Note to self

Self.......always make sure to plastic baggie the tubes of raw meat when defrosting them in the fridge. I woke up this morning and defrosted blood had dripped and coagulated all on my refridgerator shelf and down the side. It got all over the jar of my beloved applesauce :-( I had to throw that out because, man, I just couldn't deal with that. Hmmmmmm......I can hear all of you out there now. 'Raw meat? Isn't she a..... I mean, what is raw meat doing in her fridge?"

Well, the raw meat is for the dogs. After several years of playing around with the idea, always putting it aside because of laziness and concerns of expense, my dogs are now on a raw diet. I don't know if it will do any good but it can't hurt and frankly, I am desperate. I have lost two terriers before the age of 10 who should have lived easily into their mid/late teens. Bridg has lost two to bone cancer before the age of ten who should have had many, many more years. Something is wrong here. These were all dogs that got the best care and no expense spared. I could list numerous other dogs I know of, lost way too early. So, a raw diet it is for my two.

Against the advice of my vet, I might add. I talked to her about it and she was basically in sync with the idea. Over the years I have known her, I have seen her opinions grow and evolve as she questions the traditional ways of vaccinations and food. It is a slow process, though. Her strong suggestion, however, was to use a prepared, commercial raw diet. You know, so my dogs nutrition will be complete. When she told me this, I sat there, nodding my head, agreeing, because, well, you know, it sounded reasonable to me at the time.

When I got home, however, after thinking about it, well, I got a little offended. There is a lot of reputable, scientifically valid information out there about the nutritional needs of dogs. Is the veterinarian society telling all of us that we aren't smart enough, aren't capable enough to research and learn and feed our dogs properly? Hey, I somehow, without a degree in nutrition, managed to feed and raise 3 healthy kids. They are active, smart and not a one has fallen into that common American child hellhole of obesity. I think I can feed my dogs and feed them well. And if I screw something up? What the hell can happen? Their life is shortened? Got news for the naysayers and the vets and their like. They ain't living a hell of a long time on that grain filled, preservative-filled, extruded pebble crap we have been pouring out of bags. Can we say rat poison, tainted wheat gluten and melamine? Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know everyone has got a story about dogs that have lived forever on Ol' Roy and Alpo. And I know 90 yr olds that drink and smoke every day and never exercised. They are freak abberations, people. They are the outliers on the bell curve. The odds of us and our dogs living that identical lifestyle and being on the same part of the bell curve as them aren't great.

So, Cosmo, Mally and I are now one week into this little jaunt. I secured 30 lbs of turkey necks and 40 lbs of chicken backs - all frozen - from a wholesale distributor. I turned my kitchen into a slaughter house, while I defrosted and pried it all apart to bag up individual meals (all the while praying to the vegan gods and the souls of the poor chickens and turkeys for forgiveness). It was nasty and I could gag right now thinking about it. The dogs are loving their food. They are all up in my business, come dinner time, prancing, spinning, jumping on me. No having to call them to their dishes. They are certainly enjoying this. I am still working out details and amounts. I have done the research and joined the groups. There is a lot of conflicting information out there so I am finding out what works best for the my guys. Right now their meals are:

Morning: 1/2 cup of veggie mix (pulverized veggies with raw eggs and shells, small amounts of organs and yogurt) with 1/4 lb raw turkey or ground beef. Their supplements are flax oil, glucosamine, alfalfa, kelp, acidopholus (sp?) and the previcox for Mally. I would love to get Mally off the previcox but right now he really needs it to cope with chronic pain from old injuries. I think I will also have to up Cosmo's food amount due to his level of physical activity.

Evening: 1.5- 2 lbs turkey necks. I will transition the chicken backs in soon. They are higher in fat and with skins so I wanted to use the turkey necks to acclimatize the boys first.

So, that is it for now. I don't know how the diet will change and evolve. I have been reading how some don't think ANY supplements or veggies are necessary - just raw meat, organs and bones. I am not quite ready for that. I like feeding my guys the veggies and supplements.