Are You Supposed to Give a Cat Milk?

Avoid offering your cat milk under any circumstances, as the majority of felines exhibit lactose intolerance. The ASPCA indicates that since the cute creatures are low in lactase, their bodies just aren't capable of adequately deconstructing lactose, the prominent sugar component of milk. Lactase is an enzyme that breaks down lactose during the digestion process. Low levels of lactase mean that milk is a no-go.

Feeding your kitty milk can make her day a lot more complicated than necessary, not to mention yours. Save yourself the stress and icky cleanup duties. When a cat drinks milk -- or consumes any other dairy product with lactose, for that matter -- it often triggers a case of tummy troubles. Your cat will very likely experience an unpleasant bout of watery diarrhea as a consequence of drinking seemingly innocuous milk -- absolutely no fun at all. In some cases, cats also throw up as a result of drinking milk.

When it comes to your cat's health and comfort, never take any chances. Even if your cat has accidentally had milk in the past and seemed to enjoy it a lot, it simply isn't worth the digestive inconvenience afterward.

Not only is milk potentially harmful in adult cats, it's not suitable for wee kittens, either. Although newborn kittens do indeed require milk, that only applies to the milk that comes directly from their nursing mothers. Not only can cow's milk cause kitties to have diarrhea, it simply doesn't offer any beneficial nutritional value to them. Cow's milk doesn't possess the sufficient fat, protein and energy requirements that young kittens need.

Although cats absolutely do not need milk, they do need water. Ample water consumption is key to a balanced feline diet, so make sure that your cat always has plenty of clean and refreshing H20 right in front of her.