This is the fourth in a series of interviews on pet nutrition. Questions about dog and cat nutrition, medical diets and conditions were submitted by viewers. In this interview, Pet Nutritionist Dr. Marcie Campion, Ph.D. answers questions about pet food supplements.
Food Supplements
Regular Diets, Healthy PetsFrom several viewers: What needs to be added to regular diets?
Dr. Campion: If the diet is complete and balanced, the work is done for you and you don’t have to add anything. Veterinary nutritionists and veterinarians spend lots of time (and money) to ensure every meal is nutritionally complete for your pet.
Fussy Eaters
Won't Eat SometimesFrom Julianne: I have two very senior, but trim dogs that have great appetites (for treats) but are very fussy about eating dog food. While they are not underweight, I'm concerned that their nutritional needs are being met, any suggestions?
Dr. Campion: As long as you are providing a complete and balanced diet and they are lean, they should be getting enough nutrients from the food. You may want to limit treats to no more than 10% of their daily caloric intake so their healthy diet isn’t "diluted" with empty calories. One way to ensure this doesn’t happen is to provide nutritionally balanced treats.
Supplementing With Fresh FoodFrom Dorothy: We feed [premium] kibble for our German Shepherd, she refuses to eat it unless we mix in table food or canned food. There are times she will refuse to eat it and we have to throw out a lot expensive food. Family members say we should put the dry food down and when she gets hungry enough, she will eat it. We are on a limited income, so this would seem sensible, but what if she goes days without eating?
Dr. Campion: Food isn’t nutritious if they won’t eat it and there are many tasty complete and balanced recipes out there. If you prefer a natural diet, we suggest you try a new recipe, made for dogs without corn, wheat, soy or meat by-products.
Is Home Cooked Better?From Camille: In general, what do you think about supplementing commercial pet foods with fresh foods?
Dr. Campion: Nutritionists and veterinarians spend a lot of time and effort into ensuring that their pet foods are complete and balanced, so supplementing with fresh foods isn’t necessary. However, if this is something that you and your dog enjoy, I’d recommend healthy foods, but no more than 10% of the daily caloric intake.
From CJW: Is it more nutritious to cook your pet's food or to buy dry kibble with all the potentially undesirable additives? And if so, how do you know which vitamins to add?
Dr. Campion: You can be more confident with a pet food to provide all the vitamins and minerals your pet needs due to all of the research and development that has gone into the recipes. If you supplement a pet food with other things such as vitamins and minerals there is always a risk of unbalancing the formula with respect to the other nutrients.
Thank you, Dr. Campion, for this interview.
