>>>))) ARTICLES ON CONDITIONING (((<<<

[R2L]

so after reading this article, what do you guys think
would carbohydrates help when "racing" a bulldog.

[FrostyPaws]

If you're going to give carbs, you should give it within the 30 minute window of opportunity. Yes, they will help to some degree, but it's not an absolute requirement. I give it for reasons mentioned.

[FrostyPaws]

Hydration Strategies for Exercising Dogs
Arleigh J. Reynolds, DVM, PhD, DACVN
Assistant Professor of Clinical Nutrition, College of Veterinary Medicine
Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA
Kim Sneddon, BS; Gregory A. Reinhan, PhD;
Kenneth W. Hinchcliff, BVS, MS, PhD, DACVIM; Richard A. Swenson
College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA;
Research and Development, The lams Company, Lewisburg, Ohio, USA;
Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine,
The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA;
Lightning Bolt Express Kennels, Two Rivers, Alaska, USA

Introduction

The late Dr. Rolland Lombard is often credited with being the first
competitive musher to realize the importance of watering his dogs during the racing season. During his day, most mushers believed that their dogs got all the water they needed by just eating snow. The dependence of performance upon good hydration is just one of the legacies left behind by the innovative and dominant force that was Rolland Lombard. Over the past 25 years, racing and research have demonstrated the benefits of providing working dogs with sufficient amounts of protein, fat, vitamins, and minerals. Still, a working dog may tolerate a dietary deficiency in one of these nutrients for several days or even weeks before any adverse effects on its performance or health are observed. In contrast, dehydration
may lead to diminished performance and, in severe cases, even to death within hours of onset.

To understand why dehydration leads to such rapid and severe performance problems, one must first understand the many vital roles this important nutrient plays in the maintenance of nearly all body functions. A typical healthy dog has a total body water content of about 70% of its body weight. This water is divided into four compartments as shown in Table 1. Most (65%) of the total body water (TBW) resides within the individual cells of the dog’s body.1 This water is the solvent in which all reactions of the cell take place. It thus facilitates the generation of energy, the synthesis of new cell materials, the storage
of products, and the detoxification of wastes. Intracellular water is also the medium of transport for all materials within the cells.


The extracellular water is divided up between three spaces.1 The interstitial space
(20% TBW) is the second largest compartment; it represents the water which lies immediately outside of the cells and bathes them. The main role of the interstitial water is as a transport medium for nutrients and other materials into, and wastes and other products out of, the cells.

The plasma space (10% TBW) is the water found in the liquid or non-cellular part of blood. This water transports materials between all locations of the body. The transcellular compartment (5% TBW) is a conglomerate of all other extracellular spaces and is made up of the water found in the aqueous humor, the synovial fluid, the cerebral-spinal fluid (CSF), and the secretions of the gastrointestinal tract. This water acts as a medium for the passage of light and as a source of lubrication and shock absorption in the joints and CSF. In the GI tract it is a solvent for digestion and a transport medium to facilitate absorption of digested nutrients.

Under normal circumstances, water is free to shift between these compartments. The direction of that shift will depend on the conditions to which the body is exposed. During exercise for example, the metabolic changes occurring within the muscle cell increases the concentration of solutes or dissolvable particles within these cells. This increase in solute concentration causes water to move into the cell from the interstitial fluid.2 This loss of interstitial fluid volume is then replaced by the movement of water from the plasma compartment into the interstitial space.2 The result of exercise is thus an expansion of the intracellular compartment and a contraction of the plasma compartment. This fluid shift is in part responsible for the increased size of a weight lifter’s muscles after a work out.2

The small loss of plasma volume that normally occurs during short bouts of exercise does not usually adversely affect performance. If exercise is prolonged, or if a dog is losing significant amounts of water through other means, the loss of water from the plasma may lead to a potentially dangerous contraction of plasma volume. As plasma volume diminishes, the heart has to work harder to circulate the blood because there is less fluid travelling through the vessels, and that fluid is more viscous.3 The result of these changes is a decreased delivery of oxygen and nutrients to, and a slower rate of waste removal from,
muscle cells. In this situation working muscle cells have less fuel available and accumulate wastes more rapidly, a combination which restricts the sustainable intensity and duration of exercise. In severe cases plasma volume contraction can lead to major organ failure and even death.3

Dehydration is almost always easier to prevent than it is to treat. Still, early recognition of the problem gives the dog the greatest chance for a rapid and complete recovery. As dehydration progresses from the mild to the moderate and severe states, the animal’s ability to correct the problem on its own diminishes. Dogs suffering from advanced dehydration usually refuse to eat or drink. Such animals need veterinary attention immediately since loss of only 15% of TBW may result in death.4 Correction of moderate and severe dehydration usually requires intravenous administration of fluids. Mildly dehydrated animals may be able to restore their water deficit by drinking but will often recover more rapidly if at least some of the fluid is replaced parenterally.

To prevent dehydration, one must try to balance the dog’s daily water loss with its daily water intake and production. To achieve this goal one must first understand how water is added to and lost from a dog’s body, and how each of these components of water balance change with changes in the dog’s workload, environment, and health status. A dog may add to its total body water through its diet, by-drinking water, and by burning fuels for energy in its muscles. When a dog is fed a meat diet or a dry dog food soaked in water, 70—80% of what that animal eats is actually water. Water that is taken in as part of food is called
“preformed water.” Many sled dogs get half or more of their daily water intake from preformed water. Most of the rest of their daily water intake comes from drinking water and eating snow. A small amount of water is also generated when fats, carbohydrates, and proteins are converted to energy in the muscle. For each 100 kcal of energy burned about 13 ml of water is generated and for each gram of muscle glycogen used, 3-4 ml of water are produced.5 Water produced in the body by these processes is referred to as “metabolic water.” Metabolic water may contribute as much as 10% of the total water gained by a
dog each day.

Usually, the amount of water gained each day by a dog is exactly balanced by the amount lost. Each day a dog loses water through its urine, feces, saliva, breath, and sweat. Unlike humans and horses, dogs do not lose much water due to sweating. In fact, the only place a dog sweats is through its foot pads. The dog’s inability to sweat from the rest of its skin probably stems from its large surface area to volume ratio. Water loss from such a large surface area would put the animal at constant risk of dehydration if it perspired from its entire skin surface. In larger animals like humans and horses, a relatively small surface area and large volume inhibits heat dissipation. Dehydration due to sweating is less of a risk than heat accumulation in these larger animals.

Most of the water a dog loses each day leaves its body through urine, feces, respiratory vapor, and saliva. The contributions of each of these factors depend greatly upon the dog’s health, environment, workload, and diet. For example, consider the same 20 kg (44 lb) sled dog as a sedentary house dog, a sprint racing dog, and a distance racing dog. Each day the house dog, living in a climate controlled environment, loses about 1000 ml of water through urine, about 100 ml of water through its feces, and about 300 ml of water through evaporation of respiratory water and saliva. If that dog is moved outside and he becomes
an open class sprint racing dog, he will lose about 1500 ml of water through his urine and 150 ml of water through his feces. Assuming an ambient temperature of at least 0° F, this dog will also lose about 300 ml of water from evaporation during a one hour run and about 800 ml of water from evaporation during the remaining 23 hours of the day. If this dog now becomes a distance racing dog his water loss to urine and feces will increase to about 2250 ml/day and 250 ml/day, respectively. Assuming he works 12 hours at about a 40% of VO2 maximum workload and rests 12 hours in an ambient temperature of-20° C or below, he will lose between 2000 and 2500 ml of water during exercise and about 400ml of water during rest to evaporation from his mouth and respiratory tract. A summary of the water balance
for these three dogs is shown in Figure 1.

The combination of exercise and living in a cold environment dramatically increases the dog’s daily water requirement. The increase in this requirement is about 2-fold for the sprint dog and about 4-fold for the distance dog as compared to the house dog. The greater losses of urine and fecal water seen in working dogs are mostly due to their increased food intake. A greater food intake leads to an increased production of feces which are usually 80-90% water. More food also means the generation of more metabolic wastes which must be filtered by and excreted from the kidneys. The excretion of these additional wastes results in an increased urine volume and consequently a greater urinary water loss.

The most remarkable increase in water loss observed in working dogs is due to the increase in evaporation from the mouth and respiratory tract. Depending on the dog’s exercise intensity, and the environmental temperature and humidity, evaporative water losses may increase 10- to 20-fold during exercise.6 At cold temperatures, the air a dog breathes in has very little moisture in it. When this cold air reaches the lungs it is saturated with water so that about 6% of every exhaled breath is water. In warm climates the inhaled air is more nearly saturated with water and so the dog loses less water from its lungs with each breath. However, since dogs pant to cool themselves off, water loss through the
evaporation of saliva often leads to evaporative losses in warm conditions equal to or in excess of those seen in cold environments.7

The numbers given above are estimates for specific cases, but they give an idea of the influence that exercise and environment have on a dog’s daily water requirement. Health problems may also greatly influence daily water loss. Urinary water losses increase dramatically in renal disease, systemic infections, diabetes, and other hormonal abnormalities. Most of these dogs are sick enough that they would not be able to perform as sled dogs and would require veterinary attention. Increased water loss from the gastrointestinal tract is more common and often less serious. Nearly all kennels experience stress diarrhea and the “flu” during the course of a season. Often, dogs will continue to perform well with these conditions as long as their hydration can be maintained. However, the rate of dehydration resulting from severe diarrhea, as in the case of parvovirus infection, can be a life threatening situation. The severity of the situation can usually be assessed by the frequency and volume of fluid eliminated. In any case the fluid lost through the feces must be replaced or the dog’s health will deteriorate rapidly.

The factors which contribute to water loss in the dog are complex and constantly changing. If one had to exactly calculate a dog’s daily water requirement in order to hydrate it properly, it would be nearly an impossible task. Fortunately nature has designed a complex system to regulate water intake and output, thus allowing the dog to maintain hydration across a wide range of environmental conditions. As a dog’s plasma begins to lose water, the increase in concentration of salts is detected centrally, triggering thirst.8 Since it takes some time for water to be absorbed into the plasma, the quenching of thirst does not immediately rely on the return of salt concentrations to normal. Instead, stretching in the stomach and a drop in throat temperature are the signals that lead to thirst satiation.3 This system is so well tuned that a healthy dog will adapt to changes in water loss just as quickly as these changes occur. Theoretically, the dog will drink as much as it needs as long as water is available when it is thirsty.

Therein lies the problem of keeping sled dogs well hydrated. They are not always thirsty when water is available, and water is not always available when they are thirsty. For this reason strategies were explored that would promote hydration in these specialized athletes. For years mushers have tried to encourage relatively large amounts of water consumption during the relatively short periods of time that water could be made available by flavoring the water with palatable additives. This technique, known as “baiting the water”, has proven to be successful under all but the most severe environmental and racing conditions.

Here is the link to the rest of it. It's talking about glycerol supplementation in helping keep dogs hydrated better. http://www.hydrolyte.us/Arleigh%20Re...Strategies.pdf

[Officially Retired]

Great read and fascinating information, thanks for sharing.

[Albino Rhino]

This is/has been a great "think tank" Thread ... something like this wouldn't last 3 Replies on "Pedicures -On-Line" !... keep it up guys .

[Officially Retired]

LOL, true.

Glad to hear you took the time to read it, as there is a lot of good info here

Jack

[EWO]

An interesting article on fat and protein...similar to the others but a good read nonetheless...EWO

http://www.beaglesunlimited.com/heal...ormance-stress

[Limey Kennels]

Jack about your post im very aware of al these wrightings and teories.
Ok now where getting into a debate, and post get longer .
Let me please remind some of you and educate others who dindt know , That a greyhound caries Pitbull / buldog blood in its vains!!, AND visa versa!! including Wippet blood.. Hens the Greyhounds carry the same coloration as our dogs and hensh they race with muzles on as the fight like crazy!!. Many a greyhound is being culled as they as young dogs and pups start fighting umongst them (hens they know that High protien levels causing protien posion makes them agressif and start them fighting) . And its known ONES THEY START FIGHTING THEY NEVER RACE AGAIN, THEY KEEP FIGHTING .... If you take there heads of make them 20/30 lbs smaller and put a head of a pitbull on there you see the same dog.. our breed has been build up out of varies crosses not just bulldog x terrier everyting that was crosses with a bulldog that in some way could bring the bacon home wherther it was fighting /vermin killing ore HUNTING was used to breed of
and for those who dont agree and think of it as BS chek this copied from ""Stonehenge on the dog 1849""



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>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>NOW thuse this look like a Brindle APBT ore wat!!<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
let me also tell you that i have the fallow up drawings from that book where it shows it took 3 more breedings back into the greyhound to get the best confermation back for SPEED . yet in those days they where used as COURSING HUNTING animals. The pitbull/buldog blood was used to get a fisical stronger animal to take douwn bigger game!!!. in those days 4 on every 10 childeren Died befor reaching there 6th year as kids!. meat was very scares. do you think dogs like the pitbull terrier(known as the BULL and Terrier not to be confused with the bullterrier) was on a regular meat fat DIET!??? hell no. they got scraps with lots of carbs in there . and there meat sours where rodens like rats and mice IF THEY COULD GET THEM ...and many a dog died due to the diseases that came along with these rodens.
the pitbull terrier was also known as the ""poor mans racing horse"" living in the slumbs the gettos of there days. and fought in pubs..PROTIEN and FAT ore MEAT was NOT there stabel DIET!!!...
Anyway the Pitbull terrier and greyhound /Wippet are much much closer related then people realize. we all know to wel that many a pitbull terrier looks like a greyhound or wippet for that matter
here you have one of these dogs GRCH Mammy now aint that a WIPPET!!!...



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ALSO THE GREYHOUND IS BEEING BRED IN A BEST TO BEST WAY, THEY DO NOT PRACTIS LINE AND ORE INBREEDING . BECUASE IF THEY DO THEY ""GET FIGHTING DOGS""""
SO THEY BREED A FAST ANIMAL TO A FAST ANIMAL REGUARDLESS OF PEDEGREE.


Let me contigneuw and show the varius oldtimers of the past slowly tru history al the way up to the modern days what they use as there diets for there/our dogs..
afther that one, a piece about FEEDING the greyhound. and in the Falllow up post (a BIG ONE that sais it al). ...

the Greyhound FAMILIER related link within the 2 BREEDS greyhound x pitbull terrier. is the sole rezen why APBT dwell so wel on greyhound feeds/ Diets/ Food and there SPECIFIC sientific divelopt and studied suplemends made for that 500.000.000 USD world wide scene ......... SO THE SLEDGE DOG STUDIES ARE COMPLEATLY IRELEVAND WHEN IT COMES TO OUR BREED!.
AS I ALREDY TRIED TO ACSPLAIN. I do realize my dislectic handycap and being word blind at the same tome can cause confusion in understanding what i trie to say..





this one i copied from another forum where whe where at it and posted these posts...... this topic was about grainless food, but it ended in the same manner where this debate is going. and that is fat ore carbs!. we all know that fat is major importend but the CARBS are beeing shuft under the table and disreguarded as non imported sours of energy. PS for those who belive that cold dens air has nothing to do with it. PLEASE READ the last 2 lines at the BOTOM. You wil see that at higher altitutes CARBSare way importend.... and it sais , (what i have been telling that FAT needs much more oxygen to burn and diliver energy)





Re: Grainless dod food



Ok people post long posts this one is mine and in 2 parts for wat its worth
Just some wel known legends of the past who fed CARBS in there diets some of them didnt use FAT at al,

yet we all know today the importense of FAT in a working dogs DIET,And AS MOST of the profesional conditioners KNOW

SO ARE carbohydrats



Thirty years with the fighting dogs by George C. Armitage



used Lean beef of the neck/bran/whole weat bread/water does not build flesh or fat/







The American Pit Bull Terrier by Joseph L. Colby



used Rump steak/sliced or dried toast/boiled lean beef/dried toast bread/







The Dog Pit by Richard K. Fox



used Rump beef steak/sliced bread/toast/







Dogs of Velvet and Steel by Bob Stevens



“In a well balanced diet the energy needs are primarily supplied by quality carbohydrates. This is not a well known fact, becayse so many people who condition dogs put so much emphasis on protein (believing it provides energy). When a Pit Bull is in his keep (training period sic to eight weeks prior to a fight), most conditioners put him on a total protein diet (generally lean meat and/or liver), with vitamin supplements, etc. – the most don’t provide any carbohydrates. This is fairly necessary in this instance because the dog must be trimmed of all fat so that he goes in as lean as possible and at his lowest weight. But many pit fighting people feed their dogs a similiar diet all the time (but give them more quantity and perhaps cut back on the extra vitamins) believing that the hight-protein diet is the best for their dogs. Actually this type of feeding is harmful to the dog. (You can’t see the harm done; that’s the problem with nutrition) Many dog owners who don’t fight their dogs feed them high-protein diets in the belief that the dog will grow bigger and stronger and have more energy. The popularity of the “high-protein”dog foods attest to this fact. As we will see, protein does contribute growth, but it does very little for energy. In addition, providing more preotein in terms of quantity (rather than quality) will not make the dog grow bigger and stronger. We will take a closer look at the misunderstood protein in awhile, but first let’s see how carbohydrates work. Starch from the carbohydrates is converted into glucose in the intestinal tract and then absorbed into the blood stream. The blood conveys this to all tissues of the body where it is oxidized (combined with oxygen) to form carbon dioxide and water. It is the oxidation process that provides energy. Glucose is often thought of as a fuel, and in a way it is. But it acts as a fuel only when it is oxidized by a comples process that requires the active participation of fatty acids (primarlity linoleic and linolenic), protein, minerals and vitamins (mostly the B-comples vitamins), in order for the cells to extract energy from the glucose. Unused carbohydrates are stored in the muscles and liver as glycogen which the body can draw upon for energy when needed. Unused protein is also converted into glucose, but the process is slower than with carbohydrates. Moreover, protein cannot be digested and assimilated unless there is a proper balance of carbohydrates and fat. The point I’m trying to make is that vitamins, minerals, protein, carbohydrates etc. are synergetic (They work together.), so that a food must be balanced. Excess protein doesn’'t build extra muscle; it’s passed through the system. In fact excess protein can be harmful if consumed over a long period of time. Excess carbohydrates are turned into fat.”



Seen through the Eyes of the Millmaker “Robert Lamm”



used Carbohydrates are composed of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen. Sugar, starch, and callulose are a few types of carbohydrates. All ordinary plants are primarily carbohydrates. Carbohydrates are fuel for the body. Any excess amounts of carbohydrates can be stored in the body and uysed when quick energy is needed. Otherwise, they are converted into body fat. Hard work stops the conversion to body fat and weight gain. Respiratory Recovery Method will protect the small amount of carbohydrates that can be stored in the body and used only during stressful situations like fight night. Five to fifteen minutes bonus energy can be retained depending on the condition of your dog’s health. If your dog is in a superior state of health, you can condition your dog harder and he can withstand a greater amount of stress, instead of your dog devoting energy to fighting nutritional dificiencies.







The Complete Game Dog by Ed and Chris Faron



Carbohydrates comes from starches and sugars. Grains and their byprodycts are usually source in dog foods. Carbohydrates provide energy. Exact dietary requirements for carbohydrates have not been established for dogs. Most dog foods contain a high percentage of carbohydrates.



DON MAYFIELD

The next thing I found out when working a dog is that they can be put in shape most anyway a person sees fit.
Since I was working on a job most of the time, the next thing I started working on was an easy way to work a dog. I had seen everyone else's way of working a dog by now, but I had something else in mind. I wanted to work a dog like a wild dog would work if he had to hunt and kill his food, more so like the big cats do, or like an eagle. They make their kill when they are very thin with no fat whatsoever on them. This is the time when most wild animals kill for food. Their blood count is on a natural high and there is no fat to make them breathe hot. This is when they are their sharpest and make their kill. Their condition at the time of the kill will not return until they are ready for their next kill. In between times the wild will tend to get fat and slow and lazy and they will have miss after miss until they lose all their fat and get sharp, hunting and working their bodies into shape.




used The feed should start with a good hi-protein dry feed about 2 cups at first with ¼ cup of wheat germ, ¼ a can mustard greens, a cup of corn bread, with vitamins of desiccated liver-tablets (7 ½ grains, start at 5 a day and work up to 15 a day) give one vitamin E (400iu) give one vitamin C (1000 milligrams) 4 papaya digestive aid, 1 iron with molasses. Try and have all your vitamins natural vitamins, you should add to your dry dog feed as much as need be. To hold you're dog at about 2 pounds over his pit-weight. Come off this vitamin E five days in front of the match. Add about 1/8 to ¼ a cup of water to his feed just enough to wet it, just before you feed. Four weeks in front of the match start with his meat, good heavy beef like bull-neck, cut the meat into small chunks about ½ in square. Start with ½ lb and add up to 1/2 lb. To ¾ lb 5 days in front of the match. Always cut all the fat out of the meat. Use only red, lean meat. Sear the meat in as little as possible and pour this juice over the meat and mix. (Just so it will be wet going down, but dry when it gets to the stomach.




For the last 5 days the feed should start to change. Feed more red meat and less Purina high-protein and more wheat germ and cereal. Also, start cutting the mustard greens. The next to the last feeding should be not more than a half a cup of Purina high-protein, a half a cup of wheat germ cereal and a half a pound of red, lean meat. Cooked in no water. Should be seared on all sides, very rare, cut in one-inch cubes, with all vitamins. The last feeding should be fed twenty-six hours before his match. Red, lean beef, cut in one-inch cubes with ¾ cup of wheat germ cereal with his vitamins. The meat should be seared in no water, very rare but, seared on all four sides with two tablespoons full of honey.







FEEDING THE RACING GREYHOUND


Your aim in feeding greyhounds is to provide a balanced diet that maintains them in good condition, and allows them to perform to their maximum potential on the racetrack. To achieve this aim you need to know what nutrients are contained in the different ingredients that make up a greyhound’s ration. A nutrient is something a greyhound needs to help it to grow, stay alive and work, as nutrients provides greyhounds with energy.

There are six nutrient groups that are needed in a greyhound’s daily ration:
1.Water
2.Protein (amino acids
3.Carbohydrates/Fiber
4.Fat
5.Vitamin
6.Minerals
These nutrients are all essential to maintain a greyhound in good health, but the specific requirements of each will vary depending on the greyhound’s size, metabolic rate, work load, and existing physical condition.

Besides the actual methods you will use in training your greyhounds, this is probably the most contentious issue you will have to decide. There are as many variations in feeding methods as there are trainers, and when one looks at the feeding methods used in the various country’s that have greyhound racing, the difference is even greater

Food has to supply all of the greyhound’s energy requirements, as well as providing the building blocks for tissue repair, including the blood and all of the internal organs. To be able to make an informed decision as to how your feeding methods are affecting the performance of your greyhounds, some of the functions of the various food components should be understood.

PROTEIN


Protein provides the ingredients required for building, strengthening and repairing the body. However, it is not protein that is absorbed and utilized by the body, but the amino acids contained within the protein. There are 10 amino acids that are essential for good health, the greyhound’s body manufactures some amino acids but most are derived from the food. It should also be understood that different proteins contain a different range of amino acids. Meat is the main ingredient in the greyhounds diet that provides much of the required protein for good health, and may include, beef, chicken, lamb or mutton. The addition of large quantities of a single amino acid to the diet should be avoided, unless it is used as a treatment for a specific problem or illness.

CARBOHYDRATE


Carbohydrates not only supply the energy required for running but also assist with many body functions such as temperature regulation and food digestion. The carbohydrates can be divided into two main groups; they are complex carbohydrates and simple carbohydrates. Complex carbohydrates require processing by the body and provide for a sustained release of energy. Good sources of complex carbohydrates are grains, such as wheat, brown rice, and oats. Grains also include protein, starch, vitamins, minerals and some fatty acids, however for canines to utilize grain foods they need to be well cooked, well soaked and fed soft.

Simple carbohydrates include sugar and starch and are easily utilized by the body and in particular sugars such as glucose and fructose provide for a short-term hit of energy. Unfortunately it is a really short hit, Due to what is called the rebound effect, if you supply the body with a substance in excess, it automatically reduces the amount available.

This is particularly true of blood sugar; within 4 hours of ingesting glucose the blood sugar actually falls below normal. However if you could supply a hit of glucose about 1 hour prior to the Greyhound racing it would be great, simply because it increases the amount of ATP available and therefore increasing early pace.

FAT


Fats are an essential part of the food requirement, like carbohydrates they provide energy and are involved in temperature regulation, but more importantly they contain and are required for the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins and the production of some essential hormones.

Fats can be divided into two groups depending on their chemical composition, they are saturated and unsaturated fatty acids, the fatty acids best utilized by the canine are those of the saturated group. Good sources of essential fatty acids are; fresh raw beef, chicken, and fish oils such as cod liver oil. Unsaturated vegetable oils also contain some useable fatty acids but should be kept to a minimum, as excessive use in the diet may interfere with the absorption of some of the essential fatty acids from the saturated group.

Fatty acids are basically long chains of carbon and hydrogen and are one of the major sources of energy for the body. Unfortunately for the energy in fat molecules to be released, it requires considerable amounts of oxygen, therefore when oxygen levels are low the body basically uses blood sugar for energy.

[Limey Kennels]

Default Re: Grainless dod food



AND HERE IN THE LINK OF LINKS CONSIRNING THE VALUE OF CARBS

Feeding the Racing Greyhound

Feeding for Performance

John Kohnke BVSc, RDA

Sydney, Australia

The sport of greyhound racing has become more popular and competitive over recent years, with the breeding and

purchase of finer, sprint bred greyhounds, improved race track geometry and surfaces, which have all helped to lift

the standard of performance. Training methods have changed based on exercise physiology research and with it, the

‘science’ of feeding has provided new guidelines for feeding to optimise performance. It is now even more important

that nutrition is not a limiting factor to performance. A nutritionally adequate and well balanced diet is paramount to

health, performance and adaptation of the greyhound to the physical and metabolic stresses of racing. The racing diet

for successful competitive racing has been refined since lure racing became the industry standard for grading

wagering odds relative to body weight and performance.

Although diets were traditionally based on fresh red meat and cereal meals, with zoonotic disease risks such as BSE

and the rising cost of inspected meat in many countries, there has been a change in the staple diet for racing

greyhounds to scientifically formulated high energy dense compounded dry foods to partly or fully replace meat. As

every trainer is looking for an ‘edge’ in performance to win and an improvement in nutrition can help ensure optimum

speed and competitive racing. Traditionally, both the training and feeding of the racing greyhound has been largely

considered an ‘art’ passed on by older trainers to younger trainers, based on ‘trial and success’ rather than a ‘science’.

Although scientific calculations can provide an estimate of the relative nutritional intake, based on the established

nutritional value of each constituent in the diet, the exact scientific requirements of racing greyhounds have not been

established. Not all trainers are able to purchase the best quality feed as there is a limit to the feeding budget in a

racing kennel. When the price of a certain meat increases, trainers switch to alternatives or feed a larger proportion of

dry feed. Feeding remains one of the areas of animal nutrition still influenced by tradition and folklore, with many

time honoured feeding practices.





The ‘Science’ of Feeding

Over recent years, there have been a number of extensive reviews on the traditional methods of diet composition and

feeding practices of racing greyhounds. A number of reviews of greyhound nutrition and feeding have been published

over the last three decades, summarizing the scientific and practical aspects of dietary needs, ration formulation, and

feeding methods.1-8. Some of the data has been extrapolated from the established nutritional needs of working dogs,

with adaptations to meet the often higher needs of racing greyhounds. The ‘art’ is knowing how much feed, when to

feed, and the likes and dislikes of an individual animal.2. The ‘science’ is understanding the nutritional needs of the

greyhound, the relative value of different feeds and the benefits or disadvantages of individual ingredients or

combinations.2. A racing greyhound needs an adequate intake of energy for maintenance and exercise, which besides

water, is the most important nutrient in a diet and often the one that is limiting to performance.

Nutritional Aims

In addition to maintaining health and vitality, the diet should meet the following criteria:

1. Provide an economical, palatable, low bulk, highly digestible ration to maintain body weight within set limits and

ensure optimal performance. 2, 7, 8.

2. Provide optimal proportions of carbohydrate, protein, fat and fibre to maximize energy density while minimising

gut weight and volume compatible with efficient digestive function. 3, 7.

3. Maintain optimal hydration, electrolyte, anaerobic buffering capacity and fluid balance over a variety of climatic

conditions and racing distances. 3, 6, 7.

4. Ensure energy and nutrient balance to counteract imbalances and inadequate levels in the diet and meet the

specific metabolic demand for performance.2.

5. Provide a diet formulated to counteract physical stress on the musculoskeletal system, ensure adaptation to and

optimal recovery from racing and injury, and maintain the immune response and resistance against disease

under high-stress situations of housing and repeated physical exercise.5.

Feeding the Racing Greyhound for Performance Page 2

Nutritional Aims (cont.)

These aims can be achieved by careful selection of feed ingredients, regular monitoring of body weight, and use of

specific supplements to correct low or inadequate feed levels relative to performance requirements and level of

stress.1-8.

[Limey Kennels]

Default Re: Grainless dod food



Highly Digestible, Minimum Bulk Diet with Adequate Nutrient Content

In addition to maintaining health and vitality common to all canine species, greyhounds are a specific athlete with

important performance related nutritional needs.

The diet must provide optimal and balanced proportions of carbohydrates, protein, fat and fibre to maximise energy

density, while minimising gut weight and feed volume compatible with efficient digestive function and power-toweight

ratio. Greyhounds have the highest power-to-weight ratio of any athlete. Gut fill and body weight has a large

influence on the speed and ultimate performance of a greyhound running over a range of distances between 300-700

metres. The traditional meat based diets with a total intake of 1000g daily (as fed) containing an average of 50-70%

fresh red meat by weight or 500-700g for an average 30 kg (66 lb) greyhound, combined with 30-50% of a low protein,

low fat dry food or kibble (300 g daily) are still popular. However, these feed combinations may be excessively bulky

for greyhounds to consume, especially as it is often fed as a single meal daily. The actual dry matter content of raw

meat in the fresh state is only 20% with water contributing the major portion of the weight and bulk. The advent of

low bulk, highly digestible extruded dry foods manufactured on a cereal and oil seed meal base, with high fat (20-30%)

and high crude protein (20-30%) as the major energy and protein sources, theoretically distends the gastrointestinal

tract to a lesser extent and are digested leaving a minimal bulk of stool.

Low bulk, complete feeds have not been well accepted in greyhound kennels because of a preference for traditional

meat-based feeding practices, as well as the perceived higher cost of these dry foods on a per kilogram basis (Table 1).

Dry foods processed by steam extrusion are designed to gelatinise starch to facilitate its digestion, enabling a reduced

feeding rate of 350-400g daily for a 30kg racing greyhound.

The negative aspect of a high protein, high fat, minimum bulk diet is that many trainers consider that the small bulk of

food leaves the greyhound appearing hungry, rather than full and content, when fed once daily compared to a more

bulky meat-based diet. The positive benefit of a low bulk, highly digestible diet is the lower stool bulk, which reduces

kennel and turn-out clean up time and less faecal odour in kennels when fresh meat is eliminated from the diet.

In countries with a warm climate, the amount of water consumed to maintain hydration can negate any weight

benefit obtained from feeding low bulk, high protein and high fat dry foods.

Various studies have found that high protein dry foods may be detrimental to speed and performance. On average, a

racing greyhound is able to run 0.1 metre/sec faster (about 2 lengths of the winning margin) over 500 metres when

fed a moderate protein diet (20-25% crude protein) as compared to a high protein diet containing in excess of 30%

crude protein.1.

These studies concluded that a dry food based diet, which contained 42% of the energy from carbohydrates, 33% from

fat and 24% from protein, provided the best dietary balance to optimise speed and performance over a standard 500

metre race distance. However, greyhounds on this diet were slightly heavier in body weight compared to greyhounds

fed a diet containing higher protein and fat, with a lower content of carbohydrate. This difference in body weight was

attributed to a greater muscle bulk in greyhounds fed on the medium protein diet.9.

How to Achieve the Optimum Carbohydrate, Fat and Protein Balance for Performance

A proportion of 50% of meat by weight in the total diet has been shown to be of benefit in helping to improve overall

speed in a racing greyhound. The ration ideally should contain a blend of meat and dry food to provide energy from

an optimum ratio of carbohydrate, fat and protein. This important balance must be provided in bulk that can be

consumed easily without adding excess gut weight.

Traditionally, Australian trainers feed a carbohydrate-based meal for breakfast in the form of cooked cereal biscuits.

The traditional evening meal is based on lean meat and dry food, with additional vegetables if required.

Feeding the Racing Greyhound for Performance Page 3

How to Achieve the Optimum Carbohydrate, Fat and Protein Balance for Performance (cont.)

A simple calculation (in the table below) based on the energy content of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats can be used

to determine the balance needed between these foods to meet the average daily energy requirement for a

greyhound in training under moderate conditions (15-25oc). Under cold conditions below 8oc, it is best to increase

the carbohydrate content of the diet by 10%. During hot weather above 30oc, an increase in the fat content by 5-7%

will help meet the elevated energy expended as a greyhound pants to cool.

A good quality dry food can be combined with a meat base to provide the energy intake in the optimum ratios

between carbohydrate (CHO), protein and fat.