Vegetarian Dogs: Toward A World Without Exploitation

The quote below is from www.vegetariandogs.com. Just what I was thinking! I am going to order the book. I will discuss as I learn more. Can't wait to transition Jack to this diet. Have always had the feeling this dog wants to be a veggie dog.

What about meat?

Firstly, dogs are omnivores, not carnivores. Hence, as is the case with humans, it is not necessary for dogs to eat meat. Remember, there is nothing magical about meat. Meat contains high amounts of proteins, amino acids, iron and B-vitamins, among other things, which can be derived entirely from plant-based sources. Therefore, as this book will teach you, with proper feeding and supplementation, adequate nutrition is 100% attainable through a vegetarian diet. In fact, a vegetarian diet may help avoid suffering and the many potentially detrimental health effects (e.g., diseases, cancer, etc.) of consistent exposure to commercial meat-based food products. This is to due to chemicals, hormones, antibiotics, improper nutrition, herbicides, and other toxins farm animals are commonly exposed to on a daily basis. As mentioned, changes in temperament can be correlated with the increase of norepinephrine. Dr. Judith J. Wurtman of MIT notes: "Carbohydrate foods are relaxing, reducing stress and anxiety...Lean meat, in contrast, is one of the foods that stimulates brain chemicals such as Dopamine and norepinephrine, which have log been linked to the fright, flight, or fight reactions..."

Here are the ingredients in one of their products:
All natural ingredients of alfalfa, sweet potatoes, cabbage, celery, apples, spinach, organic kelp, coconut, bananas, and zucchini.

I have to admit I am skeptical as this by no means seems like enough of the concentrated amino acids that dogs would be used to. Also, a natural question from me perhaps...where's the wheatgrass???!!!

Here is a supplement they recommend to keep your dog healthy on a vegetarian diet:

Dicalcium Phosphate, Calcium Carbonate, Ascophyllum Nodosum, Taurine (from non-animal sources), Zinc oxide, Ferrous Sulfate, Vitamin E (dl-alphatocopheryl acetate), Choline Chloride, Sodium Selenite, Vitamin B12 supplement, Vitamin D2 (ergocaliferol), Vitamin A-Acetate.

It seems important to break this formulation down and see what foods could be substituted for this brew of synthetic vitamins. Calcium Carbonate is poorly absorbed by humans as is Ergocalciferl (D2). Vitamin D3 would be a better choice. Or maybe shitake mushrooms which are rich in Vitamin D...

The site stocks GREEN MUSH, a product I had forgotten about from HEALTH FORCE NUTRITIONALS! A combination of wheatgrass and barleygrass with CoQ10! A much better choice than synthetic supplements. Check out www.healthforce.com for more information about Green Mush as well as other great Live Food products. I have met Jameth Sheridan, the owner, and he is very knwoledgeable and committed to high quality in his products. I have never been a big fan of the VitaMineral Green (just a personal preference), but like his other products like Greener Grasses.

My Food Journal

Raw, Organic Turkey Meat
Sprouted Buckwheat
Spirulina Powder
Rejuvelac
Standard Process Canine Immune Support
6 Protein Digesting Enzymes
3 droppersful Artemesia (Wormwood)
2 droppersful Pau D'Arco

2 Buddy Biscuits - Made with Spelt and Oats

1 Raw Bone (Not cooked as it lacks the nutrition and can splinter)

Lots of fresh water (infused with wheatgrass and wheatgrass pulp)

Live Food Puppy

I am a Live Food Naturopathic Doctor (LiveFoodDoctor.com), so my philosophy is steeped in the concept of foods that are of exceptionally high nutrtional value for human health. It is no surprise, then, that my faithful dog Jack, also follows a Raw Food Diet. There is little information out there that I could find about the nexus between the Live Food for humans and Live Food for dogs. There is an incredible need for people to understand how to keep their pets healthy. There is either misinformation or lack of information out there.


Here are some important points:

Kibble for your dog is like junk food every day! It is cooked, processed food without enzymes! Even if it is the best organic brand, it is still cooked, processed food without enzymes.

Almost all kibble contains synthetic vitamins. Synthetic vitamins will never equal what you can get from real food, plants, sprouts, herbs, juices and more! And where are almost all synthetic vitamins derived from? China. Also, most vitamins are manufactured by pharmaceutical companies.

Jack does get raw meat. I hope some day I can find the information or figure out the nutrition in order to have Jack be a vegan. I believe that with the Super Nutrtion that Jack is receiving, I will be able to reduce the amount of meat that he needs to stay healthy. He currently eats raw, free range turkey meat. I don't like that any member of my household needs to consume meat, but I think that for now I have to stick with this.

Other things that Jack gets in his food:

-Raw Oatmeal (Oats soaked overnight in water).
-Goji Berries.
-Blue Green Algae or Spirulina.
-Soft Wheat Berry Rejuvelac.
-Fress Wheatgrass
-Raw Carrots, grated.

-Jack also munches on wheatgrass as I juice mine in the morning.

Raw meat has all of the enzymes, and obviously this is the state that predatory animals have eaten meat. The enzymes are there for a reason. They provide the necessary catalysts for complete digestion of these complex proteins. Remember Pottenger's Cats? One group ate all raw meat, the other group ate all cooked food. The cats consuming the raw meat had incredibly healthy teeth (think about it - the teeth are exposed to these enzymes as the dog chews, and bacteria are munched up by the enzymes.) The cats consuming cooked food had unhealthy food, didn't thrive, and lived considerably shorter lives.

Also important: Jack is a rescued dog in Oregon. After 1 1/2 years of having Jack, I discovered completely by accident that Jack has Heartworm. The worms that live in his lungs and can grow into his heart. The conventional treatment for this involved painful and poisonous injections (made of Arsenic). All the worms then die at once, so the dog must be monitored for possible stroke or blood clot as the worms become released into the circulatory system. The dog can not have any running or jumping activity for 6 months, as he receives the injections every 3-4 weeks. Each time I attempted to bring Jack to the vet for this treatment, I could not go through with this. Therefore, as a naturopath, I am taking the responsiblity to treat Jack with a very high ENZYME TREATMENT with protein digesting enzymes that can breakdown the worms much more gently and over time. He MUST stay on a raw diet in order to maximize his consumption of enzymes. That is also why he receives Rejuvelac, Wheatgrass, and Algaes. These all have additional enzymes.

So, this blog is a journal of Jack's progress, what he eats, doggie treats, etc. But it is also a forum for important information on dog nutrition that is desperately needed. Are you aware of the additives that are in rawhide? Do you know what is contained in conventional pet food? It is a terrible shame that our pets are suffering from all the common Western human illness! Asthma, allergies, diabetes, and terrible cancers! This is not the natural way of our canine friends. PLEASE SUBMIT YOUR RAW DOG INFORMATION OR STORY. WE NEED TO COMPILE AND SHARE AS MUCH INFORMATION AS POSSIBLE. WHEN I SEE WHAT IS AVAILABLE AT THE MAJOR CHAIN CORPORATE PET STORES, I GET CHILLS! As it is with us, pet's health are their birthright! Let's discuss how to keep our beloved pet friends healthy and well nourished for years to come.