Feeding them well. Nourishing them in the healthiest way possible. For those of us who share our lives with dogs and cats, this imperative calls for rigorous choices in their daily diet and careful reading of the labels on ready-made commercial foods.

The authenticity and quality of the raw ingredients chosen are the foundation of a correct diet for our four-legged companions, whether home-prepared or commercially produced. So too is favouring a food whose composition is as close as possible to what the domestic dog or cat would find in nature. With this aim in mind, some pet food companies have chosen to offer foods made with preservatives and antioxidants derived from natural products rather than synthetic ones, such as rosemary oil, clove, agar-agar, carrageenan, vitamin C (listed on labels as E300 ascorbic acid) and vitamin E (listed on labels as E306 tocopherol). It goes without saying that, when choosing between brands available on the market, pet foods with natural preservatives should always be preferred. Equally, those containing so-called "palatability enhancers" should be avoided — substances all too often used in industrial foods intended for cats, who are notoriously more demanding in matters of taste than their canine companions.

The substances that can be harmful to dogs and cats…

Home-prepared food for animals is not always the better choice: the leftovers from our meals could contain ingredients that are potentially harmful to them, even if those ingredients seem apparently innocuous. In reality, onion, dairy products, chocolate and additives such as monosodium glutamate (present in many stock cubes and ready-made foods) should be kept out of our little friends' bowls. It is better to opt for a balanced pet food, also in terms of the protein/carbohydrate ratio. Let us take an example. Tryptophan is the main amino acid that is a precursor of serotonin (a neurotransmitter of great importance for behavioural balance in general) and is found mainly in protein-rich foods. If an animal's daily diet consists only of proteins, the uptake of tryptophan at the level of the central nervous system decreases, due to competition with other amino acids. A correct balance between proteins and carbohydrates (such as rice and quinoa, but also fruit and vegetables) is necessary to prevent a deficiency of endogenous serotonin, which can affect the animal's behaviour.

…and those that are good for them instead

A good habit in the pursuit of healthy nutrition for our four-legged companions is to introduce into their diet a portion of polyunsaturated omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids. These are substances that play an essential role in regulating bodily functions and are found mainly in fish. These molecules perform mirror-image but complementary functions: omega-3s "switch off" inflammation and are fundamental to cell structure, while omega-6s can be useful in cases of chronic disease but, if ingested in large quantities, "switch on" inflammation. It is therefore essential that omega-3 and omega-6 are present in the diet in the correct ratio, especially if dogs and cats suffer from food intolerances. To help our furry friends and promote their wellbeing, it is therefore fundamental to choose foods that are naturally rich in omega-3, such as sea fish and fish oil, to be combined with omega-6 found, for example, in vegetable oils.