[Dailydrool] raw meat feeding (long)

[Marilyn Bickell]

Gaylene,
Excellent post! I just need to clear up a few things ;o)

>>>... It is unnatural for them to eat cooked meats, and cooked FAT can make
them VERY sick!...<<<

Dogs who aren't fed kibble, but have compromised immune systems, should be
fed cooked diets, especially dogs with gastrointestinal issues. And if a dog
is weak from an illness, bacteria from a raw diet could definitely be an
issue, so light cooking would be more suitable for those dogs than a raw
diet. 
OTOH, if a dog has been fed raw, or cooked, on a regular basis for a long
time, to suddenly switch a diet dramatically is bad for the body's overall
function. So you have a double-edged sword there. 

>>>... Raw chicken necks, raw fish,... should be fine...<<<

Even though there isn't a great amount of nutritional value in raw chicken
necks, they are fine to feed, but feeding raw fish is one of the biggest
debates around, regarding raw diets. I've been feeding a raw diet for almost
9 years, and I stay away from raw fish other than the Sardine Grind from
Primal. The possibility of parasites from eating raw fish is just too high
and doesn't fit into my comfort level as a raw feeder.

>>> ... Dogs can't digest vegetables in their natural state. Even we have a
hard time with grains and vegetables in their natural state...<<<

By their "natural state" do you mean whole? Yes, whole veggies are
definitely hard for a dog to digest. But ground to a mush are fine and
digest quite well, actually. Over the years I've become SO LAZY about
grinding, so I've started buying the dog's ground veggies from Alive through
the SFRaw food co-op. 
I also feed grains to the dogs; they all get a grain meal about once a week.
Beaver especially needs them because he can't eat a diet too high in fat
because of his Colitis, so basically he needs a "filler" in his diet. When I
feed grain flakes, like oat, quinoa, or barley flakes, I just soak them
overnight, but when I feed whole grains I over-cook them for easy digestion.

>>>... Have you ever looked in the toilet after eating
corn-on-the-cob?...<<<

OMG!! Bwaahahahahahaha ...

>>>... In order to get nutrition from vegetables they need to be
pre-digested, or broken down by cooking or grating in order for them to be
beneficial to the dog...<<<

Grated vegetables will usually pass through the dog. The preferable way to
feed veggies is ground to a mush. When they're in mush form, they also have
a lot of the juices from the veggies which are very beneficial. When I used
to grind veggies, I would break them down as completely as they would go so
there was a balance of veggie slop to the veggie juices. 

>>>... If you want to BARF (bones and raw food) feed your dog, DO YOUR
HOMEWORK!  There are lots of books and research available to you, don't just
do it willy-nilly, or you will miss important stuff in your dog's diet...<<<

Absolutely!!!!! Thank you for bringing up those important points! 
The thing that's most frustrating for me is when people tell me they feed a
large variety of raw foods "so the diet will be balanced." There is
absolutely no guarantee that the diet will be balanced from variety. More
than likely the diet will be unbalanced because the dog will be getting too
much, or not enough, of one vitamin/mineral or the other. It's just too
risky to feed a home prepared diet that's not properly work out. Another
problem is when people feed variety then supplement with vitamins and
minerals "just in case." Makes me nuts!

>>>... I have been told that dogs should not eat soy.  They can't digest the
proteins and even though they are good for us, they get lodged in the lining
of a dogs intestines and reduce the effectiveness of their digestive
process...<<<

Oh dear. Who told you that? When Bess had elevated liver enzymes, tofu was a
part of her diet for about 5 months. When she had cancer tofu was also a
part of her diet.
OTOH, I would be interested in knowing which soy products might be a
problem.

Marilyn, Miko (Chasing lizards in Heaven), El Queeno BessWHSE,
RoseyMaeNAFASSDDBBSSSBSAT, & (FC)Theodore CleavEar Beaver Bickell, 
Fort Bragg, CA.