RAW EGGS AS A SOURCE OF PROTEIN IN YOUR DOGS DIET

     Myths and folklore abound when it comes to including eggs in the general diet of dogs. The egg is too often regarded as a dangerous food for dogs. Opponents of feeding eggs claim that they are too high in cholesterol, they pose a risk of salmonella and that they cause a biotin deficiency. While this may be true for humans, eggs pose no such risk for a healthy dog. People generally tend to think that what is good or bad for them nutritionally also holds true for dogs, this line of thought is completely false. Dogs are not like people when it comes to nutritional needs, people are omnivores, we need a mixed diet of starches, greens and proteins both from plant and animal; while dogs are carnivores, they have evolved to live on a diet of meat, fat and bone, with little to no vegetable matter.       Here are the facts you need to know about eggs.Eggs are a complete food for dogs – Eggs are an important source of nutrition for many predators. Inside the egg are all the vitamins and nutrients needed for the growth of the chicken embryo that it holds. Eggs are also one of the most complete sources of amino acids, these are the building blocks of protein. Eggs are an excellent source of: Vitamin A, Riboflavin, Folate, Vitamin B12, Iron, Selenium, Fatty Acids and including the shell, calcium.
Enzyme inhibitors – One of the reasons that dog owners are told not to use eggs is that the whites contain enzyme inhibitors which interfere with digestion, especially in very young and old animals. While this is true, it only means that dogs should not be fed solely or even mainly on raw eggs. It is perfectly safe to feed raw eggs several times a week to the average dog. If there is no evidence of digestive upset when feeding eggs to your dog, then he should have no trouble if eggs are a regular part of his diet. However this problem may be overcome by cooking the egg white but much of the natural vitamin content would be lost so it is always best to feed eggs raw.
Egg whites destroy Biotin in the dogs’ gut – Egg whites contain a protein called Avidin, this is a Biotin (one of the B vitamins) inhibitor. (Functional Avidin is found only in raw egg, as the biotin avidity of the protein is destroyed by cooking. The natural function of Avidin in eggs is not known, although it has been postulated to be made in the oviduct as a bacterial growth-inhibitor, by binding biotin the bacteria need. As evidence for this, streptavidin, a loosely related protein with equal biotin affinity and a very similar binding site, is made by certain strains of Streptomyces bacteria, and is thought to serve to inhibit the growth of competing bacteria, in the manner of an antibiotic. The thermal stability and biotin binding activity of avidin are of both practical and theoretical interest to researchers, as avidin's stability is unusually high and avidin is an antinutrient in human food. A 1966 study published in Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications found that the structure of avidin remains stable at temperatures below 70 °C (158 °F). Above 70 °C (158 °F), avidin's structure is rapidly disrupted and by 85 °C (185 °F), extensive loss of structure and ability to bind biotin is found. A 1991 assay for the Journal of Food Science detected substantial Avidin activity in cooked egg white: "mean residual Avidin activity in fried, poached and boiled (2 min) egg white was 33%, 71% and 40% of the activity in raw egg white."
 The assay surmised that cooking times were not sufficient to adequately heat all cold spot areas within the egg white. Complete inactivation of Avidin's biotin binding capacity required boiling for over 4 minutes. extracted from Wikipedia.) Biotin is one of the group B vitamins and is important for cellular growth, fatty acid metabolism and good skin and coat. Deficiencies of this vitamin are rare and it would take an extraordinarily large amount of eggs to create such a deficiency, especially in a dog. Now when you take into account that egg yolks are very high in biotin, it becomes evident that as long as you feed the whole eggs (white & yolk), there should be no problems. Remember, cooking the egg white will denature or inactivate the Avidin thus eliminating the risk of Biotin deficiency but this will also destroy much of the vitamin content of the egg. Feeding your dog whole raw eggs will overcome the problem of active Avidin, so if you decide to use raw eggs on a regular basis and as a large part of your dog’s diet, use whole eggs.Egg yolks are high in cholesterol. I can’t tell you how many times I heard people say they remove the skin from chicken before they cook it for their dogs or discard the egg yolk because they are high in cholesterol so obviously bad for dogs. Total and complete hogwash, a dog is a carnivore it is naturally able to take in high levels of animal fats and cholesterol in its diet as a general rule. The only exceptions to a dogs’ ability to cope with high levels of cholesterol might be in instances of breed specificity and chronic long term inactivity. A healthy, normal and active dog not only can tolerate high levels of cholesterol that would probably kill most of us but they most likely need it for optimum health, remember they a carnivores and have evolved to live and thrive on such a diet. Eggs contain salmonella – Dogs are well equipped to handle the bacteria in raw foods, all wild and feral canids eat raw meat both fresh and putrid. The health of the hen and the freshness and proper storage of the egg is also important, so it is always best to choose eggs from organic, free-range chickens. Proper storage, keeping the eggs cool and using them within fourteen days of being laid will also go a long way toward keeping the harmful bacteria well within the tolerable level of the vast majority of dogs.Shells a valuable source of calcium – Don’t throw the shells away, if you give them to your dog along with the contents ie. whites and yolks, eggs then become a nearly complete food source for dogs, lacking only in fiber and bulk. Dry the shells out and grind them in a clean coffee mill until they are powdered and sprinkle the powder on your dog’s food, this is a very well digested source of calcium.
The only drawback I can see to using eggs as a major source of protein in your dogs diet is their cost. If one has to buy eggs then it becomes economically unfeasible if you own a large number of dogs.  If you have access to sufficient land to raise your own free range layers and grow their food then your problems visa vie the cost is solved.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         Article first published in Caiere Chase (print magazine) vol 2 # 2 August 2013.