Download Feeding dogs and cats

Learning topic: Provide advice on health and nutrition
Feeding dogs and cats
Essential nutrients
This topic begins by exploring the essential nutrients required by animals.
Water
All animals require water every day. This is because all animals are made up
of 50-70% water and water is required to sustain life.
Clean, fresh drinking water should be available at all times to all animals.
Water is taken in by drinking, and also as part of food. Canned food
contains a much higher water content than dry food, so less additional water
is needed on a canned food diet than with a dry food diet. Similarly, animals
eating fresh grass require less water than animals eating hay and grain.
Some animals are fussy about their water and will refuse to drink if it tastes
different, so if you are travelling with your animals it is a good idea to carry
water from home for them.
Energy
Energy is defined as the capacity to do work; it is the fuel our bodies need in
order to survive, grow and be active. All body processes need energy and
this energy comes from food.
Energy can be provided by fats, carbohydrates and proteins.
Fats are the richest, or most concentrated source of energy, and proteins are
the least efficient source of energy.
Fats are made up of basic units called fatty acids.
Essential fatty acids are acids that must be provided in the diet because they
cannot be made by the animal. Dogs require an essential fatty acid called
linoleic acid, while cats require this and also arachidonic acid.
All types of animals have their own essential fatty acids.
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Protein
Proteins are the building blocks of animal bodies.
All animal tissue is high in protein, particularly muscle, but also bone and
internal organs.
Protein in the diet is required for replacement of worn body parts, growth
and reproduction.
Amino acids are the basic units that make up proteins.
As with fatty acids, there are some amino acids that must be provided in the
diet for any animal; these are called essential amino acids.
Essential amino acids for dogs are arginine, histidine, methionine,
phenylalanine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, threonine, tryptophan and valine.
Essential amino acids for cats includes the above list for dogs but cats also
require taurine.
Vitamins
Vitamins are organic chemicals required in relatively small amounts to
allow the body’s chemical processes to proceed properly.
Fat soluble vitamins are A, D, E and K.
These can be stored in the body, so do not need to be provided every day. If
they are provided in excess they can be toxic.
Water soluble vitamins are C and B complex.
These cannot be stored and so must be provided every day. Most animals
are able to make their own vitamin C, but humans and guinea pigs cannot.
Minerals
Minerals are inorganic chemicals that are required in small amounts for the
body to be incorporated into body parts, eg calcium for bones or iron for red
blood cells.
Macrominerals are minerals that are needed in small, but not minute
amounts. Examples are calcium, phosphorus, sodium, potassium,
magnesium, iron, chlorine and sulphur.
Microminerals, or trace minerals, are minerals that are required in minute
amounts. Examples are: manganese, zinc, copper, molybdenum, fluorine,
selenium, iodine and tin.
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Learning topic: Provide advice on health and nutrition
Alternatives for feeding dogs and cats
All captive animals must be fed a complete and balanced diet as they cannot
go out and find their own food as a wild animal may. A complete and
balanced diet is one that contains all the nutrients, as already discussed, in
the correct amounts for the life stage and needs of the animal.
Some choices of food types to feed dogs and cats are listed below:

commercial products or mixture of products—eg tinned and dry—
supplied by supermarkets and pet stores

premium or professional dog food as supplied by vets and pet stores

therapeutic diets supplied by vets to treat specific conditions

homemade diets— these have to be very carefully made to make
sure they are complete and balanced and that the nutrients are not
destroyed by cooking

a combination of the above.
Commercial pet food comes in three main forms:

tinned

semi-moist

dry.
Tinned

80-90% water

The composition of these range from premium foods which contain
high proportions of meat and/or meat by-products to the lower
quality brands which contain a low meat content.

Due to the high heat and pressures used to manufacture tinned dog
and cat food, the meat is reduced to a pulverised mush.

The manufacturers then use textured soy protein to simulate the
appearance of meat (recognise these advertising slogans ‘so chumpy
you could carve it’, ‘full of meaty chunks’?).

Tinned food tends to be very palatable and is good to use to increase
acceptance of dry foods or for sick and convalescing animals.

Most of the better quality brands are formulated to be nutritionally
complete.
Semi-moist

25-40% water
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
These are protected against spoilage without refrigeration through
the inclusion of sucrose, propylene glycol and sorbates.

They also commonly contain animal products:
-
meat and meat by–products
milk products—dried whey and cheese rind
fats and oils—animal fat and vegetable oils
soybean products—soybean flour and meal
carboxy-methylcellulose
mineral and vitamin supplements.

They may be shaped into patties of ‘mince’ or simulated meat
chunks.

More recently, a soft dry food has been developed. These contain
less meat and depend on their preservation by the addition of
phosphoric acid to maintain an acidic pH of 4.2.
There are disadvantages to both the tinned and semi-moist types of food:

You are paying for mostly water, making it an expensive way to feed
animals.

The dog or cat has to eat a lot to be able to satisfy increased food
needs due to lactating, working or growing.

They have a short shelf life once opened.
Dry

5-10% moisture

Dry food is the most nutrient dense.

This type of food often contains:
-
cereal grains—corn, wheat, barley and oats
-
cereal by-products, eg wheat germ
soybean products
animal products
milk products
fats and oils
mineral and vitamin supplements.

Crude fat often ranges from 5–12 %.

The higher fat levels increase palatability and can be achieved by
spraying a liquefied fat on the surface of the pellets.

They are marketed as meals, pellets, biscuits, kibble or extruded
products.
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Learning topic: Provide advice on health and nutrition

Dry food has the longest shelf life once the packet has been opened.
Note: For any diet you choose you should always read the label and check
they are complete and balanced as some are only supplements.
Cat nutrition
The first thing to remember is that cats are not small dogs!
What they eat

Cats are naturally 100% carnivorous and cannot survive on plant
sourced proteins and fats. Dogs are naturally omnivorous so have
evolved the metabolic processes to use many plant source nutrients.

Cats have essential nutritional requirements in their diet that dogs do
not have.

Cats have more essential amino acids and fatty acids that must be
provided in the diet than do dogs. Some of these can only be
provided in a meat-based diet.
Some problems associated with incorrect nutrition in cats:

Energy imbalance seen in cats fed on dog food

Not enough protein or fat of animal origin.

Too much indigestible plant origin nutrients resulting in anorexia,
weight loss, dull coat, etc.

Feeding diets with too much carbohydrate (cheap source of energy).
This leads to obesity as carbohydrates tend to make a diet very
palatable, increasing intake above the MER needs of the cat (MER
refers to the Maintenance Energy Requirement – this means the
amount of food that must be fed to provide the energy needed to
maintain the animal)..
The table below lists some of the medical problems caused by poor nutrition
in cats.
Vitamin E deficiency

This condition is seen in cats fed exclusively
on canned red meat tuna. It causes
pansteatitis—inflammation of the fat of the
body.
Vitamin B1 deficiency

Seen in cats fed on canned food deficient in
vitamin B1 (thiamine), or fish diets with
thiaminases (enzymes that destroy the
vitamin).

Takes around six weeks for a cat on this diet
to develop the clinical signs—anorexia,
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weight loss, neurological disorders, ataxia and
death.
Calcium deficiency
Hypervitaminosis A
‘Kangaroo Cat’

Calcium deficiency is common in kittens fed
on a pure meat diet, such as mince, with no
milk.

This deficiency causes nutritional
hyperparathyroidism—irritability, reluctance
to run and play and lameness. X-rays show
bone resorption and folding fractures.

This condition occurs where a diet contains
too much liver.

The liver is main storage organ for vitamin A,
too much of which causes bone
demineralisation (calcium loss), folding
fractures, exostoses (bony outgrowths)
especially at the back of neck and elbows.

This eventually causes the cat to be able to sit
only on its haunches with the forelegs held
close to the body.

Never feed more than 1 teaspoon liver to
kittens or more than 1 oz to adults per day.
Summary of some of the do's and don'ts in cat feeding
Do’s include:

do feed a complete and balanced diet, usually a mix of commercial
foods with some raw meat/bones for their teeth

do make sure the commercial diet uses animal source protein and
fats

do always have fresh water available, especially if feeding a dry diet.
Don't:

don't feed dog food to cats.

don't feed:
-
pure meat diet
pure fish
pure liver

don’t feed cow’s milk to adults as they lose the enzyme to digest
lactose, resulting in diarrhoea

don't overcook home formulated diets as it destroys vitamins,
especially the water soluble vitamins B, C and E and fat soluble A
and D. It also destroys the essential amino acids, especially taurine, a
deficiency of which causes blindness and cardio-myopathy in cats.
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© NSW DET 2007
Learning topic: Provide advice on health and nutrition
Feeding dogs and cats under stress
The majority of animals brought into a veterinary clinic or boarding
establishment will be under stress, especially small spoilt house dogs and
cats off their usual territory. They will not be happy about the separation
from their normal environment. Even though you may interview the owners,
very seldom will the pets eat what the owners have suggested.
A few tips for feeding dogs and cats under stress are as follows:

Feed dry concentrated feed at night. This will allow the dog or cat to
pick at food in peace and quiet and dry food does not spoil. Try cat
food on the small dogs as it is usually more readily accepted by
them. It also has the added advantage of reducing the amount of
faeces in the runs in the morning.

Do not overfeed; most dogs, particularly small dogs, will be
overwhelmed by large meals and would rather pick at titbits. Give
them small meals often, which is probably how they would normally
eat at home.

Robust outdoor dogs enjoy a raw meaty bone to chew on during the
days to help amuse themselves.

If a dog hasn't finished its food within 30 minutes, remove it from
the cage; they won’t want it later and it will only attract vermin.

Small dogs will usually prefer cat biscuits because they taste better
and are smaller to chew.

Tempt fussy eaters with small morsels of either raw or cooked beef
or chicken and hand feed them.

Warm up cat food so that it smells more appealing for fussy cats.

If an animal won't eat, remove it to an isolated area, make a fuss of
it, then attempt to feed it. The animal may be scared of the other
boarders.

The size of the bowl can sometimes put dogs and cats off eating. If it
is too deep or has the odour of another animal on it, they may not
tolerate it.

Remember, the animal is paying for the privilege of staying with
you, so treat it as a guest, not a nuisance.
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