When we think about feeding a working or sporting dog, it’s easy to focus on what goes into the bowl. How much protein? How much fat? Do they need carbohydrates? Should we add supplements? But there is another way we can look at performance nutrition.
Look at the dog.
Training places the body under stress. We want it to. That stress is what gives the body a reason to adapt.
A run challenges energy systems and muscles. Tendons and connective tissues experience mechanical load. The nervous system is repeatedly asked to coordinate movement, process information and respond to the environment.
Then comes recovery.
This is where the body has to repair and adapt so that it is better prepared for the next exposure.
Training creates the stimulus. Nutrition and recovery create the adaptation.
So, if nutrition is not keeping up with what we are asking the dog to do, what might we actually see?
First, what are we asking the dog to fuel?
There isn't really one "working dog diet" because working dogs don't all do the same work.
Think about the difference between a greyhound and a sled dog. The greyhound needs enormous amounts of energy very quickly. Stored ATP and phosphocreatine provide energy for the first explosive movements, while glycolysis rapidly produces ATP from glucose as the sprint continues. A sled dog has a completely different problem to solve. It needs to produce energy for hours rather than seconds. Here, oxidative metabolism and fat become far more important.
Then we have dogs somewhere in between.
Agility and flyball involve repeated explosive efforts. Gundog and farm work can involve hours of moderate activity. Canicross can move between predominantly aerobic work and periods of considerably higher intensity depending on speed, terrain and the dog. The lines aren't absolute, but they show us why nutrition needs to reflect the work being performed.
So, what does it look like when that doesn’t happen?
-
Recovery starts taking longer
A dog that is appropriately challenged by training should be tired sometimes. But are you now seeing a change in the dog's normal recovery pattern?
Perhaps they previously bounced back quickly after a run but are now noticeably flat the following day. Maybe they need longer between training sessions, appear less enthusiastic about subsequent work or their performance deteriorates when sessions are close together.
That suggests the balance between training stress and recovery deserves a closer look. Nutrition is of course only one part of that equation, but it is an important one.
-
Weight or body condition starts changing
As workload increases, so does the amount of energy the dog needs to support both the work itself and subsequent recovery.
If that additional energy is not supplied through the diet, the body has to find it elsewhere.
Stored body fat provides one source. But the body may also take what it needs from muscles!
Look at body condition.
Look at muscle condition.
Pay particular attention to changes across the spine, pelvis and hindquarters.
Photographs taken regularly from the same angles can also make gradual changes easier to identify.
A lean canine athlete is not necessarily an underfed canine athlete. Athletic dogs will often carry relatively little excess body fat. But if a dog that has previously maintained a stable athletic condition begins losing weight or muscle after an increase in workload, their nutritional intake deserves attention.
-
Recurrent injuries
Working dogs place repeated mechanical stress on muscles, tendons, ligaments and bone. These tissues respond to training by repairing and remodelling, and that process requires adequate energy and nutrients.
Recurrent strains, persistent soreness or injuries that seem slow to resolve can therefore be a reason to look beyond the injured tissue itself.
Is the dog getting enough energy to support both training and repair? Is protein providing sufficient amino acids for tissue turnover? Is the wider diet supplying the micronutrients involved in normal tissue maintenance and recovery?
Nutrition won't prevent every injury, but recurrent problems can be a reason to question whether what's in the bowl is adequately supporting your dog's capacity to recover and adapt.
-
GI Disturbances
Recurring loose stools, vomiting, appetite changes or digestive discomfort around training may suggest that workload, feeding and recovery are not quite matching up. Then, if digestion or nutrient absorption is compromised, fewer nutrients are available to support energy production and recovery, potentially making it harder for the dog to meet the demands of training.
In these cases, it’s worth looking at feeding times, meal size and the types of food being fed around training, work and recovery.
-
Fatigue and behavioural changes
A working dog that becomes unusually tired, flat, distracted or reluctant to work may be showing signs that recovery is falling behind demand. Energy availability, hydration, hunger and recovery can all influence motivation, concentration and willingness to work.
One tired session tells us very little. But if a normally enthusiastic dog starts fading earlier or behaving differently around training, it is worth looking at their fuelling and recovery alongside their training load.
In a nutshell…
Different types of work create different demands on your dog, and those demands change with training volume, intensity and recovery. Our dogs can give us some useful clues when their nutrition isn’t quite matching up. Slower recovery, changes in body or muscle condition, recurrent injuries, GI disturbances, fatigue and changes in behaviour can all be reasons to take another look at nutrition alongside the dog's training load. None of these signs automatically means the diet is at fault. But when we start seeing changes from what is normal for that individual dog, particularly as their workload increases, it’s worth asking a simple question:
Is what we're putting in the bowl still enough to support what we're asking this dog to do?
Lisa Hannaby-Aird
A Registered Associate Nutritionist and author of Nutrition for Dogs, Lisa combines expertise in nutrition, psychology, biochemistry, and neuroscience to help dog owners understand the science behind canine health, behaviour, and nutrition.