Are fussy four-legged members of your household blowing out the grocery budget? Photo: Piotr Musiol / Unsplash
As many people try to trim the fat from their supermarket spend, what does this mean for four-legged members of the household?
Dr Kat Littlewood, a veterinary specialist and Massey University lecturer in animal welfare, joined Kathryn Ryan to answer questions about feeding pets in a cost-of-living crisis.
Vet clinics and supermarkets have a vast range of food options, Littlewood says, but the basic rule of thumb is to feed your pets the best and most varied diet you can afford.
“It’s really, really important that we're not just feeding all dry food or feeding all wet food. Giving animals a few options in terms of what they get to eat is always really helpful.”
‘Premium’ pet foods will have better quality ingredients, so use them if you can afford them, she says, but don’t go broke in the process.
“We want people to be feeding animals enough food. We can't be telling everyone that they have to buy the most expensive diet there is because we know that's not always possible for everyone to do.”
Domestic animals’ dietary needs change over time, Littlewood says.
Puppies need a lot of protein when they’re growing, while older dogs’ energy needs will decrease with reduced activity. Both cats and dogs need a good amount of protein in their diets.
What your particular pet likes to eat comes down to personal choice, Littlewood says. Some animals love dry biscuits – “the sweeties of the dog world” – while others prefer wet food.
“They are still individuals, and we have to remember that about our animals.”
Animals can be emotional eaters just like their owners, she says – but if your pet is overweight, it’s probably your fault.
“They can eat when they're bored, they can eat when they're anxious. Also, they can eat less in those situations, so anxious cats, for example, might lose some weight because of their anxiety.
“Owners have a huge role to play in animal weight management via managing how much they are fed and what activity they get."
Dogs are omnivores but that doesn't mean they're allowed to eat everything: eating a bit of grass is ok, but cooked bones are not. Photo: James Barker /Unsplash
“Nice, good, firm poos” are a sign of optimum animal health, Littlewood says. “We don't want them to be too dry.”
For cats, a plentiful water supply is especially important as they can be susceptible to kidney problems as they age.
“Most cats like fresh water, but again, just having it away from the food is probably the most important thing for them.
“We don't really know why but cats don't like to drink water that's near their food. It's kind of an old wives’ tale; that maybe it's because when they were wild, their wild ancestors would kill an animal if it was near a water source and that meant that the water source might be contaminated and so they wouldn't want to drink from that.”
The image of a cat sipping from a saucer of milk may look cute, but Littlewood says a lot of cats are lactose-intolerant.
“We actually don't advise feeding or giving milk to cats. There are cat milks that are available that don't have that lactose in them… but actually, just water [is enough]. Water is really good for cats.”
If your pet seems happy that's probably an indicator that they're healthy, Littlewood says.
“We want to make sure that they're healthy as well on [their particular] diet and that it has all of the required nutrients and the nutrient balance and also that we're not feeding too much."
What does it mean if a cat or dog is eating grass?
Grass eating could signal a number of things – it might be behavioural, they might have a deficiency or they might feel nauseous, Littlewood says.
Eating grass doesn't harm dogs which are omnivorous so can eat vegetables, and a bit of grass eating is unlikely to do them too much damage. It's a different story for small dogs and cats though, who can accidentally inhale long grass which can end up in the back of their nose and lead to nasal discharge and sneezing.
Is it okay to give my dog raw bones?
That depends, Littlewood says. Raw bones can be a good source of calcium and phosphorus, and they can help remove tartar from the teeth.
Dogs should never be left unattended with a raw bone or a bone that's too big.
“Choose one that's approximately the size of your dog's head at least, so that they can get a good chew and reduce the chances of things breaking off.”
Raw bones also carry risks associated with food-borne pathogens, so owners need to be careful when handling them, Littlewood says.
Cooked bones should always be off-limits with dogs because shards can break off and cause issues in the gastrointestinal tract.
Is it bad for a dog to eat their own poo?
There’s nothing necessarily wrong with this behaviour, Littlewood says, but it’s probably a good idea to have a chat with a vet.
“It's not so much of a health issue. Although we want to make sure that we're not having that dog around pregnant women for example, or other people that might be immunocompromised.”
Is a vegan diet good for cats and dogs?
It’s complicated, Littlewood says. Dogs are biologically omnivores, while cats are carnivores.
“Cats in particular have nutritional requirements that are quite tricky to provide without using animal-based products, so they have evolved to eat animal-based protein.”
Ongoing research into vegan diets for pets is also looking at their sustainability and environmental impacts, Littlewood says.
So far, no study has shown that such a diet can provide good health outcomes for dogs and cats.
Can you make your own pet food to save money?
While it might sound like a good money-saving idea, to ensure that you’re providing your pet with a complete diet you might end up spending more.
“I do worry that if you start putting [pet food] together yourself at home – because you're not doing it in a commercial environment and some of the complexities that are involved here – that actually could end up being costing the same or more.”
