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Variety . . . It really is the Spice of Life |
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A Lack of Variety in Your Pet’s Diet is Unnatural .... and Unhealthy
Many companion animals are only fed one type of food day in, day out. Their owners fear offering any variety in the diet will cause digestive problems, nutritional imbalances or at the very least poor eating habits. This method of feeding is not only unnatural, it’s unhealthy.
A New Perspective
Imagine you go to the Doctor’s office for a physical. While talking with the Doctor, he suggests a brand new cereal diet which contains all the vitamins, minerals and nutrients you need. It is so complete and balanced, you should never eat anything else. Doing so may cause a nutritional imbalance. There is no need for fresh apples, veggies, meats or anything else - everything you need is all in this cereal!
Sounds crazy? It should! No one wants to eat the same dried food day in and day out, complete and balanced or not. Besides what healthy diet doesn’t include fresh food? No rational person would ever eat such a diet long term.
However this is the way most people are advised to feed their pets. They feed one dry, processed “cereal” food every day for their entire lives. Many owners are told to never add any sort of fresh foods to their pet’s diet because it may upset the balance of the dry food. This sort of diet is no healthier for your pet then it is for you.
Nutrient Imbalances
One potential problem with not offering variety is nutrient imbalances. If you feed only one food everyday and that food happens to be lacking in a nutrient, problems will develop. Cats, due to having such strict dietary requirements, have had the most problems connected to lack of taurine, copper and Vitamin E in commercial canned or dry pet foods. Dogs, being scavengers, have more adaptable dietary needs but have still suffered from lack of zinc and essential fatty acids. Too much of some nutrients can mean just as serious a problem as too little. A consumer report on pet foods found “More than half the cat foods and more than one-fourth of the dog foods - including some “super premium” types - fell significantly short in at least one of the nutrients...”. Often imbalances in dry or canned foods are not discovered until multiple pets have become ill or worse.
Food Allergies and Intolerances
Allergies and food intolerances have similar symptoms. Food intolerance is a reaction to an ingredient in food that does not involve the immune system. A food allergy is an immune response triggered by a food ingredient. Lack of variety in the diet means daily exposure to the same ingredients over a long period of time. This can set your pet up to develop food allergies or intolerances. Common causes of such allergies or intolerances are grain, artificial preservatives and artificial color. Some researchers believe food intolerances or allergies compromise the immune system and may lead to hypothyroidism, colitis or arthritis.
Picky Eaters
Feeding only one food every day also encourages your pet to become a picky eater. Most commercial dry and canned foods add palatability enchancers which make their food irresistible. Feeding only one type of food may encourage your pet to become “addicted” to one flavor and refuse everything else. Cats are very prone to becoming addicted to only one food or flavor but dogs may develop this problem as well.
Balance Over Time
Animals are designed to be able to get all needed nutrients from foods available to them in nature. No animal was ever intended to have a “100 percent complete and balanced” meal every time they ate. Instead, natural diets are intended to balance over time. By offering a variety of foods to your pet you are giving them all the nutrients they need in the way they are naturally designed to use them.
The Best Diet
Despite what you may have heard, it’s fairly simple to feed a balanced diet to your pet without using commercial dry or canned foods. The best diet is one which includes raw meat, bones and ground veggies. For variety you will feed a wide range of different meat proteins and vegetable types. Any supplements your pet needs should be added to the food daily in an appropriate amount. Still worried about properly balancing your pet’s diet through variety? A Place for Paws RAW mixes make it easy! Raw meat and bones are ground with a variety of veggies. Choose several different mixes to feed and you can be sure your pet is getting the variety they need for a naturally balanced diet.
Advantages of Variety
Feeding your pet a fresh raw food diet with lots of variety has many advantages over feeding a supposedly "complete and balanced" diet. Some advantages include:
* Better Balance of Nutrients
* Decreased Risk of Food Allergies
* Decreased Risk of Food Intolerances
* Good Eating Habits
* Stronger Immune System
* Mental Stimulation
* Better Health Overall
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