10/09/2024
The dog has zero need of carbohydrates. Even the kibble manufacturers agree here. They are included as they can be an "excellent source of energy", sort of like the way Mars Bars and Coca-Cola are, I guess.
But how excellent. It's said that sled dogs lose around 10% of their body weight during the Idiatrod (620miles/1000km). I recently heard this weight loss is significantly less of a thing when the dogs are raw-fed over such distance but I never saw actual evidence of that until now. Check this out, adapted from Houpt and Zicker (2003):
"The responses to a season of quail hunting by English Pointers fed two different diets were compared. The diets differed in protein and fat. Diet A was 13% fat and 23% protein, and Diet B was 49% protein and 28% fat. The dogs on the higher fat and protein diet (Diet B) lost less weight and performed better in that they found more birds per hour".
The authors conclude "...it seems that the fat, or energy density of the food, is the more important aspect of endurance performance."
So yes, dogs can run fast on carbs, possibly even faster, it remains to seen, but at what cost to the body as it is cannibalised for protein and fat, we don't know.
Remember, the more protein you feed sled dogs, the less physical injuries they get through the season.
This makes sense. Joints and cartilage and bone and synovial fluid are built on protein. The less building blocks you get, particularly while young and in pre-season, the greater the potential for disaster.
This was highlighted to us over the weekend in Helsinki - if cats just get 25% real food in their diet (largely meat) they are significantly less likely to suffer osteoarthritis later in life.
Other work by DogRisk surveyed more than 200 GSD's and found raw feeding was protective to hip dysplasia.
But this is sled dogs. Very high-performance animals with insane, borderline unnatural energy demands. This is not your average dog. For such animals, the carb debate is completely redundant.
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REF Houpt and Zicker (2003). Dietary effects on canine and feline behavior. Vet Clin North Am Small Anim Pract, 33(2):405-16