The role of functional foods in rabbit, dog and cat nutrition

Functional Food (FF) refers to a food that besides of impact on the animals and human nutrition, also help on the reduction risk of some illness and even on their control. In this review, we discuss the availability and role of functional foods in pet nutrition with a focus on rabbits, dogs and cats. Indeed, functional foods modify gastrointestinal physiology, promote changes in biochemical parameters, improve brain functions and may reduce or minimize the risk of developing specific pathologies. This evidence derives largely from clinical studies while only limited evidence is available from studies in rabbits, dogs and cats. Therefore, functional food consumption should be further investigated in pet nutrition to understand how dietary interventions can be used for disease prevention and treatment.

کلیدواژه ها:

Cat ، dog ، functional food ، rabbit ، nutrition