What is BARF and Why Should I Feed Raw Food To My Pets
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One of the hottest discussions right now in pet nutrition is something called BARF which stands for Biologically Appropriate Raw Food. This means completely raw food (nothing cooked) including the raw bones. You should NEVER feed your pet cooked bones as they can splinter and cause severe internal damage to your pet. You should NOT be feeding your dog processed food or a diet based on cooked grains. Its not what dogs have been programmed to eat by our ancestors. Artificial grain based dog foods cause significant health problems for our pets even if the advertising sounds good on television. You would be shocked at the horrors of commercial pet food such as meat byproducts chemicals and preservatives that are not good for your pets health.
Why should a pet owner make the switch to a raw food diet Well its actually much easier for you (the pet owner) cheaper and much better for your pets health! While it might be a little intimidating at first you and your dog will quickly adjust and your dog will be healthier for it. Now you can control exactly what your pet consumes and be sure that he/she gets the best nutrition for a long and healthy life.
When you are starting out I would suggest that you begin with something simple like chicken turkey wings chicken backs and turkey necks to begin with. Take things slowly. Once their bodies get used to the new raw diet then you can introduce them to a larger variety of choices. If your dog doesnt understand the bones right away you can start by smashing up the bone into smaller pieces. Once your dog gets the hang of it you can research various meal plans for different size dogs and find the ones that fit your dogs size and activity level. Do not feed kibble and BARF at the same meal try to do one meal of kibble and then one meal of BARF in the beginning or many dogs actually do quite well with a switch to an all raw diet right away.
Vegetables need to be processed through a blender juicer or food processor before feeding to your pet. Dogs cannot digest cellulose so we need to break that down in order for them to get the proper nutrients from the vegetables. If your dog wont eat his vegetables initially try adding some lean ground meat canned fish cheese baked beans or yogurt.
Adding richer foods like eggs and liver after your dog is familiar with the new raw diet is a great idea. You should have a split of roughly 60% raw meaty bones and 40% vegetables in their diet. Fish is also something else you can feed your dog a couple of times a week and you can feed them the whole fish (head tail body)!
Using the proper food safety techniques is always important and its the same for people food or dog food. When handling raw meats you should always wash your hands well after handling the meat and wash down the areas that touched the raw meat with soap and hot water to keep bacteria from developing.
The question we get frequently is will feeding my dog raw meat make them vicious or mean The answer is absolutely not. Kibble has only been around for a short time but man has been feeding their dog raw meat and bones for many many years. There is no connection between a dogs diet and their disposition and dogs can easily distinguish between what they are protecting and what they are consuming.
If you are interested in learning more about BARF and raw food diets for your pets please read either Give Your Dog A Bone or Grow Your Pup With Bones by Ian Billinghurst or Natural Nutrition for Dogs and Cats: The Ultimate Diet by Kymythy Schultze. At Vom Haus James our German Shepherds are specially bred for maximum health temperament longevity anatomy intelligence and firmness of nerves. All of our dogs and puppies are 100% World Sieger Champion imported West German bloodlines with SchH title 1 2 or 3. All dogs are guaranteed from any genetic defects. If you want the best of the best a family companion a world class show dog SchH sport or personal protection dog please visit Vom Haus James for our quality German Shepherd puppies available now. You can also call us at 8184309759 for more information about our puppies.
Source: http://www.articlealley.com/article_976867_54.html
Occupation: CEO About the author: Ron Ayalon is an accomplished Internet marketer and educator focusing on the pet industry and unique websites for building successful pet businesses on the Internet at: www.Petwebdesigner.com
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