SA 2- Emily Flashcards
What should an animal thats consuming an acceptable diet look like?
-Maintain body weight and condition (lean body mass)
-Have good coat quality
-Normal stools (indicates digestibility)
Whats the most reliable and objective assessment of food quality?
AAFCO feeding trials
What food brands should you prefer?
Established, reputable manufacturers (but be open to new brands)
What types of brands should you avoid?
Generics and private label brands (ex. grocery store brands)
What should always be high on the ingredient list?
Animal protein (1 of first 2 for cats)
What other ingredient should you check for?
Added calcium
Is it sus when different forms of the same ingredient are listed separately?
Yup don’t trust this stuff they’re trying to make the quality appear better
What should the minimum digestibility of a food be?
75% or higher
What can the quality of the packaging of a food tell you?
Whether the product is of good quality
What are the 2 most common forms of grain in diets?
Corn
Wheat
What are some reasons people might be feeding their pets grain-free diets?
-Concern for hypersensitivity/allergy
-Poor digestibility
-2007 Chinese pet food recall due to melamine contamination
Is corn readily utilized by dogs?
Yessir
What are the amino acids corn lacks and what can this be offset by?
-Lacks lysine, methionine and tryptophan
-Offset with legume protein (ex. soy)
Is hypersensitivity to corn common?
No, very few documented cases of hypersensitivity or intolerance to corn
What is the protein content of wheat?
Up to 18%, mostly gluten
Is wheat utilized well by dogs?
Also yes
What are the limiting amino acids in wheat?
-Lysine
-Methionine
-Threonine
Is wheat a common allergen in dogs?
Yes! Its one of the top 3 food allergens in dogs secondary to wheat gluten
What criteria should you use to assess grain-free foods?
Same criteria as any other type of pet food
Can you pls tell me again what the criteria are for a good pet food?
-Complete and balanced
-AAFCO feeding trials
-Good body weight and condition
-Good coat quality
-Normal stools
-Good quality of packaging
What are some potential disadvantages of a grain-free diet?
-Can be high in fat and protein
-DCM reported in dogs
-Some dogs taurine deficient
What can high fat and protein in a grain-free diet lead to?
-May predispose to obesity
-Protein is an expensive form of energy (increased food cost for owners and metabolic cost for animals)
-Not good for animals with hepatic/renal insufficiency, fat intolerance, or pancreatitis
How can cardiac function be normalized if a dog isn’t doing well on a grain-free diet?
Can switch to a more conventional diet +/- taurine supplement
What is a raw diet meant to mimic?
The diet of wild animals
What are the two commercially available forms of raw food?
- Total mixed rations
- Combination rations
What are the characteristics of a total mixed ration?
-Fed as sole source of nutrition
-Fresh, frozen or freeze-dried
-Many are now formulated to meet AAFCO profiles
What is a combination ration?
Supplement mix combined with raw meat
What other form can a raw food diet be in?
Homemade diet (but this is usually nutritionally incomplete)
What is the difference in genome between dogs and wolves?
10 genes in dogs are associated with starch and fat metabolism
Why are dogs able to digest more starches than wolves?
Selection pressure of being domesticated allowed dogs to adapt to eat a more human diet
What are some raw food disadvantages?
-GI foreign bodies and perforation
-Gastroenteritis (from bacterial contamination or high fat content)
-Sepsis
-Iatrogenic hyperthyroidism
-Nutritional deficits
How can iatrogenic hyperthyroidism happen with raw food diets?
Neck trimmings can contain pieces of thyroid which supplements thyroid hormones
Is it theoretically possible to make a complete and balanced raw diet?
Ya
What are the most common bacterial/parasitic infections that contaminate raw food?
-Salmonella
-E.coli
-Listeria
-Staph sp
-Toxoplasmosis
Why is the risk of bacterial/parasitic contamination poorly defined in animals and owners?
-An infectious dose of the viable organism must be consumed
-Few reports describe clear cause and effect between contaminated raw food, fecal shedding, and illness
Are pet-food borne infections limited to raw foods?
No, recalls and safety alerts are most often associated with dry extruded foods and raw or under processed threats
How should you provide advice to clients about raw pet food diet?
-Be unbiased, nonjudgemental and well informed
-Use same criteria to assess as any other type of food
What kind of things should clients be educated on if they are going to feed a raw diet?
-Safe handling to decrease risk of food-borne infections
-Young, old and immunocompromised people should not handle raw food
-Do not feed pets in kitchen
-Avoid poultry based products
Should dogs on immunosuppressive drugs be fed a raw diet
Prob no
What does maintenence energy requirement (MER) meet the needs for?
-Maintenance of basal metabolic rate (BMR)
-Normal body temp
-Recovery from normal activity
-Obtaining, digesting and assimilating food
What is MER?
Maintenance energy requirement (number of calories needed per day)
What is metabolizable energy (ME)?
Gross energy in food minus energy lost in feces and urine (energy available to animal)
What are nutrient requirement tables/equations used for?
To recommend initial food intake
Why cant nutritional requirement tables/equations be the only thing used?
Because each animal has a variable metabolic rate so monitoring patient response to diet is essential
What amount of meal feeding is most appropriate for dogs?
twice a day (am and pm)
What is the max percent of a diet that treats should make up?
No more than 10% of daily caloric intake
Should vitamin and mineral supplements be recommended?
No, clinically significant toxicities can occur
Are canned foods better than dry foods?
No, type of food should be picked based on owner and pet preferences. One is not really better than the other
What is one potential disadvantage of canned food?
Associated with dental disease
What are some changes in the nutritional needs of geriatric dogs?
-Energy requirements usually decreased
-Some have increased needs
-Require 50% more protein to maintain muscle mass
What type of nutrients are commonly associated with older dogs actually need more research to prove their efficacy?
-Fiber
-Antioxidants
-Glucosamine/chondroitin
What are some feeding recommendations for geriatric dogs?
-Complete and balanced commercial diet
-Ensure appropriate energy intake
-Don’t automatically restrict protein intake
-Consider geriatric conditions that may affect food intake (dental dz, osteoarthritis)
What percent of daily calories should be protein in cats?
at least 30%
What two amino acids are an absolute requirement in cats?
Taurine and arginine
Why do cats require animal source fats?
They cannot synthesize arachidonic acid
Which vitamins can cats not synthesize?
Vitamin D and vitamin A
Cats cannot convert tryptophan to _______
Niacin
What is the estimated kcal for cats?
50-80 kcal ME/kg/day
