Which is it?

[trini&coco]

we feed only kibble but I would like to switch them all to the best diet possible...I will re-look into this...

[Tissy]

Originally Posted by Wylie's Mom

Hi Kathy - if you search for "Lara2913" posts/threads - you will find EXCELLENT info./links/advice...she really knows her stuff, and shares her knowledge in the nicest way. "MyFairLacy" is usually in those threads too, and her info is always a "save" for me too. I've subscribed to a few threads of theirs - so if you can't find them, let me know and I'll PM you the threads I've saved.

We're going raw too - Marcel's nutritionist is having us start w/ the venison freeze-dried-raw medallions first, then progress to the patties if he does fine. I started the freeze-dried and they are CRAZY for them!

Is this the Nature's Variety brand? I have been researching raw as well and plan to start out with the Nature's Variety until I feel comfortable getting the ratio right myself. What is the reasoning behind starting with the freeze dried and why the venison?

If I had any reservations about whether my girl would take to it, I don't anymore. Today she ran up on a bone out of a pork roast almost as big as she was....she grabbed it up and took off! Was so cute but hard as heck to catch and get away from her!

[hha]

When I took Ginger in for her 12 week shots the other day, the vet(she's really good) said if they will eat the hard, to give her the hard..they get the soft food caught in between their teeth, and that in the long run is what messes up their teeth..mine gets plain hard kibbles, and she eats it just fine..I was very happy that when I took my 5 year old in for her surgery, they said her teeth looked really good for a yorkie...all she's ever had is hard food..

[Wylie's Mom]

Originally Posted by Tissy

Is this the Nature's Variety brand? I have been researching raw as well and plan to start out with the Nature's Variety until I feel comfortable getting the ratio right myself. What is the reasoning behind starting with the freeze dried and why the venison?

If I had any reservations about whether my girl would take to it, I don't anymore. Today she ran up on a bone out of a pork roast almost as big as she was....she grabbed it up and took off! Was so cute but hard as heck to catch and get away from her!

It is the NV brand. Marcel's nutritionist really likes this brand and has used it on her own dogs. Because of Marcel's post-giardia ibs/ibd, she wanted to see how he did with a "meat" back in his diet (currently eats white fish as his protein) and she felt that starting w/ the freeze dried would be the least aggressive way to start "raw".

She likes venison the best as a meat, then rabbit and buffalo - they are the "cleanest" and the least likely for dogs to be allergic to (whereas chicken is highly allergenic). She is iffy about trying lamb right now, she said that would be 6-12 mths. down the road. Duck can sometimes be okay too.

I'm tellin' ya, they LOVE the freeze dried! So I'm sure they'll be in heaven once we progress to the raw medallions/patties. We'll do that after a month on the freeze dried. Let me know if you try it!

[daisy mae06]

Originally Posted by KathyinCali

Hi all,

I have heard such conflicting opinions on whether or not it is OK to feed only kibble without any wet food. Lucy has never had wet food and I never fed wet to my German Shepherds...

Thoughts?

I Only give wet as a treat but Very rarely.
Mine all eat Kibble only. wet food is really bad for teeth.

[lara2913]

Originally Posted by daisy mae06

wet food is really bad for teeth.

Fortunately this is incorrect, there is no evidence to show that dogs who eat kibble have better teeth than those who eat canned. Its simply a marketing ploy. Do you expect to eat cookies and crackers to clean your teeth?

Of course the most important thing is the quality of the diet, as opposed to the form it comes in.

Lol thanks Wylie'sMom, any of you are welcome to PM me for advise on raw if you like.

[daisy mae06]

Originally Posted by lara2913

Fortunately this is incorrect, there is no evidence to show that dogs who eat kibble have better teeth than those who eat canned. Its simply a marketing ploy. Do you expect to eat cookies and crackers to clean your teeth?

Of course the most important thing is the quality of the diet, as opposed to the form it comes in.

Lol thanks Wylie'sMom, any of you are welcome to PM me for advise on raw if you like.

I have heard different but everyone has there opinion.
I will keep feeding mine the kibble.
As for raw.
No thank you.
I don't want that bacteria germs in my dogs or home.

[MyFairLacy]

Originally Posted by daisy mae06

I have heard different but everyone has there opinion.
I will keep feeding mine the kibble.
As for raw.
No thank you.
I don't want that bacteria germs in my dogs or home.

There is bacteria in and on kibble too Bacteria is everywhere

[Potter]

Whatever you feed your furbaby with, I find that brushing their teeth is the best way to go to keep the teeth in good condition. I also agree that feeding kibbles does not mean better teeth, it has not been proven yet. As for feeding their own furbabies, everyone has their own preferences. So far, I have tried kibbles, wet food, homecooking, and frozen raw medallions. The only thing I have not tried is the raw-raw diet, I did try but couldn't go on and he didn't seem to like it. Now, we are on a combination of homecooking, wet food and kibbles (small amount though). I personally feel that kibbles are too dry and overprocessed.

[daisy mae06]

Originally Posted by MyFairLacy

There is bacteria in and on kibble too Bacteria is everywhere

Very True but would you eat Raw meat???

[lara2913]

We are human, they are canines, different dietary needs, different digestive systems, enzymes etc.

Oh and sushi, steak tartare...

Do you eat kibble?

[daisy mae06]

I don't really want to debate I just stated How I feed as everyone else does.

and a way yes if you eat any cereal it is alot like kibble with out the meat

[MyFairLacy]

Originally Posted by daisy mae06

Very True but would you eat Raw meat???

No, but that's because our digestive system wasn't designed to handle the bacteria in raw meat. Dogs have a shorter digestive tract so the food moves through their system faster than it does in our bodies, which does not give bacteria time to multiply in their bodies like it would in ours. Also, the pH of their stomach is more acidic than ours - which kills most of the bacteria in the food.

Dogs ate raw meat for years and years until humans began to feed them cooked food and then invented kibble in the 1940s or 50s. Because a dog's digestive system is the way it is, that is why most dogs don't get sick when they go out and eat something they find rotting on the ground or when they raid the garbage. Dogs have strong stomachs and were designed to eat raw meat. They were not meant to eat grains...what do you think a dog in the wild would have eat...corn on the ground or a dead rabbit/chicken/etc.? I think any dog would choose the raw meat

[Mybabyboymax]

I guess it comes down to what you prefer to feed your dog. I really dont understand why lately some members feel the need to be sarcastic in their post. I mean seriously why ask "do you eat kibble?" or "do you expect to eat just cookies and have clean teeth?" to me that is just being sarcastic and rude. I honestly never looked up the theory of whether dry food is best and wet food is worse, it was a question I had and figured some of the members here might know more than me. I wasnt being rude and did not deserve that type of response. But I guess its part of being a YT member...gotta roll with the punches.

[MyFairLacy]

Originally Posted by Mybabyboymax

I guess it comes down to what you prefer to feed your dog. I really dont understand why lately some members feel the need to be sarcastic in their post. I mean seriously why ask "do you eat kibble?" or "do you expect to eat just cookies and have clean teeth?" to me that is just being sarcastic and rude. I honestly never looked up the theory of whether dry food is best and wet food is worse, it was a question I had and figured some of the members here might know more than me. I wasnt being rude and did not deserve that type of response. But I guess its part of being a YT member...gotta roll with the punches.

When I ask "would you expect to eat cookies and have them clean your teeth?" I don't mean it sarcastically. I mean it as a question to make people think...because kibble & hard cookies/crackers are basically the same in hardness so it gives you something to compare your dog eating kibble too. So it wasn't meant to be sarcastic...it was meant to give you something to think about