Is it safe for my cat to eat human canned salmon as a temporary meal?

I would be very cautious about feeding any food in addition to kitten dry food as this upsets the nutritional balance of the diet and can lead to excess protein and lowered mineral intake and can affect growth and development. A teaspoonful a couple of days a week as a treat should be ok but I would not feed daily

People food is just that – food for people. Cats are obligate carnivores, and as such, have a delicate balance of protein, carbohydrates, fat, and vitamins and minerals that must be maintained. Cats should eat a balanced high quality diet in order to meet all of their nutritional needs. Unbalanced diets with vitamin/mineral imbalances risk a variety of health problems. Home cooked diets are not as commonly recommended, but are preferred by some cats and pet owners. If you opt to go down this road, a carefully crafted recipe by a specialist in veterinary nutrition should be used with proper vitamin and mineral supplementation. Even with a commercial diet, occasional treats of boiled white meat chicken, turkey, salmon, or tuna can be perfectly fine in small quantities.

If your cats have not had any issues with either product then they are probably ok for a treat occasionally for your kitties. The sardines if they contain bones may pose a slight risk as occasionally we can see obstruction or damage to the esophagus or stomach due to bones. If the sardines in tomato sauce have garlic or onion in them, they would not be recommended. Neither food would be recommended as a sole diet however as they wouldn't be a complete and balanced diet for your kitty.

Hello and thank you for reaching out to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. It is OK to feed Bandit tuna and salmon along with his dry food. It is not necessarily "healthier" than wet food. Most commercial cat diets, whether dry or canned/wet, are formulated to be balanced in the appropriate macro- and micronutrients that cats require as part of their daily nutrition. As long as Bandit is eating an appropriate amount of the dry commercial cat food (there should be feeding amounts based on weight on the bag), giving him extra food in the form of tuna and salmon is OK. Just be careful about giving him too many calories, as this can cause him to be overweight. Obesity in cats is linked to many disease processes such as arthritis, diabetes and liver disease. I recommend asking your veterinarian to help you determine the correct amounts of each food that you should be offering Bandit to keep him at a healthy weight. I hope this is helpful!

Hello and welcome to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. You can feed your cat canned tuna, chicken, other meats (just cook them as you would for yourself), potatoes, carrots, pumpkin/squash. There are other foods as well. Avoid toxic foods (grapes, onions, garlic, raisins, chocolate) and very fatty foods, but just give a bit of your food. Spicy food should be avoided as well. Best of luck with your kitty!

A small amount is unlikely to do any harm, however it is probably too high in sodium to make a good treat for Lily. I'd also be concerned about mackerel causing vomiting or diarrhea. I'd suggest finding a cat specific treat made by Royal Canin or another pet food company as these will be less likely to cause GI distress. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

If it's a complete and balanced cat food that contains tuna, that is fine to feed regularly. However, 100% tuna from a can (meant for human consumption) should only be given as a rare treat. You're welcome to post another question with the specific type of cat food in question, if you're unsure whether what you have is considered "complete and balanced."