[nagdu] Raw diet for guide dogs

[Tamara Smith-Kinney]

Tara,

Welcome!  I live in Oregon, and I have a nearly 4-year-old poodle guide
named Mitzi, whom I trained myself.

I looked into the raw food diet, and in my old neighborhood there was a
store where one could buy it prepackaged, run by an animal nutritionist, so
that was great.  Unfortunately, I couldn't begin to afford the ready-made
product and was having some arm and hand issues that made cutting stuff up
myself a nonstarter.  I know a lot of people who do feed the raw diet, and
their dogs certainly are in great health, with extra shiny coats.  If things
change for me, I plan to reconsider going to the raw diet.  We'll see.

I used to give Mitzi raw marrow bones for her teeth, but now with 2 people
and 2 dogs, the mess is prohibitive.  Also, having raw bones and whatever
was left on them migrating around the house as the dogs politic with them is
not a pleasant thought.  /smile/  We never get around to putting dog crates
in the house -- they don't go with the décor, you know.  /smile/

Again, welcome!

Tami Smith-Kinney

-----Original Message-----
From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf
Of Tara Annis
Sent: Friday, May 07, 2010 6:05 AM
To: nagdu at nfbnet.org
Subject: [nagdu] Raw diet for guide dogs

HI everyone!

I have been reading the NAGDU list for awhile, but this is the first time I
have posted.  I have a female black lab from GDB, and was considering
feeding her a raw food diet.  I read several books about this from
BookShare, such as Keep your dog healthy the natural way, the barf diet for
dogs and cats, and the dr. pritikin  book.    
Has anyone on this list tried this diet?    How was the transition from dry
kibble  to raw food?  Has your guide dog gained more muscle?  Does your dog
have less health problems?
After reading these books, I've found there are differences in the amount of
meat, grains, fruit, and vegetables  you should feed your dog.  The barf
diet says to basically use very little grain, and to focus on raw meat and
bones.  You can grind the bones up, in order to prevent choking.   The keep
your dog healthy advocates for more grain, saying that a dog does not need
as much protein for optimum health.
I already use a natural ear cleaner, give my dog only purified water, and
use a natural conditioner for her fur.    From these changes from chemical
to natural, I've seen better health in my dog, so I can definitely say that
natural and holistic does work for dogs.
I'd love to hear any feedback you guys have.

Tara

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