![]() Feline Central Retinal Degeneration (FCRD) Insufficient taurine and bile salts can upset your cat’s digestive system and results in diarrhoea and/or vomiting. Bile salts are formed in your cat’s liver, which help with the digestion of fats in the body and absorption of fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E & K). Digestive IssuesĪ deficiency of taurine may cause a digestive problem as taurine is a component of bile salts. It can cause itchiness that your cat will keep scratching the skin, licking or biting its fur. Without enough taurine, your cat’s skin may become dry and flaky, accompanied by dull hair or even hair loss. The common symptoms of taurine deficiency include: Unhealthy Skin and Coat A deficiency of taurine is not easily identified because the symptoms are slow to develop, which may take months for the signs to become apparent. It can arise when there is no adequate dietary supply of taurine in the foods or there is weak absorption of taurine consumed by the cat due to diseases. In the 1950s, researchers discovered that taurine deficiency can cause many problems in your cat. For instance, the taurine intake of a cat that eats 200 grams of this canned food per day would be 0.4 grams i.e., 400 mg. Multiply by how many grams you feed in a day will get the total. In this case, for every 100 grams of canned food, there are around 0.2 grams of taurine (100 grams x 0.2%). Use 0.04 divided by 20 it will be 0.002 or 0.2% on a “dry matter” basis, which meets the minimum taurine requirement as per AAFCO. Since the moisture content is 80%, the dry matter will be 20% (100% – 80%). Say a canned food with 80% water lists the taurine content at 0.04% on an “as fed” basis, we have to convert it into a “dry matter” basis. Cats with taurine deficient should consume 250 to 500 mg of taurine a day until their bodies return to normal function.Īccording to The Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO), general canned cat food should contain at least 0.2% of taurine on a “dry matter” basis. While pregnant or lactating mother cat and the kittens need up to twice as much taurine as a normal adult. A cat with a heart condition is suggested to intake an even higher amount of taurine.Īt the bottom line, a healthy adult cat should consume about 10 mg of taurine per kg of body weight. Studies show that an intake of taurine at approximately 10 mg/kg body weight per day is good enough to maintain adult cats at a normal taurine level. This is a bare minimum, a higher level of taurine is likely to strengthen the body’s health, which may go up to 500 mg. Effects of anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidation.Ī pregnant cat especially requires taurine for the proper development and growth of the kittens.Proper development and function of cells in the eye retina.The important functions of taurine in cats include: Nevertheless, taurine serves various crucial roles in the body. Taurine is not used to build proteins in the way that other amino acids are. The answer is yes, your cat needs taurine for the body to function properly. You may still be wondering if taurine is a must in cats’ diets. You will need to ensure that there is enough taurine in the cat foods to meet your cat’s needs. Hence, taurine is an essential amino acid for a cat that cannot be synthesised enough in the body and must be obtained from the diets. However, in cats, the activity of the enzyme required to make it out of cysteine is so low that taurine synthesis is negligible. A healthy dog can make sufficient taurine from sulfur-containing amino acids namely cysteine and methionine. Can A Cat’s Body Make Taurine?Īlthough cats can make taurine, they have very limited ability to make enough taurine, unlike most other mammals e.g., dogs. The highest concentrations of taurine in the body are usually in the brain, heart, muscle tissue and retina. Taurine is an amino acid that is found only in animal proteins. 10 Final Thoughts: Taurine for Cats What is Taurine?
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