What's for dinner?

Veterinary experts say junk food and bad diets affect pets as well as humans.

Read this article from the South African Web site Independent Online.

Allergies and obesity are reducing the life expectancy of Lassies and Mittens nourished worldwide on industrial foodstuffs, said Gerard Lippert, a Belgian acupuncturist for animals who has just completed a study on the diets of 600 dead dogs.

"Pets, like humans, are victims of junk food," he [said].

Rippert said we don't know where the protein comes from in processed dog and cat food, and there is a lot of cereal added.

Pet owners tend to favour processed foods because of the difficulty of preparing nutritionally balanced meals, which in an ideal world should contain some 50 nutrients as well as meat, vegetables, rice and pasta. An animal's age, weight and exercise routine also need to be taken into account.

Having Kate off of processed foods for as long as she has been, I would have to think twice about feeding my next dog anything but home cooking.