Pet Nutrition
Pet nutrition can be a very confusing subject. To make matters worse, there are lots of marketing and trends that popularize certain types of diets or ingredients (regardless of what is the most beneficial for a pet). Here are a few things to keep in mind:
1. Pets are NOT people. While we tend to treat pets like our children, they are different species. This may seem obvious, but the fact that dogs and cats are different species means that they have much different nutritional needs and many of the foods that humans find healthy are NOT appropriate nutrition for pets.
2. Pet food should be based on nutrients --NOT ingredients! This is where advertising / pet food marketing can be a little misleading. Many of us know that the ingredient list on the package lists the ingredients by weight. However, did you know that the bag that lists chicken (for example) first is NOT necessarily the best nutrition for your pet?!? Here are a few tidbits to consider:
3. Different nutrition is needed for different stages of life. There is no one size fits all diet. There are some pet foods out there labeled "appropriate for all life stages", but this is not really accurate. The nutritional needs of a pet are going to vary depending on his/her: species, breed, age, current health status, level of activity, and whether the pet is pregnant or lactating. Talk to your veterinarian for a specific recommendation.
4. For those pets on prescription diets, please be cautious about adding "extras". If your pet has been prescribed a diet for a specific health condition, then you should talk to your veterinarian before offering treats, table food, or other "extras". Additional food items added to a prescription diet will often counteract what the prescription diet is doing for your pet. Prescription diets are the culmination of years of research and quality control - "over-the-counter" diets are NOT the same thing. If your pet doesn't like the taste of a prescription diet, talk to your veterinarian about alternatives or acceptable top dressing.
5. Please leave it in the bag! Believe it or not, a lot of research has gone into the design of many company's dry kibble bags. If you take the dry kibble and pour it into another container (plastic containers especially), you may run into problems with rancidity. Rancidity is what happens as fats within the food becomes stale and then has an "off" flavor. If your pet has been eating the same food and all the sudden doesn't care for it anymore, this may be the issue. Instead, keep the dry kibble in the original bag and keep it sealed tight in a cool, dry place.
1. Pets are NOT people. While we tend to treat pets like our children, they are different species. This may seem obvious, but the fact that dogs and cats are different species means that they have much different nutritional needs and many of the foods that humans find healthy are NOT appropriate nutrition for pets.
2. Pet food should be based on nutrients --NOT ingredients! This is where advertising / pet food marketing can be a little misleading. Many of us know that the ingredient list on the package lists the ingredients by weight. However, did you know that the bag that lists chicken (for example) first is NOT necessarily the best nutrition for your pet?!? Here are a few tidbits to consider:
- the term "chicken" on an ingredient list means just that- the whole chicken (meat, organs, feathers, feet, etc). When the whole meat source is listed this way, it will always appear higher on the ingredient list because it is taking into account all of the water that the chicken has inside of it. Including the water in the weight of an ingredient moves it higher on the list and makes that food seem like it would be more nutritious, but it may not be as the water may dilute out the nutrient value.
- the term "chicken byproducts" (while made unpopular by modern advertising campaigns) is actually better nutritionally for your pet!! Byproducts refer to the nutrient rich organ meats. Since byproducts are often the pieces of meat that humans don't find tasty (but pets do)- the use of byproducts is also more ecologically sustainable. i.e. its ensuring that less of a slaughtered animal is wasted, without taking away from the amount of meat available for human consumption.
- the term "chicken meal" means the nutrient rich organs and meat minus the water content. The fact that the water is removed will move this ingredient lower on the ingredient list (it won't weigh as much without the water), but it is still a great source of nutrition for pets.
- The terms "natural", "organic", "human grade", "grain free", and "holistic" have nothing to do with the nutrient value of the food- these are advertising labels.
- Corn and other grains are NOT bad for pets!! "Grain free" is a very popular buzzword in the pet food industry right now; however grains (yes, even corn) can be very digestible sources of protein, carbs, and vitamins. Grains do NOT cause allergies!! There may be some pets who have sensitivities / allergies to certain food ingredients- but this is NOT as common as you might think!
3. Different nutrition is needed for different stages of life. There is no one size fits all diet. There are some pet foods out there labeled "appropriate for all life stages", but this is not really accurate. The nutritional needs of a pet are going to vary depending on his/her: species, breed, age, current health status, level of activity, and whether the pet is pregnant or lactating. Talk to your veterinarian for a specific recommendation.
4. For those pets on prescription diets, please be cautious about adding "extras". If your pet has been prescribed a diet for a specific health condition, then you should talk to your veterinarian before offering treats, table food, or other "extras". Additional food items added to a prescription diet will often counteract what the prescription diet is doing for your pet. Prescription diets are the culmination of years of research and quality control - "over-the-counter" diets are NOT the same thing. If your pet doesn't like the taste of a prescription diet, talk to your veterinarian about alternatives or acceptable top dressing.
5. Please leave it in the bag! Believe it or not, a lot of research has gone into the design of many company's dry kibble bags. If you take the dry kibble and pour it into another container (plastic containers especially), you may run into problems with rancidity. Rancidity is what happens as fats within the food becomes stale and then has an "off" flavor. If your pet has been eating the same food and all the sudden doesn't care for it anymore, this may be the issue. Instead, keep the dry kibble in the original bag and keep it sealed tight in a cool, dry place.
Click to be taken to Hillspet.com
|
Visit Royal Canin's Nutrition Site
|
3 Pet Food Label Myths
|
