Just like in other European countries, having pets has lately become an increasing trend in Turkey and seems like this trend will continue to rise. It is known that the relationship between the mankind and cats and dogs goes back thousands of years. This relationship is based on unconditional love, trust and friendship. We must always remember that increasing the quality and span of life of our pets, which we see and treat as a family member, is under our responsibility. In addition to providing them with the best possible care they can get, you can also manage this by feeding them with an adequate and balanced diet.
However, there are many factors that define what an adequate and balanced diet is for cats and dogs. Breed and the objective behind keeping them (hunting, guarding, search and rescue, etc.) mainly define their nutritive requirements. Furthermore, for both cats and dogs, diet requirements change dramatically based on their ages and stages in life (puppy/kitten, elder, pregnancy, lactation, etc.), the conditions of where they live, their temperaments, or even the length of their fur. Another important point is that on the contrary to dogs, cats have preserved their carnivorous features to this day and need to get some essential nutrients like niacin, taurine and arginine externally from food of animal origin because they cannot naturally synthesize these nutrients.
Considering all the aforementioned factors, we can say that feeding your cats or dogs with leftovers and butcher scraps does not count as an adequate and balanced diet. Pets that are fed with this way develop many health problems, mainly digestive system-related illnesses.
When Hippocrates said “Let the food be thy medicine” in 400 B.C., he wanted to emphasize that food can sometimes replace medicine and he tried to draw attention to eat healthily. As Effeffe Pet Food, we are well aware that an adequate and balanced diet is crucial for our furry friends to live a long, healthy and happy life. With reference to this awareness, we take the worldwide-accepted feeding standards (NRC, FEDIAF) into account, which are accepted as the reference value in cat and dog food formulation all around the world. This way, we are trying to provide all the nutrition our pets may need in different stages of their lives.
All of the raw materials used in our formulation are first analysed in our quality assurance laboratory within our production facility. Only the materials approved as per the criteria are taken into production. Furthermore, we also include in our formulation many functional components such as probiotics, omega-3 fatty acids, hydrolysed proteins, various fibre sources, glucosamine, rosemary, turmeric, clove, blueberry, lemon, and grape seed extract, which are scientifically proven to have numerous health benefits. This way, we aim to ensure that your cats and dogs have a strong immune system, a healthy skin and glowing fur, and strong joint and bone structure while also preventing undesired problems like tophus and oral malodour. Within the framework of our R&D process, which are especially important to us, we closely follow the developments in the worldwide pet feed industry and work tirelessly to develop new formulas that you and your friends need. As you too are aware of the close relationship between health and nutrition, you can feed your pets within the laws of science and give hand to us about getting close to our objectives as Effeffe Pet Food.
Prof. Dr. Gülay DENİZ
Uludag University Faculty of Veterinary Medicine
Department of Animal Nutrition and Nutritional Diseases