What's in the fish? Is it good for the dog?
Fish meat is an excellent source of animal protein for domestic carnivores such as dogs. On average, fish flesh does not provide less than 20 to 22 g of protein per 100g. Fish therefore naturally finds its place in the bowl of a dog fed with household food, alongside other protein sources such as meat, offal and eggs.
Fish can even completely replace meat in this type of diet. This can be particularly interesting in dogs with food allergies to beef or chicken.As fish proteins are proteins less often used to feed dogs, they are therefore likely to be less allergenic for them.
Fatty fish provide essential fatty acids from the omega 3 family, "good fats" necessary for the proper functioning of the body, with anti-inflammatory, anti-platelet aggregation and vaso- dilators.
Also read: Fish oil for dogsWhat fish to give your dog? Which ones to avoid?
A dog can eat all species of fish without any problem: sardines, cod, carp, hake, julienne, place, salmon, mackerel, trout, pike etc! As the protein content is roughly comparable between all these species, the choice of the type of fish will in reality mainly depend on its fat content.
Indeed, if fatty fish such as sardines, salmon, herring, tuna or mackerel provide "good fat" , it is still fat which adds calories to the ration dog food at a rate of 9Kcal/g of lipid.On a daily basis, it is therefore preferable to reserve the flesh of your fish for animals that have high energy needs such as very athletic or growing animals, for example. For sedentary and/or sterilized dogs, whose energy needs are lower, it is preferable to distribute the precious omega 3 daily in the form of fish oil capsules. Of course, these dogs will also be able to eat these fatty fish, but not occasionally.
For the daily diet of dogs with normal to reduced energy needs, it is therefore preferable to opt for white fish, rich in protein and lean (i.e. low in fat ). Pollock, bass, carp, hake, whiting, panga, pollack, cod are among them.
And heavy metals then?
Unfortunately, you are aware that most fish today contain pollutants such as heavy metals which, if consumed daily, can cause adverse he alth effects.Dogs that eat fish daily are therefore not spared from this contamination. Should we give up the nutritional benefits of fish for all that? In our view, no, because all foods (unfortunately) contain contaminants, but we can nevertheless limit this contamination by:
- preferring the consumption of white fish, less fatty and therefore naturally less "loaded" in heavy metals which accumulate especially in fat,
- limiting the consumption of oily fish and fish that reach the end of the food chain, known to accumulate more pollutants: shark, tuna, swordfish, marlin, sea bream, carp, eel, pike or monkfish,
- varying animal protein sources in the household ration if possible ( alternating fish, meat and eggs).
Fish for dogs: some precautions to take
Fish, in what form?
The dog can eat fish:
- fresh,
- canned, when cooked naturally with no added fat and no other ingredients added,
- or frozen (and after thawing in the refrigerator or cooking, of course).
Marinated, smoked, brined or dried and s alted fish are obviously to be avoided in dogs.
Fish, raw or cooked?
Raw fish flesh can be nutritionally interesting because overcooking denatures its proteins, making them a little less digestible for the dog. but it is much less sanitary speaking. Indeed, fish, like all animal species, are frequently parasitized. These can be parasites clinging to the gills, fins or skin or parasites that infest their viscera, gonads or even their flesh.Also, if you want to distribute raw fish meat to your dog, it is preferable that it be meat previously frozen for at least 1 month at -20°C. This “treatment” makes it possible to eliminate the parasites present in the fish. Before giving the raw fish flesh to the dog, it will then be necessary to take care to thaw it in the refrigerator or quickly in the microwave to avoid bacterial development in the food. Of course, you will also have to make sure to deworm your dog regularly.
However, it is not recommended to give raw fish every day to your dog because raw fish flesh contains thiaminase, an enzyme that degrades vitamin B1. A diet that would therefore be too rich in thiaminase would therefore lead to vitamin B1 deficiency and neurological disorders in dogs.
The simplest and safest, therefore, remains to distribute the cooked fish flesh to the dog, especially if its consumption of fish is frequent.To preserve the nutritional quality of proteins while getting rid of parasites and thiaminase, it is necessary to opt for gentle steaming or poaching to bring the fish flesh to 60°C in the heart for a few minutes.
Watch out for the edges
As for us, fish bones can be dangerous for the dog if he swallows them. So prefer to distribute fish meat with its bones removed to your dog rather than the whole fish.
How much fish can you feed a dog?
The amount of fish you can give a dog depends on its size and physical activity. It generally varies between 13 and 25 grams of white fish per kg of body weight per day.
It will obviously have to be calculated precisely with the support of your veterinarian when developing your animal's standard ration.
Read also: Calculate a household ration for your dogWhat fish are in fish cakes?
In fish croquettes, as in “meat” croquettes, the fish used as an ingredient generally corresponds to animal by-products, from fishing or from the food industry.