That's an excellent article RAH, and there's so much information out there on raw foods that the "Purina Dog Chow" companies don't want us to know about, nor the ingredients that actually go into their foods.
JM, regarding vegetables and good and bad bones, one must use common sense on particular bones. When Sammy is finishing up a T-Bone and it's getting pretty small, I'll pull it away to not take chances. I also know they don't recommend pork as they don't digest that particular meat very well. On the vegetables, I don't think there's many that aren't recommended. Carrots I might soften up, yams I usually soften up as well but Sammy has no problem chewing away on a raw one.
Keep reading up on raw food diets and you'll find how truly good they are for our dogs.
I remember Darcie telling me once that if she saw her dog going to town on some road-kill she would just let 'em go. That one I have a harder time with. But have you noticed the first thing animals usually eat after a kill? It's normally the organs, for the protein.
Back to my original post, the thing that really sold me was not only Sammy's overall health but the way Sammy's poops turn white and then to dust. Pretty telling testament that they're actually getting nutrients from their meal.
As the article states "Meat such as chicken, poultry, beef or fish should be the first ingredient listed in any dog food you judge to be "the best"." What's the first ingredient on the bag of food you're feeding your dog?
Here's an example of some store-bought foods:
Pedigree - ground whole corn, chicken by-product meal, brewer's rice, corn gluten meal,,,
Purina dog chow - Whole grain corn, poultry by-product meal, corn gluten meal,,,,
IAMS - Chicken, corn meal, ground whole grain sorghum, chicken by-product meal,
Here's some "good for your dog" ingredients:
Orijen - Fresh deboned chicken, chicken meal, turkey meal, russet potato, fresh deboned pacific salmon (a natural source of DHA and EPA), herring meal, sweet potato, peas, fresh deboned lake whitefish, fresh deboned northern walleye,,,,
Taste of the Wild - Salmon, ocean fish meal, sweet potatoes, potatoes, canola oil, salmon meal, smoked salmon, potato fiber,,,,
You get the idea.
And lastly, get your dog some Tripe! It consists of the stomach lining of (usually) a cow, stinks real bad and looks disgusting, but so good for your dog and they LOVE it! (Trippet is a good brand)
Even after all this, know what you're feeding your dog, read up on the right raw-food diet for your breed, and watch them enjoy!
BTW, I'm not affiliated with
www.sitstay.com in any way and don't know the new owners but it was always my reference point of knowing what foods were the right foods for Sammy.
(Sorry, started rambling again)
Keith
