I've got my dog back on BARF--doggie paleo, in other words, and thought I'd post about it, to give others the info.

BARF stands for Biologically Appropriate Raw Foods diet. One tries to give cat/dog/bunny/whatever pet what they would eat in the wild, what they evolved to eat. This is not kibble, needless to say.

I've done this w/my pup before, slacked off because of the hassle, and got a lot of good benefits. His coat had never looked so good, his food allergy eczema went away, his benign tumors all shrank, and he had more energy (oh wait, is that a benefit? hmmm )

His menu:

B: egg w/ few drops of flax oil
L: raw meaty bone
S: raw ground beef w/ carrots and eggshells smooshed up into it. A couple leaves of whatever green I'm eating for dinner.

He's also outside with me when I garden, so if he needs more greens, he can self-select from the various edible greens in the yard.

Many people who "BARF" their dogs use chicken necks/backs as the raw meaty bone component. Mine is allergic to turkey and chicken, so I use lamb or beef or buffalo, if I can find it.
For the ground beef, I grab a couple packages of the discounted "last day sale" meat every time I shop at the store. It's not all that much more expensive than the prescription Hill's I had been feeding him...just a bit more hassle.

Most people who "BARF" their dogs fast them one meal or one whole day per week. My dog has decided against this approach, and against my getting any sleep if he goes to bed hungry.

razzle,
Thank you for posting this. We don't have a dog, nor a pet of any kind. But I am very interested in anything connected to the paleo WOL, especially in how it works and how it affects the health.

And your post gave me more insights to that.

Dandi

Yeah I'm going to try it with my dog, when I get one!!!! Maybe for X-mas!!!!

Oh yeah, I have a poodle, actually, my wife has a poodle. And it's like, 15 years old. For some reason poodles live very long. But the funny thing is is that she has eaten rice and chicken most of her life. Recently we have substituted the chicken with ID prescription diet for dogs with rice added. First off, I don't beleive dogs should ingest grain. Dogs just don't eat rice!!! They are meat eaters!!! BUT this poodle has done well, but yet she has a lot of problems, ie, tumors, allergies and all that good stuff.

When we get a new dog, he/she is not going on rice. Why do vets do that anyway. Put pets on a rice diet? I have no idea why my wife's Mom fed the dog rice it's whole life. All I can say is that this is one lucky dog. Also she has battled with obesity alot too! but she's still kick'n!!!

My brother's dog just had a big tumor removed along with his eye...he is our "poop hauler" when we go into areas of the back country where we have to haul everything out with us. He loves haulin' poop! He is a great dog, but was fed the "best" diet from the vet...RICE! Well, now he's on Paleo and is more energetic, becoming leaner and in much better shape for our mountain excursions. If he could talk, he'd tell us how happy he is to be on the diet of his wolf ancestors!

Several years ago, we put down our dog when it developed diabetes. After reading Audette's book last year, It seems pretty obvious why this happened. Feeding a canine grain! How dumb was I? Not dumb I suppose, just ignorant.

We are transitioning our beagle to BARF. Since our household is mostly Paleo (with some dairy) our food scraps have been a big part of her diet for now, so we are just formalizing it a bit.

At our last vet visit, the vet wanted to give me an award for the beagle with the healthiest weight! Apparently they are particularly prone to obesity. Now if I could only get a similar award for my own weight, LOL!

Now, that our "poop hauler" has been on paleo for about a year, he is rarin' to go back into the back country to haul more poop! He's a great dog and much happier and much more healthy...he's leaned up way more than I thought possible for a Blue Heel Terrier. He's always been incredibly strong, but now, it's just unbelieveable. He can chomp right through a cow's leg bone and eat the whole thing in about ten minutes! He's really a big wuss but, nobody would know that by looking at him. He has one blue eye and one white eye and he makes this grimace whenever he sees somebody new, but all you have to do is give him a mean look back, and he cowers and goes between your lages to hide...sort of like Patton's dog, in the movie "Patton."

Cool! I'm going to be adopting my daughter's red heeler mix at the end of June. Kim took her in when she showed up on her doorstep last summer bedraggled and pregnant. Helped her have the pups, found homes for them, now I'm lucky enough to get mom. She's a sweetheart. I'd never heard of this breed. Do you have any pictures of your blue heeler? Or maybe they aren't the same. I see you said Terrier, our 'Batty' doesn't look anything like a terrier.

Amy

He's a Blue Heeler...sorry...he has no terrier in him, either...sometimes I get mixed up with breeds...Senior Moment, I think. He's quite stocky. Has dark grey (blue) stripes running down his back and over his face. He's about the size of an elkhound, only even stockier than that. Pure muscle and fur...kind of a cute dog, actually, once you get by those wolfish eyes and his silly grimace where he bares his teeth...I just give him the "evil stare" and he cowers away but still shows his teeth periodically and I stare at him harder and he hides and makes mewing sounds while still showing his teeth...quite comical, actually. He sure loves his Paleo diet...and hiking in the mountains. He stays right next to us on the trail...he won't wander off...no need for a chain and he minds better than any kid. He's afraid of deer! And coyotes...and bears...and squirrels...but, he has chased a blue jay once, until we yelled at him to stop...that was it, now he cowers when they start berating him, too. It's really weird. Nobody has ever even laid a hand on him.

Must be that paleo 'evil stare' you give him!

I just got back from the track at the high school, which is fenced in. We let them run (Kim has 2 other dogs, too). Batty doesn't have any stripes but she has reddish 'freckles' which is why the vet said she had red heeler in her. She's longish, but short. Petite snout. She's a tricky one. Had to be, I guess, to survive her first 18 months. We're signing up for obedience classes.

I had to have my dog of 10 yrs put down in January because of diabetes. I'm really looking foward to getting my 'new' one!

How much food does your dog go through? How much does he weigh? I'd like to do paleo but I haven't read up on it yet.

Amy

Without a doubt (well, almost without a doubt), your old dog died of diabetes (an autoimmune disorder) because of the diet he/she was fed...you aren't at fault! After all, you probably fed the dog what you were told was the best food. All of the kibble, and most of the canned food, has grain derivatives, AND dairy derivatives. Both are probably the cause of most (if not all) autoimmune diseases (with the exception of congenital, or mutative problems, and such). I have heard people say, "But, it's in my family! Everyone in my family gets (whatever...heart disease, cancer, diabetes, MS, Lupus, arthritis, etc.). It's just a genetic disposition." Part of that statement may be true. It may be that a person has a genetic predisposition to one of the autoimmune diseases...just like some people have a genetic predisposition to alcoholism. But, with alcoholism, if you never drink alcohol, you will never develop alcoholism. If one looks at what that person...and other family members eat in their diet, you will most-likely find the culprit in grain or dairy. Even in entire populations! For example, the Hispanic population of the Americas, who eat corn as their basic grain staple. This population has a very high incidence of autoimmune and other disorders related to corn products. In the Asian population, who eat a largely rice-based diet, there are the autoimmune, and other diseases that are related to rice products. And, in the European population, who eat potatoes (another big starchy problem...along with other nightshades such as yams and sweet potatoes...and even tomatoes, if eaten in large quantities), and wheat products...Voila! You got it!

Actually, the dog is pretty-much speckled with the "blue" markings, too, rather than stripes. He has a medium snout, but very powerful jaws! He's interesting about his diet. When he was on grain-based food, he was always super-hungry, jumping all around and whimpering when it was brought to him. Now, that he eats Paleo, he just politely walks up to his food and begins to chomp on it. He is so much more relaxed than he used to be, until we say, "Hike." Then, he goes crazy with excitement. Now, how much does he eat? He eats about the same AMOUNT of food that he used to get...about two cups a meal, but he is satisfied with it, rather than always being hungry. And, he has really trimmed down and become a veritible muscle dog! He seems to weigh about the same, but he is just a lot more trimmed up. We haven't weighed him...I haven't heard from the vet, yet, about his health. That will be interesting.

So what exactly is his food? How did you learn what to give him?

I really think I am going to do that with Batty. She definitely has food 'phobias' too. Could be though, that it was because she was a stray, and probably knew great hunger.

Yeah, I know Buddy's food was the problem. He had skin issues all his life. Fed him the 'best' (according to the vet) food money could buy ($40 a bag). Lamb & rice. I didn't know about this way of feeding him until it was too late. Don't want to make that mistake twice.

Thanks for the info...

Amy

We feed him Meat...bones...meat...bones...fish....fowl (without the bones)...meat...meat...meat....lots of water...meat...fish...fowl...meat....He loves it! He's a carnivore and that is what carnivores eat...meat. Being a dog, he's also an opportunistic eater...meaning he will eat anything that gets near to him...as a general rule, but meat is what he's truly designed to eat. I learned what to give him by reading Ray Audette's book, Neanderthin...a great little tome...easy reading, sometimes funny, and often thought-provoking. I recommend it over all of the other "diet' books on the market...believe me, I've read a few!!!

When I got my kitten (around 6 months ago), he was VERY malnourished! The person he was with was feeding all her animals some kind of puppy chow or dog chow (hard food) that was surely substandard and mainly grain (corn meal)! His coat looked horrible, and he had ring worm, dry skin, dry brittle hair, fleas, tics, etc. He was suppose to be a black cat with white paws, but looked more like a smokey colored cat. He was way underweight for his age, and had sickly features and disposition. I have been eating paleo for about a year now, so I was usually eating some sort of meat (small amounts several times a day). Whenever I ate, I would "invite" my kitten to come join me (believe me, it did not take much encouragement! :-). Now, 6 months later, he is a totally different kitten (almost a cat now). He is the correct weight and size, has no sign of ring worm or any other skin problems, and has the most beautiful, full (and silky soft) dark black coat you will ever see on a feline. My kitten has been eating turkey, chicken, fish, bison, bacon, burger, pork chops, etc. His favorite (mine too) is crab! He never overeats any meat (or fat) I give him. He is happier and healthier than he has ever been. I plan to keep giving him what his genetic makeup calls for - meat/fat!