power bars

[Dan Newcombe]

If people want to feed them then i cant see any harm. Mine often have a bit of a mars bar if i am feeling guilty and eating one when they are watching but they don't require it.

Some combination of our dogs are out 5/6 times a week, some days they get a bit of something at lunchtime like a digestive or a custard cream but not always and there doesn't seem to be any difference between the days to be honest, its more for us to feel like we are being nice as we are having lunch.

A dog working once a week is very unlikely to need to be supplementary fed even in normal meals let alone on the day btu there again, each to their own.

On very wet days we often put jackets on the dogs at lunch and one the way home and i would say this has a larger effect than additional food.

[RedWC]

I have had a dog collapse on me, not nice. I now carry Royal Canin Energy in my game bag just in case. I also feed all the dogs a sausage roll at lunchtime, cheap ASDA high fat crap ones, cockers get jackets on labs dont. Its a long hard day on the grouse for them and they cover a lot of miles - on pheasant shoots I do the same, several of ours are out 4 days a week, its hard graft and a bit of tlc goes a long way to keep them going.

[Springfield Pointers]

Chocolates, Mars Bars and Custard Cremes are not food for dogs. In any instance. People are not doing their dogs any favors by feeding them confectionery.

A fit dog shouldn't need much more during the day, even in the cold, if you're going to give them something give them food that is healthy. Dogs that are hunting regularly should be fed accordingly at meal times.

[ormeview]

A couple of nice fatty sausages at lunch time helps, But my take on lack of energy is that they get Dehydrated even in the winter, so keeping their fluid levels up must help.
Some of mine do not like drinking in the back of the truck, they much prefer a muddy puddle.

Feeding the right diet for the working season is the way to go, I up the food by at least 25% for some but then every dog is different.

Dave.

[vicky payne]

So.....
There are a few issues here.
One is fitness and conditioning. Dogs will flag if they aren't fit enough, and aren't trained adequately for the work they are doing (so whilst running with a bike is good, the dog may still tire if quartering in heavy cover).
Another is fuel. Dogs run off fat and protein more than carbs. Many working dogs foods are a bit low in fat for endurance work, so for a very hard working dog you can add some extra fat. Butchers trimmings are ideal!
Third is timing of feeding. I think dogs work better with a small feed in the morning (1-2hours before work at least) and the rest an hour after work. The modern hard hunting dog doesn't seem to do well on one big feed a day.
Snacks shouldn't be needed for a fit, properly fueled dog. BUT if you feel your dog needs a boost....fat is the key again. Sugars and carbs just aren't a dogs primary fuel. Pemmikan bars are good, but so are fatty high meat sausages, or an egg. You want max calories in a quickly digested, small snack. Sugar should only be used to revive a collapsing dog....and then look at management of the dog!
Finally, hydration. Dogs don't lose much salt when exercising and electrolytes have been shown to offer no faster recovery in sled dogs than plain water, so offer drinks of tepid water regularly. My trialling bitch is a big drinker, the boys less so...

[Contender]

So.....
There are a few issues here.
One is fitness and conditioning. Dogs will flag if they aren't fit enough, and aren't trained adequately for the work they are doing (so whilst running with a bike is good, the dog may still tire if quartering in heavy cover).
Another is fuel. Dogs run off fat and protein more than carbs. Many working dogs foods are a bit low in fat for endurance work, so for a very hard working dog you can add some extra fat. Butchers trimmings are ideal!
Third is timing of feeding. I think dogs work better with a small feed in the morning (1-2hours before work at least) and the rest an hour after work. The modern hard hunting dog doesn't seem to do well on one big feed a day.
Snacks shouldn't be needed for a fit, properly fueled dog. BUT if you feel your dog needs a boost....fat is the key again. Sugars and carbs just aren't a dogs primary fuel. Pemmikan bars are good, but so are fatty high meat sausages, or an egg. You want max calories in a quickly digested, small snack. Sugar should only be used to revive a collapsing dog....and then look at management of the dog!
Finally, hydration. Dogs don't lose much salt when exercising and electrolytes have been shown to offer no faster recovery in sled dogs than plain water, so offer drinks of tepid water regularly. My trialling bitch is a big drinker, the boys less so...

I think Vicky pretty much answered this to the full! I only want to say that you can't put enough emphasis on the overall management of your dog(s) and remember that should you have more, then what works for one may not work as well for one of the others. Get your feed regime to work for your dog, keep a good daily routine (yes, it can affect your dog as they're sensitive souls and stress can affect them), weigh your dog (you'd be surprised) and make sure to have it checked over at least once a year by your vet! (they're pretty good at detecting stuff that you can't).

Some of my dogs have taken part in a little experiment this year which involved control weighing before the start of the grouse season and then weekly over a period of time. They were wearing smart collars which collected info including one interesting fact: how many Kcal's the dog used during that day working on the moor (based on age, sex & weight). The dogs that took part all GAINED weight - not loosing, as so many complain about - because they gained more muscles! Their feeding regime had been adjusted BEFORE they started to work hard and they were swapped between 2 types of feed accordingly making sure they got the correct amount of Kcal's not only to cover what they'd "burned" that day but making sure they would have enough energy to "burn" the following day. If you really want to get it spot on, it would require you put your hand in the pocket and feed a really high, quality food, the kind where you can swap from one type to the other WITHOUT problems even if it's from day to day (mine are often swapped from day to day during the shooting season accordingly) OR you feed a good quality raw diet.

If you're in need of a christmas gadget present, you can get a simplified version of the type of smart collar I've used for my dogs (Fitbark is good once you get the hang of it) and it will give you precise knowledge about the feed amount you'd need to feed based on Kcal's burned. You would manually have to factor in weather conditions on that type of collar. Once your feeding regime is as good as it gets, you really wont need to feed any supplements! If your dog still collapses, it would either be a medical condition OR not enough water.

Natasha

[Naj]

Two great posts. I don't think some understand conditioning and what a fit dog should look like, hence the common complaint that they can't keep weight on a dog.

Naj

[Sam&Maverick]

I'm no expert but surely the same premise is the same of humans who are exercising hard & regularly? Food is fuel but there's no shortcut for conditioning.

[Rough_mut]

Just do what some of the dogs have started doing where I go,

Let them eat a bird or two as their picking up

RM

[Cambusvale]

Just do what some of the dogs have started doing where I go,

Let them eat a bird or two as their picking up

RM

Is that with a mars bar?