Cats are obligate carnivores, meaning they need to eat meat to survive and thrive. A study published last week by Dodd et al. demonstrates that some pet parents have observed otherwise. Congratulations to Dr. Sarah Dodd on her recent publication!
Many people are happy to welcome in the year 2021 after a long and isolating 2020. The pandemic has allowed many people and pets to increase their outdoor physical activity and focus on personal wellness, which is amazing. However, on the flip side, many have remained isolated inside together at home; enjoying each other's company but possibly consuming more calories than necessary. With more people working at home, pets may be getting more attention (and food) than they were previously used to. It is not too late to consider a News Years resolution for pet parent and pet focusing on healthy eating habits and exercise!
Read more about "The Benefits of Exercise as a New Year’s Resolution for Pets and People"
The entire Ontario Veterinary College Nutrition team is thrilled to welcome back Dr. Caitlin Grant to our team as an Assistant Professor and as the recipient of the Nestlé Purina Professorship in Companion Animal Nutrition!
It’s the holiday season! This may be a time of year where you get to enjoy your favourite foods and treats, and start to decorate your homes, and maybe include your fur-babies in all the fun! However, it is important to remember that not all human foods are appropriate for our pets. We have a developed a short list of holiday-themed items to avoid giving to your pets over the holidays, and some resources to contact if you are worried that your pet may have consumed something they shouldn’t have.
Read more about "Check the List Twice – Find Out What’s Naughty or Nice"
Dr. Caitlin Grant demonstrates a gap in essential nutrient intake when cats eat fewer calories for weight loss
When treating and preventing obesity in our companion animals, it is not uncommon for caregivers and members of the healthcare team to question: How low is too low when restricting calories for weight loss? Are our cats meeting their nutrient requirements during weight loss?
It can be confusing to navigate pet food labels and determine whether a diet is appropriate for your pet or not. Often, the presence or absence of particular ingredients are prominently displayed, while the nutritional content of the diet may take second stage. It’s important to determine the difference between ingredients and nutrients in order to evaluate pet foods.
With a new school year starting, we are excited to introduce you to our new team members who have joined us this fall! We will be interviewing our new team members to help you become acquainted with them as professionals, students and people.
We are in that beautiful time between Canadian Thanksgiving and Halloween, where many of our human family members are treating themselves to a multitude of tasty snacks! With all this snacking and indulgence, we of course want to include our pets in the family fun. It’s important to note that treats can be tricky, as there are many ways treats can be a bane rather than a boon to our pets!
With a new school year starting, we are excited to introduce you to our new team members who have joined us this fall! We will be interviewing our new team members to help you become acquainted with them as professionals, students and people.
With a new school year starting, we are excited to introduce you to our new team members who have joined us this fall! We will be interviewing our new team members to help you become acquainted with them as professionals, students and people.
The Ontario Veterinary College offers summer student researchers an opportunity to explore some of the exciting research being conducted here at OVC. This program, the Summer Career Opportunities and Research Exploration (CORE) Program, runs from May until August
With National Pet Obesity Awareness day coming up on October 14, the OVC Pet Nutrition team thought it was a good time to bring some attention to the #banthecup movement.
Read more about "National Pet Obesity Awareness Day: #banthecup"
Last week was the European Society of Veterinary and Comparative Nutrition (ESVCN) Congress, presented remotely to maintain the safe delivery of data to the world of animal veterinary and comparative nutrition. Due to the need for the congress to proceed virtually, our team was unable to socialize and network with colleagues from around the world. The virtual format was well organized, featuring session times allowing for a breadth of international attendance.
Read more about "On the World Stage, From Home – ESVCN Congress 2020"
Examining Feeding Frequency in Cats
Congratulations to Dr. Adronie Verbrugghe, Alexandra Camara, and our colleague, Dr. Anna Kate Shoveller, on their most recent publication!
Dietary supplements for dogs and cats (also referred to as nutraceuticals = nutrition + pharmaceutical) have been growing in popularity for over 30 years in Canada and the USA. It’s estimated that between 30% and 50% of pet parents are using one or more of these products for their dog or cat, and that 90% of veterinarians across North America recommend some type of nutraceutical or dietary supplement. It’s interesting to note that while the dietary supplement industry for both pets and humans has grown into the billions-of-dollars, there is no standardized or legal definition for what is allowed (or isn’t allowed) as a nutraceutical.
Congratulations to Dr. Caitlin Grant (ECVCN Resident) for defending her thesis today and successfully completing her Doctor of Veterinary Science (DVSc) with the Clinical Nutrition team!
A summary of a day unlike any other!
Fuelling Wellness Symposium
The Fuelling Wellness Symposium was the final day of the Global Animal Nutrition Summit. This event was to provided a platform for open and inclusive pet nutrition and collaboration, open to all skilled pet professionals. To optimize attendee’s educational opportunities, three streams were offered; the veterinary, paraprofessional and equine streams. Attendees were able to attend multiple streams and even return to view other streams after the recorded live sessions were posted.
4. Omega 3 fatty acids may be beneficial for overweight cats, and algae oil is an environmentally sustainable alternative to marine fish oil for Omega 3s.
Read more about "8 Things I Learned From The Global Animal Nutrition Summit 2020, Part 2"
From August 11-15, I had the pleasure of attending the virtual Global Animal Nutrition Summit. This event highlighted valuable nutrition research from incredible people all over the world. Although I wish I could highlight every presentation given, below are a few things I learned during this international conference, more to follow later this week!
Read more about "8 Things I Learned From The Global Animal Nutrition Summit 2020"
Congratulations to one of students and team member, PhD candidate Alexandria Rankovic, on her publication earlier this month in the Journal of Animal Science!
Update from the OVC Pet Nutrition Team
From August 12-15th, the University of Guelph was proud to be the first virtual host to the Global Animal Nutrition Summit (GANS). This event was very special to the OVC Pet Nutrition team, as Drs. Adronie Verbrugghe and Sarah Abood were two of the co-chairs of this summit. Additionally, all the members of the OVC Pet Nutrition team worked hard behind the scenes to make this event a success.
Read more about "Global Animal Nutrition Summit 2020 (GANS2020)"
The OVC Nutrition Team is so pleased to introduce the Canadian Academy of Veterinary Nutrition (CAVN) to all of our readers! The CAVN is a group of veterinarians and veterinary technicians with a passion for nutrition. It’s 12 fellows include board certified veterinary nutritionists, veterinarians who have completed a residency in nutrition, residents in training to become board certified, as well as veterinary technicians who have received their specialty training in nutrition –in Canada! To say this group loves nutrition is an understatement and it was this shared passion that brought the founding members together in August 2018 to form the CAVN.
When you go about cooking dinner for yourself, do you first wash down the surface before prepping food to make sure it’s clean? How about when you go out to eat, do you check to see if your plate and utensils are clean? When it comes to feeding your pets, do you do the same with their food and water bowls?
Are you excited for the Global Animal Nutrition Summit, but want to tailor your learning to your real-world experience?
Read more about "All Welcome for the Fuelling Wellness Symposium"
The Ontario Veterinary College and Ontario Agricultural College of the University of Guelph are proud to be hosting the Global Animal Nutrition Summit (GANS). A conference designed to bring leaders in animal science, comparative nutrition and veterinary nutrition together for the first time ever. This global nutrition summit is a collaboration between eight international animal nutrition organizations.
Read more about "Program for the Global Animal Nutrition Summit (GANS) is now live!"
Pet food is no longer just about kibbles and cans, as more owners are exploring different avenues to feed their canine and feline companions. This was recently demonstrated by Dr. Sarah Dodd's recent publication in the British Medical Journal Veterinary Record, An observational study of pet feeding practices and how these have changed between 2008 and 2018 .
Read more about "More Room at the Table: Unconventional Diets on the Rise"
From June 10th – 11th the American Academy of Veterinary Nutrition (AAVN) hosted its 20th annual meeting and first virtual AAVN Clinical Nutrition and Research Symposium. While the event was originally scheduled to be held in Baltimore (USA), the global pandemic with COVID-19 forced organizers to change to a virtual format. Fortunately, this did not detract from a great program with excellent research presented on a wide variety of topics: feeding methods in horses, renal care in senior cats, dietary interventions on the canine microbiome, and obesity prevention, treatment, and communication.
Have You Heard of The Garfield Syndrome? June 19th is National Garfield Day!
In the Before The Bowl Blog, we will aim to share two to three new posts per month, something which can be used by veterinary team members and pet caregivers alike. We will try to bust myths, share new information on veterinary and pet nutrition as it becomes available and explore new feeding trends.
Our team's work was recently showcased at the Canadian Nutrition Society's Annual Conference, hosted virtually this year. MSc student, Hannah Godfrey, had the opportunity to present her study, Choline supplementation lowered body weight, body condition score, and daily food intake compared to a control in post-gonadectomized kittens. Despite it's potential health and behavioural benefits, spay and neuter surgery has been demonstrated to increase the risk of obesity. By supplementing growing kittens with choline after their neuter surgeries, dietary choline might provide a preventive effect against obesity.
We’re glad to report that our multi-day nutrition conference is not canceled!
Read more about "Save-the-Date! Our Virtual Global Animal Nutrition Summit is set for August 2020"
Some may consider a few extra pounds on our furry companions to be little cause for concern, but our team, alongside the surgical, clinical studies and Smith Lane Animal Hospital OVC teams, demonstrated data to refute this. MSc student, Amanda Santarossa, and Dr. Adronie Verbrugghe, published a study showing that patients who experienced the rupture of their cranial-cruciate ligament were more likely to be overweight or obese. As anticipated, the patients with a cruciate ligament tear were found to have a decreased amount of muscle mass in the affected limb and a greater amount of fat. A cruciate ligament tear will result in instability in the joint, pain, reduced function and may require surgical correction. Entitled, Body composition of medium to giant breed dogs with or without cranial cruciate ligament disease, the study was just published in Veterinary Surgery. Congratulations to Amanda, the OVC Clinical Nutrition Team and collaborators!
In a recent study published in Veterinary and Comparative Oncology, our team surveyed owners of pets undergoing treatment for cancer to evaluate the prevalence of unconventional diets and supplements, finding a greater number of pet owners with pets undergoing cancer treatment were exploring alternative options as part of their treatment program. The abstract, Unconventional diets and nutritional supplements are more common in dogs with cancer compared to healthy dogs: An online global survey of 345 dog owners, was published and studied by our gradate, Adriana Bianco and our own Dr. Adronie Verbrugge, Dr. Sarah Abood, OVC's Dr. Jason Coe, Dr. Paul Woods, and Dr. Anthony Mutsaers.
Research previously conducted on mice concluded differences in microbiota in obese vs. lean mice. This feline study, recently published in BMC Veterinary Research by our own Dr. Adronie Verbrugghe and our prior DVSc student, Dr. Moran Tal, along with OVC's Dr. Scott Weese, sought to investigate the microbiome of obese cats who embarked on a weight loss program. Entitled, Bacterial fecal microbiota is only minimally affected by a standardized weight loss plan in obese cats, the study concluded that little change was demonstrated in microbial populations following a successful weight loss program.
In a study recently published in the Journal Of Veterinary Medical Association, OVC's Dr. Jason Coe, in collaboration with our own Dr. Adronie Verbrugghe, found that the key to taking an accurate nutrition history is all about asking the right questions. Entitled, Effects of three diet history questions on the amount of information gained from a sample of pet owners in Ontario, Canada, the study examined the effects of three diet history questions on the amount and type of diet-related information gathered from pet owners. To assess the effect of each question asked, the history taken as a result of each question was compared against information collected via a diet history survey. Using broad, open questions or requests that invite expansion from pet owners, for example "Tell me everything Fluffy eats in a day", are the best approach for gathering diet-related information.
Congratulations to our team members, Alexandra Rankovic and Dr. Jackie Parr, who coauthored a published study investigating the inaccuracies of measuring cups for preparation of a pet's daily food ration. Along with the Ontario Veterinary College's Dr. Jason Coe as the lead author, their paper entitled, Dog owner's accuracy measuring different volumes of dry dog food using three different measuring devices, was published in the BMJ Journals Vet Record.
Do you need some summertime reading material?
