Should I Give My Cat Fish?

2023 Author: Molly Page | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-07-31 03:34

Cats have been fed fish for so long and they have eaten so much of this fish throughout their history that it is simply impossible to believe that it can harm cats. Indeed, fish is a very valuable source of protein. But surprisingly, cats can develop diseases caused by eating fish in particular.

First, many types of fish (eg herring and cod) in their raw form contain a large amount of the enzyme thiaminase, which destroys vitamin B1 (thiamine) contained in feed. Lack of vitamin B1 can gradually lead to loss of appetite, manifestations of nervous disorders (dizziness, trembling, convulsions), dermatitis. Hot cooking destroys this enzyme.

Secondly, when eating river or lake raw fish affected by helminths, it will most likely get sick with helminthiases, which is dangerous for the owner of the animal. For example, Diphyllobothrium latum is found in freshwater fish caught off the coast of Northern Ireland. In some rivers of North America and South Africa, fish are affected by flat helminths - the pulmonary trematodes Paragonimus kellicotti. In the raw liver of some marine fish that come to us, there are substances that can damage the nervous system.

In river and sea waters, heavily polluted by industrial and agricultural wastewater, poisonous substances can accumulate in the muscles of fish along the food chain. Eating raw and cooked fish can lead to poisoning with pesticides, herbicides and heavy metals (lead, mercury, cadmium).

Foods that are poor in vitamin E and rich in unstabilized polyunsaturated fats can lead to inflammation of the subcutaneous fat cells (pansteatitis, or yellow fat disease). At the same time, pressure on the skin causes pain, so that the cat is not given in the hands. Most often this happens when the cat eats a large amount of canned red tuna and (less often) because of the consumption of other types of fish (especially oily) and a large amount of horse meat.

One disease is known that was previously thought to arise from the feeding of fish to cats, although it has now been established that this is not the case. We are talking about a type of dermatitis, which was previously called "fish eczema". In fact, the irritation of the skin and blisters arising from the disease, which later burst and form scabs, are the result of an allergic reaction to lice bites ("lousy allergic dermatitis" ").