engleski

Use of raw meat-based dietary regiments (BARF) in dogs in Croatia.

Feeding dogs with raw meat-based diets, also known as biologically appropriate raw food (BARF) diets, has been a trend that has gained a significant popularity over the last decade. The aim of this study was to provide information about dietary regimes and the use of BARF diets in dogs in Croatia and, additionally, to identify the owners’ motivation to choose the BARF feeding regime. A questionnaire was designed to assess feeding practices in dogs fed BARF diets. To be included in the analysis, the dogs must have had been fed with a BARF diet retrospectively for a minimum of two months. Data were analysed using the Fisher exact test, and p < 0.05 was considered to be significant (GraphPad Software, San Diego, USA). In total, 95 questionnaires that met the inclusion criteria were collected. The study cohort consisted of female (64%) and male (36%), mostly purebred (68%) dogs with a mean age of 4.5 ±3.2 years and 19.6 ± 12.5 kilos in weight. The owners changed their respective dog’s diet to the BARF feeding regime as a result of a chronic condition (26%), for palatability (27%), for the perceived improved level of energy (21%), and its composition (17%). The majority of the dogs were fed a homemade (HM) BARF diet (58%) and 42% were fed a commercially available (COM) BARF diet. The owners reported a sporadic occurrence of gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms more frequently in the period of the previous two months when the dogs were fed HM BARF diets (p = 0.0415). Also, they were more likely to give their dogs raw meat that has not been previously frozen (p < 0.0001). There were 37% of the owners using an extruded diet alongside the BARF diet. The owners of the dogs that had a manifestation of allergies or intolerances in the past were more likely to use BARF diets without the addition of extruded diets (p = 0.038). There is a high frequency of using HM BARF diets as the BARF feeding regime of choice. Therefore, it is of high importance to communicate the risk of possible nutritional imbalances as well as a higher incidence of GI symptoms when feeding HM BARF diets.

BARF, diatery regiment, dogs, Croatia

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