Benefits of a Raw Diet
A raw diet can benefit dogs in many ways:
- Improved coat condition - a raw diet is high in Essential Fatty Acids which help the skin & coat brighter, less itchy & flaky.
- Dental hygiene- a raw diet can help naturally clean your dog's teeth. A fresh, edible meaty bone can help scrape plaque off teeth and clean the gums.
- Digestability - dogs have short digestive tracts, meaning they need diets that contain easily-digested nutrients. A fresh raw diet has very digestible nutrients that are readily absorbed by pets’ intestines.
- Less waste - stools will be smaller, firmer & less smelly on a raw diet.
- Behaviour - chewing raw meaty bones can have a calming effect on behaviour due to Dopamine release. It also encourages natural chewing behaviour.
- Joint Health - a raw diet contains natural sources of Glucosamine & Chondroitin.
- Weight Control - Feeding a highly digestible, nutritious raw diet high in essential moisture and low in carbohydrates can allow your pets’ body to work more efficiently and maintain a healthy weight and even enable it to lose weight where necessary.
Dogs Are Carnivores
Sometimes dogs are referred to as omnivores. This is because they are able to survive on a diet that includes plant material. This ability does not make them omnivores. If we look at the anatomy and physiology of dogs - they are carnivorous. Some ecologists refer to them as 'scavenging' or 'opportunist' carnivores: these are carnivores that will eat wild prey when it is abundant and safe to do so but will survive on whatever else it can scavenge (such as plant matter) when prey is scarce.
Dog Health & Diet
A lot of the illnesses we see in dogs today are likely to be due to the low quality, biologically inappropriate commercial pet food formulas. A raw diet may be helpful for many diseases, however, it is very important that we work in close consultation with your veterinarian with unwell dogs before transitioning onto a raw diet.
Some canine diseases that have links to diet are as follows:
- Diabetes
On modern processed diets, dogs are ingesting an unprecedented amount of carbohydrates, leading to a greatly increased workload on the pancreas. It is not surprising that diabetes (when a damaged pancreas fails to produce insulin) is now a common condition in cats. Obesity also predisposes to diabetes.
- Obesity
Highly palatable diets with inappropriate ingredients like a high carbohydrate diet can promote weight gain. Obesity can cause chronic inflammation, hormonal imbalances, cancer, diabetes and many other conditions.
- Dental Disease
Dental disease not only causes pain but also provides a source of infection that will affect gut health and may spread in the bloodstream to damage organs, such as the kidneys and the heart.
