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Quorra

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Oh geez. Living in an apartment doesn't prevent one from exercising their dogs. And sorry, but a house, no matter the size, isn't going to be any different. If an apartment dweller doesn't properly exercise their dog, they aren't going to do it just because they live in a house.

I have to agree to be honest, as long as you live near a nice park or you walk your dogs regularly there isn't a huge, huge difference. The same lazy people who don't walk their dogs and live in apartments are going to be just as lazy in houses.

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About a dog....

Oh ToL, I'm so sorry to hear that. It's been five years since my Martin died and I keep saying I'll get another dog, but I just haven't been able to do it. And I've had dogs for 45 years, with only a few months between losses and new dogs.

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In all my life I've only lived one year without a dog. The most lonely year of my life.



I've loved all my dogs and each one had their very own personality, so it was never getting a replacement just a new companion. I never want to be without a dog in my life.


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I do adore dogs. I have had dogs my whole life, and each one has been awesome. My best friend is a small, gnarly little dog with an underbite and a huge personality. We have a blast.

My love of coffee is a close second to my love for my dog. :D

i like you.

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One side of me feels like I can't stand the pain of losing a beloved companion and I don't want to even think of getting another. But then the other side of me, the more logical side, says to think of all the wonderful animals out there that need a home.

I'd only ever do rescues. As awesome as purebred dogs can be, I think it's better to give a homeless doggy a home and maybe even save them from an untimely death.

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One side of me feels like I can't stand the pain of losing a beloved companion and I don't want to even think of getting another. But then the other side of me, the more logical side, says to think of all the wonderful animals out there that need a home.

I'd only ever do rescues. As awesome as purebred dogs can be, I think it's better to give a homeless doggy a home and maybe even save them from an untimely death.

I'm starting to think this way about children. I could breed my own but there are homeless ones out there already, shivering, shaking, cowering, no Sarah McLachlin songs playing for them.

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Does anyone here go the homemade dog food route?  When my dog was a pup, he had a lot of gastro issues and spent nearly six months with chronic diarrhea.  Took forever to find a food that worked, and it ended up being a really cheap grocery store food that makes me cringe to give to him.  This food fixed his gastro issues, but I think it helps contribute to skin problems.  He's itchy a lot.  The vet in the past has given him a steroid shot to stop the itchy, but it only works for a week or so and then the itching comes back.  It did clear up significantly on a prescription diet but that's not feasible long term.

 

So I've been thinking of trying homemade dog food.  If you go this route, any advice to share?  Favorite recipes, improved health?  Is the time it takes to make a two week or month's supply too much?  

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I like dogs. Dogs don't try to run your household the way cats do. Dogs are better alarms than cats.


My cats resent this comment.

My SO's mum has two dogs, little cavaliers. Cookie is ridiculously fluffy, and has the best smile in the world. His mum also looks after animals, and she has this gorgeous little Chihuahua called Sammy. His fur is grey and fuzzy, like a wolf, and he sits like a penguin on your lap. He's adorable.

I've grown to love dogs over the past few years, but I'm still definitely more of a cat person. I love how independent cats are, though mine are also incredibly loving. Kiara will not let a day go by without having a cuddle, and Nala loves to nap with me (Facebook friends will know this).
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Does anyone here go the homemade dog food route?  When my dog was a pup, he had a lot of gastro issues and spent nearly six months with chronic diarrhea.  Took forever to find a food that worked, and it ended up being a really cheap grocery store food that makes me cringe to give to him.  This food fixed his gastro issues, but I think it helps contribute to skin problems.  He's itchy a lot.  The vet in the past has given him a steroid shot to stop the itchy, but it only works for a week or so and then the itching comes back.  It did clear up significantly on a prescription diet but that's not feasible long term.

 

So I've been thinking of trying homemade dog food.  If you go this route, any advice to share?  Favorite recipes, improved health?  Is the time it takes to make a two week or month's supply too much?  

 

Have you thought of ever trying a raw diet?  My dogs THRIVE on it.  It's mostly chicken legs and necks, but if it's on sale I'll get some pork or beef ribs for my girls.  They are carnivores, and seeing them rip into their meal absolutely confirms that for me.  

 

It's really easy to go raw, no 'recipes' necessary.  Just a lot of freezer space if you want to save a few $$$ and buy in bulk.

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Dogs definitely aren't pure carnivores, neither are their wolf relatives.  In any case, all of the vets I have used have strongly advised against my feeding my pup a raw, meat-only diet.  

 

They actually mostly are, just look at those teeth.  Sure, they will eat a berry or two when REALLY hungry, but 95%+ of wild dogs and wolves diet is meat.  Their digestive tract is built to process meat as well.  It's not like they're getting salads, lol.

 

You may want to look into getting a different vet if that's what they are saying.  I searched out for mine and she was totally ok with it as long as I did the due diligence of watching carefully how they interact w/ the food I was giving them.  You have to really watch their stool.  What seemed to work best for my dogs was a 75% meat, 25% organic kibble diet.

 

If you're adverse to it, that's fine, just letting you know what worked for my dogs.  You may want to do some independent research.  Many vets aren't very versed in nutritional advice.  Most get kickbacks for the specific kind of kibble their office sells, so there's financial incentive to recommend against a raw diet.  But YMMV.

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Does anyone here go the homemade dog food route?  When my dog was a pup, he had a lot of gastro issues and spent nearly six months with chronic diarrhea.  Took forever to find a food that worked, and it ended up being a really cheap grocery store food that makes me cringe to give to him.  This food fixed his gastro issues, but I think it helps contribute to skin problems.  He's itchy a lot.  The vet in the past has given him a steroid shot to stop the itchy, but it only works for a week or so and then the itching comes back.  It did clear up significantly on a prescription diet but that's not feasible long term.

 

So I've been thinking of trying homemade dog food.  If you go this route, any advice to share?  Favorite recipes, improved health?  Is the time it takes to make a two week or month's supply too much?  

 

My dog has had gastro problems since she was a puppy. She'd have diarrhea until she bled. We started her on cooked quinoa and chicken breast and it helped.

 

Then she got bladder stones and we had to put her on prescription dog food. The gastro problems started again. We supplemented her food with raw cut baby carrots and while she will still have diarrhea now and then it's helped a great deal.

 

She wasn't crazy about carrots at first but our other dog LOVES them and when she would watch him eat them with such relish she decided to try them and now she likes them.

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They actually mostly are, just look at those teeth.  Sure, they will eat a berry or two when REALLY hungry, but 95%+ of wild dogs and wolves diet is meat.  Their digestive tract is built to process meat as well.  It's not like they're getting salads, lol.

 

You may want to look into getting a different vet if that's what they are saying.  I searched out for mine and she was totally ok with it as long as I did the due diligence of watching carefully how they interact w/ the food I was giving them.  You have to really watch their stool.  What seemed to work best for my dogs was a 75% meat, 25% organic kibble diet.

 

If you're adverse to it, that's fine, just letting you know what worked for my dogs.  You may want to do some independent research.  Many vets aren't very versed in nutritional advice.  Most get kickbacks for the specific kind of kibble their office sells, so there's financial incentive to recommend against a raw diet.  But YMMV.

 

No one said they were eating salads, ffs.  They are no pure carnivores.  They eat fruits and berries in the wild.  

 

I have seen three different licensed veterinarians (not the holistic sort) and all three have been opposed to all-meat diets (note, i didn't say raw, i'm saying all meat).  I've never seen food being sold at the vets, other than prescription food that is usually intended for the very short term or if the pet has significant health problems that require a specialized diet.  In addition, I can read so obviously I've read up on my own, even those books and articles by those groups who advocate for raw meat diets and it's just impossible to take them seriously when they start on about how dogs can't process non-meat foods.

 

I recognize that reputable, licensed vets should be the ones to determine what will work for any given dog.  For example, mine determined that the benefits of a lower quality kibble outweighed the negatives for my particular dog when this was the only kibble that caused him not to leak watery shit from his ass all day.  If your vet decided this diet was appropriate for your pup and his needs, great.  If your vet is claiming dogs are pure carnivores and only eat non-meat items if they are starving, I'd have serious concerns.

 

Thanks for the info, though.  I'm not sure I can maintain health standards required to go the raw route.  

 

My dog has had gastro problems since she was a puppy. She'd have diarrhea until she bled. We started her on cooked quinoa and chicken breast and it helped.

 

Then she got bladder stones and we had to put her on prescription dog food. The gastro problems started again. We supplemented her food with raw cut baby carrots and while she will still have diarrhea now and then it's helped a great deal.

 

She wasn't crazy about carrots at first but our other dog LOVES them and when she would watch him eat them with such relish she decided to try them and now she likes them.

Have you ever had issues with the dog trying to get at your food after having eaten the chicken and quinoa diet?  

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Have you ever had issues with the dog trying to get at your food after having eaten the chicken and quinoa diet?  

 

The issue we have is my dad constantly feeding her from the table. No matter how many arguments we have, no matter how severe, he still does it. It's gotten to where she will go in my dad's room and make him get up because she knows he'll eat something and she'll get some. Sometimes she won't eat her dinner until my dad eats.

 

If she doesn't get any, she'll whine, but if she is ignored she'll settle down. She never takes food unless it's at eye level or lower, then it's fair game as far as she is concerned, or if the other dog gets something that she thinks by rights of being alpha dog should be hers, she'll tear into him.

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