Comments on When Raw and Natural Dog Food Just Doesn't Work

I am often dismayed that people feed their dogs and cats a raw diet, but no bones. Just look at their teeth. They are bone crunching machines and absolutely need bones daily. For cats a chicken neck or half a chicken wing is best. For dogs, you need to experiment according to their size. I recently adopted a 3 year boxer of unknown origin. Flat faced dogs have a harder time with bones, but I eventually found that she can cope with lamb neck bones. All gone in about half an hour. Perfect. I liken crunching on bones for them is like going out for a coffee for us. Keeps their minds happy.

I recently purchased a 14 week old German Shepherd Male to be my house dog. Two days after his arrival, he was diagnosed with Giardia and placed on Metronodizole and Clavamox. the following week he was diagnosed with denidictuc mange, for which the vet recommends ever increasing doses of Ivomec.
I would really appreciate any suggestions for this GSD. I realize I could return him to what would most likely be a miserable existence, but prefer to bring him back to health. Thank you

One of our dogs, who has been fed a raw diet since he joined our family at 8 weeks of age, is chronically itchy with dull, dry fur. He is a rescue and was given his multi-valent puppy vaccines before he came to us but has not been vaccinated since. He gets a variety of oils (hemp, coconut and, recently, fish to see if that will help) and a variety of raw proteins. We had a hair mineral analysis test done on him which revealed a low thyroid level - but he demonstrates no other clinical signs of having a low thyroid. We are persisting with the raw diet but it's distressing for us to see him so itchy all the time. We often worry that it is something in his raw diet that might be causing the itchiness.

Where are your references for that GMO claim? That's pretty serious.

This article must have written with us in mind! :) I have a 12 year old Lab who she had her first set of the usual puppy vaccines when she was a pup and has suffered from itchy skin, dry, dull, shedding coat (worse in the spring) yeasty smelling, constantly full of wax ears, chews on her paws and recently (in the last year) she has a leaking bladder. This has been her burden for most of her life, made worse since receiving her Rabies vaccine to cross the border from Canada to the U.SA. in 2005. Spayed when she was 7. Silica was working like a charm. It had to be repeated about every 4-8 weeks but now I think things have changed because it is no longer having as long-lasting positive effect on her symptoms. She is a raw fed dog and has been her whole life. I believe she is a very good example of raw food not being able to get at the underlying cause which I think is vaccinosis. I would never consider taking her off the raw species appropriate diet, I know that this is her best support through her challenges. Winnie has only received Homeopathic remedies whenever she has been out of sorts. Except for her current condition she has been a healthy dog.

These are very valid concerns about raw feeding and you addressed them very well, Dr. Falconer. Raw feeding is only one component in our toolboxes of health-nurturing practices. We've recently been dealing with behaviors in our GSD that appear to stem from his lineage and their vaccinations. You can have a vaccine-free dog and she can still exhibit strange symptoms that come from ancestral vaccination histories. Ancestral vaccination history should be something that we all ask breeders about before purchasing a puppy, and not because we're looking for conventional vaccination adherence, but just the opposite. It sure would bring the subject of over-vaccination forward into the breeders minds if we did so.
I'm absolutely thrilled to say that after administering the homeopathic remedy Dr. Falconer suggested for our GSD, his odd behavior disappeared like magic. YAY!
I cannot stress highly enough just how effective homeopathy can be for dogs (and humans). If we can mitigate the effects of ancestral vaccinations on our new puppies with homeopathic remedies and stay away from vaccinations altogether, we can begin to raise dogs that are as healthy as those long-lived farm dogs in the old days, who ate fresh-caught prey and healthy farm table scraps, ran and played all day, drank non-fluoridated, non-chlorinated water, never had flea, heartworm or tick poison administered to their skin, never needed to see a vet other than for stitches or broken bones. Mate those dogs with other dogs raised the same way and we've got a whole new world of healthy dogs.

I brush my dogs teeth every evening, I focus on the sides and back where the tartar builds up. Some small breeds have lousy teeth and may need a professional cleaning once or twice in their lifetime, no matter what you do. This has been my experience.
Whatever, I think the daily brushing helps big time.

I have also had my dog on an all raw diet for about a year. She is a 5 year old Maltese, who had only her first year of vaccinations. She has been loving it! The only thing that hasn't improved is her teeth.
I buy her food at a raw food pet store. And I mix in some veggies and fruit. Sometimes I also give her some raw bones too.
Does it just take a little longer for all the plaque to dissolve?
Thanks!
Megan