Confused as to what food is most used with Yorkies

[Amanda7]

Originally Posted by Betty B

What Was The First Timberwolf Did You Try? I See They Have A Sample Of 8 Kinds But Out Of Stock Now.

I tried the Southwest Chicken & Herb first, followed by the Ocean Blue. I've also tried the Lamb w/Apples and the Venizen. So far their favorites are the chicken and Ocean Blue(Salmon).

[deb22]

A friend of mine fed Diamond. Her parrot loved to eat out of the dog bowl. Her parrot died as a result of eating Diamond. (as per the vet). Just wanted to let you know. If anyone has birds be careful of dog food.

[Ellie May]

Originally Posted by SwimMom

I really appreciate your opinion and will take it into consideration when making a firm decision on LuLu's diet/nutritional needs.

I've really been interested in the Homecooked venue, but find the "figuring it out" part to seem overwhelming. I'm sure that it isn't nearly as complicated as it seems, but I would have to venture to guess that I am not the only one that finds the vagueness daunting.

Is there just a simple 1,2,3 tried and true method to the Homecooking question? If so, I know that I for one would be thrilled to have it clearly spelled out and/or to be directed to a specific link.

Again, I thank you for taking the time to help me try and understand this important diet and nutrition element. It is ultimately so important to their overall health and quality of life.

I felt the same way but then hired a nutritionist.
They will tell you exactly what to feed and how to supplement.
I would recommend it to anyone wanting to homecook.
You can just google it to find one.

[SwimMom]

Originally Posted by Ellie May

I felt the same way but then hired a nutritionist.
They will tell you exactly what to feed and how to supplement.
I would recommend it to anyone wanting to homecook.
You can just google it to find one.

Am I correct in understanding that you were able to hire a dog nutritionist on line and found success in that venue. Sorry to be so specific, but I'm wanting to learn.

[Brooklynn]

Wish I had time to cook my dogs food but I hate to cook and hubby does it but I really don't think he'll cook for the dogs too so it's off to research more about dog food for me!
Donna

[Ellie May]

Originally Posted by SwimMom

Am I correct in understanding that you were able to hire a dog nutritionist on line and found success in that venue. Sorry to be so specific, but I'm wanting to learn.

Ellie's vet recommend an animal nutritionist.
Her name is Rebecca Remillard.
I do highly recommend her but I do need to put a disclaimer on this.
She is VERY knowledgeable (one of the best in the world) but she uses a certain line of supplements that I don't like very much.
The one that she chose for Ellie is okay but the one that she would use for healthy dogs isn't one I'd want to use, that is why I don't usually suggest that people use her. Again though, she is very good.

I know Cornell also has a nutritionist that might be able to help and so does University of Tennessee.

[Ellie May]

Originally Posted by Brooklynn

Wish I had time to cook my dogs food but I hate to cook and hubby does it but I really don't think he'll cook for the dogs too so it's off to research more about dog food for me!
Donna

LOL...Some days I wonder what in the world I'm doing.

[SwimMom]

Originally Posted by Ellie May

Ellie's vet recommend an animal nutritionist.
Her name is Rebecca Remillard.
I do highly recommend her but I do need to put a disclaimer on this.
She is VERY knowledgeable (one of the best in the world) but she uses a certain line of supplements that I don't like very much.
The one that she chose for Ellie is okay but the one that she would use for healthy dogs isn't one I'd want to use, that is why I don't usually suggest that people use her. Again though, she is very good.

I know Cornell also has a nutritionist that might be able to help and so does University of Tennessee.

You've been really patient and helpful. I appreciate your candor. Thank you!

[SwimMom]

Originally Posted by Brooklynn

Wish I had time to cook my dogs food but I hate to cook and hubby does it but I really don't think he'll cook for the dogs too so it's off to research more about dog food for me!
Donna

Ah Donna, perhaps with a little smooth talking you can get Richard to whip up the "kids" meals too!

[Brooklynn]

Originally Posted by SwimMom

Ah Donna, perhaps with a little smooth talking you can get Richard to whip up the "kids" meals too!

HAHAHA took me forever to get him to cook for me LOLLOL don't think he's gonna cook for the kiddos lol

[Brooklynn]

Originally Posted by Ellie May

LOL...Some days I wonder what in the world I'm doing.

I've just basically retired from cooking since hubby likes to cook more than I do so I have to find another alternative lol

[MyFairLacy]

Just wanted to share my opinions concerning what you addressed:

Yes, one of my concernes in bacteria. This does (for the most part) apply only to dogs with compromised immune systems but what I'd like to know is who is the judge of whether their immune system is compromised? I never thought Ellie had a compromised immune system until she was spayed and the internal sutures didn't dissolve as fast as they should. Her body didn't attack them right away. There is no way to be 100% sure. And are we positive that this only effects compromised dogs, I'm not convinced. Food poisoning is much more rare in dogs than humans...I agree, but how much more rare, I don't think anyone knows for sure.

Even my microbiology professor who had us read an article on the "danger of raw feeding" (a VERY biased and opinionated study btw) repeatedly said in our salmonella lecture that food-borne illness is not a concern in a healthy dog. And even if a dog does get food-borne illness (which is very rare), it can be easily cured with antibiotics and fluids. Dogs digestive systems are different than humans - they were designed to eat raw meat. What does a wolf eat in the wild? RAW meat. And think about it - dogs lick and eat nasty things all the time with no problem. When a dog eats, the food sits in the stomach for about six hours - being bathed in a highly acidic bath (dogs stomich acid is more acid than a humans). It then moves into the intestines where it quickly passes through. Bacteria just doesn't have time to multiply like it does with humans. Our food sits in our stomach for about 30 minutes and then moves into our intestines where it may sit for 2 days..plenty of time to make us sick.

Next, raw egg (which some prepackaged foods are held together with) can deplete your dog of biotin. I don't think there is a good reason to feed raw egg.

While it would be dangerous to feed raw egg whites alone, it is fine to feed a whole raw egg. The egg whites contain avidin which binds to biotin so that it cannot be used by the body. Feeding egg whites alone can create a biotin defficiency. However, the egg yold contains a large amount of biotin that exceeds whatever the avidin binds too. So the dog actually gets MORE biotin by eating a raw egg...it doesn't deplete the body of biotin unless you fed only the egg whites.

And, I have seen zero studies on if a raw fed dog lives significantly longer than a dog eating kibble or homecooked. If they are proven to live longer, than I might consider feeding it BUT this isn't the case so far (we only have testimonials and we have those from homecooked too) and I see no reason to put Ellie's health and life in danger by giving her a mouthful of bacteria-filled meat and hoping her immune system will take care of it. There is so much risk already feeding any food (homecooked, kibble) and I see no reason to add any additional to it.

What studies are there to show that dogs fed kibble are living the longest? About the time kibble became widely available and vaccination began, dogs started developing all kinds of problems such as cancer, hypothyroidism, diabetes, epilepsy, etc etc. There are anecdotal stories of dogs living long, (supposedly healthy) lives on both kibble and raw..and there have been plenty of stories of dogs dieing from an early age that were fed kibble their whole life. I've seen with my own eyes how healthy my dog is on raw and her last blood panel came back perfect.

I don't like dog food much either though. Homecooking is by far my favorite because the diet can be balanced with a bit less bacteria concern and dogs that eat homecooked can do very well on it. I say cook the meat and add a supplement...

Cooking the food depletes many important nutrients in the food and changes the protein. Raw meats are fed in their most natural form in a way that a dog would have naturally eaten.

For prey-model diets, add the rare occurence of bone obstructions to the list (which DOES happen) which could have been avoided by brushing their teeth and giving them food. Also, vitamins aren't added to prey model and the diet isn't the least bit balanced. I don't believe this last part is just an opinion at all.

Most problems with bones are due to COOKED bones. Raw bones just are not a concern. They are highly digestible. Also, carnivores have a special fibrous lining to their stomach and first part of their small intestines. This is because carnivores were designed to eat raw meat and bones from the prey they killed. This lining protects from punctures

[SwimMom]

Originally Posted by MyFairLacy

Just wanted to share my opinions concerning what you addressed:

Yes, one of my concernes in bacteria. This does (for the most part) apply only to dogs with compromised immune systems but what I'd like to know is who is the judge of whether their immune system is compromised? I never thought Ellie had a compromised immune system until she was spayed and the internal sutures didn't dissolve as fast as they should. Her body didn't attack them right away. There is no way to be 100% sure. And are we positive that this only effects compromised dogs, I'm not convinced. Food poisoning is much more rare in dogs than humans...I agree, but how much more rare, I don't think anyone knows for sure.

Even my microbiology professor who had us read an article on the "danger of raw feeding" (a VERY biased and opinionated study btw) repeatedly said in our salmonella lecture that food-borne illness is not a concern in a healthy dog. And even if a dog does get food-borne illness (which is very rare), it can be easily cured with antibiotics and fluids. Dogs digestive systems are different than humans - they were designed to eat raw meat. What does a wolf eat in the wild? RAW meat. And think about it - dogs lick and eat nasty things all the time with no problem. When a dog eats, the food sits in the stomach for about six hours - being bathed in a highly acidic bath (dogs stomich acid is more acid than a humans). It then moves into the intestines where it quickly passes through. Bacteria just doesn't have time to multiply like it does with humans. Our food sits in our stomach for about 30 minutes and then moves into our intestines where it may sit for 2 days..plenty of time to make us sick.

Next, raw egg (which some prepackaged foods are held together with) can deplete your dog of biotin. I don't think there is a good reason to feed raw egg.

While it would be dangerous to feed raw egg whites alone, it is fine to feed a whole raw egg. The egg whites contain avidin which binds to biotin so that it cannot be used by the body. Feeding egg whites alone can create a biotin defficiency. However, the egg yold contains a large amount of biotin that exceeds whatever the avidin binds too. So the dog actually gets MORE biotin by eating a raw egg...it doesn't deplete the body of biotin unless you fed only the egg whites.

And, I have seen zero studies on if a raw fed dog lives significantly longer than a dog eating kibble or homecooked. If they are proven to live longer, than I might consider feeding it BUT this isn't the case so far (we only have testimonials and we have those from homecooked too) and I see no reason to put Ellie's health and life in danger by giving her a mouthful of bacteria-filled meat and hoping her immune system will take care of it. There is so much risk already feeding any food (homecooked, kibble) and I see no reason to add any additional to it.

What studies are there to show that dogs fed kibble are living the longest? About the time kibble became widely available and vaccination began, dogs started developing all kinds of problems such as cancer, hypothyroidism, diabetes, epilepsy, etc etc. There are anecdotal stories of dogs living long, (supposedly healthy) lives on both kibble and raw..and there have been plenty of stories of dogs dieing from an early age that were fed kibble their whole life. I've seen with my own eyes how healthy my dog is on raw and her last blood panel came back perfect.

I don't like dog food much either though. Homecooking is by far my favorite because the diet can be balanced with a bit less bacteria concern and dogs that eat homecooked can do very well on it. I say cook the meat and add a supplement...

Cooking the food depletes many important nutrients in the food and changes the protein. Raw meats are fed in their most natural form in a way that a dog would have naturally eaten.

For prey-model diets, add the rare occurence of bone obstructions to the list (which DOES happen) which could have been avoided by brushing their teeth and giving them food. Also, vitamins aren't added to prey model and the diet isn't the least bit balanced. I don't believe this last part is just an opinion at all.

Most problems with bones are due to COOKED bones. Raw bones just are not a concern. They are highly digestible. Also, carnivores have a special fibrous lining to their stomach and first part of their small intestines. This is because carnivores were designed to eat raw meat and bones from the prey they killed. This lining protects from punctures

Great information Michele. Oh, now I have so many things to consider. This is turning out to be a terrific thread and I appreciate all of the time and information that everyone is so generously giving!

[Brooklynn]

I use to swear off raw but now that they have the medillions I might consider it but with 8 yorkies not sure I can handle the expense lol

[MyFairLacy]

Originally Posted by Brooklynn

I use to swear off raw but now that they have the medillions I might consider it but with 8 yorkies not sure I can handle the expense lol

I couldn't do it if I had that many right now LOL..it gets expensive. I feed it to Lacy and my two cats right now. But I think its worth it. Some do raw for one meal and grain-free kibble or canned at the other to help with the cost.