Gun Dog Forum

Any homemade treat recipes my wife wants to make some she found online but I wanted your guys opinion on what is best. For a small mid hunt treat.

For you or the dogs?

Since it takes 12 to 16 hours for a dog to digest food, what good would a mid-day snack do ?
The only time a dog needs a mid-day snack is if they are hypoglycemic.

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Agree with Doc E....What breed of dog do you have OP? Reason I'm asking is my English Setter needs a mid day snack for low blood sugar. I've heard male ES have a history with low blood sugar.

nevermind wrote:Agree with Doc E....What breed of dog do you have OP? Reason I'm asking is my English Setter needs a mid day snack for low blood sugar. I've heard male ES have a history with low blood sugar.

Yep -- My point exactly.

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Dogs like Sardines..Sardines make them happy..Happy dogs are better than sad dogs.

At least that is the way I look at it.

Treats with coconut fat provide quick energy because of the nature of the fat, so that is a nice treat too.

No reason to be a Grinch with them for a midday snack.

jryan85 wrote:Any homemade treat recipes my wife wants to make some she found online but I wanted your guys opinion on what is best. For a small mid hunt treat.

Now that's a nice wife. A little treat during the hunt is nice for everyone. Enjoy.

Doc- I am just asking for educated info- so the energy bars sold or the home made energy bars that I make do no good ?

Mid day snacks can help on multiple day hunts but a dog takes too long to digest things for it to do much that day. But as was stated, it helps keep them and me happy. I have found Satin Balls to be best.

But how long does it take to get - lets say the Maltodextron into their system form an energy bar ?

UglyD wrote:Doc- I am just asking for educated info- so the energy bars sold or the home made energy bars that I make do no good ?

It depends on the ingredients and the blood sugar levels in the dog.
As for Maltodextrin, if it is given within 20 minutes or so of the "end of the day", it does a great job of replenishing the glycogen stores in the muscles for the next day's energy.

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This what is in them- end of the hunt give it to them
Ingredients
2 cups of raw rice
6 cups of water
1/2 pound ground pork liver
1/4 cup honey
1 cup of bacon fat
6 eggs
1 1/2 cups maltodextrin

UglyD wrote:This what is in them- end of the hunt give it to them
Ingredients
2 cups of raw rice Why raw ?
6 cups of water
1/2 pound ground pork liver Why pork and not beef ?
1/4 cup honey I'd leave the honey out
1 cup of bacon fat I'd use coconut oil instead
6 eggs
1 1/2 cups maltodextrin

How long is it cooked (baked?) ? What temp ?

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Doc E wrote:

UglyD wrote:This what is in them- end of the hunt give it to them
Ingredients
2 cups of raw rice Why raw ?
6 cups of water
1/2 pound ground pork liver Why pork and not beef ?
1/4 cup honey I'd leave the honey out
1 cup of bacon fat I'd use coconut oil instead
6 eggs
1 1/2 cups maltodextrin

How long is it cooked (baked?) ? What temp ?

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OK- I posted a little too quickly and just pasted a recipe from a couple of years ago.
the rice is cooked to a mush
the ground pork liver I had to get beef because that is all the Butcher had and I had to take and freeze 11 pounds due to the size of their grinder.
it is cooked all together then baked at about 325 for 15 minutes- then cooled- cut into bars and frozen.
So I should be giving this to them after the hunt is over and a 1/2 time snack has no benefits ?

UglyD wrote: OK- I posted a little too quickly and just pasted a recipe from a couple of years ago.
the rice is cooked to a mush
the ground pork liver I had to get beef because that is all the Butcher had and I had to take and freeze 11 pounds due to the size of their grinder.
it is cooked all together then baked at about 325 for 15 minutes- then cooled- cut into bars and frozen.
So I should be giving this to them after the hunt is over and a 1/2 time snack has no benefits ?

Because of the "hot" feeds that pigs get nowdays, it's hard to find good healthy pig livers.
If your dog has low blood sugar problems, this would be an alright mid day snack, but if your dog is otherwise healthy, the honey isn't needed and the maltodextrin provides energy for the next day.

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Thanks Doc- appreciate the feedback

Doc E wrote:[quote="UglyD"
As for Maltodextrin, if it is given within 20 minutes or so of the "end of the day", it does a great job of replenishing the glycogen stores in the muscles for the next day's energy.

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End of whose day ... the dog's (hunting) day (activity), right? If you rotate dogs, the last hunt of each dog's "day," right Doc E?

I like VitaCal from Drs. Foster & Smith ... primarily fat (corn oil) ... metabolizes quickly and FAT is the "quick energy" material versus carbs as in humans. I would also be curious Doc E, about how quickly a dog could metabolize a bit of pure fat. What think you?

In the possibles kit that my wife assembles she includes a small tube of Karo syrup or honey for low blood sugar.

Don't recall ever using it (considering it an emergency item).

I always toss a couple packs of Smarties in my bag and give my dog a few here & there throughout the day when we're out...no idea if it's doing much of anything for him. Never seen him dragging butt and then turning back on as a result. A dip in the water if it's close by sure seems to re-energize though!!

Doc - would very much appreciate your feedback on that - (using Karo syrup)

Scott Linden wrote: 1. End of whose day ... the dog's (hunting) day (activity), right? If you rotate dogs, the last hunt of each dog's "day," right Doc E?

2. I like VitaCal from Drs. Foster & Smith ... primarily fat (corn oil) ... metabolizes quickly and FAT is the "quick energy" material versus carbs as in humans.

3. I would also be curious Doc E, about how quickly a dog could metabolize a bit of pure fat. What think you?

1. Correct. The maltodextrin provides the muscle energy for the next day.
2. Corn oil has a lot of Omega-6 fatty acids, which are very 'pro-inflammatory'.
I much prefer Fish Oil.
3. Depends on the kind of fat.

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[quote="Tooling"
I always toss a couple packs of Smarties in my bag and give my dog a few here & there throughout the day when we're out...no idea if it's doing much of anything for him. Never seen him dragging butt and then turning back on as a result. A dip in the water if it's close by sure seems to re-energize though!!
[/quote]

Being originally from Canada, I did a double take on the "Smarties" comment. North of the 49th Smarties are little candy coated chocolates like M & Ms: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smarties

SubMariner wrote:[quote="Tooling"
I always toss a couple packs of Smarties in my bag and give my dog a few here & there throughout the day when we're out...no idea if it's doing much of anything for him. Never seen him dragging butt and then turning back on as a result. A dip in the water if it's close by sure seems to re-energize though!!

Being originally from Canada, I did a double take on the "Smarties" comment. North of the 49th Smarties are little candy coated chocolates like M & Ms: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smarties[/quote]


Would have never known that Smarties were a regional thing...maybe some international angst & rivalry between the makers of each..lol