A healthy balanced diet is just as important for your pet as it is for you.
Over the years the quality of pet food on the shelves has increased. Many pet food companies are putting a lot of money into researching the benefits of certain nutrients; this has led to the development of new diets. There is certainly a vast selection available and sometimes it can be difficult to choose the most suitable diet.
Dogs and cats have different biochemical make-ups and therefore have very different needs, it is not appropriate to feed dog food to a cat or vice versa.
Dog and cats are similar to ourselves in the respect that each is an individual and has individual requirements. Unfortunately it is not easy to devise a personalised nutrition programme for you pet and then get them to eat it!
Pet foods are now generally targeted at life-stages: growth, adult and senior. These take into account factors such as whether they have extra calorie needs during growth or exercise. The rise of obesity within pets has prompted pet food manufacturers to provide "Light diets" to control calorie intake. There are some diets available that are formulated to aid in the relief or progression of certain diseases or conditions, these are termed prescription diets and are only available through your veterinary surgery.
Other people favour a more natural diet such as the raw food diet. The raw food diet is based upon history, in the wild dogs and cats would hunt for their prey and often the whole catch was devoured. In addition dogs would graze upon foods such as berries, apples and nuts. There is an argument made by some that dogs and cats have evolved to eat a raw, wild-type diet and that the commercial diets we have been feeding have led to the development of conditions such as dermatitis, cardio-vascular disease and allergies. There are several vets who have had much success through changing an animals diet to a raw food diet. Ian Billingshurst is a vet who has written a book called “The Barf diet” that provides more information on the history of raw food.
For those who are unable to bring themselves to feed their pet raw meat, offal, liquidised raw vegetables and bones then there are companies that will do the hard work for you. Sachets of balanced, natural meals free from artificial preservatives, colourings and flavourings are available for cats and dogs.
So, which diet should you be choosing for your pet?
As a general rule choose a well known company that have used some of their profits on researching the benefits of nutrients within their diets. Choose the pet food company that is up to date with all the latest research and is constantly striving to produce the best available diet. This does not necessarily mean to pick the largest or most well known company. There are some good smaller companies on the market offering excellent diets.
What about during times of stress, pregnancy and disease? Will my pet’s nutritional requirements go up?
The answer to that is yes! Just as our nutritional requirements change so does our pets. It is important to support your pet through these stages with good nutrition. Your local veterinary surgery will often have veterinary nurses who will be specially trained and able to advise you on how to deal with various conditions. Don't be afraid of picking up the phone - we don't bite!
Alternatively you can e-mail me for any general advice.
Does my pet need supplements?
This depends on whether they have any specific conditions that would benefit from certain supplements. It would certainly be beneficial for good general health to provide nutrients through a quality multivitamin and mineral. As with diets there are many vitamins on the market for pets and choosing the right type can be difficult. Sometimes the quality of supplements available in supermarkets or pet stores is not as good as those available through your veterinary surgery. It would be a good idea to contact your local veterinary surgery and ask for their opinion on good products. To view some products I have used in the past see the Pet supplements section.
Useful websites
British Association of Homoeopathic Veterinary Surgeons
Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors
Royal Canin nutrition
Burns Pet nutrition
Hills Pet nutrition
Naturediet dog nutrition
Missing pet’s bureau
Petsearch
Natural animal health