DANGERS OF RAW CHICKEN I feed my cat dry food in the morning and raw chicken in the evening. I’ve heard raw meat assists with teeth hygiene. Is this OK?
Feeding raw food, especially chicken, increases the shedding of bacteria such as salmonella and E. coli that can cause serious illness in pets and humans.
Raw diets are also usually not complete and balanced and therefore you can potentially cause a nutritional deficiency.
There hasn’t been any overwhelming evidence that feeding raw diets to pets is beneficial to their health so if you want to include fresh meat, cooking it allows your pet to enjoy any benefits without the risk.
Remember to never feed cooked bones to pets.
A VARIED DIET FOR DOGS Recently a reader asked if it was OK to feed their dog “human” food after running out of dry dog food. You advised not to if possible. We have had two dogs who both lived to old age and they were fed canned dog food as well as fresh meat and bones, with occasional dry food. Both also had “human” food leftovers for breakfast – rice, pasta, vegetables, meat offcuts, gravy, salad and curry – yes curry, the hotter the better. One had a habit of putting his front paws in the bowl to hold it in place while he licked it clean. The reader apparently only fed their dog on dry food, is this too boring for the dog? There are times when we do run out of dog food and hence reach for some human leftovers to fill the void. The abrupt change of diet may cause upset tummies, such as diarrhoea or vomiting.
Some human foods can be dangerous to dogs, such as garlic and onion which is often found in curries. Coconut cream can be high in fat and may contribute to pancreatitis, a painful inflammatory condition.
Chilli, while not toxic to dogs, can cause a large amount of irritation to the lips, mouth and stomach. Household favourites such a grapes, raisins, chocolate, caffeine, bread dough, sweets and lollies, fatty offcuts and other leftovers may cause serious illness to the unwary canine companion.
Good quality dry and canned dog foods offer variety in flavours and textures, and are generally complete and balanced providing all the nutrients dogs require. Adding wet food to dry food ensures dogs have variety.
Financial concerns have moved to the top of millions of minds during 2020, and financial planners are often the first contact for clients with questions.
Superannuation, welfare and real estate have been dominant topics among an avalanche of queries advisers have fielded in recent months.
Here are some of the big questions they’re getting — and a few answers.
BT’S head of financial literacy and advocacy, Bryan Ashenden, says the winding back of both the Jobkeeper wage subsidy and Jobseeker unemployment benefit last month affects millions of people.
“It’s important to revisit your household budget and make adjustments where needed,” he says.
Ashenden says the $25,000 grants under the Federal Government’s Homebuilder scheme mainly help people who were already considering building or major renovations before it was announced in June.
“While this is a Federal Government measure administered by the states, some state governments have additional incentives for home builders and renovators, so check with your local state revenue office for further information,” he says.
CUSTOMERS unsure whether to fix their mortgage should consider splitting their loan so they can get the best of both worlds.
Interest rates are sitting at record lows – most offers have a “2” in front and now has become a critical time for borrowers to review their deals so they can shave down debt faster.
Choosing a fixed or variable rate can be a tough decision for many – fixing ultimately means the borrower thinks rates will go up so they are locking in their charges.
1300homeloan director John
Australians have made more t than 4.5 million applications t to access up to $20,000 of t their superannuation in t two tranches through the Federal Government’s COVID early release scheme.
“The application period f for the early release of super h has been extended from ending 24 September to now ending on 31 December 2020,” Ashenden says.
Kolenda says people should look at all their options before opting for any deal.
“Having a portion on a variable loan gives you the option of paying down the debt quicker,” he says.
“Shop around to get the best fixed and variable rates, make sure both are competitive and be aware that the greatest flexibility sits within the variable rate.”
Many fixed rate loans have a limited extra amount that can be paid off during the fixed term, while for variable rate loans borrowers often have no limits to how much extra they can pay down.
Borrowers could split loans down the middle – so 50 per cent variable and 50 per cent fixed.
This percentage split can be done other ways, for instance 30 per cent variable and 70 per cent fixed.
Kolenda says there are no fees associated with splitting loans, but there are charges if you want to break the fixed component.
“The only thing to be mindful of if you take the fixed component you must stay in the fixed period for the term outlined,” he says.
“There could be costs with terminating that fixed period if you do it before the expiry date.”
Fixing is usually a bad idea if you want to pay extra off your loan, you plan to sell within the fixed period or you want to change loan products.
Wealth on Track principal Steve Greatrex says super funds this year have performed better than many people expected after financial markets crashed in March.
He says super delivers higher longterm investment returns than the nearzero interest paid by cash in the bank, and suggests people worried about the volatility inject smaller amounts over several months instead of a large lump sum.
“Spread your risk out,” Greatrex says
Home Loan Experts’ chief executive officer Alan Hemmings says when he talks to customers establishing their goals for the next five years is key.
“Most lenders only offer split loans as part of a package, so a customer cannot have a basic variable (normally at a cheaper cost) product with a fixed rate,” he says.
“The customer will have to pay annual package fees.”
But he says a split loan can make a lot of sense for borrowers who want to benefit from both types of loan “provided they do not have to pay out the fixed portion early”.