One of the most popular scenes of a pet cat at a house in pop culture is to show them lapping up the milk from the bowl. Whether it is Tom of the Tom and Jerry fame or just Snowbell from Stuart Little, all of them are busy sipping on milk. This leads to the general populace believing that milk is actually the ultimate cat food. Turns out that isn’t true at all!
A Cat’s Diet
It is very important to follow some strict guidelines when feeding your cat. In the do’s column, fish, meat, veggies, and fruits are great options, while nuts and seeds and a big no-no. Wrong foods can lead to some pretty upsetting tummy issues for your pet that they suffer through, and you suffer to clean through. Another addition to the not-to-be-eaten category is milk!
What’s Wrong With Milk
There’s nothing wrong with milk, but it turns out that cats find it hard to digest milk as a food item. Cow’s milk can lead to heavy gastrointestinal issues for the cat, aka tummy troubles. The reason is that cats are, more or less, lactose intolerant. In cow’s milk, the high concentration of lactose is hard for cats to digest, leading to bloating and nausea.
What Milk Can Cats Drink
Even though cow milk is not good for them, cats seem to love drinking milk. It is because of the fat and protein content found in them. So if you can’t get your cat to give up milk, you can just change the type of milk you’re giving your cat. One of the better options is goat’s milk, which has almost 30% less lactose content as opposed to cow’s. However, plant-based mills like soy and almond aren’t an optimum choice for cats. You can always opt for milk that is made especially for cats to maintain their health.