2018 ACVIM Forum Research Abstract Program: Seattle, Washington, June 14 - 15, 2018

Probably it happened due to better glycemic control of diabetic dog receiving slow assimilation starch, and to phenolics compounds presents in pea and barley ingredients. Then, we believe that pea and barley could be interesting starch source to hyperlipidemic diabetic dogs. shadow trends in human nutrition, and a perception exists among veterinarians that many pet owners now prefer 'natural'; and 'holistic'; diets over processed foods. The purpose of the study was to determine what and how dog and cat owners feed their pets and compare to a study published ten years ago (Laflamme et al. 2008) . Both studies involved pet owner surveys: Laflamme and colleagues'; 2008 questionnaire was administered by students over the phone to randomly selected telephone directories, while this present questionnaire was administered online and was distributed to pet owners on social media. The survey was promoted to general pet owning and pet appreciation groups and not to veterinary, nutrition or other special interest groups, and was open for sharing to reach a wide audience and acquire a sample representative of the general population of pets and pet owners. The study was approved by the research ethics boards of participating institutions (REB #17-08-029). Descriptive data were reported as percentages, while significant differences between the two studies were determined using Chi Square analysis, with significance set at P < 0.05. Information from Australia and the United States only were included for analysis. The results of both surveys are summarised in Table 1 below. Where data were comparable, significant differences in feeding practices over time included: increase in feeding homemade and raw diets, decrease in daily feeding of treats, and decrease in feeding a commercial diet as the main food source in both dogs and cats; while an increase in exclusive feeding of homemade diets was also detected in cats only. In essence, the trend appears to be a shift in pet nutrition away from the complete and balanced diets currently recommended by most veterinarians, in favour of home-prepared 'human'; foods and raw meat diets.