Home prepared diet recipe example

For a 4kg adult cat

Recipe for a cat

4KG ADULT

Recipe for an adult (sedentary) >10 months

This home prepared recipe for a cat is designed for a 4kg adult (between 10 months and 8 years old).

If your cat is under 10 months old, keep feeding the recipe for a kitten.
If you’re cat is over 8 years old, change for the recipe for a senior cat.

More information below the recipe

Is your cat neutered?

Check the recipe for a 4kg neutered adult.

Neutered adult recipe

Adult: up to 8 years

Daily amount

Ingredients

Ingredients: amount and details

Meat
BEEF lean human grade MEAT (boneless steak or 5%fat mince, weight raw, then slightly cook, poach OR pan with no fat for 5 minutes)

125 grams

Vit’i5 orange

5 ml

Oil
CANOLA OIL or SOYBEAN OIL (Do not cook or heat. Keep the bottle in the fridge)

5 ml

Vegetables
GREEN BEANS (Weight raw. Steam or boil ; cook until soft (mashable) and cut in 5mm pieces)

40 grams

Carbohydrates
OAT FLAKES (weight dry, boil or microwave in water)
or SWEET POTATOES / POTATOES (skinless, boiled in water, must be cooked enough to be easily mashed)

5 grams

20 grams

Adjust the amount of food delivered daily, but keep the same proportions of all ingredients listed here, in order to keep the diet balanced.

The recipe for one day can be prepared as described, and distributed in 2 days. The half for the next day shall be stored in the fridge.

Homemade diet: easy preparation, storage and distribution

self-made recipe for a dog - ingredients

1- Weigh all ingredients raw, or as mentionned in the recipe

2- Chop and cook vegetables and meat/fish

If using canned vegetables, only strained and rinse.
If used fresh or frozen vegetables, cook them in salted boiling water, until mashable. Add the meat/fish filet for the last 5 minutes of cooking.

3- Prepare the mixture

First, mix the small ingredients, then add the cooked ones.
Mix the Vit’i5 powder + Canola or Soybean Oil + Salt/Wheat bran if any in the recipe.
Add cooked vegetables and meat/fish. Mix all ingredients until the mixture is homogenous.

4- Storage, preservation & feeding

If any in the recipe, cooked carbohydrates, such as oat flakes or rice or potato, must not be frozen/thamw : cook them on the day of distribution, and add to the freshly made or defrost mixture.

Prepared and distributed the same day?
Cook the carbohydrates with the vegetables, This mixture can be used for the day.
The portion left for the other meals of the day can be stored in the fridge for 24 hours.
Prepared for later?
The mixture can be frozen in daily portions. It can be frozen for up to 4 weeks.
Each portion can be thaw in the fridge the day before the day of distribution.
The carbohydrate must be cooked on the day of distribution and mixed with the thawed portion of food.
This mixture can be used for the day. The portion left for the other meals of the day can be stored in the fridge for 24 hours.

5- Split the daily amount in at least 4 meals (no matter at what time)

Give the first meal freshly prepared, or a meal from the fridge.
Do not fry pan, microwave oven or oven heat: you can heat a meal by mixing with a bit of warm water.

In case you feed your cat Half-Half, for instance kibble or canned petfood in the morning, and Homemade (this recipe) in the evening, use Vit’i5 Half-Half instead of the Vit’i5 Orange in the home prepared recipe, at the same amount.

If you have more specific questions, or in case of health issue, ask a certified nutritionist for special recipes.

Give half the amount of wet or dry petfood normally recommended to feed the cat for a day.

IMPORTANT NOTICE

This recipe is balanced and formulated by a veterinary nutrition specialist for a heathy pet. It is offered for personal use only.

Tailored recipes are also available on our website.

Warning

Avoid changing ingredients without a proper advice.
Changing an ingredient for another in a recipe may affect the overall composition and balance: for instance, for the same amount, providing a fatter meat/fish will bring more calories from fat (energy) and may increase body weight by increasing fat mass. Also, different vegetables may bring different amount of calories (energy).

Nutritional information

WHY SUCH INGREDIENTS?

This recipe for a cat contains

Animal Proteins

First of all, meat or fish is a source of animal protein, and provide protein and all amino acids.

You can cook it slightly or well cooked as food safety to avoid contamination problems (such as bacteria, parasites…).

The meat and fish differ by their proportion of protein and fat, and energy.
Also, some pets find some tastes more interesting/palatable/attractive than others.

Do not replace without considering the composition or asking to your vet or following the body weight of your pet weekly.

Mineral vitamin supplement

Vit’i5 is a veterinary nutrition specialist formulated mineral and vitamin supplement for homemade diet. It provides the micronutrients that are lacking of in the routine dietary components.

Vit’i5 has to be added to a diet with fish or meat component. It has been designed in 3 products. It may be adapted depending on age and condition, and with the amount of meat/fish, however it is not seasonal or optional.
If the diet is half homemade and half commercial, give Vit’i5 Half-Half instead of any Vit’i5 recommended in the homemade recipe.

Warning:
Do not heat or cook Vit’i5, in order to preserve vitamins
Do not give Vit’i5 if your dog of cat eats only a complete pet food either dry or wet.

Treat

Fruits may represent a treat of a part of the vegetables in a recipe for a cat. Cats can eat them raw.

One may offer as treats. Only offer juicy FRUITS such as apple, peach, watermelon, strawberry, peach. (Do not offer banana or dry fruit as a TREAT.)
If doing so, stick to the following equivalence: 50 grams of FRESH FRUIT may subsitute 100 grams of CARROT.

Also, DO NOT REPLACE more than half of the vegetables with fruits as part of fiber source.

For example, in a recipe with 200grams of vegetables, there should not be more than 100 grams (half of 200 grams) of vegetables replaced by fruits. Thus so 100/2 = 50 grams of FRUIT such as fresh APPLE in this recipe.

Essential fatty acids

Canola oil, or soybean oil, is a source of essential fatty acids, omega 6 (linoleic acid) and omega 3 (linolenic acid).

Don’t heat or cook it, to preserve the fatty acids

Caps of fish oil may be added to bring also long chain omega 3 fatty acids EPA & DHA, but this does not replace the canola or soybean oil. The fatty acids are different.

Fiber source

Vegetables are a beneficial source of fiber.

Give all vegetables cooked, either boiled, or steamed enough to become smooth form, or strained if canned.

Zucchini is a special vegetable that can be given cooked, but can also be cut and frozen raw, and, once defrost, included in the diet without cooking.

Carrots may be replaced by broccoli, green beans, skinless pumpkin or butternut with the same weight basis. These vegetables must be cooked enough to be easily cut or mashed.

Last, to offer a bigger amount of vegetables, 100 grams of carrots or equivalent may be replaced by 150 grams of zucchini, tomato, mushroom, asparagus, endives, all cooked well enough to be easily cut or mashed.

Wheat bran can also be used are a source of fiber, along with or instead of vegetables (not in the same amount as wheat bran is dry!). A 5ml-spoon in the daily recipe for a cat instead or with vegetables.

Complex carbohydrates (source of energy from Starch)

Starch is a complex carbohydrates, which requires digestion to be a good source of energy.
Make sure to boil carbohydrates, such as rice or peeled potatoes, TWICE the time it should be for people. Indeed, this maximises the digestibility of the starch by pets.

Once cooked, DO NOT freeze the carbohydrates, as freezing-defrosting process decreases the digestibility of the starch, and could induce digestive issue such as diarrhea and bloating.

In a recipe for a cat, a part of Carbs can also be replaced by other carbs or by treats, to provide an equivalent amount of calories.

Equivalent to 10 grams of raw (dry) OAT FLAKES:

– 10 grams of PASTA or white RICE, cooked
– 40 grams of POTATO or SWEET POTATO, cooked
– 10 grams of any BISCUIT designed for cats
– 5ml (1 spoon) of peanut butter
– 10 grams of Cheese, such as cheddar CHEESE
– 40 grams of Cottage cheese (4%Fat)
– 50 grams of Pure Plain 4%Fat Natural YOGURT (such as Greek or Plain organic yogurt without additional flavours or ingredients)