Feeding your dog raw is an excellent way to promote their health and prevent disease, but be aware that this diet may not be suitable for all dogs or in all situations.
If your pup has allergies or digestive issues, it’s best to first switch them over to a cooked diet and address their issues before beginning a raw feeding plan.
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Protein
Protein is an integral part of your dog’s diet. Not only does it aid in body development and regulation of blood pressure, but it also helps build strong bones and joints for your pup.
Additionally, it keeps your dog’s coat glossy and healthy. Furthermore, it helps prevent their skin from drying out and shields their internal organs.
One of the key advantages of feeding your pup a raw diet is its high animal protein content. Meat like this contains essential amino acids for dogs’ health and immune function.
Raw animal protein can provide your pup with essential support for their kidneys, which are often overworked on kibble diets. The high moisture content of raw animal protein encourages more frequent and healthy urination which helps flush out harmful toxins from the kidneys.
Carbohydrates
When your dog is on a raw diet, their body naturally processes and digests meat rather than highly processed cereals or grains. This is because real meat provides them with all of their nutritional needs – it’s what they should eat for optimal wellbeing.
High-quality, balanced dog food should contain a variety of proteins and fats. Rotational feeding – or changing up the protein types regularly – helps maintain an ideal balance of essential nutrients for your pup.
Carbohydrates, like proteins and fats, are essential elements in a balanced dog food. Not only do they provide energy to your pup’s system, but they also nourish its intestinal cells.
Fat
Feeding your dog a raw diet is an excellent way to give them all of the essential nutrients they require for optimal health. However, you must be selective with which ingredients you select and adhere to certain rules in order to guarantee that your pup stays healthy and contented.
Raw foods contain more essential nutrients and are easier for your dog’s body to digest due to their bioavailability factor, or the amount of a nutrient which is available for absorption by the body. Cooked food on the other hand, requires more nutrients which require additional digestion in order for digestion to take place.
A raw dog diet can benefit your pet’s oral health, as meaty bones provide calcium and probiotic bacteria for healthy teeth and gums. Additionally, this may alleviate allergies and skin conditions in some dogs.
Organ Meats
Organ meats are an excellent way for your pup to get essential nutrients not found in muscle meats. Not only that, but they’re also packed with Vitamin A, B vitamins (B1, B2, B6, folic acid and vitamin B12), iron, copper, selenium and zinc – plus many other beneficial elements!
Organ meats can be purchased at your local butcher shop or abattoir at a more reasonable price than regular meat, and provide your pup with plenty of essential nutrition.
Liver, kidneys and heart are the three main organ meats you can feed your dog. They’re nutrient-rich and packed with essential vitamins and minerals like vitamin A, B-vitamins, iron and phosphorus that dogs require for good health.
Bones
Bones make an excellent chew for dogs and help to promote your pet’s oral health. Not only do they contain calcium – essential for healthy teeth and bones – but also vitamin D, B12, glucosamine and chondroitin which all support bone strength.
However, giving your dog too much raw bone can cause digestive problems and make them susceptible to constipation. Generally, limit their food intake to one or two raw bones per week.
If your pup prefers larger bones, such as chicken wings or necks that can easily be ground, consider giving him larger marrow bones like hip or femur bones from cows and bison – filled with marrow.
