The dietary needs of the British Shorthair cat Like any other cat, the British Shorthair is a carnivore. Nature has equipped the cat’s body perfectly for catching and eating small prey: their superior senses, responsiveness and jumping power combined with sharp claws and teeth make them a perfect hunter.
And the digestive system is also designed exclusively for the processing of meat: This can be easily recognized by their intestines. While herbivores need a very long intestine in relation to their body size in order to digest nutrient-poor plants, carnivores like the cat have a short intestine.
For a healthy diet, the British So short-haired, above all, a lot of meat. This includes both muscle meat and offal such as the heart, stomach or liver. Because good cat food should always imitate a cat’s prey as well as possible. Because mice are the best food for cats. It is eaten with skin, hair and all of its innards, even the bones serve as a source of calcium.
There is little room for plant-based components: cats cannot utilize plant-based proteins well So grain, corn or soy have no place in cat food. And the British Shorthair cannot digest carbohydrates properly either, cats lack the appropriate enzymes for this.
Nevertheless, a small proportion of easily digestible vegetables in cat food for the British Shorthair makes sense, it does contains vitamins, minerals and, above all, fiber. The latter are beneficial for digestion. 1-3% plant-based food mimics the stomach contents of a mouse, which brings us back to the subject of natural and species-appropriate cat food.
British Shorthair food: That’s what matters The general rules for healthy cat nutrition also apply when feeding British Shorthairs. A suitable food for British Shorthair should meet the following requirements:
Meat content of at least 99%Lean meat and high quality offal and by-products (e.g. heart, stomach, liver, poultry necks, beets)No more than 5% herbal ingredients (1-3% are perfect)No GrainNo SugarNo artificial additives: preservatives, colourings, flavourings, gelling agents or flavor enhancers can be harmful to cats Caution: When it comes to meat, quality matters. Here you should pay attention to the declaration of the feed: Unappetizing slaughterhouse waste such as beaks, feathers, claws, bristles or even urine can hide behind the designation “meat and animal by-products”.
Manufacturers of quality cat food always state exactly which products they use. So for example “Composition: 95% chicken (lean meat, hearts, neck, broth, liver).
Different types of meat or fish can be fed alternately, but too much variety can quickly lead to food refusal.
You can find even more tips on how to recognize good food for cats in our guide!
Dry food for British Shorthair cats? The question of whether wet or dry food is better for British Shorthair cats is easy to answer.
In addition to the composition and quality of the ingredients, there is also moisture enormously important for British Shorthair cats.
Because like other fur noses, BKH are lazy about drinking.
Take cats get most of their fluid needs from their diet – Schl hey, they are originally descended from the wild cat, which comes from the Middle East, a very dry region.
Thus, dry food for British Shorthair cats is not a good idea. A wet food contains on average 80% moisture – as do mice. Dry food, on the other hand, comes in at just %. Dry food also has a high energy density and is therefore difficult to digest, for which the cat’s body needs additional liquid.
If a cat is not supplied with enough liquid, the risk of Severe urinary tract and kidney diseases.
A British Shorthair should not only be given dry food for this reason:
Contains due to production there are far too many herbal ingredients, often there are over 16%. This is far from the 1-3% that would be species-appropriate.
Furthermore, most dry food contains preservatives and antioxidants, without which it would spoil far too quickly. Flavor enhancers are also not uncommon, and the small croquettes are usually sprayed with fat and contain sugar. The latter mostly hidden behind statements such as “apple pomace” or “beet pulp”, the feed industry is very inventive there.
Without these tricks, no cat, including the BKH, would even consider dry food as Recognizing food, let alone accepting it.
Conclusion: High-quality wet food is ideal for the health of your British Shorthair cat.
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Do you need special food for the British Shorthair cat? Some manufacturers are now allegedly offering food specially tailored to the most popular cat breeds. For example, there is “Royal Canin British Shorthair Adult” for the BKH, as well as another variant for kittens.
If you take a closer look, the food consists largely of rice, corn and plant residues. The arguments as to why Royal Canin British Shorthair Adult and Kitten are said to be perfectly suited to the diet of British Shorthair cats are, in our opinion, quite flimsy.
But do British Shorthairs really need different food than other breeds of cats?
In our opinion not, on different breeds “matched” feed is an advertising narrative. An argument is invented and the advertisement persuades the customer that a problem is being solved that actually doesn’t exist.
Out of love for their pets, many cat owners use or even breeders to such a “special food”.
Our tip: With a high-quality wet food with a high meat content and without additives, pet owners are best advised with the British Shorthair. There are a few small things to note about her:
British Shorthairs tend to be overweight BKH cats have a stocky build which, together with the thick coat, gives them a strong appearance. In addition, cats of the breed tend to be overweight.
And that is yet another reason why dry food is not suitable for BKH: it has a much higher energy density than wet food. That means: A tiny amount of dry food contains a lot of calories, but doesn’t really fill the animal up.
So that your British Shorthair cat doesn’t get too clumsy, you should weigh it regularly and also measure the feed rations exactly.
Feeding 3 to 5 small portions spread over the day also helps better against ravenous hunger than, for example, two large meals. Treats as a reward should be given BKH sparingly.
Apart from the right food in the perfect amount, cat owners should ensure that the British Shorthair cat gets enough exercise. This makes it easier for her to hold the weight. Daily play is a must, especially for house cats. Release or a conspecific increase the activity of the animals without human intervention.
Health specifics of the British Shorthair The BKH is a very robust cat breed. There are hardly any diseases that occur noticeably often in her.
Rather rarely, hereditary diseases such as HCM (hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, heart disease) occur in the British Shorthair. and PKD (polycystic kidney disease).
The type of feeding has no influence on the occurrence or progression of these diseases, so a special BKH food for prevention is absolute nonsense.
So that your British Shorthair cat has a lan whole, can enjoy healthy life, natural is the best choice. It provides all the nutrients you need and enough taurine to strengthen heart function.
It is important that you keep an eye on the weight of your BKH, as excess weight can damage the joints, too diabetes mellitus or liver disease.
Our recommendation: The best food, also for British Shorthair cats 8149046 In our cat food test we have now examined many different brands and varieties and had them tested by our 5 cats.
We can also fully recommend our test winner ANIfit for British Shorthair:
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Food conversion at the BKH If your If you want to get the British Shorthair used to a new food, it is best to proceed step by step.
Mix a little bit of the new food into the old. If she eats this mix, you can increase at the next feeding.
In this way, you can gradually give your cat more of the new food and less of the old food.
The changeover from dry food to wet food is particularly difficult. The reason for this is the different consistencies and the attractants in the dry food.
You can find even more tips for changing the food for British Shorthair cats in our guide.
BKH kitten get used to food From the 6th week of life, a BKH kitten can be slowly introduced to wet cat food in parallel with mother’s milk or rearing milk.
You have to chop the feed well with a fork and dilute with a little water or rearing milk.
From the age of 8 to 10 weeks, British Shorthair kittens get along well with pure food.
Small cats can’t eat much at once – but they need a lot of calories to be able to grow. Therefore you should offer your BKH kitten food 5 to 7 times a day. Kittens can eat as much as they want. You can roughly orientate yourself on the feed recommendation for adult animals (4-6 kilos body weight).
By the way, special kitten food is superfluous, in our opinion also an invention of the feed industry. In the wild, kittens also eat the same mice as their mama…
A good quality diet will provide a growing British Shorthair with all the nutrients she needs.
You can get even more tips for feeding kittens in our guide.
Conclusion For British Shorthair It is best for cats to use high-quality and natural wet food. You should rather stay away from dry food. Pay attention to the weight of your cat, because BKH tend to be overweight.
Special food for this cat breed is an advertising trick and absolutely unnecessary.
