http://www.catscradlecatahoulas.com/assets/applets/EvolutionaryNutritionfortheDog.pdf
Maia; there is a wealth of information out there in favor of raw diets and a wealth of information NOT in favor of it. If I see a study like the ones you provided I always look to see who funded it and why? Since the argument is a hotly debated one that affects billions of dollars in revenue for the dog food companies if people begin to distrust them and begin to wane from purchasing their products.
I see hotly debated forums and topics all the time and recently read an article by a Vet who claims he is some kind of a scientist and debates hotly against Raw foods... I wonder why... I wonder why anyone would argue the benefits of feeding a diet that consists of natural food that is not processed, does not come from a can or a bag or a box which was created by some large conglomerate company that has their hands in every part of that food production... Nestle for example... Hunt corporation and others. These companies own graineries, stockyards, rendering plants, process all kinds of foods and have waste products that can be utilized in the production of a marketable commodity like dog and cat food... I am just skeptical by nature and I simply cannot accept that Purina knows more about feeding my dog than I do... Its a canine, it has relatives that are still on the planet finding food for themselves in the wild and they do so by killing and eating other animals. If the dogs relatives are out there still surviving on what nature designed them to eat and they only die early because of the reality of the struggle for life that exists as a predator who seeks prey.... if I removed the requirement for my dogs to have to 'hunt' and 'kill' their food, but provided them the diet that they themselves would seek out and will seek out when we are all gone from this planet... then why do I have to question IF that is whats best for them?
IF they are the man made evolution of the wolf and for centuries they have eaten raw food and eaten our scraps and eaten meat and bone and some berries or some fruit or melon and some fish and some eggs when they could get it? WHY should I now believe that Purina who has only been around creating dog food for the past 60 or so years in that time become an 'authority' on what dogs or animals for that matter need to eat?
When did the laws of nature become obsolete as a model for what is good for us and our pets? We are the fattest nation in the world and probably have the fattest animals in the world as well because we eat and consume massive qauntities of PROCESSED foods and have for the most part forgotten how to eat raw, fresh, wild, real food... so we have likewise forgotten that nature has provided foods for us that Purina cannot produce for us.... Purina/ ANY and ALL MAJOR corporations who also produce dog foods, are NOT concerned with the well being of our pets! they are NOT concerned with that.. its NOT their agenda for creating foods for our pets. Their PROFIT margins and bottom lines are their agenda and if they could get away with filling those bags with sawdust? and market it as the most nutritious diet for your dog? YOU can BET your last dollar they would....
so why would you trust them at all for anything related to the well being of your family member? I just met a guy whose dog died last year from a poisoned can of Alpo dog food.... the food was tainted and poisoned and was called off the shelves in a recall and when he wrote to them with regards to the death of his dog.... do you think they offered to pay the vet bill for him because the dog died as a result of that tainted can of food that had been recalled? NO... they did not... they did not give him the time of day and the food was recalled and verified as being tainted with a poison... He has to seek out legal council and an attorney to sue them in court... it happens every day of every year! our pets die from tainted, poisoned, recalled, sub standard processed dog foods. Do dogs die of raw food? sure I am sure they do.... for some rare case of some tainted HUMAN grade food that would have also and probably did kill some humans. Our food is also handled by people and its processes on some levels in processing plants around the world and country. We too die of salmonella poisoning or E coli, or others.... hence the reasons to buy foods that are barely processes and small farms and or co op's and places where the food is minimally processed if we can.
My belief is that raw food, minimally processed and handled with the best care you can provide is the best food you can feed yourself and your pets... the discussion is not intended to direct you one way or the other, but to provide 'food' for thought and to encourage you if you are a skeptic like I am to put your health in your own hands and put the health of your animals in the foods that you know are real.... you buy it for you and you buy it for them. Mine eat what we eat... if I were to eat tripe? which I dont... but I do feed it to my dogs but I bought it from the grocery store in the meat section where I buy my own meat. I feed them the chicken I eat, I feed them the lamb that I eat and the beef and the turkey and the fish etc... I buy rabbit for them and I have a raw food source that I buy from which is a dog food co-op and we buy from local range fed beef, lamb, buffalo, and local raisers of rabbit and sardines and everything else we get. its not cheap but its real and we know from where it was raised and came.
its up to you however you want to raise and or feed your dogs, cats, yourself.
No one is here to judge you for what you choose or do not choose. its all personal and its all up to you.
If you want to feed your dog beneful? Purina Pro Plan, Diamond, Old Roy... its up to you....
oh and I eat cereal and I like meat on my pizza
