Raw Pet Food

[Aquattro]

Steve, as I said, if one is comfortable feeding veggies, no harm done. Maybe they get something, maybe the grass comes out stinky. For me, I choose not to feed veggies.

Marie, absolutely, there is no way you're going to recognize a raw fed dog by looking at it (maybe teeth might suggest it, but otherwise no). The value of such a diet is in the eye of the beholder, measured often as before/after comparisons. For me, I notice the difference in my dogs, therefore my choice is clear to me.
Again, it's an individual thing, and a choice each dog owner makes after researching the options.
We can compare this to our own lives. We can eat crappy processed foods, or we can eat healthy organic raw foods. Most people won't look at us and know our diet (unless our diet is LOTS of pizza), but we know how we feel from eating different diets. I feel better and can perform better eating clean wholesome unprocessed foods, and this is something I prefer to offer my dogs as well. Feeding good kibble isn't bad, or isn't going to kill them, but it's possible the dog will feel better with real food. I owe it to my dogs to pursue the optimum for them. It's just a lifestyle choice I make...

[marie]

Originally Posted by Aquattro

....

Marie, absolutely, there is no way you're going to recognize a raw fed dog by looking at it (maybe teeth might suggest it, but otherwise no). The value of such a diet is in the eye of the beholder, measured often as before/after comparisons......

I am not just looking Brad, I am way more up close and personal with these dogs then their owners ever want to be.

I clean their yeasty ears, breath in the gases released from various orifices ( I won't even go into the liquids and solids that are also released) and see their teeth way closer then is sometimes comfortable....all this while the dog is on the same height as my nose

[marie]

I'm not trying to be confrontational but there is no hard proof of the benefits

[Myka]

I used to have my dog on a raw diet (meat/bone/offal only, no veggies/fruits/grains). Although she's generally a pig when it comes to food of any sort, she was very picky when it came to raw. I found I couldn't get her to eat some of the stuff needed for proper balanced raw nutrition (like bone-in chicken and fish), so I switched her to Evo. She became very gassy on Evo (both the red meat and the chicken/turkey), even after 1 year of eating it. I switched to Orijen about a year ago I think, and have never been happier. Orijen seems to be a very popular food these days. I recommend it to anyone to at least try out for 6 months.

I also daily feed plain yogurt, Tripett green tripe, and Wild Salmon oil. I have always fed my dogs twice a day, and I have been considering replacing the evening meal with raw.

Never mix kibble with raw food as they are digested at different speeds. I believe raw is digested in 4 hours, where kibble takes 8 hours.

I'm not sure if it has been posted yet or not, but here is a link for those who are interested to see how each brand of dog food rates and why: www.dogfoodanalysis.com

[Funky_Fish14]

Originally Posted by Myka

Never mix kibble with raw food as they are digested at different speeds. I believe raw is digested in 4 hours, where kibble takes 8 hours.

Just to clarify, this would mean never at the same time... although you can feed say, raw in the morning, and kibble at night. Like Myka said it has to do with digestion rates... provided either is digrested before the other is ingested... there is no problem with mixing.

[Aquattro]

Originally Posted by Funky_Fish14

Just to clarify, this would mean never at the same time... although you can feed say, raw in the morning, and kibble at night. Like Myka said it has to do with digestion rates... provided either is digrested before the other is ingested... there is no problem with mixing.

Just to clarify further, after much longer threads on dog specific boards, lots of raw feeders do (or claim to) feed at the same time and report no issues.
Goes to show that the science here is a bit young

but better safe than sorry, I wouldn't feed raw on top of kibble..

[StirCrazy]

Originally Posted by Aquattro

Just to clarify further, after much longer threads on dog specific boards, lots of raw feeders do (or claim to) feed at the same time and report no issues.
Goes to show that the science here is a bit young

but better safe than sorry, I wouldn't feed raw on top of kibble..

ya I was just going to say, there re several people on the GR board that feed raw/kibble mix, same dish same time and they have for years.. sooooo.. why knows.

Hey Brad you feeding the puppy raw yet?

I got new pics of Kona now.. I can't believe the difference in 1 month.. you don't notice it till you look at pictures.

Steve

[Myka]

Originally Posted by Aquattro

Just to clarify further, after much longer threads on dog specific boards, lots of raw feeders do (or claim to) feed at the same time and report no issues.

It`s along the same line as humans we`re supposed to eat (preferably raw) fruit and veggies 1 hour before or 4 hours after any meats, grains, etc because of different digestion rates. However there are `no issues` there is optimal absorbency when consumed `properly`.

[Aquattro]

Originally Posted by marie

I'm not trying to be confrontational but there is no hard proof of the benefits

No confrontation detected

I agree that there is no proof, and the results are not always clear. Sometimes it's possible that raw could be worse than a good kibble. I certainly am not trying to sell it as a better way, or that may dogs are any better than someone else's dogs.
For me, my dogs are involved in sports that require strength and stamina, and I believe you only get out what you put in. For me, raw is better. It's cleaner, non processed and doesn't contain anything I don't add.

As an example, if you meet me tomorrow, you won't be able to tell if I had good food today or bad. But I'm running a 10k tomorrow morning and I sure notice what type of fuel I take in. It's the same, I believe, for my dogs.
Sure some kibble these days are great products, and probably just as good for most dogs (Orijen comes to mind). In fact, I keep some handy just in case I need to feed it, such as when we're out of town at a tournament or trial. Much more convenient. But, as a staple diet, I prefer, for myself and my dogs, food as close to real as I can get.
Again, make no mistake, I fully support a good kibble, and would recommend it for the average person, but if someone asks, as this thread did, about raw, I will speak as an avid supporter, IF it's something a person is interested in.
And to be clear, I don't use pre-made formulas, I feed raw, whole food. Example - when salmon is on sale, I buy a bunch of them, freeze them for 24hr (for possible parasites), thaw and cut in half. Each dog gets half a salmon, alternating who gets heads or tails
The pup isn't big enough yet for whole fish, so she gets chicken wings.

For those that can't/don't want to consider raw, have a look at Orijen, great food. Myka posted a good link too, so if you feed kibble, check out how it rates!

[Aquattro]

And, to add further, I certainly appreciate Marie's input, anyone looking at this should have multiple views for review.
And as others (Myka comes to mind) can attest, feeding raw is certainly a commitment and requires care and planning, from food prep, selection, cleanliness and a willingness to go to the grocery store if you forgot to thaw dinner. I have to rotate containers, keep track of dates, long term variety, dog weight, etc. It can be a fair bit of extra work over scooping a cup into the kibble bin. And perhaps for results that might not be immediately obvious (other than poop scooping!!).
and if you get to absorbed into typing about it, the dogs could end up eating butter chicken! Be right back.....doh