It's an Artistic Science

After a barrage of tests, it turns out that Abby is ok. . .thank doG! I re-ran a tick panel on her - turns out everything was negative. . .again! But that was always a concern in the back of my mind. After looking at everything - objectively - and being talked down from people who know WAY more then I do - it seems that Abby just needs a diet change. Her body doesn't seem to function as well on a high protein diet (at least that is the theory, more tests later will confirm). My job is to tweak Abby's diet to make things a bit easier on her body.

Feeding is a science. There is a whole government organization (read:corporation) dedicated to animal feed - AAFCO. One of their jobs is to make sure that food on the market meets the daily nutritional value for animals. The only way to ensure that your animals receive all of the required nutrients each day is to eat one of these tested foods. They have teams of veterinarians and researchers who determine these requirements and do these tests.

I am neither a veterinarian, nor am I a researcher. I am just a single person trying to to make sure her dogs get the nutrients their little bodies require. Unlike AAFCO, I believe that it is equally healthy for pets to get their required nutrients over a period of time - there is no need to have it all in one day (just like humans!) Since my approach differs from them, none of the foods I buy/use/feed will be scientifically formulated.

And while feeding is technically a science, it is also an art. Each animal will require slightly different formulations based on their individual needs. My 9 pound 11 year old dog (being forced to slow down), has very different requirements then my 6 year old 15 pound agility star-in-the-making. I think that making your own food is the best way to ensure that each dog get's their specific needs met. And after years of feeding my dogs a high protein, low carb diet, it turns out that my newest pack member doesn't do so well with all that protein. But this is where knowing how to make your own food comes in handy!

Behold the new diet:


Ok, this isn't really the new diet. . .it's a modified version because I forgot to defrost the meat! I made two small changes 1) I added more veggies 2) I added some basic carbs - barley. The choice to use barley was a bit complicated. I can't use oats because pocket is allergic to oats. I can't use rice because Abby is allergic to rice. I thought about using quinoa, but it has a high protein content. I'm still a bit iffy on the barley - we'll see if everyone tolerates it. Also, it is a pain in the ass to cook - boiling for a whole hour! Although I hear if you soak it over-night it only takes 15 minutes. Regardless of what happens later on, Abby sure seemed to enjoy eating it.



(notice the new collar and the cold weather digs)