FEEDING

I have been feeding my dogs naturally since about 1995.  I feed a diet called in some circles the "BARF" diet, standing for Biologically Appropriate Raw Food.  I prefer to call it SANE - Species Appropriate Naturally Evolved.

Our dogs are direct descendents of the Wolf.  Over the years since domestication, we have bred them to enhance certain behavioural characteristics from their ancestry and to look different, but their basic physiology remains the same.

Processed food has only been around for the last 50 years or so - a tiny step in the evolution of our best friends - and only in any real force in the last 20 years or so.  Processed foods contain “animal derivatives”, which is usually the heads, feet and other discarded bits after butchering for human consumption.  These are then rendered in large vats to a gloop, to which is then added cereals – not a natural dietary item for dogs and not naturally digestible by dogs.  All natural goodness and taste that may have been in the food is long cooked out meaning that they have to be put back in the form of additives and flavourings.  This highly processed food is the main reason for the general poor health of many dogs, including bad breath, wind, teeth that need cleaning regularly, eczema and other skin problems, allergies etc.  Which is why every year the manufacturers bring out yet another product to help with this or that problem.  Good plan, promote the food as the best thing since sliced bread for your dog, then when they get health problems from it, create another food which purports to help it!!  Highly processed foods for dogs, like processed foods for humans are carcinogenic, if your dog has a predisposition to cancer or other illness, processed diets may bring it out.   Your dog is also at risk from bloat because dried food expands in the stomach, they have to drink lots of water and because the stools are soft anal sac problems are common.  Feeding your dog as nature and evolution intended, will ensure greater health, vitality and longevity.  We have our friends for such a short period of time, we should all want to do what is best for them to help them live as long and healthy a life as possible.  Dogs fed as nature and evolution intended tend to be free of teeth, skin, ear, eye, bowel, kidney, heart, pancreas and liver problems.  They have a much healthier immune system helping them overcome other things like viruses.  They also have a much reduced chance of getting cancer and other degenerative diseases.  This healthy state continues into old age.  They produce smaller, easier to pick up and non-smelly stools.

Your dog is a hunter, they are designed to eat and digest animal carcasses - the whole thing, fur, organs, bones, meat.  They get every nutrient they need from feeding this way.  The pet food manufacturers will tell you your dog needs to eat a nutritional balance every day, this is not true, for them or us, balance should be achieved over time.  Your vet will recommend processed foods because they are trained at vet school by nutritionists.  These "nutritionists" work for the pet food manufacturers - need I say more?

My first Malamute, Nico was fed a processed diet because at the time I thought, like everyone else, it was the right thing.  However, I was never happy with the "outcomes" and although he appeared healthy, I always felt something was missing.  He used to get Acute Moist Wet Eczema every 6 mths.  I would go to work and he was fine, get home and he had a large oozing sore on his neck which needed antibiotics, cream, and "anti-scratching injections" (which I later found out was steroids).  Once I was told about the BARF diet, it all made sense and I swapped him and my other dogs over immediately.  He never got eczema again and his stamina and vitality was markedly up when we started racing again later in the year, a side effect I wasn't expecting.  Since then I haven't looked back. 

All my dogs are exceptionally healthy.  They have been directly exposed to kennel cough and never caught it.  My oldies have completely clear eyes and are still very fit and active.

I have heard testimonials direct from people about how the change in diet has helped nervous dogs become more confident, dogs with joint problems have become more mobile, dogs with pancreatitus and on expensive enzyme treatment come off it completely, skin problems healed up and many more.  People who switch to natural feeding, never switch back.  I even feed my cat naturally - raw meat and offal.  Those of you who have cats that use litter trays will know how much cats stools smell, this does not happen if you feed naturally.

If you are interested in feeding your dog as nature and evolution intended, to give it as healthy and long a life as possible, then here are some links for you to look at.   I run a raw feeding group in the Spey Valley, if you would like more information  or are interested in joining our raw feeding group (growing steadily) then please contact me.

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1244595/Is-food-youre-feeding-pet-killing--making-vet-rich.html

www.drianbillinghurst.com/

http://www.ukrmb.co.uk/

http://www.rawmeatybones.com/

http://www.rawfed.com/myths/index.html