Ive been reading a little about natural feeding of dogs.

Does anyone out there do it?
If so whats involved, cost, sourcing of ingredients, preparation etc?

very interested in all advice/info as am considering it myself.

cheers

becky

I'm looking into raw/homecooked feeding for Dharma too, but again I'm not happy with the whole bones, so am looking into minced meats with the bone in. I have a couple of supply links for the UK. Not fully decided yet, as I'm finding it hard to get a "recipe" for a large breed pup.

When Tommy was ill, I used to cook her food, all natural ingredients etc, but even though I followed what to add with vitamins and minerals, salmon oil etc, I still felt I wasn't giving her what she needed.  

I think it is more important to feed a balanced food, whether it is raw, cooked, complete tinned etc. it has to be balanced.  One of the best ways of making sure that the feed is balanced is by using really good quality food,.

There are cases of dogs that are just fed on chicken being deficient in some vitamins and minerals.  These dogs look very healthy, shiny coats etc, but quite a few have become very ill and have had to have their diet changed.

Dogs don't just need meat, they need vegetables, fruit, and some grains as well, and it is finding the balance of some of these that puts me off making my dogs food.

I also have a dog that raw feeding doesn't suite, and now feed Burgess Sensitive were the preservative is sugar beet and not the artificial preservatives that cause problems.

It doesn't matter what you feed as long as it is good quality and without the rubbish that goes into a lot of dog food.

What I have found Genie, is the no matter what is recommended, many people put their own interpretation on it and feed to that.  This is the same in many things, the Atkins Diet is another that people put their own interpretation on, and again causing problems.

To many people, because they haven't bothered to research properly, a BARF or raw diet means chickens, they are easy to get and are cheap so their dogs just get chicken.  Another reason is because the owners are just too lazy to go to the trouble of feeding a balanced diet but like to say that they feed BARF/raw.

Unfortunately we can't stop the human element, that causes more trouble than any other reason.   As long as people do research and them make their decisions on all what they have learnt, then they won't go far wrong.

Genie,

That is why I have suggested on more than one occasion that people read the Billinghurst book....his book on the barf diet is not up for ' interpretation ' and it is quite obviously clear in the book that the diet does not just consist of chicken ! Anyone who reads the book will see that straight away.

Emmy

There are others as well as Billinghurst who have written books about this, and people do put their own interpretation on.  With all the hype of the Atkins Diet, this is a really good example of this.   This is a low carb diet, and some people will do a full fry up, as much animal fat as they can find, bacon, burgers etc, and nothing else, but someone else will see this as an omelet and salad, now to many people it is obvious which is healthy and which is not, but to many others, they go for what they want and not bother about the health aspect, just that fact that they can eat meat and fat and they can say they are dieting.

Genie

Anyone who's not interested in feeding their dogs a balanced diet will give them any old rubbish if they remember....

Emmy

People who believe what manufactures say will feed the rubbish because of the advertising, people who don't care don't feed their dogs very often and the dogs are underfed.

Genie

I hardly think it's fair to say that people will CLAIM they feed the BARF diet when in actual fact they are too lazy to feed a balanced diet at all...!

Emmy

Unfortunately I have seen this too many times, people say the are feeding BARF and they get chickens and nothing else, because it is easy to get and to feed.  Even raw veg need preparation and that is too much work for some.

Genie

.... people interested in a good diet for their dogs, are the sort of people who gleen information from sources such as Dr Billinghurst and the Biologically Approved Raw Food diet, whether they end up following the program or not....it's all relevant...

Emmy

Yes, I agree, there are a lot of good owners that will do this, and all they need is enough help to point them in the right direction of were that information is.

Genie

I just thought I would make it clear that the barf diet does not just involve feeding chicken, since it seemed from your post that this is how you understood it ( have you read the book or researched ? )

Emmy

You have misread my posts, I haven't said that BARF is just feeding chicken and nothing else, all I said was whichever way you feed, make sure that you give them a balanced diet.

Genie

....I think it is only fair to make it clear that this is catagorically not the case and people reading here should not be misled into thinking otherwise - but should make up their own mind based on reading recommendations, of which I have suggested...

Emmy

I agree, people should research and then make their own minds up, but sometimes they need help in finding the information.  I have never suggested that Billinghurst or BARF is just chickens, you are reading more into this than what is there.

We are both on the same side, trying to help and education people who ask for help, whichever way you feed, a dog like us, has to have a balanced diet and that is many things for them to eat.

and no, I'm not a Barfing disciple !......

...sorry folks, but I am not getting into a * scrap * over the barf diet.  The book and research is there for all to read.  I'm not biased either way....

Are you refering to me Genie?  If you are you had better read my posts again because I was saying a balanced diet and not for or against BARF.

It doesn't matter what you feed your dogs as long as it is a balanced diet with good ingredients, and that can mean raw or cooked meat.