Do I need a degree to make homemade dog or cat food for my pet?

Question

I previously asked, "what are the ingredients you would best recommend for dog and cat food? I am trying to start a pet food line and would like some feedback from a Vet." And I got an answer back that I need to be a trained Vet nutritionist and have a Vet Medical degree. I have done plenty of research on how to stat a pet food line and I do not need a degree for it. Would anyone else be able to give me so feedback? Thank you,

Jessica Desrosiers · Accepted Answer

If you don't have a nutritional degree yourself, your best bet would be to work with a professional who does, or with a company that has manufactured other pet food lines in the past, or even with individuals who have started up their own lines. But, if you've been researching this yourself, you likely already know this information, and how important it is to have a background in the field before getting started. This is due to the fact that commercial foods (that is, if you want to sell your product in stores, rather than just formulate a home feed for friends and family) need to undergo certain tests and meet nutritional requirements in order to be sold (in the US, this is done by AAFCO or the Association of American Feed Control Officials). What you put into your food also greatly depends on what you're looking to accomplish, the type of food you're producing (dry kibble versus wet, versus dehydrated versus raw products as each will store and keep differently depending on what ingredients are in it) and the nutritional requirements you want to meet (an adult unneutered male dog is going to have vastly different requirements than a indoor-only spayed senior cat, for example). That's why it's important to have a background in nutrition and know what combination of ingredients are best. If you're just looking to create a homemade diet for the pets in your family, then no, you don't need a degree, and there are several recipes available online that you can research to see if any fit the needs of your own individual pets. However, scheduling regular checkups with your vet including routine bloodwork is always a good idea with any homemade diet to make sure your pets stay healthy and are getting all their needs met.

Do I need a degree to make homemade dog or cat food for my pet?

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