Too many treats, especially at this time of year, can add lots of unnecessary calories to our pet’s diets. It is these treats, not over-feeding, that is the largest contributor to the bulging bellies we are seeing more often in practice.
Dog or cat treats should be less than 10% of the daily calories our pets consume, however this is a hard concept for pet owners to understand.
To many pet owners, “Food is Love” and they do not consider or understand how many calories can be packed into a treat.
For example, that piece of toast with butter given to the 7kg Jack Russell can make up about 30% of its daily energy requirement. Or those 2 pieces of salami for the 15kg dog is equal to 4 sweet biscuits for the average adult.
Educating the pet parent about making wise low calorie treat and appropriate food choices before they get into bad habits, is important for the pet’s health.
*Pet treats should be 10% or less of the pet’s daily energy requirement
*Use commercial treats that provide calorie content. There are some tasty low calorie treat options available.
*Use the chart attached to gauge the calorie content in common household treats.
*Another great tool is the dog/cat treats to human treat equivalents charts which can be a real eye opener for pet parents.
The “Food is Love” theory should be based on feeding quality pet food in the correct quantities for the health and longevity of your pet.
So, no pork or leftovers this silly season!
