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Click to go to the Pet Wellness EXPO Website
Mark your calendars! The 2008 Pet Wellness EXPO is set for April 12th at Burlington High School. |
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Nutritional Information
 How Should We Feed our Pets to Achieve Optimum Health?
Nutrition is a vast science, making this question too broad to try and answer here. However, do any of the questions, in red print below, peak your interest in the best way to feed your pet? Good news! Dr. Miller does nutritional consults to determine the basic nutritional needs of your individual pet. She will make food recommendations, and may even suggest supplements that focus on your pet's personal health needs. Nutritional consults can be done over-the-phone or as part of a house call visit. Just call the office to set up your appointment time!
Dr. Miller is not a veterinary nutritionist. There are very few veterinary nutritionists in the United States. This is because, in Western Medicine (Conventional Medicine), nutrition is an after-thought. If we can't find a drug to cure the disease, then we may consider nutritional therapies. However, in Eastern Medicine (Chinese, Indian, etc.) nutrition is the first form of treatment. In fact, the Chinese word for "medicine" and the Chinese word for "food," is the same word!
Dr. Miller was introduced to the concept of "nutrition used as medicine" in her Veterinary Massage/Rehabilitation Therapy course. From there, she has done extensive reading and attended seminars in nutrition. This has become a special interest of Dr. Miller's and she is more than willing to share her knowledge with you!
"There is every reason to believe that many chronic degenerative diseases such as arthritis, obesity, heart disease, cancer, immune disorders, allergies, chronic ear and/or skin infections are due to chronic malnutrition." says Dr. Wysong. For more information on Dr. Wysong, visit his website at www.wysong.net.
Our pets are ultimately the ones who pay the price when we try to save a few pennies each day by purchasing a poorer quality pet food.
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Some Facts Are They True Or False?
A dry food diet is the best choice. Is this true? NO
Pet food manufacturers started marketing the dry food diet to promote dental health. However, anyone who has a pet that is fed a dry food diet, and has needed a dental cleaning anyway, understands that dental health is just not that simple. There are a number of factors that contribute to dental health in our pets. Genetics, environment, diet (type and quality) and the use of dental care products (bones, chew toys, greenies, nylabones or oral hygiene solutions) all play a role in pet dental health.
In fact, cats are strict carnivores needing moisture in their diet. A QUALITY canned food diet is a far better choice than a dry food diet. This is too extensive a topic to go into here, though. For more information on the best way to feed your cat, please see Dr. Miller's "What's for Dinner" - Exploring Feline Nutrition" Booklet. There are some "eye-opening" facts in this booklet!
Pet food manufacturers Cut Corners to put out the Cheapest possible product? Is this true? YES
A number of corners are cut, in fact. Vegetable proteins are used instead of animal proteins Cereals and grains constitute the majority of the product. Synthetic vitamins are used instead of naturally occurring ones. Chemical preservatives are used rather than natural ones. Rendered products are decorated with cute shapes and pretty colors to trick us into buying the product. Is it really any wonder that so many food allergies are diagnosed in our pet population?
Bargain brands are as Good as the Premium brands. Is this true? NO!!
Why does one bag of food cost $5 and another bag cost $35 - pet food is pet food, isn't it? No. The difference between a premium and bargain brand is more than just price. It's the quality of the ingredients. Premium pet food manufacturers use ingredients that are more digestible, and have a greater nutrient value than the bargain brands. So it looks like the "bargain" is only in the price. Your pet will pay the price with their health. Premium brands call themselves such (and charge more) because they choose more wholesome products than the generic brands. They also tend to use natural preservatives, rather than chemicals, and avoid additives in their products.
Pets should Only be Fed "Dog food" or "Cat food"…… not "Human food." Is that true? NO
Consider this: commercially produced pet foods are all processed. Don't we constantly hear in the news that processed food is not healthy? Our commercially prepared pet food is so altered in preparation; the manufacturers have to add ingredients back in that are destroyed during the processing.
Pet food manufacturing has become a hugely competitive market, in fact, a multi-billion dollar per year market. Each company is trying to compete for your business. Can that really result in the best possible nutrition for your pet? Or just the cheapest possible product? More than likely, it is the latter.
So, what are our other choices? Using a quality product that is baked, not extruded, and one that uses human-grade ingredients is a good starting point. However, I'd also add in some fresh whole foods like cottage cheese, scrambled eggs, cooked chicken or turkey, carrots, broccoli, or any other vegetable your pet likes and a quality multi-vitamin/mineral supplement.
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Summary
There really is no one perfect food for every pet. Food allergies, genetics, previous illnesses, individual variation, taste preferences, cost and preparation time all play a role in finding the right food. Consider finding a holistic veterinarian to help you look at your individual pets nutritional needs. A big part of holistic medicine is assisting the body to heal itself, often times through nutrition.
Some Rules of Thumb in Feeding Your Pet for Optimum Health:
- Cats are carnivores. Period. Do not try to make them vegetarians. They need to eat a diet high in moisture with a high fat, high quality protein, low carbohydrate ratio.
- Look for products with an ingredients list you can actually read! If it all chemicals, leave it at the store! Also, look for natural preservatives, not BHA or BHT.
- Use scheduled feedings. Portion control is imperative, no matter what food you feed. For optimal health, you must feed the BEST ingredients in the RIGHT portion sizes for your individual pet.
- No more than 10% of the daily intake should be treats.
- Treats should not be purchased treats. Treats should be fresh whole foods, like vegetables and quality protein sources.
- A higher priced product generally guarantees a quality product, but not always - so BE EDUCATED. Know what you want when choosing your food. Do your research ahead of time. The internet can be a good source. If you find a product you like, check out their website. Find out if they use "human" grade ingredients and natural preservatives.
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