Protein and the older pug

[lmcpug]

http://www.selfgrowth.com/articles/Protein_and_the_Older_Woman.html

I have been investigating this for some time and firmly believe that this also applies to
our senior pugs. This article is very well written and the two areas I like are below:

Quote "The fact is that protein burns fat and builds muscle tissue that prevents the body from looking “old.” A strong body mass consumes energy, repairs the daily wear and tear of vital body structures and replaces fluid and body chemicals—all of which require protein. Inadequate amount of protein intake will mean that what muscle tissues you have in your fifties will give way to wrinkles, bones and sagging skin. Younger women can look great in slim and slender bodies; but slim and slender in the older woman can be the most tell-tale sign of age."
Quote "Because protein is tougher to digest, the body takes a longer time to break down protein foods than carbohydrate-rich foods. The body actually uses more calories to digest a hard boiled egg than a piece of toast. In the process of digesting protein, the body uses more energy, burns fat and (with exercise) converts fat to lean muscle tissue. Moreover, the benefits of protein are self-replicating, which means that as the body builds more lean muscle tissues, it in turn will use more calories for day to day activities. The result is that while the body’s weight might remain the same, the body’s size will shrink. Inch loss is more dramatic than weight loss in a long-term program of exercise and protein. Some women will go down 2-3 dress sizes, even though their weight registers no more than a 2-3 pound loss."

What I have noticed with both Pugsley and Bubba, is that they have remained fairly active, have not lost weight and do maintain what they currently have!
Yes, Pugsley stumble bumbles but that is due more to arthritis in his hips than anything else and Bubba is just now starting to show signs of arthritis as well.

I write this hoping that those who have pugs going into their senior years, will consider keeping the seniors on full protein diet.
Again I stress, unless there is a medical reason why your Pug should have their diets changed, then don't!
Even if your Vet has recommended it. Please consider their quality of life and look at Pugsley and Bubba as
setting a precedent for all Puggies!

[Gerk]

I've done a good bit of research in this area as well, and I think one of the important things to consider (that most vet's I've spoken to don't even know about!!) is the bio-availability of the food.  Some proteins are much easier for them to digest and process than others.  We changed Cooper's diet as he was having renal issues and moved him to a more bio-available food (that was still high in protein) and it solved all his issues -- much to the vet's surprise ... the vet wanted him on one of the Hill's special diets (that was truly horrible and had little protein and for that matter anything that was more than filler in the food).

Long story short -- vet's know little to nothing about dog nutrition.  Two vet's I have spoken with on this subject admitted this freely -- they simply prescribe Hill's as a knee-jerk reflex because that's what they were taught -- if there are protein based problems remove the protein.  I had a good long chat with my vet about the different qualities of available protein and the bio-availability of it and she was very interested (not to mention impressed that a client was teaching her about it) and promised she would do more of her own personal research in this area, especially when what we did with Cooper worked perfectly and produced results in record time.  She was very opposed to my choices for his food change initially but changed her mind pretty quickly once she saw the results.

[blanche]

Bio-availability is key and kibble is the least bio-available and the most commonly fed.  So I think historically vets shifted to lower protein (icky protein) kibble and may have seen results.  My suspicion is that they may have seen better kidney values because the food simply wasn't absorbed much if at all so kidney function appears improved.

[Gerk]

Bio-availability is key and kibble is the least bio-available and the most commonly fed.  So I think historically vets shifted to lower protein (icky protein) kibble and may have seen results.  My suspicion is that they may have seen better kidney values because the food simply wasn't absorbed much if at all so kidney function appears improved.

Indeed ... so it doesn't resolve the problem, it just masks it by not giving your dog enough of what it needs.  No protein to digest means no more protein based problems I suppose.  It's kinda like those crazy diet fads of the 70's ... but for dogs

[Pugpillow]

Great thread.  Thanks for your information, Lori and Mark!