Taurine is usually even lower, about 0.2-0.5% in most cat foods. It's measured using an amino acid analyzer, I think. It would actually be more important to measure the blood taurine level instead of the food taurine level. Much of the taurine in food can be destroyed by heating or cooking. There are also several factors that can degrade or deplete taurine from the body. Bacteria in the gut degrade taurine and fiber in the food can contribute to this. Since bacteria grow best when the cat eats wet food or raw, the cat needs more taurine in a wet or raw diet because of that. This is not to say that fiber and gut bacteria are bad - they can be very beneficial especially for cats with digestive problems - but they increase the cat's need for (usable) taurine in the food. There should be enough taurine in raw meat, but taurine is frequently lost during food processing and then has to be added back after cooking.

If you want to give your cat a taurine booster treat, there's a huge amount of it in scallop, mussels and clams.

Right, I stand corrected. So taurine is a by-product in the production of ash.ok. Thanks for clearing that up.

I have heard where people actually buy Taurine powder, and mix it into their cat food. Is this a good practice?

This thread is very informative...thanks for all of the info!

_________________
Carol Goodall

"People that hate cats will come back as mice in their next life!"

Taurine is an essential amino acid for cats. That's the reason why it is added and one of the reasons why dog food or scraps from human food usually are deficient in nutrients for cats.

where do you get the raw, minced rabbit?

hi i'm in the south of england, it is distributed by a company called mobile pet foods. if you are elsewhere it may be worth calling them to see if they deliver to your area or if they can suggest an alternative supplier. if you aren't in this country, maybe try an animal feed supplier.

http://www.mobilepetfoods.co.uk/section.php/25/3

i must stress this is not a complete diet, i feed it along with various meat & biscuits.