Arrrooo, fellow pets and humans! Otay, I’m not very happy ’bout veggies -I’m a MEATY boy all the way. I’m told it’s bepaws I’m a carnivore. Whatever, I just know I LUV meat, my favorite! WOOF! Our friend Jeannie from the Whole Dog Store shared this infurmation with us -I LUV Jeannie too and her Boston Terrier, Chase, rrrwwwoow! She shared this on a group her and mom belong to ’bout feeding us meat bepaws the human is vegetarian. Jeannie has a grrrreat answer!

“I posted yesterday about the importance of meat in a dog’s diet. God did not design them to be vegetarians. Their teeth and digestive tract are not made to eat much other than meat.

Think about a wild dog for a minute… They do not have access to cooked rice, wheat or soy products. Their intestines were not designed to digest grains and you will see a lot of dogs with allergies to them.

Cooking for your dog is fine, just leave out the wheat and soy and add cooked chicken or turkey and some supplements to make sure he is getting all the proper vitamins and minerals needed. (cooking destroys most of the naturally occuring vitamins and enzymes, etc.)

Proteins are necessary for growth and repair. Most dogs require between 18 and 20 percent of protein in their daily diet. These proteins are broken down into amino acids and are thus distributed throughout the body and used for growth, body repairs, heat and energy.

Fat is a source of energy and heat for a dog. Fat is composed of essential fatty acids and are a huge requirement in your dog’s diet. Three of these fatty acids are linoleic, linolenic, and arachidonic. These three are especially necessary. Linoleic acid is found in vegetable and animal fats. Linolenic is found only in oils and arachidonic acid is found in some animal fats.

Carbohydrates are not needed by dogs(or cats). “Carnivores cannot maintain long term production of the quantity of amylase enzyme necessary to properly digest and utilize the carbohydrates. In addition, the proteins in grains are less digestive than animal proteins. As a result, the immune system becomes irritated and weakened by the invasion of foreign, non-nutritive protein and carbohydrate particles.” (Russell Swift, DVM)

Vitamins and minerals are needed to promote growth. Calcium provides your dog with good, strong teeth and bones. Iron is needed for red blood cells. Vitamins such as A, B-complex, D and E are essential for normal nutrition. A deficiency of vitamins within a dog’s diet can result in rickets, poor hair, lack of appetite and nervous disorders.

Before you decide on a diet for your dog, you must take into account your dog’s age, breed, size and activity level. Talk to your holistic veterinarian about the amount and kind of food you should be supplying your dog.

It is important to set regular feeding hours for your dog. For puppies, 4 times a day is sufficient. As your dog grows older, a once a day or twice a day feeding is a good idea. Again, you might want to talk to your veterinarian about the amount your dog should receive.

Lastly, always keep a clean supply of water on hand. If you don’t drink your own tap water then don’t give it to your dog either.

Keeping your dog in shape nutrition wise is very important for your him to live a long, healthy and happy life.

Here are some good links to get you started on your research:

Paws Reflect -Nutrition
RAOT Nutrition

Jeannie
Natural Pet Care Consultant

The Whole Dog Store
The Whole Dog Store

Arrrooo, thank you Jeannie! We need meat! Have a pawsitively tail waggin’ day, WOOF!

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