"Raw Meat: A Dangerous Fad"

yup. It's all about evaluating risks. Danes die quite readily under general anesthesia. Danes who don't chew RMBs are likely to need at least a few tooth cleanings under general anesthesia. The risk of death from an RMB is exceedingly low, in fact I've never heard of a single dog that was regularly fed owner-provided RMBs dying from one. Which option do you choose? it's a no-brainer.

It wasn't exactly a comparison and I'm not in the habit of feeding my dog any kind of bone, though I have done so before. I was stating that there are simply risks in life. I prefer to minimize risks. We walk in harness and leash, I don't let my dog run in traffic, Ive had him neutered, and I don't feed him bones. I feed him a commercial kibble. Should a problem arise from it, I have legal recourse. If he chokes on a bone I gave him, that's my fault. I feed him cooked steak, pork, and chicken, no bones. If he choked on a piece of meat, that would be my fault. And no, the risks are not all equal, though I now see that you have thought that I implied that. I apologize for not stating more clearly.

Our dogs can take thier time as they are secure in the knowledge that food is always plentiful.

I keep telling my dogs that. It doesn't seem to work. They still try their hardest to swallow whatever I hand them, whole

Does eating raw meat up a dogs prey drive? I've heard it can.

It's a myth. Dogs don't generalize well, and don't associate food in their bowls with animals running around. Of course, once a drivey dog catches a rabbit, bird, or fish, it understands that animals running around can become food....

The risk of death from an RMB is exceedingly low, in fact I've never heard of a single dog that was regularly fed owner-provided RMBs dying from one.

I've heard of ONE. It was a whippet, and a chicken neck. I only heard a very breif explaination, and didn't ask for details. Since I'm a member of several raw feeding groups, with memberships in the thousands, I'm guessing the incidents are very few and far between.

What if you train a Dane from a puppy to accept toothbrushing?

Dogs do die from raw bone shards sometimes.

http://www.thepetcenter.com/imtop/bones.html

What if you train a Dane from a puppy to accept toothbrushing?
 
My son Mike brushes Ollies teeth!  Not every day, but when he gets a bath he gets his teeth brushed. He's just a good baby. I honesty never tried brushing Bubbys, but she is very obedient about SOME things,,,,and since she was a show girl she is used to people picking and prodding!!!
 
Its very unfortunate that Jennie said chicken necks caused a whippet to choke, since I felt relatively safe feeding Bubby those!!

I'de really like to hear the "details" of how this whippet choked on a neck,like was the owner supervising,did the owner panick and not know how to get it out.I've had choking incidences before,only one with a bone,years ago, and i have always managed to dislodge them with the heimlich manouver I dont think i've ever seen emma chew or crunch on a chicken neck,she swallows em' whole every single time.They do zip for teeth cleaning for her.She crunches up other bones tho.The chicken necks we get are tiny,around the size of my pinky finger.I got some organic chicken necks once,but they were huge and the bones were really hard and brittle,i'm thinking organic hens are much older when slaughtered!

ORIGINAL: ozzie72

I'de really like to hear the "details" of how this whippet choked on a neck,like was the owner supervising,did the owner panick and not know how to get it out.I've had choking incidences before,only one with a bone,years ago, and i have always managed to dislodge them with the heimlich manouver I dont think i've ever seen emma chew or crunch on a chicken neck,she swallows em' whole every single time.They do zip for teeth cleaning for her.She crunches up other bones tho.The chicken necks we get are tiny,around the size of my pinky finger.I got some organic chicken necks once,but they were huge and the bones were really hard and brittle,i'm thinking organic hens are much older when slaughtered!

I honestly don't know about the Whippet. The owner responded to my post when Teenie choked on a bit of boneless meat, several months ago, saying that I was lucky and her dog died. She "tried everything" but the dog didn't make it. It was very sad. I was shaken up, already.....

Does eating raw meat up a dogs prey drive? I've heard it can.

Here's a picture of Remi eating his breakfast (chicken qaurter parts) and Roscoe the Chicken eating HER breakfast of grains - right next to each other.

Haha! I LOVE your photos! That one is great

Haha well I'm convinced!

That IS a great picture Lauri!  
Bubblegums breeder also had chickens, and sold eggs. Some of the dogs were in pens outside when we were there and some chickens got into  the next pen, I asked what happens when a chicken goes into the pen WITH the dogs, and she replied "they get eaten!" 
So I can see Bubblegum in a picture like that. I'm afraid Rosco would look like Remis breakfast!

Hi,

Feeding raw is definately a personal decision.  I am a first time guardian and after reading about dog nutrition decided to feed raw.  I searched for my dog for two years, finally I have been owned by a border collie mix named Romeo since 08082004, he is 8 yrs old.   When I adopted him, his teeth were horrible, his coat dried and brittle, his eyes, and nose runny, and his stomach sounded like he had a symphony inside it, he was always chewing his paws, and you name it he had it.  I started him on dr. billinghurst raw chicken and soft chicken bones (non-weight bearing bones is the key)  and yogurt, vitamin c and salmon oil, within a month my dog looked like a new dog, (his teeth are pearly white) it has been 2 years now and my 8 yr old border collie mix gives all the young pups at the park a run for their money (the people at the shelter told me he was stiff all the time).  I like feeding him a variety of meats, veggies, fruits and bones.  I like knowing that his food is not processed and that I get the freshest products available, in return I have a healty and happy mutt, even my vet is now willing to give raw and homeopathic remedies a try.  Again, feeding raw is personal, I for one could not be happier with my decision.