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We all understand that our bodies need just the right mix of vitamins and minerals to run smoothly, vitamin C to help fight colds, calcium for strong bones and vitamin A to maintain good vision. While all of except this, and take steps to make sure we get the right balance we often neglect the fact that our pets also need the same care and consideration to go in to their diets.

Cats live in the same polluted world as we do. They also eat highly processed foods whose contents is at best questionable. Even the foods that claim to be the complete diet lack some of the most basic vitamins and minerals. You can supplement you cat's diet with specialised cat supplements to add to your pet's food. But first you should get a good understanding of a cat's nutritional needs. It will help your much loved pet live a long and happy life.

Vitamin C

Vitamin C is just as important for cats as it is for humans:

It helps to boost the immune system

It plays an important role in producing collagen, which is found in all connective tissue and is very important for wound healing.

It also works as antioxidant with some experts even saying it helps protect against certain forms of cancer

Pet food makers always neglect to add vitamin C to their foods because as with all carnivores cats actually synthesize their own Vitamin C from the glucose in their small intestines. But recent studies have shown that many cats may not be producing enough especially if they have been under enormous stress.

Vitamin A

Vitamin A, also known as retinol, is essential for maintaining health eye sight. It also helps protect the body against infections and will give your cat the healthy shiny coat it deserves. While human's stomachs are able to break down plant carotene as a source of vitamin A, cats simply can't and are completely dependent on dietary source. Unlike Vitamin C that is passed out through the urine and therefore needs to be replaced every day, too much vitamin A can be highly toxic to your cat.

Taurine

Taurine is an amino acid that is needed for healthy heart function, but cat's bodies do not produce it independently. They need some raw meat in their diet to compensate this. The problem is that most owners will give their cats meat that has been frozen at some point in time, which will reduce its taurine content. It is because of this that using cat supplements is highly recommended to help your cat get the optimum amount of taurine needed.

Choosing The Right Cat Supplement

Cat vitamins come in many forms from liquids to pills. The general recommended way is to start off with a liquid form of cat vitamins and add minimal amounts to their food. But before starting to add any cat supplements to the food it is important to seek the advice of a Vet to find your specific cat vitamin requirements and to get a general understanding of cat nutrition.

Learn more about this author, Roy Skillen.
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