Do you feed raw to your pets?

[Cindy Nevarez]

OK...good...I'm glad for you and Willy!

[mgt818]

Im glad to hear all is better!!    Pumpkin works great for both diarrhea and constipation.  If you are feeding home-cooked meals you may just want to consider increasing your veggies a little bit to provide a little more fiber.

[willyagogo]

Actually...my doggies get quite an assortment of veggies and fruits...as snacks (carrot slices,green beans...apple slices, bits of banana) as well as steamed veggies in their home-cooked that I make.

But the day before he got constipated....I think I gave him too much in the "raw" dept...

I'm still new at this.....and I think I'm going to have to invest in a small scale to weigh out things (as said at the raw dog ranch site)....instead of just giving them things here and there! I now realize the importance of balance and I suspect I will have to give him less % than my other sheltie baby........and I'll always have some canned pumpkin on hand!!

One thing is for sure.....I refuse to go back to commercial again! I certainly understand that home-cooking is not apprpriate in everyone's situation....but as long as they are doing well (I will be getting their blood and urine analized regularly).....then I'm going to keep with what I'm doing........more balanced of course!!!.... ....

Thanks to you all!!!.....Hope everyone and their fur-babies are doing well!!!!

[mgt818]

Thats how I was... measuring everything.  It got to be quite messy.  It was bad hehe.  Anyway, I started to get nervous when my oldest started to be less active.  All of a sudden, he was really lethargic.  I got scared!  Then, to top it all off, I asked a dog nutritionalist about my home made diet and she said that as long as I know how to balance the calcium and phosphorus ratios than that is ok, but I really don't have a clue.  It seems as if home made food really helped him at first, but then he had no energy.  I also started giving them raw.  Finally, I started them on a commercial diet with raw meat and veggies on top.  He seems to be much better now, but I really wish that I could just keep them on all home cooked meals.  I would feel MUCH safer.  I just opened a new bag today.  My second bag since I re-introduced the commercial kibble and I couldn't help but pray for the bag of food!!!  Another reason I really liked giving them the home cooked diet is because, I was buying all organic ingredients.  (still who knows right maybe just piece of mind)

[janielaurel]

I know organic is more expensive, but we should ALL be eating organic if we can, and should be feeding our pets organic also. They are far more sensitive to environmental toxins than we are; they're smaller and it doesn't take as much to push them over the edge. Organic is indeed the best way to go, and feeding raw is the best way also.

About the issues with bones. I'm not sure that feeding the "barf" diet is the right way, considering the thought that bones are the storage receptacle in our bodies for storing heavy metals. As bone is created or replaced in the body of an animal, it also stores the heavy metals that an animal consumes in its diet. (what goes around, comes around). If you feed a dog a barf diet, and let them eat bones, do you know that the cow/pig/sheep/whatever that bone came from was eating healthy, non-tainted meal? Additionally, bones contain a high percentage of phosphorus, which negates the value of feeding them the meat (high in calcium). too much phosphorus in your pet's diet will lead to renal failure, and you're right back where you started.

If you supplement with bonemeal, please stop. Bonemeal is one of the worst things you can use. Most bonemeal is prepared from commercially-slaughtered cattle, and it may not even be high-quality beef; think Mad Cow Disease, among others. And, feeding bones or bonemeal pushes the ratio of 2 parts calcium to 1 part phosphorus (in the ideal world of what your pet needs), to way too much phosphorus.

make life more simple and use ground eggshells instead of the bones; it's high in calcium and you can control the source. And, you can buy ground eggshells online.

It's funny. six months ago, having given up pets for a number of reasons in my life, when the pet food recalls started happening, I started digging into nutritional needs in pets and was really surprised at what really IS good for your pets. I had never thought about raw before that; it ended up being a book.... go figure.

Once you get used to the process, raw is simple and as you're all beginning to find out, more than worth the effort. YOu're rewarded with happy, healthy pets with shiny coats and eyes, and no more runny noses.... no more bowel issues, no more smelly cat boxes. Life's good.

But, please consider the bones versus eggshells conversation. Just one more assurance that you're doing it right for you four-legged friends.

[mel_t]

I personally would not use eggshells in place of bone unless I couldn't get ground bone.  There is more than just calcium in bone, and you'd be removing a lot of nutrients by excluding bone.  I get your argument about heavy metals, but I just don't think the risks outweigh the benefits in this case.  I would wonder how much heavy metal would actually be in chicken bones, for instance.

Regarding the organic vs. non-organic.  I don't think anyone would argue that organic would be the gold standard, but if it comes down to being able to afford organic vs. regular meat and then weigh that against feeding commercial foods, I think the non-organic meat still wins out. 

[Bonkers]

  This yahoo raw feeder group is a great resource for information from other pet parents that feed raw.    http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/rawcat/

[Bonkers]

  I have fed raw food to my IBD kitty named Jasper for over a year now. His health has improved immensely since the switch. I have been using commercially prepared raw although I have attempted to prepare some at home in the past. He is sensitive/allergic to fish and chicken. It is very difficult to find supplements or other items he can tolerate. There is a raw food supplement I have been wanting to try so that I can make his raw food myself. It is called Allnutrin. I wonder if anyone has used this?   http://www.knowwhatyoufeed.com/alnutrin_supplements.html

[Bonkers]

  Stumbled upon some excellent info pertaining to feeding raw and/or home cooked. On this site you can find recipes, calculators to figure out the ideal Ca:Phos ratio, how to choose a commercial food and more.  http://www.holisticat.com/Keeping-Cats-Well-Fed/

[Therese]

Bonkers, do you feel like you're talking to yourself? lol

I've been feeding raw for years but recently switched over to cooked food for my dog Lydia after she was diagnosed with cancer. She's in remission now, (thank God!) and I haven't decided if I'll go back to raw for her or not. I've been really pleased with how my guys have done on raw.

[Bonkers]

Bonkers, do you feel like you're talking to yourself? lol
 

  Not Any More!!

[Therese]

[GreyGhost]

LOL. It gets that way sometimes.....I still feed the raw. I also think raw is the best for cancer animals.

[Bonkers]

  Therese, Might I inquire as to why you switched from raw to homecooked?

[kaffe]

I also switched from raw to home-cooked with Kaffe after the vet told me he had the beginnings of CRF and on hindsight, probably the beginnnings of other more serious health issues.  I wanted to keep him on raw, but for some reason, he couldn't keep it down - he would barf if out.  On the otherhand, he was able to keep down the cooked versions of the recipes...  now I know of course that his tummy cancer had a lot to do with it.

On the CRF Support group, they advice agaisnt feeding raw to cats with compormised immune systems - and that includes cats with CRF and cancer.  In other groups, they advice feeding raw especially to cats with compromised immune systems --- so, really, there is still a lot of differing opinions out there!  IFor myself, I know I would have kept Kaffe on raw if he could have kept it down.