Heart

Heart is a muscular offal, classed as muscle rather than as a glandular organ, used as a source of protein, palatability and certain nutrients in foods, treats and home rations. It supplies good-quality protein, iron, zinc and B-group vitamins, but its particular value lies in its content of taurine and coenzyme Q10. Taurine is the surprising detail here: it is an essential amino acid for cats, which synthesise it only weakly and depend on a dietary supply for healthy cardiac function, whereas dogs synthesise it better though certain situations raise their need (NRC, 2006). Heart is thus one of the natural dietary sources of taurine, and coenzyme Q10, present in high concentration, takes part in cellular energy production. Its fat content is moderate and varies with the species of origin. In a raw or [home-cooked diet](/glossary/home-cooked-diet), heart is usually counted as part of the muscle meat rather than as rich glandular offal such as [liver](/glossary/liver) or [kidney](/glossary/kidney), so it does not carry the same dosing constraints. On a label, the word heart signals a palatable protein source. The marker: heart is a nutritious muscle and a natural taurine source, of particular interest for cats, to be used within a balanced ration. Its taurine relevance connects to the [grain-free and dilated cardiomyopathy](/glossary/dcm-dilated-cardiomyopathy-grain-free-debate) discussion.

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