Cat Information

Is it safe to feed a dog cat food?

My sister has a caviliar king charles, but it turns its nose up at all different varietys of dog food. The only thing that he does eat is cat food, but that is only very rare (a little bit every day or so). There is also a cat in the holsehold, so i guess its just copying her! Especially as he sits at the back door miowing, and he lays on the back of the sofas as the cat does, Is this something to worry about, or can we continue to feed him the food that is intended for cats? Human food is his favourite though, and we know that overall that can definately do him more harm than good. We are just so worried about him!! Any tips and advice would be very much appreciated. Many thanks.

Public Comments

1. Honestly if he likes cat food so much here's a trick you can use to get him eating dog food. Slowly start adding dog food to the cat food you are feeding him and then continue lessening the cat food and putting more dog food in and eventually (within a week or so) he will be eating straight dog food and won't even know it! Also cat food isn't really that good for dogs, there aren't the nutrients that dogs need in it so i would suggest getting him on dog food asap.
2. no...cats and dogs have different nutritional needs.
3. I wouldn't see why not.... it's probably fine. Ask the vet to be sure.
4. yep - you can feed dogs cat food. but you cant feed cats dog food (not enough of the right vitamins). however... it might make him fat, so keep an eye on his weight, and it could give him tummy problems (cat food is usually richer than dog food) - dont give it to him every day. Dog food is much more appropriate. .
5. dogs like cat food because it is more fatty i would sugguest giving the dog dog food and then put some caned dog food on top of it and then mix it or or feed the cat and dog i differnt areas
6. no once my dogs ate cat food and they trew up and got sick to their stomage. do not feed them cat food ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
7. It's fine if he sneaks a bit of the cats food from time to time, but he can't be fed that as a main meal. Cat food lacks the vitamins that dogs need and therefore they have to eat dog food. Good luck Edit: P is right, 5 out of 7 of my dogs are picky as ever, I fed them some Innova EVO kibble and they just chowed it down, you should try it! It's extremely healthy too.
8. Cat food is very bad for dogs and will cause pancreaitis.
9. Yep- for a little bit. It's basically made up uf the same stuff but the problem is that he nutrients are balanced for a cat so your dog will not be receiving the correct amount of nutrician. So basically, I wouldn't make a habit of it.
10. Well cat food can give your dog the runs! It is pretty rich too. I suggest trying a high quality brand like Innova EVO dog food. If your dog does not eat that, then he is just being picky. It also helps to have your dog on a feeding schedule. For example I feed my dogs once in the morning and once at night. I take their food away after 10 minuets if they do not eat it. Then they do not get fed until night time. If they still will not eat, they have to wait until morning. This has only happend once though. They get Innova EVO dog food btw. You have to teach your dog that he needs to eat his food. He sounds like he is the one in charge. A dog can go for 4-5 days w/o eating and will not hurt himself. A dog will not starve himself unless he is sick so don't worry about him. He is just being a picky dog.
11. mix both together so he gets the benefit of both. or give him dry dog food.
12. No its not ok, its never ok to feed a dog cat food, cat food are for cats specifically and thats how the ingredients are constituted also.
13. its safe, but not recommended because cat food is alot higher in protein, so it'll give the dog the runs, and it also doesnt meet the amino acid requirement for the dog since it was made for a cat.
14. NO IT´S NOT. Cat´s metabolism rates are slower than dog´s, therefore cat food is often added with taurine, a stimulant chemical which causes an increase in the cat´s metabolism rates, so if you feed your dog cat food you are putting it´s heart at risk.
15. yep , my dog eats cat food ALL THE TIME . butt that other stuff i never dealt with !!!!! hope nothings wrong !!!
16. NO! She needs to keep the cat food up where only the cat can get to it. She can boil up some chicken, and run it through the food processor. Cook some rice (2 c water to 1 c rice) and put the processed chicken in the rice while it is cooking. Once the chicken & rice is cooked, she can put about 1/4 of a cup of it in a bowl and add 1/2 a handful of dry DOG food and mix it up. Feed him this for 2 or 3 days, then reduce the rice/chicken a little replacing it with a little more dry food. Another 3 days reduce the rice/chicken even more so it is mostly dry dog food now. This way it is dog food with a little extra something rather than the other way around. After about 2 wks he'll be eating the dog food. With the remainder of the rice/chicken, put 1/2 c of it in a ziploc baggie and flatten and freeze. Instant doggie tv dinners. Thaw 1 bag a day for a small dog using no more than 1/2 of it per feeding. My dogs love it!
17. no as it is really bad for them and they also contain some small fish bones which get caught in there wind pipe where as cats can digest them more easly
18. Well...it probably shouldn't...cats diet is much meater that a dogs.... but as a dog can live on catfood..a cat cannot live on a dogfood. Catfood also has more calories per punch...sooooo you could end up with a fat dog. If that is what he likes...try it..and then slowly mix in whatever regular dog food you buy little by little...till eventually he is eating the dog food. As for human food... the greasy McDonald's type food is no good for him or human....but real food..the kind your grandma used to make in the 40's and 50's is very good for him. Remember...dog food is a new invention... its only been around for maybe 60 years. So..knowing that..think about what Fido used to eat... scraps from the table and whatever they could scrounge...and they lived far longer than they do today...the average age being 18-20 years...now we call our dogs old at 12. As said..if what he wants to eat is people food...by all means...carrots and greens are okay for them...onions, apple seeds and graps are no-no's. You want to feed the last of the hamburger or steak scraps to him..go for it.... just remember to stay away from the calorie riddled stuff..bread...french fries... chips...that we as humans really shouldn't be eating. Honestly..if your dog won't eat dog food... maybe he knows something you don't?
19. My dog only eats cat food,I have tried every dog food on the market and he turns his nose up at it,cat food wont do him any harm at all.
20. I know of someone myself gives their dog, cat food, they have 2 cats, 1 dog, so the dog went for the cats food instead, but I feel, it's safer to keep each type animal, on their own breed of food, as each breed, may have special dietary needs, and this coud possible hurt the pets intestines, also, their are special vitamin needs for each. I think a vet should be consulted on this matter to be safe, for the pets sake.
21. no
22. I have been putting tuna in my dogs dry dog food. I would try that and not give him the cat food any more. Tuna is full of protein too
23. I'd say you can try and if doesn't vomit and he likes I guess it's OK
24. NO cats can eat dog food but Dogs CAN NOT eat cat food there are fillers in cat food to bloat the cat (most cats are bulemic) dogs will have gastrointestinal problems from eating cat food
25. Would think this should be ok or there would be some type of warning on the cat food package. Why don't you compair the ingredients on the back of the packages to see if there is much difference? Would imagine this would be better than feeding your doggy junk food which many owners do!
26. Hi There I have two shih-zus dogs and three cats. I have never ever bought dog food as both my dogs seem quite happy with cat food, think the like it better as the meat chunks are smaller. They also love cat biscuits fot the same reason. Both my dogs are very healthy and active, so it has not done them any harm whatsoever. Hope this helps. Debs
27. you are not suposed to feed the dog a cat food diet, although you cannot tell my dog that. Catfoods have a differnt make up, richer in fatty oils and higher in proteins. There is no harm if they eat it since dogs are by nature scavengers. Human food, if organic and or doesn't contain chemicals are good for your dog. Veggies are the best. it is the chemical additives you need to stay away from. My dog hasn't been ill because of his sneeking in the cat food. I have open feeders and the animals eat all the time. I had asked my vet and she said as long as it isn't all the time and his only main food. Cats should not eat dog food due to the lower fatty oils needed by cats as well as the additive to keep the urinary tracks from becoming infected.
28. No, dogs should not eat cat food. Go with the first answerer for how to wean him off it! Cat food has a higher fat content, and generally a different nutritional makeup. Please note than Cavalier King Charles Spaniels are the NUMBER ONE breed for getting overweight and then obese. It's a breed disposition, and often leads to heart problems. Seriously, the number of ideal weight cavvies I've seen in my life is - three. And one of those was only because it was very ill! And I've seen a lot of cavvies. Ordinarily I'd say cat food is OK for an occasional treat - but not with Cavaliers. They're so ridiculously prone to being overweight you literally can't give them an inch - probably about a quarter of the owners of animals attending my weight clinics are on strict instructions to keep their dogs AWAY from the cat food!! Chalice
29. it not a good idea to feed dogs cat food because it does things to their stomochs the best thing is to put a little bit of rich dog food say a spoon ful and try to incourage the pet to eat that if it eats that make a fuss of them and repeat make sure that you have your food first and make sure they can see you eating do not give them chocalate unless dog chocs try this for aweek and this will work remember incourge the pet
30. no its not really safe. cats can eat dog food but dogs cant eat cat food because of certain things that are put in cat food but human food doesn't necessarily do more harm than good. if you cook a bit of mince up in the morning and put it neatly in the middle of the plate with a tiny tiny bit of parsley on it or just leave it plain in the morning then at night cook him a bit of chicken and that diet will do him the world of good remembering to give him something just a little bit different on a Wednesday of each week then he might be appreciative of Wednesdays as he wont know what he is getting.
31. I wouldn't recommend it! Dog's have different nutritional needs than cat's do. I was having a problem with one of my dog's, not wanting to eat his dog food either. I took him to the vet to have him checked out and make sure the reason he wasn't eating, wasn't due to a medical problem. The vet said he was healthy, and was just a picky eater. He recommended, that I switch his food to "Royal Canin". The second I opened the bag, he got real excited. I put it down, and he loved it. I have been feeding it to him for a while, and have never had a problem since. It's a good, highly nutritious food, and you can find it in any pet supply store. If you have a Petsmart in your area, you can get it there. It's worth a try! I hope this helps! Good Luck!
32. My little dog won't eat anything other than cat food.
33. Yes it safe to feed your dog cat food we did till my dog wanted dog food he-he xx
34. yes it is perfectly safe, we have 3 dogs and when we had a cat, they used to eat the cats food as well as their own.
35. I was surprised to learn that cat food has a lot more meat in it.Apparently cats need more meat than dogs so its bad for the dog.