Welcome to our tutorial and documentation section for PDD Beta. Use the search box below to find answers.
Safe Upper Limits for Dog Diets
When formulating a diet for dogs, make sure there are no excesses of any nutrients. We will integrate safe upper limits into the stable (1.0) release. The following tables list the safe upper limits for key nutrients in dogs, based on NRC-recommended allowances.
The 1.0 release of the software will automatically include these limits. We will use arbitrary amounts (including amounts from the FEDIAF/AAFCO industry standards) for nutrients without safe upper limits. We will also allow users to change these arbitrary amounts.
Note that puppies have more stringent requirements (see Lysine and Calcium).
Puppies 4-14 Weeks Old
|
Nutrient
|
SUL
|
|---|---|
|
Lysine
|
227 %
|
|
Total Fat
|
387 %
|
|
Linoleic Acid
|
494 %
|
|
EPA + DHA
|
2153 %
|
|
Calcium
|
150 %
|
|
Vitamin A
|
989 %
|
|
Vitamin D
|
588 %
|
Puppies 14 Weeks and Older
|
Nutrient
|
SUL
|
|---|---|
|
Lysine
|
285 %
|
|
Total Fat
|
387 %
|
|
Linoleic Acid
|
494 %
|
|
EPA + DHA
|
2153 %
|
|
Calcium
|
150 %
|
|
Vitamin A
|
989 %
|
|
Vitamin D
|
588 %
|
Adult Dogs
|
Nutrient
|
SUL
|
|---|---|
|
Total Fat
|
597 %
|
|
Linoleic Acid
|
582 %
|
|
EPA + DHA
|
2545 %
|
|
Vitamin A
|
4221 %
|
|
Vitamin D
|
588 %
|
Late Gestation & Peak Lactation
|
Nutrient
|
SUL
|
|---|---|
|
Total Fat
|
387 %
|
|
Linoleic Acid
|
493 %
|
|
EPA + DHA
|
2153 %
|
|
Vitamin A
|
989 %
|
|
Vitamin D
|
588 %
|
Analyzing our Recipes
Below, the Recipe Balancer module shows the Nutrient Summary for the adult dog recipe, “Turkey and Liver with Heart.” We compare the Nutrient Summary values with the values in the Adult Dogs Table above. We want the values to be below the safe upper limit. The screenshot below highlights two different nutrients. The first nutrient component (EPA + DHA) is 715.34 %. This is below the safe upper limit of 2,545 % cited in the Adult Dogs Table above. So this nutrient component is at a safe level for this recipe. Total Fat, Linoleic Acid, and Vitamin D are all below the safe upper limits for adult dogs stated above. However, the safe upper limit for Vitamin A for adult dogs is 4,221%, and our recipe is 4,964.65%, which is above the safety level. This recipe needs to be altered to bring this nutrient component below the safe upper limit.
Comparing EPA + DHA and Vitamin A in a recipe to safe upper limits.