“The importance of proper nutrition cannot be overstated. Without proper nutrition, all other efforts at achieving and maintaining good health will only be partially successful at best.”
Dr. Jeannie Thomason, founder of the Natural Rearing Dog Breeders Association
Dogs and wolves share 99.8% of their mitochondrial DNA. Dogs are in the same species as the gray wolf. The wolf is a carnivore and the dog’s internal physiology does not differ from a wolf except in proportionate size. We must learn to look beyond our needs, opinions and agendas and to address the needs of the animals in our stewardship.
The dog’s entire anatomy is adapted for a meat diet – from the teeth fashioned for tearing and crushing, the powerful jaw bones and muscles, the small, very muscular stomach, the short intestines and above all the very powerful digestive juices peculiar to the carnivorous animals – the digestive juices that can dissolve even lumps of bone.
When dogs are fed grains or vegetables the pancreas is forced to produce large amounts of amylase in an attempt to break them down. A carnivore’s pancreas is not designed to do this. Over time this can lead to pancreatic exhaustion, pancreatitis and diabetes.
Feeding a processed (cooked) diet void of live enzymes, causes the dog’s body to rob enzymes from other organs to transport to the stomach. Over time depletion of enzymes can cause dysfunction and disease in those organs. By contrast a raw meat, bones and organ diet naturally contains the necessary enzymes.
Juices both of the mouth and stomach in dogs are strongly antiseptic, and thus raw meat and even flesh from diseased animals – food which would kill a human being in a day – can be eaten without harmful effects.
Species appropriate raw nutrition is necessary to ensure normal growth, prevent disease and maintain balanced physical performance. The benefits of a raw natural diet also go beyond maintaining health to preventing disease. A properly functioning body does an amazing job at preventing disease and healing itself.
Part 1: Why / Part 2: How to Get Started / Part 3: Supplements
