BETTER FOOD FOR DOGS

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BETTER FOOD FOR DOGS

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!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ! ! ! ! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!$%&!'(!)*+%,,!-./01/+! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !My name is J. Daryll Chester & I started a company, Pet Nutrition Systems, with the sole purpose of helping individuals reverse and retard their companion pet’s illnesses via a whole food (non-processed) diet lifestyle. Please note: if you are buying natural or organic kibble and/or canned products you are not feeding your pet a natural or organic diet - you are not giving them the substance that Mother Nature intended that they eat to nourish and heal their body. In 1998 I set out to create products and services which would give my community the best options for feeding their cats and dogs a species specific diet.

So why do I have an interest in raw, freshly cooked whole food for our pets?

Simply, while running Amen-RA Animal Behavior Clinic we switched our service dogs from a standard American processed diet to a whole food & raw foods diet saved some of our dog’s lives and increase their life span (and workability) up to 65%. For years our service dogs suffered from many illnesses; allergies, joint problems, cancer, organ failure, skin disorders, colitis, general physical weakness and more. All of which seem to have come on mysteriously after eating processed canned and kibble food for a couple of years. The joint soreness, muscle pain, constant stool irregularity, loss of attention, hair loss, etc. came on after eating year’s worth of non species specific diet. The veterinary nutritionists at Cornell, Penn and Tufts assured me that these problems were diet related and would self correct if I provided a better whole food diet. They were right. When someone has a pet or working service animal in poor health and is diagnosed with illness & disease they rarely hear that the most important thing in their companion’s life is a species-specific diet. The most effective mode to optimum health is to give your body the proper nutrients it needs to not only live, but to thrive!

I will give you the details of how and why I turned to the whole and raw food diet for our animals in the up coming publications. More importantly I would like to address the myth of high cost. You may be thinking that you cannot afford to feed your companion a handmade raw and/or freshly cooked diet. Maybe you do not have the time to prepare the meals yourself. I’m here to tell you that you cannot afford to stay the coarse of feeding commercial kibble and canned food.

There will come a time that you pet’s immune system will be depleted enough and they will get sick. These vet bills and the lost of years of life will be more costly in the end. It is a classic pay now or pay late scenario. Anyone who can afford to purchase their daily gourmet coffee or eat out more than once a week can afford to buy pre-made whole or raw meals for their pet or make it for themselves. Our gourmet handmade meals range from $30 - $60 a month for small dogs to $65 - $85 for medium dogs and $100 - $175 for large dogs.

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Feeding your pet is about more than satisfying their hunger or giving them what they will readily eat.. It's also about sustaining health, warding off disease, the environment, social justice, personal development, and sustainable living. Many of us already know this. We're feeding less processed kibble/can food and more organically produced whole foods with human grade meat and fish. But do we really know the truth about the farm waste used to produce our pet's food, the rendering plants, herbicide & pesticide used, and the labels that promise "Certified Organic"?

The mega agricultural farm system has harmed and exploited many human beings as they make our pets ill. They have destroyed family farmers, displaced local family grocery markets and real farmer markets, it dehumanizes workers in factory farms and rendering plants, and has contributed to cancer, organ failure, obesity and other diet related health problems in our pets.

This is not new to us; we watched the recalls (2003, 2007, 2009, 2010) and never really thought much about where our pet’s food came from. Like many, we don't touch super market chain pet food and assume that the recall had nothing to do with the more respected or premium dog food labels like Hill's.

After reading books like "Pet Food Politics" by Marion Nestle, I realized that the problem was-is industry wide. When one looks at how meat, chickens, turkey, eggs, fish, even the vegetables and fruit are handled and processed ethically it is very hard to justify feeding any of it to your companion pet.

Like Peter Singer, The Author of "The Way We Eat" I looked at different traditional pet food meals fed by different families- a typical American WalMart/K-Mart shopping family, a fast paced middle income family, an organic family and a vegetarian family. It is useful to look at the diets of these families when studying the diets of their dog and/or cat. The finding of this study will come to light in my up coming book but the interesting commonality between all the families were that most of these families trusted the pet food industry to self regulate, educate and supply them with a healthy product. There seems to be a large disconnect between reading the advertisement or bag, believing the advertisements and rationally knowing understanding what the product really is.

Fortunately we do have choices. Over the last year my articles have help you take a look at how nutritionally, ethically and economically commercial feed has cost you and your pet. I have tried to raise the point that connecting the dots between the mega farm industry, waste products, rendering plants rising number of vet.s, industry sponsored education and the declining health of our pet population was fairly easy to link together. I have made a strong case that the species specific diet is the only truly ethical and sustainable diet you should model your pat's diet plan after, we do not have to accept the pet industry's

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notion that feeding a processed omnivore diet to our cats is the best thing or a bowl full of kibble is nutritionally the same as a real whole food diet. It all comes down to the 8 basic principles:

Eight Principles for Making Conscientious Pet Food Choices 1. We have the right to know how our food is produced.

2. We have the right to a independent regulatory body policing the industry.

3. Producing food should not impose costs on others.

4. Better animal nutrition education starts with you.

5. Workers are entitled to decent wages and working conditions.

6. Preserving life and health justifies more than the desire to make money or saving it.

7. Nutrition is important and should be one of your core values.

8. When you know better, do better.

We can do this. It may be a little more expensive for dog over 80 pounds, it may take a little more time to prepare the meals but it will save your pet years of life, your community jobs, better for the eco system and will save you money in the end. I must point out that our commercial animal food is subsidized by the vets with contracts to sell their food, cost to the environment, the health care system, and the mega farm industry. It will be more work- preparing meals for your pet takes time, finding a service to hand make your pet's meals using whole food and deliver it to you may take time, but you will get to know the people who grow the food, the people that make your pets food and whether or not it is organic, you will know it is better for them. It will be fresh, more seasonal and will make the best of a rotating diet plan using new flavors and nutritional benefits not provided in your other options.

Caring for your pet can be a life changing experience for you and your family.

Everyone who cares about what they feed their companion pet should read more about their options. Everyone who cares about how living creatures are cared for in their own community and around the world should read the 8 Principles and apply them to their life. These 8 principles value our pets bodies and their minds. More abstractly, we can green our own minds in a few other ways, like mindfulness, interdependence, awareness, and speaking out. As Proust once said: "The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes."

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I know what it is like to have a sick pet, be broke and everywhere you turn for help people want money from you. I don't want to add to that problem. I am proud to say that I will help you learn how to determine the right recipe/formulations and teach you how to prepare the meals for yourself. The information will be tailored made for your specific pet and we can include or recommend a vet that we all can work with.

In my journey into animal nutrition I have found that there is so much conflicting information, and many different viewpoints. Most given from nonprofessional and or information provided by the manufacturers of processed animal feed. To an animal that is extremely toxic, ill and in need of serious help, this misinformation, the hype, and the conflicting information in the raw and whole food industry can be overwhelming, upsetting, and even detrimental. I cannot stress strongly enough the great importance of having professional assistance, if even only in the beginning, to help you with the detox and whole &/or raw food transition. In my articles I do list the contact information of doctors in conventional medicine and alternative medicine that can perhaps assist you and have given me assistance in my research. I am not paid for any of the information that I provided you with unless you hire my Veterinary Prescriptive Nutrition service or Organic Nutrition Express delivery service to make your food. Otherwise I am willing to help anyone whom needs the help or would like assistance in learning more about animal nutrition.

Remember that knowledge is power. Knowing where to go to read everything you can regarding species-specific whole and raw food. Not every pet has the same illnesses, so not everyone will take the same path. Empower yourself with information. See what works for your companion. There are many paths within whole food and raw food ideology. One thing is for certain, all our pets can benefit from the addition of a higher percentage of whole, raw or freshly cooked foods to their diet. They can benefit from eliminating such things as refined fast foods, processed foods, treats and non-human grade ingredients from their diet. The information is out there for the taking, and if you need further assistance you can contact PNS. PNS will provide you with a free phone consultation, provide you with a diet plan, help with recipes and more.

The leading vet school strongly agree that the majority of chronic and degenerative diseases our dogs experience today are caused by improper diets, chemicals and inferior ingredients used by the commercial dog food industry.

Pet Nutrition Systems designs health and wellness programs around your pets' breed, bloodline risk factors, health history and genetic predispositions.

Consider that over 40% of dogs and 55% of cats are predisposed to genetic conditions.

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In the animal health & welfare industry, advancements provide many exciting opportunities for PNS to offer our clients new, better and different services and products. From state of the art all natural liquid supplements and advanced blood test to nutrition therapy and stem-cell treatments. PNS is leading the way with new health and wellness services: veterinary prescriptive nutrition service, rotation diet planning, organic handmade meals, all natural health and wellness products and the convenience of all in one online spot. Our eat and west coast locations provide coverage to all 50 states. One of the most appealing new ideas in individualized diet planning is breed-specific wellness diet planning.

Holistic veterinarians and Veterinary Nutritionist are changing clients' perceptions of wellness care through breed-specific programs. When our clients learn that animal wellness care is not limited to vaccinations and parasite control and then see those services offered to extend the life of their pet companion, experience diet planning that help achieve optimum health which lowers their vet cost they get excited to join our community.

Breed-specific wellness and individualized diet planning is different. It helps our clients see wellness care as "individual based nutrition" driven by the unique breed risks of their pets and advanced blood analysis not as a cookie cutter one bag of processed food fits all plan. These days, pet owners are interested in learning more about their breed or combination of breeds turn to sources such as Pet Nutrition Systems to acquire more personalized health and wellness information. While allot of people still consider general practice veterinarians as animal nutrition and wellness preventative authorities, our clients don't necessarily see them as a "go-to" source for breed specific or individualized nutrition information. Offering breed-specific healthcare services has helped Pet Nutrition Systems position ourselves squarely in the lead of this groundswell of individualized holistic diet planning movement.

We are able to help you be proactive in regard to your pet wellness and health regime. Traditional vet care and the animal food industry is old school reactive in nature. After you or your vet fills out our VPN form we will suggest one of several blood test to tell us your pets strengths and weaknesses nutritionally.

We look at their breed or testing to determine the true combination of breeds, bloodlines, health history, diet history, and current environmental factors. All these elements will allow us to properly evaluate the present health and future risk factors which are crucial when designing a health and wellness program to optimize and extend the life of your pet companion.

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The concept of breed risks is not new. What is new is the idea of building wellness programs around specific breeds. Some holistic veterinary practices have already begun doing this.

Breed, disease pattern Dr. Dennis Cloud, of Cloud Veterinary Centers in O'Fallon, Mo., says he first became interested in the idea of breed-specific care in the 1990s. He had an opportunity to look at a database that tracked pet healthcare exams for healthy and sick pets. He soon spotted patterns showing associations between certain diseases and breeds. Immediately, he sought to use this information to help diagnose patients. For example, when he saw an 8-year-old female Scottish Terrier with blood in her urine, he tried to rule out bladder cancer early in the diagnostic process because the breed is known to have a high risk for the disease. On the other hand, when he saw an 8-year-old male Bison with bloody urine, he would seek to rule out calcium oxalate stones first because that breed and sex is known to be pre-disposed to that condition.

PNS uses this same approach to diet planning for healthy pets to plan around the genetic deficiencies and help older pets that have started to show the sign of immune break down and symptoms of these breed specific problem.

In the 1990s, little information was readily available to help veterinarians interested in pursuing breed-specific medicine. However, by 1999, the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) published Dr. Lowell Ackerman's book, The Genetic Connection: A Guide to Health Problems in Purebred Dogs. A decade later, even though most veterinarians are aware of the risk of hip dysplasia in large breeds, the idea of breed-specific care and nutrition is just taking off.

PNS has reported that the most challenging part of implementing a breedspecific or individual care program is the time constraint of organizing and managing the different health care professionals involved in the process around it. The idea of breed-specific risks is new to most clients and veterinarians, so it takes time to explain. The beauty is that this system really does save our clients money, time and provides the benefits of extended life span and less vet visits/bills.

We have great potential to help more pets with breed-specific wellness screenings. Our team's experience practicing breed-specific and individual wellness informally for the past eight has shown great results in the advancement of this unique approach to animal wellness. We have seen an

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increase among our clients' readiness to embrace this concept. The next step is help you formalize your own breed-specific or individual wellness care plan and be a source of support to you and your pet in the process.

Current the major animal feed companies would have you believe that all dogs and cat could and should eat the same bag of fast food everyday and they all will be perfectly healthy and happy. Not so fast my friend. Very few carnivores on this green earth eats the same food every day and lives a long healthy life.

Even within species there are genetic and biological differences that require an array of diets and within the different stages of life require even more of a change. Given the fact that no one combination of natural food sources can satisfy all the nutrition all needs, each individual animal will require a rotation plan to cover all of their needs.

Dogs' nutritional and caloric requirements will differ according to their breed, mixture of breeds, age and health. Therefore it is very important for us to take more time in properly evaluating our pet companion, their individual nutritional needs and health before we start looking at options of which food to feed.

Nourishment for dogs, just like humans, must be drawn from a broad range of whole foods that contain macro-nutrients (protein, fiber, fat, and carbohydrates) micro-nutrients (vitamins and minerals) anti-oxidants and water. Each of these key components must be in complete balance with each other or the diet will not be complete.

Pet Nutrition Systems believes that a properly nourished body grows correctly, resist parasites, and heals itself. The strongest defense against breakdown of the immune system, organ stress, joint and connective tissue problems is a species-appropriate diet. In nature, changes in the character of the food supply can severely threaten the survival of the animal that are unable to adapt to these changes. The indicators of the animals inability to adapt are seen in the breakdown of the immune system, organ stress or failure, joint and connective tissue problems, inability to ward off infections (ear and skin), mental imbalance The soundest defense against these breakdowns is the one mother nature designed for her creatures: a species-appropriate nutrition made up of whole foods.

Sound nutrition is the cornerstone of preventive medicine. Many diseases can be prevented if proper nutrition is begun early in the animals life. A poor diet, conversely, can lead to immune-system disorder, thus making your pet more prone to disease and certain allergies. Veterinary Holistic Dr. Monique Maniet of

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the Care of Bethesda, Maryland said " 99% of all ailments are linked to nutritional deficiencies and all could be treated with nutritional means, as well as medical therapy.

In past articles I have given attention to the major building blocks of a balanced diet plan but not much in the way of breed specific nutrition.

Physical Differences = Nutritional Differences The feeding instructions on most commercial dog food labels tell you to feed their food to a dog (any dog) and just put a different amount into the bowl according to the weight of the animal that may eat it. There are many more differences that should be considered. Each breed of dog has physical or temperamental characteristics that are different from any other breed. The nutritional requirements of each breed has been passed on from generation to generation in the exact same way that each breed's coat, temperament or other characteristics have been passed on. We know that breed specific nutritional requirements cannot change faster than any of the other breed specific characteristics and we have many good examples of the amount of time it would take to make a change in a breed's inherited characteristics. We know that the climate of the area where a breed originated developed their coat. The desert breeds have a single layered short coat and the mountain breeds have a heavy double -layered coat. There are very clear records that show different breeds of dogs taken to environments that are very different than where they originated (desert breeds taken to cold climates and mountain breeds to warm climates).

Some of the records show that a breed was taken to, and has remained in the new and different environment over 2,000 years. Yet after 2,000 years, these breeds still have the same coat (and other genetic make up, body size and nutritional requirements) that their ancestors had in their native environment.

There are hundreds of examples of breed specific characteristics that have not been altered because of a change in environment or a change in diet. No matter what the people selling pet food claim, we know that breed specific nutritional requirements cannot be changed every time an owner changes their pet's food.

Each breed still has their own unique set of nutritional requirements, they are a part of the breed's genetic make-up, and our pets should be fed with a food that matches those breed specific nutritional requirements . . . if we want them to be healthy.

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I urge pet owners who want to do WHAT IS RIGHT FOR THEIR PET to put out an effort to learning more about their pet's unique nutritional requirements and feed that pet with a whole food diet right for their pets requirements. If you need help please write to me for your free consultation.

If the Nutritional Needs of Dogs vary among the different breeds - How Can One Food Claim to Be "Complete & Balanced" - For All Dogs? It can't! And a processed fast food source made from farm waste will miss the mark entirely throwing your pet into immune system malfunction and the life threatening disease.

Research has proven nutritional requirements of dogs are breed specific. The differences are so vast that a diet good for one breed may be harmful to another. Yet many pet foods are sold with the claim that they are "complete & balanced" - for all dogs. THIS IS ONE OF THE REASONS PNS HAS OVER 850 FORMULATIONS. "Complete & Balanced" is a claim that should not be used to sell all-breed dog food. When the federal law H.R.3562 - The Nutrition Labeling and Education Act of 1990 - was written it was to prevent human food products from being advertised or labeled with misleading claims. We should get that law extended so it includes commercial pet foods. 54% of all American households have pets eating commercial pet foods. There are over 63 million cats, 54 million dogs, and another 53 million small animals and birds in our homes.

American's are feeding more dogs and cats than new-born babies, infants and all pre-school age children. This year American pet owners will spend more than eighteen billion dollars on commercial pet foods, over one billion more than what will be spent on children's food. Yet when H.R.3562 - The Nutrition Labeling and Education Act of 1990 was written, pet food buyers were left unprotected and pet foods can be sold with the claim that they are "complete and balanced" - even though that claim is a misleading claim.

Please use a little logic when you think about the nutritional needs of your pets.

Don't assume that because a food is good for one member of an animal family that it will be good for all. Look at the specific animal being fed, and think about its needs. Some examples of the pet food industry making different foods for different members of a species can be found at any pet food store: Tropical fish and Gold fish do not get the same food; Parrots, Lovebirds, Cockatiels and Cockatoos all have different foods based on their different requirements. Today we can find different foods for different types of birds or fish but all dogs or cats are being treated as though they all have the same nutritional requirements and are expected to eat the same "Complete & Balanced" food. Think logically: A

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40 pound Keeshond sheds; a 40 pound Kerry Blue Terrier does not shed; would these two need the same coat producing nutrients? A 45 pound Bulldog has thick bones, a 45 pound Pharaoh Hound has thin bones; would these two need the same amount of bone building minerals? A 50 pound Basset Hound and a 50 pound Standard Poodle have different energy levels; would they need the same caloric intake? A 60 pound Labrador Retriever is one of six dog breeds that produce skin oil; a sixty pound Collie does not produce skin oil; would these two have the same need for dietary fatty acids?

Individual pet food companies have openly acknowledged some of the many reasons why their food can not be nutritionally complete and balanced for all dogs or cats. Since the early 1980's many pet food companies, who are selling pet food with "complete & balanced" on their labels, have also run ads that claimed: "Food requirements will vary depending on breed, environment, temperament, and stress factors." Yet today, not one of these pet food companies provides buyers instructions on how to adapt their "any-dog" or "any-cat" foods for variations of breed, environment, temperament or stress factors. The pet food companies selling their foods through veterinarians and specialty pet shops have not even provided them with the instructions.

It is appalling how many ways the pet food industry uses misleading claims; many contradictory and some ludicrous. There is one commercial dog food (Science Diet) that dedicates a large part of its label to telling a story of why dogs need meat protein in their diet. In the sentence that follows their story is a claim that over 65% of the protein in their food comes from chicken. After reading their label you'd think that their food was made with chicken meat ... but the food's ingredient list only shows "Poultry By-product Meal" as a poultry source of protein and does not list anything indicating there is any "Chicken meat" in the food (see the article on wording of Pet Food Labels for AAFCO's definition of "Poultry By-product Meal"). Another blatant example is a full page magazine ad with big bold print claiming that vets sell their pet food supplements because "Dogs have different nutritional needs that no single dog food can satisfy." The ad's statement is right. It would be impossible for any one food product to meet the nutritional needs of all dogs, yet their ad pictures just one food product they want you to go to your vet and buy.

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We do not need to look very hard to find pet foods sold with misleading claims.

For example: claims that a food is "nutritionally complete and balanced" or "This food provides 100% complete & balanced nutrition" can usually be found in bold print in ads and on the front panel of pet food labels. These claims could lead people to believe that food is nutritionally complete and balanced for the dog or cat which will eat it - THIS IS NOT SO. The pet food industry's governing council, The Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO), has established guidelines for when a pet food product can be labeled "complete and balanced." When any pet food meets the AAFCO guidelines they are allowed to make the claim. The AAFCO guidelines are: a pet food must contain each of the amounts shown on a single list of ingredients which has been declared by AAFCO as the minimum requirement of any dog or cat. Not the optimum requirement! Thus any pet food company can claim "complete and balanced" if their food meets a standard based on set amounts of each ingredient they put into a food and not the actual requirements of the various animals which will eat that food. The standard and associated claims are self-set and self-regulated by AAFCO (an association apparently working for the pet food industry). This could be equated to the human food industry being allowed to set a "standard" so a company could claim one daily serving of any food which contains just the amounts shown on the FDA's list "The Minimum Adult Daily Requirements" would provide all of us (athletes or accountants) "100% complete and balanced nutrition."

Protein and Its Amino Acids Protein is one of the most important parts of dog food, as well as one of the least understood by the average dog owner. Most people have the misconception that the amount of protein the food contains is the important factor. However, the important factor is: How much of the food's protein can be used by the animal consuming it.

To determine the amount of usable protein, we must first break protein down into its component parts. These parts are called amino acids. There are two classifications for amino acids of dietary protein; (1) essential - those that the dog's own body cannot manufacture in sufficient quantities and (2) non essential - those that the dog's own body can manufacture in sufficient quantities. It is the presence, balance and quality of the essential amino acids that determines the bio-nutritive value (% of usable protein) of the protein in a dog's feeding program.

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All the amino acids, both essential and non-essential, have very specific nutritional jobs within the dog's body; such as the building of the muscle tissue, the regulation of antibodies within the immune system, and the transfer of nerve impulses etc.

The essential amino acids and some of their functions for a dog are: ARGININE: This essential amino acid stimulates immune system response by enhancing the production of T-cells, has a protective effect of toxicity of hydrocarbons and intravenous diuretics, is related to the elevated ammonia levels and cirrhosis of the liver by detoxifying ammonia, and induces growth hormone release from the pituitary gland.

HISTIDINE: This essential amino acid releases histamines from body stores, is associated with pain control, is associated with arthritis, and widens small blood vessels; thus aiding early digestion by stimulating stomach acid secretion.

ISOLEUCINE and LEUCINE: see VALINE LYSINE: This essential amino acid promotes bone growth in puppies, stimulates secretion of gastric juices, and is found in abundance within muscle tissue, connective tissue, and collagen.

METHIONINE: This essential amino acid assists gall bladder functions by participating in the synthesis of blue salts, helps to prevent deposits and cohesion of fats in the liver due to lipotropic function, is related to the synthesis of choline, balances the urinary tract pH (in its dl form), and gives rise to Taurine (an important neuroregulator in the brain).

PHENYALANINE: This essential amino acid stimulates chaleceptokinin enzymes and thus is related to appetite control, increases blood pressure in hypotension, works with minerals in skin and hair pigmentation, gives rise to Tyrosine, and produces adrenalin and noreadrenalin.

THREONINE: This essential amino acid regulates energy draw requirements, works with Phenylalanine in mood elevation or depression and skin pigmentation, manufactures adrenalin, and precurses Thyroid hormone.

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TRYPTOPHAN: This essential amino acid produces Serotonin that induces sleep, precurses the vitamin Niacin in treating and preventing pellagra, and is a vasoconstrictor that appears to aid in blood clotting mechanisms. Studies indicate a lack of tryptophan and methionine together can cause hair loss.

VALINE, (ISOLEUCINE AND LEUCINE): These essential amino acids work together and are classified as "branched-chain" amino acids. The three combine to regulate the protein turnover and energy metabolism, are stored in muscle tissue, and are released to be converted into energy during times of fasting or between meals.

Listed above are the ten amino acids that are essential for a dog's dietary requirements. Note humans only require eight essential amino acids in our dietary intake, and for this reason a dog could starve if given the same protein sufficient to sustain human life.

Other factors to consider concerning a specific dog's protein requirements are: (1) The age of a dog can change its protein requirements. Both puppies and geriatric dogs require lower amounts of protein and higher carbohydrate %'s in their food.

(2) The dog's activity level or stress level (due to environment or working conditions) can change its protein requirements.

(3) A bitch during the gestation and lactation period has her own very specific requirements.

(4) The other ingredients within the food can affect the amount of each amino acid required. For example, a food that is highly acidic (due to a preservative) can increase the requirement of the amino acid Methionine.

The problem of selecting the proper protein blend for a specific dog can be very confusing but can be simplified by applying this single rule: When choosing the protein blend that is best for a specific breed of dog look for the protein sources that were in that specific breed's native environment and then match them as closely as possible. When considering an environment's protein sources you should take many factors into consideration.

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First, with the environment's meat protein sources you should remember to look beyond labels such as cattle before assuming that they are describing beef. In some parts of the world the term cattle can be referring to a herd of goats, water buffalos, or reindeer. Cattle may not always mean beef from the state of Texas. Also with each protein source the amino acid balance can be different depending upon the environment from which we take our sample. When testing food sources, we find that herring from the Pacific Ocean has a different amino acid profile than herring from the Atlantic Ocean. Also, Texas longhorn cattle produces beef with a different amino acid profile than Pennsylvania dairy cattle beef.

Second, consider all the protein sources of the area to establish if that environment's meat protein is the type of protein that is best for a specific breed. For example; The Chow Chow developed in an area of China where meat is available as a dietary source of protein. However, the meat source of protein was the Chow Chow and it was available to the humans. The Chow was fed grains to produce a tender and nicely marbled meat for the human's table. This breed's development as a vegetarian also explains why today's Chow Chow has the jaw and flat tooth structure of a grain eater. Also, why today's Chow Chow has a body with a high fat to low muscle fiber ratio. Therefore, after considering all the factors for a Chow Chow's dietary protein, it may be best to use only the vegetable sources of protein found in its native environment.

Third, the amount of each protein source used in a single dog food becomes important since the amount of each source found in a specific environment can be quite different. A breed that developed in an environment that had few grain crops would need less grain in their food than a breed that developed in an area where grain protein comprised the bulk of their dietary protein intake.

Fourth, the blend of protein sources is important since different sources of dietary protein contain different amounts of both the essential and nonessential amino acids. For example, equal amounts of lamb meat, beef, fish, chicken, or horse meat from the same environment will contain different amounts of essential amino acids. Sources such as soy, corn, rice, beet, wheat, and alfalfa also contain very specific amounts of essential and non-essential amino acids in their protein.

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Fat, Carbohydrates and Fatty Acids in your dog's diet There are many differences between the dog and human in the way they use different forms of carbohydrates from starch, sugar or animal fat. Be sure you are selecting a source the animal you are feeding can assimilate. There are many differences between the dog and human in the way they use different forms of carbohydrates from starch, sugar or animal fat. Sugar forms of lactose, dextrose or glucose are all different as dietary sources of carbohydrates and these, depending on the form, can be either stored or used as an instant energy supply by a human but not a dog. Also, we know how a human stores carbohydrates from some starch sources better than sugar sources for future energy requirements. This is why many athletes "carbohydrate stack" with a pasta dinner for an upcoming athletic event. Dogs can not "carbohydrate stack." There are humans that require a "low fat diet" and because of the way a human uses dietary fat many people assume that their dog would do well on a "low fat diet" for the same reasons - a mistake. 1) Only the human can store dietary carbohydrates for later conversion into energy. 2) Canines turn all dietary carbohydrates, from ANY source including animal fat, into instant energy and none is stored in the body for energy requirements that develop later. 3) For humans we know that SOME FORMS of sugar carbohydrates can be assimilated but for all breeds of dogs all forms of sugar carbohydrates have been found to be detrimental (the ONLY exception being the form of lactose found in the milk of a lactating bitch for her puppy. Please Note; this form of lactose is not the same as a synthetic lactose from sugar beet or sugar cane or even the lactose found in the milk of other species of mammals). Knowing these facts shows us why we should NOT use the dietary rules about dietary fat and carbohydrates that apply to humans when deciding what to feed a dog.

Sugar carbohydrates of lactose, glucose and dextrose as well as carbohydrates found in animal fat, vegetable and grain sources (soy bean, beet pulp, wheat, rice, potatoes or corn) are all different. These differences are important when considering the dietary carbohydrates you should be feeding your dog. One study cited in the Nation Research Counsel publication Nutrient Requirements of Dogs shows that the digestible fat from one source provides 2.25 times the needed metabolized energy concentration of digestible carbohydrate than from a second source for a single breed of dog. Another study cited showed how different breeds of dog need different amounts of carbohydrates or different carbohydrate to protein ratios in their diets. Therefore, if your dog is requiring a high carbohydrate or low carbohydrate diet due to breed requirements or lifestyle, you need to provide a diet with the correct carbohydrates (the proper amount and from the proper source) for the specific animal you are feeding.

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Since different breeds react in different ways to a single dietary carbohydrate source there are foods that can be assimilated by some breeds and cause trouble for other breeds. Corn was put into many commercial dog foods because a manufacturer did their research using a breed that could assimilate corn. When the food was brought to market many dogs had a negative reaction and the word went out that "corn is bad for dogs." The fact is that corn is good for some and bad for others. One of the biggest problems a dog owner faces today is that someone who has had an experience (positive or negative) by feeding one breed tells all dog owners that they should or should not feed (X) because of the experience they had. We must remember that what they experienced was related to the nutritional morphologies of their one breed.

Because the different breeds have different nutritional needs each breed's digestive and glandular system can react in different ways to any single food source. It is important to look at the needs of the breed you are feeding and THEN choose the diet you will be feeding.

When you are considering which food source of carbohydrates contains the proper form for your individual canine companion, you should first consider the type of food sources that were in the native environment for the breed you are feeding. Also remember to eliminate those sources that would have been foreign to that breed's native environment. A dog breed from Ireland, where potatoes or flax were common dietary sources of carbohydrates, would not have been exposed to rice. A dog breed from China could have been exposed to several different types of rice that were grown as common sources of dietary carbohydrates in its environment but not potato. A dog breed from a mountain environment, where both vegetable and grain crops are scarce, could have a different need for its carbohydrate source as well and some mountain breeds of dogs may not utilize potato or rice carbohydrate any better than a sugar, but best use the animal fat form of carbohydrate.

It has been established how each breed can have different pancreatic responses to a single complex carbohydrate source in their diet and breed specific testing shows us why a breed that uses the complex carbohydrates from potato well but not the complex carbohydrates from rice, when fed rice can develop pancreatic problems because of this one factor. And why a breed that uses the complex carbohydrates from rice well but not the complex carbohydrates from potato, when fed potato can develop pancreatic problems. As I show on the breed specific nutritional pages at my web site we do not change an animals glandular system to correctly use a "foreign food source" any faster than we change their

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coat from a double coat to a single coat by taking them to a different environment. Overworking an animal's pancreas by feeding the animal a "foreign source of dietary carbohydrates" can cause irreversible problems. Using a dietary source that your breed can assimilate IS IMPORTANT and I suggest you call or write me about acquiring the information needed for breed specific nutritional. I will provide you with the specific nutritional information for the breed you are feeding.

Animal fat is one of the most common carbohydrate sources found in commercial dog food and because a food contains animal fat, it is often assumed it is providing dietary fatty acids. Normally this is not so since animal fat in dog food is exposed to extremely high temperatures during processing procedures. The high temperature can eliminate the polyunsaturated fatty acid content of the rendered fat. In some cases manufacturers use separate food sources to provide fat carbohydrates and polyunsaturated fatty acids in their foods. Some commercial dog food manufacturers use grain or vegetable oils that have been cold pressed or processed to retain the needed polyunsaturated fatty acids to supplement their food. These cold pressed grain and vegetable oils still contain the fatty acids known as the alpha-linolenate family. There are three fatty acids that make up the entire alpha-linolenate family; oleic acid, linolenic acid, and linoleic acid. With the 6 breeds that produce skin oil the requirement for the oleic acid part of the alpha-linolenate family is higher than with the breeds that do not produce skin oils. However, it is essential for all dogs to receive all three of these fatty acids to produce the arachidonic acids all dogs require. However we must examine the dietary source and match the balance in the dietary source of the fatty acids we are feeding to the needs of the breed we are feeding since not all dietary sources contain the same balance of the alpha-linolenate family of fatty acids (see chart below). Since the alphalinolenate family of fatty acids are a complete nutritional team they should be listed on labels in the same way that manufacturers should list the amino acid content of their food's protein. Manufacturers who list all three on the label would provide you with a more accurate statement of the package contents.

In processed dog foods animal fat should be considered only as a source of dietary carbohydrates. After the rendering process, it contains very little of the alpha-linolenate fatty acids. A complete diet for most breeds of dog should contain both animal fat and a source containing the alpha-linolenate family of polyunsaturated fatty acids. Do not assume fatty acids are present just because the dog food label has fat listed. The finished product may or may not have any fatty acids. Commercial food manufacturers may add animal fat just for its carbohydrate content or to make it more palatable for most canines.

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Also do not assume that the product contains all three of the fatty acids of the alpha-linolenate family if the label only lists just one. i.e. Linoleic acid can be purchased separately as a synthetic raw material for dog food and many dog foods are sold with just this one fatty acid in the food so they can claim the food contains fatty acids. Without all three of the alpha-linolenate fatty acids present there is no bio-nutritive value of ANY single fatty acid in the food.

Fat, carbohydrates and fatty acids are ALL important and ALL must be provided in your dog's diet. But remember: you must use a source of fat, carbohydrates and fatty acids that can be assimilated and give the proper bio-nutritive values to the breed of dog you are feeding.

An indicator that your dog is rejecting food carbohydrates from sugar, grains, vegetables or animal fat in the food is persistent diarrhea. The indicator that your dog is not assimilating the fatty acids is a loss of coat shine or a loss in the skin's elasticity. Therefore, it is easy for the dog owner to see if there is a dietary carbohydrate or fatty acid nutritional problem. Conversely, it is also easy to see when the diet is supplying the proper sources and amounts of these important nutrients.

Now I know this is a lot of new information to take in, but believe me when I tell you that it mean years of life to your pet and life to their years. Feed a whole food diet may cost the same as commercial food for the small breeds and up to twice as much for the medium to large sized breeds. The good news is that you will earn this money back in the vet bills you will not have to pay during your pets golden years.

HOW DOES A DOG DIGEST FOOD? So many times I read an article or hear discussions about how to properly feed a pet dog and there is never any mention of how a dog physically eats. How do they digest their food? I thought it might be nice to talk a little about how a dog eats. This may give you better insight into how and what to feed your pet.

Dog digestive system Food gets broken down into a simple form that can be absorbed and used by the body in a process called “digestion.” In mammals, this process takes place in the digestive or alimentary tract--often simply called the “gut.” This is a hollow tube the food passes through and is acted upon by secretions from organs that discharge into the tube. These secretions contain digestive enzymes that speed

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up the process of hydrolysis, by which food is broken down. The three major classes of nutrients that need to be digested are carbohydrates, protein and fat.

Other nutrients (minerals, vitamins and water) are absorbed in more or less the same form as they are found in food. But they may need to be released from proteins, fats or carbohydrates before they can be absorbed.

Digestion begins in the mouth Digestion begins in the mouth, where food is mechanically broken down and mixed with saliva before it’s swallowed. Although dogs aren’t strictly carnivores, their teeth are particularly suited to meat eating, and can cut, chew and crush food. Still, many dogs have a tendency to bolt down their food, often chewing only the toughest of foods before swallowing. The sight and smell of food stimulates the flow of saliva, causing the dribbling and “lip smacking” often seen at mealtimes! Once the food arrives in the mouth, its taste and physical presence help increase saliva production. Saliva contains mucus, a very effective lubricant that coats the food to help with swallowing.

What the stomach does When food is swallowed, it passes down the esophagus, whose muscles contract with a “wave” motion called peristalsis, and arrives at the stomach within a few seconds. The stomach has several functions. It’s a storage organ; it’s a mixing bag, where more digestive enzymes are added to the food; and it’s a regulator valve that controls the rate of flow into the small intestine. Protein digestion begins in the stomach. The stomach secretions contain proteindigesting enzymes (proteases), hydrochloric acid, and mucus. The major enzyme, pepsin, is secreted in an inactive form, pepsinogen, to stop it from digesting the cells that produce it. Pepsinogen is activated in the stomach in the presence of hydrochloric acid, which also creates the correct acid environment for the enzymes to function at their optimum rate. Mucus lubricates the food, and protects the lining of the stomach wall (which is largely protein) from being digested by its own enzymes. The secretion of acid, mucus and enzymes depends on the composition and quantity of food eaten, and is regulated by hormones and nerves. The wall of the stomach is muscular, particularly in the pyloric region. The stomach contents are mixed thoroughly, and push towards the pyloric sphincter--a muscular ring that acts as a regulator valve. By this time, the mixture is a thick milky liquid called chyme, and several factors control its passage into the small intestine. Strong waves in the stomach cause the pyloric sphincter to relax, and allow food to pass into the duodenum (the first part of the small intestine). Chyme passes through more easily when it’s very fluid. On the other hand, the rate of emptying is reduced by the presence of

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chyme, acids, fats or irritants in the duodenum, which inhibit movements in the stomach. This ensures that the stomach contents are well mixed and sufficiently well digested before they leave the stomach. It also ensures that the small intestine doesn’t receive more chyme than it can cope with efficiently.

The work of the small intestine The duodenum is the main site for digestion in the small intestine. Here, more enzymes are added to the chyme, some of which come from the intestinal wall and others from the pancreas. The pancreas is one of the major glands of the body, and has two functions: releasing digestive enzymes into the gut, and releasing hormones into the blood. Pancreatic juice also contains sodium bicarbonate, which neutralizes the acid chyme arriving in the duodenum, and provides an alkaline environment for optimum functioning of pancreatic and intestinal enzymes. These enzymes include proteases to continue protein digestion, amylase for carbohydrate digestion, and lipase for fat digestion.

Enzymes in the intestinal juice generally start off the later stages of digestion.

The regulation of pancreatic juice release is largely controlled by two hormonessecretin and pancreozymin. These are secreted from cells in the wall of the small intestine. Another important function of the pancreas is to secrete the hormone insulin into the bloodstream to control blood sugar levels. The liver is the other major organ associated with the small intestine. Bile is produced continuously in the liver, stored in the gall bladder, and passed into the gut through the bile duct when it’s needed. Bile contains bile salts that act like detergents by turning fat into tiny globules that can then be processed by the lipase enzymes in pancreatic juice. It’s the pigments in bile that give feces their characteristic color. The digestion of food is completed in the small intestine, and once the food has been broken down to its simplest form, it can be absorbed across the wall of the intestine and into the blood. The end products of digestion are carried to the liver, where they are metabolized. Fat is absorbed into the lymph vessels, and is later transferred to the bloodstream. The small intestines are very long, and absorption takes place along its entire length.

Folds and finger-like projections, villi, in the lining of intestinal wall dramatically increase the surface area for absorption. In some dogs, the absorptive area of the small intestine may be as large as the floor of a small room!

The role of the large intestine By the time the food that’s been eaten reaches the large intestine, most of the nutrients have been digested and absorbed. In this part of the gut, water is absorbed, and some fermentation of dietary fiber by bacteria takes place. This process is responsible for the production of gas, often associated with

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flatulence!Feces are around 60-70% water, and the rest is made up of undigested food, dead bacteria and some inorganic material. The feces are stored in the rectum and evacuated through the anal sphincter. Although defecation is voluntary, problems may occur in old age or during bouts of diarrhea or other illness.

Measuring the digestibility of food For any given food, we can discover the amount of each nutrient present, using chemical analysis. But this doesn’t give a true picture of the actual nutritional value of the food, since only nutrients absorbed from the digestive system are of use to the animal. A proportion of each nutrient eaten will inevitably be lost in the feces. Digestibility is a better measure, because it shows the availability of the nutrient content of the food. We can calculate digestibility from the difference between the nutrient intake in food and that voided in feces. Since feces consist not only of undigested, unabsorbed material but also cell debris and material excreted into the digestive tract, the difference between intake and output measured in this way is called “apparent digestibility.”

To measure true digestibility, it’s necessary to use control diets free of the nutrient being studied, to establish the output when the intake is zero. For most practical purposes, apparent digestibility is used, as it measures the net amount of digestion. Within the same species, digestibility is more a characteristic of the food than the individual animal. But the digestibility of a particular food will be different if it’s fed to two different species of animal—dog and cat, for example-because of differences in their digestive systems. One way of illustrating these differences is to compare the length of the gut with body length. Herbivores such as the horse have a high ratio, since vegetative foods generally require more prolonged digestion than animal-derived materials. In omnivores such as dogs and people, the ratio is lower. And carnivores such as cats have the lowest ratio of all. So, diets with a high vegetable content tend to have lower digestibility in dogs because of their indigestible fiber content, whereas the digestibility of meat-based diets is usually very high. Digestibility values provide an index that can be used to estimate how much of the food must be fed to a normal, healthy individual in order to supply the correct amount of nutrients and energy. Where the digestibility value is low, a larger quantity of the food must be eaten to meet the requirements of the animal. Similarly, a diet of low digestibility will result in the production of a greater volume of feces.

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KNOWN EFFECTS OF IGNORING ORGANIC WHOLE FOOD PET MEALS The negative impacts of the harmful elements listed below extend beyond their direct effects listed. They use up your pet's energy to eliminate toxins when that energy should be used for more constructive purposes i.e. fighting free radicals, recovering from an illness, organ support during a growth spurt, etc. Using raw, slightly cooked or steamed whole food recipes for your pet will provide them with added years of life and optimum health.

High-heat and extrusion food processing Even if you find a commercial pet food manufacturer who uses organic ingredients, the high heat used to sterilize the food destroys much of the nutritional value. For this reason it is usually a good idea to add raw natural dog food or at the very least partially cooked dog food to your dog or cat's diet.

Antibiotics, Herbicides and Pesticides These have been found to lead to chronic disease. In addition, if your pet's body cannot rid itself of these toxins, they will build up inside the dog. Built up chemicals can interact with each other in several harmful ways.

Human-Grade Meat Human-grade meat must be tested and certified by organizations like the FDA, USDA and Oregon Tilth. For this reason, they should be considered safe for your dog and added to their diets to supplement the unregulated pet foods.

Animal by-products Are you ready to get hungry? Animal by-products commonly found in commercial dog food can include feathers, hair, leather, gristle and fecal waste.

Mmmmmm‌fecal waste.

Meat and bone meal (usually made of ground bone, gristle and tendons) is the cheapest and least nutritious of all the by-product meals. In addition to being unhealthy in many other ways such as leading to canine & feline tumors, about 25% of the protein in meat meal cannot be used your pets' bodies.

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Artificial Colors Don't let the appearance of your pet's food fool you! Pet food manufacturers only change the color and texture of pet food to make it look better to YOU, not your dog or cat.

Natural organic dog food looks grey and bland because it does not have potentially harmful artificial colors. All your dog cares about is the way the food smells and tastes (pet food manufacturers also put unhealthy stuff in pet food to trick the dogs too, by the way).

The effects of artificial coloring have not been fully tested, but they are believed to increase sensitivity to viruses and could potentially cause cancer.

Chemical Preservatives Chemical preservatives can have many harmful effects, including: Allergic reactions to dog food Behavioral problems Chronic diarrhea Dehydration Pet diabetes from stress on the adrenals and pancreas Dry, itching skin Excessive thirst Fetal abnormalities Hair loss Inhibit the growth of useful intestinal bacteria Liver damage Metabolic stress Obesity from additional calories with no nutritional value Reduce the absorption of "good" parts of food Serum cholesterol increase Teeth and gum problems Head explosion (just kidding - if you've made it this far down the list I think you get the point) "Filler" Foods Carbohydrates can have a lot of great nutrients if they are high quality.

"Filler" carbs, on the other hand, such as sugar and corn syrup lead to dog obesity. They fill your pet up with unhealthy food that takes the place of nutrient-rich wholesome food. In contrast, good natural organic pet food uses vitamin and nutrient-rich sources of carbohydrates.

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Genetically Modified Organism (GMO) GMO refers to plants and animals that have been genetically modified (GM).

Negatives of products with genetic modification include: Environmental damage – long term effects on the environment are unknown.

Risk to food web – could genetically altered crops hurt other animals that feed on them?

Cross-pollination – we don't know the effect on the offspring of GM crops that cross-pollinate with non-GM crops. Could the prevalence of stronger crops create stronger pests that we may not be able to control?

Allergies and toxins – very little research has been conducted on the effect of GM food on long-term human health.

Disease – some crops are modified using DNA from viruses and bacteria.

Could this lead to new kinds of disease?

Natural organic pet food is never derived from genetically modified plants and animals.

NUTRITIONAL IMMMUNE BOOSTERS Knowing the right way to create an immune system boost can help your pet fight disease and achieve optimum health. This is true whether your cat lacks energy, has chronic problems or is immune deficient. It can even help with agerelated decline. Pet Nutrition Systems will teach you three simple steps that will make a big difference in your cat's life.

Many pet owners who are conscientious about their health wonder if an immune system booster can be helpful to their favorite canine, The answer is YES. The right sources and combination of vitamins, minerals, herbs and antioxidants are very beneficial for your pet. Our canine companions have different nutritional needs than ones commercial pet food companies would have you believe, but near the end of this article, you will learn what to look for in a good quality supplement if you choose not to feed a rotational raw diet plan. (rotating different non processed protein sources with traces of whole food, oils and herbs) Let's take a look at two basic immune system boost methods. The most important thing that your pets needs for optimum health is species specific nutritional food. After all, food is medicine and provides the first line of defense against disease, chronic conditions and aging. Unfortunately, many pet owners

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unwittingly feed their pets unhealthy processed food. This is not their fault due to the commercials created by well-known brands and nutritionally inept veterinarians lead pet owners to believe that their food is healthy. A quick glance at the label reveals that these brands contain preservatives, dyes, cheap grains, fillers and meat byproducts instead of high quality human grade meat.

If you find that you are feeding your pet this type of food, next time, buy an organic human grade food pet meal instead. (call or write us and we will provide you with recipes that you will be able to make at home or buy from us) Meals like this will be so full of nutrition that your cat and or dog will eat less, so the cost will actually be about the same as you are feeding now. Large dogs will cost a little more but the benefits will be cost recovery from lower vet and medicine bills as well as a 45% longer life span.

The second immune system booster is to make sure your pet gets lots of water.

Water hydrates the body so organs can function properly and flushes toxins from the body. It helps keep the kidneys and bladder healthy and free of disease. If you are giving your pet water from the tap stop immediately because this is full of chemicals. Rather than buying bottled water, install a tap filter, so you and your pet can both drink fresh, clean water.

The third step is to give your pet a daily natural supplement designed to get rid of stored toxins in the tissues and organs, boost immunity and provide vital nutrients and antioxidants that are not found in commercially made processed food, even organic kibble. We suggest raw meat mixed with small amounts of fruits and or vegetables that will provide these bio-available anti-oxidants.

Animals that eat a processed diet (kibble or canned food) need supplements as much as people because our processed foods are so depleted and because they are subject to all the chemicals from their food and pollutants in the environment.

Before choosing from the variety of supplements available on the market, consider using whole food added to the meal and do your research because they are not all the same. Look for one that contains proven ingredients like Mistletoe, Indian Ginseng, Echinacea and Huang Qi. This combination of potent plant-based ingredients will increase immunity, remove stored toxins, promote healthy circulation and boost energy levels. The best pet immune systems boost supplements will also help fight viruses and improve the body's overall defenses and even ward off age-related decline.

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So there you have it: a simple, three-step plan to increase your pet companion's well-being. Good food, clean water and a daily supplement if you still refuse to feed a whole food diet will go a long way to helping your cat live a long, happy and vibrant life. Don't take chances. Start your pet's immune boosting plan today.

CAN PROCESSED KIBBLE EVER BE CONSIDERED NATURAL OR ORGANIC FOOD? I recently was a part of a panel discussion on organic pet food and forming new regulations/guidelines. There were allot of good ideas, thoughts and suggestions but at the end of the day we could not agree on what the term "Organic Food" meant.

Some of the top companies were represented: Blue Buffalo, Natura Pet Products, Wenaewe, Pet Guard, Newman's, Dick van Patten, Natures Variety , etc. To my thinking organic food or feed is not processed to the point that it no longer looks, smells or tastes like it started out as. Am I alone on this? If I go out to an organic restaurant and order Chicken florentine and it arrives to my table in pellet form or taken out of a can is that an organic meal? If one uses organic matter, alters it into a slurry, adds preservatives (natural or otherwise) and processes it to the point that the nutritional value is seriously altered is that still an organic meal?

Far be it from me to claim that a food that doesn't have at least 95% organic ingredients isn't a good product, just be aware that it must make that cut to rightfully earn the label "organic" and that someone might try to get you to pay for a product that doesn't even meet your expectations.

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HOW TOXIC BUILD UP IN PET'S SYSTEM MAY BE MAKING THEM SICK Daily exposure to a wide variety of toxins can seriously affect your pet's health.

A highly-processed diet filled with colorants and preservatives, chlorinated water, commercial flea collars, second-hand cigarette smoke, insecticides, fertilizers, home cleaning solutions, carbon monoxide and other pollutants are all just the tip of iceberg when it comes to the toxins affecting our pets.

Exposure to toxins weaken a pet's immune system and damage the body's natural ability to fight off disease. Domestic animals are provided with food which they do not have to hunt for, that is not species specific and not suited for the promotion of health in their bodies. In addition, they are often exposed to a lifestyle which contributes to a sluggish metabolism and are unable to remove toxins or eliminate unwanted fat from their bodies.

The first step in helping your pet eliminate toxins from the body is to examine lifestyle factors like diet and exercise. Most of us are so used to feeding our pets commercially-produced food that the thought of doing anything else seems very strange.

Little do we know that raw or whole food diets contains many essential nutrients, anti-oxidants, amino acids and minerals that may be destroyed by cooking and processing. Commercially-produced food may contain many chemical substances that not only have little nutritional benefit, but can actually seriously affect your pet's health - especially in the long-term. Toxins can build up in the tissues, and it is thought that this cumulative effect can lead to all kinds of health and behavioral problems.

Recent studies have shown the amount of heavy metal and other toxins that both humans and animals have accumulating in their bodies is a cause for concern and quite possibly the link to many of the major illnesses and diseases that we are now facing. Since the dawning of the Industrial Revolution our Planet has been soaking up pollution. Remember the pristine wilderness? Not so pristine anymore. High levels of mercury and other heavy metals are now threatening your pets environment, and other areas once thought to be untouched by pollution. "So, what does this mean for my beloved pet?". Toxicity from heavy metals and other dangerous toxins and chemicals (many found in many of our household products) have been linked to cancers, diabetes, thyroid

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disease, seizures, and other neurological disorders, links have even been found to glaucoma, in both people and pets, and this is really just scratching the surface of things. We all have our own philosophies on health care and wellbeing, but whether they are holistic or allopathic, this is something to take seriously.

We should be concerned enough about our own health and so about our pets.

Pets are absorbing these toxins in much higher amounts than humans. Is the state of our pets health a pre-cursor to what is going on in our own bodies? I certainly don't think this should be seen as something to be dismissed. From CNN's Anderson Cooper to ABC News, the mainstream media is taking notice and raising the alarm call. As they say, "Knowledge is Power", don't just take my word for it, educate yourself on heavy metal toxins and exposure.

Pet Nutrition Systems is currently getting ready to launch its healthy water line for cats and dogs. This line will fit perfectly with our handmade whole food animal meals menu and is the best alternative to achieving and maintaining optimum health in your pets. We guarantee it!

A Few Symptoms of Toxic Overload Allergies Bacterial Infections Bladder Infections and kidney Stones Bone & Joint Issues Cancer Diabetes Ear and Eye infections Inflammation (joints and/or glands) Rashes Respitory Disorders Seizures Skin Problems Thyroid Problems Viral infections

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PET DETOX We recommend several pet detox products to help your animal friend cleanse toxicity from the blood and helps remove wastes held in the blood. These undesirable wastes are from both the internal and external world and may include pesticides, herbicides, internal cellular wastes, viral particles, yeast cells, and bacteria. They can build-up over time and set up a level of toxicity in your animal friend that can be the starting point for many serious diseases like cancer, arthritis, or other degenerative problems., Many herbalist, recommend a “blood purifier� that facilitates and supports the elimination of wastes from the blood through the skin, kidney, and bowels. Dandelion is a great cleansing herb that supports liver function, stimulating bile production and flow. It is also a gentle diuretic and encourages waste excretion. Blessed thistle also supports liver function and encourages waste excretion. Burdock is one of the foremost detoxifying herbs of the Eastern and the Western traditions; it is used to cool and cleanse toxic accumulations from the body. Along with red clover, improves skin quality (rashes, hot spots and other chronic skin problems). Fenugreek soothes and cleanses. Kelp is a nutritive food for the blood, a wonderful source of trace elements, and binds heavy metals in the gastointestinal tract preventing their absorption. Kelp has the added bonus of soothing the gastrointestinal tract.

The Detox Kits that we recommend are designed to cleanse and detoxify your dog and cat. It is the accumulation of metabolic wastes and toxins that eventually cause chronic skin and digestive upsets. Heal from the INSIDE - use our safe and gentle all-natural supplements along with out special (easy to prepare) diet recipe to achieve long lasting results!

DO YOU WANT YOUR PET TO LIVE A LONGER HEALTHIER LIFE? Why Your Pet Might Not Be Living as Long or as Healthy. It's been three years since the largest recall of pet foods occurred during March of 2007 in which 67 brands of cat food and 64 brands of dog food where recalled. These pet foods had one thing in common, they were all commercially manufactured processed food under the blind eyes of the USDA & AAFCO. These brands included not only the lower priced store label brands such as White Rose, America's Choice, Foodtown that that are found in supermarkets, but also included the higher priced brands such as IAMS, Mighty Dog, Nutro Max Gourmet Classics, Hill's Science Diet and more. The culprit turned out to be an additive known as

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melamine and contaminated wheat gluten imported from China; thousands of cats and dogs were horribly sickened and many even died as a result. Then, in September of 2008, not only Pedigree, but 13 other brands of pet foods were recalled of more than 50 dry food kibble type pet foods due to salmonella contamination. Last month Natures Variety frozen raw food had a major recall and if you watch closely enough you will see that these recall happen every 4 to 6 months with major industry wide recalls every two years.

The pet nutrition industry is a multi-billion dollar industry full of hype and false claims. Consumers are being duped into believing that they are feeding their pets healthy foods, when in actuality they are feeding nothing more than inferior meat, meat meals, cheap grains (including corn and soy), fillers, by-products, pesticides, preservatives and toxins. The process by which this food is make is even worse that the sub human grade ingredients. It leaves the end product void of nutrients and nutritional value. Never before has the pet-food industry been rocked by widespread contamination and rampant recalls. In all, more than 5,600 products by dozens of pet food makers have been recalled, from chain supermarket brands to prescription-only foods. This is a staggering number of products, and is unprecedented in this business. Thousands of deaths are due to the contamination, and many thousands more have suffered illnesses. We shudder to think of the long-term impacts of the compromised liver and kidney function and how this will affect thousands of companion animals in America.

Leading experts believe that the severe reactions experienced by some cats and dogs were the result of an interaction of chemicals, between the melamine and a list of other culprits, including cyuranic acid. Thousands of Cats and dogs suffered kidney failure, and many died after eating the affected pet food.

One has to wonder what is going on with the pet food industry. Not only are we hearing of more and more recalls of food for human consumption due to some kind of contamination, such as salmonella, e. coli and Listeria, but there also seems to more and more pet foods affected as well. After all these recalls, pet owners are naturally very concerned about the food they give their pets since so many pet owners, myself included, view our pets as part of the family, even as "furry" children, and the reason why many of us call our beloved pet companions members of the family. We want to be ensured that the food we give our pets is not only of optimum quality, but healthy for them. However, with all the recent pet food recalls due to contamination issues, this isn't the only thing pet owners should be concerned about, but what exactly goes into pet foods to begin with.

Have you ever wondered, for instance, just what is meant by "meat by products", an ingredient found in all commercially processed pet foods? Do you really want

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to know? What I found out was enough to make my stomach turn and get queasy, and it's no wonder our pets often beg us for a scrap of the food that we eat.

If you're a pet owner, get up right now and grab a can of the pet food you have and start reading the ingredients. I have a can of my neighbors Fancy Feast Chicken Feast flavor cat food in front of me at the moment. I'm not going to rattle off all the ingredients but basically here is what it says: Chicken, Chicken Broth, Liver, Meat-By-Products, Fish (yes it says fish for some reason), PoultryBy-Products, Artificial and Natural Flavors and on and on, where it then continues to list all the vitamin and chemical additives including Sodium Nitrate.

Now it doesn't matter whether the flavor of commercially manufactured canned pet food is chicken or beef, the pet owner is assuming that prime cuts of chicken, such as chicken breasts or legs are used in chicken flavored pet foods, just as one might be expecting that prime cuts of beef, on par in what we eat are used for beef flavored pet foods. Not so. Instead, what commercially processed chicken flavored pet foods use are the parts of the chicken we would normally never think of eating, and these are the "Poultry-By-Products", such as chicken heads, backs, feet, intestines, beaks, entrails, lungs, spleens, kidneys, brains, and feathers. Beef flavored pet foods, aren't much better, since instead of USDA prime high quality cuts of beef, what is used are cow brains, tongues, esophagi, viscera and even fetal tissue, so in effect "Beef-By-Products".

Dry kibble type pet food doesn't fair much better either, since the vast make up of dry foods for pets consist of grains. To give an example, I happen to look at a 3 lb. bag of Whiskas Purrfectly With Chicken & Salmon dry food. Among the ingredients listed are: ground whole corn, ground whole wheat, gluten meal, and soybean meal. Now just why any kind of grains are added are a mystery since cats and dogs are carnivores and grain products aren't a natural food source for them. What's worse is that the more frequent recalls we've been hearing about with dry foods comes not only as a result of possible contamination from salmonella, but due to the fact that the grains used for dry pet foods are those not used for human consumption due to mold, inferior quality and poor handling practices. There is another concern one should have when it comes to feeding dry kibble type pet food, and that is one should never moisten dry type pet foods. Any bacteria that may have existed in the processing of dry pet food can be re-released, and multiply if moistened with water, milk or even adding to canned pet foods. I've know many a pet owner

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who will mix the dry with wet pet foods thinking that they are giving a more nutritious meal to their pet. If your pet drinks water while eating this can happen just the same.

We humans who are getting more and more health conscious would never, ever think of eating such low quality food as this as it would probably be the equivalent of eating nothing but junk foods all the time, and yet, that is exactly what we are doing when we feed our pets commercially processed pet foods, whether canned or dry foods. This is far worse that our fast chain food or process TV dinners. The bottom line is that there isn't any true nutritional value in commercially processed foods, which is one of the reasons for all those added vitamins in pet foods. We have here the same equivalent of all those added vitamins to the lesser quality, junk type cereals for humans to make people think they are getting a daily recommended dosage of vitamins. The real alarming fact according to the Food Not Fit For A Pet book by Dr. Wendell O. Belfield, D.V.M is that that our pets aren't living as long as they should, nor as healthy and more and more pets are developing cancers, arthritis and heart disease more than previously.

Now here is where one may get a queasy stomach and you may not even want to read the rest of this article, but I urge you to do so if you want your pet to live a long healthy life. One needs to know what is in your beloved pet(s) food. Among the other ingredients that are used that I've cited are also diseased animals, not only the downed cows at farm factories, but also diseased chickens, ducks, fish, and so forth, however, roadkill is also used, yes roadkill. Also, one has to consider too, the idea that farm animals raised for human consumption are often pumped up with antibiotics, pesticides, and hormones, thus, your pet is getting doses of antibiotics and other chemicals as well in their food. While the ingredients I've cited so far for pet foods, as disgusting as they may sound to you, is nothing compared to the other ingredients that are used and here is the true meaning of "meat-by-products" and it's the pet foods dirty shocking secret.

I fb posted the disgust YouTube Video that was filmed and taken by an undercover investigator called "What's REALLY In Your Pet's FOOD? Did you ever wonder what happens to your beloved pet when you take it to the vet to be put down or when it has died of old age? Unless you have arranged to have the pet buried or cremated there are "collectors" who make the rounds to veterinary clinics and hospitals who collect the dead pets that are in body bags that are labeled "regular disposal" and have been kept in freezers. These

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collectors not only collect the dead pets from veterinary clinics and hospitals, but also the euthanized animals, whether euthanized by injection or from kill shelters that still put animals down by gas chamber as well.

In the video, it cites the West Coast Rendering Plant of Los Angeles, California, but there are rendering plants in every state of America and in every country in the world. I watched as all the bodies of the dead pets are then dumped in large barrels at the "rendering" plant and there must have been over 40 of these barrels filled to the top with the dead bodies of dogs and cats. The workers then remove the body bags and the dead pets are stacked on top of each other at the "pit" as it's called. The undercover investigator filming this video is seen taking off collars of some of the dogs that still have them on. The dead cats and dogs are then placed in "The Grinder"--and it sounds exactly like what it implies, a large grinder similar to a gigantic meat grinder, and yes, its the dogs and cats being ground up.

What is even more sickening is the fact our own US Food and Drug Administration's Center For Veterinary Medicine, while not sanctioning its practice, they are none the less aware of what is going on and of the usage of rendered animals including dogs and cats as part of the pet food industry, yet they don't take steps to stop the practice.(6) Here's a direct quote from the FDA Website itself about pet food products: "There is no requirement that pet food products have pre-market approval by the FDA. However, FDA ensures that the ingredients used in pet food are safe and have an appropriate function in the pet food. Many ingredients such as meat, poultry and grains are considered safe and do not require pre-market approval. Other substances such as sources of minerals, vitamins or other nutrients, flavorings and preservatives, or processing aids may be generally recognized as safe."

In other words, while to a certain extent, pet foods are regulated by the FDA (as well as other similar government agencies worldwide), the ingredients don't have to have full approval, in other words anything goes and this should infuriate and disgust the pet owner who may have had no idea what was going into their beloved pet's food. Now supposedly, according to an up-date on the Cat Food Uncovered article it states that "many pet food manufacturers in the USA are no longer using sources of meat that had previously given cause for concern." (8) However, note, it says many, not all, so one still doesn't know

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exactly what is in pet food nor does the pet owner know for sure which commercially processed pet foods still use these horrific ingredients.

So what is the answer? Should one turn to the more organic types of pet foods?

This should be up to the pet owner to make such a decision and it would be wise for the pet owner to investigate what organic types of pet foods are available. The main question however, are they safer? Sadly, perhaps not, and even a pet rescuer friend of mine said they aren't much better either. Just recently, on February 10th of this year, the more organic type of pet food made

by Nature's Variety began a recall of their Chicken Formula Raw Frozen Diet pet foods for cats and dogs and the culprit was due to possible Salmonella contamination. and this isn't an isolated incident as there have been recalls of other organic pet foods as well over the years.

If you have read this article in its entirety and watched the video I hope it gets you outraged and disgusted. I know I was as I had no idea about what went into commercially prepared pet foods. It was bad enough to find out that animal parts not fit for human consumption are used in pet foods, but the idea that I might be feeding my two cats someone's former pet is a horrifying thought.

Hopefully this article will inspire and encourage you to take action in the form of contacting not only the US Food and Drug Administration's Center for Veterinary Medicine, but also your politicians and voice your opinions for better regulation of the pet food industry. Would you feed your infants or children inferior food?

So why should we be feeding our pets such foods?

Maybe as pet owners we should seriously consider going back to cooking food for our pets and giving those scraps from the dinner table. Years and years ago, I used to make my own version of strained meat baby type food. I would cook up chicken (or turkey or beef), then once done, take the meat off the bone of the chicken or turkey, or cut up the beef into smaller pieces and place the meat into a blender then add some of the broth and blend everything. All I can say, is that my cats couldn't get enough of it. I'm beginning to think it's high time I did that again.

The only safe, nutritious way to feed your pet is do consult with an nutritionist to get a rotation diet plan that you can make at home or have a catering service make for you. A whole food diet with plenty of clean water, exercise and love with add more life to your pet’s years and more years to it's life. Please take advantage of our FREE animal nutrition consultation service and catering service.

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Nutritional Information on Selected Foods (per 100 grams) FOOD Ground Beef (20% fat) Ground Beef (10% fat) Ground Turkey Chicken, Dark Meat and Skin Chicken Breast (skinless) Ground Pork Ground Lamb Beef Heart Chicken Liver Beef Liver Beef Kidney Braunschweiger (liver sausage) Liverwurst Abady Beef Kidney (canned, cooked) Jack Mackerel (canned, drained) Pink Salmon (canned, not drained) Sardines (canned in tomato sauce) Whole Milk Yogurt Whole Milk Kefir Cottage Cheese (creamed) Ricotta Cheese (whole milk) Cream Cheese Mozzarella Cheese (whole milk) Cheddar Cheese Butter Heavy Whipping Cream Eggs (2 large=100 grams) Egg Yolks (2 large=34 grams) Egg Whites (2 large=66 grams) Chicken Necks (with skin): 25% meat, 36% bone, 39% skin and separable fat Chicken Necks (w/o skin): 41% meat, 59% bone Chicken Backs (with skin): 29% meat, 44% bone, 10% skin, 17% sep fat Chicken Backs (w/o skin): 40% meat, 60% bone Chicken Wings (with skin): 32% meat, 46% bone, 22% skin and sep fat Chicken Legs (with skin): 57% meat, 27% bone, 11% skin, 5% separable fat Whole Chicken: 48-51% meat, 28-32% bone, 12-14% skin, 7-8% separable fat Turkey Necks: 58% meat, 42% bone Rabbit (whole, skinless) Sweet Potatoes (boiled) Yams (boiled or baked) Potatoes (boiled) Winter Squash (Acorn, Butternut, etc) Farina (Cream of Wheat)** Cream of Rice Cereal Malt-O-Meal Cereal (Original)*** Glutinous (Sticky, Sushi) Rice** White Rice** (short grain) White Rice** (medium grain) White Rice** (long grain) Brown Rice** (medium grain)

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PROTEIN 17.2 20.0 17.5 16.7 23.1 16.9 16.6 17.7 16.9 20.4 17.4 14.5 14.1 9.6 23.2 19.8 20.9 3.5 3.3 12.5 11.3 7.6 22.2 24.9 0.9 2.1 12.6 5.4 7.2 12.7

FAT 20.0 10.0 8.3 18.3 1.2 21.2 23.4 3.9 4.8 3.6 3.1 28.5 28.5 8.0 6.3 6.1 10.5 3.3 3.5 4.5 13.0 34.9 22.4 33.1 81.1 37.0 9.9 9.0 0.1 16.7

15.6 15.4

KCAL 254 176 149 237 110 263 282 107 119 135 99 327 326 116 156 139 186 61 61 103 174 349 300 403 717 345 147 110 34 267

62 105 105 57 178 67 56 198 250 287 260 51 71 135 193 237 196 156 164 128 91 30 118 127 24 18 130 122 29 242

11.1 15.8

152 208

630 349

16.1 17.5

7.2 15.3

(137) 244

(613) 223

17.2

11.4

(187)

(329)

13.8

12.3

192

237

17.0 17.8 1.4 1.5 1.7 0.9 1.4 0.9 1.4 2.0 2.4 2.4 2.7 2.3

7.9 5.8 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.4 0.1 0.1 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.3 0.8

116 125 76 116 86 37 48 52 42 97 130 130 130 112

888 424 42 42 47 51 25 33 60 8 25 28 33 69

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CARBS 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.1 0.7 3.9 0.3 3.1 2.2 2.2 0.0 0.0 0.7 4.7 2.2 2.7 3.0 2.7 2.2 1.3 0.1 2.8 0.8 1.2 0.5

0 17.7 27.6 20.0 8.9 10.5 11.4 8.7 21.1 28.7 28.6 28.2 23.5

SUMMARY Balanced Nutrition Mother Nature, in her infinite wisdom, created the nutrient composition of the whole animal carcass to perfectly meet the nutritional needs of the carnivore.

Prey and predator are similar in terms of elemental constituents, so they are nutritionally exchangeable. The body composition of the dog gives an indication of the type of diet needed for physical maintenance: water 42-67%, protein 16% -60%, fat 10-41%, minerals 3.5%, carbohydrates 1.7% and an array of bioavailable vitamins and anti-oxidants to maintain a healthy immune system.

A raw adult White Tailed Deer comprises of approximately 47% protein and 41% fat. Rabbit and other prey would be similar. A wild canine will usually consume this prey in its entirety, including the bones. Bones in the White Tailed Deer provide a 2:1 ratio of calcium to phosphorus for the maintenance of the canine’s skeleton. Dogs are opportunistic eaters and have developed characteristics that permit digestion and usage of a varied diet. They do enjoy eating and the benefits of some fruits and vegetables. My Dutch Shepherd loved to eat fallen avocados, dried plums and would occasionally dig up rooted vegetables on their own.

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