Forrest Rachel, Awawdeh Leena, Esam Fiona, Pearson Maria, Waran Natalie
Eastern Institute of Technology, Hawke's Bay, 501 Gloucester Street, Taradale, Napier 4112, New Zealand.
Companion Animals New Zealand, Wellington 6141, New Zealand.
Animals (Basel). 2021 Oct 2;11(10):2881. doi: 10.3390/ani11102881.
One in four New Zealand cats are overweight or obese, conditions associated with poor health outcomes. As part of an online survey that was conducted from January 2019 to March 2019, NZ residents aged ≥18 years were asked demographic questions along with questions related to the body condition, breed and diet of their cat/s. From the responses, possible owner-related risk factors for developing obesity were identified. Of the respondents, 65.5% ( = 1537) owned cat/s; the owners being more likely to be female, live rurally, or live with children. Most of the respondents fed their cat/s biscuits from the supermarket (63%) and wet food (57%). Almost half (45%) fed their cat/s specialised food from a pet shop or veterinary clinic and gave them treats, with 31% of respondents feeding their cat/s raw meat. Feeding cats a variety of food types may make it difficult to estimate the appropriate amount of each needed to avoid excess caloric intake. In addition, approximately 30% of the respondents did not agree with the correct body condition statement, revealing a need for owner education. These findings highlight important areas of cat nutrition requiring future research to better inform the development of healthy weight interventions for NZ cats.
四分之一的新西兰猫超重或肥胖，这些状况与健康不佳有关。作为2019年1月至2019年3月进行的一项在线调查的一部分，年龄≥18岁的新西兰居民被问及人口统计学问题以及与他们猫的身体状况、品种和饮食相关的问题。从这些回答中，确定了可能与主人相关的导致猫肥胖的风险因素。在受访者中，65.5%（n = 1537）养猫；猫主人更有可能是女性，居住在农村，或与孩子一起生活。大多数受访者用超市购买的猫粮（63%）和湿粮（57%）喂养他们的猫。近一半（45%）的受访者用宠物店或兽医诊所购买的特制食品喂养他们的猫并给它们零食，31%的受访者用生肉喂养他们的猫。给猫喂食多种食物类型可能难以估计每种食物避免热量摄入过多所需的合适量。此外，约30%的受访者不同意关于正确身体状况的表述，这表明需要对猫主人进行教育。这些发现突出了猫营养方面需要未来研究的重要领域，以便为新西兰猫制定健康体重干预措施提供更好的信息。
