Firstly, its worth looking at what role your dog food plays:

Ideally if it’s a good brand, it should provide

  • overall health
  • dog longevity
  • quality of life (sufficient energy)

It seems like a simple task. There are many dog foods on the market after-all, and they have all been sanctioned by aafco.

If commercial dog food is so brilliant.  You might ask :

1     What’s in commercial regular dog food.  Isn’t that set up so your dog doesn’t get over weight?

2    What will reducing the energy value of the dog food do to it for taste and dog enjoyment

3   Is there still a place for dog treats in a world where dogs are on a strict low energy diet?

Before we get into the detail.  Most people think of dog treats as being originally for :

  • training
  • reinforcing good dog behavior
  • rewarding (just because they are a special dog)

But there are much more than this.

They can bond you and your dog.

They can provide an exceptional boost to protein (and the essential amino acids) that might be on the low side in dog kibble.

They can be used as a preoccupier treat (ie when you are away to reduce separation anxiety.   We will look at all of these things and more in detail below in this article.

What’s in commercial regular dog food

Why does it have so many vitamins and minerals that have to be added to the meat and plant matter to make it ‘whole and complete’.

Why is it made of ingredients that have the potential to make your dog fat?

Commercial dog food has one purpose. To be so attractive to your dog that they over eat.  That is why it doesn’t just have a little amount of meat and a lot of bland plant matter.  It also has a sugar, salt and lots of fat (animal and plant oils) – so that the dog’s brain is targeted and bypassed so that it doesn’t know when to stop eating.

That is the commercial capitalist system at its best.  Because not only will the dog look like its ravenous for the product. The owner will think that the dog food is great, because they cant get enough of it.

But it’s not the primary ingredients that are necessary great, that the dog is attracted to. Its all of the years of lab work the company took to design something that many dogs would trouble to stop eating, beyond that they need to stay in shape.

Dogs no longer go on major hunt for prey. Many have a sedentary life, so adding an irresistible laboratory made meal to the mix, they will naturally get fat.

I could suggest you walk your dog off lead and have it play in a dog park for two hours per day (like many of my friends do, with their best friends) – but that doesn’t always fit into every owner’s schedule.

What are weight control dog foods about?

Well starting with the basics.  If its ONLY about the input into your dog, the food, then it has to either be less calories per gram of food, or less food that you feed your dog.

  • Lower calories  AND  reduced fat –   This is REALLY the main method you are going to have to use as a dog owner or a human trying to lose weight by food alone.

Lower calories can be a very tricky equation to make, and make the food remain enjoyable for a dog.  It kind of works counter intuitive to what you really want to have happen (ie the dog food company wants to sell you more product so they usually make products bypass the natural instinct of the dogs brain that can turn off when it is full.

The reason that the equation is difficult is that PROTEIN and CARBS have the same number of calories per gram.  While FAT typically has 2.2 times the number of calories.

But if you remove all fat, then the food is NOT tasty.  AND fat is required for many vital processes within your dog.  NOT to mention that not all fat is equivalent. Dogs require animal fat (the saturated kind) for many various processes.

But if you want to add an incredibly important essential oil (that affco require a minimum amount of, in a specific ratio, then your dog will also Need Omega 6  and Omega 3  (anti-inflammatory).   The main way to reduce calories for a dog, since they need a minimum level of protein (preferably from animal products because its actually bio available for dogs),  and they need a minimum level of fat (affco stipulate this) – is reduce the fat down to the minimum level,  and reduce the amount of Carbs in your dog food.

Carbs are not a major aafco requirement in dog food – no minimum amounts.  They are just in there because they are cheap and make your dog pack look full.

A few years ago the trick they used to use is to pack cheap dog food full of ground bones.  This left the tell-tale sign of bright white dog poos.  The funny thing is they almost had the right idea.

Not to stack dog food full of bones, but to use natural bones in it for the calcium.  Aafco require dog food to have a certain level of calcium and phosphorus, with a specific ratio between them.  And bone just happens to be the best bio available form of these minerals.

The issue with some modern dog food, is that they use calcium from rocks that are not anywhere near as bio-available, just to save a few bucks on griding down bones.

  • High fibre –   aafco dog specs, say that dog food can only have a maximum crude fiber content of 9%

But not all fibre is the same.

Here is some vital information about what fibre means to your dog.

“Dietary fibres are complex carbohydrates, so some people estimate that they provide 4 calories per gram just like any other carbohydrate. However, others say that calories from fibre don’t count since your body’s digestive enzymes can’t break down fibre.

“Fibers differ in how well they are digested or how much energy is available to the body. Some fibres, called soluble fibres, either absorb water and become gels or dissolve in water and reach the intestine where they are digested by bacteria. As they are digested by bacteria, soluble fibres produce short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) that provide your body energy. “

When a dog food company uses the RIGHT kind of fibre it has a certain index.  It nourishes the GOOD bacteria just enough in the gut biome to have them be healthy.  Over feeding any bacteria down there (the wrong fibre – because its not digested until it hits the intestine) just makes uncomfortable gas.

“Fibers fermented by bacteria provide about 2 calories per gram of fiber.”  That suggests that they provide about HALF the energy of carbs or protein.  But they are not as important as protein is for building your dogs body and many other processes.

What you mostly want from dog food fibre (because the grains or veggies are going to have ample soluble fibre is the INSOLUBLE FIBRE.

“Insoluble fibres travel to the intestine with very little change. Instead of being digested, insoluble fibres increase bulk, soften stool, and shorten transit time through the gastro-intestinal tract.  Because these fibers are not digested at all, the FDA estimates that insoluble fibers do not contribute any calories.  “  ( fiberfacts .org)

But again, you want the RIGHT type of insoluble fibre for your dog, and in the right proportion.

Just stuffing more and more fibre in a pack, to bulk up the pack, and reduce the total energy content, isn’t going to make for a very happy or healthy dog.

More protein –   Strangely we have been campaigning for this for MANY years, for ALL DOGS  (except those with a major kidney disease or other medical issue where they can’t have protein.

Protein for a dog (like for an owner) will help with feeling full (satiated) .   But dog food companies are known to try and get as much protein from plant matter because its cheaper.  Unfortunately, most plant matter doesn’t have anywhere near as much protein as animal muscle or organs, and isn’t used as effectively by the dog.

Adding protein (just as a filler that can’t be used by the dog is not only wasteful it also means that it cant be used for the dog for its important body functions.

CONCLUSION

As you can see dog food companies struggle at the best of times to make something that is healthy, makes a big profit, but still keeps a dog healthy, enough.

When they then try to tweak the formulas so that they don’t provide as much energy as naturally the foods would supply, there is always the risk that they will miss out on important nutrition.

Particularly when regular dog food often struggles to reach the minimum 18% protein level required to be called dog food