Veggies.....cook and mash ? OR just mash ??

i hope someone else with more info will come to asst you, but in the mean time., what i have understood is that they need 'either' the light steaming 'or' pulverizing for tthem to get the benefit of the vegies...  It will be interesting to hear for sure though...

 well, I did find the answer.  According to Monica Segal's book.......they don't HAVE to be cooked.  Preferred preparation is to pulverize them raw.  Steaming helps break down the cellulose but the cooking destroys "some" nutrients and they still need to be mechanically broken down.

 My new Cusinart is wonderful!  Dumped frozen veggies in and dumped out veggie powder    If that isn't broken down enough for him.........I may as well not use the veggies at all.  I was very impressed.  Cut down on time and mess tremedously.

 And now see I HATE cleaning the danged thing -- *grin* - I think using the food processor makes SO much more mess than just chopping them up!!  Choice - it's a great thing LOL

Part of the thing is tho -- you NEED some bulk.  If you process it all to a pureed consistency (which is just plain salve or almost liquid) then they don't get any feeling of fullness AND there isn't enough bulk for the anal glands to empty.

So I do both -- stuff like fruit (pineapple, etc.) I don't cook at all.  And I do use canned tomato (because I get the one with basil in it).  But stuff like kale - which is a favorite -- if you food process that it breaks it SO down that you lose all the volume and then they have calorie dense food that doesn't fill them up and doesn't empty the anal glands.

With mashing what I've cooked I have ZERO problem with anal glands.  It is digestible AND it's enough bulk that they don't get uncomfortable "at the end" either.  (and given that I have two small dogs right now that is a blessing for them as well)

I don't think, to answer your question, it's a matter of right or wrong, but what works for you.  And what your dogs do well on.  Does that make sense?

For me also sometimes it's what works time-wise.  Like I said, for me getting out the food processor and then having to wash it and mess with it -- sheesh, whatta bunch of work (and see I have to 'sit' in the kitchen not stand so it's very tiring on my neck and shoulders to use the food processor cos I can't get 'high' enough easily) 

This week I did Bok Choy -- now that is easier in the food processor (cos you just fold up the leafy part down around the white part and shove it thru), but I chopped it by hand because I didn't want to deal with the machine. 

If I can get kale in bunches the food processor is easier, but at the grocery store usually I have to take it 'chopped' in big cello bags in the fresh produce are -- and trying to put 10,000 pieces of chopped kale into a food processor to save me cooking time?  ewwwww -- kale everywhere!!  *grin*  So THEN it's easier to cook it.

But like I said -- me in my kitchen and you in yours?  Could be a different tune.  Just don't do yourself out of bulk too much.  Bulk isn't bad (and we're not talking peanut shells here -- this is real FOOD as bulk) - and is something they do need.

 hee hee.........I'm a power tool / gadget sort of gal and I guess I did go overboard !  I was just so impressed with the power to turn frozen broccoli into powder  

(raises right hand with left hand on bible) I resolve, in the future, to attempt restraint for the sake of my dog's anal glands !

PurplePets22

hee hee.........I'm a power tool / gadget sort of gal and I guess I did go overboard !  I was just so impressed with the power to turn frozen broccoli into powder  

(raises right hand with left hand on bible) I resolve, in the future, to attempt restraint for the sake of my dog's anal glands !

We all have those parts of our personality we have to keep ... er, under control ... not that I would ever go on and on about *anything*! (gigglesnort)

Go ahead and mash all you want, it's not possible to mechanically break down insoluble fiber (the stuff that creates bulk in the large colon) to a state that would make it unusable to the dog.  Consider Metamucil powder.  You put it in water and the water stays clear, but you drink it down and it works exactly as if you'd munched down a whole prune.
 

*grin* given how much mine LIKE prunes I'm gonna send them to Aunt Becca next time they tell me they are STILL HUNGRY ok??? *grin*

kidding aside, I really AM talking in large measure about volume and their feeling of fullness.  It's both. 

But the serious note is, I have had virtually zero problems with anal glands since I started home cooking and using veggies in their food.  It's a nice thing!

I love my food processor too and I have a deep rooted fear of power tools. Maybe because I upgraded from a 1 cup to a 5 cup and it's soooo nice to do everything in one or two batches instead of 5 or 6. Pirate does not like chunks of ANYTHING in his food though. He will pick around a chunk of meat if everything else is smooth. I think he's still suspicious that I'm trying to sneak him pills LOL.

The prey modeler with anal gland issues may be less related to bulk in the diet, and more related to an imbalace in the diet.  Low zinc can lead to a slow repair of high turnover tissues like in the GI and skin.  Low copper can lead to digestive problems.  Not enough calcium can hamper the ability of the lower gi (the large intestine particularly) to uptake water correctly.  Too much can lead to hard stools that damage delicate tissues with constant straining.

I've pursued many different feeding models and never have had an anal gland problem amongst my dogs, other than twice - once when the dog had a tick disease as well and was getting chronic infections  - and once recently when the dog had, as it turned out, prostatitis not an anal gland problem.

I realize this thread isn't about anal glands but had to chime in to say that up until we started giving Sassy raw carrots as treats every day, she had anal gland problems constantly. About the same time we started the raw/frozen carrot treats, we also switched her food to NB Duck & Potato. Now I'm wondering if it was the food switch and not the carrots. Oh well, she'll always get both and we're all a lot happier