Raw Food Diet For Dogs

Lets take a look at some of the benefits of feeding your dog a raw food diet.

A great benefit, depending on your dog, is more energy. Who doesn't want our pups to be vibrant and energetic? Ok, sometimes they could be overwhelming but its for their health. We can deal with more energy or stamina if it means a healthy companion.

They will drink less water, because the food has a higher moisture content your dogs will probably drink less water. Not that it is a major concern but be aware. I noticed my dogs were not going right to the water bowl right after
eating like they did with kibble and less times filling the water bowl.

Their poop is less frequent and smaller. It also turns white if left for a
few hours and will eventually turn to powder, the white stool is because of the
excess calcium from natural sources. The stool helps determine if you dog is
digesting the food well. Less poop that is firm usually means that you pup is
digesting well and absorbing all the natural vitamins and minerals. If it is
softer you may need to either lessen the carbs if any are given and/or add more
raw meaty bones.

One of the first things observed, you could say, from the natural diet was
that there was a significant decrease in my dogs gas. Actually it was my mothers
observation that they were not stinking up the house. It was true and unnoticed
at first. They do occasionally let one fly but not even close to what it was
before. So the house smells nicer. Definite benefit.

Raw helps promote healthy skin and coat. My dogs coats are just fantastic.
Their food is now free of any sugars, preservatives etc that are commonly
found in kibble. Which also seem to be some of the source for the allergies that
dogs suffer.

Bones help clean their teeth. If you are worried about keeping their teeth
clean, you can brush them also. But if you get a chance watch them chew on a
beef neck bone and you tell me how clean our teeth would be with all that kind
of chewing. My one dog Dallas, who has not had the nicest breath since we
adopted her, breath has become bearable since feeding the raw food. I believer
it is because she likes the bones and chews on them, which she did not do with
anything else. Note: Periodically check to make sure no meat is stuck between
their teeth that can cause some bad odors and you may think it is their breath.
If bad breath continues you may need to see a vet, there could be something else
wrong.

I have heard that bloat is less likely. I am trying to confirm this but
testing with raw food is just not done because their is no money in it. So bear
with us. If you hear anything please contact us.

The best benefit for our dogs, is their overall health. The main reason we
start on the raw food diet is because there is some existing problem with our
pet and it usually stems from they way they eat.

We as caring owners and friends want our dogs to live full, happy and healthy
lives and we are now seeing that the raw food diet, in most cases, seems to do
that for our dogs. Soon we will start them on the raw food as puppies and
alleviate many of the problems that are not genetic.
james silvagni



 

Most dog owners are feeding their furry friends dry dog food, known as kibble. Just what are these pellets that seem to have a very long shelf life? More and more people are becoming aware of the strange ingredients in processed food, and have begun examining labels to find out what they are eating, and not just looking at the slick label slogans, like "all natural", "sugar free", "whole grains", etc. Is the same due diligence being used for their pet food? Maybe, maybe not. What follows is a short explanation of dry dog food.

Click on the link for more on the History of Dog Food
Commercial pet food is formulated for your pets needs and contains meat, meat byproducts, cereals, grains vitamins, and minerals. The primary ingredients are byproducts of meat, poultry, seafood, grains and soybean meal. Among the animals used are livestock, horses, and house pets that have been euthanized. The National Animal Control Assoc estimates that about 5 million pets were shipped to rendering plants and recycled into pet food each year during the 1990's. They are generally listed as meat or bone meal in the ingredients list.

The animal parts used may include damaged or diseased parts, bones, organs, intestines, udders, and stomach tissue. Cereal grains, soybean or corn meal are often used to improve consistency and lower the cost of the raw materials. The flesh products have to be rendered (processed) to separate the water, fat, and protein components. Rendering is done by meat processors and entails rupturing fat sells either by high heat or enzymatic-solvent extraction, and then drying the residue. The manufacturing process grinds and cooks the flesh and flesh byproducts thus killing any bacteria or disease that may be present. This meat is then mixed with the other ingredients (grains mostly) and extruded to obtain the proper shape. Vitamins and minerals are added to replace those lost in the cooking process. This mix is then heated again, depending on whether the final product is to be hard or semi soft. The food is then sprayed with oils and fats to improve the appeal to dogs and finally coated with a preservative. Most companies are now using vitamins E and C.

That is the basic process and of course there are a number of variations to achieve the desired product. As many of you may be aware, the cooking process changes the proteins and nutrients available to your pet, thus the required addition of vitamins, minerals to bring the product up to Government standards. But, you have to ask yourself this question. Are our pets better off with added products to their food, or would they be better off getting their nutrition the way nature intended it to be. Many studies on large numbers of people have shown that the more whole foods we eat, the better our health will be. Processing mostly destroys the nutrients or changes them into a form our bodies cannot deal with. Studies have shown that the more we cook a food, especially meat the more it changes the protein structure. In fact most health experts recommend people eat their red meats as raw as they can. They especially warn against charring meats because it can produce homocysteine which have been proven to be be a higher risk for coronary heart disease and stroke. Is it any different for our companion animals? If you look at nothing else, realize that dry food uses high heat and pressure to cook and process the raw ingredients. This alone robs the end product of the nutrition that you pet requires, and as a result you must feed him more food then he would have under a raw food diet. It may take a little longer to prepare quality food for your dog, but isn't he worth it? Feeding the appropriate raw food diet will give them the nutrients they need with better quality protein sources that he can digest properly.

The Holistic Dog Book:
Canine Care for the 21st Century

having a healthy dog!, February 4, 2006
By Denise Bonds (Bay Area California)

I would consider this a very strong complimenting book to go with Dr. Pitcairn's Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs and Cats.

This truly is a "Holistic" book, encompassing all areas of sharing your life with a dog. Denise Flaim delves into topics like nutrition, training, communication, vaccinations, allergies, Traditional Chinese Medicine, cancer and "finding the perfect vet" (to name a few). This book is also crammed pack full of herbal remedies and essential oil healing therapies. And at the same time, I find her writing style to be friendly and encouraging--not judgemental of the reader for picking one thing over another. And at the same time, encouraging the reader to find the "right balance" for you and your canine companion.

I do not plan to practice healing through herbal and essential oil therapies on my own, but I do plan to seek out a holistic vet who will offer me these options for treating conditions and ailments of our canine friend.

After a long and courageous fight, our Chihuahua finally went to eternal rest one week ago today. During his 13 years, he was consistently put on drugs like cortisone, prednisone and antibiotics to relieve him of symptoms like skin allergies, anal gland problems, nasal congestion, etc. All of which finally manifested into Inflammatory Brain Disease. I am finally realizing that I probably could have prevented most if not all this by providing a more nutritious diet. I believe in the philosophy that symptoms are just what we see on the surface of a more fundamental problem and by using drugs like these to provide temporary comfort does not always address the root cause.

I borrowed this book from my library, but now after reading it cover-to-cover, I will purchase a copy to go along with Dr. Pitcairn's Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs and Cats. Between these two books, and a partner relationship with a good holistic vet, I am better prepared to make decisions about our companion's health and happiness.

The Holistic Dog Book: Canine Care for the 21st Century