What to feed an Australian Cattle Dog

As you may know, each breed of dog has its own unique set of nutritional requirements.
Their unique set of nutritional requirements have been passed on from generation to generation just like the breed's unique coat, body size and temperament. We have found that we can not change the genetic makeup of the animals we are feeding just by exposing them to a different diet for a small amount of time. Therefore, I suggest that Australian Cattle Dog owners try to feed their present companion pets with foods that contain what this breed requires. The food should contain: (#1) nutrient sources that are similar to those found in the native environment of the breed's ancestors (sources which are not foreign to the digestive and glandular systems of today's Australian Cattle Dog and which are easy for them to assimilate) and (#2) the proper balance of protein, carbohydrates, fatty acids, vitamins and minerals that match the breed specific nutritional requirements - those which have been passed on by their ancestors.
Pet owners who feed their companion pets correctly can save a lot of money. Many dogs are taken to the vet, suffering from nutritionally related problems, and the vet bills can be huge. i.e. dry/itchy/flaky skin, hot spots, yeast infections in the ear, thyroid - liver - kidney problems, just to name a few, cost the average dog owner hundreds of dollars every year. That is why I recommend that pet owners learn about the nutritional needs of the animal they are feeding before deciding on one of the many foods which are now available. When we first learn what our companion pet needs and then choose a diet that is correct for the animal being fed, it is a win-win situation: the dogs are healthier and the owners save money.
I personally believe that the best diet for an Australian Cattle Dog is one that the owner makes fresh, using quality ingredients, without preservatives. It only takes about one to two hours a week to cook for an Australian Cattle Dog so that both #1 & #2 are met and preparing home cooked meals for a dog can be less expensive than buying the average all-breed, any-breed commercial pet food. I hope that you will consider using this option to feed your companion pets correctly.
In my books (published in 1990 and 1997) on breed specific canine nutrition, I listed food sources to use and food sources to avoid when feeding an Australian Cattle Dog. The idea was to provide pet owners (both those who wanted to cook for their companion pets or those who wanted to buy an all-breed/any-breed preservative filled food for their pets) information about food sources to use or avoid. So that you can have that same information, below is the text from the page "Australian Cattle Dog" that was in one of my books on canine nutrition.
________ text from the Australian Cattle Dog page out of my book on Canine Nutrition ________
AUSTRALIAN CATTLE DOGWeight Standards: m/f - 40 to 45 lbs.Height Standards: m/f - 18 to 19 inches Coat: dense in texture, black with tan and white speckleCommon Ailments: dysplasia, hot spots and skin rashes
The Australian Cattle Dog developed in Australia in the early 1800's. This breed can trace its heritage back to being a direct descendant of four specific breeds: the Dingo, the Blue Merle Highland Collie, the Dalmatian and the Black and Tan Kelpie. It originally herded cattle in the rough outback of Australia. Here it developed not only its nutritional requirements but its legendary stamina and endurance.
Native food supplies for this breed would have been those found in the Australian outback (a high desert environment) and would have included ground vegetables, wheat, oats and meats from beef, rabbit, and kangaroo. A special note concerning the meats; all the meats from this area have a very low fat to muscle ratio. For the Australian Cattle dog I recommend low fat / high fiber commercial foods with a blend of beef, corn, and wheat. I also recommend that you avoid feeding an Australian Cattle dog any soy, white rice, beet pulp, poultry or fish.
__________________________end of page from book__________________________
At this web site I have already documented how it has been PROVEN that one breed can require ten times what a different breed requires - PER KILOGRAM OF BODY WEIGHT - of fat soluble vitamin "D" and thus a product formulated for the breed with the higher requirements would be toxic to the breed with lower requirements.
I am also providing you with information about which sources of vitamins and minerals are best for an Australian Cattle Dog because it has also been proven that different breeds will assimilate different sources of vitamins and minerals in different ways. i.e. There are over 170 different molecular forms of the mineral "calcium." The source of the mineral calcium that an Australian Cattle Dog can easily assimilate can be hard for a different breed to assimilate and thus that other breed can develop kidney stones on the best source of calcium for the Australian Cattle Dog. The reverse of this is also true. Below you will find a list of the best sources of vitamins and minerals for the dietary requirements of the Australian Cattle Dog. The balance or amounts are not listed because each individual animal can have different requirements depending on: the sex of the animal; the age (a puppy will have different needs than an adolescent, who even though it may be the same size as an adult will have different requirements than an adult); the activity level (if a dog is very active the dog will need more of the B complex than a couch potato of the same breed); stress levels; medical conditions; and other dietary factors (i.e. does the water supply contain high amounts of minerals). There are many factors come into play when considering the proper amount of each nutrient in an individual dogs diet.
PLEASE NOTE: Some breeds, because of their breed specific set of nutritional requirements, should have very low amounts of some vitamins or minerals in their diet. The amount that some breeds require may have already been exceeded by the amount that is in most all-breed/any-breed commercial foods (i.e. copper - Bedlington Terrier or zinc - Siberian Husky). This is another reason that I have not listed any amounts here - I do not want dog owners to supplement what may already be TOO MUCH in an all breed food with additional vitamins or minerals just because I listed an amount here. The list below is for SOURCE information only.
________ the best vitamin and mineral sources to feed an Australian Cattle Dog ________
Vitamin & Best SourceVitamin A Beta CaroteneVitamin B-1 Thiamine Mononitrate & YeastVitamin B-2 Riboflavin & YeastVitamin B-6 Pyridoxine Hcl & YeastVitamin B-12 Cyanocobalamin & YeastVitamin D D-activated SterolVitamin E dl-alpha tocopherol acetateNiacinamideBiotinFolic Acidd-Calcium PantothenatePara Amino Benzoic AcidMineral & Best Source Calcium Bone Meal & di-Cal PhosCopper GluconateIodine Sea KelpIron Ferrous FumerateMagnesium Magnesium-GluconateManganese Manganese-GluconatePhosphorus Bone Meal & di-Cal PhosPotassium Potassium-GluconateZinc Zinc-Gluconate
Please do not feed this breed of dog any supplemental vitamin C (ascorbic acid, sodium ascorbate, calcium ascorbate or ascorbal palmitate) because of the kidney and liver damage it can do (see article at this web site).
__________________________end of list of best vitamin/mineral sources __________________________
Please Note: I have received many E-mails from dog owners asking if the book that is now available in book stores contains recipes or supplement charts for the average puppy, adolescent, adult or geriatric Australian Cattle Dog. It does not. It only contains one recipe and that recipe is there to show how a pet owner can take the ingredients listed on a bag of grocery store dog food and make the food cheaper, from fresh whole sources and without any harmful preservatives. I do not recommend that recipe for any one specific breed of dog (especially an Australian Cattle Dog). I am planning to include recipes and supplement charts for Australian Cattle Dogs in my next book and hopefully that book will be ready to be published within the next year.
If you can not wait for my next book to be published and want to start cooking nutritious preservative free food for a special companion pet I would be happy to prepare a recipe for you to use (for a small fee). Over the last 30 years many dog lovers have asked me to develop a diet for a specific companion pet or their entire kennel of dogs. I have formulated thousands of dog specific (more than just breed specific)diets and I would be willing to do this for your companion pet.
To have me prepare a custom recipe and supplement chart for a dog I need the following information:
The breed of dog:
The sex:
The age:
The weight:
The activity level:
The source of water:
Information about the dog's living environment:
Information about the dog's medical history:
Please be specific since all these factor into the nutritional requirements of a dog. I ask that you send me as much information as possible to work with and please be patient, the average turn around time (from the time I receive what I need to formulate a custom recipe, to the time the packet is ready to be E-mailed to you) is 5 to 7 days. I formulate these recipes based on the needs of the animal that will be eating the food. These are not done with a pre-prepared recipe sent with auto-responder from an E-mail box. I do not send out a "one-diet-fits-all-dogs" or even a "one-recipe-for-all-Australian Cattle Dogs." I do these recipes one at a time, based on the information you provide about the animal that will be eating the food.