Tomorrow is the full moon. Give your monthly preventatives!
FYI: f you have another way to remember to give your preventatives, that’s okay too! Do what works for you. I thought it might be fun for us to all give it together.
Let’s talk about what we feed our pets! (Because I love diving into controversial topics that pet owners are passionate about!) There are hundreds of pet foods out there. How do we choose what is best for our pet? Why do I sometimes see an old Chihuahua, apparently healthy, that has never eaten dog food in its entire life? Is this the same reason my grandmother lived to be nearly 100 and ate eggs fried in a ½ stick of butter and bacon every morning? Why do some dogs eat the dead thing on the side of the road, vomit it back up and go right on living while others have a super sensitive stomach and any extra fat sends them to the hospital?
Let’s start with what we do know…
For dogs, we know that some diets – those that include legumes or peas or chickpeas, sometimes labeled “grain-free” can cause heart disease. We know that cats fed only fish develop heart disease. We know that growing puppies fed all meat diets can lead to bone disease that causes misshapen skeletons, and we know that the ingredients in some diets contribute to bladder stones. We know that raw food can make pets sick because it has similar risks as raw foods do for people. We know that the top two diseases seen in loved and well cared for pets are obesity and dental disease, followed closely by allergies or itchiness. There are some questions I cannot answer, but I can offer some advice and recommendations for those that are interested. I feed my cat Purina OM (obesity management) diet. He wants to eat constantly and if I fed something higher in calories he would be too fat. My dog, sadly, passed away last June. She was a Whippet, very old, and not fat, but to keep her girlish figure I fed her Pedigree Weight Maintenance Diet, and when it became unavailable during the pandemic, switched to Beneful Healthy Weight.In general I recommend a product made by Purina, Hill’s Science Diet, or Royal Canin. Eukanuba also has a line of Fit Body weight control diets that are under 300 kCal per cup of dog food. Pet food pretty much has to be under 300 kCal/C for dogs and cats for there to be any hope of weight loss. Each of the companies make a tartar diet or dental diet as well. Tartar/dental diets can be fed regularly and have big kibbles that pets bite into to “brush” their teeth as they bite into the kibbles – this works if they chew and don’t swallow it whole. Since the kibbles are big, less fit into a standard measuring cup and they all have about 300 kCal/C.
All these companies also make a Sensitive Stomach/Sensitive Skin diet that tends to be higher in calories – closer to 400 kCal/C but I’ve had great luck with these diets for animals that lick their feet or have itchy ears. I usually recommend the Hill’s Science Diet Sensitive Stomach/Sensitive Skin brand. You don’t need a prescription for it. Tartar diets and Obesity management diets require a prescription or purchase from a veterinarian. I am happy to provide you with either.
For dogs that don’t eat dog food, Dr Tapp, our local veterinary dermatologist recently recommended Just Food for Dogs, as a balanced diet alternative. I’ve had good luck enticing picky dogs with the Little Cesar’s brand.
For weight loss or weight maintenance I start with feeding big dogs about a cup of dry food twice a day and little dogs ¼ cup of dry food twice a day and adjust from there. You can’t go by the bag that is selling the pet food. It is almost always too much. Cats can receive either a 5.5 oz can daily or two 3 oz cans throughout the day. For dry food, they can have ¼ cups twice daily, though cats in general are better off on wet food. It’s better for their kidneys.
For weight gain I recommend Purina Pro Plan Sport. It has almost 500kC per cup of food.
Mars Petcare, yup, part of the Mars Candy company makes MANY brands of pet food but they include: Eukanuba, IAMS, Nutro, Pedigree, Royal Canin, Evo, Cesar, Orijen, and Acana.Nestle Purina, yup, part of the Nestle Candy company makes MANY brands of pet food as well. They include but are not limited to: Purina, Merrick, Alpo, Beneful, Fancy Feast, Friskies
Colgate-Palmolive owns Hill’s Science Diet and Hill’s Prescription Diet.
Three enormous companies own all the diets I am recommending. Am I recommending them because I am a money grubbing capitalist? No. I’m recommending them because most of the pets I’ve seen eating these diets don’t go on to develop bladder stones, nor do I think the diseases that the pets eating these diets have are diseases that were caused by the diets, so I can go on to think about what else is causing their disease. A good diet and monthly flea and tick and heartworm prevention can go a long way toward making my life easier and most importantly, my patients healthier!