The Raw Diet For Dogs Have you ever wondered what goes into dry dog food? I don't mean the biscuits, although the same applies to them too in fact but they are normally quite expensive. I mean the dry dog food that comes in big sacks and proclaims to be a complete dog food. What is in it? Really. Wheat appears to be the largest element, so how can you buy this stuff for $1 a pound, but a good, two-pound loaf of bread costs $3 or more (in the UK)? The goods in the dog food have to be second-rate, don't they? Dog food has to be fit for human consumption in the UK, but that doesn't mean much either. The majority of of this dry dog food, particularly the cheaper brands, have to be full of ground bones, fish heads, feathers, sweepings off the granary floor and syrup to boost the calorific value. Surely, it is the canine equivalent of junk food? I fed my collie-cross practically solely on dried dog food for eight years, because I could put the food down in the morning and it did not go off whilst I was at work. She ended up with canine diabetes mellitus. I took her to the vet one day because she had gone blind 'overnight. She had advanced cataracts due to diabetes. From that day on, I had to collect some urine in the morning, test it, and then inject her with insulin. Sometimes she had a fit. I carried on feeding her dry food and during the next months, I had to increase her insulin often. Soon it was nearly a full syringe and I did not want to give her two shots a day, so I looked for a solution on the Internet. A veterinary on a pet forum said that it was 'common knowledge' that the high sugar content of cheap dried dog food often caused canine diabetes after extended use. Maybe, it is common knowledge, but I didn't know. Another forum member told me the same and suggested a raw diet consisting of 1 lb green beans, 1/2 lb carrots, 1 lb raw mince meat, 2 raw eggs, calcium powder, bran, multivitamins and 8-12 cranberries. Blend the green beans and carrots, mix everything bar the cranberries together and divide into four. My 45lb dog had one portion and 2-3 cranberries twice a day. The very first day I gave it to her she had a fit. I had calculated her blood-sugar with the old food in her. The new food did not contain as much sugar, so I had given her too much insulin. The next day her insulin requirement was around 35% of what it had been the day before. My dog lasted a further two years with the new diet, which my vet said was unusually long, because animals do not get the same degree of after care as humans. I experimented with the diet over the years and found that adding an apple or two or a few Brussels sprouts did not affect my dog's blood-sugar. Ever since then, when I see someone heaving a large bag of dry dog food into a trolley, I feel sorry for their dog.
Owen Jones, the author of this article writes on numerous topics, but is currently concerned with researching Emergency for Dogs. If you would like to know more, please go to our web site at What To Do If Your Dog Eats Chocolate.