Tips & Tricks
We're looking for more tips and tricks to help other pet parents. We need tips and/or suggestions, products and
links, valuable information like research links for any of our website information, or anything you think we can
use. Please send any information to info@ibdkitties.net and include your name, your cat's name, an email
address where you can be reached and the information or request for information.
Food Tips:
Tip #1: In order to compare how much protein, carbohydrate, fiber, or fat is in a canned food vs dry, you need
to compare them on an equal basis, excluding the water content. Converting to dry matter basis makes it easy.
Here's a formula to do it: nutrient percent (crude protein, fat, fiber or carbs) divided by the reciprocal of
moisture content. (Reciprocal of moisture content is simply 100 - moisture content.)
For example, if a can lists crude protein of 12%, and moisture of 78%, to figure the "actual" amount of protein in
the food: divide the crude protein (12) by the reciprocal of water content (100-78=22). 12 divided by 22 = .545.
The actual protein content is almost 55%, a lot more than it would appear without converting to a dry matter
basis.
*You need to convert both canned food and kibble to dry matter to accurately compare/contrast nutrient
content.
Tip #2: Use ceramic bowls or better yet, stainless steel bowls to feed your cat. Plastic bowls can harbor germs
and can also cause skin lesions and feline acne on your cats' face because of oily residue leftover from the food.
Tip #3: When starting your cat on frozen raw food, try this: Thaw the food overnight in the refrigerator, or
leave out for about 15 minutes at room temperature. If your cat is reluctant to eat raw at first, try heating in a
skillet at very low heat for a little under a minute on each side. Just enough to get the scent of meat and the
juices going, not to cook it. Eventually you won't have to do this but it can definitely work when introducing.
NEVER use a Teflon skillet or frying pan, it's toxic to animals. Use a stainless steel or cast iron skillet. If
you don't have one initially try microwaving for just 5 seconds to take some of the chill off, try to stick to 5
seconds. It can be dangerous to microwave raw food, because the bone fragments can splinter and it also
changes the nutritional balance. But anything less than 40 seconds is safe and 5 seconds is usually the magic
number. Don't do this for very long, just a few days to get the cat to start eating it. But heating with a skillet is
much safer and keeps the nutrients much better. Warming the food this way prevents you from actually
cooking the food, as the whole purpose of feeding raw is to preserve the precious enzymes that are missing from
over cooked and processed commercial foods.
Tip #4: If you need to defrost some raw food quickly, put it in a Ziploc plastic baggy and fill with warm to hot
water. Seal it and lay it in the sink for approximately 4-5 minutes. Pour out the water and serve!
Natural Remedies:
Tip #1: When giving slippery elm bark for nausea, take a tablespoon of hot water and mix it with about 1/2
capsule of SEB powder. As it starts to cool, it will thicken. Sometimes you can add more powder and sometimes
more water to get it to a thin enough consistency that you can fill a syringe. The easiest syringe to use is a 3ml,
and fill completely. Then insert the syringe in the back corner of your cat's mouth and let them drink it down.
Just be sure to make it as thick as possible as it helps coat the lining of the GI tract, similar to Pepto Bismol.
They call it a "liquid band aid". Slippery elm should be given at least two hours away from any other medications
or supplements. 30 minutes isn't long enough for the mucilagenous coating in the digestive tract to dilute enough
to let absorption take place, mostly in the intestines. Many holistic vets believe that when given with a meal, it
can inhibit the absorption of nutrients from the food.
Tip #2: For diarrhea or constipation, add a teaspoon of Libby's all natural canned pumpkin to your cat's meal.
Any canned pumpkin will do but Libby's is the best one and seems to be the most tasty. Make sure it's the 100%
pumpkin and not the pie filling. It works like magic. Canned pumpkin is only good for 3 days in frig. Place the
remainder in ice cube trays and freeze. Then place them in baggies and defrost as needed or freeze 3 days worth
at a time.
Medications:
Tip #1: When giving B12 or other injections, if you set them up for the shot by coaxing them down, doing some
huggin' and lovin', "tent" the skin on the back of the neck and plunge. Then immediately stick a favored treat
under their nose while rubbing the injection area to confuse the sensations. They don't really notice, nor dread
the shots.
Tip #2: When you have a large prescription bottle of B12 (100 mls) and want to use extra "light-blocking"
precautions, take an empty plastic container of Oxy-Clean powdered laundry additive and put the bottle in
there, cover and all, before putting it in the fridge. It fits perfect and doesn't take up much room. A smaller B12
bottle can be inserted into a regular empty prescription pill bottle.
Tip #3: When giving pills, empty gel caps can be used to mask the taste, combine several medications in one
pilling (as long as they are safe to give together), and remove sharp edges from cut pills. If your local pharmacy
doesn't have them, they can be bought online from capsuline.com, iherb.com, and other retailers. For cats, use
size 3,4, or 5. (Size three is the largest.) Simply put the pills in the capsule and administer (using a pill gun is
easiest). Always follow with a water chaser (3-5ml) to ensure the capsule gets into the stomach and reduce the
chance of esophageal irritation.
Tip #4: Instead of giving medications in Pill Pockets, which contain a lot of gluten, use a dehydrated raw food
treat like Wholelife Chicken or turkey. Soak the treat in a little water until it's saturated, insert the medication
and make a meatball out of it. This brand of treats is a big hit with a lot of cats!
Tip #5: When pilling your cat, use a pill gun and dip the rubber-tipped end in some low-fat cottage cheese. That
way when you pop the pill in your cat's mouth, it'll be slippery and just fly down his/her throat. Doesn't stick to
their tongue and they like the taste.
Tip #6: When giving a 5 mg dose of Prilosec to your cat, take a 20 mg capsule, empty and split it into 4 little
piles, putting each little pile into an empty #3 capsule. Using a dark colored dish for this really helps to see the
beads. You can use a small perfume funnel for this, a link for those are listed on the medications page under
supplies. Breaking into a delayed release enteric coated tablet in order to split it can be dangerous because you
aren't giving the same dose each time. This way each little bead in the capsule is enteric coated so there is no risk
of putting too much raw medicine in their tummy at once.
links, valuable information like research links for any of our website information, or anything you think we can
use. Please send any information to info@ibdkitties.net and include your name, your cat's name, an email
address where you can be reached and the information or request for information.
Food Tips:
Tip #1: In order to compare how much protein, carbohydrate, fiber, or fat is in a canned food vs dry, you need
to compare them on an equal basis, excluding the water content. Converting to dry matter basis makes it easy.
Here's a formula to do it: nutrient percent (crude protein, fat, fiber or carbs) divided by the reciprocal of
moisture content. (Reciprocal of moisture content is simply 100 - moisture content.)
For example, if a can lists crude protein of 12%, and moisture of 78%, to figure the "actual" amount of protein in
the food: divide the crude protein (12) by the reciprocal of water content (100-78=22). 12 divided by 22 = .545.
The actual protein content is almost 55%, a lot more than it would appear without converting to a dry matter
basis.
*You need to convert both canned food and kibble to dry matter to accurately compare/contrast nutrient
content.
Tip #2: Use ceramic bowls or better yet, stainless steel bowls to feed your cat. Plastic bowls can harbor germs
and can also cause skin lesions and feline acne on your cats' face because of oily residue leftover from the food.
Tip #3: When starting your cat on frozen raw food, try this: Thaw the food overnight in the refrigerator, or
leave out for about 15 minutes at room temperature. If your cat is reluctant to eat raw at first, try heating in a
skillet at very low heat for a little under a minute on each side. Just enough to get the scent of meat and the
juices going, not to cook it. Eventually you won't have to do this but it can definitely work when introducing.
NEVER use a Teflon skillet or frying pan, it's toxic to animals. Use a stainless steel or cast iron skillet. If
you don't have one initially try microwaving for just 5 seconds to take some of the chill off, try to stick to 5
seconds. It can be dangerous to microwave raw food, because the bone fragments can splinter and it also
changes the nutritional balance. But anything less than 40 seconds is safe and 5 seconds is usually the magic
number. Don't do this for very long, just a few days to get the cat to start eating it. But heating with a skillet is
much safer and keeps the nutrients much better. Warming the food this way prevents you from actually
cooking the food, as the whole purpose of feeding raw is to preserve the precious enzymes that are missing from
over cooked and processed commercial foods.
Tip #4: If you need to defrost some raw food quickly, put it in a Ziploc plastic baggy and fill with warm to hot
water. Seal it and lay it in the sink for approximately 4-5 minutes. Pour out the water and serve!
Natural Remedies:
Tip #1: When giving slippery elm bark for nausea, take a tablespoon of hot water and mix it with about 1/2
capsule of SEB powder. As it starts to cool, it will thicken. Sometimes you can add more powder and sometimes
more water to get it to a thin enough consistency that you can fill a syringe. The easiest syringe to use is a 3ml,
and fill completely. Then insert the syringe in the back corner of your cat's mouth and let them drink it down.
Just be sure to make it as thick as possible as it helps coat the lining of the GI tract, similar to Pepto Bismol.
They call it a "liquid band aid". Slippery elm should be given at least two hours away from any other medications
or supplements. 30 minutes isn't long enough for the mucilagenous coating in the digestive tract to dilute enough
to let absorption take place, mostly in the intestines. Many holistic vets believe that when given with a meal, it
can inhibit the absorption of nutrients from the food.
Tip #2: For diarrhea or constipation, add a teaspoon of Libby's all natural canned pumpkin to your cat's meal.
Any canned pumpkin will do but Libby's is the best one and seems to be the most tasty. Make sure it's the 100%
pumpkin and not the pie filling. It works like magic. Canned pumpkin is only good for 3 days in frig. Place the
remainder in ice cube trays and freeze. Then place them in baggies and defrost as needed or freeze 3 days worth
at a time.
Medications:
Tip #1: When giving B12 or other injections, if you set them up for the shot by coaxing them down, doing some
huggin' and lovin', "tent" the skin on the back of the neck and plunge. Then immediately stick a favored treat
under their nose while rubbing the injection area to confuse the sensations. They don't really notice, nor dread
the shots.
Tip #2: When you have a large prescription bottle of B12 (100 mls) and want to use extra "light-blocking"
precautions, take an empty plastic container of Oxy-Clean powdered laundry additive and put the bottle in
there, cover and all, before putting it in the fridge. It fits perfect and doesn't take up much room. A smaller B12
bottle can be inserted into a regular empty prescription pill bottle.
Tip #3: When giving pills, empty gel caps can be used to mask the taste, combine several medications in one
pilling (as long as they are safe to give together), and remove sharp edges from cut pills. If your local pharmacy
doesn't have them, they can be bought online from capsuline.com, iherb.com, and other retailers. For cats, use
size 3,4, or 5. (Size three is the largest.) Simply put the pills in the capsule and administer (using a pill gun is
easiest). Always follow with a water chaser (3-5ml) to ensure the capsule gets into the stomach and reduce the
chance of esophageal irritation.
Tip #4: Instead of giving medications in Pill Pockets, which contain a lot of gluten, use a dehydrated raw food
treat like Wholelife Chicken or turkey. Soak the treat in a little water until it's saturated, insert the medication
and make a meatball out of it. This brand of treats is a big hit with a lot of cats!
Tip #5: When pilling your cat, use a pill gun and dip the rubber-tipped end in some low-fat cottage cheese. That
way when you pop the pill in your cat's mouth, it'll be slippery and just fly down his/her throat. Doesn't stick to
their tongue and they like the taste.
Tip #6: When giving a 5 mg dose of Prilosec to your cat, take a 20 mg capsule, empty and split it into 4 little
piles, putting each little pile into an empty #3 capsule. Using a dark colored dish for this really helps to see the
beads. You can use a small perfume funnel for this, a link for those are listed on the medications page under
supplies. Breaking into a delayed release enteric coated tablet in order to split it can be dangerous because you
aren't giving the same dose each time. This way each little bead in the capsule is enteric coated so there is no risk
of putting too much raw medicine in their tummy at once.
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