Last Updated on November 9, 2023 by Fasting Planet
Is Fasting Good for Dogs and Pets?
You fast often, and you were thinking of having your dog do the same. Should you? Depriving them of food seems wrong, like you’re being a bad pet caretaker. Still, if we humans can derive so many health benefits from fasting, would the same apply to our favorite four-legged friends as well?
Yes, therapeutic fasting can benefit dogs. When fasting, dogs may have more macrophage activity, destroying viruses and bacteria. They also enjoy a digestive system break, boosted natural killer cell levels, better bacterial function with more monocytes, more neutrophils, and higher levels of immunoglobin.
Not sure what neutrophils or monocytes are? What is therapeutic fasting anyway, and how is it different from intermittent fasting? Keep reading, as we’ll answer all those questions and more in this article.
What Is Therapeutic Fasting?
We wanted to begin with a definition of therapeutic fasting. You’re very familiar with intermittent fasting if you’ve read this blog, but what’s the therapeutic kind of fasting all about?
Therapeutic fasting is a type of fast that makes use of fat reserves when going without food. If a pet is on a therapeutic fast, there are strict limitations, like no cats, no elderly canines, no sick dogs, and no puppies. With therapeutic fasting, you give your dog just enough food to trigger the breakdown of fat (and toxin release) and to keep their muscles, organs, and vital tissue stable. It’s not the same as making your dog starve, in which you’d give them nothing to eat at all.
Why can’t cats go on a therapeutic fast? It’s because their livers will not down-regulate when they don’t consume food. In fact, if cats go too long without eating, it’s possible to trigger a case of feline hepatic lipidosis in the animal, which is a serious cat disease.
The Benefits of Therapeutic Fasting for Dogs
Okay, so therapeutic fasting is for dogs then, not cats. Should you decide to put Fido on a fast, what would happen? As we mentioned in the intro, there are a slew of health benefits your dog could reap. Let’s talk about these in more depth now.
Elevated Macrophage Activity
Why does your dog’s macrophage activity matter? The macrophage is a type of phagocyte that kills off viruses and bacteria. When this activity ramps up, your dog is healthier.
Less Pressure on the Digestive System
Since your dog eats multiple times a day every day, the digestive system is almost all working. Through therapeutic fasting, it’s possible to give the digestive system a much-needed day off. Instead of allocating energy and resources to digestion, your dog’s body can focus on other functions instead.
More Natural Killer Cells
It might not sound like your dog would want any natural killer cells, but they’re a good thing, we promise. These cells have the potential to destroy virus-ridden cells as well as tumor cells. It’s possible your dog could increase their count of natural killer cells with a therapeutic fast.
More Monocytes
As white blood cells or leukocytes, monocytes function similarly to macrophages. They consume particles like infectious agents, improving your dog’s bacterial function.
Greater Counts of Neutrophils
Besides more monocytes, your dog could also experience a boost in neutrophils when they fast. What’s a neutrophil? It’s yet another type of white blood cell, this time one that can take out potentially dangerous microorganisms and bacteria. It does this by making superoxide, a chemical that comes from a metabolic process involving ingested granules. Hydrogen peroxide is created the same way.
Higher Levels of Immunoglobin
To prevent hemolytic anemia and other conditions, your dog needs immunoglobin. It’s possible to bring their levels of immunoglobin up through a therapeutic fast.
Is It Cruel to Put Your Dog on a Fast?
Not everyone will agree that fasting your dog is a good idea, and that’s fair. Some will call it cruel, and we can understand where they’re coming from. Those people probably think fasting means the dog won’t eat anything, even though that’s not true.
As we said before, therapeutic fasting is not the same as starving your dog. Forcing your four-legged friend to not eat anything all day and night is indeed cruel. Fasting often isn’t.
Can it be cruel to fast your dog? In some cases, yes. For instance, if you have a very young or old dog or if your pup is sick and you try making them fast anyway, that would be cruel. It’s also cruel to fast cats, as they could die from it if they develop the liver disease feline hepatic lipidosis.
You can’t change everyone’s opinion on fasting pets. If someone is telling you it’s not right to put your dog on a therapeutic fast, you can explain some of the proven benefits we listed above. Otherwise, if it’s within the dog’s best interest for their health, then there’s no reason to avoid fasting them.
Is It Safe for Your Dog to Fast? Here’s How to Find Out
That said, we always recommend you bring your dog in for a veterinary checkup before starting them on a fast. You might want to look into the services of a holistic vet, as they’re more likely to have experience with fasting dogs.
Your vet will give your dog a once-over, running tests if they deem it necessary. These tests will check for your dog’s health, seeing what kind of condition they’re in. If it comes back that your dog is underweight or has any illnesses or diseases, then more than likely, the vet will recommend you don’t fast your dog. You should listen, as this is for your dog’s health.
If you find out you can’t put your dog on a therapeutic fast, your vet may recommend a calorie-restricted diet instead. With one of these diets, you cut down on your dog’s calorie consumption by anywhere from 70 to 75 percent. They still eat the same amount of meals a day, but smaller quantities of food.
Not only is a calorie-restricted diet a viable option for a dog, but you can follow this diet for your feline friend as well. It does not put your cat at risk of ending up with feline hepatic lipidosis.
How to Get Your Dog Started with Fasting
There’s no need to mentally prepare your dog like you would a human before beginning a fast, as they can’t grasp the concept of fasting like we can. What you might do is gradually lessen the quantities of food you provide for your pup. For example, start with the calorie-restricted diet and then cut back even further with a therapeutic fast.
One of the easiest ways to fast your dog is this: you start the day by giving your dog breakfast. They scarf this up as they usually do, but then that’s it. They don’t get anymore food until dinnertime. Under this rule, they may go as long as 10 hours, maybe even 12 hours without food. This gives their body a chance to begin doing the many amazing things we outlined in the benefits section.
Then, when you get back home after work, you feed your dog dinner as their last meal of the day. The next day, you’d repeat the same thing again for maybe another day or two.
Some dog owners will do a weeklong therapeutic fast where, over five days, the dog eats following the schedule above. Then, for two days (and they can be nonconsecutive), the dog would consume only water.
That’s a bit more of an extreme schedule, and not one we recommend you start your dog on right away. Think back to when you began intermittent fasting. You didn’t jump right in with a five-day hard dry fast, right? Of course you didn’t.
You have to give your dog the same consideration. As we said before, put them on the calorie-restricted diet for a week or two first in preparation. Then introduce therapeutic fasting rules for a couple of days.
If it goes well, gradually increase how long the therapeutic fast lasts. You can incorporate days of just water into the diet, but that’s your choice. All along, you should check in with your holistic vet to ensure your dog is staying healthy during the fast.
Conclusion
Dogs can fast just like we people can, especially through what’s known as therapeutic fasting. While fasting isn’t good for cats (it can lead to the onset of a disease called feline hepatic lipidosis), dogs can enjoy a myriad of health benefits through therapeutic fasting.
It’s always best to bring your dog in for a checkup with a holistic vet before starting them on a therapeutic fast. If your dog is in perfect health, then start slow and gradually extend the length of the fast. Good luck!