Can A High Protein Diet Cause Kidney Problems?
Some dog foods have meat products as first ingredient and I have been told that is a good thing. I have seen some listed with 23% crude protein and wonder how much is digestible. But somewhere along the line I have gotten the idea that too much protein damages the kidneys. Do you think 23% crude protein is adequate or too much?
This is a pretty loaded question because there are so many variable to consider that the other postings have neglected to mention.
First, when it comes to the AMOUNT of protein a dog requires, generally 22-26% for an adult dog. Performance diets and puppy diets often have more because of the growing/strain on muscles. Dogs who are finished growing and just want to maintain a regular wait are normally on diets with low 20% protein diets.
Second, when feeding foods be VERY wary about what is actually meant by 23% protein. IF YOU FEED A LOW QUALITY FOOD YOU ARE NOT GETTING 23% PROTEIN. By low quality foods I mean Science Diet, Iams, Eukanuba, Purina, Pedigree, Royal Canin, Walthams, etc, and grocery store varieties like Dog Chow, Ol Roy, Kibbles’n'Bits, etc.
These foods ARE ALL LOW QUALITY because they contain by-products and corn which are normally the first two ingredients. These ingredients COUNT towards the total protein in the food but DOGS CANNOT DIGEST THEM. So instead of getting 23% protein they may only actually be absorbing 5-10%. This is why the majority of dogs on these foods are so unhealthy. They are ridden with different diseases like cancer, diabetes, etc because they are not getting the nutrition that their body needs.
Third, if a dog food has a high quality protein like fresh, human grade, eggs, chicken and turkey, then their body does not have to work as hard because these proteins are 90-100% digestible. (Corn is only about 30-40% digestible). For working or athletic dogs, a high protein diet based on chicken and turkey is KEY to keeping them healthy.
I think if you knew more about dog food you would realize that the “popular” companies listed above are using far worse ingredients that are going to cause kidney and other problems then just looking at the protein percentage. These companies are KILLING peoples pets by using things like PROVEN CANCER CAUSING CHEMICAL PRESERVATIVES.
My suggestion is feed a good quality food like Innova, Wellness, Karma, Evolve, Solid Gold, Canidae, Evo(42% protein, based on a raw food diet). This way your dog is actually getting the nutrition you need and you won’t have to worry about things like kidney problems.
Good luck. I only wish there was a better way to get the message to people that major pet food companies are not what they appear.
23% protein is ok. Dogs that are high energy or growing large breed puppies are given 23% protein. Puppy chow is even higher in protein , but is only given for the first yr or two.
All prepared dog foods have a standard to follow. If you are using the correct food for your breed, age, size of dog, you can feel pretty confident that he/she is getting the correct amount of all essential vitamins and minerals.
I would not worry too much, if the dog food companines go out of the guidelines, they face the consequences.
In the sueing nations of today, no one wants to step out of line.
Yes, too much protein is believed hard on the kidneys. HOWEVER 23% is nowhere near enough to be a problem. Some preformance rations are about 30% which I haven’t seen cause problems (I feed one such to my running dogs). Now there is one formula that makes every vet I’ve shown the label toshreak – it’s 43% protein. oh yeah the company adertised they don’t do animal testing so the test dogs apparently are the ones who’s people are buying this food……..