Nutrition

There is "no one size fits all" recommendation for pet diets. We must take into account the pet's age, health status, activity level, environment and what they like to eat. Most reputable companies have veterinary nutritionists on staff in addition to extensive studies that confirm their foods do what they report on the packaging. The common commercial brands we are more familair with include Hill's Science Diet, Purina Pro Plan, Royal Canin, and Iams/Eukanuba.

 

General guidelines on commercial pet food can be found on The Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) website. AAFCO is a voluntary membership association of local, state and federal agencies charged by law to regulate the sale and distribution of animal feeds and animal drug remedies.

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Another resource is The World Small Animal Veterinary Association's (WSAVA) Global Nutrition Committee. They developed and published global nutrition guidelines to help the veterinary healthcare team and pet owners ensure that dogs and cats are on an optimal nutrition plan tailored to the needs of the individual dog or cat.

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During nutrition consultations, we use Balance IT® to help owners create their own homemade diet recipes. However, if owners prefer a more convenient approach we recommend either ChiDog® or JustFoodForDogs for fresh, whole food meal delivery.