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the Keto diet for dogs?


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In my admittedly limited investigations into keto diets for dogs it looked to me like at least some folks feed it raw.

My concern would be the very high amounts of fat in the diet. Most raw diets don't contain this much fat unless it's for high performance dogs like sled dogs. Dogs utilize fat for energy more effectively than humans, but still for a dog that's not as active as a sled dog (I wonder if their diets have as much fat when they're not actually mushing?) or similar working dog I'd be concerned about pancreatitis.

Depending on what your client was feeding her dog before, I wonder if maybe the low carbs alone are contributing to the allergy relief. Dogs don't have a nutritional requirement for carbs, though they're abundant in commercial pet foods.

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On 7/24/2018 at 12:48 PM, Tommy Coyote said:

I have a customer who is on the Keto diet.  She is now feeding her Boston Keto.  She swears by it.  Says her allergies are  clearing right up

Keto is very low carbs, very high fat and protein. Fat is a out 70 to 80 percent.   

Any thoughts on this?

Keto is an unhealthy diet for humans.

Also, dietary requirements for humans are obviously very different than for dogs so this " I believe it is good for me so must also be good for my dog (parrot, rabbit, cat, iguana et etc) is just silly.

In general there is a lot of nonsense circulating in diet discussions on the net, both in the human and dog world. 

For instance is this some interesting info as regards to carbs in dog diets: https://terriermandotcom.blogspot.com/2018/07/are-you-killing-your-dog-with-grain-free.html

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On 7/26/2018 at 7:52 AM, Smalahundur said:

In general there is a lot of nonsense circulating in diet discussions on the net, both in the human and dog world. 

For instance is this some interesting info as regards to carbs in dog diets: https://terriermandotcom.blogspot.com/2018/07/are-you-killing-your-dog-with-grain-free.html

A vet whom I highly respect has also been active in linking to the article (and research) that Terrierman posts. Dogs are not wolves and, with dogs as well as with people, dietary ideas and fads abound, and are frequently fiercely contested. The old adage of "moderation in all things" is something we might all try to remember! 

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I was interested in an article I came across which said that keto diets were originally developed to treat epilepsy in humans and showed some positive effects. There are some journal articles with evidence that it might have a positive effect on dogs with epilepsy too. Was wondering whether or not anyone had experience with a vet prescribing it for that purpose and what their experience with it was.

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On 8/1/2018 at 8:22 PM, Pearse said:

I was interested in an article I came across which said that keto diets were originally developed to treat epilepsy in humans and showed some positive effects. There are some journal articles with evidence that it might have a positive effect on dogs with epilepsy too. Was wondering whether or not anyone had experience with a vet prescribing it for that purpose and what their experience with it was.

I had a dog with epilepsy, and one of the vets I consulted was a Certified Chinese Medicine vet (in addition to being a traditionally trained vet). The general treatment she prescribes is to put her epilepsy clients on a raw diet (not sure how different that is from a keto diet), and supplement with certain Chinese herbs. She has had very good results with many other epileptic dogs - but it didn't work for my dog unfortunately. Since epilepsy can have different causes, the raw diet wouldn't work for all affected dogs, but from my reading, a raw diet (and maybe a keto diet) is a good first step - and does work for many dogs.  [Note: when the raw diet didn't help, the vet gave me a recipe for a vet-designed GARD diet - Glutamate and Aspartate-Reduced Diet. Unfortunately, that didn't help either.  :-((  ]

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On 7/24/2018 at 9:43 AM, Mark Billadeau said:

How different is this diet from a raw diet except for the cooking?

i don't know if she is feeding her raw ready made.  You would really have to watch to make sure the nutruents were right.  I wondered about getting enough organ meat and calcium.

Keto is very low carb - like under 50 grams a day.  70 to 80 percent good fats and fats from meat.  And high quality protein.   

People on this diet think that carbs are the cause of all earthly ills.  Carbs are poison.

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Keto fans claim that the diet slows cancer and helps to control epilepsy.   

The only warning I have seen says to stay away from high fat dairy.  One thing I read says it is basically the raw diet only you cook it.

Trouble is that there is no research backing up all these claims.  Lots of personal stories though.

There is a Keto dog food you can buy but it was about $30 for 4 pounds.  That would last me about 3 days.  Not feasible for me.

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