Raw Diet Research - good thing?

We are interested to see that the Winn Feline Foundation agreed to support a study on raw diets in cats.  We do have concerns however as even a raw diet can be bad if not balanced properly and many times these studies are useless because of the approach.  They are then used to vilify the raw diets... much like the faulty science behind the lipid hypothesis.

We look forward to reading the results of this study and the full proposal.  This is a sign of good things to come we hope with more people embracing raw and natural diets for superior health in their cats and dogs.

Best wishes,

Dawn Campbell
Healthy and Raw Fed Siberian Cats

NEW PROJECTS
#09-002: Nutritional adequacy and performance of raw food diets in kittens
Beth Hamper, DVM; Claudia Kirk, DVM, PhD, DACVN, DACVIM; Joseph Bartges, DVM, PhD, DACVN, DACVIM; University of Tennessee; $14,878
There are many benefits claimed for feeding raw food diets to cats, including improved immune function. Although 4% of U.S. cat owners feed raw diets as all or part of their cat's diet, there are no published studies examining whether these diets are complete and balanced for feeding cats or whether immune function is improved in cats on a raw food diet. The goal of this study is to determine whether a commercially produced raw food diet and a homemade raw diet are nutritionally adequate for feedings kittens and whether these diets enhance immune function and improve digestibility. The outcomes to be measured include growth rate, feed efficiency, digestibility, and various blood and immune status parameters. The long term goal is to evaluate ways of improving feline immune function through diet.

Winn Feline Foundation

P.O. Box 1005,

Manasquan, NJ 08736-0805

Phone: 732-528-9797

http://www.winnfelinehealth.org