title: Handling alternative dietary requests from pet owners.
abstract: The goal of this article was to provide veterinary practitioners with an overview of the types of alternative dietary options available to pet owners and a practical method by which to evaluate the nutritional adequacy of these various options. Our approach to categorizing the alternative dietary options is based on the nutritional adequacy of these dietary options, because patients will be at risk for nutrition-related diseases if fed a nutritionally incomplete or improperly balanced diet long term.
authors.affiliation: Clinical Nutrition Service, Department of Clinical Studies, Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph, 50 Stone Road West, Guelph, Ontario N1G 2W1, Canada; On Parr Nutrition, Inc, Guelph, ON N1G4S7, Canada. Electronic address: parr@uoguelph.ca.
authors.forename: Jacqueline M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Parr
authors.affiliation: Nutrition Service, Small and Large Animal Nutrition, Molecular Biomedical Science Department, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, 1052 William Moore Drive, Raleigh, NC 27607, USA; Veterinary Nutritional Consultations, Inc, 1002 Capps Farm Road, Hollister, NC 27844, USA; Consultant Rayne Clinical Nutrition LLC, Po Box 481813, Kansas City, MO 64148, USA.
authors.forename: Rebecca L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Remillard
mesh_terms: D000821:Animal Feed / Q000032:analysis / Q000592:standards*; D000824:Animal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena / Q000502:physiology*; D000818:Animals; D002415:Cats / Q000502:physiology*; D004285:Dogs / Q000502:physiology*; D009751:Nutritional Requirements; D009753:Nutritive Value
keywords: Alternative diets; Commercial pet foods; Homemade diets (cooked, raw); Nutritional adequacy; Nutritional assessment; Unconventional diets