Providing Carbohydrates and Fats In Your Homemade Canine Dog Diet

Like proteins, carbohydrates are essential to canine health. There are two different kinds of carbohydrates that are present in your dog's diet: soluble carbohydrates and insoluble carbohydrates. Insoluble carbohydrates are also known as "fiber," which aids in your pet's digestive processes. The corn and other grains that are found in dog food are sources of fiber.

Although grains are not considered by many to be necessary in a canine diet, the presence of the fiber provided by these grains prevents both diarrhea and constipation and improves colon health. Not all insoluble carbohydrates are considered to be as good as the other, however. Many professionals consider corn and corn by-products to be lower quality sources of insoluble carbohydrates than are beet pulp, rice, and bran.

Dietary sources of soluble carbohydrates, like protein, produce energy that fuels the body so that dogs can bound through life and stay young. The same corn, beet pulp and rice that provide your dog with fiber can also provide the energy that he or she needs.

Although dogs can digest most sources of carbohydrates for the purpose of providing energy some, like bananas and raw potatoes, are indigestible by dogs. Other carbohydrates, such as raw cereal grains on the order of wheat or barley, are simply slow to digest. Your dog may have or develop sensitivities to such carbohydrates. If it becomes necessary to determine what part of your dog’s diet is is causing an allergic reaction, your veterinarian might begin the investigation with carbohydrates, particularly those from grains.

Carbohydrates break down in the digestive tract to form glucose. Glucose is the simple sugar that the body uses to produce energy. If too much glucose is created, however, the dog's body stores the excess as part of an energy reserve. This process creates fat, which leads to obesity.

Fats, despite having a bad reputation, are a necessary ingredient in dog food. They make your dog's food taste better, they provide energy, and they support healthy skin and haircoat. In addition, because the impulses of the nervous system are carried by fatty layers, fats ensure a healthy nervous system as well. It is only when the dog's diet contains too much fat that this energy source becomes detrimental to good health. A balanced diet designed to maintain good health in adult dogs should have between 5% and 13% fat content. Other factors may cause the percentage of fat required for healt to go up or down.

As with other ingredients in your dog’s food, some fats are better than others. Soft fats, which melt at lower temperatures and are more easily digested, provide more benefits to your dog's health. Animal fats, such as tallow, are hard fats that are less easily digested.

Next article: Vitamins, Minerals, and Moisture In Your Homemade Canine Dog Diet