An interesting article on PETA

[recycling goddess]

well some dogs need a veg. diet as they don't do well on meat diets. dalmations are a good example. very few of them can eat meat. they get 'hot spots' on them which itch and can become quite raw.

i was a vegan for many years, i have very strong feelings about the animals we consume... for me, it's all about how the animals were treated when they were alive and how they are killed. i have no problem eating an animal which was treated with respect... fed good food, had space to move about... fresh air etc.

just as i feel humans deserve the same respect...
*steps off soap box*

[SatanicIntention]

That is true, some don't do well on some kinds of meat like chicken and beef. When you move to a higher quality of meat such as rabbit, venison, turkey, duck, quail and other varieties(kangaroo being one of them), the problems usually go away. I know of ONE dog that did well on Ol' Roy because he had a protein sensitivity problem. He did well on it because Ol' Roy has horrible protein sources, but he could digest those easier than higher quality ones. Hot spots are easily treated with a high quality diet such as Science Diet or IVD. Allergy testing is usually a good idea to pinpoint the exact problem, which may not even be the food causing the allergic reaction.


Sorry... Vet tech... area of expertise and HAVE to post, LoL.

I have a friend who was a vegan for around 7 years. She quit that mess when her doctor told her she was severely anemic and needed to start eating red meat for the iron. Taking iron supplements just "block" you up and aren't ver effective. She told me that during those 7 years, she was always tired, had no energy, got migraines alot, etc. Doesn't sound like a risk I'd want to take as I don't feel healthy when I don't eat red meat in awhile. You feel all "blah" regardless of what other stuff you eat.

Ok, yep... Yay for off-topicness.

[frankykeno]

Personally I will support animal rights groups the exact moment no child goes to bed hungry, cold or without a roof over their heads. Until that unlikely time as far as I'm concerned humane governship of food animals is just fine with me as is responsible hunting and fishing. Those that support PETA (especially a few idiot celebrities I don't care to list) should use their checkbooks and their time to tend to the needs of the world's children before they worry about every last chicken on earth!


~~Jo~~

[rabernet]

People who feed their dogs and cats the BARF diet don't really have much of a clue sometimes. Chicken necks and other meaty pieces are not going to cut it.

Hey Becky, when we first got Diamond, I was researching BARF diet and thought it sounded closer to what they ate naturally. I don't remember reading that it was just chicken necks and meaty pieces. I know it was uncooked meat, including the bones, I thought it included the "innards" and also some combinations of some veggies.

It's been a long time since I was reading about it, so maybe I'm mis-remembering (like that word?). I was under the impression that if you could afford it, it was a good all natural choice for your dog.

She's currently on Purina Pro Plan. But she's been sick to her tummy, was sore from being run into by a huge dog (they were at the park and she stepped right into the path of two dogs chasing each other and got run over, basically! LOL), so I gave her two aspirin, six hours apart (vet recommended before when she was sore to give her aspirin). She's been sick to her tummy since then. Poor girl!

[Jeanne]

That is true, some don't do well on some kinds of meat like chicken and beef. When you move to a higher quality of meat such as rabbit, venison, turkey, duck, quail and other varieties(kangaroo being one of them), the problems usually go away. I know of ONE dog that did well on Ol' Roy because he had a protein sensitivity problem. He did well on it because Ol' Roy has horrible protein sources, but he could digest those easier than higher quality ones. Hot spots are easily treated with a high quality diet such as Science Diet or IVD. Allergy testing is usually a good idea to pinpoint the exact problem, which may not even be the food causing the allergic reaction.


Sorry... Vet tech... area of expertise and HAVE to post, LoL.

We recently had the same problem with my german shephard pup who is now 7 months old. Cost me alot in vet bills to find out it was the protien in his food making him sickly in many different ways. It took us trying a bunch of different dog foods to fix the issue. We ended up going to our local feed and grain, ran across dog food thats $10 for 50 lbs. And ever since, amazingly, even though it is the cheapest dog food I have ever bought, he is no longer having the problems he was having.

I have a friend who was a vegan for around 7 years. She quit that mess when her doctor told her she was severely anemic and needed to start eating red meat for the iron. Taking iron supplements just "block" you up and aren't ver effective. She told me that during those 7 years, she was always tired, had no energy, got migraines alot, etc. Doesn't sound like a risk I'd want to take as I don't feel healthy when I don't eat red meat in awhile. You feel all "blah" regardless of what other stuff you eat.

Ok, yep... Yay for off-topicness.

My younger sister went vegan on a whim cause she thought it was a good way to lose weight after figuring out that the idiot that made up that atkins diet died from being over weight, making the atkins diet ineffective, although, she is not really over wieght, just a few extra pounds. I told her it was not a good idea and that there are things she needs from meats. Well, within a few months, she was sick, little to no energy , migraines, anemic etc. She finally decide to listen to me and start eating meat again, and she is now fine.

Now, please pass me over some of that steak ppl!

By the way, PETA sux!

[daniel1983]

my big problem is that people have forgotten 'the laws of the jungle'....mainly people that kill animals without purpose....if animals are killed with a reason like food or protection, I don't see anything wrong.

Time for a good poem:
http://whitewolf.newcastle.edu.au/wo...lawjungle.html

[SatanicIntention]

From what I read about the BARF diet, it didn't contain any innards that I was aware of. That is what concerned me. Althought I could have read it wrong too, LoL. Oh, and if your dog is sore, try some acetaminophen(tylenol). Aspirin will make them have upset stomachs quite often and thins the blood, making it harder to heal.

Jeanne, that's awesome that your dog is doing well on the food from the feed store. I've seen stuff like that in our local feed stores, but have never checked the ingredients. If he does well on it, then by all means, feed tha' boy!

Oh yeah, and PETA sucks... Pass the steak.

[Jeanne]

BARF for beginners
http://www.njboxers.com/faqs.htm#plans

Should your dog eat BARF diet?
http://www.workingdogs.com/vcbarf.htm

BARF Pictorial
http://www.auntjeni.com/barf.htm

Pros and Cons of the BARF diet
http://www.doggienews.com/lib/food/dog-barf.htm

[jglass38]

My feeling on the whole thing is that people should eat, wear, or kill (within the established hunting laws) whatever it is they want. As far as fur and but i have better things to do than splashing red paint on fur wearers or freeing lobsters from their tanks at Red Lobster. I wish PETA would shift some of that effort from their ridiculous agendas to focusing a bit more on the abuse of domesticated animals. It seems that every day I see another story about some yahoo kicking their dog or swinging their cat around by the tail. Ok, getting off the soapbox now and going out for a burger. Yeah!

[recycling goddess]

someone swung our cat by the tail... poor thing almost died from it but she's now tailless and doing well.

as for being vegan... i was healthy, happy and had LOTS of energy! some people need meat, others... not so much. i'm a 'not so much' person. eating meat actually upsets my stomach more often than not. i just stopped being vegan when my hubby and i got together and the kids decided they no longer wanted to be vegan... (i became vegetarian to begin with because they wanted to - and stopped eating meat so i wanted to find out how to add protiens etc into their diet so they would be healthy) - anyway, everyone else started eating meat and i didn't want to cook two sep. meals so i'm not vegan anymore. i don't eat beef though - it leaves a huge lump in my tummy and i'm sick all night long after eating it.

if i find myself living longer than my hubby (and since he's 14 years older than me, there's a good chance of that) then i'll probably become vegan again. i have lots of friends who are vegan and very healthy... and others who aren't.

so kinda like choosing the right food for your dog... choosing the right foods for you is the same. some people do well on kraft dinner... others don't.