How to determine how many calories your dog needs daily to stay fit (without a consult with Sabine)?

Commercial foods seem to be high in vitamins and minerals. In time can this be a negative issue?

Most these questions are also what I am going to ask. My additional question is:
I have been feeding Butter 3 times a day since he was 3 months old, should I keep this or feed 2 times a day as suggested by many doggy parents?

How much water do you add to dry food?


How much rice or chicked for tummy issues?

How long do you boil the rice?...( strange I know)

My vet has prescribed a glucosamine/chondroitin/MSM supplement in tablet form. The dosage per tablet is stated in milligrams.

The dog food labels' ingredients are stated in mg/kg, but the kibble feeding directions are written on a "per cup" basis. How do I convert the mg/kg into "cups" so I know how much of each ingredient my dogs are actually getting from the food on a daily basis?

1. I don't want to feed canned because it's not good for the teeth. My vet says the same thing but why do you say differently?
2. Why should I believe you over my vet?
3. Why is holistic better than regular commercial dog food?
4. Why is it so expensive?
5. Why would pet food companies create such bad food? Isn't it illegal?
6. I don't believe you, can you give me more evidence?
7. My dog is so picky and won't eat anything but, (insert crap food here), what do I do?
8. Too much protein makes my dog hyper and aggressive, what do I do?
9. Is grain-free really that much better?
10. Raw food makes my dog aggressive, what do I do?

I think this should be re-worded to say, "Will raw food make my dog aggressive/blood thirsty?"

Ah yes, the often-asked "If you feed them raw bones/meat won't they now have the taste for blood?"

I've also heard "will a diet high in protein cause aggression?"

I prefer to cook for my dogs instead of serving them raw food. What do I need to keep in mind for nutrition?

*Good for people who possibly don't want to leave out uncooked food in a bowl or have small kids. Or, they may be concerned about food safety. Maybe raw just grosses them out too much or one of their dogs (Like Tasha) won't touch much raw food anymore.

Do dogs need fruits and veggies?

I would prefer to feed commercially prepared raw. How do I select a good one? How do I know if it's balanced?

Is it ok to feed some kibble and some raw?

What are endotoxins in dry food?

Late to the train but I also hear ...

* Isn't too much protein (or high protein) bad for dogs?
(it's amazing how many people tell me that they selected XYZ product because the protein level is XYZ%).

Yes, I never noticed this thread before either Manoa

This I heard from a local vet tech
"The Raw food diet is just a fad"

"Dogs have evolved to eat commercial foods and their digestive system is taxed by feeding raw"

In regards to raw food diets
"dogs do not have the gut acids to properly digest bones, unlike wolves or artic breeds, if I had a Huskey or Malimute I might think about it for a second even at that it take those breeds something like 3 days to digest the meal, from start to finish."

I have also heard something similar, but still,

How long has commercial food beem widely available? Maybe 60 years? Compared to 100,000 years of speciation and adaptation prior to that? I think my dog still has a little in common with the Cocker Spaniel my mom had as a child that ate mashed potatoes, canned fish, crab and fish leftovers (our family is from SFO), hamburger, boiled veggies, and dog biscuits. Not much evolution goes on in 50 years.

I'll have to tell Scarlett, she has been on raw for 10 years now.

Hi this is Nanette and I live here in Idaho on a ranch we raise bordercollie working dogs, We would like to feed them a all natural diet. We raise longhorns (range fed natural beef) We butcher our own meat and are interested in your oppinions on how to make a nutritionaly complete dog food.

Feeding regimens I've seen are: 1. Find one feed that works and stck with it. 2. Like (1) but switch every few months. 3. Feed ____ (for example, kibble) in the morning and ___ (for example, canned) in the evening. 4. Mix two or more feeds at a single meal. All of the above may or may not include added supplements, table scraps, or other toppers.

My regimen differs from all of these. It is like (2)+(3), but I switch approximately daily. I currently have two varieties of ___ (kibble, actually) and switch between them daily for breakfast. I currently have three varieties of ___ (canned, actually) that I use for dinner and switch among them approximately daily (as the can empties, actually).

The question: what, if any, are the advantages and disadvantages of these regimens (and any others that seem worth mentioning)?

Are Veterinary Prescription Diets really good for your dog? When I look at the ingredients of some...I question why anyone would feed there dog that stuff, yet Vets routinely prescribe them for many issues such as digestive problems, food alleries, diabetes etc.

I am releaved to see that I am not the only one who KNOWS vet prescribed diets are junk. I just read the artical about "The Science Diet Scam" and it is exactly what I always thought. I'm posting in the health and nutrition forum as a follow-up to this....this is a great website

A member of another forum has just posted this question:

The foil-like lining of my Blue Buffalo dog food rubs silver off on my hands. Could this be toxic?

Isn't it best for me to feed my <insert breed here> the breed-specific food?