What do dogs eat?  It’s a simple question.  The proper answer is meat, right?  But actually dogs in Canada generally eat between 70 and 90% Rice or Corn.  That’s not a natural or healthy diet for a dog but if you are a typical dog owner in Canada that’s what’s for supper tonight for mans best friend.

Check your dog food bag.  Does it list beef or some type of meat as the #1 ingredient?  That would mean that the majority of the food in the bag is meat, right?  Not a chance. Meat is NEVER the #1 ingredient in any commercial dog food.  If you have 10 lbs. of chicken meal and 25 lbs. of rice, which should appear first on the label? Chicken of course! (if you want people to buy the stuff).

Here’s the trick – break up the rice into it’s components until Chicken rises to the #1 spot.  1st- CHICKEN MEAL, 2nd- GROUND RICE, 3rd- RICE BRAN, 4th- RICE GLUTEN.  Sneaky, deceptive… but legal.

Now who in his right mind would pay $35 for a bag of rice with “bacon grease” and artificial flavor and feed it to a sick dog?  Yet when you read the small type on the bag, this is the prescription dog food sold to my mother by her vet when her dog came down with kidney stones.  Unbelievable!    

Prescription dog food is often just as bad or worse than any other dog food on the market.  Vets and Vet schools are well paid to endorse these products but they are frequently garbage!  While many vets are experts at treating disease they often know precious little about nutrition.

While dog foods are often labeled as “complete” or “balanced” they are little more than corn meal, preservatives and artificial flavor.  They are anything but complete or balanced.

If you want more info on the tricks of the Dog food trade, check out this web site:

http://lib.store.yahoo.com/lib/petextras/PFStext

Tory, my beautiful long tailed Wheaten, has often had minor skin eruptions under her fur.  Doggy Acne.  Nothing serious but it’s itchy for her and I’m always using antibiotic creams on her.  She also has had a few ear problems.  The vet had mentioned it could be a food allergy but the problem persisted with every food we have tried. 

Wheatens do seem to have more than their share of skin and digestive problems.  There is some thought that even PLN and PLE may be related at least in part to diet.  I knew it was time for some serious changes.

So what should an Urban Carnivore eat?  There have been many excellent articles printed in The Prairie Wheaten on the Bones and Raw Food Diet.  Personally I’m just too lazy to gather up the food, grind it, chop it, freeze it and I don’t have the space to store it.  There HAD to be a better solution for a lazy guy like me.  Isn’t there someone willing to do all the work and just deliver it to my house?  Amazingly the answer is YES!

New Years Eve I was attending a party.  The owners had a Wheaten and brought out his evening meal.  I was amazed!  Were they really feeding this dog ground steak?  Nope.  I was introduced to an amazing dog food from a company called Urban Carnivore. (Thanks PL & James!)

The food comes in 4lb boxes with 8 frozen patties in each box.  All types of meat are available.  They are from top quality naturally raised animals with no antibiotics or hormones.  The whole animal minus the hide is used for these patties.  The patties contain ground bone which is nice and soft and rich in calcium BUT you can not cook the meat – the bone fragments become hard and sharp when cooked. 

To serve, first defrost the patties then break them up and serve them raw.  It looks disgusting but what a healthy meal for your dog!

The Urban Carnivore patties cost between $10.69 a box for chicken and $20.36 for goat.  Beef costs $11.95.  Chicken doesn’t go over very well so stick with beef.  The recommended feeding for a typical Wheaten is between 1 and 1 ½ patties each day.

Since even carnivores need a certain amount of vegetables, you may wish to buy some of the supplemental patties available from this company.  A less expensive alternative would be to defrost and add some frozen mixed vegetables from the local grocery store.  Urban Carnivore also sells raw meaty bones and additional vitamin supplements.  NOW we are talking complete and balanced!

I’m not suggesting this is the only product available.  In fact there are many companies that provide good quality B.A.R.F. type diets for your dog and naturally you can make your own a lot cheaper. 

Personally, I find the Urban Carnivore prepared patties are far more convenient than the 6lb frozen blocks sold by Mountain Dog Food.  Then again, I am only feeding one Wheaten.  If I had 3 or 4, I would probably consider other alternatives. 

I ordered my Urban Carnivore patties from Fido and Felix Foods at (306) 731-3268.  Paddy Thompson, the owner, delivers right to your door at no extra charge!  Although I find her service excellent, it is not your only source for this product in Saskatchewan.  Check the Urban Carnivore web site for more information about the product and dealers in your area. 

Day 1 my patties arrived.  I had ordered one box of Chicken and one box of Beef.  I proudly presented this delicious meal to Tory and stood back so I wouldn’t loose a finger when she devoured the tasty treat.  I was so disappointed when she sniffed it and walked away.

Patty Thompson suggested I be strong.  Wrap up the meal and put it in the refrigerator and offer it again later.  This is one major drawback with the Urban Carnivore diet.  While dry dog food, drenched in preservatives, can sit for months and perhaps decades without going bad, a few hours in the sun will turn your raw meat treat into a deadly last meal.  Bowls need to be cleaned daily and the product must be kept frozen or refrigerated.  Uneaten food must be refrigerated or disposed of.

Day two – still not interested.  Commercial dog foods often have corn syrup or other sweeteners and added flavors.  If your dog is clamoring for a bowl of rice or corn you KNOW something weird is going on.  Some dog foods really are addictive!

Day three – Tory took a few nibbles and turned up her nose.  I should mention that her two 4lb Yorkie brothers tore into the food on day 1.  They also kill mice at the lake and once killed a gopher in the park.  Don’t be fooled by the 4lbs of dog – they are 100% killers.  Hunter, my wife’s 4.5lb Yorkie, once chased an 8 point buck for half a mile!  I’m sure given a step ladder he could have brought the buck down.  But I digress.

After 4 days with nothing to eat, Tory was ready to try her new diet.  Good thing too because I doubt I could have held off another day.  Our vet told us that dogs, especially in low activity winter months, can easily survive for 3 or 4 days without food.  My advice is not to panic and bail out.  If you plan to switch to a new diet just stay strong.  Your dog will adapt.  If they can learn to eat corn and rice they can certainly learn to eat healthy meat!  Once they have adapted to the new diet and they will be much happier and healthier.

Tory started slowly then faster and finally she proved that she was indeed descended from wolves.  She stuck her head all the way into the bowl, snuffing, snorting and ripping away at her raw meat treat.  When she was finished with her “kill” she burped and looked very satisfied.

Now that Tory is eating the raw meat patties so well, we have started mixing in peas, carrots and a few other veggies. I give her half a patty before noon and another half around supper.  She actually walks on her hind feet (well… more of a hopping dance really) so she can get a sniff of the bowl as I bring it over for her.  She was never this enthusiastic about her meals before.

Because the food is of higher quality she requires less quantity.  On her previous diet she had occasional diarrhea.  So far there have been no episodes of diarrhea with the new diet.  She is producing less stool which is a nice side effect.  While I’m no expert in the aesthetics of stool, it appears to be firmer and a better color.

It’s only been a couple of weeks so far but Tory has never looked back.  Her skin has totally cleared up and her ears are looking great!  Any dog owner should really consider a raw meat diet.  Urban Carnivore makes it easy and quite affordable.  Give it a try!