Is Tuna Safe for Cats?
Is tuna fish safe to give my cats as a treat once
in a while?
Pauline
Philadelphia, PA
Unless one of your cats has a medical condition that requires a special diet, I see no problem with giving them a little bit of tuna fish now and then.
Tuna has taken a bit of a bad rap in the world of cats. For a while, some people believed that tuna was linked to urinary crystals because of its high magnesium and phosphorus content. As well, tuna may contain high levels of mercury, which is bad for both cats and humans.
In fact, recent studies have shown that excessive levels of magnesium and phosphorus in the diet are not likely to cause urinary crystals. The real culprit is an abnormally low level of acidity in the urine (click here for more information about urinary crystals in cats). And if tuna is used sparingly as a treat then the risk of mercury poisoning is extremely low.
Cats absolutely cannot survive on an exclusive diet of tuna. However, if tuna comprises only a small portion of their food intake, it is unlikely to cause problems. That´s a good thing. The cats I know would consider me very cruel indeed if I were to open a can of tuna and not give them any.
You have questions. 
Regarding tuna and cats: I buy albacore tuna packed in water. I save the water for my cat, and give her about a teaspoonful at a time, usually once a day, when I have it. She has had no problems with that.
I’m so glad to see this info published. I’ve had people say their vet tells them not to give tuna because of mercury. PULLEEZ.
I’ve nursed many an elderly cat back to health/eating by offering tuna while they’ve been on antibiotics. Offering it can help assure a nervous inscure cat too.
And I agree about opening a can of it and not giving any to the cats. Who could do this??
I have heard that tuna isn’t good for cats, before, but I didn’t believe it. And even if I did, how could I open a can of tuna with those little eyes looking up at me and begging, and not give them any?
Thanks for clearifying this:)
My fat boy LOVES it when his humans have tuna for lunch, because he knows that he will have the water that is drained from the cans. It is a special treat for him every 2 weeks or so.
I give my cats salmon, instead. Much safer, I think.
My girl cat, long-haired Birman, had really bad diarrhea twice after eating tuna. Of course, the experience of washing her off was extremely unpleasant for both of us. I’m glad she no longer wants it when I eat tuna, so I don’t have to feel bad about not giving her any. I wonder if this is an unusual reaction?
Hi Leah – was the tuna you gave packed in oil? If so this is the likely cause of the diarrhea. Always give cats tuna pack in spring water. Once we gave our cat the oily kind and he had the trotts for a day. It was not nice at all. But he is absolutely fine with the spring water kind.
I can’t stand tuna myself, but my cats love it – particularly Felix’s and Waitrose’s ‘Red Mullet and Tuna’ varieties.
I always try to vary their diet – one meaty, one fishy; so a typical sequence would be something like:
Beef
Salmon
Chicken
Tuna
Game
Haddock
That way they go at least 3 or 4 days before getting the same thing again.
My fuzzy buddy has been on the Royal Canin Urinary S/O diet most of his life (10yrs).
We give him and our other fuzzy buddy the water from tuna and whatever is scraped out of the bottom of the can, the odd thing is if he gets any more then a scraping from the can he will throw it up.
(We never buy the oil kind it’s just nasty to begin with)
Oh! He also loves tiny Marshmellows too! I caught him with his face in the bag :S
I give my 3 human tuna in water at times, but mainly the Fancy Feast kind…the Tuna Florentime with greens, etc. I do notice that my fat girl throws up if she eats too much of the creamy version. Is that good for them? And the new Cheddar Cheese ones? It almost seems like the people type would be more natural, but I know it doesn’t have any cat-healthy ingredients the Fancy Feast may have. I was getting a mail-ordered healthy, organic, etc. canned food that they stopped eating and was expensive. Any suggestions? I have one fat girl, one thin girl that only likes canned food, and one huge long almost 2 year old boy. They all do love the Fancy Feast green cans!
My kitties dont actually like tuna, or any other human fish.. how weird is that? To be honest, I’m glad: I can leave any lunch or dinner anywhere and they just wont touch it!
One of my 22 cats refuses all canned food except tuna (she also eats dry cat food). Consequently I feed her, separately from the others, each night with about a quarter of a can of 9Lives or Friskies tuna varieties, sprinkled with a few treats.
You have stipulated that cats should not be on a constant tuna diet. Does that apply to “human” tuna alone or are you including “cat” tuna as well?
Pure tuna is not nutritionally replete. Tuna-flavored cat foods are much more balanced.
I tried to go to the site in the article above where it says click here form more information on crystals urine but it wont let me go. Can you give me more information as I have a kitty that is on special food but still has nasty black discharge, she has been to Dr. after Dr. and no one can fix her. Poor baby, I am always looking for information on urinary tract infections.
Thanks
I had a black Persian who had the urinary crystals and was told by his vet that this was the cause. As soon as I quit giving him any tuna, he never had this problem again. Persians are very sensitive to more than regular cats we found. But we have not tested it on any of our furries since then. Not worth the risk.
My 9 yr. old kitty had UR stones 5 yrs. ago. Went in for an expensive surgery to remove them. Had him on dry food his whole life. Vet said that was a big part of his problem (dry food does not contain enough water). But now I am thinking that it also has to do much more with the QUALITY of food animals eat–or are forced to eat by their unknowing owners. Especially most major brand cat foods. I’ve done my research and am now trying to ween kitty off of the UR dry food I purchase from the vet. They contain “fillers” or animal by-products which are really horrible things like dying/dead “downer” animals that are not fit for human consumption, bits of hoof, beaks, and other nasty things, even plastics, etc. (remember the pet food horrors not too long ago?) not to mention some type of wheat gluten (what cat eats wheat??? They are carnivores!) that causes obesity. This is all coated in a layer of old, used cooking oil also not fit for human consumption….YUCK. Decided to feed kitty an organic brand that does not use fillers or by-products. I also feed him about 1/2 tsp. of tuna every other day mixed in with his wet food (low-sodium packed in water). I have never asked my vet if this would be a problem for him…. So far he is fine.
My next cat will be fed correctly, with good quality food right from the beginning to avoid this UR problem.
Sorry this was a long post, but so many kitty owners are unaware of what is REALLY in their pet food. WHOLESOME? Better check the label!!
My cat has been diagnosed with struvite crystals and my vet wants me to feed her Hills c/d diet. She absolutely hates it no matter how long I try to wait her out or how I try to hide it in her regular food. She loves Figaro Albacore Tuna Cat Food by Bumble Bee. According to the label It has vitamins and minerals along with 1.0g Omega-3 fatty acids and Taurine added. If I continue to feed her the Cat Food Tuna, will it worsen her condition? I think her not eating anything while I try and wait her out may dehydrate her possibly leading to concentrated urine which does not help her flush out her bladder. Am I wrong in this line of thinking?
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All of my cats over the years, as well as my dogs will get bloody diarrhea if their food is switched. We’ve had to on occasion because of moving or traveling. They will also throw up. It causes digestive problems to switch foods. One of my biggest pet peeves is the media, in regards to pet food. They come out with new treats and products and encourage switching the animals diet. Most pets have been on the same food for years, so switching is a shock. We like to give the cats treats, they don’t get as much as the dog does. In my opinion, any time you switch your pet’s diet it’s good to wean them in slowly. This includes giving treats.
Tuna treats, a little pinch from the can, seems to be no problem for my cats. One cat is 12 years old, one is 6 years old, but any more than 2 x a week and the long haired older one will vomit. I buy the cheap stuff in water. (Maine Coon, he tends to have a sensitive tummy with all that hair!) Both cats are indoor cats.
Make sure the tuna or any other people food you treat the cats does not have onion in it, or anything mixed in. Onion is bad for cats.
:) – I love the name Barchas, for a vet!
PS.. Milk is not good for cats. For tiny kittens they seem to be okay with it, but cats get diarrhea. Maybe there’s a type of milk they can have??
We have a 16-year old tabby that will only eat Figaro Albacore Tuna Cat Food. I can’t find it in stores anywhere and previous finds online are not available. Gristedes of New York no longer offers online services but if I emailed them, someone would call me and then I could place the order via telephone. Now their email contacts are being received as mail failures. I’ve also used PetGuys.com and they no longer have the product on their website. Any ideas of where this food could be purchased online for this dearly loved PA cat? Thanks in advance!
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To Andy A and anyone else who is dealing with crystals:
I cannot urge you enough to please do research! In May my cat had to be rushed to the emergency hospital due to a blockage. He almost died. They put a catheder in and removed the crystals. It cost me $1500 and was one of the most traumatic experiences of my life. They sent me home with Hills and Royal Canin “Prescription” food and insisted that I now only feed him this type of food otherwise it would return.. This did not sit right with me at all especially after I read the ingredients on the can. Not only that but I was given some dry food as well. I spent hours online reading article after article about crystals and cat nutrition. Dry food is the worst possible thing to give cats. Before this happened I was feeding my 3 a high quality dry with no corn, wheat, soy or by products. I thought I was doing the best for my cats. I now know that dry food and grains are very unhealthy for cats.
I am now feeding them a strict diet of Wellness canned food. I am also giving my one male who had crystals water inserted with a syringe everyday because I am so worried he will become blocked again. These vets know next to nothing about proper nutrition and are pushing this unhealthy food as they get kickbacks. Its disgusting.
One website I urge you all to read is cat-info.org. I have more websites saved that I can post later with lots of good info if anybody is interested.
My vet told me the same thing, but also said never feed salmon (which my cat loves) due to certain ingredients (metals or something) in salmon that human bodies can digest better.