Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i got my puppy 2 months ago. his name is elvis i have been feeding him royal canninde and give him meat occasionaly. i made him steak when we had steak, burger when we had them. also is there any down side to cooking the meat.he is very active but looks a little on the thim side. he has been to the vet and has a clean bill of health. just looks a little thin. thanks

I don't feed dogfood and have homecooked for my dog for the last 6 years or so. I tried raw for both of them, and they did not do well on them.

My thinking is that you do what the dog does best on. Raw in theory is better because all the enzymes, amino acids, etc. are not altered or destroyed by cooking. However, some dogs have problems with raw, and/or some owners have a problem with feeding raw. In either of those instances, homecooked is leaps and bounds better than straight kibble.

The one thing that I would never feed raw (well, okay, two) -- first is any ground meat. I believe that meat ground in the stores has a much higher bacteria count. Also, regular liver, because it's old -- I wouldn't feed it. For organ meats, either young organs (like calf's liver) or organic. Okay three things -- don't feed salmon raw because of a unique parasite that can make dogs quite ill.

You might want to add some omega-3 fatty acids, or a sliver of avocado too.

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>>My thinking is that you do what the dog does best on. Raw in theory is better because all the enzymes, amino acids, etc. are not altered or destroyed by cooking.

I feed my dogs raw and will never go back to kibble food. Raw is the best.
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>>The one thing that I would never feed raw (well, okay, two) -- first is any ground meat. I believe that meat ground in the stores has a much higher bacteria count. Also, regular liver, because it's old -- I wouldn't feed it. For organ meats, either young organs (like calf's liver) or organic. Okay three things -- don't feed salmon raw because of a unique parasite that can make dogs quite ill.

Raw liver in small amounts is fine and essental in a raw diet, after the dog ajust to it. Raw salmon is great. Just freeze it first for about a month and it will kill the parasites. And only Picific northwest salmons and trouts may carry the parasites.
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>>You might want to add some omega-3 fatty acids,

If you do this go with fish body oil or salmon oil. Not cod liver oil.

I would drop the dog food and go raw. I have seen great changes in my dog's health. If you would like to know more or like some links you can email me at goaway666420@cs.com
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Anna

Vegas, Lab/Pointer mix (male)
Nevada, German Shepherd Dog (female)
Shorty, Bassett Hound (male)

The three bad kitties, two crazy ferrets, and all the reptiles, little fuzzies, noisy birds and fish.