dog food

[klond16]

I've been thinking of putting my dog on a wild meat diet. Will it benefit him and if it does, how so

[2guys]

YES! Dogs on meat are much better health wise IMO. Dogs in the wild eat meat all the time.

Now that being said we have 2 mini schnauzers both on a raw diet. Our male is now 7 yrs and our female is 4 yrs. when we got our female she had a lot of sin and coat issues, dry coarse coat and dandruff. Tried fish oil first but without a lot of success. Next was the complete switch to raw. Both have excellent skin, coats and no health issues (which mini schnauzers are prone to).

The raw diet is more expensive than dry and also more time is spent preparing it for them, but the benefits are better.

Lots of info on the web for different manufactures of raw products. Good luck in your choice.

[silverdoctor]

Nothing wrong with a raw diet for sure. But do consider throwing some organ meats in as well, just not too much cause they can cause diarrhea in some dogs. Raw meaty bones are great for the dog, too much marrow can cause diarrhea as well.

Some vegetables never hurt either, seen where some people will blend them up and freeze into small cubes with added vitamins. raw or boiled eggs are good, there's a long list of healthy foods for the dog.

[Redfrog]

Not a lot of canine nutritionists on AO, but you will get lots of fist hand real life opinions mixed with some gobledy gook that was gleaned from the internet.

I started feeding dogs at the mouth of our cave. Today I would still feed a meat diet if it was accessible and reasonably priced. I do feed quite a bit and my dogs do well on it and willingly eat it.

I train a few dogs and the owners supply the food as there is so many kinds available.
Some dogswill turn up their noses at $80 a bag stuff and hoover any piece of meat they can get.

[klond16]

Somebody told me it would make them more aggressive I don't know how accurate that information is but I would think it really depends on how you train them when it comes to meal time

[Canehdianman]

Originally Posted by klond16

Somebody told me it would make them more aggressive I don't know how accurate that information is but I would think it really depends on how you train them when it comes to meal time

Haha, I don't see how the food they eat could make them more aggressive. I think someone was pulling your leg.

I've fed my dog raw since he was born. We buy Mountain Dog Food in the 5lb frozen pack. He loves the stuff and has a beautiful coat.

One of the other advantages is that without the filler that dry foods have, his poops are smaller, don't smell as bad and dissolve into a white powder after a few weeks.

[silverdoctor]

Shouldn't make the dog more aggressive at all, but of course they can get food aggressive. My gf's minpin gets very aggressive when he's eating any raw meats, you may think he's not much of a dog but he's a doberman in his own mind - he's barred from his kennel when he gets fed raw now.

Many look to raw feeding as a result of not knowing what they are feeding in commercial dog foods. If that's the case, check the ingredients on the bag. Ol roy for example has corn meal as a primary ingredient, not good. Maybe just a better quality food and raw supplements will work well for your dog.

[Homesteader]

Originally Posted by klond16

Somebody told me it would make them more aggressive I don't know how accurate that information is but I would think it really depends on how you train them when it comes to meal time

You should've seen my old Terrier, when somebody tried to take it's "Old Stock" away.

That was a brand of beer for you younger generation

[harv3589]

We feed raw to our german Shepard and the little mutt. Both do excellent on it. No build up their teeth, great coats, breath doesn't smell like the other dog just took a dump in their mouth. U do have to feed some supplements. I think it much better than all the processed crap u get in store food.

It won't make ur dog more aggressive and if it's become food aggressive that's an issue that can be worked out with some training but has nothing to do with a raw diet

[Zuludog]

Originally Posted by Canehdianman

Haha, I don't see how the food they eat could make them more aggressive. I think someone was pulling your leg.

I've fed my dog raw since he was born. We buy Mountain Dog Food in the 5lb frozen pack. He loves the stuff and has a beautiful coat.

One of the other advantages is that without the filler that dry foods have, his poops are smaller, don't smell as bad and dissolve into a white powder after a few weeks.

I've had the exact same experiences with my dogs too.

[klond16]

okay I can see how this can benefit of dog in a healthy waybut what about portion would that change if you were to make the switchare there some kind of guidelines that you could follow or rule of thumb on how much you should feed your dog raw food?

[Nova]

Originally Posted by klond16

okay I can see how this can benefit of dog in a healthy waybut what about portion would that change if you were to make the switchare there some kind of guidelines that you could follow or rule of thumb on how much you should feed your dog raw food?

Generally people start in the area of 2% of the dog's weight per day.

Mine is getting around 4% right now, with some pumpkin puree, spinach, baby carrots and usually strawberries or blueberries added in.

[klond16]

Sweet thanks nova and everyone else with the information given

[Andrzej]

Originally Posted by klond16

I've been thinking of putting my dog on a wild meat diet. Will it benefit him and if it does, how so

If you would like to feed complete and balanced venison diet look into this:

Hilary Watson is nutritionist from Guelph and if you ask your vet they should be able to get you her book and supplement that you need to make this food complete and balanced.
Her book explains nutrition very well and you could feed those recipes raw.

Each recipe is providing 36 essential nutrients and this is only way that you are in control of all ingredients no preservatives, period.

Each recipe tells you how much to feed based on your dog weight.

[Nova]

Originally Posted by Nova

Generally people start in the area of 2% of the dog's weight per day.

Mine is getting around 4% right now, with some pumpkin puree, spinach, baby carrots and usually strawberries or blueberries added in.

I should have mentioned, this is with a commercial "whole prey diet". Basically it is the whole animal (less the hide and bladder), ground up and frozen in bricks or patties. A person can feed whole pieces of animal, but it takes a bit more work to properly portion the amount of bone/organ/meat.

[Zuludog]

I went with the guidelines on the Mountain Dog Food to start. I weigh both the dogs and their food intake to make sure they are staying at a healthy weight. If they have days when they are more or less active than normal I adjust accordingly.

[silverdoctor]

Here's a vet speaking of homemade food for your pet. She's pro natural and very educated on foods overall. So for those that want to see someone with skin in the game...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ujztd...665BB7BA32C3E6


On quality commercial foods for your pets:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aTWHxvjI_as


On the not so quality commercial foods for your pet, this is a good video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zdDPi-1Yjy0


Nice to see a vet educted on foods.

[mtnluvr]

I have an old English bull dog which has a VERY fussy stomach, switched it onto pets go raw brand and it has been great for it. Great for the coat, energetic compared to before, On regular food would get hot spots from too much protein now they are non existent, half the amount of waste and what there is turns to dust in a matter of a few days. I am a big believer in raw food diet.

[Luxor]

All wild
all meat
all veggie
all kibble
all natural
blah blah blah

You will get many stories by laymen and vet's and dog nutritionists til the day you and your dog dies.

My dog gets a mix of raw meat, homemade chicken soup w/ a little veggie oil and kibble on a daily basis. NO table scraps.

To each their own just like a human diet.

Don't forget that you too can become an expert nutritionist

[silverdoctor]

Originally Posted by Luxor

Don't forget that you too can become an expert nutritionist

Nobody needs to become an expert nutritionalist to feed their pets. It's just nice to see more and more people recognize that most commercial foods are crap and raw is a good way to go.