The Canine Alimentary Canal 101

by Vicky Von Busse

It's not the breed Standard being discussed nor is it the four legs,

the wagging tail, or alert ears either.  It's the deep recesses of our

wonderful pets that starts with the sensational smile and lolling

tongue they give us when they are happy.

We've all admired those impressive teeth.  But how often have we

equated that sparkling white smile to their true function of grabbing,

tearing and shredding?  How often have we considered

that their molars are not flat to address grinding up plant matter,

but, in fact, are pointed and overlapping like scissors to address

meat, bones and hide?  How often have we acknowledged

our dogs' carnassial teeth?  Hmmmmm. . . a pretty powerful

and impressive mouth, wouldn't

you agree? :)

Those effective teeth work together with powerful jaw and neck muscles;  A must for any

sensible canine who often dreams of pulling down its prey.  Ever wonder why the mouth is such

a huge gaping contraption?  Ever wonder why the lower jaw is incapable of a side-to-side motion?  It was designed so that when their captured prey struggles, they can quickly be 'disposed' of. 

If our dogs were equipped with the flat molars other animals possess (i.e. humans, bears), their prey would meet a very torturous end. :(  

Now that the food is in their mouth, what happens?  Well, seeing that our noble canine has managed to tear and chew on that piece of meat, thereby releasing the meat's enzymes to begin 'self-digestion', he does what any normal canine would do . . . . . he swallows.  Ohhhh!  What a ride for that succulent piece of meat as it wends its way down to that deep, dark, cavernous pit

we call the stomach....

And SPLASH!!  Right into a warm hydrochloric acid environment.  Wonderful to feel that warmth

as it begins

it's cleansing work on any pathogenic bacteria that came along for the ride.  But wait . . . . what's that happening?  Wow!  A makeover!  That potent hydrochloric acid is beginning to break down that red blooded piece of meat.  And it works very efficiently and quickly.

And there is the pancreas smiling at this amazing dog as it has made life so simple for the pancreas.  Happily the pancreas offers the enzymes needed to digest the proteins and fats it encounters with no demand to produce more for unnecessary carbohydrate luggage which would encourage a whole myraid of health problems.  An uncomplicated life is what keeps this little organ running effectively.

As the partially transformed meat continues on its journey it is surprised how quickly it moves along the digestive tract.  No one seems to have told it that the overall length of this tract is actually very short and because of its short length it is very adept in digesting a raw meal.  Stool analysis of a healthy raw meat fed dog shows that only a trace amount of protein is lost and less than four percent of its fat intake is unused.  Ninety five percent of a raw meat meal is effectively digested over a two to three hour period!

The end result: very compact, firm, small stool with relatively little odor.

In contrast, a dig fed a commercially rendered animal product does not get to prepare it's body

for the meal.  The teeth are not exercised, the gums are not massaged, the dead food gives off

no preparatory enzymes prior to entering the stomach, thereby placing an incredible burden on

the pancreas which then has to deal with not only processed protein and fat, but also carbohydrates, cellulose and starch found in commercially rendered animal products.  The more carbohydrates, cellulose and starch found in a commercially rendered animal product, the more undigested grain protein will sit in the upper small intestine.  Sitting there signals the body that there is a foreign substance that needs to be addressed.  This overstimulates the immune

system resulting in an host of health problems for our noble canine.  Depending on the content

of the commercially rendered animal product, digestion takes anywhere from 16 to 24 hours.

End result: voluminous, smelly stool

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