Top 5 Cat Myths

Photo by: Flickr
Photo by: Flickr

2. Myth: Cows milk is good for cats

Cats often used to be kept as a tool to keep populations of mice down on farms and in houses. They were not necessarily afforded the title of pet, and were not fed extra food on top of the vermin they caught. Those living on a farm however, may occasionally have been offered a saucer of milk if it was thought that they had not had enough to eat.

Cats are generally lactose intolerant. They may enjoy milk, but their bodies are not designed to digest cow’s milk. They are supposed to drink their mother’s milk when they are kittens, not milk from another species when they are adults.

Cat’s can suffer a variety of symptoms from drinking milk. Just like in humans lactose intolerance in cats frequently causes an upset stomach and vomiting, but most commonly results in diarrhea. Symptoms generally occur within eight to twelve hours.

Not all cats develop lactose intolerance, although it is normal for cats to do so. One way to tell is to offer your cat a tablespoon or two of milk and wait. If the cat has no symptoms within a day the cat will enjoy the occasional offering of milk.

However, most veterinarians advise against giving a cat milk as the risks outweigh the benefits.