Table 3.

Feeding practices and food bowl hygiene measures employed by the surveyed population

Feeding and bowl characteristics	Dogs n of valid responses, %n of valid responses, %	Cats n valid responses, %
Feed type	n = 351, 100%	n = 186, 100%
Dry and wet commercial pet food	n = 183, 52.1%	n = 159, 85.4%
Cooked home-prepared diet	n = 26, 7.4%	n = 5, 2.6%
Raw commercial and home-prepared diet	n = 62, 17.7%	n = 10, 5.8%
A mix of the above diet types	n = 80, 22.8%	n = 12, 6.2%
Daily feeding frequency	n = 351, 100%	n = 186, 100%
1/day	n = 28, 8%	n = 4, 2.2%
2/day	n = 248, 70.7%	n = 48, 25.8%
3/day	n = 59, 16.8%	n = 36, 19.4%
> 4/day	n = 2, 0.6%	n = 18, 9.7%
Ad libitum	n = 14, 4%	n = 80, 43%
Food bowl material	n = 351, 100%	n = 186, 100%
Metal	n = 236, 67.1%	n = 70, 37.6%
Plastic	n = 68, 19.5%	n = 71, 38.1%
Ceramic	n = 34, 9.6%	n = 19, 10.5%
Other	n = 13, 3.8%	n = 26, 13.8%
Food bowl cleaning frequency	n = 351, 100%	n = 186, 100%
After each meal	n = 125, 35.7%	n = 40, 21.5%
Once a day	n = 59, 16.7%	n = 42, 22.7%
2–3 times a week	n = 56, 15.9%	n = 36, 19.3%
Once a week	n = 57, 16.4%	n = 31, 16.6%
2–3 times a month	n = 23, 6.5%	n = 18, 9.4%
Once a month	n = 14, 4%	n = 12, 6.6%
Less than once a month	n = 12, 3.4%	n = 6, 3.3%
Never	n = 5, 1.4%	n = 1, 0.6%
Cleaning methods	n = 351, 100%	n = 186, 100%
Not cleaned	n = 4, 1.1%	n = 2, 1.1%
Dry wiping	n = 60, 17.1%	n = 22, 11.7%
Rinse by hand	n = 78, 22.1%	n = 34, 18.2%
Wash with soap and sponge	n = 136, 38.6%	n = 86, 46.4%
Dishwasher	n = 17, 5.0%	n = 16, 8.8%
By hand then the dishwasher	n = 56, 16.1%	n = 26, 13.8%