8 - Breed Nutrition

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English Cocker Spaniel - © J.-M. Labat 1KEYS POINTS FOR COCKER SPANIELS Living indoors or in an urban environment can make it harder for the dog to get the regular physical exercise it needs. It was long ago that the American Cocker was a gundog, but it still has those characteristic speed and endurance qualities. Cockers, dogs that like to eat... A Cocker is always happy to eat whatever you put in front of it and its eyes have a tendency to melt your heart when it’s begging for more. It’s important however to learn to tailor its eating habits to ensure it maintains a healthy weight, rather than constantly succumbing to its solicitations. The alternative is an overweight dog! Maintaining a healthy weight – a vital health issue To ensure you don’t fall into the trap of giving in every time your dog begs for food, you should always keep these salient facts at top of mind: an overweight dog finds physical effort harder, is more susceptible to joint problems, is more likely to develop a skin disease, is at greater risk during surgery and has a significantly shorter life expectancy (Kealy et al, 2002). The first safeguard to protect the dog’s health is to help it maintain its optimal weight. 8 American Cocker Spaniel - © J.-M. Labat
Cockers have a natural tendency to put on weight (Edney and Smith, 1986), so it is important to be especially vigilant if the dog: • has a sedentary lifestyle • has been neutered, which triples the risk of weight gain, especially among bitches (Jeusette et al, 2004) • has reached the age of maturity, which is 6-7 years in Cockers; the muscle mass decreases and the dog’s energy requirements fall by around 20% (Speakman et al, 2003) • is competing with other animals; the dominant ones tend to eat more than they need. Dogs are prisoners to the behaviour of owners Overweight dogs are most often so because of bad dietary habits: either they are allowed to eat when they want or they are given table leftovers on top of their regular ration. Weighing the dog on a weekly basis is strongly recommended. First step on the scales with the dog in your arms, then step on them again without the dog – the difference is the dog’s weight. A normally active Cocker weighing 26 lbs (±12 kg) needs around 800-850 kcal per day. If it is fed only a dry food with a moderate energy concentration, it will not need more than 440-480 oz (±200-220 g) of kibbles per day. The feeding guides printed on food packaging are for indicative purposes only and should be adapted to suit the individual dog. The dog’s lifestyle, climatic environment and individual predispositions do have a strong impact on its energy requirements. If its feeding amounts are not unreasonably high and the dog still gains weight, you should take a closer look at what the dog is eating between meals. 3.5 oz (100 g) of meat accounts for almost 30% of its daily requirement! Weight in kg (1 kg = ±2.2 lbs) 30 25 20 15 10 8 4 2 1 0 9 Growth curve of Cocker spaniel puppies 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Age in months American Cocker spaniel puppies (lower bracket of the curve [10-13 kg adult]) English Cocker spaniel puppies (upper bracket of the curve [12-14.5 kg adult])
Page 1 and 2: CEnglish & American ockers Spaniel
Page 3 and 4: Royal Canin is focused on the parti
Page 5 and 6: The modern history of Cocker Spanie
Page 7: … to the tip of their nose Accord
Page 11 and 12: Long ears that require great care C
Page 13 and 14: Cataracts and retinal diseases A Co
Page 15 and 16: Dilated cardiomyopathy in Cockers D
Page 17 and 18: Chronic energy overconsumption pred
Page 19 and 20: The coat, reflecting the quality of
Page 21 and 22: Facilitating the absorption of trac
Page 23 and 24: Lutein and zeaxanthine supplements
Page 25 and 26: Nutritional support for heart funct
Page 27 and 28: 16. Adkins EA, Hendrix DV - Outcome
Page 29 and 30: Key innovations for dog breeds in t
Page 31 and 32: STAGE OF THE COCKER SPANIEL’S LIF

8 - Breed Nutrition

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