Nutrition Flashcards
Guest Values
Eat less, shed less, poop less
Eat less saves money
Poop less saves time with maintenance
“Natural” Guests Value:
• Natural ingredients
Familiar ingredients that they would
choose for themselves
Typically are concerned about ingredients and ask for “fresh” and not
“meal” to be the first ingredient in the bag
Science-Based” Guests Value:
Results
Recommendations from vets
Statistics and data
Typically are less concerned about what the ingredients are, and are more interested in quality
Nutrients are divided into 6 categories
- Water
- Protein
- Carbohydrates
- Fats
- Vitamins
- Minerals
Science example:
Science Diet Adult Chicken Recipe
Large bag is 35 lbs - 15875.7g
Daily Feeding Recommendations:
20lbs
12/3 (165g)
100lbs
5 1/3 (530g)
Small Breed will last ~96 Days
Cost per day - $0.80
Cost per Month - $24.00
Large Breed will last ~30 Days
Cost per day > $2.56
Cost per Month + $76.98
Natural example:
GO! Adult Chicken Recipe
Large bag is 25 lbs - 11339.8g
Daily Feeding Recommendations:
20lbs
¼ cup (86g)
100lbs
3 cups (348g)
Small Breed will last ~132 Days
Cost per day - $0.53
Cost per Month - $15.90
Large Breed will last ~33 Days
Cost per day > $2.12
Cost per Month > $63.60
Calculations for how long bags will last and daily and monthly costs of them
Weight of the food / Daily feeding recommendations = Number of day
11,339.8g / 86g = 132 days
Cost of the bag / Number of days = Daily cost
$69.98 / 132 days = $0.53 a day
Daily cost X Days in a month = Monthly cost
$0.53 X 30 days = $15.90
Sooo What’s the Best Food?
Whatever food meets the guest and pet’s needs!
Sourced ingredients
Cost
Multi-pet Household
Weight
Variety to prevent boredom
Pickiness
Allergies
Age
Safety of feeding
Added benefits like frequent feeder
Brand
Activity Level
What they want improved
Breed
size
Lifestyle of owner
Ingredients
Type of food they are interested in
Question: Would you say your dog/cat has any weight concerns?
“My Dog/Cat is Obese!”
• Many brands offer a ‘light’ or reduced calorie version of your pets favorite food
• Make sure the guest is not free feeding
• Consider a supportive tool like a timed feeder or measuring scoop
• Treats and wet food need to be calculated into the total caloric intake of the meals
• Added exercise will help burn off calories an extra 10 minute walk or play is a good place to start!
Question: Does your dog/cat have any dietary health concerns?
“My Dog/Cat has Allergies!”
• Ask the guest if they have investigated their environment first.
• Suggest a LID (Limited Ingredient Diet).
• Explore other protein types.
• Restrict offering wet food or treats unless they have very few ingredients and match the food they are using perfectly.
• Recommend consulting a veterinarian.
Question: Does your dog/cat have a favourite flavour?
“My Dog/Cat is a Picky Eater!”
• Try a new flavor
• Build a Better - and more interesting - Bowl
• Consider a vet check up. It might be a health concern
Question: How old is your dog/cat?
“My Dog/Cat is Old/Young!”
• Cats and Dogs are considered kittens and puppies for their first year
• Cats and Dogs are considered seniors at 7 years old on average
• Some foods are all life stages
Add On
**An add on is something that compliments an item you are showing*
• Supplements
• Treats
• Toys (ie. food dispensers)
• Wet food/Freeze dried etc.
• Grooming tools
• Feeding supplies like mice and auto feeders
• Storage bins and scoops
• Moisture content? Fountains are great!
Why Choose Raw?
Raw Food:
- 80-98% animal ingredients
- Minimally Processed
- Highly palatable
- Easier to digest
- No plaque buildup
- Can be supplemented for added benefits
- Select forms are convenient
Kibble Food:
- 50-85% animal ingredients
- Extensively Processed
- Tailored to specific needs
- Can be supplemented for added benefits
- Convenient
Forms of Raw Food
Freeze dried
• Water is extracted through freezing temperatures and pressure
• Rehydrate
• Many products Petland carries are incomplete diets and are toppers or treats
Forms of Raw Food
Air dried
• Air circulates to gently evaporate the moisture
• Higher moisture content
• Most foods Petland carries are complete diets
Forms of Raw Food
Dehydrated
•Water is extracted through heat
• Rehydrate
• Most foods Petland carries are complete diets
Base layer
This layer will be the majority of the meal
It is a complete diet
An imbalance of minerals and vitamins can cause all kinds of problems like kidney disease, obesity, constipation, heart disease, and more.
Topper layer
This laver is the fun laver!
Toppers do not have to be a complete diet.
They round off the diet with more diverse nutrients, and is easier to change up more often than the base layer.
Supplement layer
Moisture
This ensures your pet is hydrated and help with digestion by softening the food.
A kibble diet may only provide 6-10% moisture on average compared to over 75% moisture in raw food.
Ex:
Goat milk
• packed full of electrolytes, vitamins, minerals, and fatty acids
Bone Broth
• helps with digestion, liver, and joint support. It is also great for picky eaters!
Supplement layer
Dry
This supplement comes in many forms: powder, tablet, and liquid
They boost the health of the pet in different ways, but do not add substantial moisture to the diet.
Ex:
Some dry supplements add additional omega 3s and 6s for a healthier skin and coat
Other dry supplements have glucosamine, chondroitin, and hyaluronic acid for joint support.
Still others provide general overall health support or help in other areas that are not mentioned here
Ways to transition from kibble to raw diet
Immediate
Fast your dog for 12-24 hours
Then provide half of the food to them then wait 20 minutes and provide the other half of the food.
This prevents them from eating too much and getting sick
Ways to transition from kibble to raw diet
Gradual
Transition the food over 5-10 days
Start with 75% kibble and 25% raw until eventually it’s all raw.
Safety with handling raw diets
Wash all surfaces, utensils, hands, and food bowls in hot, soapy water after handling.
Have a separate sponge specifically for cleaning pet food bowls.
Thaw the food by placing the correct sized portion in the refrigerator
Alternatively place the food in a perfectly sealed plastic bag, and place that bag in cold water. Hot or warm provides bacteria to grow.
Remove the bowl after 2 hours at maximum.
Why can’t you feed raw meat from a grocery store?
It is very difficult to provide a balanced diet to your pet simply by giving them ground beef or a chicken breast.
That means you have to add the right balance of other vitamins and minerals through added food sources, which is not an easy task.
Too much or too little of nutrients can result in all kinds of health problems such as kidney disease, obesity, constipation, bladder stones, or seizures.
If a guest is set on feeding a raw food diet using grocery store ingredients and recipes, encourage them to talk to their vet for ways to achieve a balanced diet.
Feeding a raw food that was formulated for a dog or cat’s diet takes the guess work and technical elements out of the equation!
Why can’t cats and dogs eat the same raw food?
Cats and dogs have very different nutrition requirements.
To feed your dog a cat raw food or vice versa will lead to an imbalance of nutrients which will ultimately affect their overall health.
That being said, if your dog sneaks a few bites of the cat’s raw food, there won’t likely be any adverse side effects.
Problems such as obesity, kidney disease, heart disease, bladder stones, etc. will potentially occur if the dog is fed a cat diet every day long term.
Can dogs spread salmonella bacteria by licking after eating?
The short answer is no.
Dogs have an enzyme in their saliva and digestive tract called lysozyme which kills off harmful bacteria.
Wild dogs eat raw food sources, and this enzyme allows them to do so with no risk of e.coli, salmonella, etc.
In fact, a study was done where dogs were fed infected meat, and only about half had any evidence of salmonella in their feces.
Of course, dog saliva in general is still a host of different bacteria so kisses on the mouth should be discouraged regardless of the diet!
If raw food has so many animal ingredients, why is the protein content lower than kibble food?
The guaranteed analysis describes the content as it is found in the bag at the time of serving, but the amount of moisture in the bag can skew these numbers when comparing dry matter (ie. kibble) and wet matter (ie. frozen raw) bags of food.
You can identify which food truly has more protein by converting both to dry matter content.
Let’s say a frozen raw food guarantees 12% protein and 75% moisture (or 25% dry matter), while a kibble food contains 27% protein and 10% moisture (or 90% dry matter).
Frozen Raw Food 12 protein/25 dry
matter X 100 = 48% protein
Kibble Food 27 protein/90 dry matter X
100 = 30% protein
In our example, we can see that the frozen raw food does, in fact, have more protein in it than the kibble.
