JNS

JOURNAL OF NUTRITIONAL SCIENCE

RESEARCH ARTICLE

Analysis of recipes of home-prepared diets for dogs and cats published in

Portuguese

Vivian Pedrinelli1, Márcia de O. S. Gomes2 and Aulus C. Carciofi1*

1
Department of Veterinary Clinic and Surgery, College of Agrarian and Veterinarian Sciences, UNESP – Sao Paulo State University, Via de
Acesso Prof. Paulo Donato Castellane, Jaboticabal, SP, 14884-900, Brazil
2
Department of Internal Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, University of Sao Paulo (USP) – São Paulo, Av. Prof. Dr.
Orlando Marques de Paiva, 87, São Paulo, SP, 13690-970, Brazil
(Received 14 November 2016 – Final revision received 16 February 2017 – Accepted 26 May 2017)

Journal of Nutritional Science (2017), vol. 6, e33, page 1 of 5 doi:10.1017/jns.2017.31

Abstract
The present study evaluated recipes of home-prepared diets for dogs and cats published in Portuguese. A total of 106 diets were evaluated: eighty for dogs,
twenty-four for cats and two intended for both species. A commercial software package was used to analyse the diets, and an ingredient chemical com-
position database was built based on the Brazilian Tables of Food Composition and United States Department of Agriculture Nutrient Database. The
estimated chemical composition of each recipe was compared with the Nutritional Guidelines for Complete and Complementary Pet Food for Cats
and Dogs (Fédération Européenne de L’industrie des Aliments Pour Animaux Familiers; FEDIAF, 2014) recommendations for maintenance (as
units/MJ). Most recipes (48 %) had no precise determination of ingredients and quantities. All diets had at least one nutrient below the recommendations,
and all investigated nutrients were deficient in at least one diet. The most frequent nutrients below recommendation were: Fe (68·3 % of the recipes for
dogs; 100 % of the recipes for cats); vitamin E (82·9 % of the dog recipes; 84·6 % of the cat recipes); Zn (75·6 % for dogs; 88·4 % for cats); Ca (73·2 % for
dogs; 73 % for cats); Cu (85·4 % for dogs; 69·2 % for cats); choline (85·4 % for dogs; 69·2 % for cats); riboflavin (65·8 % for dogs; 11·5 % for cats);
thiamine (39 % for dogs; 80·7 % for cats); and vitamin B12 (61 % for dogs; 34·6 % for cats). These recipes may potentially expose animals to nutritional
deficiencies, and it is important to inform the owners of the risks of providing home-prepared diets. Better training of professionals that intend to prescribe
home-prepared diets is advisable.

Key words: Home-made diets: Dog nutrition: Cat nutrition: Nutritional deficiency

To provide a nutritionally adequate diet is part of daily pet and can be summarised as: inability to comprehend pet food
care, essential to maintaining good health and increasing labels; concern with the presence of preservatives, food col-
longevity. In 2011 the World Small Animal Veterinary ouring, or bad-quality ingredients in extruded diets; and desire
Association(1) published guidelines for nutritional evaluation to cook for their pets to increase the human–animal bond(2–4).
and considered nutrition the fifth vital sign, along with tem- Some owners, however, are not aware that home-prepared
perature, pulse, respiration and pain assessment. In these diets are sometimes higher in cost, need a complex prepar-
guidelines, there is a list of potential risk factors related to ation, specific ingredients and supplements, and must be for-
nutrition, and one of them is feeding unconventional diets mulated by a veterinarian or other trained professional with a
(raw, home-prepared or vegetarian diets). nutrition background(4,5). Dog and cat owners may search for
Recently there has been a trend to use home-prepared diets diet recipes in books, magazines or websites, which can display
in Brazil. A diverse range of reasons may explain this tendency, different diets not properly formulated, exposing their pets to

Abbreviations: BW, body weight; FEDIAF, Fédération Européenne de L’industrie des Aliments Pour Animaux Familiers; ME, metabolisable energy.

* Corresponding author: A. C. Carciofi, email aulus.carciofi@gmail.com

© The Author(s) 2017. This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http://creative-
commons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is
properly cited. 1
journals.cambridge.org/jns

potential nutritional deficiencies(6–8). Several studies can be chemical composition tables consulted to build the software
found in the scientific literature, highlighting an important database. The diets with nutrient content below FEDIAF(13)
range of unproperly balanced diets, with relevant frequency were additionally evaluated regarding the median percentage
of nutritional deficiencies, including diets for growth, mainten- (minimum–maximum) of nutrient supply, in comparison
ance and also specific diseases(6,8–10). with the standard recommendation of the FEDIAF(13).
Due to this, the present study evaluated the nutritional
adequacy, using computer software, of recipes of home-
Results
prepared diets available in Portuguese in different media,
including books, websites and scientific articles. A total of 106 recipes were evaluated, eighty intended for dogs,
twenty-four for cats and two for both dogs and cats, all with
open access to the public. Most recipes (48 %) had no precise
Experimental methods
determination of the ingredients and their quantities. The most
The recipes were obtained by simple Internet browser search, common protein sources in the diets were chicken breast,
search for books in bookstores and in the university’s library, bovine heart, bovine bottom round steak and chicken thigh.
as well as veterinary published articles. Search terms for Among the starch sources, white rice, brown rice, potato
Internet, article and book searches were ‘home-made diet’ or and sweet potato were the most used. Vegetables appeared
‘home-prepared diet’ or ‘home-cooked diet’ or ‘recipe’ fol- in ninety-three diets (87·7 %) of the diets, including carrots,
lowed by ‘dog’ or ‘cat’. Websites were found using the zucchini, squash and kale as the most common. The amount
Google browser and the scientific articles were found using of fat source added was described in g or ml in seventy-one
the Scopus and PubMed databases. Books were located within (67 %) of the recipes, and soyabean oil, rapeseed oil, flaxseed
the catalogues of two major bookstore chains located in the oil and sunflower-seed oil were the most commonly pre-
city of Sao Paulo, and included the search terms above. The scribed. Of all the diets, fifty-eight (53·7 %) did not contain
search included home-prepared diets, with cooked and/or any vitamin–mineral supplement, nor a single vitamin or min-
raw ingredients for healthy adults, and was conducted from eral inclusion. For the seventeen diets that included supple-
June 2014 until September 2015. ments, fifteen (88·2 %) did not specify the brand and/or the
A commercial software package (Optimal Formula 2000®; amount to be supplemented. Eleven recipes (10·2 %) included
Optimal) was used to analyse the estimated chemical compos- in their composition ingredients with toxic potential, such as
ition of the diets. An ingredient and chemical composition onion and garlic.
database was built based on the Brazilian Tables of Food Lack of information on how much to feed the animal was
Composition (TACO)(11), and when the nutrient content was observed in seventy-seven diets (71·3 %). Of all the diets for
not available, the United States Department of Agriculture dogs and cats, eighteen (16·7 %) informed the amount to be
Nutrient Database(12) was used. When the recipe did not spe- fed per range of BW or breed size and eleven (10·2 %) pre-
cify the brand of supplement prescribed, a commonly used sented the recommended feeding amount as a percentage of
veterinary multivitamin and multimineral supplement in BW. Only two diets (1·8 %) recommended calculating energy
Brazil was considered, and if the amount of supplement was requirement using the Nutrient Requirements of Dogs and Cats(14)
not specified, the recommended dosage of the manufacturer formulas to establish the amount to be fed.
was considered. None of the analysed diets was complete, presenting one or
The estimated chemical composition of each recipe was more nutrient below the recommended level as presented in
compared with the recommendation guidelines of the Tables 1 (dogs) and 2 (cats). Similarly, for all analysed nutrients
Nutritional Guidelines for Complete and Complementary Pet Food for at least one diet did not meet the recommendations. Among
Cats and Dogs (Fédération Européenne de L’industrie des the nutrient deficiencies, the most commonly presented
Aliments Pour Animaux Familiers; FEDIAF)(13) for dog or were: Fe (68·3 % of the recipes for dogs; 100 % of the recipes
cat maintenance. The nutrient values per MJ of metabolisable for cats); vitamin E (82·9 % of the dog recipes; 84·6 % of the
energy (ME) were considered. The nutrient recommendations cat recipes); Zn (75·6 % for dogs; 88·4 % for cats); Ca (73·2 %
for animals with low energy intake were arbitrarily considered for dogs; 73 % for cats); Cu (85·4 % for dogs; 69·2 % for
for both dogs (397·5 kJ ME/kg body weight (BW)0·75 per d or cats); choline (85·4 % for dogs; 69·2 % for cats); riboflavin
95 kcal ME/kg BW0·75 per d) and cats (418·4 kJ ME/kg (65·8 % for dogs; 11·5 % for cats); thiamine (39 % for dogs;
BW0·67 per d or 100 kcal ME/kg BW0·67 per d), to be as 80·7 % for cats); and vitamin B12 (61 % for dogs; 34·6 %
close to housed pet estimated requirements as possible(14,15). for cats). Among the recipes with nutrients below the
The ME content of the diets was estimated based on their FEDIAF recommendations(13), the nutrients that presented
chemical composition, and the equations for unprocessed lower median concentration in relation to the recommended
foods or human foods of the Nutrient Requirements of Dogs amounts for dogs were vitamin A (12 % of the recommenda-
and Cats, by the National Research Council(16), were used to tion), vitamin D (4·4 % of the recommendation), Ca (19·7 %
determine the ME of the diets. Only thirty-five of the forty- of the recommendation), cobalamin (22·2 % of the recom-
five nutrients recommended by the FEDIAF(13) were evalu- mendation), vitamin E (33·6 % of the recommendation), Cu
ated, because ten of the nutrients (EPA, DHA, arachidonic (35 % of the recommendation) and Zn (36 % of the recom-
acid, α-linolenic acid, linoleic acid, taurine, biotin, vitamin K, mendation). For cats the nutrients with lower median amounts
Cl, I and folic acid) were not available in all the ingredients’ were vitamin A (15·1 % of the recommendation), leucine (18
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Table 1. Chemical composition and number of diets with estimated nutrient content below the Fédération Européenne de L’industrie des Aliments Pour
Animaux Familiers (FEDIAF)(13) recommendation for dog maintenance (n 82 diets)
(Medians and ranges; numbers and percentages)

Supplied by the diets

Concentration (units/MJ) Below FEDIAF below FEDIAF*

Item FEDIAF (units/MJ) Median Range Number % Median Range

Protein (g) 12·5 19·4 2·1–35·6 17 20·7 85·3 17–96·7

Arginine (g) 0·36 1·02 0·2–2 3 3·6 65·9 62–89·7
Phenylalanine (g) 0·37 0·7 0·14–1·33 11 13·4 81·3 39·8–95·5
Histidine (g) 0·16 0·45 0·07–1·05 5 6·1 91·9 44·55–94
Isoleucine (g) 0·32 0·74 0·12–1·76 8 9·7 81·3 37·4–96·3
Leucine (g) 0·57 1·2 0·2–2·5 9 11 89·4 40·9–99
Lysine (g) 0·29 1·1 0·1–1·4 3 3·6 77·6 34·6–95·4
Methionine (g) 0·28 0·38 0·07–1·4 23 28 70 23·6–98·2
Threonine (g) 0·36 0·64 0·1–1·4 17 20·7 78 28–96·8
Tryptophan (g) 0·12 0·2 0·03–0·67 27 32·9 74·5 30·4–99·1
Valine (g) 0·41 0·8 0·1–1·6 10 12·2 86 32·9–92·2
Fat (g) 3·29 6·9 0·3–17·8 9 11 85·2 9·7–96
Ca (g) 0·35 0·15 0·01–4·6 60 73·2 19·7 3·3–99·8
P (g) 0·28 0·24 0·03–0·9 27 33 71·8 70–12·1
K (g) 0·35 0·3 0·07–0·9 48 58·5 73·6 21·7–99·5
Na (g) 0·07 0·1 0·005–0·7 33 40·2 66 0–98·3
Zn (mg) 4·98 2·15 0·2–9·7 62 75·6 35·9 4·1–97·1
Mg (g) 0·04 0·04 0·01–3·5 47 57·3 64·1 22·3–96·1
Cu (mg) 0·5 0·2 0·04–4 70 85·4 35 8·7–95·3
Se (μg) 21 18·9 1·2–86·6 46 56·1 69·8 5·7–96·7
Fe (mg) 2·49 1·9 0·4–19 56 68·3 61·7 16·4–99·8
Mn (mg) 0·4 0·45 0·01–3·1 35 42·7 69·7 2·6–99·8
Vitamin A (μg) 125·7 108·6 0·35–6428·2 19 23·2 12 0–96·2
Thiamine (mg) 0·15 0·16 0·05–159 32 39 66·2 34·5–99·8
Riboflavin (mg) 0·42 0·25 0·02–1·3 55 67·1 39 5·6–99·5
Niacin (mg) 1·13 4·4 0·16–21·3 5 6·1 37 14·5–86·1
Pantothenic acid (mg) 0·98 1 0·02–3·8 40 48·8 66 2·4–98·4
Pyridoxine (mg) 0·1 0·3 0·02–0·9 2 2·5 55·8 23·7–88
Vitamin B12 (μg) 2·31 1·15 0·04–26·2 50 61 22·2 0–92·8
Vitamin D (μg) 0·955 0·2 0–11 61 74·4 14·4 0–96·1
Vitamin E (mg) 2·49 1·1 0·1–14·2 68 82·9 33·6 3·7–91·5
Choline (mg) 113 54·7 0·01–14·2 70 85·4 42·8 0·01–85·8

* Calculated as a percentage (minimum–maximum) of the FEDIAF recommendation.

% of the recommendation), histidine (24·7 % of the recom- Discussion

mendation), isoleucine (25·5 % of the recommendation), vita-
min E (26·7 % of the recommendation) and vitamin D (28 % A large percentage of nutritional imbalances was verified in the
of the recommendation). Furthermore, some of the diets recipes investigated in the present study, exposing dogs and
intended for dogs presented, along with deficiencies, nutrient cats fed them to nutritional problems, compromising health
levels above the safe upper limit: three of Ca (3·6 %) and and longevity. The median nutrient supply of the diets
two of vitamin A (2·4 %), when compared with the below FEDIAF recommendations(13) was very low for some
FEDIAF guidelines(13). For cats, three diets (11·5 %) had vita- vitamins, minerals, or even amino acids, really exposing the
min A levels beyond the FEDIAF(13) safe upper limit, animals fed them to risk of nutrient deficiencies. For Ca, for
although the vitamin A content of ingredients was not speci- example, 73·2 % of the diets for dogs had less than the recom-
fied between retinol or carotenes. mendations and these diets presented only 19·7 % of the
Great variation in macronutrient composition of diets was recommended amount. For cats, 80·7 % of the diets had
observed: the protein content ranged from 2·1 to 35·6 g/MJ less thiamine than the recommendation, and among them sup-
of ME (median 19·4 g/MJ) for dogs, and 7·2 to 46·3 g/MJ plied only 58·5 % of the nutrient.
of ME (median 28·9 g/MJ) for cats. The fat content varied In comparison with a previous study(8) performed in the
from 0·3 to 17·8 g/MJ of ME (median 6·95 g/MJ) for dogs USA, the deficiencies found in our study are more than
and from 2·1 to 18·2 g/MJ of ME (median 7·75 g/MJ) for three times more frequent. This can also be, at least partially,
cats. Thus, the ME on a DM basis also presented a wide due to the nutrient recommendations adopted, as previous
range, from 15·48 to 23·84 kJ (3·7 to 5·7 kcal) of ME/g of studies used National Research Council guidelines(8,9,10,16),
DM for dogs, median 18·8 kJ/g DM (4·5 kcal/g DM), and which recommend lower nutrient concentration than the
from 14·2 to 26·8 kJ/g DM (3·4 to 6·4 kcal/g DM), median FEDIAF recommendations(13). Recently, the FEDIAF(13)
19·6 kJ/g DM (4·7 kcal/g DM) in diets for cats. established their nutrient standards based on energy intake,
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Table 2. Chemical composition and number of diets with estimated nutrient content below the Fédération Européenne de L’industrie des Aliments Pour
Animaux Familiers (FEDIAF)(13) recommendation for cat maintenance (n 26 diets)
(Medians and ranges; numbers and percentages)

Supplied by the diets

Concentration (units/MJ) Below FEDIAF below FEDIAF*

Item FEDIAF (units/MJ) Median Range Number % Median Range

Protein (g) 14·94 28·9 7·2–46·3 5 19·2 86·4 48–99·9

Arginine (g) 0·6 1·3 0·1–2·4 2 7·7 57·2 15·6–60·8
Phenylalanine (g) 0·24 0·9 0·07–1·7 1 3·8 29·9
Histidine (g) 0·16 0·6 0·03–1·2 1 3·8 24·7
Isoleucine (g) 0·26 0·9 0·07–1·95 1 3·8 25·5
Leucine (g) 0·61 1·6 0·1–3·1 1 3·8 18
Lysine (g) 0·27 1·6 0·1–3·4 1 3·8 43·2
Methionine (g) 0·1 0·5 0·02–1·1 3 11·5 89·2 21·4–99·2
Threonine (g) 0·31 0·8 0·1–1·7 1 3·8 28·3
Tryptophan (g) 0·08 0·2 0·01–0·45 5 19·2 89·4 20·9–95·7
Valine (g) 0·31 1·05 0·07–2·05 3 11·5 96·8 27–97·9
Fat (g) 5·38 7·75 2–18·16 6 23·1 94·3 38·7–95·7
Ca (g) 0·35 0·15 0·02–0·65 19 73·1 37·8 7–97·8
P (g) 0·3 0·24 0·1–0·8 17 65·4 69·8 29·6–95
K (g) 0·36 0·4 0·01–2·1 9 34·6 62·1 34·1–97·3
Na (g) 0·05 0·12 0·02–0·4 3 11·5 56·1 45·8–93·1
Zn (mg) 4·48 2·7 0·7–6·2 23 88·5 47·8 15·7–92·6
Mg (g) 0·02 0·04 0·01–0·14 6 23·1 71·8 44·5–78·1
Cu (mg) 0·3 0·2 0·03–4·9 18 69·2 35·2 12·2–88·7
Se (μg) 17·9 27 0·7–53 8 30·7 50·5 3·7–94·5
Fe (mg) 4·78 2·5 0·65–4·2 26 100 52·5 13·7–88·8
Mn (mg) 0·3 0·18 0·04–1·6 18 69·2 50·4 15–99·2
Vitamin A (μg) 59·67 665 0–18023 4 15·4 15·1 0–97·7
Thiamine (mg) 0·26 0·16 0·04–0·9 21 80·7 58·5 23·3–99
Riboflavin (mg) 0·19 0·52 0·03–1·3 3 11·5 57·1 17·2–85·6
Niacin (mg) 1·91 5·6 0·4–14·7 5 19·2 75·8 24·2–88·2
Pantothenic acid (mg) 0·34 1 0·25–3·8 2 7·7 83·4 74·2–92·6
Pyridoxine (mg) 0·15 0·3 0·1–1·3 4 15·4 83 69·2–97·5
Vitamin B12 (μg) 1·05 1·7 0–30 9 34·6 46·8 0–77·2
Vitamin D (μg) 0·5 0·4 0–2·4 13 50 28 0–91·3
Vitamin E (mg) 2·3 0·7 0·007–13 22 84·6 26·7 3·5–75·2
Choline (mg) 143 102·7 6·8–262 18 69·2 42 7·8–93·8

* Calculated as a percentage (minimum–maximum) of the FEDIAF recommendation.

increasing the recommended nutrient concentration on the compromising the nutrient status of the recipe, as previously
diets for inactive pets, criteria also adopted in the present described in a study conducted in Brazil(17).
study. The National Research Council(16) recommendations Most diets did not inform the amount or which mineral–
are based on high energy intake of laboratory animals, but vitamin supplement to use. Considering the low concentration
this cannot be assumed for housed pets that require less of some nutrients present in most of the ingredients included,
energy(14,15). Taking this into consideration, in addition to such as Ca, Zn and thiamine, it becomes clear that the authors
the variations of ingredient selection, preparation method, responsible did not evaluate properly their nutrient content,
storage time, intake of individual ingredients, lack of digestibil- and that an unbalanced diet can lead to symptoms and dis-
ity data for most vegetables, among other reasons, the authors eases(16,18). Many case reports describe clinical signs of nutri-
adopted for the present study the FEDIAF(13) guidelines. ent deficiency or excess in dogs or cats fed home-prepared
A lack of precision in recipe description was noticed, as a or commercial diets(19–22), highlighting the importance of a
large proportion of diets do not describe objectively the complete and balanced diet for the health of dogs and cats.
exact amount of each ingredient to be fed, but express the Furthermore, many diets (71·3 %) did not inform the
amount in units of determined ingredient or even suggest a amount to be fed. This fact may lead to an excess or deficient
range of intake. To overcome this problem, in some recipes intake of nutrients and energy, despite the diet being nutrition-
the mean intake of a suggested ingredient was used to evaluate ally adequate. The offer of more food than the pet needs may
the diets, making it possible that the nutritional deficiencies also lead to selection of some ingredients and not eating the
may be even more common than presented. It is very import- diet in the proportion intended.
ant to inform the owner precisely about how to prepare and In conclusion, it is evident that the use of the recipes found
feed the diet, otherwise a good recipe can be poorly prepared, in the present study expose animals to nutritional deficiencies,
ending up unbalanced. Even when properly informed, owners denoting how important it is to inform pet owners about the
may change the recipes over time, based on their beliefs, risks involved in providing a home-prepared diet. Considering
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that diets are formulated according to the nutrient recommen- 7. Freeman LM, Chandler ML, Hamper BA, et al. (2013) Current
dations of the FEDIAF(13), these foods are more adequate in knowledge about the risks and benefits of raw meat-based diets
for dogs and cats. J Am Vet Med Assoc 243, 1549–1558.
supplying essential nutrients to promote dog and cat health. 8. Stockman J, Fascetti AJ, Kass PH, et al. (2013) Evaluation of
The study also exemplifies the importance of having a diet pre- recipes of home-prepared maintenance diets for dogs. J Am Vet
scribed by professionals with technical knowledge and training, Med Assoc 242, 1500–1505.
and the necessity for proper training of the professionals that 9. Heinze CR, Gomez FC & Freeman LM (2012) Assessment of
intend to prescribe home-prepared diets. commercial diets and home-prepared diets recommended for
dogs with cancer. J Am Vet Med Assoc 241, 1453–1460.
10. Larsen JA, Parks EM, Heinze CR, et al. (2012) Evaluation of recipes
for home-prepared diets for dogs and cats with chronic kidney dis-
Acknowledgements ease. J Am Vet Med Assoc 240, 532–538.
11. NEPA-UNICAMP (2011) Tabela brasileira de composição de alimentos
We would like to thank Guabi PetCare, for supporting the (Brazilian Food Composition Tables), 4th ed. Campinas: NEPA-
Laboratory of Research in Nutrition and Nutritional Disease UNICAMP.
of Dogs and Cats and the Clinical Nutrition Service of the 12. United States Department of Agriculture (2016) National Nutrient
Teaching Veterinary Hospital of Jaboticabal, Sao Paulo State Database for Standard Reference. http://ndb.nal.usda.gov/
University (UNESP), and PremieR pet for the residency schol- (accessed May 2016).
13. Fédération Européenne de L’industrie des Aliments Pour Animaux
arship of the first author (V. P.). Familiers (2014) Nutritional Guidelines for Complete and Complementary
This research received no specific grant from any funding Pet Food for Cats and Dogs. Brussels: FEDIAF.
agency, commercial or non-profit sectors. 14. Thes M, Koeber N, Fritz J, et al. (2016) Metabolizable energy intake
Study design was performed by V. P. and A. C. C. All of client-owned adult dogs. J Anim Physiol Anim Nutr 100, 813–819.
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