The other day I was having a conversation with a friend discussing how switching my wheaten Jack to home cooked food had made such a positive effect on him, and she gave me the weird look.  The one that says "you are becoming the crazy dog lady".  When I asked her she said that she just didn't understand why some people cooked for their dogs when there are so many good foods in the market.  And my reply to her was: "Well let me put it like this; we strive to find what food works better for us so we are healthy.  Same goes for pets.  Pet parents want the best for their pets and they strive to find the best food possible... which is NOT kibble.  If that doesn't make sense try this.  You and I know that part of being fit depends on what we eat.  same goes for a dog; if what he eats makes him sick then he is not a fit dog."

Here is the thing: humans and animals share about 75% of their genetic makeup.  So basically you can say we have similar genetic needs.  While kibble, even the expensive organic with great ingredients one, is more economical it is processed with additives to expand shelf life-- so you see where I am going with this.  We humans pay attention to what we eat but we are basically feeding our dogs foods that are full of preservatives.  I am not saying that I know better than you what is best for your dog, just sharing what works for mine. 

There is a reason why I make this point.  Since I adopted Jack in August 2013, he has been such a good eater of normal pet food.  That was until December.  Over the holidays he started experiencing bloating, "the gulpies" which is scary because it sounds as if they cannot breath, vomiting and diarrhea.  We ran countless tests and nothing was medically wrong with him.  The vet recommended switching foods.  Between December and March we tried all the best dog foods in the market-- all kibble yet we thought because they were "high quality" they would work.  They did not.  And worse, Jack would stop eating.  After much debate (and while I love my vet) I took a different approach and took Jack to a holistic vet in Kansas City.  and since then not a day goes by that I am thankful I made that decision.  Part of the reason was also Jack was having lots of arthritis pain (since he is 11 yrs. old) and I wanted to explore acupuncture as a possibility for pain relief. 

While it take a little bit of time preparing I find this to be a good compromise instead of going all raw.  I am not ready for that and Jack seems to be doing great with this healthy medium.  And is all the effort going into preparing it worth t?  You betcha! In one week I saw improvements and in two weeks I had a new dog.  He is full of energy and you can see he is a happy dog, not the miserably looking dog who could barely keep anything down.  And there is no better feeling for a pet parent than that.

Again, this is not me trying to make a service announcement about banning kibble; it is about the changes I saw in Jack once I switched him off the kibble.  I will just leave you with some food for thought:  I have not had to take Jack to the vet for digestive problems since I started him on this food.  He is better than ever, full of energy, his diarrhea and vomiting gone.  Coincidence?  I think not.  But you be the judge.

What do you feed your dog?

If off kibble, why did you make the change?

Before I leave, please come and join us for our new Happy Pet Blog Hop starting next Wednesday and every Wednesday after that.  Grab the button and join in the fun linking any posts that shows what makes your dog happy!