[Justa6655321]

I breed Mastiffs and a raw diet would cost me an arm and both legs every month.

Get a good no grain dog food like Innova Red Meat and you will be fine. NO Grain is the key

Although....and you will think i'm crazy....I've had great success with and my dogs LOVE Alpo.

a few years ago there was an article in the WSJ that compared all the popular dog foods and beleive it or not Old Roy from Walmart came out the best for value and content. Things have changed since then but i think people pay too much for some comercial foods

[Aeroguerilla]

best dog food hands down is Innova EVO.

Clackamas Coot
Sound like you really are devoted to giving your pups a lot of advantages.
Our lab is our best friend, I've trained him since he was 7.5 weeks. We lived in the country until last week and raised our dog off leash, he's def my best friend, I feel I can communicate better with him than any human.
Are you expecting a litter anytime soon?

I feed Mighty Dog from Purina... lol

[dwarfganja]

I give my dog yogurt once a week....its supposed to be good with helping clean out the intestinal track of the dog. Dairy is not a major role in a dogs diet.
IMO Innova EVO is probably the best brand to buy if you cant feed raw.

Here are some things to consider about a dog:

First off its a dog (animal) Considered wild until people try and domesticate them.

Just because they can make good pets if properly trained doesn't mean we change diet as well. The genetic DNA of a dog does not change.

The dogs jaws,gums, and teeth are designed to tear at its food and swallow hole as if in the wild. They do not have a mouth designed to chew food and start digestion proccess in the mouth such as humans. Digestion begins in the stomach of the dog.

They simply swallow the food whole take the nutrients (mainly protein) and poop out the rest.

The closet genetic DNA today that science has suggest the dog is derived from the grey wolf. I forget the exact percentage but they are almost identical.

Just some of my thoughts on this topic

[chuckyoufarley]

MY GIRL eats DIAMOND pet foods lamb & rice

[ROJO145]

Originally Posted by chuckyoufarley

MY GIRL eats DIAMOND pet foods lamb & rice

Me too Chuck,very good cheap dog food!!

[PetFlora]

My company formulates all-natural remedies, and a Longevity Program targeted to Dogs and Cats.

I can tell you what not to feed- ANY commercial dog food- wet or dry. No commercial pet chews either. RAW bones are very good. Cooked bones splinter.

Wild dogs eat fresh kill. They not consume dairy, so anything dairy sourced, including acidophilus, dairy is not natural, although raw milk would be OK to wean. If it's not natural it's probably not healthy for them.

The closest to fresh kill is fresh meat, or chicken, served raw, and preferably organic. But you need to transition to it, by first mixing 10%, 25, 50, 75 to whatever you are currently feeding, then finally 100%.

A raw diet is not sufficient by itself. Your dog also needs:

1. Soil-based Probiotic Organisms, which helps maintain the balance between aerobic and aerobic bacteria in the GI tract, stablize GI tract pH...
2. Digestive Enzymes to break down the food into small elements, so they are easily digested
3. Vital Lipids A combination of oils to maintain skin, eyes, nails, arteries, veins, heart...

We put these into our Longevity Program, which takes the guess work out of which supplements are best. When youi combine these with a raw diet, you won't believe the transition that takes place.

My website is www.vitalityscience.com you have to use the onsite search bar then type longevity program dog.

[Trichgnomes]

Originally Posted by dwarfganja

I give my dog yogurt once a week....its supposed to be good with helping clean out the intestinal track of the dog. Dairy is not a major role in a dogs diet.

I agree with most your points, however, I feed my dog yogurt every day. Yogurt, is indeed a dairy product, however a dairy product is not necessarily yogurt, dig? yogurt and kefir are both very good for dogs, because they are loaded with beneficial bacteria and yeasts, such as Lactobacillus acidophilus, B. bifidum, etc. SCOBYs (Symbiotic Colony of Bacteria and Yeast) often have as many as 15 different species living in the consortium.
The reason for feeding any mammal a food that has been cultured is to try to bring to a balance the ratios of naturally occurring microbes. I guess that one could still say it is "cleaning out" but it is a bit more complex than that. Plants (those grown without human interference, that is, or with the help of humans using biological methods) need microbial assistance to "digest" complex mineral compounds; it is not all that different for humans/dogs/horses/ etc.
And the few times I have fed milk, it has been raw, i.e. not pasteurized or homogenized, which naturally contains probiotics when the conditions are ideal/optimal.

[exploziv]

Homemade food made of chicken or beef meat (anything but fried) + rice and vegetables.
And some dried food from time to time as a snack.