Pet Food Labels: Feeding Guidelines

Feeding Guidelines

Another item found on the information panel of a pet food label is the feeding guidelines. These tell pet owners how much to feed based on their pet’s body weight and life stage. This amount can be highly variable from one brand of pet food to another. A key difference between high-quality and low-quality pet foods is the digestibility of the product. This is the amount of nutrients in the food that the animal is able to break down and …

Pet Food Labels: How to Read

Commercial pet foods are an easy and convenient way to feed your dog or cat. Deciding what to feed can be difficult for some pet owners. There are some general items to consider when selecting a food that is right for a particular companion animal. When choosing a pet food, read the label before buying. The items on the label can be confusing, but it becomes much easier to make the right pet food choice when you know what to …

Pet Food Labels: Guaranteed Analysis

Guaranteed AnalysisGuaranteed Analysis

The guaranteed analysis can be found on the information panel of a pet food label. This portion of the label provides the nutrient composition of the diet. It is required to include the minimum percentage of crude protein and crude fat as well as the maximum percentage of crude fiber and moisture. The “crude” term indicates that the methods for determining nutrient concentrations provide a rough estimate of quantity; it does not refer to the quality of the nutrients themselves. …

Pet Food Labels: Nutritional Adequacy Statement

AAFCO Statement

One of the most important items to look for on the information panel is the “Nutritional Adequacy Statement.” This statement provides the guarantee that the pet food is complete and balanced for the animal for which it is intended. All commercial pet foods are required to be nutritionally complete and balanced. By being complete, it means all the nutrients that are required by the animal to meet its daily needs are included in adequate amounts; balanced means that the nutrients …

How to Show a Rabbit in 4-H Showmanship

When showing your rabbit in 4-H, you may enter into rabbit showmanship. Showmanship may be done differently in different locations, but the basic concept is to show the judge how your rabbit does or does not conform to breed standards and your general knowledge of rabbits.

These examples of 4-H rabbit showmanship are presented by 4-H members. A good showmanship presentation combines information about your rabbit breed and how well your rabbit conforms to breed standards.

First Example

 

Second Example

Feline Vaccine Guidelines

Introduction

Why does my kitten need so many shots? Does my cat need to be vaccinated every year? These common questions about vaccinations don’t necessarily have easy answers. Deciding what vaccines to get, when to get them, and how often to booster them depends on a number of different variables, including how safe and effective the vaccine is, what your cat’s chances of getting the disease is and how serious the disease is. In this article, we’ll offer some guidelines …

Obesity in Rabbits

rabbit with boy

Introduction

Many pet rabbits suffer from being overweight or obese, just like other companion animal species. Obesity in rabbits causes many different health and behavioral problems that can decrease the quality of life and shorten the lifespan of the rabbit.

Causes

A rabbit’s diet is generally at the foundation of obesity. Rabbits that are fed only alfalfa-based pellets are more likely to develop the condition, as alfalfa is higher in protein and calories than grass hay-based diets. However, rabbits that …

Choosing, Introducing, and Caring for Pets in Child Care

Pet in cage in child care

Having a pet to talk to and touch can be a great benefit to children in child care, especially shy youngsters. Children can learn responsibility by caring for a pet and may enjoy watching animals play and eat. Having a pet in your child care program takes thought and planning. Before you go out and buy a snake or a rabbit, be ready to ensure children are safe and healthy around the pet and the pet is treated gently and …

Vagina

In Mammals: The vagina is the copulatory portion of the female’s reproductive tract. The vestibule portion of the vagina also serves for passage of urine during urination. The vagina also serves as a canal through which young pass when born.

In Birds: The vagina is the portion of the avian reproductive tract where the bloom/cuticle is added to the egg just prior to the egg being laid.

Avian female reproductive tract

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