|
Types Of Pet Foods
The three main types of pet foods are dry, soft-moist
and canned products. These vary in a number of characteristics
including moisture, cost, palatability and amount of
nutrition delivered per pound of food. Evaluating a
pet food diet should include consideration of all these
factors. In spite of these variations, with today's
advanced technology, all types of pet food products
can be formulated to provide complete and balanced nutrition
for dogs.
Which Products Are Best?
The immense number of choices pet owners have when purchasing
pet food sometimes makes it difficult to pinpoint exactly
what type of product to buy. The important criteria
to consider in choosing the type of product are the
place the consumer shops, how much money the pet owner
would like to spend and the level of convenience, palatability
and digestibility desired. As long as the product offers
100% complete and balanced nutrition, the form of the
food and the category are simply a matter of the pet
owner's preferences.
Canned Diets
Canned dog foods contain between 8% and 15% protein
and between 2% and 15% fat, depending on the type(s)
of animal tissue used in the diet. The moisture content
for canned pet foods is approximately 75% (less than
78%). Canned dog foods deliver 375 to 950 metabolizable
kilocalories per pound. Total food consumption is high
because of the low caloric content. The nutrient balance
is dictated a great deal by the type of animal tissue
used in the diet. These diets offer the highest palatability
and the highest cost per serving when compared to the
dry and soft-moist products. In addition, canned products
are less convenient to serve than other product types.
Once a can is opened, unused food should be stored in
the refrigerator.
Dry Diets
Most dry dog foods contain 18% to 27% protein, 7% to
15% fat, less than 12% moisture and 35% to 50% carbohydrate
(also expressed as N.F.E. or nitrogen-free extract).
These diets deliver between 1,400 and 2,000 metabolizable
kilocalories per pound of product. Dry cat foods contain
28% or more protein, 8% to 24% fat, less than 12% moisture
and have 1,400 to 2,000 metabolizable kilocalories per
pound of diet.
Commercial dry dog foods were introduced in the United
States during the late 1890s in the form of baked biscuits
made with blended grains, vegetables and meat. Many
of the early pet foods were collectively labeled "dog
and cat food diets" and little was known about the individual
nutrient requirements of dogs and cats. However, as
animal nutritionists began to study the nutritional
needs of dogs and cats, certain unique nutrient requirements
were established for each species.
Soft-Moist Diets
Soft-moist dog and cat foods contain approximately 16%
to 25% protein, 5% to 10% fat, about 25% to 35% carbohydrate
and 30% water (moisture levels sometimes go as high
as 50%). High-quality soft-moist diets contain approximately
1200 to 1350 metabolizable kilocalories per pound of
product. Soft-moist dog and cat foods generally offer
higher palatability as compared to dry diets, are convenient
to serve and store easily. They are more expensive to
feed than dry diets.
Watch for "Comparing Pet Foods
(Part II)" next week.
-------------------------------------------------
// ------------------------------------------------
Reprinted with permission by Ralston Purina Canada
|
