Preventing Nutritional Deficiencies in Pets

When determining what to feed your dog or cat, it is important to select a food that contains all the nutrients your pet needs. When a diet does not contain any or enough of certain nutrients, it will be difficult for your pet to thrive. Some nutrients, like arginine for cats, are required for immediate survival. In addition to nutrient deficiencies, dangerous signs can develop with excessive amounts of the nutrient. This is especially true for calcium and vitamin D.

What are the different required nutrients?

There are 6 major classes of nutrients – protein, fat, carbohydrate, vitamins, minerals, and water. Within these 6 classes, there are approximately 50 essential nutrients for dogs and cats listed by the National Research Council’s Nutrient Requirements for Dogs and Cats (2006). Essential nutrients include amino acids (the building blocks for protein), fatty acids (the building blocks for fats), vitamins, and minerals. Starch and fiber are not included in the list of essential nutrients, but these nutrients play an important role in providing energy to dogs and cats and in promoting gastrointestinal health. As a result, almost all commercial pet food contains at least some starch and fiber in addition to the nutrients listed as required.

What would happen if my pet had a nutrient deficiency?

Missing even one essential nutrient can have a significant impact on overall health for cats and dogs. Other nutrients can have more vague signs of deficiency, such as poor growth rate in puppies and kittens, loss of puppies and kittens in pregnant dogs and cats, and weight loss. Because cats have unique nutritional needs compared to dogs, it is important for cats to consume a diet complete and balanced for their specific species and stage of life.

Some examples of more identifiable nutrient deficiencies are listed below:

How can I be sure my pet is getting the right amount of essential nutrients?

A diet labeled as complete and balanced contains all essential nutrients in the proper amounts and proportions, without deficiencies or excesses. This information can be found on the packaging, in the nutritional adequacy statement (sometimes called the “AAFCO statement”). If a diet does not meet all nutrient requirements, it will be labeled as “intended for intermittent or supplemental feeding only.” For veterinary therapeutic diets, this can mean that the diet is intentionally deficient in a nutrient or two (for example, restricting phosphorus can be beneficial for dogs and cats with chronic kidney disease). For healthy pets, and for most pets who need medical care, the selected diet should be labeled as complete and balanced.

For home-cooked diet recipes, many recipes can contain adequate amounts of total protein and total fat, but they can be deficient in specific amino acids, essential fatty acids, vitamins, and minerals. If you intend to feed your pet a home-cooked diet, it is important to work with a board certified veterinary nutritionist for a properly formulated, complete and balanced home-cooked diet. Human vitamin supplements do not usually meet the needs for dogs or cats, nor do pet vitamin supplements intended to feed with a complete and balanced diet. It is important to use a combination of safe supplements recommended by a board certified veterinary nutritionist, or to use a supplement intended for dogs or cats consuming home-cooked diets, to avoid nutrient excesses and deficiencies. Cats also require a source of taurine when being fed a home-cooked diet.

What Are the Effects of Treats on Nutrient Intake?

Treats are commonly given to dogs and cats, and they can be an important part of bonding with a pet, training, and medication administration. However, treats are not complete and balanced and may impact overall nutrient intake. For this reason, treats should provide no more than 10% of total daily calories, and complete and balanced pet food should provide 90% of total daily calories. The reason this 10% rule exists is that the nutrient content of most pet foods somewhat exceeds the requirements of the dog or cat, without being excessive. In other words, there is a little bit of “wiggle room” to provide some unbalanced foods without unbalancing the pet’s entire diet. Providing more than 10% of total daily calories from treats may impact total nutrient intake, creating nutrient deficiencies or excesses.