New Baltimore Animal Hospital
Diet & Nutrition
Proper diet and nutrition can help your pet fight against disease, maintain a proper weight, and will promote the overall well-being of your pet.
Overview
It can be overwhelming walking down the pet food aisle, whether in a store or browsing online. Veterinary nutritionists recommend using the WSAVA guidelines when selecting a diet for your pet. Pets should be fed a balanced wellness diet based on a number of factors, including their life stage, their breed or size, activity level and any health issues they have. Diet changes are recommended when they enter a new life stage, for example, transitioning from puppy or kitten to adult or from adult to senior, usually around age seven. Diet changes may also be recommended if your pet develops any issues that could be treated with a prescription diet, such as obesity or a food allergy.
How diet & nutrition can help your pet
We will help you make the right dietary changes for your pet so that they can stay on track living their happy and healthy lives. A healthy diet and good nutrition can reduce or even eliminate the following problems:
pet allergies
itching and scratching
dull coat
arthritis
joint and hip problems
intestinal disorders
Maintaining a healthy body weight is a very important aspect of a pet’s overall physical health. Obesity is a common problem among pets, as it can be easy to over-feed a pet that knows how to beg. Being overweight is a serious problem for animals, and can cause health problems as they get older. With proper diet and exercise, all pets should be able to meet their dietary needs and be within a healthy weight range. The best way to make sure your pet’s needs are being met is to consult with us about a specific diet for your pet and their lifestyle. Our staff will help your pet battle unhealthy weight gain and counsel you on the best nutritional options available.
GRAIN FREE DOG FOOD
In July 2018, the FDA announced that it had begun investigating reports of canine dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) in dogs eating certain pet foods, many labeled as "grain-free," which contained a high proportion of peas, lentils, other legume seeds (pulses), and/or potatoes in various forms (whole, flour, protein, etc.) as main ingredients (listed within the first 10 ingredients in the ingredient list, before vitamins and minerals). Many of these case reports included breeds of dogs not previously known to have a genetic predisposition to the disease. The FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine (CVM) and the Veterinary Laboratory Investigation and Response Network (Vet-LIRN), a collaboration of government and veterinary diagnostic laboratories, continue to investigate this potential association. Based on the data collected and analyzed thus far, the agency believes that the potential association between diet and DCM in dogs is a complex scientific issue that may involve multiple factors.