How much raw food do I feed my cat? Is there a raw feeding guide for cats? Those of two of the questions we’re often asked by readers transitioning their cats to a raw food diet.
–> Scroll down to view our Raw Feeding Guide charts, which show you how much raw food to feed your cat based on their bodyweight.
Image: Cloudtail via Flickr
How Much Raw Food?
Some raw feeders are guided by their cat when it comes to how much raw food they should feed. Whilst this is okay in theory, it only works if you have a cat who walks away from their food when their tummy is full. If you have a greedy cat with an insatiable appetite you need to measure and monitor your cat’s raw food.
It is generally recommended that you feed between 2% and 4% of your cat’s ideal bodyweight, split into two or three meals a day.
Every cat is different though, so when determining how much raw food to feed your cat you need to take into account factors such as:
- Age
- Current Weight
- Appetite
- Metabolism
- Activity and Exercise Levels.
For example, a senior cat who lives indoors and spends his day napping in the sun and walking only as far as his food bowl and litter box, is going to require much less food than a young and healthy active cat who spends his days playing and running outdoors in the fresh air.
Image: Tambako the Jaguar via Flickr
Raw Feeding Guide for Cats
The charts below include the recommended amounts of raw food to feed your cat based on 2%-4% of your adult cat’s bodyweight.
The per meal amount is based on feeding two meals per day. Although some people prefer to divide the daily amount into three daily meals. For example, if your cat weighs 3kgs and you want to feed them 2% of their bodyweight, you would adjust the daily amount of 60 grams into 3 meals of 20 grams each, rather than 2 meals of 30 grams each. Make sense?
I have provided the daily and per meal feeding amounts in grams, but it is EASY TO CONVERT these numbers into ounces.
To convert into ounces manually simply divide the amount in grams by 28.35
–> OR use an online grams to ounces Conversion Calculator.
For an inactive OR older cat OR a cat that needs to lose weight, 2% of your cat’s bodyweight is a good place to start.
If your cat has normal activity levels OR you want to maintain their current weight, use the 3% bodyweight chart to determine how much to feed your cat.
If you have an active OR younger cat OR a cat that needs to gain weight use the 4% of bodyweight chart to calculate how much to feed your cat.
Monitor your cat’s weight with regular weigh-ins and adjust the bodyweight percentage you feed your cat accordingly.
How Much Raw Food We Feed
Our cats are indoor only and range in weight from 5kgs to 6.4kgs (11 to 14 pounds). The two brothers have healthy appetites but are very different in terms of activity levels and metabolism. Max is active and athletic, always running up and down the hallway and up the cat tower. By comparison, Charlie is slightly overweight and more of a couch potato. He’s happier relaxing in a sunny spot or sitting alongside his favourite human.
To make meal times easier in our multi-cat household, we prepare and freeze all raw food meals in advance in 55 gram portions. This is the balanced raw cat food recipe that we follow.
All the cats are fed exactly the same amount which is based on 2% bodyweight of a 5.5kg adult cat. That means they get 55 grams in the morning and 55 grams again at night.
In our home, the girls (who each weigh 5kgs and theoretically only require 50 grams per meal) often walk away leaving a mouthful on their plate. Max eats the leftovers! Charlie would love to eat the leftovers too, but with inflammatory bowel disease and a chicken allergy we are extra careful about what he consumes.
In addition to feeding our cats 2% of their bodyweight spread over two meals a day, we also supplement their diet with a daily treat. The treats we feed include:
- freeze dried chicken pieces
- freeze dried chicken hearts
- chicken wing tips
- quail
- sardines
- pieces of human-grade raw meat (left-over from our dinner preparation).
Image: Benjamin Watson via Flickr
Monitoring Your Cat’s Weight
To some degree you can assess your cat’s weight based on how they look and feel. Are they feeling heavier or lighter when you pick them up or when they sit on your lap?
We recommend regular weigh-ins to monitor your cat’s weight, especially when you first transition to a raw food diet.
You can use the scales at your local vet to weigh your cat, but the easiest method is to use digital bathroom scales at home.
- Stand on the scales yourself and write down your weight.
- Pick up your cat and write down the new weight (you and your cat).
- Calculate the difference between your weight when standing alone and your weight holding your cat.
Based on the scale readings and how much your cat weighs you can adjust how much you feed your cat.
You may need to feed your cat slightly more if he has lost weight since switching to raw food. Or, you may need to reduce how much you feed your cat if he is putting on weight.
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This is so helpful. Our three cats all fall into the indoor, couch potato crew. Two of them are over 16 and Rosie is about 7.
Great advice ! It’s good to know the average amount of raw food per cat, it’s easier to adjust to each cat later. Purrs
This is important information! With raw food, it’s hard to know where to start with feeding amounts, especially if you have cats who will eat as much as you give them (we’re looking at you, Ashton!). Ashton has a slower metabolism and lower activity level, so and her raw food is so nutritionally dense that she has really packed on the weight with the same amount of food that suits Newton fine. So there really is a surprising amount of variation between cats.
My human actually gives Binga and Boodie MORE food than me! That’s because even though they’re older seniors, they are pretty active and as oldsters, they don’t metabolize protein as well as they used to. I’m kind of jealous – but I am smaller in general (only 7.5 pounds compared to their 9.5 – 10 lbs.), I guess they do need the supplements. Basically, my human knows that if any of us is losing weight and we seem fine otherwise, she needs to give us more food.
We were just discussing this! Erin needs to know about this!! Thanks!