Arthritis, joint health - don't leave it too late!

It is very common for senior cats (and dogs) to encounter some sort of joint difficulty as they age. When my senior cat was around 13 years old, he had trouble walking into his litter box. He was a big cat and when he peed, he would spray high, hence I cannot give him a shallow litter tray. So instead of going to his litter tray he would pee around the house. When I went to the vet’s they would prescribe glucosamine and chondroitin supplements. In fact, there has been many studies that showed positive effects of glucosamine and chondroitin supplementation for joint health, arthritis, and generally affecting the overall mobility of cats and dogs. The absolute best way to supplement any needed nutrient is through the natural whole food sources, such as chicken feet. Each chicken feet have about 450mg of glucosamine.

So why don’t you feed chicken feet to your cats? Well, you can but only raw or dehydrated. Reason is because the high cooking temperature turns chicken bones into sharp, solid, pointy splinters, which can cause detrimental injuries if cats (or dogs) chew on them.

As with humans, prevention or delaying the joint problems is always better than treatment. So now I supplement their food with chicken feet broth. Cats of any age can benefit from this and it’s recommended that 50ml per day for each cat is sufficient to keep their joints supple and healthy. Typical of cats they tend not to drink much water, so giving broth to them on its own they will not drink. But by adding it into their favorite wet food, they will lick it up quickly and often so full after that they don’t finish their wet food.