No matter how much they love their fur children, pet parents often forget a few key factors when it comes to properly feeding dogs and cats.

The standard procedure is to fill a bowl with pellets once or twice a day and hope for the best.

The problem is that cats and dogs aren’t capable of regulating their own eating habits. As with everything else, you have to ensure that they’re getting the nutrients and portions that they need to stay healthy and happy.

What follows is a simple guide, via Web MD Pets, to feeding your pets in the best possible way, starting with the nutrients that you should be looking out for when buying pet food.

Protein

Both dogs and cats need protein in their diets.

Taurine is key for cats. They need it for their vision, hearts, and to be able to reproduce. Taurine is found only in animal-based proteins. A cat’s digestive system breaks down animal-based proteins and absorbs nutrients from them.

Animal-based proteins have all the essential amino acids pets need, including taurine.

Fats and Energy

Dietary fats come from animal fats or the oils of a plant seed.

Fats and oils keep skin and fur healthy, produce certain hormones, help your pet absorb vitamins, insulate the body and protect the organs.

Carbohydrates

Carbs deliver energy, maintain digestive health, and affect reproduction.

Fibre is a type of carbohydrate that affects the bacteria in your pet’s intestine.

For your pet to get the biggest benefit from fibre, the fibre should be fermentable, which can be found in wheat, rice, or vegetables.

Avoid high-fibre foods for young cats and dogs that are still growing. They have a lot of energy so they need food rich in fat and protein.

Lots of Fresh Water

Your pet should always have access to clean drinking water.

One of the ways to ensure that they’re getting the best is to swap out their regular water bowl for a PETKIT Eversweet Smart Pet Drinking Fountain available at Pet Culture.

If you need more cute cat videos in your life, we are happy to oblige:

The fountain comes complete with a built-in reminder that lets you know when it needs refilling. The dynamic water flow ensures that the water is oxygenated and healthier for your pets.

Again, the cat in the video is also one of the cutest things I’ve ever seen.

Now that you have the right food, let’s move onto…

Portions

Your fur baby’s calorie needs will depend on their weight. For example:

• A 10-pound cat needs only 200 calories a day.
• A 50-pound dog needs 700 to 900 calories.
• Larger dogs may eat up to 1,350 calories.

Only you and your vet can properly determine the number of calories your dog and/or cat should be getting. Once that decision is made, you’ll need to figure out a good feeding schedule for your dog.

It’s important not to overfeed your dog or cat. Too little food and they can suffer from nutritional deficiencies, and too much eventually results in obesity and all of the health problems related to that condition.

How you feed your pet is also important. All foods contain bad bacteria. If your pet eats too much of that, they could experience diarrhoea or constipation.

Investing in a bowl like the PETKIT Fresh BioCleanAct™ Bowl is ideal if you want to ensure that your pet is eating the right amount and avoiding bad bacteria.

It has a built-in digital scale and this, combined with the PETKIT App, means that the accurate food quantity can be calculated according to the pet’s profile, like weight, age, breed, food brand and so on.

It also features a bio-clean, anti-microbial waterproof outer shell that helps remove bad bacteria found in all foods.

Take a look, the time featuring a furball of a hound:

You can get the PETKIT Fresh Pet Bowl, the PETKIT Drinking Fountain, a Silicone Waterproof Feeding Mat, and lots of other goodies for your fur baby online at Pet Culture.

They only stock the finest products, because they know your pets are a part of the family.

[source:petswebmd]