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Feeding Puppies Continued... |
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Feeding Puppies Continued...
We must understand that the modern commercial environment dictates that profits are above all the most important goal, and you must use your own judgement as to what you feed your dogs. Whilst I am claiming nothing and certainly not naming names here (they are big companies after all!), I can certainly see no harm in explaining what I feed my OWN dogs, in complete honesty. I do not feed ANY dried or ‘complete’ foods to my dogs, and never will. Whilst there are definitely some very good dried foods out there, this is only when they are compared to the lower quality ones, and not when compared to something like raw fresh meat. I also still believe that there is no way of using such a long drawn-out manufacturing process to make any food I would personally call ‘healthy’ for a dog. I do however believe the same for humans, and do not eat sausages or pasties unless I am certain they are 100% REAL meat inside, and not the bits of the animals which humans would not usually eat in such large proportions.
My dogs are given pet grade raw meat such as tripe, lamb or chicken as a staple diet. Whilst this is still not the absolute best food in my opinion, it is a good balance between what I can afford and what is good for my dogs. My ideal would be a whole animal, such as a rabbit, freshly killed and the dogs fed every other day or two. I do give my dogs whole rabbits, skin, bones, MEAT, and guts! Some may say that my dogs therefore still get bones and the ‘low quality’ stuff in their diet and this is true, but it is freshly killed, not stored, processed, modified (genetically or otherwise) or adjusted from its natural form in any other way. Hence, whilst they are eating rabbit skin and bone, they are also eating the entirely meaty parts of the rabbit too. In other words, it’s a completely natural balance between all portions and ingredients and a balance which wolves have lived on for thousands of years. My Springer Spaniel will eat a whole chicken which hasn’t even been plucked and she doesn’t leave a trace.
Human Cancer used to afflict 1 in 20 people around 100 years ago. It is now occurring in one in three people, in fact very nearly one in two in the western world. Many professionals and scientists (and myself) believe that the sudden change came about with the huge dietary changes which came hand in hand with the food processing industry. Tinned foods, preservatives, additives etcetera all helped make it possible to turn what humans used to call ‘waste’ into something which both tastes good and also stores well.
The same goes for dogs. A very elderly lady who is sadly no longer with us, once laughed at me hysterically when I told her that my friend’s dog had cancer. She was convinced I was joking saying “Don’t be silly, dogs don’t get cancer!” She had owned dogs or had them in the household throughout her entire 93 year long lifetime, and had never ever heard of a dog with cancer. Cancers, allergies and many other ailments are appearing and increasing in frequency extremely fast, and I for one believe it is greatly due to dietary changes. It is for this reason and this reason alone, that I will never feed processed foods to my dogs. What you do is up to you, but I would not be honest or sincere if I didn’t at least offer my own chosen methods for feeding dogs, though I am certainly not preaching to anybody.
Dried food is cheap (above all) but also easy, convenient, clean, odourless and all those other lovely things which we enjoy in our convenient lifestyles but if someone told you the long term effects may cause your beloved dog to die an early death, would you think differently? Of course nobody will ever tell you that at least not publicly or in the media, because for every scientist who does show evidence of such dangers or anything along those lines, there are a hundred other scientists paid for by the food companies to prove the opposite, drowning out the other opinion. It comes down to what you believe, and that’s yours to decide. I have made my decision and one look at the profit and loss sheets of any huge multi national dog food company is enough to convince me that they might have higher-held principles than the health of my little pooch! Just a personal opinion which I am sure isn’t popular with many people, especially those involved in the sector, but its my opinion, and its not made without a lot of study and discussion with professionals in the know, and after all, different opinions are what make the world go round!
If you wish to argue, support, or otherwise comment on my point of view, please feel free to discuss this in the Free Dog Forum where I will gladly provide more reasons why I believe what I do.
 My dogs’ health comes first with me, and aside from the health benefits of raw meat, there is nothing quite as natural and instinct-driven as a dog eating a fresh warm rabbit. You may wish to feed puppies dried food, and if you do, all I would say is that the more you spend, the more your puppy will get for your money, almost without exception. There are some respected foods such as Dr Hills and similarly higher priced foods which I would certainly choose if I were to feed a puppy dried food, and the best thing to do is speak to your vet for specific choices and guidance. Overall, my personal thinking is that the closer it is to nature, the closer it is to good health, and my opinion shall not be changing in a hurry!
Best of luck whatever you choose, but remember your puppy’s diet is absolutely crucial to its health and bone structure in later life so please do take every effort to research and study ALL the options available to you, as dog food is such an important factor in dog health and well-being, both mentally and physically.
Related Articles:
Dog Food Dangers
Dog Food Recall Tragedy
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