Persian Cat Food: How to Feed My Cat?

The Persian is a majestic cat that leaves no one indifferent. But like many purebred cats, the Persian is a feline with fragile health, which needs a suitable and quality diet. Find here all our advice for feeding your beloved Persian cat well .

Bien nourrir son chat Persan - Persian Cat Food: How to Feed My Cat?

Did you know? The Persian is the most common feline breed in the world. This long-haired feline with a small flattened muzzle is the result of a cross between an Angora and a British Shorthair and whose “first standard was published in 1889 by Harisson Weir, the father of modern feline technology”, explains the Official Book of Feline Origins ( LOOF ).

Since then, the Persian has won the hearts of many Cat Lovers. It must be said that this mustachioed cat is exceptional, both for its beauty and its character. Calm and not very talkative, it is a discreet cat, but which is nevertheless very affectionate and tender with its parents. If you have a Persian at home, you do not miss cuddles or naps for two on the sofa. 😻

The Persian is an incredible cat, which nevertheless requires special attention in terms of its food . Its health being fragile, it needs a quality diet that will preserve its kidney function in particular. Just like the Birman , the Persian cat is predisposed to polycystic kidney disease, a pathology characterized by the presence of cysts in the parenchyma of the kidneys. This disease can gradually develop into kidney failure. It is therefore necessary to ensure that it is given a diet that best preserves its kidneys. Above all, it must be rich in quality proteins and low in phosphorus.

Here are all our tips for feeding your Persian cat well , so that it can be happy and comfortable for as long as possible.

What food should you choose for your Persian cat?

Your cat's health starts in his bowl. A poor diet could have consequences on the health of your little ball of fur.

Pate instead of kibble for your Persian cat

Contrary to popular belief , pâté is absolutely not a treat. On the contrary, when it is complete, it is the food that comes closest to your cat's natural needs.

Its main asset: its water content! Unlike kibble, pâté contains on average 75% water (compared to 10%). It is therefore very hydrating for your mustachioed one who, as a reminder, hydrates mainly through his food. Just like their ancestors from the desert, our cats are small drinkers and consume water mainly via the mice or voles they hunt. They have this ability to keep the water contained in the tissues of their prey that they eat.

By consuming cat food , your Persian will drink water without realizing it, and above all, this hydration will be beneficial for his kidneys. Their major role is to regulate hydration and minerals, to eliminate toxins constantly produced by the body. Irrigated, they filter the blood, direct electrolytes (sodium, chlorine, potassium), water and many substances from protein metabolism (such as creatinine and urea) to the urine.

To best preserve your Persian cat's kidneys , pâté is the best choice, especially since it has many other advantages: it prevents urinary disorders, limiting urinary concentration, but also the risks of obesity and diabetes . Pate is on average four times less caloric than kibble (for equal weight), and thanks to its high moisture content, it provides volume in the stomach, thus contributing to the feeling of satiety. A good point for cats who are a little too greedy and for Persian cats who are not very active by nature.

So should we ban kibble?

A mostly wet diet is ideal for your cat, for all the reasons mentioned above. That said, it is entirely possible to give your cat kibble, in addition to its pâtés , but these dry foods must remain a minority in its diet. You can offer your little cat a 100% wet bowl (exclusively pâté) or a mixed bowl (kibble and pâtés).

To find out how much pâté and/or kibble to give your cat, don't hesitate to use our personalized ration calculator.

Pâté and/or kibble, the most important thing will also be the quality of the food. This is what we will see in the rest of this article.

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A food rich in quality proteins

The quality of the proteins present in your cat's kibble and/or pâtés is an essential criterion to take into account. Our cats are strict carnivores, who need a diet rich in proteins . But be careful, do not rely only on the quantity of proteins contained in its pâtés and/or kibbles!

Some cat foods can display 38% or even 50% protein, which is pretty good at first glance. But when you dig a little deeper, you realize that the proteins are mainly from carcasses, bone residues, feathers , etc. And these have little or no nutritional benefit for your Persian and can even impact its health in the long term.

These proteins are notably sources of phosphorus , which is found in quantity in carcasses, cartilage and fish bones. Like urea, phosphorus is eliminated by the kidneys. The higher the quantity, the more these organs must work to eliminate it, which can lead to chronic kidney disease in the long term. Several studies including those of Böswald (2018) and Dobenecker (2018) have shown that foods too rich in digestible phosphorus can have harmful consequences on the kidney function of our cats.

So make sure to offer your little Persian food rich in QUALITY proteins. To check this, do not hesitate to look at the back of the packet of kibble or the can of pâté for the phosphorus level, the crude ash level or the Protein Phosphorus Ratio (RPP) . This ratio indicates the proportion between proteins and phosphorus.

Quality protein sources have a very high protein-to-phosphorus ratio, which means a lot of protein for little phosphorus. High-quality proteins include muscle (fish, meat, eggs, heart), and organ meats (liver, lung lobe, etc.). Grains, carcasses, and bones, on the other hand, have a low protein-to-phosphorus ratio.

To learn more, please read our article on proteins in your cat's diet.

Important: Contrary to popular belief, proteins are absolutely not the enemies of the kidneys, if and only if they are of good quality, due to their low phosphorus content!

At Ziggy, you will not find any reconstituted meat or animal meal in our wet food. We only use muscle and noble offal (hearts, livers, lung lobes) of great nutritional richness and highly assimilated by our cats.

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Low-carbohydrate food

Carbohydrate levels are also another indicator to consider for your Persian, but also for all other cats, regardless of their breed.

It is important to know that carbohydrates are not an essential nutrient for our mustachioed creatures; they are able to synthesize glucose from amino acids provided by animal proteins. This is called gluconeogenesis.

They are also not adapted to digest, absorb and metabolize very large quantities of carbohydrates. Excessive consumption of starch - a carbohydrate found in cereals, tubers and legumes - can cause digestive problems in our cats, such as diarrhea , constipation or even bad breath .

Since cats are strict carnivores whose “natural” diet is based mainly on protein-rich prey, it has also been suggested that carbohydrate-rich foods could increase the demand for insulin secretion, and thus predispose to the development of diabetes mellitus ( 2017 study ).

At Ziggy, we preferred to keep it simple and healthy, and not put any cereals, starches or legumes in our cat food. No starch, no problem! Our cat food contains less than 2% carbohydrates. These are naturally provided by noble offal, muscles and vegetables. As for ourcat kibble , these are also low in carbohydrates. Our salmon and chicken cat kibble display 23 and 24% carbohydrates respectively, and our kitten kibble , these contain only 18% carbohydrates.

Good fatty acids for its beautiful coat

The Persian cat has a beautiful coat , which needs to be taken care of. To keep your Persian's coat beautiful, it needs fatty acids, especially Omega 3 and 6. Good sources of Omega 3 are fish, shellfish and flax seeds. As for Omega 6, it is found in vegetable oils such as rapeseed oil. Some of our Ziggy pâtés contain long-chain Omega 3 (EPA and DHA). We add it in the form of small fish oil.

Proteins, provided they are qualitative, also contribute to the good health of the coat. As explained in our article on the cat's coat , the skin and hair are largely made up of proteins: approximately 90% of the hair is made up of them (keratin). During the hair growth phases, the protein requirement can represent up to 30% of the cat's protein intake.

Chat Persan aux longs poils  - Persian Cat Food: How to Feed My Cat?

Fibers for its transit

The Persian cat has long hair. When grooming itself, it ingests a large quantity of hair which can become blocked - if not eliminated - in its intestine and cause intestinal occlusion in the long term.

To ensure good digestion, choose a moist food that contains a balanced amount of fiber, particularly from vegetables such as carrots, green beans or zucchini .

Several small meals a day

Our cats are small nibblers, meaning they eat several small meals during the day and night. In the wild, for example, a cat will eat rodents and other small prey, and thus eat up to 20 meals a day. Our whiskered ones have retained this nibbling behavior, but instead of field mice, they have kibble and/or pâté.

At Ziggy, we recommend that you divide his food into several small meals, i.e. 4 meals per day/night (kibble and pâtés). If you have to go out, you can give one portion in the morning and another in the evening. If necessary, you can also invest in a fun dispenser.

How to properly feed your Persian kitten?

If you have just adopted a Persian kitten, its diet will be crucial for its future. Kittens need suitable and quality food to grow well and be healthy. Its food must cover all its nutritional needs.

As with adult Persian cats, he must get essential amino acids (taurine, arginine, leucine, lysine, etc.) from his meals. These are provided by animal proteins. He also needs to find lipids (essential fatty acids), minerals, vitamins and fibers for his transit in his food.

While growing , kittens have slightly higher needs. Their bodies are gradually maturing, synthesizing new tissues, etc. They need a diet that is slightly richer in proteins, amino acids, lipids, essential fatty acids, vitamins and trace elements. However, unlike adult cats, their diet should not be too rich in fiber, because of their sensitive digestive system.

It is therefore essential to offer your kitten kibble and pâtés adapted to its age. To help you make the right choice, we share all our advice for choosing the best food for your kitten.

At Ziggy, we take care of your kitten as if it were our own. Formulated by Veterinarian Dr. Géraldine Blanchard , an expert in feline nutrition, our kitten kibble and pâtés are rich in quality proteins (muscles and noble offal of great nutritional richness), rich in fat, low in carbohydrates and balanced in calcium and phosphorus to take care of your kitten, while delighting it.

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Now you know everything about feeding your Persian cat . If you want to try our products, don't hesitate to try our Discovery Boxes. Your little cat will be able to taste them (and adopt them).

Our Ziggy Family has many little Persians, cats who purr with happiness every day with their Ziggy kibble and pâtés. 💛


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