The debate still rages as to whether a meat-only diet is
the most species-appropriate food for dogs since they are descended from wolves. But anyone who feeds his dog in the same way as its wild ancestors is totally ignoring evolution and the needs of his pet
Here is why:
1
Domestication and targeted breeding have changed the dog to such an extent that its relationship to the wolf is almost impossible to detect visually.
2
The digestive mechanism is no longer the same either. Even the length of the intestines cannot be compared as it varies between large and small dogs.
3
The energy requirements are also totally different. A wolf in the wild covers up to 50 kilometres every day, while a family dog rarely walks more than seven or eight.
The dog is still distantly related to the wolf, but both have changed in the meantime to such an extent that their dietary habits, in particular, are no longer comparable.
An evolutionary study carried out by the University of Uppsala in Sweden in 2012 demonstrates that dogs and their feeding habits have evolved and changed in tandem with those of humans.
They found 30 copies of the gene that starts breaking down starch in the digestive tract, while wolves have just two of these genes. The scientists even found one specific variant of the gene needed to break starch down further that is exclusive to dogs.
This means that dogs are by no means purely carnivorous, although they are zoologically classified as a carnivore. A dog is really a carni-omnivore from a dietary viewpoint.
It is therefore better to offer pet food with a high, but not extremely high meat content. It would be even better to have a good understanding of what the meat content actually means. The Happy Dog brand brings transparency to this important question and lists the meat content as the proportion of animal protein to the total protein content.
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