Patcharida / Shutterstock.com
Look at any label on a bag or can of cat food, and you often will see “liver” listed as an ingredient. But what kind of liver is it? And can cats eat liver?
Liver is often listed as a generic ingredient, so you don’t always know what animal the liver comes from—poultry, beef, or something else. But, since chicken is the most common protein found in commercial cat food, the liver is likely to be from a chicken, said Emma Passman, a commercial pet nutritionist.
Can cats eat chicken liver? Absolutely, Passman said, but in moderation.
Quick Overview: Can Cats Eat Chicken Liver?
Toxic: No
Species Appropriate: Yes, chicken liver is species-appropriate, as birds are a natural prey.
Commonly Allergenic: Yes
Summary of Content
Chicken liver is a healthy food for cats. In a balanced formula of a trusted commercial cat food, you can be confident your cat is not getting too much, and you can also safely feed cats chicken liver in small amounts.
Is Chicken Liver Safe for Cats?
Chicken liver is common in commercial pet foods by trusted brands, and you can be confident that it is safe to feed, said Passman, who lives in North Yorkshire, England. Chicken liver is healthy, and full of iron and vitamin A. Liver also contains copper (necessary for blood, tissue, and collagen production) and vitamin B12 (used in immune function, nervous system, and cognition). Most cats find chicken liver quite tasty.
In addition to vitamin A and iron, chicken liver is low in fat and has a moisture content of 75 percent (regular muscle meat is about 65 percent moisture). Chicken liver is low in ash, which helps balance calcium and phosphorous; this helps to prevent struvite crystals in your cat’s urine. Chicken liver also contains taurine, an essential nutrient for cats that comes mostly from the heart.
As for other types of liver, like turkey or beef, there is not much of a difference nutritionally. However, since cats in the wild prey on birds, chicken liver is closer to a natural diet.
How Much Liver Should You Feed Your Cat?
Kirsten McCarthy / Cats.com
Chicken liver is healthy, but too much liver can cause copper toxicity and vitamin A toxicity. It would take a huge amount of liver to get up to toxic levels of vitamin A and iron, and that would not happen with a well-balanced commercial cat food, Passman said. She has never heard of any instance of vitamin A toxicity in a commercial diet.
“They’d have to eat an awful lot, or there would have to be something wrong,” she said.
If you are feeding a commercial diet from a trusted brand, this is a non-issue, because your cat won’t eat too much liver. But if you are feeding whole liver just cut off a small piece for your cat to enjoy, and do so only occasionally. Always fully cook meats and organs like chicken liver before feeding them to your cat. Similarly, if feeding freeze-dried liver treats, do so sparingly.
How much is too much? “I wouldn’t feed liver every day for a week,” Passman said. “That would be too much.”
Overall, liver is a very good ingredient for cats. “It supplies a lot of good nutrition, trace elements, and amino acids,” she says. “It’s palatable for cats, as long as it’s not fed to excess.”
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a cat eating liver give a cat diarrhea?
Eating liver in and of itself should not give a cat diarrhea, unless your cat has a particular intolerance to it. However, feeding too much liver, or feeding a new food to your cat, can cause diarrhea.
What meats should cats not eat?
What are the healthiest organ meats for cats?
The healthiest organ meat for cats is arguably liver due to its iron and vitamin A content. Liver also contains amino acids. By far, liver is the most common organ meat that appears on the labels of commercial foods.