Estimation of maintenance energy requirements in German shepherd and Labrador retriever dogs in Bangalore, India.

Maintenance energy requirements (MERs) were calculated for 17 German shepherd and 20 Labrador retriever adult dogs using an in-home prospective dietary trial. The dogs were fed the same dry pet food and body weight, food intake, body condition score and physical activity were monitored for 10 weeks. Labrador retrievers were significantly heavier and had higher body condition scores than German shepherd dogs, but there was no difference between males and females within each group.

Exogenous lactobacilli mitigate microbial changes associated with grain fermentation (corn, oats, and wheat) by equine fecal microflora ex vivo.

Cereal grains are often included in equine diets. When starch intake exceeds foregut digestion starch will reach the hindgut, impacting microbial ecology. Probiotics (e.

EQUIFAT: A novel scoring system for the semi-quantitative evaluation of regional adipose tissues in Equidae.

Anatomically distinct adipose tissues represent variable risks to metabolic health in man and some other mammals. Quantitative-imaging of internal adipose depots is problematic in large animals and associations between regional adiposity and health are poorly understood. This study aimed to develop and test a semi-quantitative system (EQUIFAT) which could be applied to regional adipose tissues.

Companion Animals and Child/Adolescent Development: A Systematic Review of the Evidence.

Childhood and adolescence are important developmental phases which influence health and well-being across the life span. Social relationships are fundamental to child and adolescent development; yet studies have been limited to children's relationships with other humans. This paper provides an evidence review for the potential associations between pet ownership and emotional; behavioural; cognitive; educational and social developmental outcomes.

Assessment of dental plaque coverage by Quantitative Light-induced Fluorescence (QLF) in domestic short-haired cats.

Dietary means of reducing plaque and calculus deposits are frequently sought for the maintenance of oral health in cats and dogs. In the development of such products sensitive, reliable, reproducible methods of measuring plaque and calculus are key. The aim of this study was to assess Quantitative Light-induced Fluorescence (QLF™) for the detection of dental plaque coverage in cats compared to the modified Logan and Boyce technique.

Ultra high performance liquid chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry plasma lipidomics can distinguish between canine breeds despite uncontrolled environmental variability and non-standardized diets.

Introduction And Objectives: The purpose of this study was to use high accurate mass metabolomic profiling to investigate differences within a phenotypically diverse canine population, with breed-related morphological, physiological and behavioural differences. Previously, using a broad metabolite fingerprinting approach, lipids appear to dominate inter- and intra- breed discrimination. The purpose here was to use Ultra High Performance Liquid Chromatography-High Resolution Mass Spectrometry (UHPLC-HRMS) to identify in more detail, inter-breed signatures in plasma lipidomic profiles of home-based, client-owned dogs maintained on different diets and fed according to their owners' feeding regimens.

Effects of Different Oral Doses of Sodium Chloride on the Basal Acid-Base and Mineral Status of Exercising Horses Fed Low Amounts of Hay.

The provision of NaCl, according to current recommendations, to horses in moderate work has been shown to induce immediate postprandial acidosis. The present study aimed to clarify whether this NaCl induced acidosis i) persists beyond the immediate postprandial period, and ii) is still present after a 2 week adaptation period. Six adult warmblood mares in moderate work received daily 1.

Metabolic Profiling Reveals Effects of Age, Sexual Development and Neutering in Plasma of Young Male Cats.

Neutering is a significant risk factor for obesity in cats. The mechanisms that promote neuter-associated weight gain are not well understood but following neutering, acute changes in energy expenditure and energy consumption have been observed. Metabolic profiling (GC-MS and UHPLC-MS-MS) was used in a longitudinal study to identify changes associated with age, sexual development and neutering in male cats fed a nutritionally-complete dry diet to maintain an ideal body condition score.

Review: Feeding conserved forage to horses: recent advances and recommendations.

The horse is a non-ruminant herbivore adapted to eating plant-fibre or forage-based diets. Some horses are stabled for most or the majority of the day with limited or no access to fresh pasture and are fed preserved forage typically as hay or haylage and sometimes silage. This raises questions with respect to the quality and suitability of these preserved forages (considering production, nutritional content, digestibility as well as hygiene) and required quantities.

Predictive equations of selenium accessibility of dry pet foods.

The trace element selenium is essential to both dogs and cats. Dry diets are formulated with a large range of ingredients, which may vary in selenium concentration and accessibility. This paper reports equations to predict the average in vitro selenium accessibility from dry pet foods based on essential dietary nutrient concentrations, including crude protein, amino acids and crude fat.

PILOT STUDY TO ASSESS MEAL PROGRESSION THROUGH THE GASTROINTESTINAL TRACT OF HABITUATED DOGS DETERMINED BY FLUOROSCOPIC IMAGING WITHOUT SEDATION OR PHYSICAL RESTRAINT.

A limiting factor of radiographic contrast studies is the requirement for restraint of the animal in order to reduce movement artifacts. To demonstrate that gastrointestinal transit can be analyzed by a barium meal in nonsedated and unrestrained dogs, a pilot study of six adult Labrador retriever dogs was undertaken. Study subjects were selected by convenience sampling from an available population of Labrador dogs and were trained to stand motionless during radiographic fluoroscopy.

The association between dog ownership or dog walking and fitness or weight status in childhood.

Background: Health benefits of dog walking are established in adults: dog owners are on average more physically active, and those walking their dogs regularly have lower weight status than those who do not. However, there has been little research on children.

Objectives: This study aimed to examine the association between dog ownership or dog walking and childhood fitness or weight status.

Prevalence of obesity and owners' perceptions of body condition in pleasure horses and ponies in south-eastern Australia.

Objective: To determine the prevalence of obesity within a population of pleasure horses and ponies in Victoria, Australia, and to compare owners' perceptions of their animals' body condition with researchers' assessments.

Design: An observational study plus owner questionnaire.

Methods: Ten Pony Club rallies in different regions of Victoria were attended.

The association between dog walking, physical activity and owner's perceptions of safety: cross-sectional evidence from the US and Australia.

Background: We examined the relationship between dog walking and physical activity within and between four US cities and Australia and investigated if dog walking is associated with higher perceived safety in US and Australian cities.

Methods: Dog owners (n = 1113) in the Pet Connections Study completed a cross-sectional survey. Data were collected across four study sites; three in the US (San Diego, Nashville, Portland) and a fourth in Australia (Perth).

Obese dogs with and without obesity-related metabolic dysfunction - a proteomic approach.

Background: Approximately 20 % of obese dogs have metabolic disturbances similar to those observed in human metabolic syndrome, a condition known as obesity-related metabolic dysfunction. This condition is associated with insulin resistance and decreased circulating adiponectin concentrations, but clinical consequences have not been reported. In order to define better the metabolic changes associated with obesity-related metabolic dysfunction (ORMD), we compared the plasma proteomes of obese dogs with and without ORMD.

The Prevalence of Canine Oral Protozoa and Their Association with Periodontal Disease.

Periodontal disease is one of the most important health concerns for companion animals. Research into canine forms of periodontitis has focused on the identification and characterization of the bacterial communities present. However, other microorganisms are known to inhabit the oral cavity and could also influence the disease process.

Balancing macronutrient intake in a mammalian carnivore: disentangling the influences of flavour and nutrition.

There is a large body of research demonstrating that macronutrient balancing is a primary driver of foraging in herbivores and omnivores, and more recently, it has been shown to occur in carnivores. However, the extent to which macronutrient selection in carnivores may be influenced by organoleptic properties (e.g.

Effect of increased adiposity on insulin sensitivity and adipokine concentrations in different equine breeds adapted to cereal-rich or fat-rich meals.

The relationships between diet, obesity and insulin dysregulation in equids require further investigation due to their association with laminitis. This study examined the effect of dietary glycaemic load and increased adiposity on insulin sensitivity and adipokine concentrations in different equine breeds. Equal numbers of Standardbred horses, mixed-breed ponies and Andalusian horses were provided with ad libitum hay plus either cereal-rich (CHO; n = 12), fat-rich (FAT; n = 12) or control (CON; n = 9) meals over 20 weeks.

Use of the oral sugar test in ponies when performed with or without prior fasting.

Background: It is recommended that the oral sugar test (OST) for insulin dysregulation (ID) be performed after an overnight fast, but fasting is impractical in ponies kept solely at pasture. There are few data on OST repeatability and reliability in ponies.

Objectives: To report 1) whether OST results obtained in the morning after an overnight fast or without fasting in the afternoon (FASTING/FED) can be used interchangeably, 2) time of highest insulin concentration T [insulin], repeatability and reliability of insulin response to the OST when FASTING or FED and 3) dichotomous agreement (ID/normal) within a small sample when FASTING or FED.

Prospective cohort study evaluating risk factors for the development of pasture-associated laminitis in the United Kingdom.

Background: Certain individuals appear to be predisposed to recurrent pasture-associated laminitis. Previous studies have predominantly investigated risk factors only after disease occurrence.

Objectives: To investigate risk factors for pasture-associated laminitis prior to disease occurrence.

Characterising the Canine Oral Microbiome by Direct Sequencing of Reverse-Transcribed rRNA Molecules.

PCR amplification and sequencing of phylogenetic markers, primarily Small Sub-Unit ribosomal RNA (SSU rRNA) genes, has been the paradigm for defining the taxonomic composition of microbiomes. However, 'universal' SSU rRNA gene PCR primer sets are likely to miss much of the diversity therein. We sequenced a library comprising purified and reverse-transcribed SSU rRNA (RT-SSU rRNA) molecules from the canine oral microbiome and compared it to a general bacterial 16S rRNA gene PCR amplicon library generated from the same biological sample.

Age-associated and breed-associated variations in haematological and biochemical variables in young labrador retriever and miniature schnauzer dogs.

Breed, sex and age effects on haematological and biochemical variables were investigated in 24 labrador retriever and 25 miniature schnauzer dogs during the first year of life. Blood samples were taken regularly between weeks 8 and 52. White blood cell and red blood cell counts, haemoglobin concentration, haematocrit, mean cell volume, mean cell haemoglobin, mean cell haemoglobin concentration, platelet count as well as total protein, albumin, calcium, phosphate, alkaline phosphatase, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, glutamate dehydrogenase, total cholesterol, triglycerides, creatine and urea were evaluated.

Characterisation of the main drivers of intra- and inter- breed variability in the plasma metabolome of dogs.

Introduction: Dog breeds are a consequence of artificial selection for specific attributes. These closed genetic populations have metabolic and physiological characteristics that may be revealed by metabolomic analysis.

Objectives: To identify and characterise the drivers of metabolic differences in the fasted plasma metabolome and then determine metabolites differentiating breeds.

Selenium Digestibility and Bioactivity in Dogs: What the Can Can, the Kibble Can't.

There is a growing concern for the long-term health effects of selenium (Se) over- or underfeeding. The efficiency of utilization of dietary Se is subject to many factors. Our study in dogs evaluated the effect of diet type (canned versus kibble) and dietary protein concentration on Se digestibility and bioactivity.

Longitudinal quantification of the gingival crevicular fluid proteome during progression from gingivitis to periodontitis in a canine model.

Aim: Inflammatory periodontal disease is widespread in dogs. This study evaluated site-specific changes in the canine gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) proteome during longitudinal progression from very mild gingivitis to mild periodontitis. Periodontitis diagnosis in dogs requires general anaesthesia with associated risks and costs; our ultimate aim was to develop a periodontitis diagnostic for application in conscious dogs.