Commercial and alternative pet foods, and pet obesity

Question 1

T/F: obesity is the most common nutritional disorder and predisposes animals to many conditions

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Where can excess calories come from?

Answer 2

Diet 
Neutering (decreased metabolism)
Inactivity (medical/crates)
Aging 
Endocrine disease 
Competition (social facilitation) 
Genetics

Question 3

Success of a weight-reduction program depends on??

Answer 3

Owner compliance 
Friendly feeding plan 
Increase exercise 
Monitoring 
Maintain target weight

Question 4

What percent body fat is considered ideal for a pet

Answer 4

15-20%

Question 5

What is optimal weight loss?

Answer 5

2% body weight/week

Question 6

If you lose more than the “optimal loss”, what occurs?

Answer 6

Decreased metabolic weight

Decreased lean body weight

Question 7

How should we change the food to lose weight?

Answer 7

Increase soluble fiber
Decrease fat
High protein

L carnitine and CLA
Antioxidants
Restricted sodium

Question 8

What feeding method should be used on a weight loss diet?

Answer 8

Free-choice reducing diet

2-4times a day

Question 9

Once the target weight is reached, how do we maintain the target weight?

Answer 9

Increase cals by 10% per week until weight is stable

Question 10

What is the MOA of slentrol?

Answer 10

Selective MTO inhibitor

Stop chylomicron formation and reduce fat absorption (10% effect)

Increased fat in enterocytes increases peptide YY -> hypothalamus satiety center (90% effect)

Question 11

Private label brands market emphasis on _____________, while grocery brands market __________

Answer 11

Low cost; palatability

Question 12

Speciality brands put market emphasis on __________

Answer 12

Ingredients and optimal nutrients

Question 13

Are veterinary medical foods controlled?

Answer 13

Yes by the FDA

Licensed veterinary sales only

Question 14

What are the forms of commercials foods?

Answer 14

Dry
Soft-dry
Soft-moist
Moist

Question 15

Dry foods have _____% moisture

Answer 15

6-12

Question 16

Semi-moist foods have ________ % moisture. Can this food be free fed?

Answer 16

25-40%

Yes

Question 17

What type of food contains simple sugars and should NOT be recommended to diabetic patients

Answer 17

Semi-moist foods
Soft-dry foods (

(Treats)

Question 18

Can moist foods be fed free choice ?

Answer 18

Nope

Question 19

__________________ are nutrients or foods added with the intention of improving a diet

Answer 19

Supplements

Question 20

If you are feeding balanced diets to normal dogs and cats, is supplementation necessary?

Answer 20

Nope

Use/overuse may pose health risks

Question 21

Your client comes to your clinic wanting to supplements corn oil to their dog’s pet food to improve dry skin. What do you recommend?

Answer 21

Probably not a good choice..

Dry skin is usually not due to a lack of nutrients like fats/oils, it is usually due to environmental factors

Just a tsp/cup of dry food –> 40% increase in energy density

Question 22

Owners usually do not strictly adhere to recommended feeding and supplement diets with treats. For animals on therapeutic diets, how can you improve diet adherence?

Answer 22

Work with your owners to find treats that will not disrupt the current diet

Eg jerky treats have 6.9% NaCl -> for a patient in renal failure you should find other treats that are not high in sodium

Question 23

Dry matter is made of?

Answer 23

Carbohydrates 
Protein 
Fat
Mineral 
Vitamins

Question 24

In a can of wet food, you have 75% moisture. What percentage is your dry matter?

Answer 24

Dry mater = 100%- moisture%

100% - 75% = 25% dry matter

Question 25

You have a can of wet food with 75% moisture. 10% of this can is protein. How much protein is there on a dry matter basis?

Answer 25

100% - 75% = 25% dry matter

Dry weight = nutrient% / dry matter %

Dry weight = 10%/25%

Dry weight =40%

Question 26

What are some types of alternative diets?

Answer 26

Homemade wellness diets

Homemade therapeutic diets

Raw food diets

Question 27

What are potential problems associated with homemade pet foods?

Answer 27

Source of recipe - formulation errors are common

Preparation errors are common

Time consuming

Lack of feeding trials

Question 28

What is diet drift??

Answer 28

In homemade pet foods
As more time passes, the more the diet will differ nutritionally from the initial recipe

• > tired of making something
• > cant find an ingredient
• > substitutions

Question 29

What are common nutritional errors of homemade foods?

Answer 29

Calcium and/or trace mineral deficiency
Vitamin deficiency
Excessive protein or fat
Essential fatty acid deficiency

Cats are special - taurine

Question 30

What are common problems of raw food diets?

Answer 30

Refrigerated, freeze dried, or frozen –> pathogens survive these conditions
Food safety

Nutritional imbalances

GI foreign bodies and perforations

Dental issues

Obstipation

Question 31

What are the purported benefits of raw food diets?

Answer 31

Improved skin and coat 
Elimination of breath, body, and fecal odors 
Improved health and immune function 
Improved behavior and activity level 
Reduces disease incidence 

Enhanced digestion due to the presence of naturally occurring enzymes found in raw foods

Cleans teeth
Simulates diets eaten by “wild” cats or dogs

Question 32

What is the food enzyme concept?

Answer 32

Enzymes are an energy factor or “life force” and each person is given a limited supply of bodily enzyme energy at birth

Heat destroys enzymes in food –> shortage of digestive and metabolic enzymes

Enzyme deficiency –> accelerated aging and predisposes us to disease

Question 33

T/F: pathogen contamination is a concern with raw diets

Answer 33

True

20-35% of poultry carcasses for human consumption are positive for Salmonella spp.
50% are positive for Campylobacter

Question 34

T/F: pathogen contamination of pet foods is a human health concern

Answer 34

True

Pets infected shed pathogens > children and elderly/ immunocompromised susceptible !!