Dietary needs of specific groups and individual breeds of dogs and cats

There are many reasons why pet owners come and see me to ask for my input and advice as to what kind of nutrition they should provide for their pets. Many times these pets can be assigned to groups with specific needs and requirements, such as for example pets with diseases, pets of different size or life stage classifications and even different breeds. Currently I am adding a new product line to our store assortment and came across an easy to understand write-up addressing the most common ones of these groups in layman terms without going into too many details.
Large and giant breed dogs, such as for example German Shepherds, Mastiffs or Great Danes should be fed with several factors in mind. One is the risk of bloat for these dogs. There are no known ingredients linked to cases of bloat, except for one, which is citric acid. And even with this ingredient very specific circumstances have to be present to establish a link between bloat and citric acid. Some pet foods contain citric acid as a preservative. The only time this ingredient is problematic is when the food soaked in water. When fed dry, there is not a correlation between citric acid and increased incidence of bloat episodes. A large or giant breed dog does not need to be fed a protein restricted diet. This is a common misconception that can actually be harmful. Feeding a diet that contains adequate protein levels helps your dog maintain a lean body mass for ideal health and condition. Feeding quality protein sources in moderate levels, I would say about 20 to 28% is ideal. Fat levels should be low to moderate in the 8 to14% range to help these large dogs maintain a healthy body condition and lean body mass. The figures I mentioned here are starting points only and may vary based on activity level and age of your specific pet.
Added nutrients such as glucosamine and chondroitin, L-carnitine, taurine, and antioxidants may be beneficial to your big dog’s health. Glucosamine and chondroitin are naturally occurring substances that are found in healthy joints. When a joint is damaged or inflamed, glucosamine and chondroitin have additional activity in the joints to protect the cartilage. Feeding a diet that contains added levels of these nutrients may protect the vulnerable joints of large and giant breed dogs. L-carnitine and taurine are two nutrients that are relatively new on the dog food scene. L-carnitine is a vitamin like nutrient and taurine is an amino acid. Both are useful for maintaining proper heart muscle function. In some cases of dilated cardiomyopathy, taurine and L-carnitine may be used as a treatment. This disease is more common in large and giant breeds, particularly Doberman Pinschers, Newfoundlands, Irish Wolfhounds, and Great Danes. We all know about antioxidants for our own health and the same applies for our dogs. We also know that antioxidants help protect the cells from normal aging changes. With increasing age the rate of cell damage and death increases. This can partially be blocked by the usage of antioxidants. Large and giant breed dogs age more rapidly than smaller dogs and because of that may benefit from early and higher levels of supplementation of antioxidants. Vitamin E and selenium are two of the most common antioxidants being bolstered in pet foods. Schnauzers are susceptible to pancreatitis, much more than other breeds of dogs. Pancreatitis simply means inflammation of the pancreas. It is not necessarily caused by an infection, and usually is not. Pancreatitis is often triggered by the feeding of a high fat meal or something that the dog is not accustomed to. Schnauzers, however, may suffer from pancreatitis without an obvious trigger. Symptoms include vomiting, diarrhea, fever, and abdominal pain. Veterinary attention is critical, this disease can be life threatening. Feeding a lower fat diet may be helpful in preventing pancreatitis and any dog that has suffered from pancreatitis should be fed a low fat diet. Boxers are known for their high incidence of various types of cancer, or neoplasia. Although I don't know of a cancer prevention diet, it may be helpful to feed a diet that is high in antioxidants and contains added omega-3 fatty acids. These nutrients are used in many cancer treatment programs and may have some protective effects. Toy breed dogs and some small breed dogs have terrible trouble maintaining good dental health. This is due in part to the conformation of the mouth and teeth and in part to the thought that these tiny dogs simply can’t chew a dry kibble dog food. Encouraging these tiny dogs to chew up their kibble will help scrape the surface of the teeth, removing plaque before it can become tartar. There are plenty of small bite sized kibble formulas out there that even the tiniest of dogs should be able to chew and swallow appropriately. Bedlington Terriers are a relatively uncommon breed, but suffer at a very high frequency from copper storage disease. This genetic disease causes an abnormal build up of copper within the liver. All diets contain copper, in excess of the level that these dogs can eliminate it. Because of hat the diet has very little effect on this disease. Many small breeds have a higher incidence of mitral valve heart disease, especially as they get older. This disease eventually progresses to cardiac insufficiency and failure. There are not any dietary guidelines for preventing the disease, but restricting the sodium intake once congestive heart failure has developed will help make the treatments more effective. With cats it is a little different. There are not too many diet responsive diseases in cats that are specific to individual breeds, but there are some worth mentioning. Persian and Himalayan cats are more likely to form calcium oxalate stones than other breeds of cats. Dietary prevention of these stones is accomplished by feeding a diet with moderate calcium and magnesium content and by alkalinizing the urine. However, most adult cat formulas are formulated to acidify the urine. Kitten formulas are not acidified, and may be a good option for your Persian cat. Persian cats are also more likely to suffer from a genetic disease called polycystic kidney disease, or PKD. Diet will not prevent this disease, but feeding a high quality prescription diet for kidney health may be recommended for these cats. Hairballs affect many cats. Longhaired cats are more likely to suffer from chronic hairball disease, but any cat can suffer from this disease. When cats groom, some of the hair is removed and swallowed. The hair stays in the esophagus or in the stomach and causes irritation, until it is vomited back up. Fiber ingredients can greatly decrease the incidences of hairballs. Insoluble fiber ingredients like powdered cellulose, bind the hair in the stomach and pull it through the intestinal tract. The hair is passed out in the stools, and is not vomited up. Feline lower urinary tract disease (FLUTD), is a common problem affecting many cats of all breeds. There are many factors contributing to this disease. Often it is stress in the environment, including any changes, that induces the disease in susceptible cats. Diet changes are one of the physical stress events that can instigate the disease. Feeding a diet that keeps the urine pH moderately acidic and has controlled magnesium content will be helpful, but not wholly preventative. Offering multiple water sources, including fountains and maybe even canned food will help even more. Maintaining a low stress environment will benefit the susceptible cat. Breed specific nutrition is not a common concept, as some dogs or cats of all breeds need diets to address certain medical or health conditions. Talk to your vet and have him help you select the most wholesome diet for your pet’s lifelong health and wellness.

WOM, Weapons of Mass destruction...

Those community members subscribing to our on-line store newsletter are familiar with the following article I had written there as a sequential comment on a sales pitch for flea & tick remedies. I think it was pretty cool, when mailing the newsletter I worded the reference with “Weapons of Mass Destruction found at Lizzy’s”. Though a little tricky, it worked and the result was awesome: The stats showed that the newsletter was read by more readers than the one which talked about the tragic fire at the local animal shelter earlier this year. Just goes to show, everybody still is looking for sensations. Here we go:

Warfare against Fleas, ticks & Co: Chemistry over Nature?
Some of the above listed flea and tick products contain some very potent ingredients, which may not be just only natural and very chemical indeed. While in general we are against using such ingredients in any of the products offered by us for your pets, we'd like to say this: Earlier this year we faced with a pretty serious tick problem in our own back yard. The problem had originated in one of the neighbor's trees and spread throughout the entire block. And when we say "spread" we mean we felt as if the yard was covered with ticks. We tried everything, starting out with especially products based on all natural ingredients. However there was no visible success, while we smelled like garlic cloves or a jar of herbs in Grammy's kitchen, these products made not even a dent. Don't get this wrong, they certainly have their place, which is as we see it for prevention and minor infestation. But let's face it, fleas, ticks and flies have survived 210 Million+ years on earth, which included at least 2 major comet impacts eliminating every other living creature including dinosaurs. They managed through 70+ atomic bombs in the testing grounds of the US Armed Forces, anybody who thinks some herbal essences or a little garlic smell is going to chase them away unfortunately is wrong. We finally decided to use products based on chemical ingredients and we got rid of the problem. The question was simply: What's the bigger problem, using chemicals or having disease infected pets? On behalf of our animals we decided to deal with chemicals. Our pets thanked us and came out healthy. If used according to the directions these products are most important safe and very effective. In Blitzkrieg manner our tick problem was eliminated within less than one week.

Why do I bring this up here? Because I believe in natural remedies and rather would prefer to use the same in dealing with the problem. What is your experience, what are the products you are using and recommending? I’d prefer to recommend a natural product over a chemical one, under one condition: It must WORK.

Welcome to All About Pets & Pet Nutrition. Find out here what this blog is all about.

First and foremost I am looking for an outlet to talk about and publish what I am doing in my function as the “Pet Food Examiner”. To state facts and express my opinion. To expand my horizon by listening to how other health conscious pet owners think about the things I have to say. Stuff going on related to healthy pet nutrition. To get constructive criticism on what I have to say and on products available to us as pet owners. To learn from the experience other pet owners have and hopefully be able to use that experience in my job and recommendations. What I am looking for is factual input and participation. This blog is not supposed to be about any company bashing or unqualified or subject unrelated comments. My goal is to create a community within which every member can benefit from each other’s experience and knowledge.
Second I do it because my wife Elizabeth told me so. She says, let others benefit from your work and anyway, that’s the way things are done these days and it will help promoting our business. Initially I was a little against it since I see the danger of getting hung up on blogging too much and loose sight of my daily, regular duties and priorities. But I give it a shot. I promised myself though that I will take out one hour of my daily schedule to maintain this blog and to provide you with my thoughts and comments.
Besides the pet nutrition aspect I am also looking to discuss on-line business in general. What makes it work, what are we doing right or wrong, what is expected, simply what makes customers come, tick (or better "click") and shop.
Having said all this, I am inviting everybody to actively participate and am looking forward to some interesting discussions. If this sounds interesting to you I welcome you to participate and look forward to make this a project in the interest of our pets benefitting all of us.