Raw Food vs. Dog Food

[GSDOWNER]

So you've got a new dog and you're wondering what to feed him. The market is full of commercial diets, and you've heard that some people feed their dogs raw meat. What should you do?

Dogs are omnivores which means they require meat, fiber, and other nutrients to stay healthy. Generally, adult dogs need a diet that consists of 22-25% protein and 15-19% fat, although puppies, pregnant dogs, and active dogs will have different nutritional requirements.

If you choose to feed your dog a commercial based diet, it is very important to choose a high quality food. You want to make sure that a good quality protein source such as lamb meal, chicken meal, or turkey meal is the number one ingredient. You want to stay away from foods that list a grain as the number one ingredient or contain lots of byproducts and preservatives.
Healthy Dog Food System
Many people choose to feed their dogs raw food or the BARF (Biologically Appropriate Raw Food or Bones and Raw Food) Diet. This diet consists of raw meaty bones, vegetables, offal (the organ part of the protein source), recreational bones, and proteins like cottage cheese and eggs with the shells. Proponents of this diet claim that it keeps their dogs healthier than commercially prepared diets.

The following are some pros and cons of both diets:

Testing: People who advocate raw diets claim that the diet is tried and true and has been tested positively for centuries on wild dogs. They say that since commercial diets have been around since only the 1950's, there is no long term testing that has been done on this food. Proponents of raw food claim that the increase in allergies, dysplasia, and other health conditions is as a result of dogs being fed commercial dog food.

People who believe in commercial dog food point to the millions of dollars each year companies such as Purina, Iams, Hill's, and Nutro spend on scientific and field testing of their products. They believe that commercial dog food contains all of the nutrients that a dog needs to grow and be healthy and that since the BARF diet is complicated, expensive, and difficult to prepare, many people do not properly understand it and are not appropriately feeding their dogs.

Grains: Advocates of raw feeding say that dogs cannot properly digest grains and therefore do not feed them. They feel that the commercial market uses grains because they are inexpensive fillers.

Proponents of commercial dog food say that as dogs are omnivores, it is only natural that they require the nutritional benefits of grains. They feel that people who feed raw food are depriving their dogs of this nutrient.

Raw Ingredients vs. Cooked Ingredients: People who feed their dogs raw food diets feel that nature intended for animals to eat their food raw and that cooking damages the chemical makeup of foods and that cooking the food actually damages an animal's immune system.

Those that feel that commercial food is the way to go, claim that there is no difference between cooking the animal's food and cooking human food. That all of the nutrients are still active in cooked food providing healthy meals for animals.

Additives: People who believe in feeding their dogs raw food feel that no additives are needed and that their animals are getting all of the nutrients they require. They feel that the commercial food companies use additives to enhance the palatability of their food effectively "addicting" a dog to it.

Commercial food advocates say that additives such as omega 3 and 6 fatty acids are essential to giving the dog the proper balance of nutrients he requires, while raw food is missing some essential vitamins and minerals.

Variety: Those who feed raw food feel that dogs need variety in their diet and that commercial food is very boring for them.

Commercial food advocates say that dogs have very sensitive digestive systems and that variety actually can cause things such as vomiting and diarrhea.

Whether you choose to feed your dog the BARF diet or commercial food, it is important to be educated on what a dog's nutritional requirements are. You should also consult your veterinarian for his recommendation on diet.




Dog Article courtesy of I-Love-Dogs.com

I Don't fancy feeding complete raw, mine are quite happy on there Arden Grange, and look fine on it. I do occasionally give them lambs ribs, marrow bones and Chicken wings, but thats now and then maybe once a fortnight.
Sam

[LOVEGSD]

Diesel's fed Arden Grange too and like yours Sam he looks great on it....he does get extras but again not as a regular part of his diet.

I feed all my dogs on raw food and they love it. I have a 14 yr old chocolate lab who has been fed on comercial food all his life, he used vomit almost every night but since i moved him onto raw this problem has never re-ocured. Consaquently now all 3 of my dogs eat raw and i will never go back.

[DelsMum]

I feed a combination of raw and Burns (brilliant brilliant food for sensitive tummies with no 'cr*p' in it and does not swell in the stomach). Del has it with tripe mince, or some liver, or heart etc and chicken wings instead of commercial treats and touch wood he is in amazing conditon. People stop me in the street to comment on how well he looks and ask what he eats! Vet is also very impressed with him for his age- I swear he thinks he's still 2!

[maxandskye]

I have been feeding my two on raw for almost two weeks now, & they are loving it. Its actually very rewarding & satisifing feeding it to them.

My two rouges are 3yr old now, and have previously been fed on Arden Grange, J/W/B, & Burns.

Maxandskye/

may i ask you all where you buy your raw food ?

[maxandskye]

I buy the chicken (whole) from the supermarket, there`s usually some offer on, & then strip them down ( well hubby does). They even have a whole carcass each, which is fasinating to watch.

The rest I go to the local butchers for ie; liver, heart, ox tail, rib beef, rack of lamb etc.

I do like making them smoothies from old left over vegtables, that I would normally throw away. Last week I did a brussel sprout smoothie, which I thought was quite funny

Tins of sardines, piltchards are always a good stand by.

ATB.

Maxandskye.

The reason i asked is, you should try the natures menu website. I buy direct from them where i get 40 packs of minced chicken or tripe or beef and tripe for just over £18, each individual pack weights in at 454gr. they also do poultry necks, heart chunks and so on and so on. They are wholesalers to pets at home etc, but you can open a breeders account which is what i did. It may save you some money it did me.

[Wooferhound]

I go to Landywoods for mine, they have quite an extensive range of foods, and it's pretty good value.

Landywood Pet Foods : Home

Jo