Scared to feed raw bones and foods

Dear Jubilee,

I have read about the raw diet, and it sounds like a very natural diet. But my vet and my friends say that I should not put my dog at risk. I am scared. I don’t want anything to happen to my dog. Aren’t you scared about feeding your dog raw food and treating your dog with alternative medicine?

I have asked a lot of questions, read a lot of books, and researched the Internet. I am confused about what is the right way to feed and care for my dogs naturally.

Scared in Sacramento

Dear Scared,

I understand where you are coming from. It was scary for us in the beginning, and sometimes it is still scary. Whenever you take on the responsibility of going against what you are told to do by experts and friends, it is very scary.

Fortunately for us, our vet understands what we are doing, and even though he would not recommend that others do the same, he is very honest with us and does not try to persuade us to do differently. For example, one of our dogs suddenly got very sick: high temperature, vomited up her food undigested, lethargic, not eating. I was scared, and I called my vet. I asked if we should bring her in. He said that he was not worried about her and told me what he does in similar circumstances. He does not let it bother him that we do not always take his advice. He is a good vet and a good friend. When I asked about diet, he said that this happens to a lot of dogs, regardless of their diet. She quickly recovered, and except for losing a couple of pounds, she seems none the worse for wear. Why she did not digest her food that night we will never know.

When you do the research and make decisions on how you are going to feed, nurture, and care for your dogs, you are saying that the results are in your hands and that you are willing to take that responsibility. When you launch out on your own, do your own research, ask a lot of questions, and decide that you will do what seems right to you, you take on responsibility.

It is important to remember that things can go wrong no matter what you choose to do. Therefore, I would rather do what seems right and sensible to me and assume the responsibility for the consequences -- both the good consequences (clean teeth, sweet breath, healthy energetic dogs with lots of vim and joie de vivre) and the bad (the maybe that something can go wrong).

We were all nervous when we struck out on this path. It helps to have the support of experienced people who can answer your questions. Back when we made the decision to feed the raw diet, we cringed as we fed the first bones (oh, lordy, chicken bones). But we got a lot of support from the first raw diet list: it only had about 25 members at the time, but these members were experienced raw feeders. They answered our questions, addressed our fears, supported us through the switching and detoxing, and didn't bat an eyelash when we found whole bones in puppy poop as we weaned our first litter to raw.

There is no one single right way of doing this. If you read the posts on any Internet rawfeeding list, you will find people who feed according to Billinghurst, others feed according to Schultze, some feed according to Lonsdale (more of a predator diet with no veggies etc), some feed according to Juliette Levy, and many who have been feeding for years feed a mix of all or some of the above. Some feed commercial diets (both raw and processed). Some give supplements; some give none. Some do all vaccinations; some do some vaccinations; some do nosodes; some rely on titers; some do no vaccinations or nosodes or titers.

What all of us share, no matter how we feed or supplement or vaccinate, is continual vigilance about how our dogs are doing: do they glow with good health? If they do, then we the owners making these decisions must be doing something right. If they don't, we do some more research and ask more questions and try some new things.

Are there problems? Sometimes. Problems are part of life: some sail through with no problems; others do not; most of us are somewhere in the middle -- a problem now and then to resolve. Some do not use certain oils and supplements because their dogs have  had reactions to them; others use the same oils and supplements and their dogs have no problems with them.

So, keep doing your research; keep asking questions; and know that whatever you decide will be the right decision for you and for your dogs. And also know that there are many people, who are willing to take the consequences of their actions, who will support your decisions. We all know that sometimes we will make an informed decision, and something may go wrong. If that happens, we figure out what went wrong and we make adjustments. We learn from our mistakes.

And as a good friend said to me: When the vet calls and says that your dog’s blood work is once again excruciatingly normal, it makes all the research, all the decisions, and all the worries worth while.

Jubilee