Are raw freeze-dried boosters beneficial for my dog's health?

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It is to some extent a matter of opinion. However, it is well known the possible risks of eating raw meat just like it is possible health risk to a human for the same exact reasons like the development of an infection from ingesting raw protein. Also, it does not offer any benefit over cooked food. I personally do not recommend raw diets. Good luck!

Great question! I do not recommend feeding any dog a raw diet due to the risk of pathogens (E. coli, Salmonella, etc.) that will remain both in their mouth and in their stool. This poses health risks both for Tux and for you (particularly if there are children or immunocompromised people in contact with Tux). If you want to offer him a supplemental food in addition to his dog food (I'm assuming that he primarily eats a balanced commercial diet), you can try home cooking foods for him. There is a great website out of the UC Davis Vet School - balanceit.com - that has recipes for home cooked diets and lists of ingredients that are considered to be safe for dogs. That said, commercial dog foods are balanced diets that do not NEED supplementation, but I understand if you want to add something extra in for Tux. :-)

I am a holistic vet. I love raw diets, but it is very hard to make your own raw diet and have it be balanced nutritionally. I highly recommend pre made raw diets such as Honest Kitchen and Sojos. They are freeze dried, so much safer, and you simply rehydrate with warm water. This way you can feed raw, AND ensure it is a balanced diet.

Hello, thank you for your question about Sky. There are many different opinions on feeding raw food diets, so you may hear different opinions depending on who you ask. I would not recommend feeding your dog raw chicken feet. In general feeding raw or even freeze dried food can lead to bacterial infections such as Salmonella. This can be transmitted to humans also. There is no advantage to feeding freeze-dried/raw food over commercial dog food. Hope this helps!

Raw feeding is a very good option for many dogs, as long as done properly. hygiene and freshness of the ingredients are the key to this diet, it is important to get the raw meals from a good supplier, you will usually need a dedicated freezer to store the food. it is also very important to take the food out of the freezer not too long before giving it to your dog as it can go bad quite quickly when left outside.

This product is just a flavor enhancer and is only necessary to help get your dog to eat his normal food. It does have some nutritional properties to it and the ingredients all appear safe and appropriate to use for feeding. Just keep in mind that you are adding calories, so it should be minimally used with his normal food and you may consider cutting back his normal food a little if you are going to regularly add this to it. This product is definitely not intended to replace the food and is not nutritionally balanced like the royal canin food is. I hope that helps and all is well with Joey.

Dry food labels give the amount of nutrients that are contained in the finished product. Period. Be aware that pet food marketing is a serious business. And unfortunately, buzzwords and trend diets are generally used to sway your views towards whatever product is attempting to be sold to you, and these buzzwords don't have your pet's best interest at heart. I would encourage you to explore some sites published by those who have dedicated their careers to advancing veterinary nutrition. This is a great article about raw food: http://vetnutrition.tufts.edu/2016/01/raw-diets-a-healthy-choice-or-a-raw-deal/ Scroll down to the 2nd 1/2 of the page for some common questions regarding pet foods. http://www.acvn.org/frequently-asked-questions/#choose This one is a bit long, but has some really good information: http://dels.nas.edu/resources/static-assets/banr/miscellaneous/dog_nutrition_final_fix.pdf Thank you for asking PetCoach!