Raw Diet - Page 2

Con't Veterinarians used to recommend that a pet only needed to be placed on a special diet for 3 weeks, but new studies show that in dogs, only 26% of those with food allergies responded by day 21. However, the vast majority of pets responded by 12 weeks. Therefore, it is very important to keep the pet on the diet for the entire 12 weeks. If the dog shows a marked reduction or elimination of the symptoms, then the animal is placed back on the original food. This is called 'provocative testing' and is essential to confirm the diagnosis. If the symptoms return after going back on the original diet, the diagnosis of a food allergy is confirmed. If there has been no change in symptoms but a food allergy is still strongly suspected, then another food trial using a different novel food source could be tried. We must reiterate that placing a dog on a commercial lamb and rice formula dog food is not an acceptable way to diagnose or treat food allergies. Lamb and rice are no longer considered novel food sources and most commercial lamb and rice diets also contain wheat, egg, corn, or other ingredients that can be the cause of the food allergy. Despite the implication by dog food companies to the contrary, these foods do not prevent food allergies nor are they considered adequate for diagnosis. While these diets may provide adequate nutrition, they are not a substitute for a true, novel protein source diet. The only way to accurately diagnose food allergies is with a food trial. Blood Testing: Many owners and veterinarians attempt to look to other tests to diagnose food allergies. Blood tests such as the RAST test or the ELISA test can be performed to screen for food allergies. In addition, intradermal skin testing could also be performed. Despite the fact that these tests are routinely performed and used as a diagnostic aid, there is no evidence that blood tests are accurate for the diagnosis of food allergies. Veterinary dermatologists insist that there is no merit in these tests whatsoever in the diagnosis of food allergies. The only way to accurately diagnose food allergies is with a food trial as detailed above. While the intradermal skin testing is excellent for diagnosing atopy (inhalant allergies) it is ineffective for food allergies. While the ELISA and to a lesser extent the RAST test can be used to help in the diagnosis of atopy, they have no benefit in diagnosing food allergies. In our review of all the current books and articles on veterinary dermatology and allergies, we could not find a single dermatologist that endorsed anything other than the food trial as an effective diagnostic aid. If you want to diagnose and treat food allergies you must do a food trial. To be continued

Con't Treatment Once we determine a positive diagnosis, then the treatment is very straightforward. The owner of the animal has two choices. They can choose to feed the animal a special commercially prepared diet or a homemade diet. If the owner chooses to feed the homemade diet, then they can periodically challenge the pet with new ingredients and determine which ingredients are causing the food allergy. For example, if the animal's symptoms subsided on a diet of rabbit and potatoes, then the owner could add beef to the diet for two weeks. If the animal showed no symptoms, then they could then add chicken for two weeks. If the animal began to show symptoms, then it could be assumed that chicken was one of the things the pet was allergic to. The chicken could be withdrawn and after the symptoms cleared up, a different ingredient could be added and so on until all of the offending ingredients were identified. A diet could then be formulated that was free of the offending food sources. If homemade diets are used, it is essential that they be balanced, with correct amount of ingredients, vitamins, and minerals THE END. My apology for the long post. Laris

obviously someone for got to take her medications....

is it safe to feed thawed frozen chicken & turkey necks and backs. I have been told that the bones become brittle after freezing

While I am a strong advocate of a raw diet, I believe that many skin problems (demodectic mange, flea allergy dermatitis, etc.) in the GSD may be exacerbated by excoriation which may, in turn, lead to severe or chronic, generalized staph pyoderma (which many veterinarians mistake for allergies). I am sure that some of you have seen staph lesions (especially in puppies) on the belly, in the armpits, on the tips of ears, between the toes, etc. These lesions tend to flare at times of stress. Rather than have the ADULT dog on long-term antibiotics (and risk the development of antibiotic resistant strains of staph), I recommend a combination of oral supplements (for humans--readily available at health food and natural food stores): Herpanacine (www.diamondformulas.com), New Chapter Skin & Hair Nutrients (has no vitamin A retinol, palmitate, or acetate--www.newchapter.info), and MSM (biolgical sulfur in the form of methyl-sulfonyl-methane powder). These supplements form a synergistic combination of probiotics, antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, and herbs. For exterior, therapeutic skin health, I use Eqyss (www.eqyss.com) Micro Tek shampoo and spray. Puppies do well with the Eqyss products and don't require the oral supplementation that a dog in training may need. Otherwise, as a routine maintenance shampoo, I make up a dilute solution of any hypoallergenic shampoo and add 1 ml tea tree oil and 1 ml essential oil of lavender per quart of dilute shampoo. I developed this anecdotal protocol via trial-and-error experimentation and found it to be particularly efficacious for conditioning my adult dogs after the rigors of training/titling. When the adult dogs need oral supplementation (beyond the regular raw diet and Peak Performance 2), I use the same therapeutic dosages of the oral supplements as suggested for adult humans. All that I can observe is that my dogs have healthy skin, great pigment, and dense, shiny coats. Louise M. Penery riesenblut@sbcglobal.net

JohnnyK, I buy 40 pounds of chicken backs and necks at a time, and put them in the freezer to be fed later. Cooking bones will make them brittle, which, as you know should never be given.

My Kevin Murrtal's daughter of 13 months arrived and has spent the last 10 days in the quarantine. Being a strong believer in raw natural food, I gave her some raw chicken necks on the first day which she sniffed, then walked away. To entice her, I cooked the chicken necks partially and gave it to her the next day, which she gorged. I continued with that for the last 10 days. I visited her at the quarantine yesterday and brought with me 2 lamb leg bones for her gnawing pleasure, one raw and the one partially cooked, just in case that she would not like the raw one. With a bit of coaxing, she started on the raw bone and the rest is history. I left her in her cage and went to say hello to other poor dogs in other cages. To my surprise, when I was back, not only has she finished the raw bone, she also ripped off packaging of the other partially cooked lamb bone and was savouring it. :o) I supplement her food with 1 capsule of Salmon oil and 1 capsule of cod liver oil, and 800 iu of Vitamin E. Laris

Forgot to mention that she will get her treat of apple when she gets home, just like my other girl :o)

Laris, Please don't apologize for long posts. You provide new and interesting information, and different perspectives in some cases. Even though I receive the Dr.'s Foster & Smith catalog, I don't have the time to read the articles, and appreciate very much when those who do, present the information "in my face" when it's needed!

Thank you for the infotmation louise.I would like to add a little something though; use tee tree oil ONLY WITH extreme CAUTION. If the dogs lick themselves or eachother they will absorb some of the tee tre oil,this problem also occurs when it is put too close to the ears,mouth and other simmilar areas and when it is given in too high concentrations,the animals will will show signs of being poisoned. This is due to the fact that it acts as a neuroligical poison for most animals,humans not included.