Breed specific raw diet?

[BigMaxine]

hi, i am new here. i have a six year old rottweiler named Maxine who is doing beautifully on a raw diet and a six month old labrador puppy who is eating kibble. While researching Maxine's diet, i came across quite a bit of info on breed specific diets for labradors but i could find very little info about the rottweiler. i imagine that this is because of the popularity of labs.

does anyone know anything about rottweiler specific raw diets? i also welcome any thoughts on the whole "breed specific" diet thing in general. is this bogus, or is there some scientific basis to this idea.

currently maxine eats, by way of meat... chicken backs,turkey necks, lamb neck bones, occasional beef mucle meat, tripe, beef organs, and one weekly meal of canned jack mackerel.

thanks in advance for any help.

[rottnkidd]

Hello! Here's a newsletter from Lew Olson's website. There's not 'exact' diets that are necessarily breed specific within her newsletter, but the information references the nutritional needs of the WORKING dog. Good reading!
Best wishes -
kathy
http://b-naturals.com/May2003.php

[Roscoe's dad]

I would guess that there are no breed specific BARF diets, it would be specific about thier activities. Active working dogs may require more protien than a non active couch dog. JMO.

[BostonRott]

I've only heard "breed specific diets" mentioned by kibble companies.

Out of curiousity, what "breed specific" things does one feed a Lab, and why?

[BigMaxine]

Originally Posted by BostonRott

I've only heard "breed specific diets" mentioned by kibble companies.

Out of curiousity, what "breed specific" things does one feed a Lab, and why?

as i understand it the theory is that dogs bred in a specific region for a specific purpose were developed over time on a diet of foods native to that region. so a dog like the labrador that was developed in a fishing region was probably fed mainly on a diet of fish and of whatever grain was native to the region(wheat and rye, if i remember correctly).... there is much more to it, of course, and i am sure that i am not doing the theory justice with my simplified explanation.

here is a link to the one site that i found about the rottweiler

http://home.att.net/~wdcusick/Rottweiler.html

it suggests wheat and dairy in addition to specific meats. i feel skeptical as both of these foods give my maxine the powerful toots.

[BostonRott]

Wheat is one of the biggest known allergens for dogs, I certainly would NOT feed it as part of a home-made diet.

I feed a mixture of kibble and raw, and try to stay away from all grains as much as possible. When feeding raw, they either get Bravo (pre-made ground mix of chix, veggies and organ mea), or a bowl of slop which may contain any of the following: can of whole wild salmon, egg + shell, cottage cheese, yogurt, raw apple cider vinegar and/or veggie mush.

Dogs truly have little need for carbs, there is an interesting discussion on this in March's issue of Whole Dog Journal (article on gas problems).

[BigMaxine]

bostonrott, i agree completely about the wheat and i read that whole dog journal as well. Maxine gets millet sometimes, and i have tried her twice on quinoa, which she seemed to digest well. i have found that she has trouble digesting some grains, especially oatmeal, though she has not exhibited any signs of food allergy (skin problems, etc.). she still gets an occasional bowl of the puppy's kibble (Natrual Balance Organic) which has quite a few grains in it but no corn or wheat. she gets grain in her meals maybe twice a week in combonation with a small amount of lentils.

[BostonRott]

If you're at all interested in a grain-free kibble, Inova's EVO is the only one I know of. It's not cheap, but it is a nice food.....I've got my puppy on it and he looks wonderful. :)

[BigMaxine]

i considered a grain free kibble for maxine, and i looked at the EVO, but it costs me about a third of the price of Innova to feed raw organic meaty bones. natural balance makes a duck and potato that is grain free, but i am avoiding the nightshades(potato) so as not to aggrivate maxine's arthritic joints. i believe wellness makes a grain free as well (whitefish and sweet potato, something like that). Homer (my lab puppy) is doing well on the Natural Balance Organic so i think i'll keep him on it until we switch him to raw (ten months was our vet's advice).