For those interested in learning more on raw feeding
 

I thought the best thing to do for any out their curious about raw diets, would be to meet and learn from others feeding it.

I am fortunate to have a vet that supports feeding whole natural foods, whether it be raw or home cooking and I know many don't.

You need to get yourself informed and there are a few great places to start.

Whether you want to use a balanced pre-made, and there are loads out there, many of our members here use and love them and will gladly direct you to them if you were to ask.

My raw food supplier is totally amazing, love them to bits. Lori has a facebook page where all her clients and even non clients can join to get informed and these people have been feeding raw since back in the day (some of them could be considered antiques). They are a non judgemental and very warm group of people.

https://www.facebook.com/HeronviewRa...ref=ts&fref=ts

There are a few other great groups you can join on facebook

Raw feeding friends is wonderful. Many people come on just asking questions as they have concerns and they get loads of amazing information from well informed and long time raw feeders. Many of the members have some pets on raw and some on home cooking, dry or wet foods, so again very non-judgemental.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/rawsomeandholistic/

Rawsome and Holistic is a great warm hearted spot too, full of the curious and the educated

There is also a raw feeding group of yahoo groups, be warned these are hard core prey model feeders with some very determined ideas and opinions. Don't let that scare you because there is often great information shared. I highly doubt you'll ever find me picking a deer carcass off the highway and chucking it in my freezer for next month's entrees.

https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/rawfeeding/info

I also recommend a place to start reading, Lew Olson PHD is an animal nutritionist and dog breeder

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Get clicking and educate yourself and meet some cool people at the same time

It's also important people thinking of raw look at the risks as well.

Kibble feeding has just as many risks as raw feeding possibly more. With raw feeding you know where all the ingredients you are feeding your dog comes from. The same can't be said with kibble.

What is it mothers say, if you have nothing nice to say then don't. The purpose of this post is for people interested in researching and educating themselves. I'm sure along the way discussing with informative and well versed long time feeders their concerns will be broached.
I am pretty sure our members are intelligent human beings with the ability to decide which means of feeding they feel meets their criteria. I am am not here to judge but to share resources. I absolutely encourage them to question all and any negatives they have been warned or advised of. These groups are filled with wonderful people with a lot of support and experience to share. Hence the reason for my post.

What "risks" of kibble are you talking about? I can't think of any off the top of my head.

It's nonsense to say that with raw feeding you know where all the ingredients you are feeding your dog come from - that assumes you know where the animals you purchased came from or how they were raised. That sadly is something that the majority of people do not know. Most people do not know how to read a label and think statements like "chickens fed vegetarian feed" or "cage free" is a good thing whereas I do not think chickens fed vegetarian feed is appropriate nor do I think sticking their beaks out of the cage for 2 minutes a day is good. Yet people pay up for this stuff.

So, with raw, you do not necessarily know where all the ingredients came from. You do not necessarily know what conditions the animals you are feeding were subjected to or that the animals themselves are healthy. If you know these things, that's great, but from the reading I've done online with PMR feeders, most are ordering buckets of deformed cows and scraping up road kill and tossing that garbage to their dogs. I'd take kibble any day over that kind of an approach.

I'm tired of the raw feeds ramming this stuff down our throats here, disrespecting the 98% of people who feed kibble! And I don't even really feed dog food yet I find this so obnoxious.

Maybe but I never said kibble was the best I personally feel home cooking when done right is. Considering vet associations are telling there vets to speak against raw but not kibble or home cooking speaks volumes to me. I personally feel there are more risks and have heard terrifying stories.

You can't dictate who can and can not post on your thread and I think people should know both sides not just one. You do judge, and you call other peoples food choices names so maybe you need to practice what you preach. I will never sit back and shut up when it comes to dog issues especially when in my opinion it can be something dangerous.

I don't think I said I was a raw feeder- Nor am I ramming anything down your throat.

The title of the thread is clearly labelled as "For those interested in learning more on raw feeding." If you don't want to learn about raw feeding way click on the thread??


Kibble manufacturers can source from any place and still say "Made in the US" for example.

If you researched what is in many kibble you would not feed it to your pets. The animal parts that go into pet food in many cases are dead, diseased, degraded, dying, destroyed, and deformed. The ingredients in many kibble formulas is not fit for human consumption so off to pet food processing they go.


To say "most are ordering buckets of deformed cows and scraping up road kill and tossing that garbage to their dogs." If very one-sided and small minded- IMHO. People that feed road kill are a minority group.

Most raw feeders I know feed Only Human Grade- Not deformed cows or road kill. Many only buy organic or direct from the farm.

When was the last time you heard about Salmonella poisoning or mold from raw feeders? Now think of how many recalls have existed in the various kibble companies due to contamination. The recalls are not due to animal illness but due to risk of human illness because many people don't wash their hands after feeding the dog/cat their kibble.

We both know I was burned horribly by the Nestle/Purina. They killed my Zoey with their "safe" treats.

Many veterinary edu. programs related to nutrition are funded by the pet food industry. Some vets get kickbacks from the pet food industry for selling their food.

There are just as many, if not, more horror stories with kibble feeding than raw.

Majority of vets. don't support home-cooking either- Saying it is not balanced and complete.




Overall, the pet food industry has existed for less than 100 years. What to people think pets at before kibble and canned food was created????

Vets do not make big kick backs from selling food it's a myth made up by people to scare other people into not feeding the prescription dog food there dog might really need because they "think" they know what a dog needs better. There is more issues with kibble because more people feed it. I doubt if a vet knew the recipe was coming from a vet nutritionist and that you are using a balanced supplement that they would have issues at least not the vets I go to. The biggest problem is with the people who think they can pull up any recipe or just feed anything to there dog. I very much do not support or condone Purina in fact any of there products scare me I would not trust them nor will I support them. But the other makers of prescription kibble have saved the lives of many dogs and increased there quality of life. My opinion is if you want to be safe feed cooked food that you make but that you cook the ingredients removing the risk in the food and use a vet nutritionist recipe with a balanced supplement. Why take the risk with raw and just cook it? It's a myth that the nutrients and stuff are cooked out. Dogs mostly ate cooked left overs from people.

The highlighted statement is not correct. It is a fallacy that dogs cannot be affected by salmonella. For the life of me, I don't know why people believe this. I know people on this forum who tried raw feeding and their pups had gastro issues but they are afraid to post it. I don't know why but they are. Maybe it works for some, but not all. No one feeding method works for all. Bottom line, each pet owner must make a decision about what is best for their pet.

Links about salmonella in dogs:

Salmonella Infection in Dogs | petMD

Common Bacterial Diseases Among Dogs

Inflammatory Bowel Disease

My daughter feeds raw but that is something that I don't think I can adjust to. I don't cook very well but I think I would home cook before I feed them raw. There is nothing in the way of raw food that does not appeal to me unless it's vegetables and fruits and very few of them. I guess we are picky eaters at my house.

Incorrect. Again!

I could care less if you think I am "small minded". There's a lot to say here but I'll leave it because it's a futile waste of my time to keep talking to a wall. As for my "one sided and small minded views" -- My dogs are almost 14 and look beautiful and vibrant so I'm doing something right.