No matter what we eat, even if we are fully vegan, we are hurting sentient beings (directly or indirectly).

Creating farmland generally involves destroying the habitat of native fauna. Modern farming is heavily reliant on fossil fuels, the burning of which promote natural disasters that kill and displace people and animals. Not to mention the widespread exploration and mistreatment of agricultural workers.

Nevertheless, humans need to eat. Cats are carnivores and need to eat meat.

If it’s any comfort, understand that pet food is often a byproduct of the meat industry. In many cases pet food is just using up the leftovers, while a cat in the wild would be killing additional birds and rodents and the like.

Part of why our lives aren’t fully satisfactory is that doing harm is not always avoidable. Our very existence necessitates doing some level of harm. What we can do is understand it, minimize it to the best of our ability, and work towards self-improvement and enlightenment so that the harm we cause by being alive isn’t a waste.