What are you all feeding?

Thought it would be interesting to see who feeds dry food/kibble and who feeds raw/BARF diets and what brands of kibble diets are popular?

Hi
I give my dogs Eukanuba and have done so for about 15 years except for a period when they made change in the content and my dogs started losing and gaining weight out of control.
I find it convenient with dry food and my dogs eat it with good apetite and have no tummy or skin problems.
Maria

My dog used to eat Eukanuba when he was young. Now he have Royal Canin.

I feed my dogs on Orijen (some with Orijen Adult, some with Orijen 6-Fish) since July 2008. They are all going extremely good!

Untill a few months ago I gave Fritz dry food: Pro Plan lamb & Rice. Since he didn't like them very much (he ate them, but only becausce he was very hungry), I started with frozen raw food (meat and intestines mixed with other ingredients so it is a complete meal). It is a belgian product called Duck. Now Fritz really enjoys his meal. Every other day, he get's a raw chicken wing, which he adores. Since I changed to raw food, Fritz's droppings are much firmer and his teeth stay much cleaner.

We use Flatazor and for us is the best,has fish and is very good for the skin and specially for the hair(good colour).The dog grow slowly and for show dogs is fantastic when they are very young.I have use Royal Canin too but don't like them so much.
For more info about Flatazor......http://www.flatazor.com

My dogs are fed with Platinum dog food..

I was before feeding with Royal Canin - not good enough and when I found out they are using E stabilizators I went quickly out, because they are carcinogens, so this we left. Than they eated Eagle Pack which is one of the bests, but after some time it was not so good as before, it get wet very quickly, so anyone could convince me there is not corn in it. Than I seeked and seeked and found out FIRSTMATE, canadian food from small firm, made from real meat and I was impressed! It's such a good food!!! I actually think there is no competition in their ultra premium line and the coat of dogs looks fantastic from it. Especialy on blacks!
Now we are feeding with it more than three years, Fish Potato Original + Naturaly Holistic and dogs are great on it. Strong and very shiny coat, very good skin and condition, I'm more than satisfied. We became also distributors in Denmark and are selling it only to our puppybuyers and friends and we dont need to make any advert, this food is selling by itself.
I'm happy we found really good quality food.

This food is also on the list of the top foods by Whole Dog Journal Dry Food List, where you cannt find foods like Eukanuba or Hills or Purina, why? They are not using meat which could be used in human industry, it's just the rest from the slotery (like legs, heads and bones), foods which are on this list are here:

--Addiction Foods (addictionfoods.com) - NEW for 2007 - Manufactured in Australia and uses exotic proteins
-- Artemis (aremiscompany.com)
-- Azmira (azmira.com)
-- Back to Basics (beowulfs.com)
-- Bench & Field Holistic Natural Canine (benchandfield.com)
-- Blue Buffalo (bluebuff.com)
-- Burns (bpn4u.com)
-- by Nature BrightLife (bynaturepetfoods.com)
-- by Nature Organics (bynaturepetfoods.com) - NEW
-- California Natural (naturapet.com)
-- Canidae (canidae.com)
-- Canine Caviar (caninecaviar.com)
-- Chicken Soup for the Pet Lover's Soul (chickensoupforthepetloverssoul.com)
-- Cloud Star Kibble (cloudstar.com) - This is a baked food
-- Drs. Foster & Smith (drsfostersmith.com)
-- Eagle Pack Holistic Select (eaglepack.com)
-- Evanger's Super Premium (evangersdogfood.com) - NEW - Has a pheasant-based food
-- Firstmate Dog Food (firstmate.com)
-- Foundations (petcurean.com)
-- Fromm Four Star Nutritionals (frommfamily.com)
-- Go! Natural (petcurean.com)
-- Hund-N-Flocken (solidgoldhealth.com)
-- Innova (naturapet.com)
-- Innova Evo (naturapet.com) - This is a grain-free food
-- Karma Organic (karmaorganic.com) - Includes organic chicken
-- Lick Your Chops (healthypetfoodsinc.com)
-- Life4K9 (life4k9.com) - NEW - This is a baked food made with healthful olive oil
-- Lifespan (petguard.com)
-- Merrick Pet Care (merrickpetcare.com)
-- Mmillennia (solidgoldhealth.com)
-- Natural Balance Organic (naturalbalanceinc.com) - NEW
-- Natural Balance Ultra Premium (naturalbalanceinc.com)
-- Newman's Own Organics (newmansownorganics.com)
-- NutriSource (nutrisourcedogfood.com)
-- Organix (castorpolluxpet.com)
-- Petguard Organic (petguard.com) - NEW - This is a vegetarian food
-- Performatrin Ultra (performatrinultra.com)
-- PHD Viand (phdproducts.com)
-- Pinnacle (breeders-choice.com)
-- Prairie (naturesvariety.com)
-- Premium Edge (premiumedgepetfood.com)
-- Prime Life Plus (ompetproducts.com)
-- Raw Instinct (naturesvariety.com) - NEW - This is a grain-free food
-- Royal Canin Natural Blend (royalcanin.us) - NEW
-- Royal Canin Veterinary Diet (royalcanin.us) - "Reincarnated" on list
-- Showbound Naturals (healthypetfoodsinc.com) - "Reincarnated" on list, was dropped off list before due to editorial error
-- Timberwolf Organics (timberwolforganics.com)
-- Ultra Holistic Nutrition (ultraholistic.com) - NEW Name from Nutro
-- VeRUS (veruspetfoods.com)
-- Wellness (oldmotherhubbard.com)
-- Wenaewe (wenaewe.com.uy)
-- Wellness Simple Food Solutions (oldmotherhubbard.com)
-- Wysong (wysong.net)
-- Zinpro (lincolnbiotech.com)

We used Eagle Pack's Holistic -serie for years. I still think it's one of the bests.
Last few years our adults and puppies has been fed with ACANA and I am very pleased.
ACANA website
I'm strict about all contents and preservatives in the food, and like to avoid for example all kind of artificial chemicals.
I add every now and then something fresh & raw with dry kibbles.

In my opinion our dogs and puppies are continuously in excellent condition, so the feeding should be quite allright.

I feed Eagle Original (25% protein and 15% fat), and have for over 25 years. My dogs get lots of exercise and they tend to lose weight on the other Eagle products because of that (and our cold winters). I do feel that the Eagle Holistic Chicken and their Holistic fish formulas are Eagle's best products.

The dogs have over 8,000 square feet of fenced, wooded area to run in, and it is on the side of a hill.

sternenhoch wrote:I was before feeding with Royal Canin - not good enough and when I found out they are using E stabilizators I went quickly out, because they are carcinogens, so this we left. Than they eated Eagle Pack which is one of the bests, but after some time it was not so good as before, it get wet very quickly, so anyone could convince me there is not corn in it. Than I seeked and seeked and found out FIRSTMATE, canadian food from small firm, made from real meat and I was impressed! It's such a good food!!! I actually think there is no competition in their ultra premium line and the coat of dogs looks fantastic from it. Especialy on blacks!
Now we are feeding with it more than three years, Fish Potato Original + Naturaly Holistic and dogs are great on it. Strong and very shiny coat, very good skin and condition, I'm more than satisfied. We became also distributors in Denmark and are selling it only to our puppybuyers and friends and we dont need to make any advert, this food is selling by itself.
I'm happy we found really good quality food.

This food is also on the list of the top foods by Whole Dog Journal Dry Food List, where you cannt find foods like Eukanuba or Hills or Purina, why? They are not using meat which could be used in human industry, it's just the rest from the slotery (like legs, heads and bones), foods which are on this list are here:

--Addiction Foods (addictionfoods.com) - NEW for 2007 - Manufactured in Australia and uses exotic proteins
-- Artemis (aremiscompany.com)
-- Azmira (azmira.com)
-- Back to Basics (beowulfs.com)
-- Bench & Field Holistic Natural Canine (benchandfield.com)
-- Blue Buffalo (bluebuff.com)
-- Burns (bpn4u.com)
-- by Nature BrightLife (bynaturepetfoods.com)
-- by Nature Organics (bynaturepetfoods.com) - NEW
-- California Natural (naturapet.com)
-- Canidae (canidae.com)
-- Canine Caviar (caninecaviar.com)
-- Chicken Soup for the Pet Lover's Soul (chickensoupforthepetloverssoul.com)
-- Cloud Star Kibble (cloudstar.com) - This is a baked food
-- Drs. Foster & Smith (drsfostersmith.com)
-- Eagle Pack Holistic Select (eaglepack.com)
-- Evanger's Super Premium (evangersdogfood.com) - NEW - Has a pheasant-based food
-- Firstmate Dog Food (firstmate.com)
-- Foundations (petcurean.com)
-- Fromm Four Star Nutritionals (frommfamily.com)
-- Go! Natural (petcurean.com)
-- Hund-N-Flocken (solidgoldhealth.com)
-- Innova (naturapet.com)
-- Innova Evo (naturapet.com) - This is a grain-free food
-- Karma Organic (karmaorganic.com) - Includes organic chicken
-- Lick Your Chops (healthypetfoodsinc.com)
-- Life4K9 (life4k9.com) - NEW - This is a baked food made with healthful olive oil
-- Lifespan (petguard.com)
-- Merrick Pet Care (merrickpetcare.com)
-- Mmillennia (solidgoldhealth.com)
-- Natural Balance Organic (naturalbalanceinc.com) - NEW
-- Natural Balance Ultra Premium (naturalbalanceinc.com)
-- Newman's Own Organics (newmansownorganics.com)
-- NutriSource (nutrisourcedogfood.com)
-- Organix (castorpolluxpet.com)
-- Petguard Organic (petguard.com) - NEW - This is a vegetarian food
-- Performatrin Ultra (performatrinultra.com)
-- PHD Viand (phdproducts.com)
-- Pinnacle (breeders-choice.com)
-- Prairie (naturesvariety.com)
-- Premium Edge (premiumedgepetfood.com)
-- Prime Life Plus (ompetproducts.com)
-- Raw Instinct (naturesvariety.com) - NEW - This is a grain-free food
-- Royal Canin Natural Blend (royalcanin.us) - NEW
-- Royal Canin Veterinary Diet (royalcanin.us) - "Reincarnated" on list
-- Showbound Naturals (healthypetfoodsinc.com) - "Reincarnated" on list, was dropped off list before due to editorial error
-- Timberwolf Organics (timberwolforganics.com)
-- Ultra Holistic Nutrition (ultraholistic.com) - NEW Name from Nutro
-- VeRUS (veruspetfoods.com)
-- Wellness (oldmotherhubbard.com)
-- Wenaewe (wenaewe.com.uy)
-- Wellness Simple Food Solutions (oldmotherhubbard.com)
-- Wysong (wysong.net)
-- Zinpro (lincolnbiotech.com)

You can also refer to the following webpages:
http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/dog_food_reviews/
where dog foods are classified by their labels.

According to some nutritionists (Strombeck, NRC etc...) the presence of grains (and therefore carbohydrates) in dog food is unnecessary, considering that dogs (as cats and all other carnivores) are able to produce glucose from fats and amminoacids (via the gluconeogenesis process) and wild canids don't eat grains at all. Some think that the excess of carbohydrates in the diet is the main predisposing factor to obesity and diabetes in dog/cat population; for this reason there is an always growing number of "high protein-0% grains" foods in U.S. and they are also becoming more and more popular even here in Europe.

Alberto wrote:According to some nutritionists (Strombeck, NRC etc...) the presence of grains (and therefore carbohydrates) in dog food is unnecessary, considering that dogs (as cats and all other carnivores) are able to produce glucose from fats and amminoacids (via the gluconeogenesis process) and wild canids don't eat grains at all. Some think that the excess of carbohydrates in the diet is the main predisposing factor to obesity and diabetes in dog/cat population

Sorry, but I disagree. Wild canids DO eat grains. They eat the stomach contents of their prey, most of whom would be grazers and browsers. Cats are nearly pure carnivores, but dogs are closer to omnivores; they love to eat fruits and vegetables... actually they will eat just about anything if they think it seems edible. Think of this... WE cannot digest corn either (whole corn will pass right through us), but we can once it has been processed (think corn meal and cornbread). Feed a dog nothing but protein, and over a period of time it will have health issues due to having a deficient diet.

(*Note: Sorry... I just remembered from when I lived in France as a child that the French never ate corn as it was considered a cattle feed. I don't know if that has changed in 50 years, but we eat a lot of corn here in the U.S.)

As to "carbohydrates in the diet being the main predisposing factor of obesity and diabetes in dogs", I have fed a product containing corn for over 25 years. I have produced a lot of litters in my forty years in schnauzers, and have kept *many* dogs over the years. I have NEVER had a case of diabetes here... NEVER. Yes, I have on occasion had a dog get too heavy, but then I have dieted it immediately and gotten it back to a suitable weight. Unless I am showing a dog, I try to keep all of them *slightly on the thin side*. Studies have proven that dogs kept in that condition will live nearly two years longer than their heavier littermates. (Study done with seven litters of labrador retrievers.) I once asked one of my veterinarians (who bred schnauzers at one time) what the #1 problem was that she saw in schnauzers (mini), and she replied, "Diabetes... and every single one of them has been overweight."

Why have these dogs been overweight? BECAUSE THEIR LOVING OWNERS FED THEM TOO MUCH! People feel like they are starving their dogs if they don't feed them multiple meals and give them TREATS every time those sad eyes look at them. Yes, a lot of people are feeding their dog bad products... there are still a lot of crappy foods on the market... but there are starting to be many, many more quality foods, too. People need to be educated on what they should be feeding their dogs... and to THROW THOSE TREATS AWAY!

Also, some of those foods listed on the "top foods by Whole Dog Journal Dry Food List" contain Menadione Sodium Bisulfite Complex (source of vitamin K activity)... Nutro is one company that still has it in all its products (many others have been removing this, if they had it at all... Eagle never had it.) This is something that I will NEVER feed any of my dogs! One must always learn to *read the labels* before believing what someone else says. Anyone can write a book or set themselves up as an "expert".

MsBritmor wrote:

Alberto wrote:According to some nutritionists (Strombeck, NRC etc...) the presence of grains (and therefore carbohydrates) in dog food is unnecessary, considering that dogs (as cats and all other carnivores) are able to produce glucose from fats and amminoacids (via the gluconeogenesis process) and wild canids don't eat grains at all. Some think that the excess of carbohydrates in the diet is the main predisposing factor to obesity and diabetes in dog/cat population

Sorry, but I disagree. Wild canids DO eat grains. They eat the stomach contents of their prey, most of whom would be grazers and browsers. Cats are nearly pure carnivores, but dogs are closer to omnivores; they love to eat fruits and vegetables... actually they will eat just about anything if they think it seems edible. Think of this... WE cannot digest corn either (whole corn will pass right through us), but we can once it has been processed (think corn meal and cornbread). Feed a dog nothing but protein, and over a period of time it will have health issues due to having a deficient diet.

(*Note: Sorry... I just remembered from when I lived in France as a child that the French never ate corn as it was considered a cattle feed. I don't know if that has changed in 50 years, but we eat a lot of corn here in the U.S.)

As to "carbohydrates in the diet being the main predisposing factor of obesity and diabetes in dogs", I have fed a product containing corn for over 25 years. I have produced a lot of litters in my forty years in schnauzers, and have kept *many* dogs over the years. I have NEVER had a case of diabetes here... NEVER. Yes, I have on occasion had a dog get too heavy, but then I have dieted it immediately and gotten it back to a suitable weight. Unless I am showing a dog, I try to keep all of them *slightly on the thin side*. Studies have proven that dogs kept in that condition will live nearly two years longer than their heavier littermates. (Study done with seven litters of labrador retrievers.) I once asked one of my veterinarians (who bred schnauzers at one time) what the #1 problem was that she saw in schnauzers (mini), and she replied, "Diabetes... and every single one of them has been overweight."

Why have these dogs been overweight? BECAUSE THEIR LOVING OWNERS FED THEM TOO MUCH! People feel like they are starving their dogs if they don't feed them multiple meals and give them TREATS every time those sad eyes look at them. Yes, a lot of people are feeding their dog bad products... there are still a lot of crappy foods on the market... but there are starting to be many, many more quality foods, too. People need to be educated on what they should be feeding their dogs... and to THROW THOSE TREATS AWAY!

Also, some of those foods listed on the "top foods by Whole Dog Journal Dry Food List" contain Menadione Sodium Bisulfite Complex (source of vitamin K activity)... Nutro is one company that still has it in all its products (many others have been removing this, if they had it at all... Eagle never had it.) This is something that I will NEVER feed any of my dogs! One must always learn to *read the labels* before believing what someone else says. Anyone can write a book or set themselves up as an "expert".

Just some explanation about my post:
- Do wild canids eat grains? I have talked with researchers on wolves here in Italy and they told me that wolves do NOT eat the rumen of their prey nor its content; researchers usually find these organs on the ground left aside. If you ever experienced the stink of the fermented foodstuff (I did it at the university, studying Animal Science) coming out of a rumen, you won't be surprised that even wolves don't like it.
- I never wrote about an all-protein diet of course, it's obvious this wouldn't be a balanced diet...I was talking about a diet closer to the natural one, very rich in protein (wolves are carnivore as most of their diet is anyway meat-based), some fat and with vegetables and fruits (therefore with limited carbohydrates) as source of fiber, vitamins and macro/microelements.
- Yes you are right, people is used to overfeed their dogs...but overfeeding in protein doesn't lead to obesity and diabetes (protein in excess can be easily excreted), overfeeding in carbohydrates does! You are an experienced breeder, so you know how to properly use the dog food, therefore your dogs are doing really fine. Unfortunately most of the people don't, and for too much love, they create health issues in their otherwise healthy pets; using a diet that match more closely the digestive physiology of the dog can help reduce the incidence of these nutritional health problems.

Alberto wrote:

Just some explanation about my post:
- Do wild canids eat grains? I have talked with researchers on wolves here in Italy and they told me that wolves do NOT eat the rumen of their prey nor its content; researchers usually find these organs on the ground left aside. If you ever experienced the stink of the fermented foodstuff (I did it at the university, studying Animal Science) coming out of a rumen, you won't be surprised that even wolves don't like it.

All I can say is that several years ago, my dogs killed a woodchuck (total vegetarian) in our yard, and ate EVERYTHING except the head, hide, and feet of the creature. I discovered this after I let them outside that last time at night and when they came in, one of them proceeded to vomit up the MOST horrific smelling stuff I have ever smelled. The only thing I could identify in that mess was intestines... and I had to fight to keep all the other dogs away from it! The next day a different dog went flying by the door with something flapping from his mouth, and when I was able to catch him and retrieve his "prize", I discovered the remains of what the other dog had thrown up, and we were able to identify what it was from its head.

Wolves tend to be more carnivorous, while I think dogs are more like scavengers.

MsBritmor wrote:

Alberto wrote:

Just some explanation about my post:
- Do wild canids eat grains? I have talked with researchers on wolves here in Italy and they told me that wolves do NOT eat the rumen of their prey nor its content; researchers usually find these organs on the ground left aside. If you ever experienced the stink of the fermented foodstuff (I did it at the university, studying Animal Science) coming out of a rumen, you won't be surprised that even wolves don't like it.

All I can say is that several years ago, my dogs killed a woodchuck (total vegetarian) in our yard, and ate EVERYTHING except the head, hide, and feet of the creature. I discovered this after I let them outside that last time at night and when they came in, one of them proceeded to vomit up the MOST horrific smelling stuff I have ever smelled. The only thing I could identify in that mess was intestines... and I had to fight to keep all the other dogs away from it! The next day a different dog went flying by the door with something flapping from his mouth, and when I was able to catch him and retrieve his "prize", I discovered the remains of what the other dog had thrown up, and we were able to identify what it was from its head.

Wolves tend to be more carnivorous, while I think dogs are more like scavengers.

Probably in Italy, where there is abundance of prey (wolves are the only predators in most of our territory and there are only small wolf populations), wolf can decide not to eat the less nutritrious part of the carcass. In fact the diet of the Italian wolf is composed almost totally of wild (approx. 90%)/domestic (not over 8%) ungulates and not over 5% of fruits etc.. Wolves become scavengers only when meat food sources are very scarce.

Interesting how, with millenia of separate selection (and different nutrition habits) of the dog from ancestral wild canids, the digestive system of dog and wolf are still exactly the same.

Yes our dogs sometimes like to eat disgusting things, especially when are in pack (I noticed this especially in our Cairn Terriers) and they pick & swallow something that in other circumstances they wouldn't just to play with it and to take it away from the others!

Hello !

We feed raw meat mixed with vegetables and fruits and bones and good oil. On days it have to go fast we feed now Orijen or Acana dry food. I dont want a dry food with a lot of grains in it. before we feed raw meet i feed ProPlan but now i want to see wht in my dogs food is . My dogs love this food a lot and looks great with it. They are with more food smaller and more agile than before. Okay it cost more and is more work but i get frozen meat and producer of this mixed it with all i want to have in it. So its okay . I want to see in next years how old my dogs are whith this kind of food and how they are with healthness and so on.

Bye Astrid

I have tried several products for Marlee and have settled on Grandma Z's, which has chicken and veggies (dry). The only one she will eat, willingly.

All my dogs are on raw food and they eat everything that is put in their bowl And they do like cereial as well Cherrios which is otameal grains are very popular.

But fruits and vegetalbes are also eaten diary products. I have not found anything yet that they will not eat. Even the dry food they like and look at that food as candy which it is used ofr actually and sometimes they get a full bowl of candy and that is a happy meal

My Atilas is feeding Mera Dog. It is not bad, I think. We don't want to change food, because he is eating it since his first time... So, Mera Dog are good for us. But my Borzoi now is eating Puffins. Realy interesting food- I like it very much. In the piece are some meat and vegetables filling. Before I have tryied many foods, but Mera Dog, Sportmix and Puffins are the best for my dogs.
(Sorry for my bad english)

I feed my miniature schnauzer with Platinum dog food

My Schnauzer before got Hill`s and I wanted to feed my young female with this puppy food, but she cannot eat this without problems, so we tried a lot of food, we finaly found one, which does not cause diarrhoea. It´s Royal canin sensible, by now she tolarates also the puppy food.

The kibble that has worked well with my minis is Solid Gold Hund-N-Flocken. I've also tried Petcurean's Go Natural Salmon & Oatmeal, it worked for one but didn't work for the other (started to nibble his paws to scratch the minute I started introducing it).

Interesting. I have fed my dogs a dryfood that is called ProFormance, here in Iceland for many years. My opinion is that it is of very high quality, made with New Zealand lamb and not byproducts. I had no problem with it at all. Healthy happy dogs, with shiny coats and all.

I have also been interested in BARF, but shyed away from the idea of attempting to balance properly myself the nutritional content to suit my dogs to optimum health. Also it could turn out to be very expensive, especially here in Iceland, a luxury I could not afford long term. My main reason for not attempting to feed BARF was also my experience when my family and I lived in Africa, were no dogfood was available. We had 16 dogs in the house, and to tell you the truth the only way to feed them was to cook for them every single day. The pot was so large that in covered all the hotplates on the cooker. The "dogmeat" available locally was so bad that we only dared feed it to the dogs after cooking it first. We added dogmeal, calcium and vitamin powders to the food also, under a strict recipe from the vets and at certain temperatures while cooling down the food, to prevent ruining the nutritional benefits of them. This took all day, everyday and noone could cook lunch even if we wanted to. The cooker was for the dogs until they had been fed and then we could cook our dinner in the evening!! Today I could not live a life if I was restricted to such a routine!

However, recently a new company started manufacturing fresh dogfood here in Iceland. Using raw Icelandic lamb (only the best), tripe from cows, potato meal and balanced with vitamins and minerals. This food is based on the Swedish food called Nordic and has been used with great results for many years in Sweden. I have been feeding my dogs this food now for over 3 months and I must say there is a HUGE difference! My Giant Schnauzer has such a shiny coat, is in great shape and I see a definate improvement even though she was fine as she was before. My miniatures also shine and are doing well on it and I also have a Belgian Griffon which has totally blossomed on this food. Her coat much fuller than before, shiny and her mass and substance just magically appeared since I started feeding them this. I could not be happier than I am, the food gets delivered to my door, frozen. I defrost it and then feed it and do not have to worry about balancing out their diets with extra's or supplements.... The best part is that the dogs all LOVE this food, cannot wait to get fed and finish everytime! The joy we experience at mealtimes now is almost unfathomable compared to before with the dryfood. Also, their droppings are much reduced now, much less to clean up.....

I give both my dogs Orijen, it seems to suit them well. They are both very energetic with lovely coats, and what I really like, not a lot of poop to clean
Guðbjörg

Our adults and most co-owned dogs are on BARF (depending on the co-owner, some of them find it too complicated and that is their choice). I think it works really well for our dogs, especially the oldest dog has changed dramatically since we left out all the kibbles. He used to have some brown goo coming out of his ears before, also he had some back pain/tensity in the muscles that swimming and massage would not work for. You can imagine my surprise when two months into BARF, the dog jumped into the back of my car for the first time in four years. This was enough evidence for me even though I, too, find BARF more expensive and a lot of work. On the other hand, I find working on the dogs' vegetable soup quite soothing after a stressful day at the office!

I haven't fully barfed any litters so far, but we have a litter coming up next month and I have decided there puppies will grow up on BARF. To be honest after reading Ian Billinghurst's book Grow Your Pup With Bones I feel I would pretty much be poisoning the pups on kibble Of course if the puppy owner wishes to feed the puppy kibbles, I will wean the puppy around 7 weeks of age slowly from BARF to the best brand around (I think) which is Mastery. Bones and some raw foodstuffs will be included in the puppy guide even if the owners primarily prefer to work with kibbles.

If anyone is interested in my experiences once the pups are a bit older, I will be happy to come back with added info. I am very keen on the idea that kibbles are not forced on puppies since it is very unnatural food for them. Also I like to thought of allowing the puppies to play "with carcases" i.e. chicken wings or necks even before they are ready for solids. For me, more natural the better.