Ayurveda and Your Cat

Ayurveda and Your Cat

Author: Alakananda Devi, M.B., B.S. (Lond.)

Just like you, your cat can benefit from an Ayurvedic approach to food and daily routine. The best routine for your cat is that which most closely resembles the natural life of a non-domestic cat.

Food
The single most important thing to for your cat’s health is to stop feeding him or her dry cat food. Here’s why:

Dry cat food provokes vata because it is dry and rough.

Dry cat food provokes pitta due to content of toxic chemicals such as ethoxyquin (used to harden rubber) and BTA. These lead to aggressive behavior and fighting. Even high-quality dry cat food such as Avoderm contains corn, a pitta-provoking allergen. Feeding of a mono-diet also causes food allergies and other pitta reactions, leading to diarrhea and ulcerative colitis.

Dry cat food provokes kapha because it is high in carbohydrates, an unnatural food for cats. Due to its unnatural dryness, dry cat food disturbs the water carrying channels leading to diabetes, dehydration and thirst. Cats fed on a diet of commercial dry cat food readily develop urinary stones, cystitis, or even glomerulonephritis (kidney disease).

Commercial dry cat foods often contain such items as rendered cats and dogs, cancerous parts of cows, meat from diseased animals (all so-called meat by-products) as well as sweepings from granary floors. Such foods can lead to prion-caused diseases such as mad-cow disease.

Commercial wet cat foods also contain dangerous meat by-products. Use a good quality wet food such as Innova, Wellness or California Natural.

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