Quote:
Originally Posted by Sarahnya
Can anyone direct me to a site which has the results of these studies that say a dog has to have low protein, I keep reading about it on forums like this but I've not actually read anything official on the subject, there seem to be differing views and the only studies I can find are based on rats which isn't really compareable lol.
To me the major part of a dogs diet should be meat which is naturally high in protein so I don't see how 37% could be harmful, I think a barf diet is around 55%.
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It's not easy getting access to research papers, but there is a quite well known bit of research which showed that a 25% reduction in overall recommended nutrition resulted in leaner healthier dogs which lived longer.
I know that this does not just look at protein, but on the whole diet, but on that basis alone I would be wary of feeding a high protein/high fat diet or recommending it, as so many people overfeed.
I know that as a result of this research Purina altered the % protein in their foods down.
Details of that research are as follows:
Abstract
Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association
May 1, 2002, Vol. 220, No. 9, Pages 1315-1320
doi: 10.2460/javma.2002.220.1315
Effects of diet restriction on life span and age-related changes in dogs
Richard D. Kealy, PhD Dennis F. Lawler, DVM Joan M. Ballam, MS Sandra L. Mantz, Darryl N. Biery, DVM, DACVR Elizabeth H. Greeley, PhD George Lust, PhD Mariangela Segre, DSc Gail K. Smith, DVM, PhD, DACVS Howard D. Stowe, DVM, PhD
Pet Nutrition Research Department, Nestle Purina Pet Care Co, Checkerboard Square, St Louis, MO 63164. (Kealy, Lawler, Mantz); Statistical Services Department, Nestle Purina Pet Care Co, Checkerboard Square, St Louis, MO 63164. (Ballam); Department of Clinical Studies, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104. (Biery, Smith); Department of Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Illinois, Urbana, IL 61801. (Greeley, Segre); James A. Baker Institute for Animal Health, New York State College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853. (Lust); Department of Large Animal Clinical Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48823. (Stowe)
Objective—To evaluate the effects of 25% diet restriction on life span of dogs and on markers of aging.
Design—Paired feeding study.
Animals—48 Labrador Retrievers.
Procedures—Dogs were paired, and 1 dog in each pair was fed 25% less food than its pair-mate from 8 weeks of age until death. Serum biochemical analyses were performed, body condition was scored, and body composition was measured annually until 12 years of age. Age at onset of chronic disease and median (age when 50% of the dogs were deceased) and maximum (age when 90% of the dogs were deceased) life spans were evaluated.
Results—Compared with control dogs, food-restricted dogs weighed less and had lower body fat content and lower serum triglycerides, triiodothyronine, insulin, and glucose concentrations. Median life span was significantly longer for dogs in which food was restricted. The onset of clinical signs of chronic disease generally was delayed for food-restricted dogs.
Conclusions and Clinical Relevance—Results suggest that 25% restriction in food intake increased median life span and delayed the onset of signs of chronic disease in these dogs. (J Am Vet Med Assoc 2002;220:1315–1320)