Feeding Breakfast Before A Trial

[sheena]

I thought I would post this question here as I havn't had much response in the Health forum where I asked about Energy Supplements (thanks Nekbert). We are always being told to bring your dog along to training HUNGRY, as the dog is more likely to be responsive to treats etc, but does this carry over to actual Agility Trial days?? I have never given my dog breakfast the day of a trial thinking that she will run better & more responsive if she has an empty stomach. But is this wrong....do you get a better performance & concentration from a dog which has had a nutritional breakfast before the trial as it will keep its energy levels up, prevent cramps etc. So often you see good dogs perform well for a couple of runs, then they lose interest especially on warm/hot days, & yes, I know it is a training thing too. What do you do...do you give your dog breakfast before a trial?????

Edited June 3, 2012 by sheena

[ness]

I don't give mine a huge breakfast but they do get something to eat. I always think as far as humans go you need something in the tank in order to be able to perform so I don't consider them any different.

Edited April 16, 2012 by ness

[bedazzledx2]

I always feed breakfast but on a trial day I will typically feed less knowing that I will be giving treats and jackpots during the day.

I usually train late afternoon or evening so the treats and Jackpots are their dinner (or most of it)

[huski]

Everyone is different, I usually fast my dog before a trial so no meal before hand.

My dog also eats all her meals through training every day.

[RubyStar]

I feed half a normal brekky before a morning trial, and I make sure I give it at leas 1.5-2 hours before they're due to run. They get food jackpots after being in the ring so that makes up for the reduced brekky they get.

For night time trials, I don't feed dinner at all until I get home after the trial, which can be as late as 11pm. Again, they get food jackpots throughout the night, so aren't completely empty when we get home.

[Jumabaar]

I feed before flyball etc- but try to make sure its at least 2hrs before any event. I feed easily digested food so they get energy for day but it isn't using energy being digested etc. I also give watermelon/rockmellon treats during the day to ensure she is kept hydrated and gets little boosts of energy during the day. She won't drink electrolytes but I have put some lectade on her meals pre and post comp when I know its going to be hot. I have also soaked watermelon in lectade :laugh:

ETA- I will usually give an extra meal the next day (depending on how much work she has done) because otherwise she loses condition!

Edited April 16, 2012 by Jumabaar

[RubyStar]

Great idea about the watermelon!

[pie]

Watermelon is a good tip - especially if you have a dog like mine who is impossible to get to drink water!

I don't feed before a trial but was thinking of starting - reason being she noticeably runs out of energy by about the third run - might try it this weekend and see if there is improvement.

[Tassie]

Another one who feeds breakfast on trial day (one of their 2 meals a day) - but making sure it's a couple of hours at least before they work. Same reasoning as ness. Mine are always hungray anyway :D or that's what they tell me, so they're still keen to get treats later.

That's a great tip about the watermelon. My Kirra only drinks a little bit anyway, and to get her to drink more at trials, I've resorted to dropping small pieces of soft treats into the water bowl - then she fishes for them. (She used to really like DogAde, but you can't get it now. Some people find a bit of milk added to the water encourages them to drink.

[Jumabaar]

Watermelon is a good tip - especially if you have a dog like mine who is impossible to get to drink water!

I don't feed before a trial but was thinking of starting - reason being she noticeably runs out of energy by about the third run - might try it this weekend and see if there is improvement.

Abby was horrid when it came to drinking water- she was a princess that only drank when it was running from a tap or water bottle!! I would always be running around before comps looking for taps so I could take her there after runs.

Thankfully now at almost 7yrs :laugh: she has improved and now drinks after every run.

[Kavik]

I feed my dogs in the evening, so no they don't get breakfast on the day of a trial. ETA: if training or night time trial, they don't get fed until we get home. They get plenty of treats at training and trials though!

Edited April 16, 2012 by Kavik

[The Spotted Devil]

My dogs don't have breakfast anyway but they get a small Eukanuba biscuit as I put them in the car.

Ziggy gets food rewards after agility runs. He is not the easiest dog to motivate but what seems to have made the most difference to his staying power over 7 runs, for example, is keeping him cool (sometimes the cloud clearing for a few minutes is enough to slow him down) AND his ability to tug all day. The former is obviously physical but I think the latter is a real mental strength.

[wuffles]

Yep I give a small breakfast. I think it's important seeing as my dog is lean and fit, and I'm expecting a lot of her that day :) She's super food motivated anyway so it doesn't dampen her enthusiasm.

[FHRP]

My dogs will get breakfast the morning of a trial day. Not a huge breakfast as I don't want them running on a full stomach, but for a physically demanding day I like them to have some energy source. They also get lunch if it's a Retrieving or Field trial as they are extremely physical activities and I know I need the energy, so my dogs can have it too :) They get lots of treats during a day of agility.

Edited April 16, 2012 by FHRP

[DeltaCharlie]

We feed a big meal the night before but don't feed anything the morning of a trial. We have a rule in this house that you do no exercise 2 hours before or after a meal, and most of the pack are actually crated for a few hours after a meal so that they cannot be rolling around or anything. Bloat is always a big concern when feeding a meal before exercise. Many of ours are fed treats throughout the trial though, and they also get watermelon etc.

In regards to drinking at a trial I have discovered that if I soak Delta's cool coat and then put it on her in her crate she will lick every drop of water out of it LOL Won't drink from a bowl though...

[sheena]

Another one who feeds breakfast on trial day (one of their 2 meals a day) - but making sure it's a couple of hours at least before they work. Same reasoning as ness. Mine are always hungray anyway :D or that's what they tell me, so they're still keen to get treats later.

That's a great tip about the watermelon. My Kirra only drinks a little bit anyway, and to get her to drink more at trials, I've resorted to dropping small pieces of soft treats into the water bowl - then she fishes for them. (She used to really like DogAde, but you can't get it now. Some people find a bit of milk added to the water encourages them to drink.

For an active dog who wont drink at a trial..like mine....what about pure coconut water ?

[RubyStar]

Funny about how some dogs are hard to get to drink water. My Millie is like that, only drinks when she has to and it's only a lick. Ruby, meanwhile, will drink the entire water bowl out and want more. I have to restrict her water intake sometimes because she drinks so much, she pees about 10 times before she enters the ring and is known to pee while in the ring, too!

[Mrs Rusty Bucket]

My dog did better at runs on warm days, when I sponge bathed her before the start. Depending when I was starting - I sponged her before I walked the course, or if there were 10 dogs ahead of me, after I walked the course.

I decided to do this after she really clagged out on Saturday - and based on what she's like at the beach. Couple of zoomies and she jumps in the water and swims for bit ie she gets hot easily.

I was warned to focus on the belly and chest so as not to weigh her down, but she doesn't seem to get weighed down at all - short coat.

I focus on belly, chest and her head. Cos I don't like sun on my head - causes complete brain fade.

But when she gets distracted or freaked out - food does nothing. Maybe I should skip the previous night's meal - except I think that would just encourage her to go foraging.

We have done well using treats for warm up instead of tug if she's not focussing well. First thing, we go out for morning walk - Before - we have nothing, after she usually gets something like three spoonfuls of yogurt after that and treats on the walk - depending how much "heel work" we do.

At the trials, in the crate - a kong full of frozen roast chicken got her attention, and some carrot sticks - which I thought would help with her not drinking much but she was pretty good. I also have a drink bottle and a garden sprayer (cools me off better than it does her), yesterday I had a couple of buckets of water, an icecream carton and a bath sponge to cool her off. Thought it worked quite well - no DQs hooray.

I would love to figure out how to use soft treats in our warm up - out of my pocket and then find some way to hand them off when I go in. At the moment it's dry treats and a pocket lick to make sure they're all gone. And I wish I had something on hand for as soon as we're finished the run. Our transitions at the moment (keeping the dog excited from crate to started and from finish to crate) - completely suck. It's not really fair on her.

So I don't think based on comparing Saturday's runs with Sunday's that the problem had much to do with food. Sunday was pretty good all day - best run was first one after lunch - but I liked the course (no rear crosses).

Saturday - best run was first run - coolest part of the day - worst runs were the middle two - before I decided to try hosing her down (didn't have the sponge bath or buckets with), last run was ugly (DQ) but we did attempt all the obstacles - some of them once too often.

Personally I can't eat and run - I throw up. And I know it takes Frosty more than 4 hours to digest kibble, but the home made casserole gets absorbed much faster. In her days of being car sick - we'd get kibble back exactly as it went in, hours afer she'd been fed. So I'd feel ok about feeding something that was wet food with not too much filler a few hours before a run - but given her normal meal is in the evening - normally she gets it after we get home - including after evening trials or training.

PS at the first trial - I think my main sustenance was iced coffee and this weekend - several litres of gatorade/staminade and water.

Edited April 16, 2012 by Mrs Rusty Bucket

[Kavik]

Hi MRB :)

I use soft treats (cheese) before my run to get focus - I use a treat bag and do this while waiting my turn. When it gets close to our turn (a few people away) I pick a small amount out of the treat bag, place treat bag at finish, and do focus exercises before my run, keep an eye on the number I have so I don't end up with too many right before we run, normally give the last one as we are about to go into the ring.

I place my treat bag with toy and treats in it on the ground outside the ring near the finish line. Then as soon as we finish I can reward him :) At the moment I put his lead on, give him his toy to carry, and move quickly to an area where we I can throw his toy for him (as he won't tug at a trial yet).

[Mrs Rusty Bucket]

My hound has been known to bee line to where the treats are...skipping all the stuff she's supposed to do inbetween. we had one very funny run at training where I (or the instructor, didn't matter) put the treat out before we started the run, and as soon as I released - that's where she went, ate treat, came straight back, ready to go around the course now... was a bit disappointed when the grass square was treatless when we got to that bit. You ate it already - it's not the majic pudding grass square.

I might have to test for this with training. She doesn't usually find the treat bag without me exciting - so it might work.

She did stop to check out someone else's treat bag on the way in but didn't run directly to it when we started - which was a relief. She didn't notice the woolie tug that some other dog was besotted with that was on the way in either. I guess that's a good thing.