The Science Dog Podcast

Most of us have heard the admonition “Stop playing with your food!” at some point during our childhoods. Although it is rather rare to hear a dog version of this rebuke, there is a version of playing with food that may be acceptable or even possibly beneficial for dogs! A group of researchers studied this and asked "Are food delivery toys a better approach to feeding our dogs than is the traditional bowl-feeding approach?". Listen to this episode to find out what they learned! 

Innovative dog chews and treats are all the rage these days. Despite the claims of their sellers, most of these products are new twists on an old theme – taking the parts of food animals that we typically discard as inedible waste and turning them into expensive and often highly sought-after dog treats. We examined a few of these chews in our previous episode. Another popular type of chew and jerky treat is one that is made from beef or bison gullets (esophagus) and tracheae. In addition to coming in a dried form as a chew, the entire neck regions of beef, lamb, chicken, and turkey are also frequently included in commercial and homemade raw diets. The question for this episode Is: Are gullets and tracheae by-products safe for dogs to consume? The Science Dog looks at recent research for some answers. 

What do we know about the ability of dogs to breakdown different types of rawhide chews? Are there differences among chews and does this matter in terms of the safety of chew treats for our dogs? The Science Dog takes a look at some research studies that provide a few anwers!

The Science Dog examines the emotions of anxiety and fear in dogs and asks the question - "Does petting or speaking softly to your dog when he is fearful comfort him, or does this "reward" his fear"? As always, we turn to science for some answers! (Including a bit about clowns).

The dog’s gut microbiome and its impact on health and disease are of great interest to nutrition researchers today. However, many dog owners are not quite sure what this term refers to, what the microbiome actually does, and how the food that they feed to their dog may influence their dog's microbiome and health. In this episode, a shortened version of The Science Dog blog essay, we provide listeners with the most important facts to understand about the bugs that live in their dog's intestinal tract! 

What types of omega-3 fatty acids are important in your dog's diet? Do commercial dog foods provide these? This episode of The Science Dog Podcast takes a look at recent research that examines whether what you see on a pet food label accurately reflects what is in the food. 

Learn about a new and innovative test that nutritionists are using to ask dogs what they enjoy most. Listen to a set of easy steps for trying this fun test at home, with your own dog! 

The omega-3 family of fatty acids receives quite a bit of attention these days, and with good reason. We have known for some time that increasing omega-3 fatty acids and improving the ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fats in our dogs’ diets is associated with certain health benefits. In today's podcast, we take a look at some reasons that the source of omega-3 fatty acids in a dog's food may be an important consideration for owners. 

Today's episode is about dietary protein. We examine the levels that we see in commercial pet foods, a bit of history regarding protein and health in dogs, and some new research that opens up another can of worms regarding the concept of overnutrition in our dogs and the health effects of perhaps providing too much of a good thing.

In this first Science Dog Podcast episode, we take a look at some recent research that examines the unsavory practice of poop-eating in our canine best friends.