Animal Nutrition and Feeding Flashcards
7 cards from real CVA practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Animal Nutrition and Feeding flashcards as text
Which condition is most commonly associated with feeding a grain-free, legume-heavy diet to dogs?
Answer: Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM)
The FDA has investigated a potential link between grain-free diets high in legumes (peas, lentils) and an increased incidence of DCM in dogs.
When reading a pet food ingredient list, ingredients are listed in what order?
Answer: By descending weight before processing
AAFCO requires pet food ingredients to be listed in descending order by weight as added (pre-processing), meaning the heaviest ingredient appears first.
A rabbit's diet should consist primarily of which feedstuff to support proper gastrointestinal motility?
Answer: Unlimited timothy hay
Timothy hay provides the long-fiber cellulose that maintains normal GI motility, dental wear, and cecal fermentation in rabbits.
Which life stage typically has the highest caloric energy requirement per unit of body weight?
Answer: Growing puppies and kittens
Growing animals have rapid cellular proliferation, organ development, and high metabolic rates, requiring significantly more calories per kilogram than adults.
What is the safest way to transition a pet to a new diet to avoid gastrointestinal upset?
Answer: Gradually mix increasing amounts of new food with the old food over 7–10 days
A gradual transition allows the gut microbiome and digestive enzymes to adapt, reducing the risk of vomiting and diarrhea.
Which nutrient deficiency is most likely in a cat fed a strictly vegetarian or vegan diet without supplementation?
Answer: Arachidonic acid and taurine deficiency
Cats cannot synthesize arachidonic acid from linoleic acid or adequate taurine, both found primarily in animal tissues, making vegan diets without supplementation dangerous.
A veterinary assistant weighing food for a patient using a prescription renal diet should use which tool for the most accurate measurement?
Answer: A digital kitchen scale weighing in grams
Weighing food in grams with a digital scale is far more accurate than volume measures because food density varies, making gram-based feeding essential for therapeutic diets.