{"topic_id":"exotic_pet_food_nrc_standard_map","category":"exotic-pet-food","context":"---\ntopic_id: exotic_pet_food_nrc_standard_map\ncategory: exotic-pet-food\ntitle: \"Exotic / specialty pet food — AAFCO recognizes no nutrient profiles for exotics; standards defer to NRC species reports\"\nlang: en\nsource: \"AAFCO Model Pet Food Regulations (first-hand, verbatim anchor) list the AAFCO-recognized nutrient profiles: dogs, cats, and 'for specialty pets, the nutrient recommendations approved by the Committee on Animal Nutrition of the National Research Council'. NRC report titles per species are factual bibliographic references (not copyrightable prose).\"\nsource_file: pdf-raw/aafco/Draft-Model_Pet_Food_Regulations-9-28-22.txt\ndate_parsed: 2026-08-03\ntokens_estimated: 700\nrecovered: false\npath: exotic-pet-food/exotic_pet_food_nrc_standard_map/01_exotic_pet_food_nrc_standard_map.md\nverification:\n  method: c1_substring\n  paraphrase_note: \"Exact numeric nutrient values from NRC/AAFCO 'Other Species' tables and NRC species reports are NOT reproduced here — those source tables are copyrighted and not landed in pdf-raw/. Only the verbatim AAFCO regulatory anchor line is C1-verified; per-species numeric standards are marked honest-pending pending an Open-Access landed source.\"\n---\n\n# Exotic / specialty pet food — regulatory standard map\n\nUnlike dogs and cats, exotic companion species have **no AAFCO-recognized nutrient *profiles***. The AAFCO Model Pet Food Regulations name exactly three recognized authorities (reproduced verbatim from the first-hand source):\n\n> As an AAFCO-recognized nutrient profile or nutritional authority:\n> For dogs, the AAFCO Dog Food Nutrient Profiles;\n> For cats, the AAFCO Cat Food Nutrient Profiles;\n> For specialty pets, the nutrient recommendations approved by the Committee on Animal Nutrition of the National Research Council of the National Academy of Sciences\n\nIn other words, the regulatory baseline for every exotic species below is the corresponding **NRC (National Research Council) species report**, not an AAFCO profile. FEDIAF likewise compiles nutritional guidelines only for dogs and cats.\n\n## Per-species NRC standard mapping (honest gap map)\n\n| Species (manual) | Governing NRC reference | Numeric standards status |\n|---|---|---|\n| Rabbit | *Nutrient Requirements of Rabbits* (NRC) | honest-pending: NRC table values not yet landed (copyrighted) |\n| Guinea-pig | *Nutrient Requirements of Guinea Pigs* (NRC) | honest-pending: NRC table values not yet landed |\n| Chinchilla | *Nutrient Requirements of Rabbits* used as nearest analog (no dedicated NRC chinchilla report); also *Nutrient Requirements of Laboratory Animals* | honest-pending: species-specific values not yet landed |\n| Hamster | *Nutrient Requirements of Laboratory Animals* (NRC, covers hamsters) | honest-pending: NRC table values not yet landed |\n| Gerbil | *Nutrient Requirements of Laboratory Animals* (NRC, covers gerbils) | honest-pending: NRC table values not yet landed |\n| Rat / Mouse | *Nutrient Requirements of Laboratory Animals* (NRC, covers rats/mice) | honest-pending: NRC table values not yet landed |\n| Hedgehog | No dedicated NRC report; insectivore/omnivore husbandry literature | honest-pending: no NRC exotic profile |\n| Sugar-glider | No dedicated NRC report; marsupial husbandry literature | honest-pending: no NRC exotic profile |\n| Ferret | *Nutrient Requirements of Ferrets* (NRC, within *Nutrient Requirements of Laboratory Animals*) | honest-pending: NRC table values not yet landed |\n| Pet-bird | *Nutrient Requirements of Poultry* (NRC) used as nearest analog for companion birds | honest-pending: species-specific values not yet landed |\n| Fish | *Nutrient Requirements of Fish* (NRC) | honest-pending: NRC table values not yet landed |\n| Amphibian / Axolotl | No dedicated NRC report; aquatic-herp husbandry literature | honest-pending: no NRC exotic profile |\n| Reptile (bearded-dragon / leopard-gecko / iguana / turtle) | No dedicated NRC report; herbivore/omnivore/carnivore herp husbandry literature | honest-pending: no NRC exotic profile |\n| Ball-python / Corn-snake | No dedicated NRC report; snake husbandry literature | honest-pending: no NRC exotic profile |\n| Mini-pig | *Nutrient Requirements of Swine* (NRC) and *Nutrient Requirements of Horses* (NRC) as nearest analogs | honest-pending: NRC table values not yet landed |\n\n## What this means for keepers\n\n- A \"complete and balanced for exotic species X\" claim on a pet-food label is **not** backed by an AAFCO profile the way dog/cat foods are; it is evaluated against the relevant NRC species report (or, where none exists, against husbandry/exotic-veterinary literature).\n- The absence of an AAFCO profile is why exotic-companion nutrition topics in this manual carry a **honest-pending** flag on exact nutrient figures — those tables are copyrighted and have not yet been landed as an Open-Access source.\n\n## Claims (verified C1 substrings of source_file)\n\n- `As an AAFCO-recognized nutrient profile or nutritional authority:`\n- `For dogs, the AAFCO Dog Food Nutrient Profiles;`\n- `For cats, the AAFCO Cat Food Nutrient Profiles;`\n- `For specialty pets, the nutrient recommendations approved by the Committee on Animal Nutrition of the National Research Council of the National Academy of Sciences`\n","sources":["AAFCO Model Pet Food Regulations — Exotic / specialty pet food — AAFCO recognizes no nutrient profiles for exotics; standards defer to NRC species reports (retrieved 2026-08-03)"],"source":{"authority":"AAFCO Model Pet Food Regulations","title":"Exotic / specialty pet food — AAFCO recognizes no nutrient profiles for exotics; standards defer to NRC species reports","url":"","retrieved":"2026-08-03","ref":"","doc_type":"official PDF","source_document":"","verification_file":"pdf-raw/aafco/Draft-Model_Pet_Food_Regulations-9-28-22.txt"},"source_document":"","source_file":"pdf-raw/aafco/Draft-Model_Pet_Food_Regulations-9-28-22.txt","tokens_estimated":700,"generated_at":null,"tip":"Use /api/v1/topics to discover more topics. /api/v1/nutrient for precise single-point queries. /api/v1/cross_compare for 2-3 standard comparisons."}