Taurine is a vital amino acid that we’ve been told to always look for in a processed cat food. But why is it important?

Cats and dogs are different. Taurine is one major nutritional difference. Since cats are obligate carnivores, their diets have always been rich in natural taurine. Dogs as scavengers can use other amino acids to make their own taurine. If their diets contain methionine and cysteine, they can make their own taurine. Unlike taurine, these amino acids are present in grains and legumes. So, if there isn’t sufficient taurine in a dog’s diet, they can create their own from other amino acids. But not cats.

No wild cat or wolf ever got a taurine supplement. Their diets have more than enough for them. Taurine is essential for heart and brain function, as well as sight. It is present in fresh muscle meats, eggs and fish. Which is why it isn’t an issue with a properly balanced raw diet.

Processing food ingredients that have taurine can destroy the taurine. Vegetable proteins or grains that used in many processed foods use do not contain taurine. For these reasons, dry or canned foods, or fresh foods with a large amount of vegetable/grain proteins need taurine supplementation.

Taurine deficiency can lead to various health issues, including heart issues. This is one of the reasons we have had so much focus on certain diets, and certain ingredients of late. The biggest being the questioning of grain free diets, and the lauding of “grain inclusive” formulas, or using the marketing phrase “contains healthy grains”.

Meat is the best source of taurine. If your food is meat-heavy and low-processed, it should have sufficient taurine naturally for dogs or cats. There is no need to add “healthy grains” to a balanced fresh or frozen meat-based diet. But I am regularly asked about how to add grains to a raw diet.

My advice, always, is don’t. There are no nutrients in grains that are more available in grains than in the appropriate meat equivalent. Sure, grains are cheap and can be used to reduce costs of pet foods, which is why their use is so widespread in the industry. Especially since “feed-grade” grains that cannot be used for human consumption are acceptable in pet food.

Pets can consume processed grain-based diets and do well. Grain-based foods still make up most of the pet food sold. That majority is shrinking as people become as conscious of their pet’s diets as they are about their own. Fresher, cleaner foods just make more sense.