Tips & Troubleshooting for Homemade Cat Food

Tips + Troubleshooting

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It can be a challenge to switch your cat’s food. Some cats have sensitive stomachs and some are just super picky!

We've included some of our most successful transitioning and palatability tips below

Patience and a willingness to experiment is key 😉

The information on this page is to be used as a guideline. Please make adjustments as necessary for your cat(s) and their specific goals and veterinary care.

Transitioning Tips

Make It Tasty!

Food Consistency

FAQ's & Resources

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Transitioning Tips

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Some cats transition easily and some require a slow, methodical transition from what they’re currently eating. Sometimes getting creative and playing around with different protein options and palatability ideas helps. Below are some ideas to help you get started.
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Switching from Dry Food (kibble)

Grind up a bit of your cat’s favorite dry food (a coffee grinder or food processor works well ) and sprinkle some on top of the homemade food. This did the trick for a couple of our cats!

If they’ve been eating kibble for many years, you may need to start by sprinkling a little water on the kibble and slowly increasing the amount of water until they get used to eating soft kibble. 

When cooked, Ground Turkey has a more "kibble-like" consistency - this can be a good option to start with for kibble-loving cats.

Our Liver Powder Plus+ Food Topper contains a lower level of the phosphate added to commercial food - sprinkling a little of this on top of homemade food provides that taste they're seeking.

If they refuse to eat the homemade food, try offering wet (canned) food and see if they’ll eat it. Then follow the wet food transition tips below.

Switching from Wet Food (canned)

Mix a little homemade food into your cat’s favorite wet food. Every 2-3 days, slightly increase the amount of homemade food you’re mixing in, while you decrease the amount of wet food.

If your cat isn’t excited about eating homemade food without anything else mixed in, you may have to continue to mix in a little canned food with the homemade food. It’s still a better option than a completely canned food diet!

Food Toppers are a favorite of our cats! Plus they're easy to use and rotate as needed. See below for a list of ideas to try! 

Sensitive Stomachs

Most cats with sensitive stomachs require a SLOW transition. Their systems need time to adjust to new food. 


Start by mixing in a little bit (example: a teaspoon or less) of homemade food to their current food for few days. Then, slowly increase the amount of homemade food while decreasing the amount of the current food every few days until their meals consist of mostly homemade food. 

Cats with sensitive stomachs usually transition easier with homemade food made from meat that is cooked. Cooked meat tends to be a little easier to digest than raw meat.

Food consistency also makes a difference. Some kitties need food that is more paté-like in consistency. Their little tummies don't do well with chunkier food. 


A food processor or immersion blender work well for this. Try putting the homemade food into the food processor and puréeing it or add the food to a bowl and use an immersion blender to make it a fine consistency. You may need to add water to each of these methods to create a paté.

Digestive Issues

Thankfully, this isn't a common occurrence, but it can happen. If your cat is experiencing digestive upset, please download our document referring to this issue below: 

Troubleshooting Digestive Issues PDF

If you are concerned for your pet's health, please contact your Veterinarian.

Palatability Tips - Make it Tasty!

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Food Toppers are an easy way to increase palatability for most cats - below are ideas that have worked well for us, but please feel free to try your own ideas!
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Liver Powder Food Toppers

Most cats love the taste of liver powder!  Bonus: it's very nutritious!

 

Sprinkle a little bit on top of the food (re-sprinkle as necessary) - Tucker usually won’t eat his food without it! 

 

We have 3 Food Topper options available - including a Pork Liver Topper for cats with poultry protein sensitivities.

 

Our Trial Size Homemade Cat Food Kits include a Liver Powder Topper to try out!

Fish Oil

If your cat likes the taste of fish, this is an easy option to try out. 

 

Simply add a couple drops of Wild Anchovy Oil to the top of the food or mix it in and see if kitty likes it.

 

Our Wild Anchovy Oil is sustainably sourced, wild caught and molecularly distilled to remove impurities. Anchovies contain a higher level of Omega-3 fatty acids than salmon, so it's a highly beneficial option!

Shredded Chicken Breast

If your cat likes chicken, chances are it will LOVE a little shredded chicken breast on top of its food!

 

Mia and Izzy especially love this topper option and never get tired of it.

 

It’s a simple, healthy, whole food palatability option.

Canned or Fresh Fish

Fish is high in phosphorous and can contain heavy metals, so we use tuna or salmon as a topper sparingly or as a special treat

 

Add a little canned or cooked filet on top of or mixed into the homemade food - works great for fish-loving cats!

Nutritional Yeast

Some cats love a good yeasty flavor!

 

We like the Trader Joe’s brand of Nutritional Yeast. Sprinkle a pinch or two on top of the food and see what kitty thinks.

 

This trick worked really well for Coconut!

Crumbled Treats

Freeze-dried treats or gently dehydrated snacks work great for this!

 

Simply crumble and sprinkle a little on top of the food. 

 

Try our selection of Naked Beasts Pet Snacks for a healthy, delicious topper or treat! Mia and Tucker approved ✅

Simply Nourish Grain Free Shreds

Great for cats that like a need a little variety to mix up their tastebuds. 

 

Mia loves a teaspoon of this on top of her homemade food. 😻

 

We mainly stick to the poultry-only or beef-poultry options - there are a couple options without any veggies in them. These can currently be found at PetSmart.

Instinct Raw Boost Mixers

This is a freeze-dried food topper that’s easy to find at PetSmart and PetCo.

 

We use the Cage-Free Chicken Formula for Cats. Kona especially loves this option! 

 

Take one piece, crumble it between your fingers and sprinkle it on top of the food - use more or less as needed.

Churu

Churu (or your cat’s favorite “licky stick”) dotted on top of or mixed into the homemade cat food can be helpful!

 

We also mix half a stick of Churu with a spoonful of water and a scoop of Microbiome Booster to make "Churu Soup" - great little hydrating treat that gets picky cats like Kona to take his daily dose of Microbiome Booster! 😸  Izzy literally goes crazy for it! 

Palatability Tips - Food Consistency

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Sometimes the consistency of the food can make a big difference! Some cats prefer their food more chunky and less "wet" and some love a soupy, paté-like meal.
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Chunky Consistency

Most of our cats prefer a chunkier, less-wet food. Great for transitioning cats from kibble. 

 

If you think your cat might also prefer this type of food, try ground turkey or roughly ground up chicken breasts/thighs (or other meat), to see if this is preferred by your cat.

Creamy, Paté-like Consistency

A creamier, paté-like consistency is easier to digest and great for cats with sensitive stomachs and those missing a lot of teeth. Also great for cats that love a canned, creamy paté food.

 

To achieve this, we slow cook chicken breasts and thighs until the meat is easy to shred. Using the juices already in the pot, we add the Omega-3 Oil and Homemade Cat Food Supplement Mix and mix it all up (a stand mixer works excellent for this!).

 

Another prep method is to grind the chicken thighs using the smallest meat grinder plate OR purée the meat in the food processor OR use an immersion blender - all of these options yield a finely ground meat. 

Challenges or Questions?

We completely understand how challenging it can be to transition your cat to a healthier, cleaner diet.

It’s hard enough getting ourselves to eat one! If you need a little support or guidance, please reach out and let’s see if we can troubleshoot the issue together. 

 

You can reach us by email at support@superiorfeline.com or through our Contact Page.

Helpful Resources & FAQs

Meat Prep Options Document

There are a variety of ways to prepare meat - we put together a helpful document of methods we and our customers have tried with success:

Click Here for the Meat Prep Options PDF

How much homemade food should I feed my cat?

The amount of homemade food to offer your cat depends on a number of factors including age, activity level, size, breed and health. Generally, plan for your cat to consume between 2-4% of its body weight daily.

 

You may need to experiment with the amount of food your cat needs (more/less food) to find the amount that works best for them and supports their health, growth and energy needs.

 

Please see the Feeding Guidelines Page with more information regarding feeding amounts, including age, weight and special breeds.

Vary the Proteins

It’s good to vary the proteins you feed your cats so that they don’t get tired of one protein and then refuse to eat it or develop an allergy to it.

Example: You could rotate protein options weekly. Some veterinarians recommend a slow transition by mixing increasing amounts of the transition food into the current food at the beginning of each cycle.

A couple of our cats prefer different homemade food proteins throughout the day 

Example: Turkey in the morning, Pork for mid-day and Chicken or Beef in the evening.

As always, make sure to experiment to discover what your cat prefers!

If your cat will only eat one protein option, try adding toppers to it for some variety - see our recommendations on this page in the Palatability Tips - Make It Tasty! section above.

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