If you take the leap of faith and decide to make your own raw dog food it's important to remember that bone meal must be part of the recipe. If your dog doesn't get the right amount of "fit for consumption" bone meal, their bodies will extract it from their own bone matter. Bone meal is not an optional ingredient, it's one of those must-have's. I'm not comfortable with giving my westies meaty bones which was where they were getting their bonemeal intake previously.
**** Make sure the bone meal is consumable. Do not use the bone meal for gardens as this will poison your dog.****
As far as supliments go, I also add something call Pet Essentials which is a blend of vitamins and minerals that make sure my dogs are getting all the things they need.
I've recently read a few articles pertaining to the importance of adding starch to the homemade diet. Adding sweet potatoes and serve this purpose, however, I have yet to do this. My most recent batch of homemade will take about a month to consume but after that I intend to add this form of starch.
Friday, December 24, 2010
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Add Fruits to Your Raw Dog Food Diet
Fruits such as apples, pears and blueberries do great things for your dog when mixed with your homemade dog food recipe. Be sure to remove any seeds as dogs have difficulty digesting them. Fruit can add fiber and necessary vitamins to keep your dog healthy and happy.
If you are using a recipe that calls for 60% meat (10% of which is organ) and 40% vegetable, simply work in fruit to about 5% of that vegetable.
Fruits have natural anti-oxidants that work against aging.
Many premium dry dog foods contain fruit but just as the minerals are cooked out of the kibble, the goodness of fruit is greatly reduces as well.
I hope to review some of those dehydrated raw diet powders in my next blog. I have been experimenting a bit with Urban Wolf, however, I'll reserve my discussion on this until next time.
If you are using a recipe that calls for 60% meat (10% of which is organ) and 40% vegetable, simply work in fruit to about 5% of that vegetable.
Fruits have natural anti-oxidants that work against aging.
Many premium dry dog foods contain fruit but just as the minerals are cooked out of the kibble, the goodness of fruit is greatly reduces as well.
I hope to review some of those dehydrated raw diet powders in my next blog. I have been experimenting a bit with Urban Wolf, however, I'll reserve my discussion on this until next time.
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Westies and the Raw Food Diet
I absolutely love West Highland Terriers. They're as smart as a whip, full of personality and, if they're healthy, live a long loving life. I was lucky enough to have been born into a family where pets were not seen as just animals. They slept in the house, went for drives in the car and were constantly around us.
I currently have two westies. Quincy (M) is about 3.5 yrs old and Daisy (F) is a very sweet 1.5 yr old. They are both like kids to me and I am totally committed to their happiness and health... which brings me to the point of this blog.
Quincy arrived full of allergies and digestive problems. Prior to adopting him, I had pretty healthy dogs and found myself in an area that was completely unfamiliar. Poor Quincy was full of gas all the time. He also had terrible stool formation. My vet suggested he be put on a special type of food from a can that was expensive and offered very little in terms of nutritional value. This allowed me to stabilize what was happening in his little belly until I could find a food that would be more agreeable.
I did manage to find a premium dry dog food that stopped his chronic diarrhrea. I fed him this for the next 3 years and he did well on it. His terrible gas continued so I found myself constantly probing professionals across the city and on the web for advice.
I was pretty lucky with Daisy. She has no allergies or digestive issues so she happily goes along for the ride in all of this.
The answer to Quincy's problems came by accident. I had come into contact with a natural food supplier who seemed to be very knowledgable on different types of pet food ranging from wet (cans) to home cooked to raw. I listened to her advice because she sounded like she knew more than my vet, plus she too owned two West Highland Terriers who also came to her with some allergies.
Her recommendation for Quincy was to try the raw dog food diet....
We started on the Beef & Veggie paddies which need to be unthawed over night and fed to the dogs over two meals per day. The very first thing I noticed was how focused my ADHD westies became when they saw me preparing the dish for them. After giving them permission to begin eating, they don't stop until the plate is clean. This didn't happen with the premium dry food where on some occasions they didn't eat it at all.
The 2nd big thing I noticed was that after a couple of days (yes days), Quincy's gas was gone. It has not returned... not even little ones.
Both of my westies are more vibrant and energetic now. Their eyes beam and dance... I'm all in when it comes to this raw dog food diet. I'm convinced both my little guys will live long, healthy lives as a result of consuming food that keeps all of its nutritional value. Information on why over-cooked dry kibble is bad for our pets is not difficult to find on the internet. I would encourage anyone who sees their pet as a member of the family to seek out the facts, talk to professionals, learn what you can to make informative decisions that will improve the lives of those you love.
I now make my own raw dog food that seems to have again improved their energy and and over all health. If you're interested in what I put into my raw dog food I may post it here. It can be time consuming and it must be something you consider. Also, if you have children, you need to develop good santiary habits to keep them safe.
If you have questions or comments I'd be more than happy to respond.
Todd
I currently have two westies. Quincy (M) is about 3.5 yrs old and Daisy (F) is a very sweet 1.5 yr old. They are both like kids to me and I am totally committed to their happiness and health... which brings me to the point of this blog.
Quincy arrived full of allergies and digestive problems. Prior to adopting him, I had pretty healthy dogs and found myself in an area that was completely unfamiliar. Poor Quincy was full of gas all the time. He also had terrible stool formation. My vet suggested he be put on a special type of food from a can that was expensive and offered very little in terms of nutritional value. This allowed me to stabilize what was happening in his little belly until I could find a food that would be more agreeable.
I did manage to find a premium dry dog food that stopped his chronic diarrhrea. I fed him this for the next 3 years and he did well on it. His terrible gas continued so I found myself constantly probing professionals across the city and on the web for advice.
I was pretty lucky with Daisy. She has no allergies or digestive issues so she happily goes along for the ride in all of this.
The answer to Quincy's problems came by accident. I had come into contact with a natural food supplier who seemed to be very knowledgable on different types of pet food ranging from wet (cans) to home cooked to raw. I listened to her advice because she sounded like she knew more than my vet, plus she too owned two West Highland Terriers who also came to her with some allergies.
Her recommendation for Quincy was to try the raw dog food diet....
We started on the Beef & Veggie paddies which need to be unthawed over night and fed to the dogs over two meals per day. The very first thing I noticed was how focused my ADHD westies became when they saw me preparing the dish for them. After giving them permission to begin eating, they don't stop until the plate is clean. This didn't happen with the premium dry food where on some occasions they didn't eat it at all.
The 2nd big thing I noticed was that after a couple of days (yes days), Quincy's gas was gone. It has not returned... not even little ones.
Both of my westies are more vibrant and energetic now. Their eyes beam and dance... I'm all in when it comes to this raw dog food diet. I'm convinced both my little guys will live long, healthy lives as a result of consuming food that keeps all of its nutritional value. Information on why over-cooked dry kibble is bad for our pets is not difficult to find on the internet. I would encourage anyone who sees their pet as a member of the family to seek out the facts, talk to professionals, learn what you can to make informative decisions that will improve the lives of those you love.
I now make my own raw dog food that seems to have again improved their energy and and over all health. If you're interested in what I put into my raw dog food I may post it here. It can be time consuming and it must be something you consider. Also, if you have children, you need to develop good santiary habits to keep them safe.
If you have questions or comments I'd be more than happy to respond.
Todd
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