Every cat owner knows one thing – cats go absolutely bonkers for tuna and naturally you probably have given your cat tuna in the past. But what about the water in the can? Should you give them some of it? Lets go into more detail about this.
Why Give Your Cat Tuna Water?
The reason you might want to give your cat tuna water is because some cats have a problem drinking enough water. According to the “Committee on Nutritient Requirements of Dogs and Cats” cats need about “an ounce of water for every half ounce of dry food they eat” which can cause them to be dehydrated if they don’t meet this requirement.
This can be do to:
- Dental Infections
- Mouth Related Disease
- Gastrointestinal Disease
- Dislikes Water
Another reason you might want to give your cat tuna water is because it tastes good to cats and its a nice treat to give them once in a while. It can also help with constipation as dehydration can cause this.
Is Tuna Water Healthy For Cats Or Kittens?
Your cat can drink tuna water but I would only do this on occasions. Tuna is not only not that nutritional but it also has a lot of mercury in it and can be unhealthy or even fatal to cats. As for kittens you want to give them smaller quantities and you want it to be dolphin-safe. Before you give them tuna water consider a couple of things:
Get Only Water Based Tuna: Some tunas have other ingredients packed into that you would rather not have your cats eating such as artifical, preservatives and other weird ingredients. Vegetable or olive oils are ok as they are not toxic to cats but it can cause an upset stomach in some cases. Go for the tunas that have only water and salt in the ingredients.
BPA Free: Only go for tuna that has BPA free packaging as this can be unhealthy for your cat.
Tuna Juice For Cats With Kidney DiseaseYou can give cats tuna water if they have kidney disease. In fact vets will suggest adding tuna water to their renal based diets so its more palatable to them as some cats really hate the taste of it.
How To Make Tuna Water
Tuna water is quite easy to make. You can simply pour a little bit of tuna water into their water dish and mix it with spring water or even let them drink the broth out of the can but there are other ways of doing this. Here is how I make it for my cats:
What You Will Need:
- 1 Can Of Dolphin-Safe Tuna
- 3 Cups of Spring Water
- Ice Cube Trays
To start take one can of tuna and mash it into water and then add an additional three cups afterwards. After this let it infuse for about 15-30 minutes. Once the tuna has infused with the water pour into the trays and freeze. When you want to use put some cubes into their dish and let thaw.
Can You Just Buy Tuna Broth?
This would be really convenient to be able to do but I don’t know any store or company that sells tuna water on its own so you have to unfortunately make it yourself.
Conclusion
Whether your cat has some sort of health issue or you want to make their eating experience more enjoyable this is a great way to achieve this.
