Reflections on nutritional assessment: The Veterinary Nurse workshop 2014

Nutrition is fundamental to wellbeing, longevity and disease prevention and is one of the most important considerations in the maintenance of health. Veterinary nurses play an instrumental role in both educating pet owners about nutrition as well as implementing the majority of nutritional support therapies to hospitalised animals. As a RVN with a specialist interest in small animal nutrition, combined with my role as a member of the WSAVA Global Nutrition Committee, it was with delight that I accepted the invitation from the Mark Allen Group to deliver this workshop, kindly sponsored by Royal Canin. Amongst many objectives, one of the key aims of the seminar was to highlight the importance of nutritional assessment and the recognition of nutrition as the fifth vital sign. It also offered a valuable opportunity to raise awareness of the current issues surrounding nutrition of healthy and clinical affected companion animals.

Marianne Lomberg, Veterinary Marketing Manager for Royal Canin, provided an introduction to the event and gave a stark reminder of the critical role of nutrition, both in optimising the health and wellbeing of companion animals and also in the management of disease, particularly in light of the current obesity epidemic.