Raw Living Foods Lifestyle - chiDiet.net

How old is your dog?

No more multiplying by 7 years to learn your dog's age in people years. The DogAge Test measures your dog's biological age, based on your dog's health, breed, risk of disease, and behavior.  http://www.dogage.com/index.aspx?cbr=RA20_RA.

Wheatgrass and Pets

People aren't the only ones who love wheatgrass. Dogs, cats, birds, and many other animals really love the stuff too. If you have a pet, they will be really happy to get a few pieces of grass or a little juice.

I have read that back in the day Ann Wigmore, who is considered the founding grandmother of wheatgrass juice chose wheatgrass over the other grassy grains because her dog chose wheatgrass over everything else.

Wheatgrass has a sweet taste that animals love, and it is really hard to keep drinking something that you don't like. I have a dog and she just sits there watching me make my wheatgrass juice every morning. I give her a few blades of grass, and she eats them, and then I save some juice and give it to her in a bowl and she loves it. Cats love it just as much. If you have a pet, try it with them. They will thank you.

Most pets don't consume any vegetables or raw food. Pet food is cooked and processed, and many pets really crave something raw and nutritious. Dogs at the park will eat grass by themselves, too.

- From http://growgrass.blogspot.com/2007/12/pets-and-wheatgrass.html

Pets in America

(NewsTarget) It is not surprising that almost 65 percent of households have at least one animal companion. There is more than ample evidence that having companion animals can have all kinds of benefits. According to the Center for Disease Control, pets can decrease your blood pressure, cholesterol levels, triglyceride levels and feelings of loneliness, and increase your opportunities for exercise and outdoor activities and also opportunities for socialization. Furthermore, pets have been found to reduce stress, anxiety and depression, shorten hospital stays, help people recuperate faster, and even act as an early warning system for serious health incidents like heart attacks and seizures.

Even with all of this evidence, there is a deep-rooted resistance to allowing pets in association-run housing. Condos and other CIDs (home owners associations, co-ops and mobile home parks) often come with no-pet deed restrictions. The common complaints are pet droppings, barking, jumping on people, and allergies.

All around the country, animal activists and Responsible Dog Owners groups work to educate people. The rest of the story: http://www.newstarget.com/022393.html

The Lifespan of Dogs and Cats

Most of us grew up feeding our animals out of bags or cans, so a biologically appropriate raw food program may seem unusual at first. But feeding dogs and cats raw food is not a new idea. Commercial pet foods have only been around for 65 years. What did people do before bags and cans?

People fed their animals butcher scraps or table scraps. I have never fed my animals processed food, even as a child, my family fed raw scraps to our animals. We also did not vaccinate and I can tell you from my own experience, that back then, dogs and cats were much healthier than they are today.   

The average lifespan of dogs and cats now is ridiculous. They should be living twice as long!  I had a pug that lived to 21 and a yellow Lab that lived to 18 1/2; both of them were rescue dogs and very sick when I got them. I improved their lives with natural, healthy, raw food meals and organic supplements, no drugs, no chemicals.

Sincerest regards,
Pat McKay

More than just chocolate can be toxic to pets

It's raisins and grapes, too.

Dogs And Raisins:

This week I had the first case in history of raisin toxicity ever seen at
Med Vet. My patient was a 56-pound, 5 yr old male neutered lab mix that ate
half a canister of raisins sometime between 7:30 AM and 4:30 PM on Tuesday. He
started with vomiting, diarrhea and shaking about 1AM on Wednesday but the
owner didn't call my emergency service until 7AM.

I had heard somewhere about raisins AND grapes causing acute Renal failure
but hadn't seen any formal paper on the subject. We had her bring the dog in
immediately. In the meantime, I called the ER service at Med Vet, and the doctor
was like me - had heard something about it, but.... Anyway, we contacted the
ASPCA National Animal Poison Control Center and they said to give IV fluids at
1 ½ times maintenance and watch the kidney values for the next 48-72 hours.

The dog's BUN (blood urea nitrogen level) was already at 32 (normal less than
27) and creatinine over 5 (1.9 is the high end of normal). Both are monitors
of kidney function in the bloodstream. We placed an IV catheter and started
the fluids. Rechecked the renal values at 5 PM and the BUN was over 40 and
creatinine over 7 with no urine production after a liter of fluids. At that point I
felt the dog was in acute renal failure and sent him on to Med Vet for a
urinary catheter to monitor urine output overnight as well as overnight care.

He started vomiting again overnight at Med Vet and his renal values continued
to increase daily. He produced urine when given lasix as a diuretic. He was
on 3 different anti-vomiting medications and they still couldn't control his
vomiting. Today his urine output decreased again, his BUN was over 120, his
creatinine was at 10, his phosphorus was very elevated and his blood pressure,
which had been staying around 150, skyrocketed to 220.. He continued to vomit and
the owners elected to euthanize.

This is a very sad case - great dog, great owners who had no idea raisins
could be a toxin. Please alert everyone you know who has a dog of this very
serious risk. Poison control said as few as 7 raisins or grapes could be toxic.
Many people I know give their dogs grapes or raisins as treats including our
ex-handlers. Any exposure should give rise to immediate concern.

Laurinda Morris, DVM Danville Veterinary Clinic Danville , Ohio

Even if you don't have a dog, you might have friends who do. This is worth
passing on to them.

Contributed by: Steven Gibb

Homeowners who are building or remodeling often consider their pets' needs as much as their own

Many houseplants are toxic to pets but oat- or wheatgrass is safe. Try making a little "mat" that can be used as a centerpiece or accent in front of a fireplace by filling a large jellyroll pan with potting mix and wheatgrass seeds: http://www.montereyherald.com/mld/montereyherald/living/14893467.htm.
- contributed by D. Hannah

Junk Pet Food and the Damage Done

Dogs, cats and ferrets fed a regular diet of processed food suffer from a range of crueland debilitating diseases. Pet owners can improve their pets' health by feeding them anatural, chewy diet primarily of whole raw carcasses or at least raw meaty bones.

Morgan Spurlock conducted a risky experiment. In the film Super Size Me, Spurlock put McDonald’s food to the test. Every day at every meal for 30 days he ate at McDonald’s restaurants across America. By the end of the experiment Spurlock was in bad shape. He gained 24 and half pounds (eleven kilos); his liver turned to fat; cholesterol shot up; and he doubled his risk of heart failure. Fortunately for Morgan Spurlock he did not become addicted to junk food, was able to follow his doctor’s orders and stop the experiment. Also his holistic health counsellor girlfriend was on hand to nurse him back to health.1

Just for a moment and with little danger to our physical health, let’s conduct a thought experiment. Imagine if all the Big Macs, Happy Meals and Coca Colas consumed by Spurlock during his month-long binge were tipped into a vat, mixed to a uniform consistency and cooked under pressure. Using the most modern, automated, computer controlled technology supervised by scientists in white coats; imagine if the resultant glop was divided into two parts; half to be sealed in cans and the other half to be dehydrated, extruded into kibble and packed in brightly coloured bags.

Chemotherapy drug causing pet deaths though pet food contamination

The president of pet food maker Menu Foods, which last week issued a recall of 60 million cans and pouches of pet food after a rash of animal sickness and death, said today that the company would reimburse pet owners who can trace their pets' illnesses to the company's products.

Earlier today, New York State veterinary health investigators announced that the pet food responsible for pet deaths around the country was contaminated with the rodent poison aminopterin. Ironically, this is a drug used in Chemotherapy...

Read more: http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=2975912.

How young is your dog?

Take the free DogAge Test  to find out your dog's biological age -- based on your dog's health, breed, risk of disease, and behavior -- measured in people years. It took me about 15 minutes to complete the test, and while much of the information they share at the end of the test is pretty basic, it did please/surprise me to learn that Lulu Belle is in better health than I am! http://www.dogage.com/reg/regassess.aspx.

- Note: They ask for your email address when you begin the test, but they don't make you verify the email address you give, and they give you an opt-out option at the end of the test if you don't wish to be on their mailing list.