15.10.2021

All you need to know about cat gravy

You got your cat’s favourite food and filled up their bowl, but they won’t even take a look at it. What’s wrong now? Do you suspect your kitty got bored of the same old, same old? 

Don’t feel hopeless because there are numerous ways you can spice up your cat’s monotonous menu, and one of them is cat gravy.

In the world of feline cuisine, gravy is like a holy grail thanks to its taste and texture, but why is it so appealing to our cats' delicate palates?

Untamed dives deep into cat gravy and unveils:

• What makes gravy irresistible to our furry friends
• How nutritious gravy is
• Why wet cat food, including gravy options, is a fantastic addition to your feline’s diet
• How our tailor-made recipes can benefit your cat’s health in the long term

What is cat gravy?

Cat gravy is the tasty sauce typically found in cat food pouches or canned food. Some kitties are obsessed with cat gravy in the same way humans love ketchup or mayo with their french fries, and it comes as no surprise. Would you eat completely dry food? Of course not!

Gravy for cats—what is it good for?

If you ever served your kitty lunch and watched them lick all of the gravy off the food without touching the rest of it—you know it tastes amazing to them. Other than being a flavour enhancer, gravy can:

• Provide your kitty with an extra source of hydration
• Make the texture of dry and wet food more appealing
• Have higher collagen levels, which help maintain your kitty’s bones healthy—the collagen comes from various gravy thickeners, such as gelatin, or animal protein sources, such as meat, fish, and seafood

What is that delicious sauce made of, though, and is it nutritious for our furry friends?

What is gravy for cat food made of?

Gravy, in its essence, is fat or cooking oil mixed with some broth and the juices that meat, fish, and seafood release during the cooking process.

Commercial and home-cooked cat gravy is typically made of:

• Animal protein sources, such as:
• Chicken (high in protein and the easiest to cook and blend)
• Pork
• Beef
• Fish and seafood, such as:
• Mackerel
• Tuna
• Salmon
• Shrimp
• Prawns
• Sardines
• Unseasoned broth (ideally, bone broth)
• The slightest amounts of thickener, such as:
• Flour
• Corn starch
• Gelatin
• Tapioca
• Veggies, such as carrots, as a source of vitamins and fibre

Many commercial brands throw (too much) grain into the mix. Grain can be a source of vitamins, minerals, and fibre for humans, but it can cause digestive problems in sensitive cats. It’s best to be on the safe side and opt for grain-free and hypoallergenic cat food.

Is kitty gravy bad?

Does gravy have a place in your cat’s diet? Whether your cat will benefit from gravy depends on many factors, such as:

• How seasoned the sauce is
• Whether the gravy has the enzymes and other nutrients your kitty needs to stay healthy
• How high the fat content is
• What the gravy is made of
• How much sauce you’re serving to your cat

Most of the time, some gravy with little to no seasoning won’t cause your kitty harm. Despite not being seasoned, gravy is often rich in calories and fat and can cause your cat to gain some extra weight quickly without overeating. You’ll know it’s time to reduce or avoid gravy entirely if you notice some of the following symptoms in your cat:

• Weight gain or loss
• Signs of nutrient deficiency, such as:
• Changes in the coat’s quality and the amount of shedding
• Lethargy, weakness, and lack of energy
• Excessive drooling
• Vomiting and other gastric problems
• Irritability

Can I introduce gravy to my cat?

Cat gravy is a fantastic way to enrich your cat’s diet, so you should let your kitty try it and decide whether they like it.

If you’re a kitten parent, you might be able to add gravy to your feline’s food as soon as they start weaning. The gravy could help your kitten gain weight and ease their transition to solids. 

Whether your furry friend is an adult, a senior cat, or a kitten, a good practice would be to consult your vet about any additions to your kitty’s diet to learn about:

• The best type of gravy that won’t disturb your feline’s diet
• Proper meal sizing
• The effect the gravy could have on their teeth
• Signs that the new ingredient is causing harm to your cat

Should cat gravy granules be part of your cat’s diet?

Some kitties are obsessed with dry food, which wouldn’t be an issue if they wanted to eat wet food, too. Stubborn cats who eat only kibble can be dehydrated but won’t feel the need to drink water to compensate for it as they don’t feel thirst the way humans do. 

Cat gravy is an excellent way to:

• Make up for that lack of moisture in dry food
• Enhance the flavour of dry food
• Get your kitty accustomed to wet food
• Boost your cat’s vitamin intake

With all of these reasons in mind, cat gravy granules should definitely be a part of your cat’s diet. You can also mix some of Untamed’s gravy recipes with granules. The difference in textures might intrigue your kitty and spark their interest in food.

Why does my cat eat only the gravy?

If your kitty prefers gravy over the rest of the meal, this may be a sign that the gravy contains sugar or artificial flavour enhancers. These pesky ingredients cause addiction in cats, and it can be challenging to switch your kitty to a healthier diet later on.

Beware of commercial cat food manufacturers that use xylitol as a sweetener as it’s poisonous to cats. Some of the symptoms of xylitol poisoning include:

• Vomiting
• Weakness and lethargy
• Lack of balance (your cat may appear wobbly)
• Tremors or seizures
• A sudden insulin release and subsequent drop in blood sugar

Are there other ways you can spice up your cat’s food?

Gravy isn’t the only way you can introduce variety in your fussy kitty’s diet. Besides cat gravy, you can try spicing up your cat’s dish with one of the following:

Mom, I don’t like these dry foods as much. Can I paw-leeeeeease have gravy again?

Image (c) Untamed

Paw-licking homemade cat food gravy recipes

Have you ever wished you could buy cat gravy only? Unfortunately, there are no available options on the market yet, but the good news is that you can make your own! Pick out a cat gravy recipe from the ones listed below to get started!

Watching you cook gives me the munchies! I mean, meow-nchies!

Source: Freepik

No-sweat cat gravy

This gravy recipe ensures you waste no meat in the kitchen and enhance your kitty’s meals without much effort. All you need to do is follow these steps:

1. Grab all of your extra chicken, beef, pork, lamb, or other meat portions and place them into a large pot. You can (and should) include skin, fat, and bones
2. Fill the pot completely and add half of a teaspoon of salt
3. Bring the mixture to a boil
4. Put the lid on the pot and let the gravy simmer for about three hours
5. Stir from time to time
6. Let the sauce cool
7. Strain the mixture
8. Portion the gravy and freeze it for future use

Moooom, are you done with the photoshoot for social media so we can finally eat?

Source: Freepik

Vitamin bomb cat gravy

If you’re looking for an exceptionally nutritious gravy, this one should be your choice! To get started, you should:

1. Put some chicken gizzard, heart, and liver in a pot and fill it with water
2. Boil the meat until it’s tender
3. Remove the organs and chop them up while keeping the broth in the pot
4. Take a saucepan and heat it at a low temperature
5. Add the broth, meat, a little flour, and some salt, and cook the mix at low temperature
6. Use a blender to make a puree or leave the chunks of meat in

You can pour the gravy into an ice tray and serve it as an occasional treat. Organs are packed with vitamins and should be part of a quality feline diet, but serving too much of them to your kitty can cause vitamin A poisoning, so serve this gravy in moderation.

Pawsome chicken & carrot cat gravy

This gravy recipe is as simple as it gets and just as effective and nutritious as all the previous ones. To make it, follow these steps:

1. Cook and cool one cup of chicken broth
2. Chop and boil one large chicken breast for 30 minutes, then leave to cool
3. Cut one medium carrot, cook for five minutes, then leave to cool
4. Place the chicken breast and carrot bits in a blender
5. Start blending and gradually add the chicken broth until you reach a gravy-like consistency

Fresh and fishy cat gravy

Does your furry friend prefer that their protein source has fins instead of feathers? If so, this gravy recipe is for you! To make it, follow the steps below:

1. Grab a medium-sized fish of your kitty’s preference and cook it (you can sauté, boil, or bake it, whatever works for you)
2. Put the fish in a stockpot, fill the pot with water, and add some salt
3. Bring the concoction to a boil
4. Lower the temperature and let the fish simmer for about three hours
5. Strain the mixture
6. Let the gravy cool and serve it to your cat

Note that if you’re going to keep this gravy in the fridge or freezer, it might start to smell sooner than gravy made of other meat.

Gravy cat food—is it as good as home-cooked cat gravy?

Premade cat food can be as good as homemade if you know what to look for. Quality premade cat food can save you the time you’d spend cooking while enabling you to provide the same food taste and feel to your furry friend. 

Next time you go shopping, look for the following:

Homemade cat gravy and commercial cat food with gravy—the pros and cons

We listed some of the pros and cons of homemade cat gravy and commercial cat food in the table below to help you decide what works better for you and your furry friend:

Treat your kitty to that homemade taste without the hassle—try Untamed!

Do you want to give your kitty the gourmet treatment they deserve? Our irresistible but straightforward recipes with gravy feature only:

• The most delicate and ethically-sourced meat, fish, and seafood selections and their natural cooking juices (63% of whole meat makes it into our final product!)
• A bit of chicken broth
• A dash of sunflower oil
• A hint of tapioca to get that purrfect gravy texture

We know that feeding a fussy feline is no easy task—that’s why we offer a variety of recipes your little Michelin inspector can try out and fall in love with! Sounds good? Visit the Try Now page and tell us about your kitty so we can create a pawsome starter pack for them.

Our assortment features the following paw-licking gravy recipes:

• Chocka Chicken in Gravy
• Chocka Chicken with Ham in Gravy
• Full-on Fishy in Gravy
• Tuck-in Tuna in Gravy
• Tuck-in Tuna with Shrimp in Gravy

Gravy is a cat’s best friend!

Image (c) Untamed

Let your kitty be the judge—join the Untamed pack!

You can’t know whether your furry friend will like our food until they try it—sign up for a starter pack and prepare your furry friend for a taste test!

Ordering cat food online is easy-peasy with Untamed—all you need to do is:

1. Fill out our questionnaire
2. Introduce us to your cat
3. Select a meal plan and place the order

Your kitty’s meal pack will be delivered to your address in no time! They can sample our dishes and choose the one they like, and we’ll continue to replenish your stock around the same time every month. If you want to make any changes to your standard monthly subscription for cat food, you can do it any time.

Our meals come ready to serve, which means you don’t have to do any extra prepping (unless your kitty likes their food warmed up, in which case—we won’t tell them how to live their life!).

Ways Untamed could improve your furry friend’s life

We can talk all we want, but your furry friend’s opinion matters the most! Felines, including pregnant ones, and their parents who joined our happy bunch report the following improvements in their kitties’ health:

• Fewer hairballs
• More energy
• Less mess and consistent litter box habits
• Softer and shinier coat
• A decrease in allergic reactions
• Better weight control

All of these benefits stem from:

• Vet-formulated human-grade whole meats, fish, and seafood
• Food specially prepared for sensitive feline tummies
• Our love for cats and wish to benefit their quality of life

Mom, we discussed this already—I accept love in the form of food. If you kiss me ONE more time…

Source: Sam Lion

Bonus tips and tricks on storing gravy and other wet cat food

Whether you choose to cook for your kitty or shop for premade meals, proper storage ensures you make the most of them. You can keep both gravies and opened canned cat food in the fridge for up to seven days at a temperature of around seven degrees Celsius.

If your kitty doesn’t finish their meal, don’t leave wet food out for too long. Some vets argue that wet cat food can stay in the bowl for up to four hours, but most of them recommend that you remove any extra food 30 minutes after meals.

If you decide to cook the gravy for your furry friend, you can portion and freeze it to make it last longer, if needed.