Nutrition terms:

Ingredient: the raw materials used in food.

Nutrients: the substances the body requires to sustain life.

Once an ingredient is digested and the nutrients are being absorbed through the intestinal mucosa, the original source of the nutrient no longer matters.

Dry matter (DM): nutrient content based on a moisture free basis.

Metabolizable energy (ME): the amount of energy gained from nutrition available for use in the body (some will be lost in urine and feces)

Kilocalories (kcal)

Energy requirements for the different stages of life:

Postweaned : 2x adult maintenance ME40% adult body weight : 1.6x adult maintenance ME80% adult body weight : 1.2x adult maintenance MELate gestation : 1.25 to 1.5x adult maintenance MELactation : 3x adult maintenance ME

ME requirement for an inactive adult canine:

95 x W(kg)to the power of 0.75

ME requirements for an active adult canine:

130 x W(kg) to the power of 0.75

AAFCO does not regulate, test, approve or certify pet foods in any way.

AAFCO establishes the nutritional standards for complete and balanced pet foods, and it is the pet food company's responsibility to formulate their products according to the appropriate AAFCO standard.

It is the state feed control official's responsibility in regulating pet food to ensure that the laws and rules established for the protection of companion animals and their custodians are complied with so that only unadulterated, correctly and uniformly labeled pet food products are distributed in the marketplace and a structure for orderly commerce.

AAFCO: Association of American Feed Control Officials: define food and feed ingredients.

Meat:

clean flesh from slaughtered animals and limits it to striated muscle associated with skeletal, tongue, diaphragm, heart, esophagus, viscera (all organs in chest and abdominal cavities) excludes intestinal content.

Meat and bone meal:

the rendered product from tissue including bone without any added blood, hair, hooves, hide trimmings, manure or stomach contents. It must meet the criteria and ratios for calcium/phosphorus.

Animal rendering is a process by which animal waste and dead animals are used to create a new, usable product. These waste and byproduct materials can be classified as either edible or inedible. Rendering products are often used in animal feed. Most sources for animal rendering are farms, ranches and food waste from restaurants or stores.

Meat by-products:

Non-rendered (not been processed or separated into fat, bone, and protein components) clean parts including trimmings, lung, spleen, kidneys, brain, liver, blood, bone, stomach and intestines (emptied of contents) must exclude hair, hide, horns, teeth, hooves, manure and stomach contents.

Poultry By-Product Meal -

consists of the ground, rendered, clean parts of the carcass of slaughtered poultry, such as necks, feet, undeveloped eggs, intestines, exclusive of feathers, except in such amounts as might occur unavoidably in good processing practices.

Humectants: preservatives added that bind to water and inhibit mold and fungal growth.

Lifestage feeding for canines

Newborn puppies are little growing factories and can double their weight during the first 7 – 10 days.

Colostrum is the first milk producing during the first 12 – 24 hours post parturition. This transfers energy, nutrients and antibodies from the bitch to the puppies.

At 3 – 4 weeks the deciduous teeth will erupt and the puppies can start eating gruel (one part dry food to 2 parts warm water. Weaning should be complete by 6 – 8 weeks.

Weaning should be complete by 6 – 8 weeks.

• During the first few weeks one half of energy intake is dedicated to growth and the rest for maintenance.

• Increased fat content helps to satisfy the increased energy requirements.

Dry matter (DM): nutrient content based on a moisture free basis.

Increased essential fatty acids are required for cell membrane formation, eye, and brain development. Puppy foods should contain a minimum of 8% fat (DM).

Growth diets should contain highly digestible protein. Growth diets should contain no less than 22% protein. This aids in the development of skeletal muscle and bone formation.

An increased digestibility combined with and increased energy density decreases the amount of food required. Decreasing the amount of food required decreases the likelihood of digestive upset.

A puppy is too small to hold enough stored energy from a single feeding to provide the daily requirements. Puppies should be fed 3x per day (more in the case of toy breeds)

Species and Growth Stage

Recommended Protein %

Recommended Fat %

Puppy 28% 17%

Adult Dog 18% 9-15%

Performance Dog 25% 20%

Racing Sled Dog 35% 50%

Lactating Dog 28% 17%

Toy breeds are unable to regulate the blood glucose. Waiting too long between feedings can cause the glucose to fall dangerously low. As these small puppies have no reserves to call on to restore the glucose they will quickly be come hypoglycemic, causing lethargy, convulsions and death.

What vitamins and minerals should be increased in the growth diet and why?

Homework: due at the beginning of class tomorrow.

If you were creating a growth diet, what vitamins and minerals would you add more of and why?

Adult Canine Nutrition

When the energy producing nutrients are burned they release energy in the form of heat. Each nutrient releases a different amount of heat, which is measured in kilocalories (kcal). A kilocalorie is the amount of heat (energy) needed to raise the temperature of one kilogram of water by 1 degree. (or one calorie is needed to raise the temp of one gram of water by one degree)

ME requirement for an inactive adult canine:

95 x W(kg)to the power of 0.75

ME requirements for an active adult canine:

130 x W(kg) to the power of 0.75

ME = Metabolizable Energy

Daily energy requirements are the number of calories needed to maintain an animal’s weight. An increase in exercise, lactation and growth will increase the number of calories needed. Increased energy demands over and above the needs for maintenance are called production energy requirements.

Judging an animal’s body condition is important in determining the caloric needs of the animal. Body condition can be assessed by feeling the ribs with the palm of your hands, the ribs should be felt but not seen. A thorough nutritional assessment should be taken on every patient by the technician. This includes a patient’s history, body weight, body condition score and hydration status.

Dogs are omnivores and opportunistic eaters, predators and scavengers.Because dogs range in size, age and activity level, nutritional energy requirements are calculated based on the animal’s metabolic body weight, or the weight of actively metabolizing tissue.

The amount of food needed to meet the nutritional requirements is calculated from the energy value of the food and if treats or table scraps are fed, their energy content must also be taken in to account

Large meals should be avoided in large breed dogs prior to exercise to minimize the risk of bloat.

A complete food means that the food contains all of the required nutrients for a particular life stage in a bioavailable form. A balanced food contains all of the required nutrients in correct proportions relative to the food’s total energy density

Ingredient quality also has a significant effect on nutrient availability. Although strict guidelines for pet food ingredients must be met, standards for quality are not as well definedIngredients derived from animal tissues are sources of protein, fat, calcium, phosphorus and other minerals. Ingredients derived from plant material is an excellent source of protein, essential amino acids, carbohydrates, essential fatty acids, vitamins and minerals.

Three basic physical forms or food are dry semi moist, wet (or canned or moist) These three forms vary primarily in water content.

Dry contains less than 12% water and is the only form of food suitable for ad lib feeding. Dry, crunchy foods can be helpful in keeping teeth clean and reducing plaque buildup, but should not replace a dental health regiment. A disadvantage of dry food is a lower palatability compared to semi-moist or wet. Dry foods typically provide 1,300 to 2,000 kcal of ME per pound of food DM.

Semi-moist typically contains 25 – 35 % water. Advantages includes higher palatability serving convenience and easy storage. Disadvantage is the greater cost per serving and some semi-moist foods contain simple carbohydrates that are not recommended for diabetic cats or dogs. Contain approximately 1,200 – 1,350 kcal of ME per pound of food DM

Canned or wet foods contain about 75% moisture. These foods have the highest palatability but typically cost more per serving. These foods are less convenient to store.

Wet food contains higher levels of protein, phosphorus, sodium and fat on a DM basis. Contain approximately 1,600 – 2,300 kcal of ME per pound of food DM

As fed states the nutrient concentration of a food in the form an animal would consume. This measurment includes the food’s moisture content. Pet food labels report nutrient contents on an as fed basis. Since water dilutes nutrient content and different forms of pet foods can have widely different moisture contents, comparisons of pet foods on an as fed basis are difficult to interpret.

Super premium foods are formulated to provide optimal nutrition during different life stages. Highly digestible, high quality ingredients are used. These foods typically contain more calories and nutrients per pound of food and because these pet foods are highly digestible the pet uses more of the food’s nutrients and produces less stool.Premium foods offer a nutrient density lower than super premium but higher than standard. These are quite digestible and use good sources of protein.

However, it is important to note that there is nothing requiring pet food companies to change anything in the food in order to call it premium or super premium!

As a dog ages there is a gradual decline in the functional capacity of the organs making it more difficult for the animal to tolerate nutritional deficiencies and excesses. The goal of a senior dog nutrition plan is to maintain health and optimal body condition. Good nutrition can be seen as preventative medicine.

Most senior dogs require less food to maintain a good body condition as the metabolic resting rate slows with aging ( resting metabolic rate is the amount of energy expended when an animal is at rest)

Water: intake should be closely monitored since disease or medication may cause dehydration.

Fat: A slight decrease in fat and calories is beneficial as long as it is still rich in essential fatty acids. However, for an old dog that is underweight, increasing dietary fat by feeding growth or performance diets may provide the needed extra calories.

Protein: a higher dietary level of protein may compensate for decreased lean muscle mass. Older dogs may be less efficient at metabolizing protein. Higher levels of high-quality protein helps to minimize losses in the body protein reserves and supports tissue repair and immune function.