Since the wolf began to be associated with the human being, tens of thousands of years ago, and began its domestication until what we know today as dogs, for most of the time the ancestors of our furry companions fed on food scraps left by humans. of the leftovers
However, today there are many other ways to feed our dogs. There are those who cook for their dog, others give them raw food, and other people opt for dry food.
From leftovers to gourmet diet
Someone might think, therefore, that eating leftovers is the best thing for a dog. If they have been doing it for thousands of years, and it has not gone so badly for them, there is no reason to stop doing it. However, the leftovers left by humans ten thousand years ago are not the same as the ones left behind now.
During most of the time shared with dogs, the human being was a hunter and gatherer, which turned dogs into animals that fed mainly on what they hunted and gathered; meat, fish, fruits, roots…
Before the Neolithic, agriculture did not yet exist, cereals were not part of the usual diet, nor were milk and its derivatives, and eggs were a specific food. In the last ten millennia, with the changes in the way humans eat , the way dogs are fed has also changed .
Leftovers have a major problem: They don’t always contain all the nutrients our companions need . Dogs, like people, have certain food requirements, which change depending on size, age, breed or the presence of certain pathologies. Knowing the needs of our dog is, of course, our responsibility. And that implies that in many cases, leftovers are not enough, and their diet must be supplemented with products specifically intended for them; move from leftovers to a tailored diet.
BARF diet
Feeding raw meat diets to pets has become an increasingly popular trend among pet owners. In fact, it has its own name: BARF, which stands for Biologically Appropriate Raw Food . Most of the product is of animal origin, almost half raw meaty bones, such as chicken necks, and about 10% fruit and vegetables, although the diet is tailored specifically to the needs of each animal. That food spends some time frozen before being offered to the animal.
Originally, the idea is to buy the food and for each owner to establish the appropriate portions for their dog. But this involves a lot of time, and advanced nutrition knowledge that not everyone has. To solve this problem, there are already companies that sell packages prepared with raw and ready-to-eat products .
One of the defenses of the BARF diets is that, being natural and unprocessed foods , they are better for the health of the animal, in addition to the fact that the raw food will be more similar to its original natural diet. This second argument ignores the fact that dogs have been with us for tens of thousands of years, feeding on our cooked leftovers, so if there is a “natural diet” for a dog, it was millennia ago that it stopped being entirely raw .
The other argument is even more dangerous. That something is natural does not mean that it is good, nor that something is artificial implies that it is bad. There are good and bad natural things, and good and bad artificial things. For example, for dogs — and for people — bacteria of the Salmonella genus are bad, even though they are completely natural.
And the example has not been chosen at random. Bacteria, such as Salmonella , can survive the freezing process and are still present in the BARF food when the dog eats it. The existing studies are very preliminary, but in all of them the presence of Salmonella is found in different proportions contaminating the BARF food. Dogs fed in this way can keep these bacteria from the food, even in the feces.
It is not just a risk to the animal , but a potential public health hazard . After all, the kitchen, tools, and surfaces used to handle dog food are the same as those used for human food, and cross-contamination can be a risk.
In short, raw food poses a substantial infectious disease risk to the pet, its environment, and the humans who live with it .
feed
Finding the right foods for each dog is difficult; knowledge about nutrition is needed that is often lacking, and it is not always easy to have all fronts covered. Also, even doing it requires time and effort that not everyone can afford.
Fortunately, the feed exists.
Not all feed is good, and not all is bad. Demonizing dog food is like demonizing processed foods; there are some that are nutritionally exceptional, and others little short of junk food. In the same way that eating a paella is not the same as eating a hamburger from a fast food chain.
Among the good feeds – both dry and wet – there is a wide range of different products. Different types of food, for different needs. You can find specific feed for dogs of a certain size or age, and often, they are prepared specifically for certain types of pathology. It is rare that a dog cannot adapt to any of the many quality feeds that we find on the market.
The main advantage of feeding our dog with dry food is the guarantee that all its nutritional needs are covered . Especially if this feed is administered under the supervision of a veterinarian. So much so, that when laboratory dogs are fed, where it is necessary that the animals are in an optimal state of health and that any problem can mean the loss of years of research, feed is used. Feed specifically designed for the needs of these animals.
But another great advantage is time . When we use feed, we no longer have to be preparing and cooking our furry’s food; just put your food on the plate, and a bowl of water. And the time you save can be used to give him those pampering that he will thank you so much for.
The author of this article has no conflicts of interest.
REFERENCES:
Alomar, D. et al. 2006. Nutritional evaluation of commercial dry dog foods by nearinfrared reflectance spectroscopy. Journal of Animal Physiology and Animal Nutrition, 90(5-6), 223-229. DOI: 10.1111/j.1439-0396.2005.00585.x10.3989/ajbm.2623
Bottari, B. et al. 2020. Evaluating the presence of human pathogens incommercially frozen, biologically appropriate raw pet food sold in Italy.Veterinary Record, 187(7), e50-e50. DOI: 10.1136/vr.105893
Kazimierska, K. et al. 2021. Evaluation of nutritional value and microbiologicalsafety in commercial dog food. Veterinary Research Communications, 45(2),111-128. DOI: 10.1007/s11259-021-09791-6
Schlesinger, D. P. et al. 2011. Raw food diets in companion animals: A criticalreview. The Canadian Veterinary Journal, 52(1), 50-54.
Sgorlon, S. et al. 2022. Elemental composition in commercial dry extruded andmoist canned dog foods. Animal Feed Science and Technology, 287, 115287. DOI: 10.1016/j.anifeedsci.2022.115287
