The book provides details on carbohydrates, fiber, dietary fats and fatty acids, energy, protein and amino acids, minerals, and vitamins, while also reviewing the importance of adequate amounts of water. Specifically, it includes: - Updated estimates of requirements for all nutrients.- Factors affecting food intake.- Commentary on nutrient metabolism, toxicity, deficiency, and nutritionally related disease.- Impacts of physiologic status, temperature, breed, age, physical activity, and environment on nutrition.- Unique biological characteristics affecting nutrient digestion and utilization.- Considerations of feed ingredients, diet formulation, and feed processing and manufacturing.- Principles of feeding pet and laboratory animals. The committee also reviews advances in dog and cat nutrition since the last edition was published in the mid-1980's, discusses government regulation of the dog and cat food market, and deals with a variety of issues of interest.