# Are pork products bad for my cats?



## MoFlo (May 17, 2012)

I was just wondering if anyone knew if pork is particularly bad for cats?

The only reason I ask is that you never see pork-flavoured cat food and yet my two moggies virtually take my hand off for ham or bacon. Clearly I don't want to be giving it to them if there is a reason cat food manufacturers omit pork from the flavours in their range.


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## hobbs2004 (Mar 12, 2010)

MoFlo said:


> I was just wondering if anyone knew if pork is particularly bad for cats?
> 
> The only reason I ask is that you never see pork-flavoured cat food and yet my two moggies virtually take my hand off for ham or bacon. Clearly I don't want to be giving it to them if there is a reason cat food manufacturers omit pork from the flavours in their range.


No, it isn't and if you look closely you will find that many manufacturers use pork products as part of their ingredient list (though you are right, you don't to get food that is pork branded - not sure why but I wonder whether it has something to do with the whole BSE scare many many moons ago).

I would say though that ham and bacon - because they have been processed - is something that they should not get regularly. Why don't you give them a little bit of raw pork next time before you cook it (provided you cook pork yourself that is).


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## jo-pop (May 27, 2011)

I sometimes buy cheap pork for Thomas and he seems fine on it.


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## hobbs2004 (Mar 12, 2010)

tomdorrian said:


> I might be wrong but I was told recently that cats can't digest raw pork which rots in the cats stomach and thus can cause maggots to grow. I know they mix it in some cat foods cooked but I was told raw pork is a no no.


And how would the maggots get into the cat's stomach for this to happen? Would a cat have to eat some pork and then a fly for afters? To complete this unlikely chain of events, the fly would have to lay some eggs on the raw pork in the cat's stomach before the acid juices then digest the fly. Maggots would then have to somehow grow despite the rather acid nature of the cat's stomach.

Sorry but that is complete ********. Almost as good, but not quite, as the pour-coke-over-raw-pork-and-see-the-worms myth.

Having said that, there is one very good reason not to feed raw pork if you are in certain countries in the world (inc Europe) where the pseudo rabies virus is rife. Now, the UK has been free for over a decade (if not even longer) but if you are at all worried about parasites in the meat - any meat - then freeze it for a while first (and hope that the potential parasites are killed by freezing; not all are)


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## Jonescat (Feb 5, 2012)

And cautious says "They'd only make pigs of themselves". 
Nothing like a bit of peer reviewed research.


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## Dragonlady (Jul 5, 2010)

I didn't give any pork to my cats when I lived outside the UK. The reason was the pseudo rabies, what Hobbs mentioned before. Here, in Great Britain pork is a part of my and my cats' diet but because of high fat content we ALL try to eat more chicken and beef.
I don't give any bacon and sausages because of salt and other additives and preservatives but I wouldn't say that pork is that bad for cats (in the UK) if eaten in small amounts or added to commercial canned food.


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## cookiemom (Jun 23, 2011)

I feed pig daily to multi cats, never a problem!

Most cats really like pork, avoid anything processed like ham or bacon these are very high in salt and sulphites not good for cats, give them an ordinary bit of pork like a loin chop.


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## Cookieandme (Dec 29, 2011)

tomdorrian said:


> Absolute rubbish hobbs I have found information to support my claim :001_tt2:
> 
> So your a food expert read this: Why isn't pork used in cat food? - Yahoo! UK & Ireland Answers
> 
> ..


I dont understand what the link is supposed to prove, just a lot of nonsense answers, or did I miss something. The first post claims to be a pet nutritionist, I have disagreed with a friend who had a dry pet food franchise and told me dry was best because she was also a pet nutritionist 

A lot of those posts say pork is expensive, I suspect it depends on the country. In the UK will have some of the best animal welfare standards in the world, care of pigs is the reason I don't buy Danish pork products. All the meat products I buy for my cat are exactly the same cuts I would buy and eat myself, I don't buy lesser or cheaper cuts for her.


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## Ian B (Jul 19, 2011)

Raw minced pork has gone down well with my lot for years with not a hint of any problems, tho' it's treat amounts and only every now and again. It's almost always been frozen before they get it, tho' not for the reason hobbs pointed out, simply that I tend to buy more meat than I need for myself and freeze what I don't use immediately, inc the cats (by right in their eyes ) share.

Ian


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## Paddypaws (May 4, 2010)

tomdorrian said:


> I might be wrong


Yes, you are.

I can accept the argument that pig meat is not _the _ most appropriate if we are trying to replicate a cat's natural diet, but someone forgot to explain this to my cats.
They much prefer pork to either beef or lamb so I feed it fairly regularly, especially heart and kidney. Some day soon I WILL buy the whole 'lights' and see how they do on that. The butcher will order that in for me _straight from the slaughterhouse_ and I will chop or mince it that same day and freeze into portions for convenience. I always buy human grade meat and freeze it as soon as possible after purchase to ensure the freshest meat possible.


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## alan g a (Feb 23, 2011)

Oh no not the worms in pork thing again!!!!!!
This has been scientifically proven to be little more than an urban myth.


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## scatchy (Nov 29, 2011)

You used to get worms in pork meat - a kind of tapeworm, the bladder worm stage but I think it is rare these days. Cooking pork will kill the bladder worm.
If your cat was to eat the bladder worm it would develop into a tapeworm and would be killed by the usual worming medicines.


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## retepwaker (Dec 5, 2011)

yes for your cat and you to remember any thing that cums from the super market in the form of meat has been mest about with


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