Raw Food Diet is Key to Dogs' Health

Raw Food Diet is Key to Dogs' Healthby Tracey DempseyYou can cure many ailments with diet alone, and this is the most natural diet that I know. If dogs were out in the wild, they would eat a fresh-killed chicken, steal eggs and eat raw fish. I have tried to replicate this wolf diet.A while back, Bailey, Guiness and Mocha became sick from their diet of venison and potato dried food. Guiness became very sick with possible liver failure. We got to the vet’s in time for Guiness and he was treated for about 3 weeks with liver tablets. We also found out that some time in the past, he had been shot 3 times with a pellet gun, with the bullets still in place.Poor Guiness also had problems with wheezing and spinal stenosis, which caused his back legs to go limp after a run, so that he could not move or stand. I needed to change something and prevent further problems. PREVENTION is the key to everything. DRUGS are only are very small part and should be taken only when needed. I try to avoid drugs, as the side effects can cause so many other problems. I promised myself and my dogs never to feed them dried food again. I needed to get Guiness back in good shape, as the dried food had put 10 lbs. on him, adding pressure on his back legs. I was also concerned as to what was in the food I was feeding my babies. My next door neighbor fed her greyhounds (show and race dogs) a raw food diet called BARF. I shopped for the essential ingredients and began the diet.My version of the raw diet is as follows:• Raw chicken thighs from Albertson (.99 lb): One thigh in the morning and another thigh in the evening.• Twice a week, I add a raw egg. Also, if the thighs are small, I'll add an egg to give more protein. Don't waste any of egg - grind up the shell and put it in the bowl for extra calcium.• A cod liver oil tab once a day• Vegetables (peas, green beans)• A small can of low sodium carrots can be split between two dogs daily.• Three times a week I add organ meat (chicken heart or liver.)• Sometimes I'll put in fruit, if bananas are not being eaten by Ryder.• You can use fillers, such as sweet potato, regular potato or brown rice.• Change it up once in a while, but not too much.This diet is quick to prepare and the dogs can digest the bones because they are raw. Of course, never give them cooked chicken bones, as they can get stuck in the esophagus. Raw bones clean their teeth and contain calcium. This is a wolf diet.Guiness is 9 years old now, and behaves like a new dog. He’s lost 10 pounds and is jumping over fences that he was unable to clear before. He is like a puppy again. We cannot believe the change. Bailey has always been slim and you can never feed him enough. He looks amazing for 8 years old.Mocha has suffered with severe allergies, especially repeated yeast allergies from dried food. Although she is better, I have gone a step further to try to alleviate her allergies completely, We are now giving her a unique protein: rabbit. We are currently trying to get it ordered from Albertson. No eggs or chicken for Mocha, but she gets everything else. Sometimes I buy wild salmon at 10 pounds for $10 at Albertson and give that to her. She is definitely better.I feel very good I've done this for my dogs, and get comments all the time about their coats and how great they look for their age.Editor’s Note: Different dogs have different dietary needs. Anyone interested in exploring a raw food or otherwise homemade diet should be sure to read up on it before starting. Thorough research will ensure that you are feeding a complete, balanced diet.