(ANIMAL) EXPERIMENTS AND DOG FOOD - WHAT'S IT ALL ABOUT?

Most dog owners only want the best for their dog - but not at the expense of other animals. The quality and composition of the food therefore plays a major role. But what actually happens before the ingredients even end up in the packaging? How is it tested whether the food tastes good and is well tolerated by the dog? In this blog post, we will look at various testing options.

When it comes to animal nutrition, a basic distinction is made between two main types of experiments:

• Pure feeding trials or digestibility studies and
• animal experiments

. Digestibility studies and

First, the definitions:

animal experiments:

• According to the Animal Welfare Act, these are "interventions or procedures carried out for scientific purposes that are associated with pain, suffering or harm to the animals" Suffering is anythingz.Bthat goes beyond a prick with an injection needle. However, the term "suffering" also includesz.B. psychological aspects such as fear.
• In the field of animal nutrition, animal experiments were carried out more intensively, especially at the beginning of nutritional research, for example to determine requirement values for various nutrients. These nutrients were fed in different quantities and compositions in order to research the optimum daily intake for each animal species. Depending on the issue at hand, sampling may include urine, feces and blood samples or may require intervention. The requirement figures determined in this way have since been used to calculate nutrient levels in feed or for individual ration calculations (z.B. NRC1 and FEDIAF2).

Feeding trials or digestibility studies are to be distinguished from animal experiments:

• Primary objectives of feeding trials or digestibility studies are:
• Palatability (= taste of the feed)
• Digestibility (how much of the individual nutrients is absorbed from the feed? z.B. of protein)
• compatibility (are the ingredients well tolerated by the dog?)
  -> In a classic feeding trial, urine and faecal samples are necessary for this.
• Feeding trials are z.Bcarried out by some feed companies in their own test centers. The dogs are usually housed in groups in large kennels.
• At certain times during a feeding trial, the dogs are then separated from the group so that the food can be allocated individually and separate faecal samples can be collected. This means that the dogs are usually kept individually in kennels for a few days at a time. They are also walked individually for urine samples, and there is usually only visual and auditory contact with the group.
• Most dogs spend several years in these facilities. On average, they are then placed with private households when they are 5-6 years old. Sick animals or animals that are not suitable for feeding trials for other reasons are usually handed over earlier. In some cases, however, dogs can remain in the so-called test centers into old age, as seniors are also needed for studies.
• In general, there are guidelines for feeding trials, which are drawn up in the EUz.Bby FEDIAF:FEDIAF NutritionalGuidelines_2018_deutsch.indd(ivh-online.de)
• It cannot be ruled out that the dogs experience stress due to the conditions in which they are kept.

A basic distinction can therefore be made between two types of experiments: Animal experiments and feeding experiments. Even if no blood samples or other interventions are taken during a feeding trial, VEGDOG we reject these in the same way as classic animal experiments due to the conditions under which they are kept. It goes without saying that we do not carry out animal experiments on our products.
However, in order to continue to investigate the digestibility, palatability and compatibility of feed in the future, feeding trials under controlled conditions are necessary. Especially in order to further develop purely plant-based feedstuffs.

Instead of scientific institutions, z.B. Dogs from private households can participate on a voluntary basis. This requires a little more effort, as the cooperation and reliability of the owners are required in order to obtain meaningful results. At the beginning of a feeding study, the owners can therefore be trained by specialist staff to collect samples and receive professional support throughout the study. As in many areas, practice makes perfect - so it can make sense to work with a set customer base in the long term.
At VEGDOG , the two- and four-legged team members are happy to take on the job of the first taste test. If this is positive, we move on to the next round: to the probationary test with voluntary participants from our customer base. Of course, the food samples are checked for safety before such tests.

Because VEGDOG is against any kind of animal suffering, we support alternative methods and donated to Doctors Against Animal Testing for Black Friday 2022 . With your help, we even exceeded our donation target of €10,000: together with you, we raised €18,485! We say THANK YOU, especially on behalf of the animals!

1 National Research Council. 2006. Nutrient Requirements of Dogs and Cats. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/10668.
2 https://europeanpetfood.org/self-regulation/nutritional-guidelines/

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