How to Feed a Holistic Dog
Finding the Right Way for You to Feed Your Dog Can be Confusing
What is the Best Food for My Dog?
When are you going to feed us the doggy birthday cake? (oats, peanut butter and banana slow baked treats)
Here’s the dilemma: you want to feed whats best for your dog’s health. If you can, you would like your dog’s food to be organic, local, non-GMO and simple ingredients you can understand. As a bonus, you would also like it to be environmentally friendly, low carbon footprint, sustainably harvested and ideally, kind to animals. Anything less is not the “best!” Welcome to the real world of compromise. The real question is: what compromises are still healthy for you, your dog, and the Earth?
Food is Critically Important to Your Dog’s Health
Basil Lamb and Beef Meatball for Dog Dinner
Let’s face it. You can purchase all the fancy supplements online at 3am and they will not be as critical to your dog’s health as the food foundation you put in the dog dish.
Feeding your dog the best food you can have money, time and availability for may require lifestyle changes.
Ask yourself:
What is my financial budget for food for my dog? If your budget is not unlimited, you may have other resources for healthier food at a budget price.
Clever More Affordable Sources of Food:
Food from a food bank that is discarded?
Friends and family who fish?
Discount bulk store & a freezer?
A hunter in the family?
Bulk buying with friends and family to reduce expenses?
Meat locker rentals that go up for auction?
Make a Decision & Be Happy With Your Food Decision
We will all deal with a degree of imperfection in our food choices. Dr Truli suggests you chose the best quality food options you know about. Go with it!
Measure Your Results
“What do you mean, measure my results?”
- You can measure your dog’s weight or waist measurement monthly.
- You can observe your dog’s fur shininess.
- reduced shedding
- puppy energy
- bright eyes
- playful mood
- Write it down!
- Keep a doggy diary.
- Focus on health, not sickness.
Your Veterinarian Can Help
Your veterinarian can measure:
- red blood cell levels
- white blood cell levels
- liver and kidney-associated enzymes
- electrolytes
- digestive enzymes
- gut biome components
- parasite load
- Vitamin D3, B12, folate
Admittedly, modern science lacks clinical tests for most of the nutrients in your dog’s body. But even if we could measure precisely, the gut and metabolism changes absorption rate and metabolic rate even within the same dog’s body throughout life. We d the best we know how to do. And that’s okay!
Focus on Health
Focus on health means you pay attention to and enjoy the good health your decision has brought.
Frenchie boy tells Doc Truli what he thinks of a medical exam
For example, you adopted a rescue French Bulldog who was eating grocery-store kibble and table scraps and you chose a better quality food or started cooking balanced recipes for your Frenchie.
You will enjoy the changes the good food brings:
- as their fur grows in shiny
- eyes become less goopy
- allergies diminish
- The veterinarian’s medicines may work better
- your dog will feel better for longer in between allergy flare-ups.
If you focus on long-term gains and progress and celebrate the little improvements, you and your dog will be happier. Happy and healthy go hand in paw!
Here is a sampling of the topics Dr Truli can explain in a consultation. At the end of this article, Dr Truli has provided a handy downloadable Newsletter you are welcome to study and share with your veterinarian for further personal advice.
Dr Truli’s Break-down of Dog Food Choices
Key:
Effort/Human Learning Curve
🍎Easy, basically done for you
🍎🍎Some assembly required
🍎🍎🍎Planning & Effort, possible lifestyle changes for the humans required
Environmental Friendliness/Low carbon footprint
🍀Local, organic, sustainable
🍀🍀 Fresh, perhaps not local, perhaps some high-water industries involved in process
🍀🍀🍀 Long distances, foreign ingredients, non-organic
Rx Balanced recipes $$, 🍎🍎🍎, 🍀
The AAFCO 34 essential nutrients computer balanced for your pet’s weight, lifestyle, health conditions and helpful food energetics. Pros: you control ingredients, best for organic, gluten free, highly personalized. Con: humans “drift” from the recipe & may cause severe nutritional imbalances
Flexible Meal Designs $-$$, 🍎🍎, 🍀
The key ingredients balanced (Calcium, oils) & ⅓, ⅓, ⅓ meat-carb-veg variety components. Pros: you control ingredients, good for smart shopping, seasonal shopping, variety, adaptable. Con: not precisely balanced
Published Recipes from a Dr Truli-approved Book $-$$, 🍎🍎, 🍀=🍀🍀🍀
Pros: “ball-park” balanced. Reassuring Con: not precisely balanced
Personalized, balanced recipes cooked by Chef for Dogs or Service $$$, 🍎, 🍀
Balanced, completely individualized, prescription services available, easy.
Prepared Dog Foods, Con: not personalized
AAFCO Balanced Fresh Frozen Raw or Cooked, $$-$$$, 🍎, 🍀🍀
The AAFCO 34 essential nutrients computer balanced for a pet’s weight, lifestyle +/-health conditions.
AAFCO Balanced Slow-Cooked Clusters, $$, 🍎, 🍀🍀
AAFCO as formulated for dogs. Pros: familiar, easy, shelf stable for emergencies, power outages Cons: ingredient selection predetermined by business model of the manufacturer, usually not organic
AAFCO Balanced Dehydrated or Freeze-dried, $$, 🍎, 🍀🍀
AAFCO as formulated for dogs. Pros: easy, shelf stable for emergencies Cons: ingredient selection predetermined, usually not organic, energetically deficient, no species appropriate “crunch”
AAFCO Balanced Canned, $-$$, 🍎, 🍀🍀-🍀🍀🍀
AAFCO as formulated for dogs. Pros: easy, shelf stable Cons: usually not organic, often questionable ingredients, no species appropriate “crunch”
AAFCO Balanced Kibble, $-$$$, 🍎, 🍀🍀🍀
AAFCO as formulated for dogs. Pros: easy, shelf stable Cons: usually not organic, inflammatory
not-AAFCO foods, $-$$$
Unless you are sourcing and cooking these items, steer clear of treats and foods that are made by well-intentioned amateurs. If they have a clean kitchen, perhaps useful as occasional treats
Vet Rx Canned & Kibble, $-$$$, 🍎, 🍀🍀🍀
“Prescription” foods Pros: easy, targeted purposes Cons: questionable ingredients, inflammatory
To check Dr Truli’s availability for in-Home Consultations in the Tampa Bay, Florida region. email yur name, address & pet’s name to:
Dr Sandra Truli Springer, VMD, MS-TCVM, CVA, CVFT, CVTP, CVCH, CTCVMP, CTPEP, CVMMP
Email DrTruli@VetVMD.com
©2022 Boston Brain Bank, LLC, used with permission
