Dogsey

I've just watched the channel five documentary on what to feed your dog and im a little disappointed...... I've heard of raw and the benefits of it but nothing was mentioned that I hadn't already heard. Does anyone know of (first hand or not) of any downsides to raw feeding?

Hi
I am a raw feeder and can honestly say I haven't come across any downside to feeding this way. My boys LOVE their food, have amazing coats, teeth etc. obviously it's important to read up etc so you get the correct balance of meat, bone and offal. My worry is that people won't do their research and will just throw the dog a steak or something without knowing how to raw feed properly!

The only thing I suppose is it takes a little longer in terms of preparation etc but you get quicker as you get more experience. The look of contentment on my boys faces is enough for me, something so natural about hearing them crunch through a meaty bone!

To be honest I respect that everyone should feed what they believe to be best for their own dogs but I certainly won't be going back to dried food!

I feed raw too and the only thing that surprised me was the founder of Lily's Kitchen who said dogs can shed salmonella through their coat. They can't, salmonella can only be passed on through faeces and saliva. So even in the case of your dog having salmonella in its system, you're probably not going to get it unless you are very unsanitary with your dog's poo.
Also, one of the vets said he's seen some dogs who are fed a raw diet with dental problems. Well yes, it doesn't make a dog immune against dental problems, but it makes it less likely to develop, and it also depends how long a dog was fed a commercial diet before switching to raw etc.

I was a bit taken aback by the people feeding their dogs a vegan diet

I fed my puppy a wholly raw diet when he was younger. He didn't chew well at all (or something) and his teeth started getting really, REALLY gross with nasty yellow gunk and his breath was kicking BIG time.

I see Florence saying a vet mentioned it causes dental problems, so apparently... this isn't as uncommon as I thought. I think all that extra bacteria from the raw meat seems to do some dogs a lot of dental harm or something.

I had to take him off of those raw meals pronto. Not sure what was going on, but it didn't work for him because of that. He was otherwise healthy and his poops were smaller, but his teeth were going - FAST.

He eats a kibble based diet now... and his teeth are good looking, but he is packing on some excess weight. I can't win for losing.

Several dogs I have met and owned simply cannot STAND raw food at all. My previous Lab mix would only eat raw beef, not poultry or fish or even pork or anything else. He developed and intolerance for beef in his older age so even that had to be taken away.

My current older female has never touched a piece of raw food in her life. She looks at it as if it's poison and she walks swiftly away from it.

Some dogs have persistent digestive issues with raw, as well. Also, bones etc. have caused choking in many dogs... despite what people say. Raw is a solid diet as a base for many dogs, but if your dog has problems with it... don't feed it.

I have yet to see any truly solid evidence that raw fed dogs always live longer and are always healthier. I highly doubt that it exists. Raw food is generally better for dogs than commercial food, I'll agree with that.

I switched off after a short time. I hate being preached to lol
I have had dogs for 40years and they have all been happy and healthy on what I have fed them.

Yes so was I. Dogs are carnivores.

I'll be honest and say that I watched it to see my dogs' rellies (the red and white you kept seeing is brother to my Guy, the flash of black and white and the blue merle are parents to my Gem) and was disappointed that it was all opinion based and not factual. I feed kibble with the odd bit of raw now and then and certainly didn't have a sleepless night that I am feeding the wrong thing. I do worry about bones getting stuck - my Guy will crunch up a chicken wing and swallow it and then bring it up a few minutes later. The only way I would consider feeding raw is the prepared raw and I couldn't afford to do that so I will continue to feed the best kibble I can.

No-one said raw food CAUSES dental problems, only that just because they are fed raw doesn't automatically mean they will always have perfect teeth.

Well that's what I think. But the way the vet said it made it sound like raw food causes dental problems. The documentary presented it as one of the main disadvantages of raw feeding.
I think it's important to look at it on the bigger scale. Considering how many raw fed dogs have no dental problems and how few will develop dental disease, you can't say it's a main concern. Especially considering that most dogs will develop dental problems at some point if they're fed a commercial diet..

Well that's the thing. SOME dogs. Just like some dogs have problems with certain ingredients in commercial dog food. However, if you feed raw you can often quickly pinpoint where the problem came from, because you know what you're feeding.
Feed your dog a commercial dog food and she's got an allergy or intolerance, it's difficult to find out what she's intolerant to because you simply don't know what's in the dog food!

Similar if you feed a good quality kibble. If you get the complete ingredients list you can find out what it could be that causes problems and switch to a different food. Switching between commercial dog foods when you have a dog with digestive problems however won't solve anything because essentially it's all the same. They can say what they want, they can put words on the packaging all they want and brand it as 'life stage food' or whatever, when you look at the plain ingredient list, it's all the same.

My main issues with commercial dog foods is the high processed grain and sugar content. Now scientifically sugar has been proven to promote the development of diabetes. It also causes obesity and enables cancer to develop more easily by weakening the immune system. These things are true for humans as well.
In dog food there's absolutely no need for salt and sugar and these things are only added to make it tasier. Now, if the food isn't tasty enough for a dog to eat without salt and sugar.. can it really be that good?

I now have the 7th generation of raw fed dogs running round, my oldest girls are 8 and have no dental problems, as far as I am aware (and I am in pretty much regular contact with THEIR breeder) none of her dogs have dental problems either and she has been raw feeding for a very long time.
As for regurgitation of the chicken wing, that is perfectly normal and a natural occurence. There has been recently a very sad case of a puppy choking to death on a piece of kibble by the way, so there are dangers associated with all foods and lifestyles, you only hear about the planes that crash, not the millions that take off, complete their journeys, and land safely.