Freeze Dried Shrimp for Cats

Yes, cats can eat plain shrimp, cooked or freeze dried, cut small and given as a treat rather than a meal. This page is about cats only, and about the arithmetic of one small, light piece.

Shrimp on a cat's plate

Shrimp is a plain, mild seafood, and a cat's interest in it is usually quick. The only things that go wrong with shrimp are what is added to it, and how much of it there is. Scampi comes in butter and garlic, and Merck Veterinary Manual lists onion and garlic among the foods that can harm cats, so a dinner plate shrimp is a plain, peeled shrimp, never the sauced one.

The quantity question is the one cat owners ask least and need most. A cat is small, and a treat is a larger fraction of its day than the same treat is of a dog's. VCA Hospitals advises keeping treats to a small share of the day's calories, and for a small cat that share is small.

Cooked, raw and freeze dried shrimp

Cooked shrimp is pink, springy and wet. USDA FoodData Central lists cooked shrimp at about 99 calories per 100 grams. A cooked shrimp that weighs 5 grams comes to about 5 calories by that USDA figure, which gives you a feel for how little shrimp has in it.

Freeze dried shrimp is the same shrimp with most of the water drawn out, so a piece weighs far less than the cooked shrimp it came from, and its calories stay with the meat that is left. That makes the per piece figure different from the USDA number above, and you can find it yourself. Weigh ten freeze dried shrimp on a kitchen scale and divide by ten for the weight of one. The label states calories per ounce, and an ounce is about 28 grams, so a piece's share of an ounce gives its calories.

Raw shrimp is a different matter: it is uncooked and carries the cautions in our raw feeding notice, which applies to every product on the site.

Sniff and Shift freeze dries imported shrimp in small batches in Malvern, a single ingredient in a 1.5 ounce bag labeled for dogs and cats; it sits on the shelf for freeze dried cat treats.

Shells and tails for cats

Peel the shrimp and take off the tail. Shell and tail are hard, sharp edged and awkward for a small cat to chew, and they add nothing a cat is after. The bag or the listing says whether a freeze dried shrimp is shelled, so read it before the first piece goes into the dish.

A cat usually licks a freeze dried shrimp before it eats it. The lick softens the piece, and a shrimp left on the floor goes soft and sticky within a few minutes. Serve it in a saucer, or in your palm, and take it away if it is not eaten.

One more reason to peel: a shell left in the dish turns into the cat's next toy, and a toy that smells of shrimp ends up under the refrigerator. Peeled and cut, the shrimp stays on the saucer where it belongs.

One shrimp, cut in thirds

Cut one shrimp in thirds, and cut a thin one in halves. A third is a mouthful for a small cat, and a whole shrimp is a mouthful for a large one. Break it with your fingers over a saucer, which is all the preparation it needs. Keep the bag sealed afterward and follow the storage line printed on the label, since a bag left open lets damp air in.

That is also the trade off. A cat that licks the shrimp first is a cat that makes a mess of a whole one. Three small pieces last longer, give three rewards and are easier to size.

For the other half of the household, the dog version is in can dogs eat shrimp, and the wider cat shelf is in best freeze dried cat treats.

Common questions

How many freeze dried shrimp can a cat have?

A piece or two, cut in thirds, as an occasional treat is the sensible range. VCA Hospitals advises keeping treats to a small share of the day's calories, and for a small cat that is a small share. Use the weighing steps in the article if you want a figure for your own bag.

Can I give my cat shrimp from my dinner plate?

Only if it is plain: no butter, garlic, onion or sauce. Merck Veterinary Manual lists onion and garlic among foods that can harm cats. Peel it and cut it small.

Can kittens have shrimp?

No source used for this page gives a rule for kittens, so this page gives none. A licensed professional who cares for your kitten can say what suits one that young.

Why does my cat lick freeze dried shrimp first?

Some cats lick a dry treat before they eat it, and the lick softens the piece. Offer it in a saucer rather than on the floor. A cat that licks and leaves may want a smaller piece.