2. DOGS & CATS
ORDER Carnivora
An obvious difference between the domestic dog
and cat and their progenitor species is that wild
canids and felids were required to expend
considerable amounts of energy locating and
capturing prey and did not have a reliable source of
nutrition.
3. Wolf and the Dog Food supply by hunting in pack
Cooperative hunting
Gorges themselves immediately after their kill
Competition and rapid consumption
Food hoarding behaviour
4. Dogs – Behaviours and restrictions
Rapid eaters
Problem : Choke or swallow large amounts of air
Social Facilitation and problems
What a nutritionist can do? Canned vs semisolid vs dry
Size
Other approaches – Large ball to bowl, bowl that includes
center hub
5. Feeding Behaviour - Cont
Studies have shown that puppies and dogs usually consume more
food when fed as a group, compared with when they are fed alone
PREVENTIVE MEASURES?
Another form of social facilitation in dogs relates to food
preferences and selection.
Hoarding behavior
Scavenging
Coprophagy (Normal but health and sanitation risk)
Grass Eating – illness, nutrient Deficiency?
Purge intestinal Parasites
6. CONT.
The dog’s ancestry suggests that an intermittent feeding
schedule consisting of large meals interrupted by periods of
fasting is the most natural way to feed dogs
Day time eaters
Feeding regimen – portion controlled feeding, time controlled
feeding, free choice feeding
7. What to feed
Commercial vs Homemade
Nutrient energy depends upon animals age, activity level,
reproductive status , health
FACTORS TO CONSIDER
All essential nutrients in adequate amount
Sufficient energy to maintain ideal body weight or support optimal
tissue growth
Appetizing
Form and size must be appealing
Support proper GI Functioning
Energy density
Long term feeding of the food must be assessed
9. Free choice feeding
Surplus amount of food all the time
Least amount of work and knowledge
Which type is more suitable?
Boredem relief associated with comfinement
Food delivery toys and kennel related behavioural
problems
10. CONT
Problems like Anorexia and overconsumption can go
undetected
Obesity
Accelerated growth rate
2 type of controls
11. Time Controlled meal Feeding
Amount of time the pet has access to food
Surplus food for predermined time interval
Physiologically not stressed – 20 minutes
PROBLEMS
Providing large quantity at one time can create problem
Food related behavior problems
Exacerbate gluttonous behaviour
12. Portion Controlled Meal Feeding
Allows owner to have greatest amount of control over the pets
diet
Premeasured to meet pets daily caloric and nutritive needs
Monitoring of food consumption possible
Characterised by feeding routines of communication , petting ,
handling
Commitment and knowledge
Guidelines of feeding through labels
Editor's Notes
This difference is
manifested by unique anatomical and metabolic characteristics,
as well as in the differing ways the two species
prefer to obtain and ingest food.**
In contrast, our domestic pets are
provided with a consistent source of palatable and nutritious
foods and they do not generally expend energy to
obtain their meals.
Cooperative hunting
behaviors allow the wolf to prey on large prey species
that would otherwise be unavailable to a wolf hunting
alone. ***.
the social facilitation of eating behaviors*******small prey or the remainder of a large kill are buried
when food is plentiful and later dug up and eaten
when food is not readily available.
rapid eating may be more common in some breeds than in others,
and a wide range of feeding behaviors are observed among individual
dogs, even within breeds.*****
feeding the dog separately from other animals, thus
removing the competitive aspect of mealtime, often
normalizes the rate of eating. *****changing
the diet to a food that is less palatable or to one that
is difficult to consume rapidly solves the problem.**********Finally, if a dog attempts to eat dry
food too quickly, adding water to the dog’s food immediately
before feeding decreases the rate of eating and
minimizes the chance of swallowing large amounts of
air.
IF FOOD AVAILABLE ALL THE TIME EFFECT OF SOCIAL FASCILITATION DECREASES, Training***
dogs are capable of learning preferences for novel flavors
from other familiar dogs , also influenced by human gestures….**Many dogs readily consume garbage, carrion,
insects, and feces that they encounter in the yard or
while out walking.*** Yard picked up, leave it commands…
One of the most important considerations when
choosing a dog or cat food is the pet’s stage of life and
lifestyle.**should be acceptable when fed as the primary diet
over an extended period of time.**tract functioning and consistently result in the
production of regular, firm, and well-formed
stools.** The food should support those
measurements of vitality and health that are
somewhat subjective, such as good coat quality,
healthy skin condition, proper body physique and
muscle tone, and high energy level
free-choice (also called ad libitum or selffeeding),
time-controlled feeding, and portion-controlled
feeding. One method of feeding may be preferred over
another, depending on the owner’s daily schedule, the
number of animals being fed, and the acceptability of
the method by the pet or pets.
As much as food that is desired**Self regulate food intake so energy and nutrient needs are met.*** dispenser should be cleaned***such as coprophagy (stool eating) and excessive
barking. Another feeding approach that can help to
reduce kennel-related behavior problems is to use food
delivery toys. These consist of hard rubber or plastic
balls, disks, or other odd shapes that are designed with
compartments that hold foods.
In growing animals
this can result in an accelerated growth rate and
increased deposition of body fat; in adult animals it
leads to obesity.
Although one meal per day can be
sufficient for feeding adult pets during maintenance,
providing two meals per day is healthier and more satisfying.
BEGGING , STEALING
Beat the clock
animals that
require frequent feeding as a treatment for medical
conditions are better fed on a portion-controlled,
rather than a free-choice, basis****
immediately observe any changes in food intake
or eating behavior.***8The pet’s growth and weight can be
strictly controlled with this method by adjusting either
the amount of food or the type of food that is fed.