Feed Or Not Feed

[Giro 2,648]

Here's my two penneth worth to the great feed debate (without reading all before)...

The average dog, be it lurcher or another is fed a far more rich diet than what is right for it and in most cases, in constant measured amounts, no different than most humans.

No doubt a BARF diet is more natural than a kibble diet and a mixed diet lies somewhere in between. IMO like in humans, the dog is not built for constant measured amounts of rich grub. Rather, like a diet should be, the amounts should be varied. I hear constantly on here that BARF is more 'natural', well IMO nothing is more natural than going hungry from time to time.

And so with this, I see no detrimental affects to a dogs health for both variegating type and amount, with the odd day without not being any problem. Providing the dog has no ill effects from it.

Two things though, firstly I don't do this every week and secondly, I do it when I'm not going to be getting out hunting for a couple of days.

[stabba 10,745]

Well...i just got used to not feeding mine at all...then the spiteful bstards went and died on me

[weasle 1,119]

Zoos ect give there animals starve days,From my days with exotics lions,tigers would get 15lb of meat on the bone 5 days a week,wolves 5lb a day 5 days a week.

Its just to replicate the fact in the wild they wouldn't always get food every day,meant to be good for stomach to get a rest(CLEAN OUT),also in zoos ect keeps animals looking fit and healthy you go to some zoos and see lions ect that are obese.

I dont give my dogs a starve day but i do vary amounts so today they might get a little but tomorrow get a good meal,stops them getting pickie .

Hounds get a starve day before hunting, dogs noses get stronger when hungry scientific fact

Now please...weres the no food coming from.

Somtimes however the dogs working means it strictly speaking hasnt been feed with in 24 hours.

If my dog is lamping 4 5 nights a week i will be at work long before its finished digesting its last meal,Even if i could, i wouldnt be feeding it again till after next session.

If that ended a short session or it ended up not going it would be under 24 hours.

Any one saying that aint enough food as a FACT is talking sh*T..imo

If however they want to say they dont do it that way i wont be upset,and i wont be changing what works for me..

It really is that simple.

[stabba 10,745]

On a more serious note..if i'm lamping then the mutts will get a lite meal around tea time ish then the usual meal as soon as bedded down after the session. Don't know why i do it..i just do...plus i feel the dogs perform better with a bit in their belly if asked to push themselves really hard.

[weasle 1,119]

Oh yer, just one more thing, partly on the subject... How many of you have one of those whining neurotic feckers when its meal time every day, the dog tells you when it wants feeding, I never have, can't stand that and it's another thing to add to the constant measured amounts, never feed at the same time every day...!

But it might die

[stabba 10,745]

If a man feels he doesn't need to feed the mutts before a session that's the man's perogative. plus i don't think it makes him wrong either. Personal choice. There are no set laws on how to feed/condition a dog for work.

[socks 32,253]

Oh yer, just one more thing, partly on the subject... How many of you have one of those whining neurotic feckers when its meal time every day, the dog tells you when it wants feeding, I never have, can't stand that and it's another thing to add to the constant measured amounts, never feed at the same time every day...!

Agree ... Mine get fed at around the same time each day dependant on weather ... work etc ... But when I throw them down a large rib or spine of raw then I feed much earlier so they have time to eat it before they are kennelled .....

 

[tjones3862 3,423]

his the proof in the pudding,, , with all this feeding lol,,,,,add 2 trips out last week and it was fingers x hit went all right,,,25 the 1st nite miners 8,,, a long story, ,lol and then 23 the same week,,,every one has diffrent views on feeding at the end of the day,,,

Edited October 6, 2014 by tjones3862

[weasle 1,119]

You dont need to feed them 2 every 8 hours that is a fact

Edited October 6, 2014 by weasle

[socks 32,253]

You dont need to feed them every 8 hours that is a fact

Do you read things that are not there ? Must be a medical term for that ... Nobody has said you have to feed your dogs every 8 hours ......

[mushroom 12,883]

Well...i just got used to not feeding mine at all...then the spiteful bstards went and died on me

Should of taught them to be breatharians then

[Phil Win 79]

This is one of those very simple but complicated areas. In simple terms if you put enough petrol in your tank to last a day then you need to fill it up every day! In truth of course dogs carry reserve energy so can go without food for a day but it does mean they drain their fuel reserves, especially glucose. If you then push a dog with low reserves then they may not be able to replenish them fast enough. They don’t carry massive glucose stocks, although when worked they do carry more than non workers, so when not fed they have to turn fat into glucose, this takes time and energy so if subjected to repeated sprints that are fuelled by glucose they burn the diminished supplies until they get into trouble as they can’t convert the fat into glucose fast enough. That simple.

 

Starving for 24 hours is not long enough to do much more than reduce energy storage so the idea of detoxifying is not a consideration. But for the more complicated bit, starving for 72 hours causes the body to start to scavenge old cells as energy sources, things like worn out white cells, are broken down for this purpose. This means that immunity may be compromised during this phase. When the body is fed after the 72 hours it replaces all the scavenged cells thereby producing lots of new white cells etc. White cells are a central pillar of defence so having a regenerated defence system may have a beneficial effect on immunity.

 

So starving for 72 hours now and again may have pros and cons but for 24 hours likely just cons. If a dog was starved for 72 hours it would need at least 72 hours prior to working after feeding again and one starved for 24 hours would need 24 hours from feeding before working to replace the energy stores. I feed the main meal in the morning so stores should be well stocked for lamping in the evening. Then I feed a light meal again as soon as they have cooled down. If it’s a long night with a lot of runs or a few pretty hard ones a little snack now and then through the night, piece of an energy bar, is probably helpful, (think I’ve covered that before.)

 

 

Seems to me your in the minority so you obviously must be right .... Comparing a running dog and a wolf when it comes to feeding and energy requirements is ludicrous ... You can't even compare a sled dog to a running dog when it comes to feeding for work as they are miles apart ........

 

 

There are non so blind as them that won't see .... Ignorance is bliss ........

 

 

 

You dont need to feed them every 8 hours that is a fact

Do you read things that are not there ? Must be a medical term for that ... Nobody has said you have to feed your dogs every 8 hours ......

 

 

Exactly.

[socks 32,253]

You dont need to feed them 2 every 8 hours that is a fact

Unfortunately for you I had already quoted your original post ... But good effort of trying to weasel out of what you said ........

[Dead Eyes 681]

I'll not lie. I'm not 100% on the feeding of dogs - I just feed for what suits me. Not always them.

 

However, all this talk of glucose for energy... Am I not right in saying that glucose=blood sugars=carbs? Dogs ought not to run on carbs and therefore glucose. Their system is akin to a man being in ketosis, no?

 

They get their energy from fat, I'm damn near sure???

[Gaz_1989 9,539]

Weasle...

 

Are you saying that you can take your dog lamping at 10pm having not eaten for 24 hours and be happy that the dog is well fuelled and prepared for the work ahead?

 

Are you also saying that a fit working dog should carry a visible covering of fat on it?

 

Have you got any pics of your super conditioned mutts? We have all seen pics of the lads dogs who are disagreeing with you and we all know they can put a shift in.

 

Are you speaking from experience or just spouting what you think is science?