Choices, choice, choices!

There are many choices for feeding your pet these days. There are canned foods, bagged foods, home cooking and the newest rage in animal feeding, BARF, ( Bones And Raw Food).

I chose HOME COOKING.

Was a dalmatian breeder-trainer-exhibitor for over 30 years, now a Norfolk owner since 1998, done research on nutrition for dogs, came to realize that you cannot have GOOD Health without a Good diet. My dogs have always been in top show condition, won Five Best in Show in the Dalmatian career, gained Eight High Score in Trial with a One perfect 200 score, Awarded top in class in Tracking, so certainly home cooking has been the best for my dogs. Dogs today do not have the opportunity to hunt or pick and choose what they eat. They must eat what we give them, making them totally dependent on us. This makes us responsible for our dog’s growth and health. People don’t feed a homemade diet because for most of us it is too much work and most pets do pretty well on commercial diets, pet food is convenience food. The harsh manufacturing practice that makes those cute little shapes, destroys what little nutritional value the food ever had. The best option is to prepare fresh and wholesome meals for your pet at home, but the modest efforts involved in cooking for your dog is rewarded many times over in the fewer health problems and the satisfaction of having a healthy dog. It takes about five minutes to throw ingredients together, another 25 minutes to cook.

In home Cooking for your dog, YOU provide the ingredients, you will be in control of the quality of the food your pet receives. Your dog’s nutrition is entirely in your hands. Most dogs will eat any food that is presented to them, but the choice is yours alone. Dogs need nutrients in varying amounts on a regular basis. Nutrient requirements will vary with things as age, breed, activity and temperament. Each dog is an individual with specific requirements, therefore the amounts will differ. When all of the nutrients are provided in the correct proportion we say that the diet is BALANCED. Missing from the menu are the by-products, preservatives, food coloring and other chemicals such as Ethoxyquin, BHA, BHT, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Nitrate. Home cooking should contain premium protein sources, a balance of carbohydrates, fats and fiber to meet the dog entire vitamin and mineral needs.. Purchasing the ingredients in large bulk amounts will reduce the cost.

Carnivores cannot digest grains in raw form, they must be cooked. Homemade diets can be cheaper then a commercial diet, and can also be a huge benefit in animals with food allergies or digestive disorders, or dogs with special nutrition needs.

Cooking also eliminates the oxalic acid, which binds and interferes with calcium absorption. There is no question that cooking deactivates some vital nutrients, including enzymes, but cooking also makes digestion less stressful, dogs with poor digestion don’t handle raw foods very well, the higher proportion of nutrients in raw food is useless if the food can’t be digested, absorbed and assimilated. Raw foods are not without their negatives. Raw food have a higher percentage of bacteria and parasites. Many vegetables are harder to digest when raw. , the anti-factors in grains also binds up minerals, making unavailable to the body. The fact is No ONE food plan is right for everyone all the time, each dog has a unique metabolic type, instead of thinking "raw foods versus cooked foods" "this diet is better", it’s a good idea to focus on getting a BALANCE of raw and cooked food, depending upon the season, climate, health, my dogs all love treats such as apples, carrots, bananas and any fruits that are in season. We are in the best position to determine if our dog is healthy because we see our pet every day. When changing the diet for your dog you need to do it gradually and slowly over a period of three weeks to prevent intestinal upset. I remember in the early 70 I consulted an animal nutritionist at the University of BC, to determine weather the diet I was giving to my dogs was balanced, he answered my question by "how long do your dogs live"? Sixteen and a half years old was my reply, the nutritionist then laughed and replied "you must be doing something right.. no need to have my opinion.

CONCLUSION

I strongly believe that along a good diet, daily exercise is very important to your pet.

Could hyperactivity and unusual behavior pattern in our dogs be due to diet? Could heart disease and cancer related to diet? Human medicine says YES. How will we know if we are providing the right foods for our pet? Our Dogs will tell us.

We are what we eat, dogs are what they eat.

You cannot have good health without a good diet! A proper Balance Diet!!!!