Nutrition

When considering how to best manage and support postoperative surgical cases as it relates to nutritional intervention and gastrointestinal (GI) health, implementing perioperative care strategies can provide a more favorable recovery.

Greater awareness of cachexia will help provide practical approaches to managing body weight and lean body mass in dogs and cats, as well as more directed targets for treatment.

There has been a lot of confusion, misinformation and conversation in the past year about the risk of heart disease in dogs due to being fed grain-free diets. What do we know — and not know? Nearly 600 Facebook fans responded to our poll.

“The monitoring of body weight is an important indicator of health in both humans and animals,” says one of the study authors. “It’s a data point that is commonly collected at each medical appointment, is simple to monitor at home, and is an easy point of entry into data-driven animal wellness.”

Veterinary teams need to find alternative ways to avoid upsetting their clients and to gain their trust in communicating the best nutritional requirements for their patients.

While fresh and homemade diets have become increasingly popular among pet owners, veterinarians warn that they could leave your pet lacking essential nutrients.

It can be challenging to find nutraceuticals that do what their manufacturers say they do — here’s what’s behind the hype of probiotics and prebiotics.

Gastrointestinal (GI) problems are one of the leading causes for which pets present to veterinary hospitals. When managing a patient nutritionally, the health care team should be knowledgeable of key nutritional factors and their impact.

MEETING NUTRITIONAL NEEDS Nutrition is an important component of the hospitalized patient’s treatment plan. Nutrition is vitally important to the hospitalized patient. Unfortunately, the nutritional needs of hospitalized patients are often overlooked. Doctors’ orders might not include specific feeding instructions. Patients may be unwilling or unable to eat or may not be consuming adequate calories ...

The average puppy or kitten enters its new home between 7 and 9 weeks of age. During the subsequent months, the veterinary team must impart a strong nutritional foundation to help to support the growth and development of the patient throughout this demanding period.