First dogs were undoubtedly kept as companions, it did not take long to realize the how these working friends will become so valuable . Even before the history of dogs was recorded, these pets were helping man for a variety of purposes and to hunt for food.
Dogs today still help man in his quest for food, but the nature of the job has taken on a different form. The dog still helps man to hunt, but for a different reason. Whatever there purpose or nature of the job, the a dogs performance of work always requires time expenditure of energy. As a consequence, the working dog's primary dietary need is increased energy. Whenever dietary energy is increased, the need for B-complex vitamins, minerals, and the water necessary for burning the energy must also be increased. Working dogs even though need an increased for energy and the nutrients to burn it, working dogs require most nutrients at no greater levels than non-working dogs. When working dogs eat large amounts of ordinary dog foods to obtain all of the energy they need, they frequently consume some of the nutrients in excessive amounts. Paradoxically, they may also eat such large amounts that the digestibility of all the nutrients in their diet are greatly affected and some nutrients may actually be obtained in inadequate amounts.
In some cases, a working dog simply can’t, possibly , eat all of a food needed to supply its energy needs. In these instances the dog suffers from the lack of total digestible energy, and loses weight. If the condition is allowed to continue, the dog will reduce its activities in order to reduce its caloric demands. If a dog is forced to continue working at the same pace, it will lose weight faster and laster, and eventually work itself to death.
Herd Dogs are dogs that wattle or protect animals use the least amount of extra energy of any of the working dogs. They seldom are required to expend energy in excess of normal activity for any duration of time. Even their short-term expenditures of energy are not very great. The only time herd dogs ever utilize large amounts of energy are when they are rounding up strays, lost or semi-wild animals running at large.
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