Cats are naturally curious beings, and almost nothing escapes their paws if they decide to investigate. Food is one such thing. Sometimes, you might also feed your cat a piece of meat or two during dinner. Meat is a food group that your cats love the most.
Whether cooked or raw, ground beef is food cats love to eat. But, while feeding ground beef to your cats, have you ever paused to think whether it’s good for their health? If you have, the answer to the question is yes, it’s good for them. Read on to know more about ground beef’s effect on cats.
Is Ground Beef Safe to Feed to Your Cats?
Cats, being obligate carnivorous animals, love meat. Ground beef is no different. Though ground beef has no vital nutrients to offer to cats’ survival, it provides a good level of protein, niacin, and iron.
Naturally, the biological needs of cats are different from human needs. A cat’s ideal diet should have eighty percent protein and twenty percent fat.
Ground meat may be very delicious and easy to digest, but it’s not always wise to share the food prepared for you with your feline companions. So, if the meat is not prepared correctly or given in large quantities, it’ll do more harm than good.
What is the Nutritional Value of Ground Beef?
Cooked ground meat has a lot of nutrients to offer for your four-legged companions, like vitamins and minerals.
Let’s look at some of the essential nutrients cats gain from eating ground beef.
1. Protein
The animal protein present in ground beef is one of the significant nutrients needed for your cats. This protein is packed with the amino acids necessary for healthy growth, muscle strength, and proper care of bones, tissues, and blood.
Protein helps a lot in assisting cats in healing well after surgery or helping old cats soothe their muscle weakness.
2. Fat
Fat is necessary, but it is one of the components that, in excess, might lead to chronic health issues and significant weight gain.
Ground beef is packed with a unique fat component called CLA (Conjugated Linoleic Acid). In limited quantities, CLA can help a lot in weight loss. Besides being delicious, it provides the necessary calories for your cat to be active and healthy.
Some other healthy acids in ground beef are palmitic acid, stearic acid, and oleic acid.
3. Water
Ground beef has approximately sixty percent water content. Naturally, it helps prevent dehydration in your furry companions. For cats that are active but drink less water, giving ground beef is an ideal choice. The water also helps in reducing hunger pangs by providing a sense of full stomach.
4. Vitamins
Ground beef is packed with various vitamins that are helpful to the proper functioning of your cat’s metabolism.
It has niacin which manages blood pressure and reduces Type-1 Diabetes, and vitamin B6, which promotes blood synthesis and boosts energy. It also has vitamin B12, which supports brain and nervous system function, and iron to prevent anemia.
How to Cook Ground Beef for Your Furry Friend?
Raw ground beef is not healthy for cats. Cooking it before giving it to them is the healthiest choice. The meat also becomes soft, assisting in easier digestion.
You can either boil or steam the beef. But one important tip to remember is that you should never add salt or other condiments like garlic, as they can lead to poisoning in your cats.
Here is an easy four-step ground beef cooking method for feeding your cats.
Step 1: Purchase top-quality ground beef.
Step 2: Steam or boil the beef till the temperature reaches around 165℉. Don’t forget that you should not add any spices or herbs.
Step 3: When the beef is sufficiently cooked, switch off the stove and let the meat cool down.
Step 4: You have safe and healthy cooked ground beef to feed your cat.
What Other Types of Meat Can You Feed Your Cats?
Apart from ground beef, there are other kinds of meat that you can safely give to your cats.
The table below shows the meat owners prefer the most for their cats and their corresponding health benefits.
Types of Meat |
Health Benefits |
Chicken |
The niacin, phosphorus, and choline promote healthy brain activity. |
Lamb |
The protein and vitamins promote healthy muscle growth and reduce the risk of anemia. |
Duck |
It offers protein, minerals, and vitamins essential for a healthy metabolism. |
Turkey |
It is the best addition to the diet as it is packed with protein. |
However, a vital fact to remember is that meat is healthy only to the point where you feed it in limited quantities without adding spice, herbs, or salt.
You should prepare the meat well before feeding it to your cat. Sometimes, work and the stress of life may prevent you from having the time to cook your cat’s food. In this regard, Purina Fancy Feast Gravy Wet Cat Food is an ideal choice, as it has turkey, beef, and chicken flavored cat food suitable for cats of any age.
What are the Advantages of Ground Beef over Regular Beef?
Ground beef’s nutrition and health benefits can be obtained from regular beef. So, what’s advantageous about feeding ground beef to your cats?
One of the most significant advantages of ground beef is that cats can easily digest it as the size is small and the texture is soft.
Your cats also won’t have the risk of choking. Regular beef comes in bigger sizes and may contain bones, while ground beef is easy to swallow and doesn’t have bones.
Conclusion
Now that you have read about ground beef and its benefits, you can safely feed them to your cats. As long as the ground beef is not raw and seasoned, it’s one of the healthiest foods for your furry friend. Though you might want to share your deliciously cooked meal with them, remember that each cat reacts to food differently, and it’s better to be on the safer side while feeding them.
