there is much discussion on other sites about feeding:

[davet]

the BARF diet..i am not for or against it because it has some good sides and some bad sides but they are advocating the feeding of any type bones, , uncooked i think...regardless of cooked or raw---do not feed T-bones, or pork chop or lamb chop bones...these are the only type of bones i have ever had to remove from a dogs gut because they take so long to digest that they get stuck in the pyloric valve area of the stomach...rib bomes etc may get stuck in the roof of the mouth or the throat but they don't require surgery...just anesthesia to get them out--and usually in the middle of the night.

just something to mull over...

[Mary Plummer]

...sides, do you think, of the BARF diet? I worry about the bacteria and about the bones getting stuck, like you mentioned. I also find myself unpersuaded by the argument that this is like a wolf's diet. I just can't help but think that dogs have been domesticated for a long time, at least 10,000 years, and for the bulk of that time they probably ate cooked food.

[oconnorjoy]

I spoke with my vet regarding this today as a I have some missgivings...am not convinced that it is a safe diet. She says it is not recommeded in households where there are young children (due to the risk of bacteria)

Thanks for the warning about bones Davet. What do you recommend for treats? I read somewhere that cooked liver cut into small pieces is good for using for training...

[davet]

biscuits as treats...my dogs always ate most anythig i put in front of them....no matter what you give, you just don't make a steady diet of it ( i mean the treat)..vary as needed, carrots are good if the dog will eat them....treats are no big problem because you don't normally give enough to cause a problem...Re, the barf diet, i just don't like it but i can't give statistical reasons why...i just think raw meat, esp. pork can carry bugs etc in them that are not good...any meat, uncooked can be a potential hazzard...lots of dogs get along fine with it but i don't think it is a good idea...

[Traci]

And I concur, anyone who has never performed a GDV at 2 a.m. on a weekend and pulled out these fragments (not to mention various other 'wholesome yummies' an owner will give the dog), and had to tack a stomach wall, or resected an intestine, will never admit the risk.

[BoxerTom]

I don't think a BARF diet is that bad. Obviously some people's dogs (assuming they are truthful) are doing well on it, at least short term. I still believe it's inherently more risky because of bacterial contamination and the bone issues cited above. My biggest problem is the fabricated reasoning put behind it - including the false claims that dogs are living shorter lives, with more disease, and the absurd "living enzyme" nonsense, etc.

[labby]

Some links I found

A must read!
by, Katie Merwick
http://www.mybluedog.com/rawmeat.html

AVMA
Veterinary & Animal Science
http://www.avma.org/resources/vetorg.asp

Australian Veterinary Journal
case of bad Salmonellis in a kitten
http://www.ava.com.au/content/avj/9904/99040229.pdf

Bad experiences
please read
http://www.mybluedog.com/rawmeat_testimony.html

Bloat
raw fed dogs DO bloat
http://www.listservice.net/wellpet/nutr ... nbloat.htm

Bloat lecture

http://www.mirage-samoyeds.com/bloat-lecture.htm

Campylobacter

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dbmd/diseasei ... cter_g.htm
Common health problems
with cats
http://www.hsus.org/ace/13944


Danger
http://www.secondchanceranch.org/rawmeat.html

Dangerous foods 4 Dogs
PLEASE read
http://www.resq4paws.org/dangerousfoods.html

Did you know..
facts about cats
http://www.bratcats.com/didyouknow.htm

E-coli

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dbmd/diseasei ... coli_g.htm

FDA
on feeding raw
http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/ANSWERS/2 ... 01183.html

FDA - pet food requirements

http://www.fda.gov/cvm/index/consumer/petfood.htm

Feeding & Nutrition
dangers of raw meat
http://www.superk9.com/articles/feed4.asp

Fleas
raw fed dogs get them 2
http://www.grey2kusa.org/reality_noway.htm

Food Safety

http://www.cdc.gov/foodsafety


Haddix Animal Hospital
on raw meat
http://www.haddix.com/faq.htm

Haemorrhagic diarrhea-dogs
by, Brad Fenwick, DVM,MS,PhD.
http://hayato.med.osaka-u.ac.jp/o-157-HUS.html

Herbs & pets

http://www.vbma.org/practitioner-handou ... imals.html

Is raw meat safe?
by, Ann Martin
http://62.108.6.218/~roos/dotkom/pages/ ... _safe.html


Are your pets making you sick?
http://www.mediarelations.ksu.edu/WEB/N ... 42500.html

Lowdown on Labels
from the FDA
http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/2001/301_pet.html

Merck Vet Manual

http://www.merckvetmanual.com

More Myths

http://www.petdiets.com/myths/page8.asp

Myths...
of raw diets
http://www.pets.yahoo.com/pets/dogs/car ... f_raw_meat

Neospora Caninum & raw diets
by, Larry A. Bernstein VMD
http://www.naturalholistic.com/nhpc/han ... ospora.htm

Not the answer
by, William D. Cusick
http://home.att.net/~wdcusick/raw.html

Nutrition
dangers of raw meat
http://www.deltaduckhunter.com/dog_info ... w_meat.htm

Nutrition of cats
Do NOT feed cats raw meat!
http://ed.essortment.com/nutritioncats_rnsg.htm

Nutritional Osteodystrophy in..
puppies fed a BARF diet
http://www.uoguelph.ca/ahl/news6-2/anws16-2.pdf

Nutritional analysis of 5 types of "Raw Food Diets"
Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association
http://www.secondchanceranch.org/javma.htm

Nutritional analysis of..
5 raw diets
http://www.secondchanceranch.org/javma.htm

Nutritional consultant speaks

http://www.greatdanelady.com/articles/f ... et_htm.htm

OVMA
pet care tips
http://www.ovma.org/pets/pet_care.shtml

Pet finder

http://www.petfinder.org

Pet pages
dog care & bones
http://eastyorkvet.com/petpages/pet_dog.htm#bones

Pets & Parasites
American Academy of Family Physicians
http://familydoctor.org/handouts/261.html

Public Health Concerns Associated With Feeding Raw Meat Diets To Dog
JAVMA article
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BARF_CONS/message/3

Pubmed

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/medline.html


Raw Risks
by, Sharon Machlik
http://www.scoptophilia.com/../guts/books/rawfood.pdf

Raw diet - Greyhounds

http://www.nutrition.org/cgi/content/full/128/12/2686S

Raw meat debate
should you feed it to your dog?
http://webcenter.petplace.aol.com/artic ... artID=3723

Safe homemade diet for dogs
a safe alternative to BARF for those who want to feed homemade
http://a4.grp.yahoofs.com/v1/0AauPikIZu ... 0k9%20diet

Salmonella
multidrug resistant
http://www.aphis.usda.gov/vs/ceah/cahm/ ... /vet10.htm

Salmonella in infant
transmitted from dogs
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/quer ... t=Abstract

Salmonella infection in...
dogs fed raw chicken
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/quer ... t=Abstract

Salmonellis

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dbmd/diseasei ... llis_g.htm

Shedding Salmonella
in feces of captive felids
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/quer ... t=Abstract

Shiny coat...
from raw eggs? wrong!
http://www.americananimalhospital.com/s ... &Private=0

Should I feed it to my dog?

http://www.petdiets.com/faqs/display_faq.asp?ID=3

Should your dog eat Barf?
by, Jorie Green
http://www.workingdogs.com/vcbarf.htm

Small white stool
this could be a serious problem
http://www.bellefontevet.com/showpracfa ... &Private=1

Survey of Necropsy
in captive red wolves
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/quer ... t=Abstract

The Debate...
raw VS. cooked
http://www.k9gourmet.com/page_3_2.php

Think twice before..
feeding raw meat
http://www.roen.com/011203.html

Toxic foods for dogs
some of these are used in raw diets!
http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm ... cleid=1030

Toxoplasmosis

http://petplace.netscape.com/articles/a ... artID=2344

Toxoplasmosis

http://animal.discovery.com/guides/heal ... /toxo.html

Toxoplasmosis

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dpd/parasites ... smosis.htm

Trichinellosis

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dpd/parasites ... inosis.htm

no-bones
http://www.westvalleypetclinic.com/page ... 0page.html

Wolves & bones
experts reply...
http://www.thepetcenter.com/imtop/wolfexep.html

do NOT feed raw pork!
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/quer ... t=Abstract

Your Animal's Health
by, Dr. Wendell O. Belfield
http://www.belfield.com/article11.html

[davet]

and i wish i had had is business sense but i still always question his mdeical and practice sense...not his business sense...he has that down good.