[Pamela S]

I chuckled when I read you post. I rotate my dogs kibble every day with a different 5 star brand. So every 5 days my dogs get a different kibble. Like you I also have my magic elixir I like to add, like you I make it in big batches and freeze. Mine is close, different meets cooked in water, organic vegetables. I have 4 dogs two rescues Sammi 9 lbs, Quinn 20 lbs and two Bernese Mountain Dogs. I am most concerned with the BMD’s because of their size, I want to keep them healthy so I am always researching, feeling guilty about not having them on a raw food diet, reading various web sites of feeding and generally driving myself crazy in the process of feeling like I am not doing enough for them.

So I posted on a BMD website and asked for advice, because the breed is not know for longevity (9 years) So I question people who had 10 years and older BMD’s what they attributed longevity to. The answer surprised me. I was sure I would pick up feeding tips. But the most prevalent answer was: it is just the luck of the draw. Some had dogs that lived long lives, some were short. It didn’t matter that they were all fed the same. Some people reported they did the raw diet and the dog died young while others that they fed cheap food to live to ripe old ages. Again and again the answer boiled down to luck of the draw.

So that made me try to not be so neurotic over food. I think what you are doing is great. I think the most important things are to keep them slim, as few shots as possible, and plenty of love. I am no expert, but that is pretty much the advice I got from knowledgeable owners.

Pamela

[Ryan L]

Hello,
We have a 1 year and 3 month year old female Maltese Yorkshire Yorkshire Terrier Mix named Lennon. She is the light of our life, very smart and playful but has had a delicate tummy from day one. The breeder we got her from was feeding her Purina’s and we switched her quickly to Fromm Gold Holistic Puppy Dry Dog Food. She did well with that but eventually got disinterested and was not eating often enough so we tried most of the flavors such as the Surf & Turf, Lamb & Lentils etc. Between the switching she would often get diarrhea but no idea if it was from her food or not. We did practice switching her food gradually instead of just introducing a brand new food right away. Every so often she would get a bout of diarrhea and we would feed her chicken and rice with a little low sodium chicken broth to soothe her tummy. She has never had a problem when we make her chicken and rice but we are hoping we don’t have to feed her that every day.

About 2 weeks ago she got real sick and was throwing up, eating grass, waking up in the middle night with bad diarrhea and we took her to the vet. They suggested we switch her food again so this time around we went with Prarie Gold Adult Grain-Free: http://frommfamily.com/products/gold/dog/dry/#prairie-gold-adult. She has been on this for about a week and her poops are very soft often diarrhea so we are back to square 1… Sigh.

We are recent members on this site and still a bit overwhelmed with the choices if we go with a different brand a ll together. We have a Chuck and Don’s by our house and they mentioned Zignature but did not see that one included in the editors best of. I should also note we did try Merrick Limited Ingredient Diet Dry but took it back after a day once we learned it was bought out by Purina. Our Lennon is very small (5 pounds)1 year and 3 month year old Morkie with a sensitive tummy and often picky. I am thinking about taking back her current Prairie Gold Adult Grain-Free (we got this because we thought the grain free limited ingredient might help) and starting over with a different brand. If anyone has any suggestions for a dry non raw food we would love to hear it!
Cheers,
Ryan & Anna Luse

[Shawna]

Red,

First – Jan I’m not suggesting in my comments below to Red that you feed anything you are not comfortable with, I’m simply responding to Red’s Skeptvet quoted material.

I do like much of the information you gave the OP but your persistent backlash towards alternative approaches DESPITE being provided with science and sources showing results etc is nothing less than propaganda for everything allopathic. Which is also evident in the fact that you have no other sources than Skeptvet — one man’s opinions.

Let’s not forget that Skeptvet is not a nutritionist either yet he writes “unconventional, approaches to pet nutrition, such as raw diets, grain free foods, homemade diets, a preference for organic ingredients, and so on, to dismiss objections to these approaches made by veterinarians.” Yet he’s doing the very same thing by trying to cast a bad light on these “unconventional approaches” when some of his peers (some of whom ARE nutritionists) recommend those very diets. Let’s take a look shall we

Dr. Meg Smart not only is a veterinary nutritionist but she TAUGHT veterinary nutrition. She recommends homemade (raw or cooked) and likens kibble to feeding your kids “kraft dinners and the likes”. She writes “I always ask clients” what do you or did you feed your children” if they reply “Kraft dinners and the likes” I do not advise a homemade diet.” – See more at: http://www.angryvet.com/angryvet-nutrition-interview-drs-joseph-wakshlag-and-meg-smart/#sthash.dc3Xl7e0.dpuf Dr. Smarts course, by the way, is an “elective” course. Vets at her school are not required to take her course. “Dr. Smart has taught a small animal nutrition elective course to fourth-year veterinary students since 1994.” https://www.usask.ca/wcvm/wcvm_people/profiles/Smart_Marion%20Meg.php

Or then there is veterinary nutritionist Dr. Susan Wynn who also recommends homemade diets. “Homemade diets are flexible, tasty and in some cases healthier than over the counter dog and cat foods. For some pets with multiple medical conditions, a homemade diet offers the only hope for meeting complex nutritional requirements.” http://www.susanwynn.com/Formulated_Diets.php

The Marvistavet link I posted above suggesting a homemade diet, although not a nutritionist, is a veterinary website.

Although not technically a nutritionist, as far as I know, Dr. Elizabeth Hodkins did work for Hills per her Linkedin page so I’m counting her. She too recommends homemade (and raw). Dr. Smart and Dr. Hodkins co-wrote the book “Not Fit for a Dog!: The Truth about Manufactured Cat and Dog Food” http://www.amazon.com/Not-Fit-Dog-Truth-Manufactured/dp/1610351495

Dr. Smart has some interesting data on science and pet food. She writes
“A recent article “Science under Siege” although about pharmaceutical research(Discover Magazine Oct2007)) reflects what is happening in the pet food industry . Private funding to academic institutions by big pharmaceutical companies is allowing science to become a powerful tool in their fight against regulation. Research in small animal nutrition has been traditionally underfunded or more accurately seldom funded by independent granting agencies. This has left the field wide open for the pet food industry to control and direct the research done in an academic institution, and within their own facilities. Research into pet foods is seldom at “arm’s length”.

The validity of trials conducted on dogs and cats kept in a kennel or research facility is questioned, as these animals do not have the same freedoms and human bonding experiences of the pets kept within a home environment. Most nutritional trials on companion animals are only valid for that particular group, maintained under the same conditions, fed identical diets. Even the results from the relatively simple non invasive digestibility, palatability and feeding trials done in kennels or catteries specifically established and approved to conduct these trials have come under scrutiny when environment, previous diet, gender, breed and age differences are considered.” http://petnutritionbysmart.blogspot.com/2013/11/evaluating-nutritional-research.html

I’m interested on your thoughts on these points I’ve presented.

[Anonymous]

What do Veterinarians Know About Nutrition?

“It is not unusual for people promoting unconventional, approaches to pet nutrition, such as raw diets, grain free foods, homemade diets, a preference for organic ingredients, and so on, to dismiss objections to these approaches made by veterinarians. These people will often claim that veterinarians know little about nutrition and that what they do know is mostly propaganda fed to them by commercial pet food manufacturers. Like most bad arguments, this one contains a few bits of truth mixed in with lots of unproven assumptions and fallacies”.

Click on link for full article, also, I find the comments for these articles informative too.

[C4D]

Shawna,

You do rock. When my old boy was diagnosed with CRF, my vet suggested the Balanceit website, along with some homemade recipes, when I said K/D was not an option. I did my own research and found dogaware and the CRF FB page. I never realized that Balanceit’s protein was so low! When I was referring to tripe, I meant frozen raw, not the vitamin enhanced version.

Also, for Sheila23, you can’t use the bleached human version found in grocery stores.

LOL on the typos and grammatical errors. If I’m ever accused of editing my comments, that would be the reason why! 😉

[TheNaturalDog]

Long story short, yes. IMO, some is always better than none when it comes to raw feeding/drinking. If you can’t get raw milk and the pups did well on pasteurized, well done.

[Shawna]

Hi Sheila23,

Although a homemade diet is absolutely doable I would do a LOT more research before you decide on any one brand. Example — Tripe is a great food for kd dogs but it is supposedly already balanced in calcium to phosphorus. Adding a premix like Preference, that is designed to balance higher phosphorus meat, could be problematic. Although phosphorus needs to be watched, you can go too low too early in the disease.

Balance IT could be an option but I personally wouldn’t have fed my KD girl such a low protein diet (ESPECIALLY in the early stages). Based on the nutrient profile of their beef and rice early stage kd diet the protein amount is only 15.3%. That’s ridiculously low for early stage kd without any complicating issues like proteinuria. Not even enough to meet the minimum protein amounts required for an a complete and balanced diet. They also use corn oil — EEEEKK. The chicken & rice recipe is even worse at 14.9% protein.

If you can afford it, I would highly recommend looking at Darwin’s prescription KD diet formulated by vet Dr. Barbara Royal. The ingredient list is
“Human-Grade Meat: Beef Meat, Beef Tripe, Beef Pancreas, Beef Lungs, Beef Kidneys, Beef Liver, Beef Heart, Beef Spleen.

Vegetables: Cabbage, Celery, Squash, Sweet Potato, Beets, Romaine Lettuce.

Special Nutrient Mix: Filtered Water (for processing), Sardine oil (source of EPA, DPA and DHA), Egg Shell Powder, Parsley, Apple Cider Vinegar, Inulin, Cornsilk, Dandelion Root, Cinnamon, Cranberry, Linden Flowers, , Chitosan, Zinc Amino Acid Chelate, Vitamin E, Manganese Amino Acid Chelate, Potassium Iodide, Vitamin D3, Aloe Vera.” http://www.darwinspet.com/our-raw-foods/our-raw-dog-food/intelligent-design-ks/

I LOVE that you are starting Alvin on Standard Process Renal Support. It is the one supplement that my Audrey NEVER did without since diagnosis. She had KD from birth (symptoms showed at just 6 weeks of age) but she wasn’t diagnosed till she was 13 months old. She was given one year to live after that. She lived to almost her ninth birthday and it was an infection that took her life not the normal progression of kidney disease.

Some other things to look at for Alvin — purified water (as much as he wants), extra water soluble vitamins if he urinates large volumes of water. A high quality probiotic and a prebiotic made with acacia fiber helps to clear BUN etc from the blood allowing for higher protein to be fed or simply helps clear BUN when necessary. This is called “nitrogen trapping”. Giving Evian (or another higher calcium, lower sodium mineral water) has been shown to be beneficial for kidney disease. I did give my Audrey fresh, raw garlic most of her life. I still believe that if I hadn’t gotten lazy and quit giving it to her near the end of her life she wouldn’t have developed the severe infection that ended up damaging her kidneys and taking her life. Enzymes to help with the digestion of his food. Certain supplements and herbs can be helpful — spirulina provides many nutrients, food grade activated charcoal given off an on in small amounts can help clear toxins, organic turmeric helps with inflammation and also helps prevent scar tissue (works best when combined with pepper or the enzyme bromelain from pineapple). Chlorella is a wonderful detoxer and it helps build red blood cells due to the high amounts of chlorphyll in it. Apple cider vinegar can help with indigestion (fed with food in small amounts or given via syringe but must be diluted first). Ginger extract and therapeutic grade peppermint oil can help with nausea (later in the illness). I also recently read that there is other therapeutic grade essential oils that can help the kidneys but I don’t remember the particulars of the article. Vet Dr. Melissa Shelton would be the person to seek out if wanting to incorporate essential oils.

I was lucky with Audrey, she was able to eat commercial raw products clear up to a few months before she passed. I’m not sure if that was because of the supplements, being fed raw from weaning or what but she did quite well. Possibly look at lower phosphorus commercial foods and then add small amounts of low phosphorus toppers (lightly cooked egg whites and coconut oil as an example) to keep the calories up while lowering the overall phosphorus even more. There are some great nutritionists out there as well that could be quite beneficial to you and Alvin.

Hoping Alvin does as well as, or better than, my Audrey!!!

Thank you Marie!

[Jenn H]

I know there’s a ton of benefits to giving raw goat milk to dogs. However, in my state it’s very difficult to find and very expensive when you do manage to find it.
When I helped hand raise a litter this summer we fed the pups the only readily available goat milk. It was pasteurized. But they all thrived while on it.
I understand the pasteurization process takes away/lessens the good qualities of raw, but would it still be better to give them that than none at all?

[InkedMarie]

I once had two smooth fox terriers; wonderful girls! Snowflake, are you in the US? If yes, i can give you links to where I buy raw but they aronly in the US.

[SNOWFLAKE]

HEY …ANYONE HERE USING HARDY PET. ? heard its real good but not sure //… I have a boxer and a fox terrier. Give them a calcium supplement and salmon oil. Feed kibble as of now bt planning to divide the meals . 1/2 Raw and other kibble. Maybe will have days for both. Please share some recipes for a 2month old fox terrier .. he eats 4times a day so little confused how to divide the food, ..

[SNOWFLAKE]

Thank you Jonathan.!!!! Really appreciate all your help. Will try these recipes soon . and as for c4D wasnt sure of the time difference and really sorry to have bothered you.Its just that i am super careful and excited about my wynn and his new diet so couldnt be patient. Take care and thank you for your time and effort. Aimee, I didnt notice you dont feed raw ..its all cool. THANKS ANYWAYS.

[Jonathan S]

Feeding raw and kibble is something you’ll find a lot of opinions about. Some people say never feed them at the same time because they digest at different rates. Some people say that’s not the case. I say, it depends on the dog. My dogs find the raw too rich on its own, and they have some digestive distress when I feed them raw and kibble in separate meals. I started feeding them raw and kibble at the same time, and no problem! You’ll just have to try and see what works for your dog. I’ve been feeding raw since they were 6 months old and they’re both happy and healthy. I also use a digestive supplement, but I keep experimenting trying to find one that I like. I’ve had good results with Flora4, but right now I’m using a kelp extract that seems to be working really well.

I have two recipes I use to keep their meals interesting…

2 lbs. Bone in ground rabbit
1 lb ground lamb
1 lb green lamb tripe
2 lbs chicken hearts, gizzards, livers
1 lb blue berries
1 lb greens (Green Juju)
1 lb peas
3 eggs
3 carrots
2 apples
1 can of organic pumpkin
2 tbs turmeric

Recipe 2
2 lbs ground duck necks
2 lbs turkey organs
2 lbs ground chicken backs or turkey necks
3 eggs
1 lb butternut squash
1 lb broccoli
1 lb frozen mango chunks
1 cup hemp seed hearts
.5 cup fennel seeds
1 can pumpkin or 1 cup of Firm Up!

All the veggies or whole things go through the food processor to make them readily digestible. The seeds get ground up. The apples are grated. I make both of these recipes at the same time, put them in individual serving containers, then freeze them. Makes enough for two weeks for both my dogs.

The common advice I’ve found is to feed your dog 2 to 4% of their body weight in raw food. Since I’m only feeding half raw, I just took the top end and cut it in half.

Oh, and I feed them twice a day, but when they were younger I was feeding them 3 times per day. Went to twice a day at around 8 months… about the time we shifted from puppy food to adult kibble.
2 tbs ground turmeric
coconut oil

• This reply was modified 10 years, 2 months ago by Jonathan S.

[aimee]

Hi Reewa,

As I don’t feed a homemade raw diet I can’t advise you on how to do it to ensure proper nutrition during such a critical life stage. I feel the risks of feeding homemade raw outweigh any proposed benefits. Sorry I can not help you further. aimee

[C4D]

Hi Reewa R,

Some of us have to sleep and work, so answers are not always immediate. Your posts were in the middle of the night in my area and I work as well.

I can’t answer your questions on feeding a puppy raw since I haven’t had a puppy in many years. I have adult dogs. I do feed kibble and raw as I have several large dogs. I feed canned/kibble for 1 meal and raw/cooked for the other meal. Some people feed raw and kibble together in the same meal. I don’t supplement with vitamins since I’m using commerical foods that already are complete and balanced. The links I included in the earlier post may be able to answer that question.

[SNOWFLAKE]

LOTS OF USEFUL INFO IN THESE LINKS.. thanks a million. I understood the balance of the diet now. One more doubt to be cleared please. He weighs about 6kilos now. So how much can I feed him and if someone can share a raw menu for puppies it would be gr8. I feed him 4times a day and have decided to give him 50%kibble and the other half raw. So he gets both benefits. Also can I FEED RAW AND KIBBLE ON THE SAME DAY? if not please share a day’s menu with me. THanks once again for all your help. any fox terrier owners here:????

[C4D]

Hi Reewa R,

Although aimee and I don’t always agree, I do agree with her in feeding a commercial raw as it is very important to make sure the diet is balanced. This is particularly important since you have a very young dog who could suffer some serious deficiencies if he doesn’t get the correct vitamins and minerals in the right dose.

You could feed homemade raw or homemade cooked, but you need to follow a diet that is balanced. Whole Dog Journal has several articles on balancing a diet as does dogaware.com and as Jonathon said, Dr. Karen Becker has some balanced home made diets. Here’s the link to dogaware:

http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/15_7/features/Home-Prepared-Dog-Food-Nutritional-Information_20568-1.html

http://dogaware.com/articles/wdjhomemade3.html

[SNOWFLAKE]

As we dont get natural raw products here.. I am planning to buy fresh or frozen from the market.

[aimee]

Hi Reewa,

When adding a food that isn’t “complete and balanced” to a food that is “complete and balanced” the recommendation is not to exceed 10% of calories from the unbalanced food.

When feeding kibble I use some of the same criteria as I posted for raw. I’d use a company that has veterinary nutritionists on staff, does feeding trials and has good quality control measures in place.

[SNOWFLAKE]

Can you please also send me photos of raw fed dogs and explain how the diet benefited your puppies

[SNOWFLAKE]

HI JONATHAN//. woww. thanks for your help and quick response. Its so confusing, I dont want to affect his digestion. But we all want the best for our dogs. I will check out the link on youtube and decide. Have been researching since a month now. There are so many pros and cons and its very hard to decide. Please guide me on this.. I dont know anyone who feeds raw here and our vet is against it altogether. People here are very single minded for some reason, (lol) planning to change my vet.

[Jonathan S]

I’m not a professional, but I do feed raw to my pups. Do lots of research first. there’s going to be a time and effort commitment as well as a financial commitment. Check out different recipes. Go to youtube and look up Dr. Karen Becker… she’s got lots of really great advice. The hardest thing is going to be convincing yourself that you’re doing the right thing. You’re going to find information out there and opinion that make it seem like handling raw food is like handling poison… it’s not. Take the same precautions you would with handling the food you serve your family.

The next hardest thing is perseverance. You’re going to affect their digestion and it might be messy at first. That doesn’t mean you should stop. You need to give them time to adjust. You will also need to take into account what proteins may or may not agree with your dog. Also, your raw food, especially if you’re making your own, will likely be higher in fat. That can cause some issues if you’re still feeding kibble as puppy food is usually higher in fat. I had to take my pups off puppy food much earlier than I expected.

I read some good advice about not feeding 100% raw. Most of your really good commercial foods are focused to provide complete nutrition, so they have vitamins and minerals in there that you might miss. I feed my dogs 50% raw and 50% kibble to make sure I don’t miss anything.

Another thing I do is review this site very carefully. If dog food advisor thinks that a particular ingredient is a positive thing in a highly rated food, you can bet it’s going to make an appearance in my food.

I hope this helps!

[SNOWFLAKE]

thank you so much for your advice.
Well in that case can I feed kibble and raw in separate meals> ? I am currently on Royal Canin . and I think I should switch to TOTW. The only problem is that I live in India. so there isnt much access to all good brands of kibble. But I am going to order it through amazon. So my boy is getting 4 meals / day. Is it a good idea to give him chicken mince for breakfast.. and then kibble throughout the day. ?/

[aimee]

Hi Reewa,

Congrats on your new puppy! If I were to g with raw diet in a pup I’d want to use a commercial product that has undergone feeding trails, has been through high pressure processing to decrease pathogens and comes from a company that has a vet nutritionist on staff.

Growth is a very demanding stage and if the diet isn’t well composed it can result significant long term health problems. Growth is a life stage in which I wouldn’t choose to home prepare the food.

[SNOWFLAKE]

Hey/// Just joined this forum. I own a smooth fox terrier.. He is 2months old. Currently i feed him kibble .. but I think raw food is more beneficial for dogs ..there are pros and cons to this but if it will benefit my puppy i am willing to take the risk. please can someone suggest ways of starting him on Barf.. I am thinking raw chicken mince would be ok to start with .. Not sure. PLease help . need some professional advice.

[InkedMarie]

A breeder of Cane Corso’s is in a group I am on. If you are on FB, look up PrideNJoyz Cane Corso. Website is pridenjoyzcanecorso dot com. She is a raw feeder if I remember correctly.

[Jenn H]

I get it that grains aren’t part of the dog’s “ancestoral diet” technically, but they kind of are. They’re carnivorous scavengers. What any canine preys on is usually an animal that eats grains & plants. And they eat the whole animal. Including that animal’s digestive system. What would be in their stomach??? Grains & plants.
Granted the contents would be broken down. The canine can digest it because of that. When grain is in kibble it’s been cooked. Thus making it digestible for the pet dog.
I would rather expose my dogs to variety and see what the tolerance is. I wouldn’t avoid giving a child peanut butter because so many kids are allergic and I wouldn’t want to take a chance that mine is. In fact I would likely expose them to nuts early & often to build a natural immunity.
Domestic dogs and wild canines are not exactly the same. I understand that completely. (Which is why I’m not 100% convinced all raw/BARF is the best choice either.) Our pets’ bodies have evolved & changed as they have become more integrated with humans.

The whole chicken allergy dogs seem to be acquiring I was told is because of different companies sourcing their meats from the very same vendors. I remember when California Natuals was bought by P&G. Every dog I’ve known to be fed that food suddenly had reactions. A trainer told me she found out that it’s because of where the ingredients are sources. Despite the fact that the recipe & ingredients remained unchanged. As soon as I told my friends what I had learned they all switched and the dogs stopped being itchy, picky, having upset stomachs.

I know at the end of the day it’s up to me to figure out what’s right for my animals. If that means being unconventional or not following the fads, then so be it. I’m the one who knows them better than anyone else. I’m the one who is obligated to do right by them.

You aren’t the first to warn of obsolete suggestions from Great Dane Lady. I think I’ll just stay clear of her advice all together.
I do appreciate your perspective & experience though.
Thanks.

[Jon K]

Vital Essentials Frozen Raw, Beef.
wondering why it’s not included on the Editor’s Choice List.
I know you can’t list every good food out there but I’m curious as to why this one is or isn’t on the list.
thanks

[Onya D]

Dogs Gone Wild Raw Food! My Maltese eats it but couldn’t find it on your website.

[C4D]

Hi Kristin C,

I’m in complete agreement with you on dogs being fed a more natural, balanced diet and that is the building block to fending off diseases. It often helps dogs that already are diagnosed with various conditions such as diabetes and seizures, etc. It sounds like your doing all the right things for your dog with the heart murmur too.

I also believe that way too many chemicals are being put on our dogs and personally use minimal, if any topicals. I actually just pull the ticks off my dogs, identify them (we have deer and brown dog ticks in abundance in my area as well as Lyme Disease) and try to keep them out of areas of known infestations. My guy that got the ticks got no less than 6 in less than a week’s time. I’ve also used some natural repellants on my dogs after getting ticks with great success.

I’m not disagreeing with you. I’m just saying it would be interesting to hear what happens if you decide to try omitting the Advantix. Here’s an interesting link on fleas from Dr. Peter Dobias:

http://peterdobias.com/blogs/blog/34542021-can-feeding-a-raw-diet-prevent-fleas

Good luck with your pups!

[Kristin C]

Lucky? 1 dog going from 10 ticks per week to none, and 1 dog never having ticks living here is lucky? I think there is more to tick and flea infestation than is being discussed. If I am brave enough next year I will completely omit the Advantix and just go with feeding a raw diet plus B-vitamins and see what happens. I will say that I have almost completely eliminated one of my dogs heart murmurs by feeding her raw heart, so I do believe a lot has to do with diet.

[C4D]

Hi Kristen C,

It’s an interesting theory. I do think a healthy immune system could be a great help. All 3 of the dogs @ my house eat identical diets, including fresh and raw as 1 meal per day. The only dog that got ticks this year is the one who insists on going through all of the tall grass in a known tick area. I think you might have gotten lucky, but I’d love to hear what you do & the subsequent results next year. 🙂

[Kristin C]

C4D-I was just asking a question about the possibility of the immune system being a factor. I actually live in Salem, CT, Lyme tick heaven. We live on 2 1/2 acres where my dogs have regular free roam in the woods. One of them (6 yrs) has had 10 ticks a week in the past (with Advantix). Since switching her to raw food, plus B-vitamins, even with a half dose of Advantix I can’t remember the last time she had a tick. My younger dog (2 yrs) has never had a tick, and she has spent a considerable time roaming the woods, and she is on the same raw food, B-vitamins, half dose of Advantix. I was worried a few months ago about fleas since they were both itchy, but I added more chicken to their raw food diet and that solved it.

[C4D]

Shawna, I completely agree with you on DE. It also works for fleas in the home if dusted on the carpeting (very gently, using a mask) and especially in the baseboards.

Red, I actually agree with you in the comment on tall grass. I live in an area that is “crawling with ticks”. Of my 3 dogs, only 1 gets any ticks on him and I literally have to drag him out of the tall grass near a wetland that is notorious for ticks.

I don’t agree with you and skeptvet on most issues, no surprise that aimee does. I’ve used many of the “natural” treatments and they do work as DogFoodie and AquarianGT have said and have found that they work quite well, including using a natural treatment for Demodex mange and the dog has been clear for 10 months now.

Kristin C, I do think the immune system might possibly help fleas, but ticks just seem to attach if the dog is in the right place at the right time. However, if you’re using Advantix, even at a half dose, that would negate your assumption as you are still using a pesticide to curb a possible problem. You would have to not use it to see if it works.

[Kristin C]

Hi Ella,

Read up some more on homemade raw. Is your recipe boneless? Chix breast or thighs? No gizzards or hearts? Liver ratio? How much fish oil for the weight of your dog? Vitamin E? I am not sure canola oil is necessary. Your parsley and veg ratio is probably fine with the pumpkin and yogurt.

Keep in mind that variety is key for the long term. You will need to add more proteins than chicken.

[Kristin C]

Is it possible the immune system of the dog contributes to the frequency of flea and/or tick problems? No one seems to have mentioned that in this post so just wondering. I feed my dogs B-complex vitamins with their raw food, plus am currently giving them each 1/2 Advantix dose every 8 weeks and there has not been one tick on either of them this summer. No fleas either as far as I can tell. I think they are both pretty healthy is my point, and I am considering taking them off Advantix completely next season, keeping up with the B-complex, liver treats and raw food.

[Alex p]

Many proactive, integrative, and holistic veterinarians have long recognized the nutritional drawbacks to commercially available dry pet food.

Most popular dry formulas don’t contain clean ingredients – those approved for human consumption – and they aren’t biologically balanced for obligate carnivores (cats), and scavenging carnivores (dogs).

However, in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s, we saw the production of better quality dry foods that contained more diverse ingredients. Coincidentally, during this same period, pet owners began to see the benefits of home-cooked diets because they could control the quality of the food they fed their dog or cat.

Although improvements to commercial dry pet foods addressed some of the quality control issues — and began to address the biological appropriateness of ingredients – they didn’t address one important fact. Companion animals were still consuming an entirely dead, inorganic, over-processed diet that was extruded and cooked at very high temperatures, rendering it devoid of any of the health benefits of living foods.

[Ella S]

After reading lots of things about the benefits of raw I finally want to switch him over.
I was thinking this would be a good recipe:
8 oz of chicken
1 oz of liver
1 fish oil capsule
2 tsp canola oil
1 tbsp dried parsley
8 oz of mixed veggies

This is the daily amounts for my dog.

[Janice M]

Have you rated Sojos complete Raw, grain free? I just tried the turkey recipe and my dog liked it and it looks “healthy”.

[chris]

zcRiley- thanks for the reply!

I don’t really feed my dog anything raw, on a very rare occasion i’ll give him raw pieces of chicken breast or beef cubes, but that is like maybe twice out of the year. I cook everything I give him, mostly into stews or soup like foods. I use everything as a topping for his dry kibble. For example I just had done Venison cooked and pureed with spinach, apples, sweet potato. I usually make a huge mixing bowl of it all and then put it into containers and freeze it and grab one container at a time out when needed. He gets about 2 cups a day over his dry kibble.

I have several recipes made up I’ll be making. I was just wondering about squirrel since i’m tempted on going out squirrel hunting a lot this year. I was concerned mostly because I have been told they’re super high in grease and oil contents. I appreciate the reply though, thanks a ton!

[Angeline H]

I have a chihuahua w similar allergies that started around same age. She was on Blue Buffalo Life Source chkn/brown rice puppy formula and was doing well on it. Since she was gaining weight, Dr. advised transition to adult. BB Life Source ckn/rice:Was fine for a while, then allergies started-thought it was caused by her food. Had her tested for allergies via blood draw sample. Result: allergy to dust mites, fleas, and molds. But not the dog food. Great environmental improvements were made, along w an Rx for sublingual allergy gtt Tx.
Sx subsided. 2+ months to go. Still have to use Benadryl prn. She still has mild allergenic Sx. Which Dr. Thinks may be from Ckn sensitives causing IBS. Being managed w probiotics and Liquid salmon oil also helps both the IBS and any minor itchiness. In short, the allergenic blood test is best. Sublingual drops better than injections.

[pugmomsandy]

I’ve been fostering pugs the past six years and they all eat the same food in differing amounts depending on whether they need to gain, maintain or lose weight. One of the vets mentioned weight loss anywhere from 2-5% per month was acceptable. My personal dogs even eat high fat raw foods but still maintain their shape with a tapered waist and abdominal tuck, visible last rib or two.

[pugmomsandy]

I do feed a mixture. It can be anything – kibble, dehydrated cooked, freeze dried raw, canned food and frozen raw. I don’t have to watch calcium and phosphorus though. You can try adding some fat calories such as some type of fish oil or coconut oil. There’s also a granular food made by Abady that has rice and it has around 800 calories a cup. Raw food, especially the fattier meats added to his kibble might help keep him satisfied a little longer. There are also canned foods that are high in fat and calories. Have you looked at Core canned foods?

[Jenn H]

Does anyone feed their dogs a diet of kibble and canned/raw/dehydrated?
I have large breed dogs that I like to supplement their dry when the weather gets cold to keep their weight up.
My real.concern is my puppy. He’s 4 months old. GSD. Approx 30 lbs. I know I have to keep his calcium at 1.5% max. Because of that I am having a problem finding the right food.
He acts like he’s starving to death even though he gets 3 3/4 cups fed over 4 meals. Right now he’s on Wellness Core Grain Free Puppy.

I’m looking for either a food that will satisfy his appetite or something I can supplement/replace some of his kibble with that will allow me to stay within the calcium guidelines.
While I am not opposed to canned, raw or dehydrated, I cannot feed strictly those types of foods.
I would also prefer a NON grain free food. Unless a dog has allergies I know they actually need some grains. Plus it seems that grain free has far more carbs than non grain free.

I appreciate any suggestions.
Thank you.

[crazy4cats]

Yes, there are two brands listed in E.C. that include frozen raw foods.

[zcRiley]

Yes, dogs can “have” wild squirrel. However, I think the pet food companies aren’t taking that exotic road just yet. It’s similiar to rabbit, which is already hard to find.

Dogs wouldn’t go out and specifically hunt squirrel; but if they decided to take a few bites of one, it won’t kill them. If your dog has a healthy immune system, they’ll survive through the rare intestinal parasite they may acquire. If you hunt it, deep freeze the squirrel meat (like you do any wild game meat) for at least 30 days to kill any parasites/larvae. You didn’t mention if you prepare it raw, dehydrated or cooked to your pet. You can make Kentucky Burgoo for them, stews make great toppers.

The proteins my pups got allergy tested for were as follows (no squirrel though!):
beef
buffalo
elk
goat
kangaroo
lamb
llama
pork/ham
rabbit
venison
yak

[Katrina D]

If you look under the editors choice recommended brands, there are a few raw frozen and freeze-dried formulas listed.

[Pitlove]

Nature’s Variety actually now makes the raw boost that they sell by itself so you can mix it in. I imagine its expensive to buy that + the food, but if your budget allows for it, you could certainly try that. Should be avaliable at Petco.

My dog is very picky and his favorite food by far is Fromm. And it’s also my favorite brand of food. If you can find a retailer (its going to be a small independantly owned shop) or buy online, I think Fromm is worth looking into. They don’t offer the raw boost however. Other brands that are now doing the whole raw boost thing are Natural Balance Wild Pursuit and Merrick Back Country.

[Kim S]

Hello Norene, I have a 9 yo yellow lab that has skin issues and found out wheat was her problem early on. A little over a year ago she began to scratch and bite herself to the point of being bloody and raw. I started researching and this is where I found DogFoodAdvisor. I have found many other sites that have helped too. I looked an environmental issues, allergies, flea/heart worm meds and food. My vet was not able to help much and I took to the internet. I found that grains can greatly effect a dog and we knew that wheat was a problem for her, I went grain free only to find that potatoes are a big fill in for them and she ended up with a widespread yeast infection. I did try raw but she ended up being sensitive to chicken and lamb so that didn’t work. Here’s what helped and I highly recommend to anyone with skin issues. We did a Alternative Sensitivity Test by Glacier Peak Holistics, all done by mail. That gave me a wealth of information and confirmed all my suspects. She is now on Orijen 6 Fish and doing wonderful. I’ve also added a daily probiotic, digestive enzymes, coconut oil to her meals. I have nothing to do with Glacier Peak but there are other companies that perform these tests and sell the same products. I also have found very informative websites such as Dr Karen Becker, Only Natural Pet and obviously you’ve found Dogfood Advisor. Beware of the flea and heartworm products, they can cause a number of issues and there are natural remedies. House hold cleaning products, laundry soaps, fabric softners, fragrance sprays and such can effect your dog. I now have a green home as much as possible. Good luck and hope you find the cure. I can tell you that it will be up to you and not your vet and I do like my vet very much.

[Shawna]

Hi Paul R,

They now know that dogs with kidney disease actually need good amounts of protein in the diet as it helps with the blood flow (aka GFR) and therefore keeping the blood clean. The exception to that rule is when the dog has high amounts of protein in the urine as that is a sign of inflammation of the kidneys. The protein should be lowered until the reason for the inflammation has been found and addressed — possibly a bacterial infection, stones, food sensitivity (they know in humans that gluten can cause increased proteinuria – I would assume reactions to foods can be the same in dogs). Here’s some data on that “A gluten-free diet induced in 75% of the cases a parallel improvement in these abnormal immunological data. Mean proteinuria values were found to be significantly decreased after 6 months of the diet and a reduction was also observed in microscopic hematuria.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2311308

May not be the case with your pup but I think it is often overlooked as a possibility.

My dog had kidney disease from birth and lived nine years. I fed her a raw diet but once in a while I was running in and out or really sick for a few days and would give her some kibble. Each time I gave her kibble I had to deal with the consequences of doing so for several days after. I would highly advise against ANY kibble, even prescription. The new prescription Science Diets are chicken and beef based and look appealing. If you can’t home cook and don’t want to feed raw it would be something to try while you are trying to deal with the proteinuria. I would also give a high quality omega 3 fish oil as it is anti-inflammatory etc. Another to try is organic (must be organic) turmeric (the spice). Turmeric is anti-inflammatory as well as anti-fibrotic, which are both helpful for the failing kidneys. Start with a small amount and build. Most dogs do well with it but my Audrey didn’t seem to tolerate it well. 🙁

Don’t give any more flea or tick meds or heartworm preventatives. Also no more vaccines. Some states will give rabies exemptions for pets with life threatening diseases. Take advantage of that if your state does.

It also helps to give reverse osmosis filtered water. There are so many impurities in most tap water. Always have water available. I would also look at a good probiotic and prebiotic. The right ones can help clear BUN etc from the blood which will help your pup feel better. This is called “nitrogen trapping” which was apparently discovered and coined by Iams researchers. I used a probiotic called Garden of Life Primal Defense (a human product) and a prebiotic called Fiber 35 Sprinkle Fiber (also human). I’ve heard that Sprinkle Fiber is no longer made but it was simply 100% pure acacia fiber. Any source of acacia fiber will work. Not all fibers work, some make things worse. I found this out the hard way. The one product I would not do without is made by Standard Process and is called Canine Renal Support. It helps in many many ways.

I hope something I’ve wrote is helpful for you and your sweet puppy!! Let me know if I can clarify anything or answer any questions etc.

Prayers to you both!!

[Tom D]

Thanks for replying, Pitlove. The only reason i have been going with the raw boost is because that is my dogs favorite part. He will eat all the raw bits out first….He takes a big scoop in his mouth walks away from the bowl and then spits the food out and eats the raw bits. Once all the raw bits are gone he eats the rest. I did actually try the Salmon Meal & Turkey Meal Formula but I could only find they small bags and my dog eat that bag in almost a week. Any other food recommendations?