Tutors' perception of the food offered to pets in the brejo paraibano

Abstract

The main objective of this work was to describe the profile of tutors from Brejo Paraibano with regard to the feeding of their companion animals (dogs and cats). 500 semi-structured questionnaires, subdivided into 100 questionnaires per city, were applied to tutors from the Paraíba swamp in the cities of Alagoa Grande, Areia, Pilões, Guarabira and Serraria. The questionnaire included the identification of the animal and questions about animal feed. The application was randomized, addressing people who moved in urban areas of the cities and who had domesticated animals and who agreed to collaborate with the research. There was a significant difference in the number of dogs and cats fed industrialized food, where dogs ate more industrialized food (p = 0,023). The frequency with which cats (p ≤ 0,001) are fed proved to be higher than dogs. Dog tutors were more likely to purchase food at a lower price (p = 0,018), they also showed greater knowledge about the relationship between food and animal health (p = 0,009) and the possibility of treating and curing diseases through feeding (p = 0,028). Dog guardians seem to be better informed about the quality and characteristics of food for their animals, however, in practice, guardians of both species did not have sufficient economic levels to invest in better quality food.