Firstly, let me apologise for the very overdue post! It’s coming up to a year since I first set up the Animals For Life website and therefore, almost a year since I posted a blog entry.
This blog entry will give a generalised review of pet nutrition (predominately aimed at dogs and cats). The main focus will be on a Natural pet diet versus a Commercial pet diet, which will use both personal thoughts, from both sides of the dice, in accordance to the academic data, relevant pet nutrition and welfare bodies. Please see the web address links I use, posted at the bottom of this entry in a ‘Further Reading’ and ‘References’ sections. I am not a veterinarian, so my suggestion to you, before even considering a major change to your pets’ diet, is to first seek veterinary advice.
Brief Overview of Pet Nutrition
Pet nutrition has changed quite dramatically in the past century. From an American in 1860, called James Pratt who took inspiration from a staple food called ‘Hard Tack’, which was used on long voyages and military campaigns to the first dog bone-shaped biscuit in 1907 (Tudor, 2013). Later on in the 1900’s, The Roaring 20s and The Great Depression developed a variety of dehydrated meals, pellets and canned food formed from meat and grain mill scraps, which became readily available to the pet whose owner was wealthy. Raw meat, table scraps and whatever could be foraged and hunted would still be the main diet to the pet whose owner was poor, in the same way as the years prior to the beginnings of the commercial pet food industry (Tudor, 2013).
Modern Day
Many of us see our pets as family members and therefore we treat them the same as we would our human counterparts (this can be described within the academic study of Anthrozoology). For example, we take our dogs everywhere we go. We ensure that our pets have a celebratory Birthday cake and Christmas presents each year. Partner this up with the sneaky treat at the dinner table or that chunk of meat that just ‘slipped’ from the kitchen side and they will be in pet heaven! Some pets even come with their own transportation and wardrobe, but both of those two topics can open a whole can of worms so will be left for another day.
Richeter (2017), states that there are many social and cultural aspects that impact our pets’ diet - for example, economic backgrounds, location and dietary choices such as, raw feeding (or natural diets) and the standard commercially fed diets, can give owners a big headache as to what is best for our pets. As stated earlier, please do seek veterinary advice before changing your pet’s diet, they will know you and your pet a lot better than I and they have had the relevant training and experience which far outweighs my own.
Both natural diets and commercially fed diets are two main types of ways to feed your pet. In the veterinary world, Agar (2007) describes these two diets as home-based which is commonly formed of raw bones, flesh and innards and the proprietary diet which is processed and therefore loses some of its nutrients through extreme heat (used to kills bacteria). The home-based diet is much more suited to pets ‘natural’ diet and has been seen in some cases to prevent metabolic diseases such as diabetes, arthritis and premature aging in older pets (Richter, 2017).
It is not without its problems. Raw bones if not chewed thoroughly, can cause digestive unrest which may result in the need for veterinary intervention (Agar, 2007). The other negative is that some vets, scientists and pet manufacturers have argued that it is yet to be scientifically proven in peer reviewed studies, whether a home-based diet can be safely provided with a balanced nutrient content.
Human Health Risk
There is still a lack of accurate data for both the actual feeding and the bacterial transmission of a raw home-based pet diet. Anturaiemi, et al. (2019) discovered in their internet based survey, studying owners’ perception of acquiring infections through raw pet food that out of the 16,475 participants (whom owned a dog or cat), only 39 owners reported a confirmed transmission via human faeces analysis in a lab. This meant that in this particular study there was very little evidence to show the possibility of bacteria transmission (Anturaiemi, et al., 2019).
Other studies for example one carried out by Nüesch – Inderbinen, et al. (2019) determined that the transmission of infections posed a severe health risk to owners and pets. However, due to the increasing popularity amongst pet owners for raw food diets, they explained that raising awareness with regards to safe food handling and understanding of antimicrobial resistance should be established to reduce the risk of bacterial transmission. Also, Davies, et al. (2019) suggested in their journal that veterinary practitioners, public health practitioners and organisations should exercise responsibility to communicate understanding of the bacterial health hazard to both the consumers and producers of raw pet food.
Conclusion
Feeding a more natural diet, in particular, a raw food diet to our pets can become a bit of a minefield due to the lack of data in this part of animal nutrition. Davies, et al. (2019) describes the data for raw feeding ‘extremely fragmented’ but with some compelling scientific evidence being formed. Nüesch – Inderbinen, et al. (2019), writes that further studies of varying types are needed to confirm the possible associative links between bacteria from raw food and human health.
My own thoughts are, it is clear that not all owners or pets are suited to this diet (due to the raw food element and personal choice). However, this is very much dependent on your level of personal research, understanding of your pet’s nutritional needs and seeking professional advice from your veterinarian – this will give you the best outcome for your pet’s health, well-being and future.
Further Reading
References
Agar.S., 2001. Small Animal Nutrition. [Print Book] 25-29.
Anturaiemi.J., Barrowuin-Melo.S.M., Zaldiver-López.S., Sinkko.H., and Hielm-Björkman.A., 2019. Owners’ perception of acquiring infections through raw pet food: a comprehensive internet-based survey. Veterinary Rec ord [online]. 185(21):658.
Davies.R.H., Lawes.J.R., and Wales.A.D., 2019. Raw diets for dogs and cats: a review with particular reference to microbiological hazards. Journal of Small Animal Practice [online]. 6, 329 – 339.
Nüesch-Inderbinen. M., Treir.A., Zurfluh.K., and Stephan.R., 2019. Raw meat-based diets for companion animals: a potential source of transmission of pathogenic and antimicrobial – resistant Entereobacteriaceae. Royal Society Open Science [online]. 6: (191170), 1-13.
Richeter.G., 2017. The Ultimate Pet Health Guide. [online] Chapter 1.
Schlesinger.D.P., and Joffe.D.J., 2011. Raw food diets in companion animals: A critical review. The Candadian Veterinary Journal – La Revue vétérinaire canadienne [online]. 52 (1), 50-54.
Thank you Sonja at Keystrokes for taking the time to read over this post.
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