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>> Welcome to Pet Life .

I'm Emilie Henry and we are so glad you're joining us today we are talking about upgrading your pets everyday meals using Whole Foods, hydration and healthy Topper's in an effort to provide functional nutrition.

The good news is this doesn't necessarily mean completely changing your pets diet or spending a fortune.

Sometimes small changes can make a meaningful difference and to teach us all about it is today's guest Angela Gallagher.

If you have a question for Angela you can call or text and we'll get it answered live on the air.

And don't forget to stick around until the end when we'll introduce you to an adorable adoptable pet in adoption corner.

Let's get into it.

Angela, thank you as always for joining us.

So we're talking about food.

>> It's always so nuanced but when we talk about upgrading our pets food, what does that actually mean?

>> Are we replacing their regular food?

Are we adding to it so upgrading the bowl it is just making sure that we are adding things to our pets diet that is functionally necessary.

OK, so it could be anything from just adding moisture into their kibble to you know, adding additional proteins.

So is that to say that that they're their base food if you will isn't adequate?

>> Do we have to add to it now if you get a food that says complete and balanced it has all of the nutritional requirements included in the food?

>> OK, so that's not just marketing that we can trust that yes.

>> Complete and balanced means they formulate it based upon what your pet or what that breed OK needs.

>> OK, fantastic.

So what are some of the easiest improvements that we can make even for our pets food is complete and balanced.

>> What can we add so you could add just adding water to your pets bowl improve as their liquid intake for hydration purposes also might change the texture.

Give them some you know new enrichment.

Yeah.

>> During the eating so sure it now is that something that you would recommend doing every meal every time you feed your pet or do you kind of sometimes you add water, sometimes you don't.

>> So for dog dogs tend to drink a lot of water on their own for cats I would if you're not using a wet cat food I would suggest adding water to their dry kibble just because they need to get more fluid intake because a lot of where they get their their hydration level is from the meats that they eat.

>> So if you're feeding a dry food yeah.

All that moisture is you know, not remove present.

>> Yeah, sure.

OK, how much water are we talking?

Not a lot.

I mean cats you know vary in size activity level just enough to kind moisten it up not not like you're pouring a bowl of cereal or anything.

>> OK OK now when we talk about giving pets real food because that seems to be a big thing what qualifies as a healthy hold whole food edition so good Whole Foods are going to add some functional nutrition to their diet so like proteins like unseasoned cooked chicken or turkey OK, you could add that to either a cat or dog cooked eggs with no seasoning again OK, you know, scramble up some eggs you can put it on their food.

Those are really great additions that don't cost a lot of money.

>> Yes.

OK, now again is this something that we should consider doing for every meal or does it I don't think you have to do it for every meal like adding a topper like you can buy at a store.

A lot of it I mean there's good benefit.

It changes the flavor up, you know, especially if you buy the same food all the time.

Yeah.

And you want to kind of give them something a little different adding Topper's you know creates that different flavor.

Just make sure it's you know a single ingredient protein OK not you know don't just throw on some you know just some gravy or.

>> Right right right.

OK that makes sense.

Now what are some whole foods that are particularly beneficial for cats.

>> So like dark meat poultry like from ducks.

Oh OK hearts freeze dried hearts are really great for cats.

It has essential nutrient called taurine in it and taurine is necessary for a cat overall health it supports their whole digestive system, their muscles, their vision, their heart health so and they can't make it on their own.

>> OK, so we get it from like organ meat.

OK so if I'm feeding my cat a a store bought food that says it is was complete imbalance.

>> Yes.

Complete and balanced.

Does that mean it's going to have those components in it.

Yes it should.

>> OK and now is it going to be too much of a good thing if I add organ meat for example too.

>> So anything in moderation OK is good ok but whenever you're adding something to their their food you have to account for their total calorie intake.

>> Yes.

So you don't want to overdo things but you know if you put a you a few sprinkles of shredded chicken on there I mean that's great it gives them a different texture but if you're like oh I'm giving them their normal portion and then I'm going to throw in a whole bunch of other toppers and things.

Yes, those need to be considered like a in addition so we need to subtract it from their overall diet.

>> OK, so we want this to be a relatively small part of their overall diet.

OK, say that I am cooking scrambled eggs for my family and we happen to have some left over and they may have some seasoning in them that type of thing.

>> Is it safe to add that to the to the pets or should we just forego that altogether?

>> Like if you add sodium or pepper or things like that I would probably not share it with your pet.

OK, but if you cook it and you add those things once it's on the plate after yeah.

>> And you have extra I would add it OK that makes sense.

So let's talk some more about Topper's it's there kind of a big trend I didn't I don't know that I had really heard about Topper's until recently so what is a topper and why might someone use one.

So Topper's are beneficial like for example changing up their flavor, giving them a different protein so let's say your their diet is primarily duck and you want to get a topper and it's like beef you're just giving a different protein so that's a different taste the different flavor to their overall diet.

>> Sure there's other Topper's that are out there for example pre or proba biotics.

Yeah a lot of that is available to purchase.

You can add to typically unless your dog has an unhealthy gut they're balanced already.

OK, so toppers are useful if your dog is having some different issues and you need to boost their immunity levels or fiber content like maybe they're having some bowel discomfort and the bathrooms are not going well.

Yes.

So you might want to add some fiber to that or if they're sick, you know, that's when you're going to add those pre and probiotics or the different I mean there's a there's a ton just like for people.

Yeah.

But it's just functionally making sure that what you're adding is giving a benefit to the pet not just to add because it's kind of a trend and right.

You know oh I feel like I'm a bad pet parent if I don't my yeah OK so are things like ah are Whole Foods like pumpkins and carrots and green beans are those types of things examples of something that we can top a I don't know that they're considered Topper's but that we can talk we can top our pets food with to sort of give them that additional boost of nutrition.

>> So pumpkin is great.

Pumpkin provides fiber.

It's really great to keep the the digestive system moving.

Sure.

>> Green beans also another great source uh carrots uh dogs can eat carrots and they can extract the beta carotene out of it like humans which then it can convert to it's called preformed ah I'm sorry it's vitamin A which is what we need .

OK, cats on the other hand cannot do that efficiently.

Oh interesting.

So they need vitamin A and a preformed source which is typically found in meat.

>> OK well tis the season where we are carving pumpkins when we are taken out the pumpkin guts is that something that I can put on a dog's food or does it need to be like canned pumpkin that has been no natural pumpkin like you can you I would puree it up a little bit OK or just kind of cut into slices because you don't want chunks that are too big.

>> Sure.

And they choke on them.

Yeah.

If you do buy canned pumpkin get pureed pumpkin not pumpkin pie although they would probably enjoy and they would not but veg is not a good thing for dogs.

>> No OK so if I start adding something really delicious to my pets bowl is he or she ever going to eat plain food again.

>> Am I am I going to ok they are so we're not creating a monster.

No no.

OK good.

Oh they might throw a little fit.

I have a French bulldog who when he wants something I mean he let you know and he might go on a hunger strike for a day.

>> Yes but he'll get hungry and he'll eat like kids right.

They're hungry they'll eat.

Let's talk a little bit about portion size because I know that that is we've talked about it previously that calories are important.

Let's say I have twenty fifty eight pound dog how much topper is appropriate so you would need to base that off of depending on what your dog does right right.

>> Their activity level.

Yeah sure it's a one size fits all.

Exactly.

OK so if they are super active giving them more of a topper you know you're just filling in their calorie need right now if they're a little couch potato, you know you may not want to do that all the time.

>> Yes, So we touched on this a little bit when I was asking about leftover scrambled eggs.

But what what is the difference between table scraps and intentionally choosing small amounts of of Whole Foods for for your pet?

>> So table scraps like the things that we typically don't want to eat on our plate or you know, the fats we put seasonings, garlic, onions, different things in our food that are not good for your pet.

Yes.

So that's why table scraps are not really a healthy choice because you know, if you're giving your your dog you know that the fatty portion of your steak for example.

Yeah.

You know, you're just introducing just fat into their system.

>> There's no nutritional benefit.

Now if you're looking for like to give them a little Whole Foods or people who you know, like using the vegetables like sweet potatoes like we talk about pumpkin green beans, squash those are all great things to give your dog.

Yeah, but onions, garlic, you know, like like broth for example broth.

Another great thing you could add to their their bowl that gives them moisture, you know, softens the food but it needs to be made for pets because the broth that we consume is to our palate which then includes sodium and all these things that give it the flavor that we write like a pet bone broth.

>> It really doesn't have much of a smell and it looks like water.

It's pretty clear.

Wow.

OK, now I'm naive because I don't have any pets at the moment but pet bone broth pet broth we find in in the pet food aisle.

>> Yeah OK interesting I had I had no idea so that is is that something that we can give cats as well because you've mentioned that cats especially need help with hydration oftentimes yes.

>> Yeah OK fantastic.

So what is the easiest way to kind of upgrade the the hydration level of of your pets?

>> Is it just adding that water?

Yes.

OK, let's tackle a phrase that we are hearing a lot right now in humans and pets function nutrition.

So what does that mean when it comes to our pets?

What is what is different from simply making sure they're getting their their basic nutrients so functional nutrition is adding something to the diet that has a specific benefit.

>> OK, so OK so excuse me if you know I get a drink OK we typically don't know oh my gosh ok I think it's past you want me to grab it.

>> Oh oh oh sorry feed humans need hydration too.

>> Oh yes we do.

I think I would prefer our broth to a pet's broth.

>> Yes I'm sorry.

So what was the question before I you Angela I have no idea I just I couldn't tell you.

>> OK let's let me let me get to this when it comes to supporting things like digestion and joints and skin functional health that's what we are talking.

Oh yes.

OK, so that's the type of thing that we can add to to support certain aspects that our pets might need.

>> So for example, like fish oils, salmon oil OK those are great things to add and it has a functional benefit benefits skin coat joints, joint health .

Yeah so that's like a functional topper or addition provides now if you're just putting like olive oil in it let's say for example yeah.

>> There's no functional benefit for the dog.

>> Oh OK interesting.

And then when it comes to what's going to be a functional benefit to a cat versus a dog I'm assuming that that's something that we should talk to our vet about or yes, always like whenever you're going to make a dietary change or you're going to add something to your your pets diet, you know, you can always discuss it with your veterinarian to make sure that the pet really does need it.

Yes.

As pets age or you know, maybe they get diabetes.

You know, you have to watch their glucose levels so you want to make sure your diet does like carbohydrates, you know, shoot glucose up.

Yeah, cats don't need carbohydrates.

>> They get it from their meat.

Interesting the way their body processes it that that's wild.

>> OK, now I know it's as humans it's easy to go down the rabbit hole of supplements and just start adding all these things and you're so sure that it's going to make you optimal.

Right.

Is that something that we should be doing for our pets or should we be more strategic than that?

>> I would be more strategic.

OK, for example, I have a German shepherd at home and she's only six but sure I know maybe about two years old she started getting hip issues.

>> Oh OK.

And so you know she's a bigger dog that it's a common problem hip dysplasia but she would like to be playing and then just couldn't get up at the next day.

Know your joints everything were so you know they hurt.

Yeah.

And she also has a very dry skin under her coat so adding like salmon oil right now we do we make her a smoothie of like blueberries and and sardines and it's yeah.

Not really super appealing to the human nose but yeah she loves those extra fats.

>> Yeah.

Help her coat and help her joints.

>> Fantastic.

OK, we do have a question so let's see let me see.

>> Oh why do dogs eat grass.

What are they lacking.

That's a great question.

Yes.

So typically a dog will eat grass if they have an upset stomach.

OK there are dog grasses out that you can plant in your like a pot in your house or like in your garden.

>> Yeah and it's typically barley and alfalfa and it soothes their stomach.

>> Yeah.

Interesting that that question by the way was from Connie.

Connie, thank you for your question.

So if we are planting that grass are they only going to eat it if they have an upset tummy or will they eat it just they might just taste good.

>> Yeah.

So but yeah typically when they're outside and they're eating the grass it's because their stomach is upset and does that actually so it actually helps helps them.

>> Uh yeah I see yes it extricate yeah.

>> To OK get rid of whatever it is that ok is upsetting.

Let's talk very quickly we've talked about what we can add what should we not be adding.

You said it so it didn't occur to me that in broth there are so often there's onion and garlic so those are things that are definite no no's, grapes, raisins what else should we absolutely not be giving Sitel Xylitol is a sugar from birch that we use in sugar free candies and gums and things.

>> Yeah and a lot of peanut butter has zettl in it so you want to make sure if you get you give you peanut butter you like peanut butter.

>> Sure there's no xylitol those it's not good for them at all.

>> Avoid it.

Interesting.

OK what about you mentioned you know don't don't give your dog the fat off your steak even though imagine really once of course they do I mean who doesn't right now.

>> So what are some ingredients that are not necessarily toxic but can still cause trouble sometimes dairy like if your dog has a lactose issue.

Sure.

Sometimes dairy can cause an upset stomach.

OK, always introduce things in small amounts if introducing a supplement do it in a small amount and only do one at a time.

That way you can tell if it's getting the desired outcome or not.

>> Absolutely.

That makes so much sense.

Angela.

You're such a wealth of information.

I'm always glad when you're here and I always learn so much .

>> I appreciate it very much and now I'm going to head over to Adoption Corner because as you know yes, we have a royal guest.

>> We have a very adorable yes.

Yes he is so cute.

>> So thank you again, Angela.

Thank you.

See you next time I'm going to head over to adoption corner .

>> I am joined now by Tina from Animal Care and Control and a very special guest, Sir Winzer Sarah Windsor is really cute and tell him a little bit tell us a little bit about him.

So royalty is right.

This is a cavalier King Charles spaniel.

He's five years young.

Yes.

So still has a lot of .

I don't know obviously people at home cannot not tell that just by this.

>> But he's been all over the place.

Yes.

Often for probably twenty minutes before I came to the show.

>> Oh OK.

So what type of household is going to be a good fit do you think?

First sir Windsor obviously somebody that can handle a lot of energy.

Yes, OK.

He also does not know a lot of tricks I was working with him on doing sit back there because he doesn't know any any commands but he did pick that up fairly quickly actually.

So he's smart.

He's just easily distracted.

Yeah.

And I don't think anybody worked with him too too much previously so OK.

Somebody that's willing to put in that work for him OK I do think they're in general really good dogs are good family dogs.

Yeah.

If you have a fence yard I think you would love that it is definitely excited to go on a nice long walk.

>> OK fantastic.

And what about other dogs and you mentioned families are good so kids we think ah OK yeah we think the kids would be fine he does good with we interact with other dainty dogs.

>> These are considered dainty so if you have other dogs we always ask that you bring them to the shelter to you an interaction introduction with them.

>> Yes anyways absolutely as we always try to remind you if you are interested in Sir Windsor or any of the pets you saw that are up for adoption, please be sure you call animal care and control or you can scan that QR code .

You can call us here at Fort Wayne but we can't help you with doctor sir Windsor or any of those super cute adoptable pets.

Anything else you think that we should know about Sir Windsor?

>> So he did just get neutered yesterday.

I cannot tell by all of our dogs you come already microchip on vaccines Perfect said and this guy needed neutered so we made sure that was done before the doctor would come in and so we learned last week about Microchip.

>> I'm so glad to hear that he's micro chipped because he was he was a pup who was not claimed right.

>> He was brought into the shelter as a stray.

>> OK, so I'm so glad to know that that won't happen again.

Sir Windsor right.

>> OK, so you can fill out an application online.

Yes.

And you guys recommend filling out out prior to because that just kind of expedites the process.

>> Yes, right.

It's a pretty short application so if you do come to the shelter it's OK to but be prepared bring your family members young children, bring your other animal well dogs so that we we can do an interaction because if you come in you don't have another dog with you then we might have to process the next person's application.

>> So you come prepared, you go home with absolutely.

Tell me a little bit more about exercise needs.

You mentioned that a fenced in yard would be great, that you gave him some good exercise and he still is he going to be is he going be one that will run alongside you or because he's what did you call him bit petite D'Haiti.

>> You take these smaller breeds, Daisy I don't know that he's going to be a jogging partner, OK?

But he does seem to have a lot of energy.

So even though he is five, he's still got a lot of play in him .

So making sure that you have space for him to get the exercise out or that you're willing to do those longer walks every day and as you mentioned that you're willing to do some training because he's obviously he's got a little bit to learn.

But he's a smart boy, right.

Tina, thank you as always.

for being here and thank you for being here.

>> We can't wait to see you back here at MetLife next time.

>> Thanks so much Doug and Joni Lehman Family Charitable Fund.

recognizing Humane Fort Wayne an animal shelter and veterinary clinic serving Allen County.