Keto For Dogs: What You Need To Know

Many people are now feeding their dogs a ketogenic diet. If youre a dog owner too you might be wondering: Is Keto good for my pup?

Its a good question. Diet matters for dogs just like it matters for people. It affects their disease risk energy levels and lifespan.

But unlike people dogs cant choose what they eat. Unless they sniff their way into the trash their nutrition is entirely up to you.

Your mission should you choose to accept it is to feed your pup a diet that gives the best chance of a long happy life.

That diet might look a lot like Keto. As you might imagine we dont have the research on Keto for dogs that we do on Keto for humans. But the research that does existcombined with what we know about the natural diet of dogsmakes Keto a promising option for doggy dinner.

What Is A Ketogenic Diet?

A ketogenic diet (or Keto diet) is a high-fat moderate protein very low-carb eating plan. In animals and humans keeping carbohydrates low triggers a series of metabolic changes that leads to fat-burning and ketone production.

The main metabolic change on Keto is a drop in insulin the master energy hormone. Low insulin signals the breakdown of stored body fat (called lipolysis) and this fat is subsequently burned in the muscles liver and other tissues.

Along with fat ketones provide energy tooespecially to the brain. The brain normally runs on glucose but the energy burden shifts to ketones when ketones are in high supply.

A ketone-fueled brain looks to be an enhanced brain. For example a single ketogenic meal showed improved working memory attention and other cognitive improvements in elderly adults.

Elevated ketones have also shown the potential to improve cognition in dogs. (Older beagles to be exact). This was achieved not with a standard Keto diet but by supplementing the beagles with medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) a type of fat that boosts ketones even in the presence of carbs.

Mental performance however is just one potential benefit of Keto for dogs. Well review the other benefits soon but first lets examine how dogs are meant to eat.

Keto: A Species-Specific Diet For Dogs

Genetically speaking dogs are nearly indistinguishable from wolves. They may be friendlier but theyre still carnivores.

Carnivores like wolves dogs and cats evolved to eat meat. Thats their ancestral diet.

Carnivores exist solely on the flesh of other animals. Animal flesh is low to high in fat moderate to high in protein and extremely low in carbs. The fat and protein content will vary by the type of meat but carbs always remain low.

This means that a dogs ancestral diet is more or less ketogenic. A carnivore diet may not be the most ketogenic diet (especially if its primarily lean meats) but its certainly a very low-carb diet.

Unfortunately many dog foods dog chows and dog kibbles are grain or potato-based. These pseudo foods dont mimic the diets dogs have evolved to eat.

More research is needed but theres potentially a link between high-carb diets and the high prevalence of obesity and cancer in canine populations. Lets explore that now.

Keto for Dogs with Obesity

According to one estimate 25% of dogs seen for veterinary care are obese. Its the most common diet-related condition in pets.

Obese dogs are at higher risk for similar diseases as obese humans: diabetes cancer heart disease hypertension osteoarthritis and reproductive disorders. The excess weight can take years off a pets life.

Theres plenty of literature on Keto for weight loss in obese people. Why does it work? One reason is that Keto helps reduce hunger hormones like ghrelin. Less hunger less overeating less weight gain.

Theres less evidence on Keto for obese dogs but one low-carb trial did have some success with obese beagles. The dogs were fed about 50% of their regular calories exercised daily and were provided adequate protein to prevent muscle loss. All the dogs lost weight and showed improvements in energy ease of breathing and mobility.

Keto for Dogs With Cancer

There are about 65 million dogs in the United States. Each year around six million of them will be diagnosed with cancer.

In humans and animals cancer remains a mysterious set of diseases. But one feature of many cancers is something called the Warburg Effect.

The Warburg Effect describes the cancer cells preference for glucose. More so than healthy cells cancer cells love to run on sugar.

Thats where Keto comes in. By keeping blood sugar low the Keto diet may curb cancer in both dogs and humans.

In one case study a 5-year-old mixed breed named Brad had an oral fibrosarcoma tumor removed before being placed on a ketogenic diet. The normal survival time for dogs in this situation? Seven to twelve months.

But after 18 months of Keto dieting Brad was still going strong. The cancer-related inflammation had dissipated and his energy came roaring back.

A non-profit called KetoPet also reports good results using a Keto diet to treat dogs with late-stage cancer. Many of their patients continue to live active lives long after their expected survival times.

Keto For Dogs With Seizures

About 1-2% of dogs suffer from epileptic seizures. Not only do these seizures impact a dogs quality of life but they also appear to shorten it.

A Keto diet may help according to one randomized controlled trial. The dogs had either zero seizures or a 50% reduction in seizure frequency during the three-month test period when eating Keto.

Ketos anti-epileptic effects likely involve glutamate (an excitatory chemical) and GABA (a relaxing chemical) in the brain. Long story short: Keto suppresses the excitatory glutamate and boosts the relaxative GABA.

Precautions

As with all diets there is never a one-size-fits-all approach and the same applies to your pup.

Transitioning away from a standard doggy diet could potentially result in side effects and symptoms. Even our four-legged friends may be subject to a dose of the Keto flu.

It is also crucial to ensure that whatever dietary approach you choose you are meeting all of your dogs nutritional needs.

How To Feed Your Dog A Keto Diet?

If you want your dog to be a Keto dog you have two main options:Feed your dog raw meatUse a Keto-friendly dog food

Raw meat is closer to what nature intended but sanitation can be an issue. Dogs can generally tolerate the pathogens in raw meat but humans cant. Proper cleanup and handling become paramount.

If this concerns you search for Keto dog food online. Its not hard to find.

For general health and weight maintenance consider a high-protein species-specific diet for your pup. About 50% fat and 50% protein (by calories) is what wolves eat in the wild.

If youre considering using Keto for its potential to ease your dogs epilepsy or cancer symptoms consider bumping up the fat intake to 70 or 80% filling in the rest with protein. Make up 5-10% of these calories with MCTs to further boost ketone levels.

Lets hear from you now. Are you feeding your pup a Keto or carnivore diet? Hows it working out? Drop a comment and share your story.

If your dog is suffering with a medical condition or currently on any medication ? we strongly advise working with a trained animal care professional before making any dietary adjustments.

A lot of people are feeding their pets ketogenic diets. If you’re a dog owner you may be thinking What is Keto beneficial for my dog?

Its a good question. Diet is important for dogs just as it does for humans. It can affect their risk of developing diseases as well as their energy levels and longevity.

However unlike humans they aren’t able to choose the food they consume. If they don’t sniff their way to the garbage and their diet is completely dependent on you.

If you decide for it to do so will be to provide your dog an appropriate diet that will give him the greatest chance of living an extended healthy life.

The diet could appear similar to Keto. It is likely that there isn’t as much research into Keto for dogs like we have with Keto to humans. However the research we do have combined with the knowledge we have about the diet that is natural to dogs makes Keto an appealing alternative for a doggy meal.

Let’s get into it.

What Is A Ketogenic Diet?

The ketogenic dietary plan (or Keto diet) is an extremely fat-rich moderate protein and a very low-carb diet. For humans and animals the low levels of carbohydrates trigger an array of metabolic changes that lead to burning fat and the production of ketone.

The primary metabolic shift on Keto is a decrease in insulin the main energy hormone. The low levels of insulin signal the breaking down of bodies fat (called lipolysis) which is then burned off in the liver muscles and various other tissues.

Alongside fat ketones also provide energy particularly for the brain. The brain is normally powered by glucose however the burden of energy shifts to ketones when ketones are plentiful.

A brain that is fueled by ketone appears like a more powerful brain. For instance one ketogenic meal was associated with an improvement in working memory concentration and other cognitive enhancements in older adults.

The ketones that are elevated have also demonstrated the ability to boost the dog’s cognition. (Older beagles to be precise). This was accomplished not by following a traditional Keto eating plan but rather by adding moderate-chain triglycerides (MCTs) which is a kind of fat that increases ketones even in an environment with carbs.

Mental performance is only one of the benefits from Keto to dogs. We will look at the other benefits in the near future But first let’s look at how dogs are supposed to consume food.

Keto: A Species-Specific Diet For Dogs

Genetically being a dog they are identical to the wolves. They might be more friendly however they are still carnivores.

Carnivores such as wolves dogs and cats have evolved to eat meat. This is their diet of the past.

Carnivores live solely by eating the meat of animals. The flesh of animals is low to saturated in fats moderately to high in protein and very low in carbohydrates. Protein and fat content will differ depending on the kind of meat however carbs are always low.

This implies that a dog’s ancestral diet can be either ketogenic or not. Carnivores may not be the ketogenic one (especially when it is mainly lean meats) however it is extremely low in carbs.

Unfortunately a lot of dog food such as dog chows dog chows and dog kibbles are either grain or potato-based. These fake foods don’t mimic the food that dogs are used to eating.

Further research is required however there is a possible connection between diets high in carbs and the incidence of cancer and obesity in the canine population. Let’s look into that right today.

Keto to help Dogs with Obesity

According to a study according to one estimate 25% of dogs that receive vet care are overweight. It is the most frequent pet health issue that is related to diet.

Dogs who are overweight are at greater risk of developing similar illnesses as overweight humans: diabetes heart disease cancer osteoarthritis hypertension and reproductive diseases. The extra weight can eat away years from the life of a pet.

There is a lot of research on Keto to lose weight for obese individuals. What is the reason it works? The reason could be that Keto aids in reducing hunger hormones such as Ghrelin. This means less hunger less eating and less weight gain.

There is less research on Keto for overweight dogs However one study with a low-carb diet had some success with overweight beagles. They were given approximately 50percent of normal calories were exercised regularly and received adequate protein intake to avoid muscle loss. All of the dogs lost weight and displayed improvement in energy levels and breathing ease and mobility.