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Study shows that dogs are healthier when few once a day.
#1
A University of Arizona study concludes that dogs age better and avoid certain health problems when fed once a day. The study did look at a large number of animals. So statistically it is good.
They do need to do further work to analyze the amount fed and other factors.
However it does look like  the key factor is the frequency of feeding.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/...tions.html

This does make sense. Carnivores would not naturally eat frequently. They would more likely eat their fill and then sleep for a day.
I wonder if they looked at breed differences and age differences of their samples.  This is a good study. It will be interesting to hear their final conclusions when
they have looked at other factors.
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Catherine

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#2
I have some doubts about the validity of this research. It is certainly true that dogs in the wild many centuries ago (or even wild dogs in some countries these days) were hunter carnivores and ate only when they found food. So the "once a day" does have some rationale. Yet wolves, the probable ancestors from whom dogs developed, have a different regime altogether: "....wolves don’t actually eat everyday. Instead, they live a feast or famine lifestyle; they may go several days without a meal and then gorge on over 20 pounds of meat when a kill is made." (Source: https://wolf.org/wolf-info/basic-wolf-in...g-behavior ). So the argument that wild dogs used to eat once a day is actually not accurate.

Dogs started being domesticated between 14,000 and 29,000 years ago! ( https://www.britannica.com/animal/dog ). Over the millennia they have adapted to eating in a fashion more akin to humans.

The research also does not go into detail about the precise diet used in feeding the dogs. Whilst one type of diet might be healthier on a "once per day" regime, it might not hold true for other diets (e.g. a mix of meat, fish and vegetables/fruit for vitamins and minerals). I think that *what* and *how much* one feeds a dog is much more important than *how often*. Much more research is needed before accepting this limited research - and personally I have considerable doubts about its validity. I will continue to feed Forgy twice a day. I also give him a doggie multivitamin/mineral tablet once a day.
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#3
I had the same concern LPC has about them not going into detail about what the dogs were being fed. Diet more than frequency plays a bigger role than anything.  Raw, kibble, or canned would affect the results as well.

I feed my own a combo of raw (raw being raw veggies mostly) and kibble because of price.  I've also had several dogs over the years that need 2 meals and snacks between to prevent them from getting sick.  Like that hungry sick where they vomit bile.  My husky will do it if he doesn't get enough food.  Lord help anyone who tries to tell any of them they have to skip a meal.  93
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#4
That is good feed back. I did wonder that they did not have details on what was being fed and what breeds were being fed. They also didn't mention the ages of the animals studied. All of these things would influence the results.

You are right about the wolves. They don't hunt every day. Even if they did they wouldn't catch something every day. They would have to eat up the whole kill because the meat would spoil. Then they would sleep it off.

Dogs that have lived with us for centuries are far removed from that life. We have learned to store foods so we can eat every day. Our dogs would certainly have joined us for meals once they were domesticated. A lot of humans need to eat multiple times a day. I am sure there are many dogs like that.

I wonder what dogs were used in the study and what their living circumstances are. If they studied lab animals the results would be odd because lab animals live odd lives.
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Catherine

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#5
(11-29-2021, 05:49 AM)Libby Wrote: Lord help anyone who tries to tell any of them they have to skip a meal.  93
ROFL! 79 79
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#6
It would be a miserable day for a dog if it was fed once a day and then got to watch us eating whenever we want.

I don't even want to think what would happen if I fed my guinea pigs once a day. I think we are up to about 8 meals a day now. They like to eat. Smiley4
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Catherine

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#7
My dogs get their main meals 12 hrs apart, and they start bugging about an hour before. If we even attempt to wait past the 6 am and 6 pm times, they start barking like crazy lol. With 5 dogs, it gets loud! Fennec will howl too. I can ask them, "Are you...?" and they start freaking out because they know "hungry" comes next!
I haven't even mentioned the cat! He gets in on it too! He follows me everywhere meowing!
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#8
I am just trying to picture your place in the morning. It must be a real panic until you feed them. What about the birds, do they join in?
You could do your own feeding study. You have enough willing participants, that is if you are feeding them. If you tried to skip a meal you would have a riot on your hands. 

Your dogs get a good quality food and you give a healthy amount. Your dogs get exercise too. That has got to be a factor in their feeding needs. 
Overfed and under exercised dogs might do better with less food. They would definitely do better with more exercise.
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Catherine

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