Cats versus dogs - the impact of species on owner feeding
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Published:
Jul 8, 2019
Keywords:
cats and dogs, owners feeding practice, circle of nutrition, feeding management
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Abstract
The objectives of this study were to determine if the species of pet influenced owner feeding practices and whether this could impact the nutritional status of pets. Validated questionnaires were purposively distributed at veterinary teaching hospitals, veterinary clinics and private hospitals located in the Bangkok. Associations between species owned and feeding practices were analyzed using a chi-squared test. Three hundred and sixty-five of 495 distributed questionnaires were returned (response rate 73.7%). However, 102 of the returned questionnaires (27.9%) were discarded after assessment of exclusion criteria; thus a total of 263 (53.1% of 495) questionnaires were analyzed. The results indicated differences in owner feeding practices between cats and dogs. Cats were less likely than dogs to be fed by a non-family member (P<0.01), or to be provided with an individual food bowl (P<0.01). Cats were more likely to be fed ad libitum whereas dogs typically received two meal per day (P<0.01). Cat owners were more likely to estimate the amount of food that they considered correct to provide than dog owners (P=0.03), but less likely to use Body Condition Score (BCS) for estimating the amount to feed (P<0.01). Overall, it appeared in this study that many pets may have been at risk of malnutrition due to owner feeding practices. It is recommended that veterinarians should give significant attention to species-specific issues in order to provide customized education for improving pet owners understanding of pet nutrition, as well as pet feeding behavior, to enhance pets’ health and wellness
Article Details
How to Cite
Petison, P., & Lekcharoensuk, C. (2019). Cats versus dogs - the impact of species on owner feeding. Veterinary Integrative Sciences, 17(2), 161–169. Retrieved from https://he02.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/vis/article/view/152302
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Research Articles
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References
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Statistic Netherlands. 2012. Questionnaire development. Netherland: The Hague/Heerlen Netherlands.
Thorne, Chris. 1992. The Waltham book of dog and cat behavior. United Kingdom: Pergamon Press Plc.
Yam PS, Naughton G, Butowski CF, Root AL. 2017. Inaccurate assessment of canine body condition score, bodyweight, and pet food labels: a potential cause of inaccurate feeding. Veterinary sciences 9;4(2):30.
Baldwin K., J. Bartges, T. Buffington, L.M. Freeman, M. Grabow, J. Legred and D.J., Ostwald, 2010. AAHA nutritional assessment guidelines for dogs and cats. Journal of the American Animal Hospital Association 46 (4): 285-296.
Bradshaw, J.W., D. Goodwin, V. Legrand-Defretin and H.M. Nott, 1996. Food selection by the domestic cat, an obligate carnivore. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology Part A: Physiology 114 (3): 205-209.
Day, J.E., S. Kergoat and K. Kotrschal, 2009. Do pets influence the quantity and choice of food offered to them by their owners: lessons from other animals and the pre-verbal human infant. CAB Review Perspective in Agriculture, Veterinary Science, Nutrition and Natural Resources 42: 1-12.
Downes MJ, Devitt C, Downes MT, More SJ., 2017. Understanding the context for pet cat and dog feeding and exercising behaviour among pet owners in Ireland: a qualitative study. Irish veterinary journal. ;70(1):29.
Freeman, L., I. Becvarova, N. Cave, C. MacKay, P. Nguyen, B. Rama, G. Takashima, R. Tiffin, P. van Beukelen and S. Yathiraj, 2011. WSAVA nutritional assessment guidelines. Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery 13 (7): 516-525.
Grant, D.J., 2010. Effect of water souce on intake and urine concentration in healthy cats. Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery 12 (6): 431-434.
Heidenberger, Eva, 1997. Housing conditions and behavioural problems of indoor cats as assessed by their owners. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 52 (3-4): 345-364.
Kane, E., 1989. Feeding behavior of the cat, pp. 147-158. In Burger IH and J.P.W. Rivers, eds. Waltham Symposium: Nutrition of the Dog and Cat. 7th Edition. Cambridge University Press, United Kingdom.
Macdonald, David W., 1983. The ecology of carnivore social behavior. Nature 301 (5899): 379-384.
Maier, R.A., 1998. Comparative Animal Behavior: An Evolutionary and Ecological Approach. Chicago: Allyn and Bacon.
National Research Council, 2006. Nutrient Requirements of Dogs and Cats. National Academies Press, Washington, DC.
Rashotte ME, Smith JC, Austin T, Pollitz C, Castonguay TW, Jonsson L, 1984. Twenty-four-hour free-feeding patterns of dogs eating dry food. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews 1;8(2): 205-10.
Royal Canin. 2004. The cat encyclopedia. Paris: Aniwa SA.
Royal Canin.2005. The dog encyclopedia. Paris: Aniwa SA.
Shreve, Kristyn R Vitale, Mehrkam, Lindsay R, and Udell, Monique AR, 2017. Social interaction, food, scent or toys? A formal assessment of domestic pet and shelter cat (Felis silvestris catus) preferences. Behavioural Processes 141 (3): 322-328.
Shuldiner E, Koch IJ, Kartzinel RY, Hogan A, Brubaker L, Wanser S, Stahler D, Wynne CD, Ostrander EA, Sinsheimer JS, Udell MA, 2017. Structural variants in genes associated with human Williams-Beuren syndrome underlie stereotypical hypersociability in domestic dogs. Science advances 1;3(7):e1700398.
Shultz, Susanne and Dunbar, Robin, 2010. Encephalization is not a universal macroevolutionary phenomenon in mammals but is associated with sociality. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 107 (50): 21582-21586.
Statistic Netherlands. 2012. Questionnaire development. Netherland: The Hague/Heerlen Netherlands.
Thorne, Chris. 1992. The Waltham book of dog and cat behavior. United Kingdom: Pergamon Press Plc.
Yam PS, Naughton G, Butowski CF, Root AL. 2017. Inaccurate assessment of canine body condition score, bodyweight, and pet food labels: a potential cause of inaccurate feeding. Veterinary sciences 9;4(2):30.