6: Nutrient Requirements for Adult Cats Flashcards
What is an ‘adult’ cat? Stages?
Reach adulthood around 12 months
Nearing 7 years = older
1-7 years = young to middle-aged cats
Water requirement varies with… What parts of diet composition should affect water intake
Requirement varies with physiological and environmental conditions
Adjust water intake based on DM content (dry diet = more), protein (more protein = more water to maintain urine), sodium (more= more water)
Recommended water intake for cats?
1 mL water per kcal ME prevents urinary problems/crystals
Allow cats to self-regulate
Where do cats get water? What else would influence water requirement?
From food, water, metabolic water (glucose oxidation)
Climate (hot/dry), lactation
What would influence a cat’s energy requirement?
Age, activity, sex, neuter status (more fat tissue, less muscle tissue = more protein turnover = higher E requirement), breed, hairless cat (less insulation)
Thermoneutral zone of cat? What does it affect
between 30 and 38C
If not in thermoneutral zone, maintenance energy requirement goes up
Is the association between body mass and energy requirement linear?
No. Mouse has a greater E requirement /kg body weight than elephant
What is metabolic body weight in cats? Why is it important
BW ^ 0.67
Create linearity between body weight and maintenance energy requirement
Maintenance energy requirement (MER) calculation in cats
100 kcal metabolizable energy (ME) x kg BW^0.67
Slide 12
body condition scoring
Carbohydrate digestion in cats
- limited capacity to metabolize certain sugars
- low adaptation of disaccharidases at brush border (effectively utilize some monosaccharides)
Safe upper limits of CHOs (g/kg DM diet)
Glucose or sucrose = 50-150
Lactose or raffinose = 50
Fructo-oligosaccharides = 7.5
Cellulose = 100
Is there a known optimal starch inclusion level for the cat diet?
No, from the kibble perspective there is (optimize binding)
Change in lactase activity in the cat
High in first 5 weeks of life, but decreases drastically during weaning period (decrease of lactose in the diet)
Describe starch utilization in cats
- requirement not determined
- limited fermentation (non-functional cecum)
- small amounts recommended
- prebiotics