Many cat owners are now looking at more healthy alternatives for feeding their furry friends. Some have even decided that they prepare food for their cats rather than relying on mass-produced products.
Of course, one food that many owners want to know is suitable for their pets is eggs. So in answer to the question can cat eat eggs, the answer is yes.
Just like you, eggs are a significant source of protein for your cat. There are many scientists who believe that this food is very nutritious for not only cats but other animals as well.
But Are Eggs Good For Your Feline Friend?
As your pet is a carnivore, they will hugely benefit from you, including eggs in their diet. But never feed them eggs every day, rather including them as a treat in their food occasionally.
Also, only feed them a small amount otherwise your cat could easily gain weight, as they have a high-calorie count.
The Benefits of Including Eggs In Your Cats Diet
The following are some of the benefits that you can expect if you allow your cats to eat eggs:
1. Excellent Source of Animal Protein
Eggs are made up entirely of animal protein. Your cat needs plenty of animal protein in their diet as they lack the liver enzyme that will help them metabolize dairy products and protein from plants.
2. Contain Amino Acids
The cells in your cat’s body comprise proteins. They need plenty of amino acids, as these are the building blocks of protein. Your feline friend needs to consume 11 essential amino acids to help them remain healthy. The great thing is that in an egg you will find 10 of these.
3. Eggs Have Taurine In Them
This chemical is essential to your cat’s wellbeing as it helps them to maintain a healthy heart and eyes. Unfortunately, cats aren’t able to produce this chemical for themselves. So if you want to you could of course give it to them in supplemental form with their normal form. But you’ll find adding some eggs into their diet will work just as well as it is an excellent source of this.
4. Are Free Of Carbohydrates
As it is purely animal protein, eggs have no carbohydrates in them. As cats don’t actually need to consume carbohydrates so eggs provide them with a perfect source of pure protein.
5. Provide Your Cat With A Good Source Of Minerals And Vitamins They Need
In each egg, you find that they can provide your cat with a wide range of different minerals and vitamins that their bodies need. All of which will help to provide support to keep them healthy and fit.
The main vitamins you’ll find in eggs are Vitamins A, D, E, and B12. Also, eggs contain such minerals as Thiamine, Iron, Selenium, Zinc, Biotin, and Riboflavin.
So Can Cats Eat Eggs Raw?
It is important that you never feed your cat raw eggs as it’s on the ASPCA’s list of human foods pet should avoid. This is because they carry diseases such as Salmonella and E.coli in them that can be harmful to pets including cats.
Both of which could lead to your cat suffer from serious stomach issues. Even if you want to feed your cat, a raw diet never feeds them raw eggs.
Another issue with raw eggs concerns the white (albumen) as it contains. This is a tetrametric biotin-binding protein and will actually stop your furry friend from being able to absorb Vitamin B or biotin that you find in eggs.
What Is The Best Way For You To Feed Your Cat Eggs?
When it comes to including eggs in your feline friend’s diet you are best of poaching, scrambling, frying, or boiling them first.
How about yolk?
You can also feed your cat all of the eggs, not just the white or the yolk. Although in answer to the question can cat eat egg yolks is yes. It is best to limit how much of the yolk you feed your furry friend, as this is where most of the fat, cholesterol, and calories in this food are to be found.
As some cats can be quite picky with what they eat, you may find that add only small amounts of egg into their diet is a good idea. By doing this, you are disguising it enough so that over time they eventually get used to the taste of it.
Also, once you begin including eggs into your feline friend’s diet keep a careful eye on them. Just like us, cats can suffer from food allergies and intolerances. If you notice they scratch more or suffer from stomach upsets or ear infections. Then this could be a sign that including eggs in their diet isn’t a good idea.
How Much Egg Should You Feed Your Cat?
You should feed your furry friend a healthy, well-balanced diet. But when it comes to the addition of eggs to their diet, you should only look at this as a supplement.
You should only feed your cat small amounts of eggs, once or twice a week. In fact, when it comes to feeding eggs to your cat it should only make up 10% of their total calorie intake.
So if your cat weighs 10 lbs they need to be eating between 150 and 200 calories a day. Meaning that 20 calories can be made up of an egg.
Important to note that each egg contains 90 calories, so you can see why feeding your cat only small amounts of this food is important.
Can kittens eat eggs?
Yes, but with small quantity. You also can apply 10% of their total calorie intake but the eggs shouldn’t be a kitten’s sole or main diets. You must take note that kitten required complete or balance diets to ensure they have sufficient nutrients to grow healthy.
Be Careful When Feeding Your Cat Eggs
As already discussed above, eggs have large amounts of fat and cholesterol in them. If you were to feed them eggs too often, it can lead to them gaining weight. Not only could this lead to them becoming overweight, but suffer from health problems such as pancreatitis.
So if you are looking for food to include in your cat’s new healthy diet then eggs are worth considering. But only provide them as a treat and make sure that they have been thoroughly cooked before giving them to your pet.
Also, be careful as to how much you feed them to help ensure that they don’t suffer any digestive problems. You really cannot go wrong with including this superfood in your feline friend’s diet.
Conclusion
Your cats can eat any form of cooked eggs including boiled, scrambled, fried, or poached as long as you didn’t add any other additives to it. In fact, eggs contains rich protein and amino acids that are good for your cats.
However, too many eggs can cause health issue to your cats and hence it’s good to consult your veterinarian if anything happens.
Hopefully, this article has helped to provide you with a clear answer to can cats eat eggs. Please let us know what you think of this article below.