[highonart]

I have learned a great deal since June and my Crissey was diagnosed with Encephalitis. I started researching nutrition, vaccinations, medications, etc. And after over 50 years of owning dogs, I have radically changed my approach.

A dog's digestive system is very different from a human's. Their digestive enzymes are much stronger and much more acidic, which allows them to digest RAW bones (NOT COOKED - it changes the chemical composition)!!! (Cooked bones are DANGEROUS. Only feed RAW bones)!!!

Their digestive system is much shorter, so food moves through them faster and does not sit around in their digestive tract like ours does. This is why they can eat things that would make most of us sick.

From their mouths, teeth, and saliva, to their enzymes and digestive tract, (tip to tail), their systems are designed as carnivores. Meat, RAW meaty bones, organs, etc., are what nature intended for them to eat. Their teeth are not designed to effectively grind grains. Nature never intended for them to eat grains. That is why many dogs develop allergic reactions to corn, wheat, etc. (And most commercially prepared dog food is full of grain).

And the vegetables that they eat are already partially digested in the stomachs of their prey. That is why the animal nutritionists will tell you to partially cook vegetables if you are going to feed them to your dog. The cellular walls need to be broken down, or a dog can't properly digest them.

The commercial dog food industry is a fairly new, modern development and was created for OUR convenience, NOT for our dogs needs. If you do your own research, you will realize that dogs' systems have not evolved to handle the foods that most of us grew up feeding them. But most vet schools are subsidized by pet food companies and pharmaceutical companies. Is it any wonder that they are "taught" to feed certain foods and pump our dogs full of chemicals?

Talk to some people who have been feeding raw for several years. They don't have to have the vet anesthetize their dogs and clean their teeth. If you feed them the way nature intended, nature takes care of their teeth with the scraping of the raw meaty bones, the natural enzymes in the raw meat, and the sinews, which are nature's "dental floss".

Their dogs have natural immunities to diseases, are allergy-free and resist fleas and other parasites.

It is amazing how when we abide by nature's laws, she takes care of her own. Dogs have been thriving for thousands of years on a natural diet of raw prey. It is only when we mess around with the perfect design that nature intended, that we end up with so many problems and so many sick, allergic, and over-vaccinated dogs with compromised immune systems.

I realize that many of you will scoff at this, but don't take my word for it. Do your own research, as I have. You may be amazed at what you learn. I certainly was...