse meat, which leads to the problem of lacking Taurine in many cats.

1. The lack of Taurine in cats will lead to stunting, mental retardation and neurological disorders in young cats.

2. The lack of Taurine in cats will lead to their fine absorption of fat substances in food, because the biggest role of Taurine in cats is to dissolve fat with bile.

3. The lack of Taurine in cats will lead to memory impairment and forgetfulness, especially in elderly cats, which may lead to senile dementia.

4. Cats lacking Taurine will not be easy to get pregnant. Pregnant cats are easy to have dystocia, miscarriage and increased stillbirth rate.

5. Cat's lack of Taurine will affect their eyesight and even cause Nyctalopia, which is a fatal problem for cats that prey at night.

6. Cats lacking Taurine will lead to myocardial problems, Myocarditis, myocardial failure, etc.

7. Cats lacking Taurine will be particularly prone to fatigue, reduce immunity and weaken the body.

How to make cats supplement Taurine

1. Reliable cat food

For most cats, it is enough to choose a reliable cat food to meet their needs for Taurine. Generally speaking, the added amount of Taurine in cat food is not less than 0.105%. Considering the loss, the content hole of Taurine in cat food must be above 0.12% before it is safe. So when choosing cat food, one must be cautious. This is the foundation. Currently, the quality of domestic food varies, so at least choose mid to high grade food. At present, most of the imported grains can be assured. It is better to check the Taurine content before choosing.

2. Canned with Taurine

Most canned meat of cats contain Taurine, and Taurine is high in meat. However, because canned meat needs to be heated with a lamp, it will lead to the loss of a lot of Taurine, so additional Taurine needs to be added.

3. Separate meat and seafood

Meat and seafood are rich in Taurine, so cats can prepare some separate meat and seafood every day if conditions permit. It is recommended to boil meat and seafood in white water, mainly to kill parasites and bacteria. Raw meat can indeed leave more nutrients, but the parasites and bacteria inside are also preserved, posing a certain threat to the health of cats. The most common meat is chicken breast, which is boiled in white water and torn up for feeding to cats. It is recommended to match with chicken heart, chicken liver and other viscera (Taurine is the most abundant in liver and gallbladder, followed by heart and other viscera), which is more nutritious. It is generally best to use fresh shrimp. If fresh shrimp is not easy to purchase, frozen shrimp can also be used. After boiling in white water, the processed shrimp meat should be given to the cat (remember not to feed the shrimp head, etc. to avoid hurting the cat). When processing, do not use high or medium heat, and the time should not be too long, otherwise there will be a significant loss of nutrients.

4. Taurine supplement

For some cats seriously lacking Taurine, it is recommended to supplement Taurine urgently through Taurine supplements. However, it is only suitable for emergency supplementation. It is not recommended to supplement Taurine daily. It is necessary to know that when things get extreme, they will turn against each other. Too much Taurine will not work, even lead to poisoning. Cats generally do not need to add Taurine as long as they choose regular and reliable food. However, if cats suffer from Taurine deficiency, they need to take Taurine supplements.