Salt / Sodium
Salt, a mineral that many dog and cat owners prefer not to see in their furry companion's food. But is this justified? The FEDIAF (European Pet Food Industry Federation) has established a minimum required amount of salt for both dogs (0.1 g) and cats (0.08 g). Although these amounts are very low, this shows that dogs and cats need salt.
Dogs and cats need salt to maintain the osmotic balance related to the extracellular fluid in the cells. Additionally, sodium is necessary to transmit signals to nerve cells and is required for muscle contraction. Sodium is also needed to regulate the permeability of cell membranes. However, large amounts of salt can have negative effects on dogs and cats. Excessive salt intake could result in hypertension – high blood pressure.
The suspicion that high salt levels cause increased blood pressure in dogs and cats has been disproven. Research has shown this is not true. Dogs were given varying amounts of salt over a certain period, but their blood pressure remained the same. This demonstrates that increased salt levels do not affect the animals' blood pressure.
Another function of sodium is to aid the absorption of certain nutrients, sugars, and amino acids in the small intestine. Sodium can also influence calcium absorption and affects the absorption of water-soluble vitamins.
Sodium absorption mainly takes place in the small intestine. The mineral is primarily excreted through urine, with small amounts lost via feces or sweating; since dogs and cats can only sweat through their paw pads, sweat loss is minimal in these animals. When sodium intake is low, the body can minimize mineral loss through urine.
Certain hormones in the body, aldosterone and antidiuretic hormone, ensure that the sodium and potassium balance remains constant. The need for sodium increases during reproduction, lactation, heat stress, and rapid growth.
Misconception: it is often thought that salt is added to dog and cat food to make it more appealing to the animals. However, adding salt serves no purpose. Why is that? Research has shown that dogs are relatively insensitive to salt in their food and do not show a preference for food containing a lot of salt. This is because the taste buds of dogs and cats differ from those of humans; the animals simply do not prefer foods with high salt content.
