Small Animal Nutrition Flashcards
Factors which should be considered when looking at content/features of diet of animal
- Nutrient content of diet
- Energy content of diet
- Digestibility of diet
- Species eating diet
- Palatability of diet
- Freedom from toxins, micro- organisms
Nutrient requirements in diet for animal
Macronutrients—> protein, fat, carbs, amino acids
Micronutrients—> vits & minerals
Proteins
-required for…
-production of…
-consists of…
• Required for tissue building, growth and repair
• Production of hormones, enzymes, blood cells etc.
• Protein consists of chains of amino acids
How many amino. Acids are there?
21
Quality of protein in diet depends on…
number and amount of essential amino acids it contains
How many essential amino acids are found in dogs?
How many in cats?
10
11
Which extra essential amino acid do cats need
Taurine
Taurine
essential amino acid for cats as cats have limited ability to make it from cysteine as other species doo
• It is only found in animal tissue
• It is deficient in cows milk, vegetable based diets and dog food
Which species is an obligate carnivore?
Cats
What does deficiency of taurine in cats cause?
Feline central retinal degeneration
-eye disease
feline dilated cardiomyopathy (thin heart muscle that couldn’t contract properly)
-heart disease
Poor reproduction and growth
he quality of a protein is referred to as its…
Biological value
The quality of a protein is referred to as its…
Biological value (BV)
If protein has high BV this means…
Contains all the essential amino acids which match animals requirements
Can be absorbed & retained by animal
Apart from difference in essential a.a requirements, what is the other difference between cats and dogs i their protein diet?
Adult cats require 2x dietary protein compared to dogs
Why do adult cats require a lot more protein than dogs?
Transaminase and deaminase enzymes in liver convert a.a. to glucose to provide energy source
Enzymes constantly active and therefore if low protein diet, deficiency occurs
What amino acid is required to convert glycogenic amino acids to glucose in cats?
Serine
Serine
-essential a.a or not?
-found in…
-not an essential a.a but required in large amount
-high quantities in meat, milk and eggs
What is amino acid arginine used for in cats?
-found in what food
-Conversion of ammonia to ureato get rid of nitrogen waste
-meat
Why should we be careful not to give excess dietary protein in cats?
• Protein cannot be stored
• Control of dietary protein may be prudent in the older dog and cat
Dietary fat consists mainly of
Triglycerides
Triglycerides are composed of…
1 molecule of glycerol and 3 molecules of fatty acids
Fat is required for…
-energy source
-absorption of fat soluble vitamins
-source of essential fatty acids
-help with palatability
How many Essential fatty acids in dogs
-name them
How many essential fatty acids in cats?
-name them
In dogs; 2- alpha linolenic acid, linoleic acid
In cats; 3- alpha linolenic acid, linoleic acid and arachidonic acid
Arachidonic acid is only found in
Animal fat
Inadequate fat intake result in:
poor growth
weight loss
poor reproductive performance
poor physical performance
poor skin and coat condition
What are the 3 main groups of carbohydrates:
Examples of each
MONOSACCHARIDES : glucose, fructose
DISACCHARIDES : sucrose, lactose
POLYSACCHARIDES : starch, glycogen, fibre
Carbohydrates provide :
Energy
Heat when metabolised
Storage of energy in form of glycogen or fat Bulk in the form of fibre
Sources of carbs
wheat, rice, barley, oats and potatoes.
Feline carbohydrate requirements
Cats have adequate glucose with low carb and high protein diets
Cats have few glucokinase enzymes which limits ability to metabolise large amounts of simple carbohydrates
what is fibre
-resists what
-fermented by…
-composed of…
-regulates…
-production of…
Fibre is non-digestible carbohydrate
Resists enzymatic digestion in SI
Usually fermented by microbes in colon
Composed of plant materials
Provides bulk to faeces
Regulates bowel function
Production of short chain fatty acids
Therapeutic use in fibre-responsive diseases
what are the fibre classifications?
solubility, fermentability, chemical structure
insolube fibre sources include…
solube fibres include…
Insoluble fibre sources include cellulose, lignin
Soluble fibre sources include soy, pectin, guar, beet pulp
name some non energy producing nutrients
vits
minerals
water
minerals are reffered to as what on pet food labels?
ash
minerals required for…
skeletal structure
fluid balance
nerve and muscle function
acid/base balance
Absorption of different minerals is often linked
calcium is required for…
skeletal and dental formation
examples of calcium
Calcitonin, PTH and 1,25 dihydroxycholecalciferol
calcium excess occurs due to…
calcium excess may result in what
-supplementation of growth diets
overfeeding
-OCD, hip dysplasia and other skeletal abnormalities
calcium:____________ ratio is important
calcium:phosphorus
excess phosphorus causes what 2 imporant conditions?
Nutritional secondary hyper-parathyroidism
Renal secondary hyper-parathyroidism
what does nutritional hyper-parathyroidism cause?
causes skeletal deformity in growing animals