Join me on the Journey that I've taken over the past couple of years in the search of the best food for my dogs, Bo & Boquet. It was a time of trial and error, and lots of research, learning new things, and fun at the same time. The dogs, in the meantime, were very happy to eat just about anything that was put before them. Little did I know that I just wanted to find what their Creator had designed them to eat. In the end I found what I call the "Back to Nature Way of Living", which combines not only just what they eat and how, but also how they live their live and what kind of leadership they need.
It all started back in 2003 when I received a Chihuahua magazine as a gift. It had an article in it about dog food ingredients and even had a dog food dictionary. Before that, I fed my dogs whatever dog food I could get and thought was good while still being inexpensive. They’ve had Dad’s, Purina Little Bits Dog Chow, Purina Beneful, Exclusive Lamb and Rice, Ol’ Roy MaxXimum Nutrition Lamb and Rice, and various other brands of dog food. Once I read this article, though, I made sure they had “good” ingredients. I made sure they didn’t have BHA or BHT, Corn, and preferably no by-products. I would go to Wal-Mart and look at all the ingredients on various brands of dog food. I was surprised to find that so many dog foods had controversial ingredients in them. Well-known brands, such as DADs, Purina, and Iams, all have ingredients that dogs shouldn’t really be eating. Granted, many people have success and claim that their dog is healthy, but that’s because it takes years for these “unnatural” foods that dogs are eating to show signs of being detrimental to their health. What about all the claims about “Vet-recommended” or approved by the AAFCO. One time e-mailed one of the dog food companies, because of one of their claims about their dog food. I mentioned that they had chicken by-product as one of the ingredients, which according to the AAFCO’s definition, includes heart, lungs, liver, kidneys, feet, abdomen, intestines and heads. They replied that their chicken by-product didn’t contain such things and they aimed to have human-grade or high-quality food. Basically, they just denied it, but it didn’t sound like a very good answer to me.
As I was writing this, I came across a website called Dog Food Analysis . Wow! It’s amazing how many dog foods they have reviewed. They are not associated with any dog food manufacturers and they aren’t promoting one specific dog food. Instead, they have the ingredients of the dog food and break down for you why this is a good dog food or why and what ingredients make it not recommended. And guess what? Most of those well-known, highly advertised dog foods are not what they are cracked up to be. Take a look and see for yourself.
Well, back to my story about my journey on the path to finding the best dog food. Before I found out all this information about dog foods etc, but I just knew a little about the good and bad ingredients, I fed them Ol’ Roy MaxXimum Nutrition Lamb and Rice, which seemed to have pretty good ingredients and it was one of the most inexpensive brands and Wal-Mart. Bo and Boquet seemed to do just find on it, and for a while, I mixed it with Exclusive dog food, which I had gotten for free and later on, at a discounted price. I was pretty happy with what I knew about dog foods, and I felt sorry for all the people I saw buying “junk” dog food in the store. But, I knew that it would be pretty hard convincing them that it wasn’t good. So, I just kept silent, until now.
Homemade Dog Food
Then, on November 24, 2007, I came across a site that used great marketing techniques. Even though I knew that they were trying to "scare" people into buying their product, I was pretty curious as to what they had to say. I already knew some about dog foods and their ingredients, but since they said they had lots of recipes for making your own dog food and had many great claims about them, I figured that Dog Food Secrets e-book was the best way to go.
Sometime between the end of November and beginning of December 2007, I started making my own dog food. In the end, I actually didn’t use the Dog Food Secrets recipes. Actually, it wasn’t what I expected so I got my money back. So, I experimented with different recipes using a combination of sources, then finally settled on one the dogs liked and was also pretty "easy". I cooked up eight cups of dry rice, which when fully cooked filled a six quart crock pot. Then, I cooked in another crock pot 8 lbs. of ground turkey. Then, I'd defrost around six packages of frozen veggies, and grind up to about 16 cups of veggie medley. Then, I'd combine the rice, meat, and veggies in a large dishpan. Then, I'd package it up. I used several methods, including making them into portion-sized balls, but after a while, I just put as much as would fit into a gallon bag or plastic container. No matter how I packaged it, I'd then freeze it until the night before I needed it. After several months, I slightly changed the recipe. I soaked four cups of rice in yogurt to ferment it, because the dogs weren't digesting it. I also increased the meat from 8lbs to 10 lbs. I'd often spend most of one day to prepare the dog's food for a month. I knew it was a lot of work, but as far as I knew, I was giving them the best food they could have.
After feeding them homemade dog food for just about a year, I had made these observations and was beginning to wonder about what I feeding them. I figured it was probably better than commercial dog food, but the fact that time and time again what I fed them came out the other end just about the same, made me begin to wonder. One of the reasons I asked for my money back from Dog Food Secrets is because they “guaranteed” it would be cheaper than buying dog food. Now, keep in mind I was used to paying $8 for a little less than $20 bag of commercial dog food. I later re-read his guarantee and it stated that it would say you lots of money as opposed to buying them the most expensive “premium” commercial dog food, which is often not any better than the others. Anyways, I was spending quite a bit more per month making my homemade dog food than buying the cheapest dog food. That didn’t bother me much in the beginning, but as the dogs were obviously not getting very much out of their food and were hungry basically all the time, I began to consider my various options. I thought of increasing their food amount, so they might be more satisfied, but that would cost more money. I also thought about returning to commercial dog food, but that wasn’t really an option because of all that I’d learned about what’s in them. All I could do is continue feeding them the homemade diet until I found another alternative.
Raw Diet?
At the local humane society’s annual fundraiser Woofs n’ Wags on September 20, 2008, we saw a lady that we’d been in pet therapy class with. Mom said hello and promptly told the lady that she had inspired me to make my own dog food.
The lady responded with, “Are you feeding raw?”
I responded that no I wasn’t, it was cooked.
She then said, “Well, it would be a lot easier and save yourself some time if you fed raw.” That was basically all she said, but it got me thinking. I remembered how she had told me back in one of the pet therapy classes how she fed her Leonburgers the raw diet, and how they lived longer and were a lot healthier. At the time, I had thought it was utterly ridiculous to do make your dog home-made food or feed them raw meat, and that was a little over the top. It was in the same category as when I saw dog diapers at Petsmart one year. That was definitely humanizing a dog, and I didn’t want to do that. My dogs were going to go outside in the coldest of weather, they weren’t going to sleep with us in bed, I wasn’t going to prepare them home-made meals or have them wear diapers in the house. Period. End of Story.
Fast forward to September 2008, and here I am with a dog that wears diapers because she’s partially incontinent due to an previous injury, and two dogs that are eating home-made dog food. But, what that lady had said about feeding raw stuck in my mind. So, I thought I’d do some research and find out what’s involved, etc. It just “so happened” that it was time to do up another batch of homemade dog food, and I still had ground turkey and ground-up veggies in the freezer. Within a week after I was spurred on by that comment, I decided to give the raw diet a try. I gave Bo and Boquet their first 1/8 lb. serving of ground turkey in the morning and another 1/8 lb. in the evening of September 27th, in addition to some vegetables. They had been used to eating the same foods, except now they were raw. I didn’t know how their system would do, since sometimes they go through a de-tox period when switching to raw meat. It went pretty smooth, even though they did have a little bit of loose stools.
What's That in the Dog Dish?
Then, on October 8th, we went to a butcher, who gave me a big box of raw beef bones. It was so incredible to get them for free, because they sell for quite a bit on some online “stores”. Granted, so of them were huge, some meant only for a huge dog, but Boquet was more than happy to lick the marrow out and chew a little on them. The cheapest meat I could find was chicken leg quarters for $.70/lb, so they got their first ¼ lb. serving on October 11th. Around Thanksgiving, I bought a whole turkey for $.50/lb., which lasted for a great long time since it was almost 20 lbs. They’ve eaten a few raw eggs from our chickens. On January 14, 2009, I got 40 lbs of chicken necks from the same butcher I’d gotten the box of bones for $.70/lb. I’d thought they’d be cheaper than that, but oh well. Even Bo, who doesn’t have all his teeth has been able to eat those chicken necks. Also, we recently got one side of beef for our family, but it came with more beef bones and liver. So, I got out the old all-metal, hand-crank meat grinder and attached it to the picnic table outside on the screen-in porch. I ground up the liver and other chicken organs to put the dog’s supplements that I give them.
The one thing I still give the dogs that I started when making their home-made (cooked) dog food is a supplement that I make myself. It consists of garlic, brewer’s yeast, parsley, and finely ground-up eggshells. The garlic and brewer’s yeast are their natural alternative to flea repellent. The parsley for fresh breath, and eggshells for extra calcium. Boquet also gets her Free and Easy Supplement, although I’m sure she’s getting just as good of a supply directly from the source – raw meat and bones. But, I’m not going to throw away the money spent on it. I combine these powered supplements with the ground liver and give it to the dogs every couple of days. I read that liver shouldn’t be given every day, and other places, said that organs should be fed every day. So, I just give it to them whenever I remember/feel like mixing it up.
Here’s a summary of what I learned about dogs, what they eat, etc. I would highly recommend that you do your own research and decide what version of the raw diet is best for you. There are many various versions, some of which even conflict each other. So, sometimes it’s a little confusing. I guess it’s up to the individual person and dog, as to what is best for them. Anyways, here’s the general outline of what I’ve learned about the raw diets.
1. The dog’s digestive system hasn’t changed since their ancestors. Even though they are now domesticated, their digestive system is still made to eat just meat and bones. Some places claim that dogs are carnivores and other places say they are omnivores. Yes, they may occasionally eat other things than meat and bones, but it doesn’t normally make up their diet.
2. Dog's can't digest grains, and they don't need carbohydrates. Therefore, the rice I was feeding my dogs was just going through their system and they didn't get much, if any, benefit out of it.
3. Raw meat vs. cooked meat contains enzymes that the dogs need. Cooking the meat kills those essential nutrients that dogs need. Therefore, even though home-made or “all-meat” dry dog foods are better, they aren’t the best food you could provide.
4. Raw chicken bones are safe for dogs, but cooked chicken bones can splinter and shouldn't be fed to your dog. You still have to be careful and make sure you don’t leave them unattended when chewing on bones. Also, certain hard, enormous beef bones can splinter or if your dog is an aggressive chewer, certain bones need to be fed with caution or not at all. Again, do your own research and find out what’s best for you and your dog.
5. The main thing this is very controversial is whether to feed dogs vegetables. I would say that many raw diets call for vegetables, while others say that because they are primarily made of cellulous and very fibrous, their body isn't able to fully utilize the vegetables. Another source says that the canine’s digestive system is made in such a way that it passes the food through too fast for the plant matter to be fermented and digested and therefore isn’t necessary. Others juice the vegetables and feed them that way. Another source say that wild canines shake the contents (plant matter) of their prey’s stomachs out before eating the intestines. Then, there’s other people that say the people who claim dogs are just carnivores don’t know what they’re talking about. So, I guess it’s whatever you decide is right or whether your dog will eat vegetables. What I have discovered is that since Boquet has started eating the raw meat, she now refuses to eat vegetables. She used to love to eat carrots, lettuce, broccoli, and all kinds of veggies, but now she won’t touch them. Bo will still eat them, but I haven’t fed him them lately.
6. Other thing that some people do and some don’t, is giving your dog supplements. It’s probably up to the individual’s discretion, but I’ve personally read that it’s often unnecessary to supplement. I only give my dogs a home-made supplement to help keep away fleas, but I’m not even sure that it works or is necessary. Boquet gets her Free and Easy Supplement, but that’s for her discs and to prevent her from having a ruptured disk relapse.
7. The one thing that I do know is that Boquet’s teeth are now sparkling clean, just from chewing meat and bones. Sometimes, I can smell raw meat on their breath, but others claim their dog’s breath is so much better. I don’t really know, maybe they needed a bath or a sprig of parsley. I’ll have to check it out sometime when they weren’t just eating.
8. The most incredible thing that I noticed was that their stools totally different from what they were like when they were eating the home-made dog food and commercial dog food. For the most part, they look like they’ve been sitting around for weeks or months. They are often crumbly, very dry and quite small. Sometimes, it might look like they are constipated, but I think it’s because they have so little waste it’s hard to get out. Most of the time, they are white or light colored and do not resemble anything they ate. What I’ve read it that most of their waste when eating raw meat and bones is from the bones. Sometimes Boquet has an “explosion” or it’s pretty soft when she’s had liver and the supplement. I think, though, that’s because she hasn’t had it consistently and her body reacts to its richness. Who knows?
Finally, whether you’re looking for an alternative for dog food, wanting to know more about the raw diet, or just reading this to expand your knowledge, I’m glad you visited. My dogs, Bo and Boquet, aren’t spoiled rotten, as some might think. Instead they are being treated like dogs. I like to call it “The Back to Nature Way of Living for dogs. I don’t follow exactly 100% one diet or another, I’ve done lots of research and have gathered it all together into one system that works for me and my dogs. They are also treated like dogs, in the way that they conduct themselves and I’ve trained them. Granted, there are times when they want to take control, but I just remind them that I’m their pack leader. I don’t want to get side-tracked on that subject, but that’s how they live.
They are dogs, not humans, and I’m their pack leader.
