Nutrition Counseling and Weight Management
Nutrition Counseling and Weight Management
Does your pet’s nutritional intake support his optimal health? Is he at a healthy weight to avoid the many illnesses associated with obesity? As a loving pet owner, you have to take these questions into consideration and make any necessary changes to help your pet eat sensibly. That’s why Burke Animal Clinic is happy to provide nutritional counseling and weight management services. Any veterinarian on our team can provide valuable tips, prescribe healthy diets, and help your pet lose weight if need be.
Your Pet’s Nutritional Needs
Pets need a balanced blend of many essential vitamins and minerals, along with healthy ratios of proteins, carbohydrates, fats, and fiber. But don’t assume that different kinds of pets can eat out of the same bag of “chow,” no matter how many healthy ingredients are listed on the label. Cats, for instance, cannot make several key amino acids for themselves, so they must eat meat to receive those amino acids. Dogs are omnivores, meaning that they can get their nutrients from plant and animal matter because they can manufacture more of their own key nutrients internally. Baby animals typically need a few meals a day to support their high metabolic and growth rates, while older animals with slower metabolisms need to eat less. We can provide you with a wealth of advice on how to feed your pet during your furry friend’s annual wellness exams.
Certain medical conditions may require specific dietary adjustments and specialized diet plans. Diabetic pets, for instance, may need low-carb diets, while pets with hypertension may need low-sodium diets. Pets can be allergic to various food ingredients, necessitating hypoallergenic diet options. We may prescribe such diets to help your pet cope with a particular health challenge.
Weight Control at Our Animal Hospital
Weight control can be a tricky problem for pets, especially as they age. Older pets experience metabolic slowdowns as they grow more sedentary — and if their eating habits don’t change, they can pack on the pounds. Even spaying and neutering can reduce metabolism significantly. This leads to obesity, a potential gateway to hypertension, diabetes, organ failure, cancer, joint pain, and other problems. Our animal hospital will weigh your pet to see whether he needs a weight loss plan. Your veterinarian can recommend specific food potions and dietary changes, give tips on boosting his activity level and treat any underlying conditions that may be aggravating his weight issues.
Prescription Diet Information
Burke Animal Clinic provides prescription diets through Hills and Royal Canin and other prescription diet makers as needed. We carry a small supply in the clinic of the most common diets but recommend clients ordering diets for long-term use go through our Online Pharmacy.
Royal Canin orders are placed on Thursdays and usually take 5-7 business days to arrive in the clinic.
Hills delivers to our clinic once a week. Orders are placed on Thursday for delivery on Friday.
Are you interested in changing or adjusting your pet’s diet? Call Burke Animal Clinic at (703) 569-9600 to make an appointment.