Vegecat™ Recipe Instructions

START WITH FRESH INGREDIENTS AND PREPARE FOOD AS YOU DO FOR OTHER FAMILY MEMBERS.

    TRANSITION GRADUALLY

    Mix a small amount of the new food in with the old food and adjust the proportions over two weeks or longer. Digestive enzymes are especially beneficial during the transition and beyond. Let your cat show you how quickly he or she is willing to transition. Morning is the best time to begin introducing new food because the appetite is stronger. Adding extra nutritional yeast or sauces (discussed below) for flavor can help entice your cat during the transitional period.

    ORGANIC & NON-GMO INGREDIENTS

    GMO (Genetically Modified Organism) ingredients and herbicides can cause gastrointestinal issues, food allergies, and more. Soy, canola, and corn that is not organic IS almost certainly genetically modified in the USA. Compassion Circle strongly recommends organic food for you and your animals!

    DIGESTIVE ENZYMES

    Almost every process in the body requires enzymes. Digestion is no different. Digestive enzymes are produced in the body and found in plants and raw foods. These enzymes are heat sensitive, so cooking and processing food destroys the natural enzymes. We recommend adding plant-derived enzymes (lipase, amylase, protease, and cellulase) to any cooked food. Amylase is a particularly important aid for the digestion of carbohydrates. A little raw food doesn’t supply enough enzymes to compensate for the enzyme loss in cooked food. Compassion Circle resells two great digestive enzymes options — Enzyme Miracle and Plant Enzymes and Probiotics.

    FLOUR FOR KIBBLE

    Whole wheat and bread flour both contain 14% protein by dry weight. Gluten flour, the protein part of wheat (commonly labeled vital wheat gluten or instant gluten), contains 75% protein. The protein content in the flour used is important.

    EFAS, OILS, & SUBSTITUTIONS

    Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs) are particularly important to your cat’s well-being. Oil, flax, and hemp ingredients supply EFAs and ensure the omega-6 to omega-3 ratio is ideal.

    Omega-3 fatty acid comes largely from flaxseed oil, with some from olive oil, canola oil, and/or hemp hearts. The omega-6 fatty acid requirement is largely met by olive or canola oil. Arachidonic Acid, derived from mortierella alpina, is also supplied by the Vegecat™ supplement.

    Substituting oils in the recipe is not recommended. If you omit hemp hearts in a recipe, add 1 teaspoon (5mL) hemp or sunflower oil per 1 tablespoon (10g) hemp hearts omitted. You may substitute 1 teaspoon (7g) of ground flaxseed for each 1⁄8 teaspoon (0.6mL) of flaxseed oil omitted in a recipe.

    Rather than adding flax ingredients, you can use algae oil to supply not only Omega-3s but readily available DHA and EPA. 

    Store oils in the refrigerator to avoid rancidity.

    SEITAN

    Each cup of vital wheat gluten flour (142g) makes about 3-1⁄2 cups of seitan (400g). Available commercially, seitan has a “meaty” consistency and absorbs flavors readily. Imitation “meat” products should have wheat gluten as the first ingredient listed to qualify as seitan.

    [ORGANIC] SOY & TSP/TVP

    Textured soy protein (TSP), also known as textured vegetable protein (TVP®), or soya chunks, is defatted soy flour. TSP must be reconstituted before use by stirring in 7⁄8 cup of boiling water or low sodium broth (207mL) for each cup of TSP (105-120g). All recipe measurements for textured soy protein are for dry TSP flakes or chunks.

    Use extra-firm tofu made from calcium sulfate to keep magnesium at a minimum. If using firm tofu rather than extra firm, add 1 tablespoon (10g) of protein powder for every cup of tofu or 2 tablespoons (20g) of hemp hearts to increase the protein content of your meal. Alternatively, increase the amount of tofu and decrease the grains or legumes in the recipe.

    If you use soy sauce for sodium (as opposed to salt), a low-sodium soy sauce requires a 50% increase over regular soy sauce.

    HEMP HEARTS/HEMP MEAL

    You may substitute 1⁄2 a tablespoon of 100% pure protein powder (brown rice, organic soy, or hemp) per 1 tablespoon (15g) of hemp hearts to achieve the same level of protein in the meal.

     

    ENTICEMENT & SAUCES

    Baby food squash makes a flavor enhancing sauce, as does canned pumpkin diluted with water, pureed cooked carrots with nutritional yeast, or pureed tahini and cooked mushrooms. Pureed canned corn with nori is also a favorite. Add a small amount of water to puree sauces. 

    Small amounts of crumbled nori can appeal to choosy cats, as can imitation bacon bits (without MSG) or mock meats that do not contain onion or garlic. Never feed onions and research any new ingredient to be sure there is no toxicity risk for cats. 
    A nutritional yeast palatability enhancer was recently removed from Vegecat™, decreasing the daily serving size by roughly half. If your cat needs that flavor, add 1 teaspoon of nutritional yeast to recipes for every 1 teaspoon of Vegecat™. You may add more if needed – to coat kibble before serving or in wet food recipes – but we recommend primarily using VegeYeast in your recipes to add acidity to the diet.

    VEGEYEAST & FOOD YEAST

    Food yeast is important for protein, B vitamins, and flavor. Before serving semi-moist food, dust chunks with yeast. VegeYeast (available from Compassion Circle) is a special type of brewer’s yeast made especially for cats. It has a high acid and a low magnesium content. Nutritional yeast tastes cheese-like and comes in flakes or powder. For maxi-flakes, double the volume (not the weight) measurements. Brewer’s yeast can also be used. For cats that like nutritional yeast best, use VegeYeast in the recipes for health benefits, but coat the food with nutritional yeast prior to serving.

    GENERAL INFO & SERVICE WITH A SMILE

    Feed cats several times a day to assure adequate food intake. Coating food with a little nutritional yeast really can make a difference in cats accepting a plant-based diet.

    Cats want fresh food. Stale, soggy, old food isn’t appreciated. Serve in clean bowls and always keep fresh, filtered water available (clean enough for you to drink). The more water and moisture in the diet, the better the urine concentration of your cat. Feeding primarily wet food recipes can prevent urinary issues.

    Cats should have an acidic urine pH of 6.0 to 6.5. It is wise to test the urine at home or at a veterinarian’s office before switching the diet and about 3-weeks after transitioning to a new diet, then periodically after – twice in the first year and at least yearly after. If alkaline urine is a problem, add cranberry powder or vitamin C (ascorbic acid) to the diet. Please see the Frequently Asked Questions page of the Compassion Circle website for more information about testing urine pH at home and acidification.

    Some cats are adversely affected by high dietary magnesium and exhibit urinary problems such as stone formation with too much magnesium in the diet (and often urine that is too alkaline, simultaneously). For those cats, use lower magnesium recipes.

    Adult cats need from 22 to 32 calories per pound (454g) of bodyweight per day. Larger cats need fewer calories, smaller cats more. Caloric need and food consumption also depend on activity level, age, and weight. Consult your vet or an online calorie calculator to determine how many calories to feed daily. Our recipes list the number of calories the entire recipe contains. That does not change if the volume of food your recipe makes is less or more than our estimate. Follow the dry ingredient gram measures for best accuracy. You may determine how many calories are in each cup (or 100g) of your food by dividing the number of calories in the recipe by the cups (or 100g) your recipe makes. If you do not follow our recipes, add 1⁄3 tsp. (1.4g) of Vegecat for every 100 calories in your recipe or use the daily serving size chart on the label.

    For Additional Recipes & Information, see Dr. Pitcairn’s Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs & Cats (4th Edition). Because the volume of the Vegecat™ supplement changed since the book’s first printing, serving size modifications are necessary. See the following URL for adjusted amounts, or simply add the supplement daily: CompassionCircle.com/Dr-Pitcairns-Guide.

    A daily serving for a 10-lb (4.5kg) cat is 1 teaspoon (4g).

    RECIPE NOTES

    As mentioned in previously, coating kibble in squash, pumpkin, or pureed corn and nori is a wonderful way to add flavor and moisture to kibble. You may steam/cook and puree the following veggies to add to kibble or wet food recipes: corn, carrots, cucumber, peas, green beans, kale, broccoli, cauliflower, potatoes, squash, and more. It is best to avoid vegetables that are high in oxalic acid, like spinach and Swiss chard. A cat’s diet should not be more than 10% vegetable food because this will dilute the protein content and other nutrition in the recipes. Adding 1 to 1-1⁄2 tablespoons of pureed veggies per day is ideal. If your cat does not like veggies, they are not required. Adding nori flakes or algae, can add flavor and highly beneficial bioavailable nutrients. These should be kept to a minimum (1 teaspoon per day) to avoid urine alkalinity unless you add 1 teaspoon of cranberry powder or 500mg of vitamin C (ascorbic acid) per day.

    Vegecat™ Daily Serving Amount

    We highly recommend following our recipe or those of Dr. Pitcairn, or consulting an animal nutritionist for modified recipes. The nutritional requirements for cats need to be precisely met. If you do not follow our recipes, add 1/3 teaspoon (1.4 grams) of Vegecat™ for every 100 calories in your recipe.