TMI Tuesday Paleo style!
KombuchaCat
Posts: 834 Member
Has anyone noticed that going Paleo makes your, um, #2's smaller? I feel like when I eat extremely nutrient dense there's less waste...in more ways than one 
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It's because you're operating on all cylinders! lol
Now that's efficient!
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Smaller and easier. Less stinky. Just a much happier bathroom experience.... made even better with a Squatty Potty.0
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Akimajuktuq wrote: »Smaller and easier. Less stinky. Just a much happier bathroom experience.... made even better with a Squatty Potty.
^
I like the term I saw in an MDA article one time about the insoluble fiber in the grain products -- "insoluble fiber-driven fecal hypertrophy." (http://www.marksdailyapple.com/do-you-really-need-to-eat-vegetables-to-be-healthy/)
It's a perfect description, because that's basically what happens. Insoluble fiber is to human fecal matter what packing peanuts are to shipping boxes -- stuff to add bulk and not much else (in fact, I'd argue packing peanuts serve more purpose to shipping boxes than insoluble fiber does to said fecal matter).
I've also found going #2 to be cleaner this way. I never understood the idea that our perfect stool should be the consistency of toothpaste, which results in quite a bit of a mess. That doesn't make sense from a "wild"/Paleo point of view, in my opinion. At some point, we didn't use even leaves to clean ourselves up, but having *kitten* caked on our butts would not only spread disease (and cause discomfort), but would add a smell to us that our prey and hunters would be able to pick up.0 -
I noticed the same thing when I switched my cats to a grain free diet. Less stool and less smell.0
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Captaincove wrote: »I noticed the same thing when I switched my cats to a grain free diet. Less stool and less smell.
I switched my dogs to raw, prey model a few years back. Helped my shepherd mix immensely (and not just with stool, either, which was awesome). The poor dog had the worst stool before that. Smelled horrible and was rarely solid. Switched to prey model and within a week, they were solid and didn't smell. Breaks down to nothingness within a couple of days, too, which is awesome.0 -
Captaincove wrote: »I noticed the same thing when I switched my cats to a grain free diet. Less stool and less smell.
Do you mind sharing what you switched to. I have three stinky cats!0 -
I use wet food, the brands are Weruva and BFF from my local pet store. They also have special dry food because one has urinary problems and the vet says he needs it.
The poop is much less stinky and not as creamy. One of my cats has issues cleaning her butt. She used to leave smears on furniture. But now it's all clean!0 -
I use BLUE Wilderness, grain free for indoor cats.0
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Do not necessarily follow the advice of vets on pet food! That's my experience anyway. Cats should not be eating the foods they usually recommend, low fat and/or low protein (this is what they do for kidney problems!!!), grains, toxic seed oils. Always read the ingredients. Their urinary issues are due to biologically inappropriate foods. Cats are meant to eat meat, just meat, even more so than dogs. It would be very affordable to make your own cat food to address specific health problems. I own two big dogs so less affordable but the grain free kibble with whatever real meat, bones, and organs that I can give them is working very well.0
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Yeah, cat's aren't humans and don't respond the same way as humans to "kidney diets." They actually need the protein for their kidneys to be healthy. It sounds backwards as hell, but it's true.0
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I put my 3 FAT cats on Taste of the Wild and Precise Holistic (both grain free) 2 yars ago and now they are skinny! I have to supplement with JUNK FOOD and give them non-grain free to bulk them up! They are old! My oldest is 18, then 17 then 15. I put them on it originally when I got my puppy. I was feeding him homemade food and the vet scared me off so I got him grain free! They LOVED it!! So I bought them the cat version.0
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^Vets drive me nuts. How is homemade food inferior to a kibble in a bag from a factory? Of course one has to understand the nutritional needs of the animals and make sure that's addressed (organs, bones etc) but where's the logic that real food is bad for pets? Or anyone? It's like too much education creates a form of mental retardation especially when it comes to critical thinking and logic.0
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@Akimajuktuq, they scared me because they said if I didn't get the balances of minerals right I would screw him up for good and his development. They wanted to send me to a canine dietician 50 min away I can't afford. Nor can I afford the websites they promote
So its grain free!0 -
@Akimajuktuq, they scared me because they said if I didn't get the balances of minerals right I would screw him up for good and his development. They wanted to send me to a canine dietician 50 min away I can't afford. Nor can I afford the websites they promote
So its grain free!
80% meat/sinew/fat
10% edible bones (not supporting bones of large animals, that will tear up their teeth)
5% liver
5% other organs
Whole prey have the correct ratios you need, so if you don't feel prey model, then use that as a guideline.
I love this resource -- http://rawfeddogs.org/rawguide.html -- from it:Raw bones are living tissue composed of living cells and just like any other part of the body, they are a complex source of biologically balanced minerals, especially calcium, yet also copper, iodine, iron, magnesium, zinc, and manganese. It is highly probable that bones in a dog’s diet play a similar role to fibre, that is, a role of bulking out the food, thereby removing toxins and promoting general bowel health.
I also love this one -- http://rawfed.com/myths/
I found one a while back that talked about puppies raised on raw vs kibble, and it mentioned that, especially in large breeds, their growth was a lot more symmetrical (instead of the almost cartoonish growth kibble fed dogs go through), and the larger breeds didn't have as many of the joint issues commonly associated with being larger.0 -
One of my cats loved bone broth. I especially gave it to her the weeks before she passed away not long ago. And my surviving cat, Kitn, eats grain free food that I purchase, but we have always supplemented with real food as well. Runny egg yolks are really good for them and they love it.....and bacon fat too. They get the breakfast plates after we finish with them, with a few treats left. I had a cat years ago that I used to feed raw meat to. We don't have dogs, but my farmers supply dog bones for free to the dog owners in our subscription group.0
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Pet food is rocket science... lol Think of a whole animal - that's what's safe to eat; info Dragonwolf so kindly provided. I don't have the means to feed my dogs all raw animal foods either but I certainly give them what I can. Even if it's only grain free kibble and dried organ meats it beats the vet recommended grain based, low fat kibble. Of course the neighbours starving dogs get the majority of the good stuff that gets donated to me.
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I have a german shepherd puppy 22 weeks old and the breeder raised him on a raw diet and we continued this. He is still on 3 meals a day and his meals consist of (we rotate these) chicken wings, sardines with greek yoghurt 1 egg and kelp powder and raw pet mince complete with bones, sweet potato and our own vegetable concoction. The veg concoction is raw broccoli, spinach, carrots, Apple, garlic and fish oil puréed together. He also gets bones and duck necks regularly.
He is growing well and his coat is glossy but he still gets loose stools on occasions. The children don't feed him anything and he doesn't get the opportunity to steal food. Could it be the Greek yoghurt. We found cottage cheese didn't suit him at all and took it out of his diet even though the breeder swore by it. Any ideas.0 -
The dairy most definitely! Dogs (and cats) do not need dairy products and it does much the same as it does to many of us.0
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I'd say there might be too much fiber, too. Dogs aren't omnivores like humans, they're carnivores who might eat plants once in a while. The dairy is probably the worst offender, but if you're still having issues, remove the fibrous vegetables, namely the broccoli and spinach.0
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^what Dragonwolf said too. Dog ancestors ate some veggies and berries but very little. I just couldn't believe that the breeder was recommending the dairy. omg I think I'd want to be cautious with all things not animal based. Kelp too just doesn't seem right.0
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We are following the BARF diet and that recommended yoghurt, kelp and the fibrous veggies. It says his diet should be 20% veggies. I haven't read the book myself but my husband has.0
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Well, according to what you've said something is not working so.... All info must be analyzed. Too much dairy (or any) and fibre for carnivores just isn't logical. There's all kinds of views, and sadly, there's even vegan cat and dog food.
it's really called "BARF"? omg0 -
Not sure what BARF stands for but those recomendations sound like it might make your dog barf for real!0
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My dogs eat what I eat. Paleo all the way! Since they have been eating this way the have gained muscle not weight and are thrilled with every meal.0
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BARF stands for "biologically appropriate raw food" or sometimes "bones and raw food".0
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But both dairy and high fibre is not "biologically appropriate" for carnivores. Why don't you just try eliminating the dairy and reducing the fibre? I assure you that your dog will NOT be harmed by trying that.
Agreed with tshirtartist!0 -
Thanks for the recommendations. I've been feeding my cats Wellness and they do pretty well on it but it gets rather expensive for 3 cats plus what the dogs manage to sneak in and steal before I can catch them. Seasonally, (and going on in my house right now) the cats gift me with fur-balls.
One time my kids and I were roaming Petco and a sales rep for Blue Buffalo started talking to us about foods. She told us that vets tend to push for (and sell) brands like Science Diet because they fund their education through scholarships, and court them, sort of like the pharmaceutical companies who court doctors offices. I asked our vet about and he said he fed his dog Pedigree and Purina lol.0 -
knittingbandmom wrote: »Thanks for the recommendations. I've been feeding my cats Wellness and they do pretty well on it but it gets rather expensive for 3 cats plus what the dogs manage to sneak in and steal before I can catch them. Seasonally, (and going on in my house right now) the cats gift me with fur-balls.
One time my kids and I were roaming Petco and a sales rep for Blue Buffalo started talking to us about foods. She told us that vets tend to push for (and sell) brands like Science Diet because they fund their education through scholarships, and court them, sort of like the pharmaceutical companies who court doctors offices. I asked our vet about and he said he fed his dog Pedigree and Purina lol.
My vet has 3-4 Labs of her own and she did confess to feeding them all grain free! But they have all Science Diet in the office...For that reason!
Deals can be found on the high end stuff. Do you have a Pet Supplies Plus near you? I get a lot of deals and coupons in there for having the card. They email coupons all the time. Believe it or not Walmart...I know everyone hates Walmart but there are deals to be had there too. They have several grain free brands here. I am not sure if Country Max is national but they have a lot to offer here as well, and sales plus the back clearance pat that I can get things really cheap. Just some ideas!0 -
^Hypocrisy.... how do people (vets, doctors, etc) sleep at night when they do one thing and tell everyone else to do something else that they know is wrong... Something that will harm health and shorten lives? Makes me sick.0
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LOL yes I have noticed, Cat - at first I thought there was something wrong with me.0
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