There is an open debate about whether the dog is omnivorous or carnivorous The feed industry, veterinarians or nutrition experts offer very different opinions on this subject. In addition, the composition of the food varies enormously in the different types of diets, whether they are homemade or commercial, raw or cooked, and even dry or wet. What do dogs really eat?
In this article on our site we want to give a reliable answer to this current conflict that explains whether the dog is omnivorous or carnivorous, all based on scientific and contrasted facts.
Differences between omnivorous animals and carnivorous animals
From a morphoanatomical and physiological point of view, the differences between these types of animals are centered above all on their digestive tract and everything related to it.
Carnivorous animals have sharp teeth that help tear meat apart, and they don't chew too much, just enough for food to pass through down the esophagus. The position at me altime is usually standing with the head down, this favors the passage of food. Another feature intended for hunting prey, are claws
We should not confuse it with the position acquired by herbivorous animals, such as ungulates, since they only acquire this position to uproot the vegetation, chewing is carried out with the head up.
Omnivorous animals have flat molars, which favors chewing. The presence or absence of developed tusks does not indicate that an animal is not omnivorous, since its ancestor may have developed tusks to defend itself or that it was carnivorous.
Some characteristics of carnivorous animals are:
- The digestive tube of carnivorous animals is short, since it does not require the entire process of digesting vegetables, and they also do not have the same intestinal flora as omnivorous animals.
- The Digestive enzymes are also different between these animals. Some have enzymes specialized in the digestion of meat and others have some enzymes typical of herbivores and others of carnivores.
- The liver and kidneys of carnivorous animals produce certain substances in greater quantities than other animals with other types of diet.
What do dogs eat?
In most homes where dogs live, they are usually fed with feed that provide complete and balanced nutrition. There is a wide range of feeds on the market for different sizes, breeds, ages or pathologies.
If we pay attention and look at the nutritional labels we will see that most of them have a high concentration of carbohydrates, which can make us think that it is something necessary for the dog's nutrition. However, it is not so. Carbohydrates only lower the costs of the feed making them more accessible to the consumer, but it is not a quality food for our dog, in fact, there are few feeds that qualitatively approach diets based on real food, such as the BARF diet for dogs.
Furthermore, there is no doubt about whether the cat is omnivorous or carnivorous, we know that it is a strict carnivore, however, feed elaborated for them also carry carbohydrates. A quality diet for a dog is one that is based on animal protein, and can be supplemented or enriched with vegetable foods.
Reasons why dogs are facultative carnivores
Dogs are facultative carnivores This means that they have all the characteristics that define carnivores, both anatomically and physiologically, but for certain reasons that we will explain at the end of the article, they are able to digest and assimilate nutrients such as carbohydrates, present in foods such as cereals, legumes or fruits.
The Intestine length of dogs is very short, between 1, 8 and 4, 8 meters The differences between the breeds in terms of length, permeability and microbiota must be taken into account. The human being, as an omnivorous animal, has an intestine between 5 and 7 meters long. If you have a dog, you can easily check how sharp their teeth are, specifically the fangs, premolars and molars This is another characteristic by which we classify the dog as an animal carnivorous.
As we said at the beginning, carnivorous animals have a different intestinal flora than herbivorous or omnivorous animals. This intestinal flora serves, among many other things, to help ferment certain nutrients, such as carbohydrates. In dogs, the carbohydrate fermentation pattern is poor, although the breed must always be taken into account. By this, we mean that there are breeds that assimilate these nutrients better and other breeds barely assimilate them.
The brain primarily uses glucose to function. Dogs do not need a supply of carbohydrates, since they have alternative metabolic pathways through which they produce glucose from proteins. So, if the dog is not an omnivore, why can he assimilate some plant-based nutrients?
Nutritional epigenetics
To answer the previous question it is necessary to understand the concept of epigenetics Epigenetics refers to the force exerted by the environment on the genetic information of living beings. A clear example can be seen in the reproduction of sea turtles, whose young are born female or male depending on the temperature at which they develop.
During the domestication process of the dog (still under investigation), the pressures of their environment could cause changes in the synthesis of enzymes responsible for the digestion of nutrients, adapting dogs to survive by taking a diet based on "human waste" This has meant that, today, dogs can assimilate many nutrients from plant sources.
