Dry Dog Food
Dry dog food is the most popular and most profitable dog food on the market. It's also cheaper. Marketing and advertising make you believe that it's the best for your dog. But no matter how much money is spent on publicity it still doesn't change the quality. Dry dog food has been promoted as healthy for your dog, good for your dog's teeth, and a good solid stool for an easy pickup. Actually, this food is made for your convenience, not for your dog's benefit. It's easy for you to store, easy for you to store, and easier for you to pick up.
It Seems There's Never Enough Water...
If you feed your dog dry food, he will drink excessive amounts of water all the time. The dry food will swell up in the dog's stomach, making him full and uncomfortable, like eating piece of pizza that becomes three pieces of pizza in your stomach. You might think you're giving your dog a little dry food, but with all the water he drinks, it becomes a lot of food and a lot of weight in his stomach. However, if your dog cannot get to water, or get enough water, then the dry food can cause the body to supply the moisture, which means a dry coat and a dry flaky skin, which could mean lots of scratching, chewing and self-mutilation.
Pursuit of the Perfect Stool
Some owners are preoccupied with the size and texture of their dog's stool. They feel that if the poop is not rock hard there must be something wrong with their dog. These people are not thinking about how uncomfortable rocks feel to their dogs. Because while in pursuit of the perfect stool, remember that a rock-hard stool is constipation and constipation is a hurtful experience.
A proper stool should be soft. What dog owners should be concerned about is diarrhea, which can be an indication that their dog is sick. At this point, the dog should be looked at by the veterinarian and a stool sample checked for parasites and worms. Diarrhea can also be a sign that your dog is eating too much food, and it's the body's way of getting rid of the enormous volume of food that he's taking in. The amount of food your are directed to give your dog by dog-food companies feeding guidelines is usually far more than your dog should have, and this can also cause diarrhea.
Dry Food and Allergies
We love our dogs. Oh! how much we love our dogs. But all of a sudden you have developed a bad skin rash, or your sinuses are all messed up. What happened? Did you become allergic to your dog? How can this problem be prevented? Why do allergies happen?
Diet plays the major role in allergies. It isn't the hair or saliva that causes these allergies but the dander or dry skin flakes. You can end these allergies by feeding your dog only canned food or people food and by controlling the amount of food your dog eats. Then start vacuuming your house more than normal, especially in the areas where your dog frequents. It will take a few weeks for you to get all the dry skin flakes and dog hair out of the house. However, after only a short time on his new diet you'll see you dog's coat come alive again and you'll be able to enjoy all the good things you want from your pet, without the anxiety of an allergy attack.
Steroids and Dry Dog Foods
You start with a dry food, then come skin problems. The dry skin and coat can get so bad at times that the animal can chew himself raw, causing hot spots, or lick granuloma. The dry skin is also a welcome mat for fleas and ticks, whereas the natural body oils would give some protection against them. Telltale signs of poor nutrition are always bad skin or dry coat.
Your veterinarian gives your dog steroids, a cortisone product of some sort, and you add various oils to the food. The problems go away but come back again another day. This becomes a vicious cycle that goes like this: dry food, dry skin, hot spots (skin sores), steroids, oils. Pretty soon your little guy will always be loaded with steroids, which will increase his need for food and water. Your dog will need to pee a lot, so be prepared to take him out more often.
The steroids solve the problem temporarily, but they could cause major problems later on. It is a known fact that repeated use of steroids is harmful, damaging the kidneys, liver, and nervous system. The oils that you add to your dog's food for his coat do nothing. Instead of all this medication, why not try switching to canned dog food. Or, you might think about taking him off dog food altogether and giving him people food.
Does Dry Food Help Clean the Dog's Teeth?
Some dog food makers claim that their food cleans dog's teeth. Maybe we don't have to brush our teeth either? All we have to do is eat dry dog food. Many experts say dry food is good for your dog's teeth, that it helps keep them clean because it's crunchy and rubs off the tartar. If we asked you, "If you chew something crunchy, would it clean your teeth?" the answer would be no. There are 42 teeth in an adult dog's mouth. He uses his back teeth to chew his crunchy food and that leaves 30 teeth that do not get cleaned at all even f this theory were correct. What about those teeth? If we asked you, "when you chew a crunchy food does it often get stuck between your teeth?" Your answer would be, "Yes." "How do you get these food particles out?" "With floss, a brush, or using a toothpick." "When was the last time you saw your dog flossing, brushing, or using a toothpick" Okay, then, so much for the cleaning teeth theory.
The only way to clean your dog's teeth is the same way we clean our teeth. Brush them with a toothbrush.
Rub your fingers over your dog's teeth and when he gets used to this, get a toothbrush or a small cotton ball and either wet it with plain water or use a little mouthwash, then brush or rub your dog's teeth. Presto, they are clean. When your veterinarian cleans your dog's teeth, you should be aware that the dog is knocked out with a general anesthesia.
Do you know why your dog chews up house, including your favorite shoes or maybe that beautiful tapestry couch? It's not because he's teething. At four and a half months his puppy teeth are falling out and the adult teeth are coming in, pushing through the holes in his gums. There isn't any pain or discomfort.
Chewing is not caused by any acute separation anxiety complex either. Experts have used this very popular "complex" excuse for every behavioral problem from A to Z, especially the ones they can't explain.
A dog's chewing is a nervous habit. Like a person biting their nails, he chews things, including himself, when he is nervous. and having to go to the bathroom or wait for you to come to take him out makes him very nervous. He has to go to the bathroom all day long when he's eating all that dry food and drinking all that water.
Your hyperactive dog will come down, your destructive dog will stop chewing, and that complex will miraculously disappear without any therapy once you change his diet. Unless, of course, you dog has parasites or worms. In that case, he will chew nervously because the discomfort will bother him the same way a headache or a toothache bothers the hell out of you.
The basic supermarket commercial canned foods are the next best food to people food. Just get the simple formulas, either chicken or beef, and look for the brands that don't contain corn.
The following information serves ONLY as a guide to those who are new to feeding their pets Bones & Raw Food.
References:
1. Smarter then you think by Paul Loeb & Suzanne Hlavacek.
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