The dogs enjoying their morning cuddle and sun session
Recently we were sharing about our dog food with some relatives and were surprised to hear how reluctant they were to feed their own dogs anything other than commercial dog food. We’ve even spoken with leading biologists studying aging that don’t think twice about what they feed their dogs. Despite people knowing that diet is essential for human health, it’s common to overlook this fact for our dogs.
As we’ve said in the past, we think kibble is a good product for certain situations. It’s essential for shelters that need to feed hundreds of dogs daily. Imagine trying to cook and store fresh food for a building full of dogs. If you’re in a pinch, kibble works in the short term. However, if health and well-being is your goal, there are definitely much better options.
We’re covering “prescription” diets and rare proteins like bison and duck.
Prescription Diets
Disclaimer: We are not vets and don’t claim to be. This is not healthcare advice. We are providing our opinion based on a literature review. Please consult a health care professional for medical advice.
The term prescription diet is a bit of a misleading name. They don’t usually have any medications in them as the name would suggest. Instead, prescription diets are supposedly tailored to suit dogs with different medical conditions such as kidney conditions, skin conditions, liver conditions and more.
Altering diets is an effective remedy from many ailments in people and animals. For example, diabetics are well served by reducing carbohydrate intake. Also, there is evidence that ketogenic diets and fasting are helpful during cancer treatment. There are many other examples, so it makes sense that diets can also help with ailments in pets. However, because of the profit motive for companies making these products, there is a lot of over-marketing. Hill’s, the makers of Science Diet, is currently engaged in a class-action lawsuit where they are accused of fraudulently marketing their prescription diets as treatment for disease.
Unsurprisingly, the research on the effectiveness of prescription diets is very thin. One study from Europe we found on 100 prescription diets shows that many of these products do not meet minimum mineral content requirements.
In a study done in Japan on diabetic prescription diets for cats, researchers showed that prescription diets are not necessarily better. They tested three foods, one normal diet, and two prescription diets. Of two prescription diets one was high carbohydrate and one was low carbohydrate. After analyzing blood from study subjects, researchers concluded that only the diet with low carbohydrates was effective to reduce glucose levels, but surprisingly, it also increased insulin levels.
For dermatitis in dogs, a small randomized and controlled study showed that two out of three diets for atopic dermatitis were effective in reducing symptoms compared to control. However, they did not include a minimal homemade diet, which we suspect would be even more effective.
**Conclusion: If your dog is on a prescription diet and it works for you, there is little reason to switch. However, if you are considering putting your pet on a prescription diet, the research shows that only some of them work as intended. Other studies show that many prescription diets do not meet nutritional requirements. This is on top of issues we already covered in kibble like synthetic vitamins, dead and diseased animals, and mycotoxin content. **
Rare Proteins
In supermarkets everywhere novel proteins like bison, venison and duck are now readily available. They are often more expensive, but are they worth it? What are the nutritional profiles?
In general novel proteins tend to be less allergenic than chicken or beef. They are also often leaner and have less calories while still being highly nutritious.
Bison
You can now get bison at many Walmarts, Targets and Costcos across the nation. We love bison because it’s very nutritious and lean. For example, a 3 oz portion of bison has about 170 calories, 24 g of protein and 7-8 g of fat (often even less fat), while lean ground beef has about 220 calories, 22 g of protein and 10 g of fat. Bison is typically higher in B12, iron and selenium. However, beef is higher in zinc, B6 and phosphorous. (Nutritional content can vary based on added fat and specific cut.)
Duck
Duck is also a great option for diversifying proteins. For people, the gamey taste may be unpalatable, but we believe that dogs consider it to be delicious. Duck is slightly higher in fat than other rare proteins, especially if the skin is included. If you remove the skin, duck is about as lean as bison. It is also rich in iron and selenium, but short on zinc and B12 compared to bison and beef.
Venison
The leanest of the game meats, a 3 oz portion of venison has around 110 calories, 26 g of protein and only 2-3 g of fat. In addition to being high in protein, venison is also high in zinc, iron and B12, making venison a highly nutritious protein source whilst being low in calories.
Rare proteins are great because they are hypoallergenic and because game meats are lower in calories than beef while being very nutritious they are especially appropriate for overweight dogs. Also, if you’re looking to add more variety into your dog’s diet, these rare proteins could be a great place to start.