Approximately half of Dogs above the age of 10 will develop cancer. ( Source: avma.org American Veterinary Medical Association) The numbers for cats are lower and is estimated to be about half the rate that is seen in dogs ( Source: Pets.webmd.com )
Increasingly, as family and house sizes shrink, pets are seen as a crucial family member and our emotional ties and bonds with them are stronger. We are more in tuned and aware of their needs and they ours. How then can we try and prevent our furry from being one of the statistics?
Cancer is caused by changes to the DNA of the Pet. It is caused by both external and internal factors, for example nutrition, pollutants, nutrition whilst in womb, stress and other environmental contaminants.
Upon welcoming a pet into your home , we strongly encourage pawrents to take some simple steps to minimize such exposure. These steps are beneficial to both furry and yourself. Often, pets owners with certain types of cancer due to exposure have pets that have or will suffered a similar aliment.
This short blog will look at one of the factors the Maillard Reaction
The Maillard Reaction is a chemical reaction between amino acids and reducing sugars. It makes food brown and gives it a flavour, this happens when food is exposed to temperatures of 140°C to 165°C. These temperatures also break down important proteins and cause Cancer causing chemicals ( Carcinogen) like acrylamide to be produced.
Most Kibble is extruded at 175°C. Extrusion, simply put is the process of giving shape to kibble. It is no wonder than that dogs have higher rates of cancer as acrylamides are largely due to the breakdown of starches and carbohydrates found in higher content in dog diets.
How then can we balance the convenience of Kibble and our Pet's health.
The first step is switching to a slow cooked, low temperature and non-extruded recipe, for example , Oven Baked Kibbles, air dried/ dehydrated or a complete and balanced freeze dried raw.
The extrusion process leaves the kibble with less than 40% of it’s initial vitamins and minerals, the other processes retains significantly more some even boasting 100% of the initial nutrients. Extruded kibbles compensate for the losses by reintroducing chemicals to attain the required nutritional values of the diet.
This means your pet is getting his/her vitamins and minerals naturally. They are naturally flavored and nutrient-dense. Extruded kibbles are puffed up by air.
Do non extruded foods cost significantly more?
It may surprise you but baked, air dried or freeze dried kibble weighs at least 20% less than the extruded variety. This means that you'll get more servings per bag for the same weight! That plus needing to feed less as the food is nutrient dense and biologically available, you may end up feeding less.
The end result is a healthier pet with no significant increase in cost.
Sadly, the switch to a natural and better alternative is not made easy. Many major brands employ the assistance of 'natural additives, flavours and preservatives that cause our pets to refuse healthier options or even have the runs.
Stay tuned for our next article on such practices, what flavour is and its effects on your Pet's health.
XOXO
Furry
PS. in trying to keep our articles independent, TLT refrains from naming brands in our published articles. Feel free to reach out to us for more information on brands that may carry the type of nutrition featured.
Commentaires