Talk:Cat food

	This Food woo related article has not received a brainstar for quality. Please consider expanding the article appropriately. See RationalWiki:Article rating for more information.

"A diet composed primarily of non-meat substances can lead to alkaline urine, which is dangerous and can lead to kidney problems."

For humans or for cats? Sophie^Wilder 12:53, 24 April 2013 (UTC)

(EC) This is a bit of a random subject for an article. Since the only aspect covered is the viability of vegetarian cat food, I suggest merging a pared down version into the vegetarianism article rather than keeping a separate page for this. ΨΣΔξΣΓΩΙÐ^{Methinks it is a Weasel} 13:00, 24 April 2013 (UTC)

Or Cat. Sophie^Wilder 13:05, 24 April 2013 (UTC)

Actually I do find this of interest. IAMS is actually using the "I am not a vegetarian" line in its cat food advertising here, saying it has a lot of animal protein in its food.

Also there are some urban legends about ethnic minorities and catfood... -Albannach (talk) 15:00, 24 April 2013 (UTC)

Edit war

Why the rollbacks? I think pertinent points are precisely proposed. --Dirk Steele (talk) 09:06, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

Because the reasoning is superficial? While it's true that cat food advertising is targeted towards humans (duh!), the rest is suspect, and some parts are contrary to observed reality: I've seen how a cat reacts to human-grade tuna, and I'm pretty sure cats can kill chickens.--ZooGuard (talk) 09:13, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

Ok sorry. I am trying to listen to John H Conway's lectures on free will, feed the meowing cats, and consuming a half bottle of whisky all before breakfast. I am shit at multi-tasking so I will now bow out disgracefully... --Dirk Steele (talk) 09:20, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

One person keeps remeowving it. Honestly, I know this site is irony-deficient, but some people are taking it literally. Literalism, hmmm.

I don't think it's superficial at all, since the next section rants about deals with vegan cat food. Why does most cat food come in flavours of animals they can't catch? No one seems to notice this oddity.Albannach (talk) 09:29, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

Because those animals are the ones it's convenient to buy the dismembered flesh of in bulk (and nobody feels like volunteering to test the authenticity of artificial-mouse-flavour cat food). Hydrogen and Time (talk) 09:35, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

I will! I had a nice mouse madras last night. I think. Dirk Steele (talk) 09:39, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

Didn't Romans eat dormice or is that UL?Albannach (talk) 09:45, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

Yes, the Romans ate Glis glis. I understand that the Slovenians still do. Hydrogen and Time (talk) 10:00, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

More likely, it's because humans eat them. Either that or someon can't tell the difference between big cats and wee ones. Someone somewhere must have remarked on this and how bizarre it is.Albannach (talk) 09:45, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

My cats eat grass. Are they vegan? Although they do tend to throw up shortly after.. Dirk Steele (talk) 09:47, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

Dogs are said to chew grass in order to make themselves vomit, maybe cats are the same.Albannach (talk) 09:56, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

Oh yeah. It is rumoured they eat grass in order to regurgitate their fur balls or whatever. Vegans do the same? Dirk Steele (talk) 10:03, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

Rumoured? You should see my effing lounge carpet sometimes. Sophie^Wilder 10:05, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

Just buy a dark green shag pile carpet with brown speckles. - problem solved. --Dirk Steele (talk) 10:09, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

"Because humans eat them" is functionally indistinguishable from "it is convenient to buy their dismembered flesh in bulk" as a reason for using them in cat food and dog food, if you ask me. Hydrogen and Time (talk) 10:00, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

That's it precisely. I can't think of a cat food flavour that isn't also a farmed/fished animal. And of course there's a pet rodent breeding industry but you never see them on the tins, people would complain. Sophie^Wilder 10:05, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

Certainly rabbit cat food appears to be on sale. Just checked, but it's not common on the supermarket shelves.-Albannach (talk) 14:46, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

Really? Or is it simply that what we consume is a moral issue? Dirk Steele (talk) 10:09, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

Or a squeamishness issue about pets eating other pets. Sophie^Wilder 10:21, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

Squeamishness (nice word!) is a moral issue. Dirk Steele (talk) 10:24, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

The lede section basically announces to the reader that we've got nothing worthwhile to say. It starts with a statement that is blatantly false (that no thought goes into the taste of the product) then rambles on about what animals a cat can or can't kill, as if that's even relevant to what they can eat. Plus there's a ugly great line through part of it. & Honestly, does anyone over the age of about ten genuinely find the concept of mouse-flavoured cat food either amusing or thought-provoking? Wěǎšěǐǒǐď^{Methinks it is a Weasel} 18:25, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

I do! --81.101.244.221 (talk) 18:30, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

Since most of your readers are probably self-satisfied sceptics, a lot of the other stuff isn't thought provoking to them really... but I doubt many of them have ever considered how bizarre these common cat food varieties are. Dare I say irrational? Albannach (talk) 22:22, 1 May 2013 (UTC) ps Not a ramble, it's called tongue in cheek humour. I sometimes think some "rationalists" subconsciously lean towards puritanism.

Well, you've managed to turn it into a forgettable humourless paragraph stating the bleeding obvious, from a memorable one about the surreal marketing of the stuff. A number of people I asked about this said they'd never noticed this, but that when they thought about it, the notion of a (small) cat eating a cow was ludicrous.

Regarding the taste aspect- cat food often smells great to us and presumably is market tested on cats, but generally tastes of virtually nothing. To my shame, I've actually tried several varieties in small quantities. (Don't ask!) I appreciate cats have different taste, but if it's flavourless to me, I doubt the cat can taste much either. Albannach (talk) 22:38, 1 May 2013 (UTC)

A cat eating a cow isn't inherently more ludicrous than a person eating one. But then nobody's asking a cat or a person to eat a cow; other people slaughter, butcher & prepare the meat so we don't have to. As for the taste aspect, I expect the research carried out by cat food manufacturers is probably a bit more thorough & relevant than yours. ₩€₳$€£ΘĪÐ^{Methinks it is a Weasel} 23:31, 1 May 2013 (UTC)

Considering that homo sapiens has been hunting and eating bovines throughout its history, in every environment in which they were to be found, and that felis catus would struggle to hunt, kill and eat a healthy newborn calf, no I don't think it's ludicrous for us to eat cattle. (Whether it is right and acceptable is a separate matter) At least one tribe eats almost nothing else, and as a reminder of our closeness, I and millions of others have evolved genetic adult tolerance of lactose in cow's milk. Domestic cats eat beef because humans do, and no other reason.

The fact remains that cat food, like baby food, is almost entirely geared to the buyer, not the actual end consumer. Therefore, it's nicely packaged, smells good and looks good to us humans. As long as the cat gobbles it up, the taste is irrelevant to the purchaser as few humans will ever actually eat it. Oh and I'm sure their research is more relevant and thorough than mine. (I'd better flag that up as sarcasm. You seem to be a bit lacking in the subtlety department.) Is it hell! Corporations usually have two main aims, viz a positive public image (avoiding being sued etc) and squeezing every last penny out of a product. They couldn't give a flying fig roll what the cat thinks, as long as humans buy it in vast quantities.-Albannach (talk) 00:59, 2 May 2013 (UTC)

Well, RW may be "preaching to the converted", but if we want the converted to cite RW in arguments, the articles need to be reasonably fallacy-free. (I know I've written a bunch of garbage in my articles, but I'm trying to fix them, so, please, no tu quoque.)--Krej^talk 00:46, 28 April 2013 (UTC)

Are cats Jewish?

Chickens and tuna aren't that easy to dismember. Why do we never see bacon/ham/pork flavoured cat food? (at least not on my local shelves)?-Albannach (talk) 10:14, 26 April 2013 (UTC) ps wild dogs can take down large animals.

Everyone knows cats are jewish. Dirk Steele (talk) 10:19, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

Cats aren't Jewish. Jews believe in a being superior to themselves. Sophie^Wilder 10:22, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

Exactly. My cats think they are more jewish than I am.. Dirk Steele (talk) 10:25, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

Sorry - didn't see the 'a' in your sentence.. Dirk Steele (talk) 10:29, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

Yes, ours went to the synagogue regularly.Anyone spotted pig-meat cat food? I've seen venison but not pig.. .Albannach (talk) 10:27, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

Yep mine too.. which is why I circumcised them asap... Dirk Steele (talk) 10:29, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

[The Straight Dope] confirm that some pet food vendors use pig-derived material (pork, pig fat, pig offal) in some of their pet food lines. Hydrogen and Time (talk) 10:32, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

Oh no!! My cats are Islamic? Dirk Steele (talk) 10:39, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

Well at least they are not janners. We must be thankful for small mercies.. Dirk Steele (talk) 10:46, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

I'm sure the Straight Dope is right, but have you ever seen pigmeat cat food marketed as such?-Albannach (talk) 14:44, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

Nope! I agree with you. Food is a moral issue. Even for our pets and our pet beliefs. Sorry for delay in reply. I have been vandel binned again! 81.101.244.221 (talk) 17:13, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

Urine acidifier

There's a vegan supplement which claims to acidify the cat urine. Does it work?--Кřěĵ^t̪åɬк 19:06, 8 May 2013 (UTC)

Cates and vegan cat food

If the cats are allowed out the food in tins can be as 'vegetarian' as the tin-buyers like (flying cat food, swimming cat food, 'neighbours meals and left-overs' cat food...).

And the captcha question is 'fish and chips' :) 171.33.222.26 (talk) 18:14, 16 December 2013 (UTC)

December 2013

1. "Cat food is really meant to appeal to human consumers, so a lot of effort is put into making the stuff look and smell good."
   I thought it had to have that gawd-awful strong smell for the cat's benefit.
2. "In addition, plant-based cat diets usually have too many carbohydrates and not enough protein, which can lead to obesity."
   Dr. Atkins was a vet? I thought cats were fat because they did fuck-all all day.
3. "In some jurisdictions, such as California^{[citation needed]} and Norway it is illegal to feed cats a meat-free diet."
   Wonder how they enforce that rule.
4. Why not a wp:Pescetarianism diet, or even something more primitive like shellfish and insects? Could cats live on zooplankton?
5. Why do I get the feeling that the average person (in the First World at least) eats more meat than the average cat, or that per unit mass, the meat industry profits more from meat sold to humans than to animals. Also check the ingredients of the dry food—seems to be mostly plant based.
6. Would it be moral to feed animals found dead to cats?
7. As insults go, claiming that immigrants eat pet food, or for that matter pets, is a pretty lame one. First off, a can of beans can be cheaper and better-tasting—why would they bother with pet food? Second, who cares? What if you were about to be kissed by the most beautiful woman (or man, if that works better for you) and you found out she eats a can of cat food every day—let's say she says it keeps her hair particularly silky smooth. Would you recoil?
8. Immigrants are poor. Whaddaya expect? They're immigrants. Fuck, these racists are fucking dense! What next Herr Poindexter, gonna tell us that some speak different languages? (Note: rant not directed at RW'ians.)
9. Didn't Iggy have a song about eating dog food?
10. I wouldn't be surprised if some corporate execs ate cat food to show off how good it is.
11. Mel Gibson's character ate dog food to show how tuff he was. Rambo reputedly would eat stuff that'd make a billygoat puke. Wonder what Klingons would think of cat and dog food. "This meat is cooked, but it does have flavour. What is it called?" "Alpo." "'Alpo', the canned food of warriors."

Talk to Civic Cat 19:18, 19 December 2013 (UTC)

The Trevor Grundy quote mentions Kitty Kat, yet the brand name is Kit-e-Kat. Is this a typo in the book, or in the transcription? Генгис^{RationalWiki GOLD member} 19:57, 19 December 2013 (UTC)

'Apparently' some executives were trying to see why their cat food wasn't selling - so they tasted it and found they liked it even less than the moggies did. 171.33.222.26 (talk) 15:32, 20 December 2013 (UTC)