Download Importance of Animal-Based Proteins in Pet Foods

Technical Bulletin No. 23R
Importance of Animal-Based
Proteins in Pet Foods
Many dog and cat owners are interested in knowing more about the
sources and the quality of proteins that are included in pet foods.
Recognizing the differences between animal-based and plant-based
protein sources can help owners to select foods that best meet their
dog’ or cat’s needs.
Functions of Dietary Protein
Dietary protein is essential for growth and for the maintenance
of almost all tissues of an animal’s body. Protein supplies
the amino acids needed to build hair, skin, claws, muscles,
cartilage, tendons and ligaments. Protein also makes up
the enzymes that put in motion all metabolic reactions, the
hormones that act as the body’s chemical messengers, and
antibodies that comprise the immune system. The body’s
protein is not static, but rather is in a constant state of flux
as cells and tissues wear out and are replaced. Therefore, the
protein found in a food is essential for replacing losses that
occur during normal protein turnover and for supporting a
healthy body condition.
Digestive efficiency: The digestive systems of dogs and cats
differ from those of herbivores and utilize animal-based
proteins more efficiently than plant-based proteins, such as
corn gluten meal1 or soybean meal.
High Quality: Animal-based proteins have a higher
biological value than plant-based proteins. For dogs and
cats, this means that animal-based protein sources provide a
balance of essential amino acids and nitrogen to meet their
nutrient requirements whereas some plant-based proteins
may be deficient in certain essential amino acids.
Sources of Dietary Protein
The protein in dog and cat foods can be supplied by animal
sources, plant sources, or a combination of the two. Common
animal-based protein sources that are used in pet food include
chicken, lamb, fish, and beef. Examples of plant-based protein
sources are corn-gluten meal and soybean meal.
Benefits of Animal-Based Protein
Cats are obligate carnivores, which means that they cannot
obtain all of the nutrients that they require from a plant-based
diet and must consume some animal-source ingredients to
meet their nutritional needs. Dogs are omnivorous in nature,
but evolved consuming a carnivorous diet and thrive when
fed a diet containing protein sources from animals. Additional
benefits of feeding animal-based protein sources to dogs and
cats include:
L-carnitine: Animal proteins (but not plant proteins)
provide L-carnitine, a compound that acts like a vitamin
and enhances the use of fat as an energy source. Because
L-carnitine facilitates the oxidation of fat, it supports a
healthy metabolism and in overweight pets can promote
weight loss.
Healthy body condition: When fed as a single protein
source, animal protein is better than protein sources
from plants at building and maintaining lean muscle and
supporting a healthy body condition.
More on back…
Technical Bulletin No. 23R
Research Findings
Adult dogs fed diets containing chicken had increased lean
tissue and reduced body fat when compared with dogs fed
diets containing plant-based proteins such as soybean meal
and corn gluten meal (see chart).
Chisel: Body composition (corn gluten meal,
soy bean meal) 32 week changes in dogs3
Lean Tissue
Fat Tissue
1000
Absolute change, g
ab (p<0.05)
750
b
a
a
b
Feeding a pet food that contains primarily animal-based
protein sources maintains muscle mass and supports healthy
body condition. These benefits are needed for exercise and
for normal daily activities and are especially important as
dogs and cats age.
Iams® and Eukanuba® foods include high quality, easily
digested animal-based proteins carefully chosen from
chicken, egg, lamb or fish.
Iams® and Eukanuba® dog and cat foods contain more
protein from animal-based protein sources than other
leading brands of pet food.
500
250
Conclusions and Application
a
b
0
Chicken
Corn Gluten
Meal
Soybean
Meal
Chicken +
Corn Gluten
Meal
Chicken +
Soybean
Meal
This chart denotes 100% protein from specified source (i.e. chicken,
corn gluten meal or soybean meal)
1 Funaba, M., Matsumoto, C., Matsuki, K., Gotoh, K., Kaneko, M., Iriki, T., et al.
(2002). Comparison of corn gluten meal and meat meal as a protein source in dry
foods formulated for cats. AJVR, 63(9), 1247-1251.
2 Osler BL. An integrated essential amino acid index for predicting the biological
value of proteins. In Protein and Amino Acid Nutrition, New York, 1959. Academic
Press.
3 P&G Pet Care. Data on file.
Aging in dogs and cats is associated with a loss of lean
(muscle) tissue and a decline in body condition. Another
study reported that senior dogs fed a 32% protein, chickenbased diet maintained body compositions and musclespecific protein patterns similar to those seen in healthy
young adult dogs. In contrast, this benefit was not observed
when a plant-based or lower protein diet was fed.4
4 Davenport, G., Gaasch, S., Hayek, M., & Cummins, K. (2001). Effect of dietary
protein on body composition and metabolic responses of geriatric and young-adult
dogs. J Vet Intern Med, 15, 306.
© 2012 P&G. All rights reserved. Printed in the USA. 1-800-525-IAMS (4267)
www.iams.com www.eukanuba.com www.pgpetwellness.com