Feline Instincts has all the Vitamin D your cats needs naturally in our recipe.
If you have a cat, he probably likes soaking up the sunlight. But while he’s basking in the sun, your kitty is doing more than just relaxing and enjoying himself. He’s also taking in an essential nutrient, vitamin D. Only a cat could do something important while doing nothing.
Sources of Vitamin D
Vitamin D comes from exposure to sunlight. Your cat also gets it from his food. Vitamin D is also found in human foods: fish, liver, egg yolks and dairy products.
How It Is Absorbed
Although vitamin D does come from sunlight exposure, absorbing it is a three-step process. In step one, your cat’s fur absorbs ultraviolet rays as he lies in the sun. In step two, a reaction with natural oils from his skin creates vitamin D. This is called vitamin D synthesis. Finally, your cat takes in this vitamin D when he grooms himself.
What It Does
Vitamin D performs multiple necessary functions. It strengthens bones by helping calcium bond to them, it increases calcium absorption in the digestive tract, it decreases calcium loss through urine and it regulates blood levels of calcium.
Too Much of a Good Thing
You might be tempted to give your cat a vitamin D supplement to make sure he gets enough. Don’t, unless your veterinarian tells you to.
Getting too much vitamin D is harmful. Over-supplementation causes a condition called vitamin D toxicosis. Mild effects are vomiting, diarrhea, loss of appetite, and excessive thirst and urination. Severe effects are kidney failure and bleeding in the digestive tract and lungs. Unless your vet finds otherwise, your cat is probably getting enough vitamin D from his food and his naps in the sun.
