Identifying the target population and preventive strategies to combat feline obesity.

Feline obesity continues to be a priority health and welfare issue. Most research surrounding obesity currently focuses on obesity treatment. However, treatment for feline obesity is slow, often unsuccessful and not without consequences.

Website Investigation of Pet Weight Management-Related Information and Services Offered by Ontario Veterinary Practices.

Pet owners rely on information and advice from their veterinary practice to effectively manage their pet's weight. This study investigated weight management information and services displayed on practice websites in Ontario, Canada. Information collected from the websites of 50 randomly selected small and mixed-animal practices included practice and staff demographics and the type of weight management services, products, and information advertised or displayed.

Efficacy of vitamin D in maintaining serum total vitamin D concentrations and bone mineralisation in adult dogs fed a plant-based (vegan) diet in a 3-month randomised trial.

Dogs are considered omnivores based on their evolution consuming diets including animal tissue. Few feeding trials evaluating the nutritional suitability of exclusively plant-based (vegan) diets in dogs have been published, and the efficacy of vitamin D in maintaining canine serum vitamin D levels has not been clearly determined. A blinded dietary trial included sixty-one healthy desexed adult dogs: thirty-one fed an experimental extruded vegan diet (PLANT) and thirty fed a commercial extruded meat-based diet (MEAT) for 3 months.

Circulating direct infusion MS and NMR metabolomic profiles of post-gonadectomy kittens with or without additional dietary choline supplementation.

Choline is beneficial for energy metabolism and growth in various species. Choline may work similarly in kittens at risk of obesity. Direct infusion MS (Di-MS) and NMR spectroscopy were used to investigate the metabolomic signatures of kittens supplemented with or without additional dietary choline for 12 weeks.

Commercial diet recommendations and follow-up for a large breed puppy with an intrahepatic portosystemic shunt.

A 6-month-old, intact male Great Dane dog fed a veterinary therapeutic liver diet was evaluated after diagnosis of an intrahepatic portosystemic shunt and hind limb angular limb deformity to determine appropriateness of diet. Evaluation of the current diet revealed it to be inadequate to meet the nutrient requirements of a large breed puppy. The dog clinically improved following a change in diet.

Case Report: Application and Limitations of a Plant-Based Diet Formulated for a Cat With Feline Lower Urinary Tract Disease.

A 2-year-old male castrated domestic shorthair cat was presented for recommendations for dietary management of chronic FLUTD using a strictly plant-based diet as per the stipulations of the cat's owner. The cat had a history of urethral obstruction of unknown etiology, persistent marked struvite crystalluria, and persistent inappropriate elimination. Commercial plant-based products meeting the nutritional recommendations for maintenance of adult cats with the lowest concentration of struvite precursors were identified, but the cat would not eat them.

Talking About Dog and Cat Nutrition with Clients.

Veterinary health care teams understand that acceptance of, and adherence to, dietary recommendations by clients depends on effective, continuous communication. Despite decades of available research and training, and the availability of numerous balanced commercial, balanced homemade, and veterinary therapeutic diets, our collective ability across the profession to consistently help clients change behaviors and feeding practices to improve patient health remains difficult. Based on the long-standing, evidence-based approach of motivational interviewing, a paradigm shift is suggested for veterinary health care teams to empower clients to make their own arguments for change and take positive action for the health of their pet.

Readability and content of online pet obesity information.

Objective: To assess the readability of pet obesity information, document the presence and absence of types of pet obesity information, and perform comparisons between dog and cat obesity information content on websites.

Sample: 68 websites containing pet obesity content.

Procedures: Websites were systematically retrieved with a search engine and predefined search terms and phrases.

An observational study of pet feeding practices and how these have changed between 2008 and 2018.

Background: Pet owners have many feeding options, some may be considered unconventional by veterinary practitioners. Provision of appropriate nutrition is a basic requirement, with adverse health outcomes possible when a pet diet is inadequate.

Objective: To capture dog and cat feeding practices, with a special focus on countries with large English-speaking populations, and to compare with data published over the previous 10 years.

Unconventional diets and nutritional supplements are more common in dogs with cancer compared to healthy dogs: An online global survey of 345 dog owners.

This survey aimed to investigate and compare diet type and supplement use between dogs (Canis lupus familiaris, L.) with cancer and a population of owner-reported healthy dogs and to assess the sources of information dog owners consult. Respondents were mainly from English-speaking countries.

Special topic: The association between pulse ingredients and canine dilated cardiomyopathy: addressing the knowledge gaps before establishing causation.

In July 2018, the Food and Drug Administration warned about a possible relationship between dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) in dogs and the consumption of dog food formulated with potatoes and pulse ingredients. This issue may impede utilization of pulse ingredients in dog food or consideration of alternative proteins. Pulse ingredients have been used in the pet food industry for over 2 decades and represent a valuable source of protein to compliment animal-based ingredients.

Increased serum concentrations of adiponectin in canine hypothyroidism.

Serum concentrations of adiponectin were compared between sex-matched hypothyroid (n = 18) and euthyroid (n = 18) client-owned dogs with comparable ages and body condition scores (BCS). Concentrations of adiponectin (mean; 95% confidence interval) were significantly (P < 0.01) higher in hypothyroid (17.

A measure of and predictors for veterinarian trust developed with veterinary students in a simulated companion animal practice.

Objective: To gain a better understanding of the role of interpersonal trust in veterinarian-client interactions during routine health-care visits, develop a measure of trust uniquely suited to the context of veterinary medicine, and interpret the actions, beliefs, and perceptions that capture client trust toward veterinarians.

Design: Correlational study.

Sample: 103 veterinary students and 19 standardized clients with pets from a college of veterinary medicine at a large public Midwestern university.

Effect of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and body condition on serum concentrations of adipokines in healthy dogs.

Objective: To determine associations between serum concentrations of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids or body condition and serum concentrations of adiponectin, leptin, insulin, glucose, or triglyceride in healthy dogs.

Animals: 62 healthy adult client-owned dogs.

Procedures: Body condition score and percentage of body fat were determined.

Student perceptions of an animal-welfare and ethics course taught early in the veterinary curriculum.

Animal welfare and veterinary ethics are two subjects that have been acknowledged as necessary for inclusion in the veterinary curriculum. In fact, the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Council on Education has mandated that veterinary ethics be taught to all students in US veterinary colleges. Animal welfare was recently included in the US veterinarian's oath, and AVMA established a committee to create a model curriculum on the subject.

Effect of omega-3 fatty acids on serum concentrations of adipokines in healthy cats.

Objective: To determine associations between serum concentrations of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and concentrations of adiponectin, leptin, and insulin in healthy cats.

Animals: 56 healthy adult client-owned cats.

Procedures: Body condition score (BCS) was determined, and blood samples were collected after food was withheld for 12 hours.

The epiphyseal plate: nutritional and hormonal influences; hereditary and other disorders.

This article reviews nutritional and hormonal influences, diseases with uncertain etiology, and hereditary disorders affecting the growth and development of the long bones in dogs and cats.

Teaching and assessing nutrition competence in a changing curricular environment.

In the past, the required introductory veterinary nutrition course at Michigan State University's College of Veterinary Medicine (MSU-CVM) has provided 29 hours of didactic lectures, with student performance evaluated by short-answer or multiple-choice questions. Because of a 50% reduction in allotted course credits and a change in prerequisites for admission, the course is being redesigned to focus on three of 29 nutrition competencies outlined by the American College of Veterinary Nutrition. Professional communication skills will be developed through small-group learning experiences, case-based problems, and videotaped interviews with standardized clients to teach and assess nutrition competencies.

Effectively communicating with your clients.

The successful ability to efficiently collect diet histories, convey appropriate health messages, and discuss client concerns about the safe feeding of pets requires excellent communication skills. In addition to understanding what the client wants for their pet, thorough nutritional interviewers gather information pertaining to animal factors, dietary factors, and feeding management factors. With the expansion of the Internet, increasing advances in medical care, and the health concerns associated with pet food recalls, small animal clients are looking to veterinarians for guidance and information on dietary recommendations in ever increasing numbers.

Increasing adherence in practice: making your clients partners in care.

Clients may appear compliant but may not fully adhere to recommendations made by the veterinarian or veterinary technician for many reasons. Client adherence is directly related to one's communication skills, which can be practiced by all members of the health care team in each client encounter. The four habits approach to enhancing communication skills has been tested in a large human health care organization and shown to result in greater satisfaction between patients and doctors as well as in improved adherence to recommendations.

Disease prevalence among dogs and cats in the United States and Australia and proportions of dogs and cats that receive therapeutic diets or dietary supplements.

Objective: To estimate disease prevalence among dogs and cats in the United States and Australia and proportions of dogs and cats that receive therapeutic diets or dietary supplements.

Design: Telephone survey. Sample Population-Dog and cat owners located in 5 geographic areas.