How Important is Food?

We all know food provides the energy and nutrients each of us, including our pets, need every day. But as a veterinarian, food is more important than just providing nutrients; it is an integral component of disease and recovery.

Food and disease

Food is also related to common illnesses veterinarians diagnose on a regular basis. Take for example Jack, the cat lost at JFK, who succumbed to hepatic lipidosis, a disease provoked by inadequate food intake and treated by feeding!

Excess food intake often results in obesity. Obese animals live shorter lives and have more medical problems, including arthritis, bladder problems, and respiratory disease.

Food as medicine

Veterinarians have been using specially formulated diets as a component of medical therapy since the 1940’s.

“Prescription” diets are now manufactured by several pet food companies. These diets are available by prescription only since the nutrients have been modified to address certain nutritional differences in pets with a variety of diseases, so they are not appropriate for every pet. Take for example the reduced protein diets used in dogs and cats with liver problems. Too much protein can cause seizures in these patients. Protein-restricted diets are commonly prescribed to minimize the protein-induced seizures. For pets with suspected food allergies, diets have been formulated with novel ingredients to facilitate diet elimination trials. The exotic ingredient list for these diets – kangaroo, rabbit, duck, peas, and sweet potato – help veterinarians to eliminate common causes of food allergies, like beef, chicken, corn, and wheat, while maintaining a convenient source of nutrition for your pet. Specially formulated kidney friendly diets are one of the most important types of therapeutic diets and have been shown to minimize clinical signs of severe kidney failure (uremia) while maximizing survival in both dogs and cats with kidney disease.

For The Animal Medical Center’s brochure on feeding pets with kidney disease, click here.

Food and insurance

Can you believe food just got more important? The Trupanion Pet Insurance Company recently expanded coverage to include veterinarian prescribed diets.

Here is the coverage as listed in the sample policy:

Therapeutic Pet Food

(1) Therapeutic Pet Food – We will cover the incremental cost of therapeutic pet food when recommended and dispensed by your veterinarian in the treatment of injuries or symptomatic illnesses covered by this policy for up to two months of feeding. If you continue to feed your pet the veterinarian recommended therapeutic pet food as a long-term replacement diet, you will be eligible for a discount to your monthly premium. This coverage is not for routine/preventive care.

This is great news for pets and pet owners. Clearly, Trupanion understands the importance of food and I hope other pet insurance companies will recognize it too!

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This may also be found in the Tales from the Pet Clinic blog on WebMD.com.

For over a century, The Animal Medical Center has been a national leader in animal health care, known for its expertise, innovation and success in providing routine, specialty and emergency medical care for companion animals. Thanks in part to the enduring generosity of donors, The AMC is also known for its outstanding teaching, research and compassionate community funds. Please help us to continue these efforts. Send your contribution to: The Animal Medical Center, 510 East 62nd Street, New York, NY 10065. For more information, visit www.amcny.org. To make an appointment, please call 212.838.7053.

Cat Food Myths Debunked

A few months ago I wrote about cats and “cat salad.” Since we are at the end of Adopt–a-Cat month, I hope there are many new cat owner readers who will be interested in these food myths about cats. These myths have come from conversations with my cat-owning clients at The Animal Medical Center.

All cats like fish.
Partial myth. Cats’ food preferences are strongly influenced by those of their mother. If the mother liked and ate fish, the kittens are likely to crave fish as well. But the food preferences of the finicky feline are not so simply categorized. Despite the daredevil behaviors of young cats – flying from cabinet to refrigerator and scaling bookshelves with abandon – they are not so adventurous when it comes to food. Young cats fed the same diet consistently are often reluctant to eat a different diet if one is offered to them later in life. A cat food with a “good” smell is more likely to be chosen by a finicky feline, and if your cat doesn’t find any of the food attractive based on smell, it may taste several before choosing one. One fun fact about cats’ food preferences is cats probably don’t chose food based on salty or sweet flavors since their taste buds are insensitive to salts and sugars.

Cats should have milk to drink.
This is a companion partial myth to “cats like fish.” Some cats like milk, some don’t. Most cats lack the digestive enzyme, lactase, responsible for digestion of lactose, or milk sugar. A bowl of milk may lead to an upset stomach or diarrhea in cats. This situation can be avoided by treating your cat to a bowl of low fat lactose-free milk or one of the cat milk products available at the pet store. Since treats should comprise only 10% of the daily caloric requirement, keep the amount of milk to about 1/3 of a cup, or roughly 30 calories per day for the average 8 pound cat. Cat milk products have the added advantage of supplemental taurine, an essential amino acid for cats.

Cats can be vegetarians.
This is a myth, and a dangerous one. Nutritionally speaking, cats are obligate carnivores. Everything about their physical structure says “meat eater” from their sharp pointy fangs to their short digestive tract. Veterinarians will discourage owners from preparing vegetarian or vegan foods at home for their cats. Without the input of a specialized veterinary nutritionist, homemade vegetarian and vegan diets for cats are frequently deficient in taurine, arginine, tryptophan, lysine and vitamin A. Taurine deficiency leads to heart failure and a cat fed a diet without arginine may suffer death within hours. Both taurine and arginine are found in meat.

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This may also be found in the “Tales from the Pet Clinic” blog on WebMD.com.

For over a century, The Animal Medical Center has been a national leader in animal health care, known for its expertise, innovation and success in providing routine, specialty and emergency medical care for companion animals. Thanks in part to the enduring generosity of donors, The AMC is also known for its outstanding teaching, research and compassionate community funds. Please help us to continue these efforts. Send your contribution to: The Animal Medical Center, 510 East 62nd Street, New York, NY 10065. For more information, visit www.amcny.org. To make an appointment, please call 212.838.7053.

You Learn Something New Everyday…About Pet Food

Pet food is important to pet lovers since we all want to feed our pets a diet which will help to keep them healthy family members for as long as possible. Many veterinarians at The Animal Medical Center prescribe special diets as part of the treatment for medical conditions. Research into various disease states has resulted in the development of “prescription diets” to meet the nutritional needs of pets while treating a medical condition.

Heart diets have lower sodium, joint diets contain ingredients to promote healthy joints and other diets are easily digestible for pets with gastrointestinal problems. These diets are an important part of many medical interventions. In fact, kidney-friendly diets have been shown to prolong survival in pets with kidney disease.

One of my patients, a French bulldog being treated for allergies, eats a Royal Canin novel protein diet composed of duck and potatoes. He has responded well to this diet and scratches much less when than when he was eating a regular dog food. His owner called me a day or so ago because the bag design had changed. The label said the food was the same, but when the bag was opened the nuggets were a different color.

I called the veterinary hotline staffed by customer service representatives of Royal Canin to check and be sure the food was really the same inside the bag since the outside had changed. The very helpful staff confirmed the food is being made in the same plant and the only change to the recipe was an increase in some vitamins to improve coat health. They also mentioned other consumers had called because of the color change in the food. According to the representative to whom I spoke, there is seasonal variation in the color of the duck meat and potatoes used to formulate the diet. This most recent batch was lighter than usual.

If you have a question about your pet’s food, check the label on the bag. Most pet food companies have a consumer hotline and, as I found out, they can be very helpful. Or call your veterinarian. They are a wealth of information and already know your pet’s medical issues. For tough nutritional issues, your veterinarian may suggest you consult a board certified veterinary nutritionist.

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This may also be found in the “Tales from the Pet Clinic” blog on WebMD.com.

For over a century, The Animal Medical Center has been a national leader in animal health care, known for its expertise, innovation and success in providing routine, specialty and emergency medical care for companion animals. Thanks in part to the enduring generosity of donors, The AMC is also known for its outstanding teaching, research and compassionate community funds. Please help us to continue these efforts. Send your contribution to: The Animal Medical Center, 510 East 62nd Street, New York, NY 10065. For more information, visit www.amcny.org. To make an appointment, please call 212.838.7053.

Pet Food Recalls

Yesterday, the Iams Company voluntarily recalled Iams ProActive Health canned cat and kitten food – all varieties of 3 oz & 5.5 oz cans (date on the bottom of the can is 09/2011 to 06/2012). The Iams Company quality assurance team identified a deficiency of vitamin B1, also called thiamine, in this line of cat food. Cats can easily become thiamine deficient. If your cat is eating any of the recalled foods and appears sick in any way, please see your veterinarian immediately. Thiamine deficiency can easily be treated if recognized early. For more information, visit the Iams website.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates pet food. Regulations indicate pet food should be sanitary, safe for consumption and truthfully labeled. Unlike FDA approved medications for your pet, food does not have to undergo a pre-market approval process. The FDA regulates pet food labels in two ways. First, pet food must be correctly identified: what’s in it, who makes it, where is it made. Second, the FDA reviews specific health claims of pet food such as “promotes urinary tract health” or “prevents dental tartar.”

A recall can be one of three different types. The most common is a voluntary recall, and this recall is just that type. During a voluntary recall, the manufacturer realizes the food or medication is in some way unsafe and issues a recall. Distributors are alerted to remove unsold product from stores. As a service to consumers, a press release is posted on the FDA website. Less commonly, the FDA can request a recall if their investigation identifies a safety issue with a food or medication. And finally, the FDA has statutory power to mandate a recall.

Pets and humans share a common environment, food and often the same diseases. A human food recall could affect our pets if they were sharing our hamburger that gets recalled. A pet food recall can directly affect us as well. Recalled food can be risky for those handling the food, not just those eating it. For example, pet foods are at risk for being contaminated by a bacterium called Salmonella. Pets eating the food can get sick, and humans who prepare the food for their pet without properly washing their hands after handling the contaminated food could contract Salmonellosis too. Since humans are not eating this food, this particular recall is of consequence only to our cats. The recalled cat food poses no safety issues for the humans in the family.

Here are some suggestions to protect yourself and your pet against food-borne illnesses. Always wash your hands thoroughly after handling any food, especially raw meat. Wash your pet’s food and water bowls daily in hot, soapy water to remove any microorganisms. If your pet’s food smells strange or looks different than it usually does, discard it. Proper storage will protect food against spoiling. Opened wet food should be refrigerated and dry food should be stored in a tightly closed container at less than 80oF to preserve freshness. And finally, always save the label from the food you are feeding as a resource in case the food your pet is eating undergoes a recall.

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For nearly a century, The Animal Medical Center has been a national leader in animal health care, known for its expertise, innovation and success in providing routine, specialty and emergency medical care for companion animals. Thanks in part to the enduring generosity of donors, The AMC is also known for its outstanding teaching, research and compassionate community funds. Please help us to continue these efforts. Send your contribution to: The Animal Medical Center, 510 East 62nd Street, New York, NY 10065. For more information, visit www.amcny.org. To make an appointment, please call 212.838.7053.

Ask the Vet

Q:  I recently took my cat, Cheddar, to be seen by his veterinarian because I thought he had a urinary tract infection.  My vet recommended a change in his diet from dry to wet food.  Can you explain how this will help? 

A:  In the course of evolution, felines evolved as carnivores.  Cats have adapted to eating a meat-based diet which is high in protein and lower in carbohydrates. Just look at the fangs they have – clearly not necessary for eating soybeans!!!  Because of convenience and often the cat’s preference for the crunchy consistency, owners frequently choose to feed their cats dry food, which is higher in carbohydrates than canned food.   When cats consume more carbohydrates than their body can use, they store the excess as fat.  Cats consuming a dry diet may eat more carbohydrates than they need in order to obtain a sufficient amount of protein for their needs and they can become overweight quickly.  Studies clearly show the portly feline can be at greater risk for diabetes, arthritis and feline bladder problems, like Cheddar.

So, losing weight is critical for Cheddar’s long term health.  My recommendation, and the recommendation of The AMC, is to switch him to mostly, if not exclusively, canned food.  If he doesn’t lose weight with the adult dry food as a component of his diet, then he should switch to a dry kitten food which contains more protein than the average dry cat food.  Another option is to ask your veterinarian if prescription dry diabetes food would be appropriate for Cheddar.  This food is formulated to contain more protein and less carbohydrates.  If these changes in diets are solutions which don’t work, then you may need to eliminate dry food completely from your Cheddar’s diet.

For cats with bladder problems, increasing their water consumption will help prevent the recurrence of clinical signs.  Therefore, switching to canned food with its increased water content will force the cat to consume more water than if it ate dry food.
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