slistoe wrote:Spy Car wrote:
Such mushers feed high-protein/high-fat kibbles that are to 30/20 formulas, what Pro Plan is to Old Roy.
Then, in addition to feeding much less carbohydrate in the kibble they use by not using a moderate-protein/fat formula, a musher like the hypothetical here further reduces inferior plant-based incomplete proteins and increases animal-based proteins and good fats by feeding 50% meat, fish, and other animal-based foods.
They do this because they know--beyond a doubt--that reducing carbohydrates in the diet and increasing animal-based fat and proteins will dramatically increase endurance in dogs.
They know this from experience and it has been confirmed in multiple scientific studies, with both sled-dogs and other breeds.
If those with gundogs fed the same way as this hypothetical musher--that is to say they greatly increased real animal-based foods and reduced the carbs in the diet---they too would see very significant increases in stamina.
Bill
And you know full well that when the endurance sled dogs are not running or training that they are on a diet that is more similar to the Pro-Plan 30/20 formula than what they are eating while running hundreds of miles pulling sled. What they feed when on the trail is not at all like the day to day diet.
You also know full well that mushers do not feed an all raw diet - they consider quality kibble to be an essential part of the dietary requirements of the dog and the ratio of kibble to other supplemental feeds changes with the metabolic requirements of the dog.
And the studies have also shown that not all breeds of dogs show increased performance on high protein/high fat diets. Greyhounds are one that saw performance losses in sprinting when the protein levels got too high - and too high for them was nowhere near what has been found optimal for Iditarod sled dogs.
So the question still remains - where is the balance for those dogs whose performance requirements are somewhere between that of the long distance sled dog and the high speed sprinter? Certainly the endurance sled dogs are not well suited to the short, high speed dash of the Sprint sled dogs - where English Pointers and GSP's have been quite successful both as teams of dogs and as sources of breeding material to other sled hound breeds to increase speed over the short haul (15 min to 4 hours). Obviously these dogs have different muscle structures and metabolic processes.
Certainly fats, when introduced in to the diet properly, can give a dog "quick" energy, but your approach of "more fat is always better" is a dangerous path to run on.
Again, you are proving my point.
If a musher feeds his or her dogs a 30/20 type diet in the off-season that dog will become de-tuned and will not be capable of the same performance they have when eating a high-protein/high-fat diet during the racing season. Mushers feed a much higher protein/fat formula (one that minimizes carbs) when they want to maximize endurance and speed. Precisely my point.
I don't want my dog to become "de-tuned" at any point during the year.
It isn't true that no mushers feed raw (in the first place) and many decide to compromise due the necessity of feeding a lot of dogs when they get free food from sponsors. You know that, right? So be serious.
It is simply not true that all breeds haven't show increased performance when on high-protein/high-fat diet rather than high-carb ones. In fact, the results have been consistent across all breeds.
Greyhounds fed high-fat vs high-carb did better. In the case of Greyhounds some were surprised as they are in one of the few canine sports where they are only in a short burst and some had figured the peak and bust energy pattern of carb burning would effect them less given the low endurance nature of dog racing. Still high-fat fed sprinters outperformed high-carbs sprinters.
No high-carb fed dog has outperformed a high-fat fed dog (all other factors being equal) in any test, ever.
My approach isn't "more fat is always better," it is between 50 and 60%
of calories appears to be ideal. The aft is NOT in the diet to provide "quick energy," it is there to supply sustained energy. That is where fat wins, and carbs fail.
Bill