Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I put ham leftovers from Christmas in the freezer until I could get around to chopping it up and measuring for smaller packages. As I was tempted to give some scraps of fat to the dogs (and cats) at my feet I vaguely remembered ham is not good for dogs. I found this article which gives more information. In general we do not give any of our pets people food.
The main point of the article seems to be around the FAT and SALT, which is very bad for humans also. I occasionally buy a ham steak for myself and sometimes sliced deli ham. I always look for the lower salt varieties, and the unprocessed kind when I can find it. My dog would get a little bit for a treat.
I never understood why humans would cut away the fat from their own meat and then feed the fat to the dog. If it's not good for me, it certainly isn't good for the dog.
I never understood why humans would cut away the fat from their own meat and then feed the fat to the dog. If it's not good for me, it certainly isn't good for the dog.
The primary nutritional need of hard hunting bird dogs is for energy, which translates to calories. Tired dogs cannot perform to the best of their ability. The objective of any conscientious owner or trainer is to provide a dog food that will give the maximum energy in a wholesome, nutritious manner.
The best way to provide this is with a high-fat product. Fat is the ideal source of energy for the bird dog because it has over twice the calories of carbohydrates or protein per gram. A dog can eat a small amount of high-fat food and get a lot of calories. These calories are crucial to the dog’s performance. Dogs under the stress of travel, cold, dampness, and competition often fail to eat a normal or even adequate amount of food. One would think that a hard-working dog would be very hungry and gulp down large quantities of food. Experienced trainers know this is often not the case, and some dogs seem to eat reluctantly while on a handler’s truck or on a bird hunting trip out of state. Call it "stress" or "nerves" but dogs like the comforts of their own kennel. They eat better at home. This has led trainers to prefer a "nutrient-dense" dog food, i.e., one that has a lot of nutrition in a small amount of food. This can only be achieved with a high-fat, performance- type food. A 20% fat level is a sound recommendation for the heavily worked bird dog. A lower amount of fat, say 10%, requires the dog to eat almost 20% more food than with the 20% fat diet to keep in the same condition. With many canine athletes, it is difficult to challenge the dog to eat that much extra food throughout hunting season.
Active dogs need good fats in a balanced diet. As the DVM states in the article-some dogs refuse to eat while they are hunting, as is the case with my male. I often load his bowl with raw trout that I've caught earlier in the year to entice him. High fat and protein. He also gets a lot of beef and beef fat that my neighbor has saved for scrap (he is a custom butcher). I also save pork trimming from front shoulders, as well as chicken scraps. It all is put into vacuum bags and ready to go as an add-on to their food. My dogs can eat 3x their normal 'off season' amount and still lose 20% of their weight during bird season.
“Humans get most of their energy from carbs,” he said. “We’ve found that dogs, particularly working dogs with a high level of athleticism, get most of their energy from fats. These dogs have higher nutritional needs. Nutrition drives the ability of the muscles to adapt to the exercise regimen, and performance formulas have more fat than maintenance formulas.”
A high-fat diet can be beneficial, even for dogs that get little exercise. The research shows that when less active dogs are put on a performance diet for a several months, their muscles become primed to adapt to exercise metabolism. Zanghi, owner of beloved retriever and co-founder of a retriever club in Kentucky, said hunters shouldn’t wait for September to start their dogs on a new performance formula.
Also if I intend to late season waterfowl hunt- my dogs get even MORE fat in their diet. Retrieving from cold water is tough work, and they need all the calories they can get to help them stay fit and uninjured. There are several DVM's in our bird dog club, and they are very vocal about proper diet. Dogs are not humans, and working dogs have extraordinary dietary needs. Fat is a critical component of our dogs diets, and they get that from a variety of sources..
Fat is not bad for active dogs (or even normally active dogs).
Dogs can eat a high percentage of fat in their diet if they are accustomed to it.
Dogs can have a bad reaction to large amounts of fat that aren't part of the normal diet. When feeding fatty treats to dogs, keep the amount small so that you don't badly upset the dietary balance that the dog's body is accustomed to processing.
Ham fat is not good, partially because it is unaccustomed fat, but also because it is high salt, and unless it is very expensive ham, it has been chemically cured. If you want to feed ham fat as a treat, feed small amounts and put the rest into the refrigerator to be doled out in single bites over a period of several days.
When I feed fat trimmed off of the steak, it is shared with three dogs and they don't get it all at one feeding. My dogs get a fairly substantial amount of fat in their regular dit. That level of fat is what their bodies are accustomed to processing. I don't add huge chunks of additional fat that they aren't used to processing.
Tasty treats like extra meat fat can be spread out over several days instead of feeding it all at once.
By the way, ham fat and bones get processed into broth at my house. Then into split pea soup or ham and beans for the people. Bones and fat are then tossed out, not given to the dogs.
Larger amounts of beef fat, like off of a pot roast, might go to the dogs, but it is cooked with rice and lean meat, so that the dogs get the nice tasty beef fat, but in amounts that they are accustomed to receiving.
Fat is a necessary part of a dog's diet. They need a higher percentage of fat than a human does. You just don't want to shock their system by overloading their diet with unexpected amounts of fat.
My GSP's are fairly active all year, so they get a constant amount throughout the year from their normal diet (which does include raw animal protein and fats). During the hunting season it's amplified a bit (no A LOT, lol). I never feed my dogs processed meats like ham or jerky or other crap like that. Some of the so-called 'dog treats' have ingredient lists on par with human garbage food. My dogs get sodium in the food they eat, so I don't supplement that either.
I know a guy that runs dogsleds. I can't imagine how much fat those dogs need!
thanks for the information. You are involved in a sport very few of us here know about. I like learning new things.
It's not just hunting dogs- any active dog will benefit from a truly balanced diet that also includes fats. In fact more fat than carbs is better. They process it differently than we do.
What is sad is that a lot of people project that what is best for them is also best for the animal, and frankly that is a very dangerously misguided thing. Dogs are dogs, not humans. I generally walk 10-15 miles per day when bird hunting, sometimes 20. My dogs easily cover 3-5 times that amount, their senses are totally on fire and they weigh 1/3rd or less of what I do. You better believe their needs are different!
Last edited by Threerun; 01-05-2016 at 12:57 PM..
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
