Veterinary nutritionist appointed to national committee

Richard Hill, an assistant professor of small animal medicine at the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine, has been appointed to a National Research Council subcommittee on cat and dog nutrition.

The subcommittee, part of the NRC’s umbrella Committee on Animal Nutrition, has been formed to revise the 1985 and 1986 publications relating to the nutritional requirements of dogs and cats. The two publications, originally published as two documents, will be revised in a single report.

This new document will provide updated estimates of requirements for all nutrients as well as discussions of nutrient metabolism, toxicity, deficiency and nutritionally-related diseases of dogs and cats. Hill will primarily be responsible for a chapter on physical activity and its effects on nutrient requirements.

Pet food is currently an $8.5 billion annual market in the United States, according to the council. Presently there are more than 58 million dogs and 62 million cats maintained as pets and approximately 150,000 dogs and cats used in scientific research throughout the U.S.

Historically, the Association of American Feed Control Officials, the advisory body responsible for establishing and governing pet food label requirement policies, has relied on the council’s publications as a recognized authority on animal nutrition with respect to nutrient levels that constitute a complete and balanced dog or cat food.

Hill will serve on the committee until July 2002.