The Dietary Nitrogen Requirements of the Cat

Abstract

A purified diet, relatively high in vitamin B complex and protein, was found to be satisfactory for the growth and maintenance of the cat. Using this diet, the nitrogen retention for maintenance plus growth and caloric intakes were estimated at different ages from weanling to adulthood. The ability of the adult cat to adapt to different nitrogen intakes emphasizes the need to determine the magnitude of optimum protein reserves. The nitrogen balance indexes for egg albumin, casein and wheat gluten were determined for maintenance of protein reserves in adult cats, these indexes being approximately 1.0, 0.92, and 0.75 respectively.