Raw Meat: Is It Fit For Dogs?

The issue of whether or not to feed your dog raw meat is one that has polarized the entire dog owner’s community and although we have no way of knowing for sure, some dogs probably their own views on the subject as well!

Some people are of the opinion that since dogs started out hunting and living in the wild–where they subsisted mainly on raw meat that they brought in from the kill–they should be allowed to eat in the manner that their ancestors have been accustomed to.

Critics of this school of thought feel on the other hand that today’s domesticated dogs are a lot different physiologically from these canines of old, and that they are physically ill-equipped to handle a diet of raw meat and that it would probably cause them some serious health problems.

One argument that many raw meat advocates often bring up is that commercially available dog food contains large amounts of toxins in the form of sodium and other chemicals added in the factory. They go on to claim that since raw meat is totally unprocessed in any way, it is the closest thing to the ideal canine diet that you can get anywhere.

While there are indeed some types of dog food–particularly the cheaper varieties–that contain questionable ingredients that can be detrimental to your dog’s health, many of the more reputable brands have been specifically formulated to provide all the nutrients that your dog needs while leaving out any harmful ingredients.

In some ways this is the ideal food for your dog. Even if you tried to put together your own concoction out of pure meat and throw in the additional supplements that your dog needs, you would find it very difficult to duplicate the precise nutritional formula that a good high quality brand of dog food can provide.

What many raw meat advocates don’t acknowledge is that there are quite a few risks involved in feeding your dog raw meat. One of the most significant ones is that the bacteria present in raw meat can actually harm your pets. While it is true that dogs are typically more resistant to these bacteria than humans are, you do not want to put your dog at risk any more than you have to, do you?

While proponents of raw meat feeding make some valid arguments that further their cause, it is clear that at the present time the best choice for your dog is cooked food–commercial or otherwise.