Page 348 - Small Animal Clinical Nutrition 5th Edition

Feeding Working and Sporting Dogs 355

Questions
1. What additional dietary history would be important to obtain for this patient?
VetBooks.ir 2. Outline an appropriate feeding plan (food and feeding method) for this dog, assuming there are no underlying metabolic or med-
ical problems contributing to the weight loss.
3. What client education is appropriate about the feeding plan?

Answers and Discussion
1. The normal physical examination and laboratory database in an otherwise healthy young dog rules out many causes of chronic
weight loss.The weight loss could be due to insufficient food intake in the face of strenuous exercise.The actual amount of food
that is being offered free choice and the actual amount being consumed by the dog should be documented. This result can be
compared with the daily energy requirement (DER) calculated in Answer 2 below.
2. The food for this dog should provide the nutrient levels outlined for intermediate athletic dogs (high duration and frequency) in
Table 18-9. In general, the food should have moderate protein and carbohydrate levels, high fat levels, high energy density and
above average digestibility.
The estimated DER should include energy for maintenance of young, intact adult dogs (1.8 x resting energy requirement
[RER]) plus energy for additional running. RER at an ideal weight of 25 kg = 820 kcal x 1.8 = 1,476 kcal/day (3.4 MJ x 1.8 =
6.2 MJ) for adult maintenance activities. Energy required for a 25-kg dog running 20 miles (33 km)/day = 33 km x 30 kcal/km
= 990 kcal/day (4.1 MJ). The added energy cost of running increases the DER to 2,460 kcal (10.3 MJ) (3 x RER). The amount
of food to achieve the estimated DER should be divided into two to three meals.
3. The owner should be told that hard work dramatically increases the requirement for calories. By comparison, the need for pro-
tein and other nutrients increases only slightly with increasing workload.The idea that athletic dogs require markedly more pro-
tein than nonworking dogs is inaccurate.The energy density of the current food is probably less than 3.5 kcal metabolizable ener-
gy (ME)/g dry matter (DM), which will not provide enough kcal in the amount of food the dog normally consumes. Using a
food with higher fat levels will ensure a higher energy density. A food with 25 to 30% DM fat is recommended.The current food
has 12 to 13% DM fat (estimated from the guaranteed analysis).
The food should also have above average digestibility to ensure that the energy and nutrients are readily available to the dog.
The nutritional adequacy statement shows that the food has not undergone feeding trials, which suggests that the digestibility of
the food is unknown.
Routine body condition scoring is the best way to assess whether the appropriate food is being fed in the correct amounts. A
food with a higher fat content and higher energy density should be fed free choice until the dog achieves an ideal body condi-
tion (BCS 3/5). Then the amount should be adjusted to maintain that weight and body condition.

Progress Notes
The dog was eating 5 cups of the current food per day, which was estimated to provide 1,700 kcal/day (7.1 MJ/day). This caloric
intake was clearly inadequate to provide the estimated DER with the added cost of running. The food was changed to a dry com-
a
mercial specialty brand food (Science Diet Canine Active ) with 30.5% DM protein, 26.2% DM fat, 4.4 kcal ME/g DM and DM
digestibility exceeding 85%. The new food was gradually exchanged for the old food over several days. The new food was offered
free choice until a BCS of 3/5 was achieved, and the daily amount was then stabilized at 2,500 kcal (10.5 MJ) (5 cups) when the
dog was working cattle. The amount was decreased to approximately 1,500 kcal (6.3 MJ) (3 cups) on days the dog was not work-
ing.

Endnote
a. Hill’s Pet Nutrition, Inc., Topeka, KS, USA. This product is currently available as Hill’s Science Diet Canine Adult Active
Formula.