Foods and Feeding 



the dog occurs in its cystic stage in the muscles of 

 beef, but under the universal meat inspection which 

 we now enjoy the dangers from this are nil, since 

 it is one of the conditions for which the meat is 

 examined. Meat is frequently accused of being 

 the cause of eczema, but under the discussion of 

 the disease it has been shown that it is due instead 

 to starchy foods. 



That meat is the natural diet of the dog can 

 readily be proven by a study of his natural char- 

 acteristics, the comparative anatomy of his digestive 

 tract, and the difference in the composition of foods. 

 All animals are divided into three classes: (i) 

 Herbivora, such as the horse, cow, sheep, camel, 

 and elephant, feed entirely on vegetable foods; (2) 

 Omnivora, including man and the hog, eat both ani- 

 mal and vegetable foods; (3) Carnivora, to which 

 class belongs the dog, cat, lion, and tiger, are sup- 

 posed to live exclusively on flesh. Examining the 

 digestive tracts of these groups, we find that the 

 horse and cow are supplied with a very long and 

 voluminous intestine making accommodation for 

 large quantities of food material. On the other 

 hand, the dog has a comparatively short and small 

 intestine, affording room for only limited amounts. 

 From this it is easy to determine that the food of 

 the dog must be supplied in concentrated form. 

 Analyses of foods show that meats contain a high 

 percentage of protein which is essential to body 

 activity, a considerable quantity of fat, but no car- 



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