Dataset Information

A Survey among Dog and Cat Owners on Pet Food Storage and Preservation in the Households.

ABSTRACT: Pet food storage plays a crucial role in maintaining the nutritional and sensory properties of purchased products over time. An online survey was developed to collect data regarding owners' storage habits for both commercial and home-made diets. The questionnaire was completed by 1545 dog owners and 676 cat owners. Pet and owner age played roles in the choice of the type of diet (commercial vs. home-cooked vs. raw meat-based) adopted. Kibble feeders (75.7%) usually bought one (50.1%) or two (24.6%) packages at a time, and most pets (64.4%) took a minimum four weeks to consume an entire bag. Almost half of the owners (43.5%) used a container to store pet food (plastic bins for 79.5%). Pet food was commonly stored in the kitchen (45.1%) and not exposed to direct light (94.5%); 23.6% of the kibble feeders said it might be exposed to high temperatures. Most commercial pet food feeders (67.3%) considered preservatives a potential health risk for pets. Among homemade diet feeders, 38.6% stored fish oil at room temperature. Pet owners should be educated in proper food storage management when receiving feeding instructions from veterinarians. More comprehensive information on the nature and importance of additives in pet food should be promoted by manufacturers.

SUBMITTER: Morelli G

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7911149 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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A Survey among Dog and Cat Owners on Pet Food Storage and Preservation in the Households.

Morelli Giada G Stefanutti Davide D Ricci Rebecca R

Animals : an open access journal from MDPI 20210121 2

<h4>Background</h4>Pet food storage plays a crucial role in maintaining the nutritional and sensory properties of purchased products over time.<h4>Methods</h4>An online survey was developed to collect data regarding owners' storage habits for both commercial and home-made diets.<h4>Results</h4>The questionnaire was completed by 1545 dog owners and 676 cat owners. Pet and owner age played roles in the choice of the type of diet (commercial vs. home-cooked vs. raw meat-based) adopted. Kibble feede ...[more]

PMID: 33494534

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Project description:BackgroundOver recent years, pet owners have started to demonstrate increased sensitivity toward their companion animals, which includes an increase in the attention paid towards their nutrition, seen as a way of safeguarding their pets' welfare. The aim of this study was to identify how pet food quality traits are perceived as being the most important by dog and cat owners. To this end, a survey of dog and cat owners was conducted by means of a questionnaire distributed in pet stores and trade fairs throughout Italy.ResultsA total of 935 surveys were collected; 61.8% of which were compiled by female pet owners. The respondents were relatively homogeneously distributed between cat (30.8%), dog (39.4%), and cat and dog (29.8%) owners. A quarter of the owners (25.5%) reported to have asked their veterinarian for advice on which pet food to buy, and almost a third (30.4%) trusted the advice posted on the web sites of well-known brands. "Contains natural ingredients" was the characteristic that obtained the highest mean score (4.3 out of 5). Elderly owners (> 65 years) placed most importance on whether a product had a high price, and least on feed appearance, animal satisfaction, and stool quality. Young owners (< 35y) paid most attention to the stool quality, the percentage of protein in the feed, and the presence of recyclable packaging, and least attention to feed appearance, smell, and animal satisfaction. Feed appearance, smell, a higher cost, and certain label indications (protein content, presence of fresh meat, grain free) were mostly important among the buyers of wet pet food. Some specific differences also emerged between dog, cat, and dog and cat owners.ConclusionsIn this survey of Italian pet food buyers, the presence of "natural" ingredients was considered to be the most important indicator of pet food quality, whereas characterized by a high price was considered least important. The data obtained from this survey could be used to help pet food companies identify which pet food quality traits are perceived as important by dog and cat owners.

Project description:BACKGROUND:Qatar is one of the wealthiest and fastest growing economies in the world, experiencing a rapid increase in human and pet populations. Given the paucity of data on prophylactic measures against endo- and ectoparasites of pets in Qatar, as well as on the owners' awareness of zoonotic diseases, a questionnaire was conducted. METHODS:From July to November 2017, 150 multiple-choice questionnaires were administered to dog and/or cat owners who attended two veterinary clinics in Doha. RESULTS:Only 54% (81/150) owners were aware of transmittable diseases between animals and humans. "Zoonosis/zoonotic disease(s)" was unknown for 88% (132/150) of the respondents and almost a quarter had no idea of transmission pathways associated with parasitic diseases. Thirteen owners (8.7%) reported to have suffered from zoonotic diseases (10 had dermatophytosis, 2 cat-scratch disease and 1 an unknown tick-borne disease) and 24.7% had dewormed themselves. Approximately 83% had their pets yearly vaccinated and 51% identified endo- and ectoparasites on their pets. Only 10% had their animal faeces tested for intestinal parasites as requested by a veterinarian. As for internal parasite control, only 19.3% dewormed their pets with the recommended treatment regimen (minimum quarterly); 52.7% (79/150) dewormed every 4 months to 1 year; 10% (15/150) without periodicity and 8% (12/150) had never done it. For external parasite control, only 16% (24/150) treated their pets with ectoparasiticides on a monthly basis; 44.7% (67/150) every 2 months to 1 year; 6.7% (10/150) without periodicity and 24.7% (37/150) had never done it. Approximately two thirds (63.3%) of pets were allowed to sleep in the owner's bed and 60% to lick their owner's face. Almost all pets were fed with dry/canned food, but 4.7% were fed with raw meat. Approximately 79.5% of dog owners collect their pet's faeces from public areas. CONCLUSIONS:These results highlight the need to raise pet owners' awareness towards prophylactic measures to minimize the potential impact of zoonotic diseases on the health of both animals and humans in Qatar.

Dataset Information

A Survey among Dog and Cat Owners on Pet Food Storage and Preservation in the Households.

Publications

A Survey among Dog and Cat Owners on Pet Food Storage and Preservation in the Households.

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