Can Cats Eat Raw Chicken?

cat looking at a chicken
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Long before they were domesticated by humans, cats relied on their hunting skills to catch prey like rodents and birds. When it came time to eat the catch, cats ate the meat raw — after all, how’s a cat going to cook a meal?

Raw food, including raw chicken, follows a cat’s traditional diet of eating natural prey. Cats tend to hunt pretty much their size or smaller, so some cats may not have hunted chickens if they were out in the wild. However, birds are never off the menu for cats, so raw chicken is generally a safe and natural food for cats to eat.

Before serving your cat a cut of chicken while you’re making your dinner, make sure you know the facts about raw chicken diets for cats and how to safely prepare raw meals. 

Can cats eat raw chicken?

Yes, cats can eat raw chicken. However, not all cats should eat raw chicken, and some may not be interested in raw chicken at all. 

Whether you choose to feed your cat raw chicken is entirely up to you. If you do choose to switch your cat to a raw food diet, make sure to take the necessary steps to ensure the diet is healthy for your cat.

My cat ate raw chicken, what do I do?

If your cat ate raw chicken, there might not be a reason to feel concerned. In many cases, cats can eat raw chicken and remain perfectly healthy. But there are instances where you might want to take your cat to the vet after it eats raw chicken.

If your cat is experiencing any of the following symptoms after eating raw chicken, consider visiting a vet:

  • Vomiting and/or diarrhea, especially if it persists.
  • Weight loss. This could be a sign that your cat received a parasite from the raw meat.
  • Lethargy.

Should I feed my cat raw chicken?

Whether you should feed your cat raw chicken depends entirely on where you get the chicken and what your cat wants to eat.

For starters, if your cat isn’t interested in raw chicken, then don’t push it on them! Cats can be picky eaters, but you don’t want to upset your cat by forcing them to eat something that might not sit well with them.

If your cat is interested in raw chicken, then give a raw chicken meal a try! Your cat might love it, and raw meals served correctly come with few health drawbacks.

When serving raw chicken, don’t settle on giving your cat any raw chicken you might have at home. While grocery store chicken may seem perfectly safe, finding a vendor that sells raw chicken particularly for cats is safer.

Safe raw food cat diet: How to serve raw chicken to cats safely

Once you’re ready to see if your cat likes raw chicken, the next thing to do is make sure you’re serving your cat safe, edible chicken. To reduce the chance of serving your cat bad food, follow these tips:

Buy from a trusted brand

There are tons of brands out there that sell raw chicken, among other raw food options, for cats. Companies that produce raw chicken for cats should know what does and doesn’t work, saving you the trouble of having to source good raw chicken for your cat.

Check for pieces of chicken bone

Even the best raw cuts of meat can have slivers of bone in them. Small bone fragments can be sharp, and this can cause damage to your cat if they accidentally eat the piece. Serving smaller slices of chicken, or using ground chicken, reduces the chances of a piece of bone lingering in the cut.

Make sure your cat has a balanced diet

Cats might like chicken, but chicken doesn’t have all the nutrients a healthy cat needs. Raw chicken can be an excellent supplement to a cat’s diet, but don’t ignore other vitamins and minerals a cat needs to stay healthy.

Thomas Short
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