My 10 Raw Lessons

Lesson 1:
Over the past 1 year of raw feeding, I have learnt that I really have to understand Rossi gal's needs and suit the diet to her needs, rather than what is deemed as 'correct' or 'logical'. Guidelines are just...guidelines. I have to be flexible when it comes to her needs. For eg, if she needs more food, I will just increase it for her. I dun wanna starve my baby.

Lesson 2:
Just as each of us is different from one another, the same goes for our dogs. Each one of them is a unique individual.

While one can have an iron-cast stomach that is able to handle a variety of meats very well, another is more sensitive and needs more time to adjust to it, so things just gota slow down a little.

As much as I want Rossi gal to be in the former, she actually falls under the latter group, the sensitive one.

Lesson 3:
Meat, bones & organs vs Meat, bones, organs & veggies.

In my humble opinion, both have their own set of benefits. Which one to go for, also depends on one's belief. But for me personally, the deciding factor is Rossi gal.

She has been given both, each one for an extended period of time. Based on her daddy's and my observation, we have come to the consensus that the former works best for her.

Lesson 4:
RMB (Raw Meaty Bones) is the answer to the sparkling pearlies seen in many raw fed dogs. Rossi gal has nice pearlies too. All thanks to her regular gnawing on her 'natural toothbrush'. :D It's a wonderful exercise for her jaws too.

A glimpse of Rossi gal's pearlies

Lesson 5:
Giving a big RMB 'encourages' the dog to work on it. It also helps to prevent gulping, as well as the much feared, choking.

Between the chicken drummie (left) and the lamb rack (right), Rossi gal takes a longer time to finish up the chicken drummie, as it is bigger and requires her to work on it more. For the lamb rack, she takes a shorter time to finish up, as it is much smaller.

She looks very satisfied each time she finishes her drummie too, another reason to give her a big meaty bone.

                                                               

Lesson 6:

Variety is  good for the diet. I want her to have variety. She does best on lamb, followed by pork. However, for introduction of new meats into her diet, I have to do it slowly, for eg. adding a couple of slices to her bowl each day, just to avoid upsetting her sensitive tummy.

Lesson 7:
Organs like heart, liver and kidney are a rich source of nutrition, and also an integral part of the diet. 

I have read of raw fed dogs who could take a whole meal of organs, whereas there are also those who couldnt and are fed small amounts of organs over time instead. 

Rossi gal, is again in the second group. If I give her too much organs at one time, she will experience *cannon butt, so I gota include small slices of organs into her meals over the days. I will also arrange to add in the organs either in between her RMB meals or on the day of her RMB meal itself, so that the bone content can help her handle the organs better and firm up her poo.

*A term I picked up from an overseas raw feeding forum that I frequent. I enjoy reading this forum. It's so open, relevant and informative...unlike some local forum. ;I 

Lesson 8: 
Recently, I learnt from my fellow rawbie friend that fats are needed for healthy maintenance (& growth) of their 'coat of glory'. Great info!

I read up abit more and found that fats are actually good for our dogs. It does not affect them in the same way it does to us, like cholestrol or heart disease. Fats are essential in their diet, for energy, skin and coat, among other things.

Rossi gal is able to tolerate the fats from lamb and bone-in chicken much better than other meats, so I will normally just leave on whatever fats there is, for her consumption. It's only when the fats seem to be too much, then I will trim some off. For other meats, I gota trim off most of the fats when I first introduce the meat. Then when she gets more used to the meat, I will start to leave some fats on.

Knowing the importance of fats, I wanna include more of it into her diet. But then again, too high a fat content can also cause her poo to loosen. Therefore, I gota do it slowly.

Lesson 9:
I love perfectly formed solid poops. I love them so much, I want to see them all the time. I always read about others going on about how perfect their raw fed dogs' poops are. But unfortunately, nothing is ever perfect in my world. 

Rossi gal has her share of good poop days, as well as not-so-good ones, depending on what she eats for the day. For eg. organs tend to make her poop softer.

Well, I have my share of bad days too...as long she remains her usual playful and greedy self, it's all that matters.

Lesson 10:
Raw is not a miracle diet. I used to think it's a miracle diet when I first started  on it, but eventually realised that it's actually not...~Bubble Burst~

Raw is a "Species Appropriate Diet."  I believe our dogs are made to consume raw. Raw Benefits health, yes, I agree. Many dogs switched to raw gained benefits to their health. 

Going raw benefitted Rossi gal's health too, especially her skin.  I see it as the best diet for her, in terms of healthfulness. 

I wanna Play!

Rossi gal standing tall, with her paws perched on the baby gate and a ball held between her teeth, which she deliberately positioned over the top of the gate.  She shook the ball to & fro repeatedly and made a series of small grunts, in an attempt to capture her daddy's attention.

I was entertaining her with fetch in the living room, while daddy was hanging the laundry in the kitchen. Apparently, my attention wasn't enough for her. She wanted daddy to join us in our fetch game too.

'I wanna Play!'

Daddy was unable to concentrate on his task at hand with her repeated urging. He couldnt resist her call for play. Looking at her eager little face and her cute antics, he couldnt bear to turn her down. Neither could I, if it's me she's calling for. Thus, he stopped what he was doing and came out to join us for a fun time of fetch.

This is a common sight in our home. Rossi gal loves to play and will always engage us in play. We will spend time to play with her daily, for a short while before going to work and for as long as she likes after getting home from work.

A bright & happy gal, cos both daddy & mummy played with her.

During the day when we are not around, she gets the whole house to herself (except the kitchen area) and sleeps her day away. On our off-days, we notice  that she usually sleeps most of the time in the day, but when evening approaches, she will start to get active. She is already used to the daily routine of us going work, her staying at home and us coming back in the evening. :)  

Ready to Zzz off after playing

On weekends and our off-days, we would take her out for her walk/run, which she enjoys very much too. We would love to take her out more often, if time permits. But due to our work, it's harder to arrange for it during the weekdays, especially when daddy has irregular working hours. So, we will play with her as much as she wants when we are back from work.

Am I a burden to you?

"I'm sad to leave. I have been with you through all your ups and downs. I have stood by you faithfully. I really love you. What have I done wrong? I walk slower, tire more easily and not as energetic as before, but I'm still the same me, who lives with you all these years. Am I a burden to you? No one wants me, I know. I feel hopeless. What's there left for me? I feel so alone and scared. What will happen to me now? I have nowhere to go..." 

Thank You!

First and foremost, Me and Rossi gal would like to specially thank Le Paws Voyage for the Versatile and Inspirational awards to our humble blog. We feel very honoured. Thank you!

As the saying goes, 'Good things come in pairs'. Getting two of them double our happiness too! :D

With the Versatile award, we got to do 3 things,
1. Make a post and link it back to the person who gave us the award.
2. Share 7 facts about us.
3. Award 10 recently discovered bloggers with this award.

With the Inspirational award, similarly, we also got 3 things to do,
1. Thank the person who gave us the award, with a link back to them.
2. Link to 10 blogs we find inspirational and post.
3. Forward the award to those 10 blogs.

7 Facts about Us

Fact 1: Daddy was the one who suggested that I start a blog for Rossi gal. I thought it was a great suggestion, as I can record everything revolving around Rossi gal in it. I'm very glad I did the blog for her, cos on days when I back-track to read my earlier posts, they bring back fond memories of her younger days with us, especially puppy time. Time really flies. She is all grown up now.

Fact 2: Her name, Rossi, is given to her by Daddy. He named her after his all-time favorite biker, Valentino Rossi.

Fact 3: I used to be extremely terrified of dogs. All dogs, even small dogs like the Chihuahua. Due to my fear of dogs, I have also declared that no dog steps into my house, its either me or the dog...But looking at the way things turned out now, obviously, I gota eat back all my words...but I do so happily and willingly, for I can never imagine life without my Rossi gal.

Fact 4: Rossi gal's favorite food...her raw rosie chicken drummie.

Fact 5: I do not like kids coming near Rossi gal. Bad experiences. I do my best to prevent any kid from making contact with her. For instance, I will do a detour just to avoid areas with kids around. 

Fact 6: Rossi gal is not on any form of prevention. She is not on tick & flea meds, heartworm meds, dewormer meds and annual vaccination schedule. I believe the first line of defence against parasites, infections and diseases is a good immune system and I work towards building up her immunity through her diet. 

Fact 7: Rossi gal loves her ears and thinks they are very pretty.

Recipients of the Awards

As for the 10 blogs to pass on the awards to...well, we have less than that. We are sure there are many good blogs out there and will find the time to explore them. However, for now, we do hope it's ok for us to bend the rule a little for this particular one.

So, here it goes...

The Versatile and Inspirational awards go to these wonderful blogs:

❦Coffee & Baubles
I have been following this blog for the longest time. To me, the posts written here are bold and thought provoking, while at the same time, relevant and informative. I have learnt much from them too. This blogger's dedication and love for both her dogs can be felt evidently through her writings. On top of this, we are both raw feeders, which is another aspect that draws me even closer to her blog.  

❦Happy Bark Days
Engaging, witty and light-hearted. Reading this blog is a refreshing and uplifiting experience. I enjoy reading all the stories this blogger has to tell about her cute little poodle, their life together and just about anything. I simply love her style of writing.

And also,

❦Le Paws Voyage
A delightful blog with very interesting posts, one that I will definitely continue to follow.  

Random Ramblings

A forum, to me, is a place for people with common interest/s to share/discuss their experiences, ideas, etc. However, I find much of the stuff being shared getting increasingly 'amusing', with some making little or literally no sense at all. What has become of the forums of late? Well, I guess it would be wise to be more discerning of every piece of 'expert' info made available. 

Newbies are getting smarter too. When I was a newbie, I didnt know how to give advices. I only knew how to seek advices. I'm like a clueless newbie, soaking up info wherever it's available. Nowadays, newbies can give advices like seasoned owners. Wow...So Smart, So Impressive. Perhaps I can pick up a thing or two from them too, ya.

While my gal enjoys and finishes her food daily, some are struggling with theirs rejecting food and others are in the midst of a battle to make theirs eat their food, with bystanders cheering them on. In my heart, I'm thinking, dun they even have the slightest suspicion that their babies might be trying to tell them, something is wrong with the food? I guess not. For the struggles & battle continue, indefinitely. Poor babies.

And

Who knows my dog best? Vet, trainer or me? Hmm..vet? Hmm..trainer? Wrong! It's me. So, I decide what's best for my dog based on my understanding of her condition, and not simply based on what some vet or trainer tells me. My dog is mine, no one tells me what to do.  

Words II

"I live everyday to the fullest. I play hard. I run fast. I enjoy my days. When there is food, I eat as much as I can. Food is not to be wasted. Every mouthful is precious. I look forward to food. I love food. I must be fast enough to eat my food too, cos I'm not the only one eating. It would be nice to have more food, if possible."

By one, living where food is scarce, by the order of a delusionist.

1 Year on Raw & Counting

Rossi gal has been on raw for a year (& counting). Looking back, it is amazing how raw has benefitted her health, especially her coat of furs. 

During this time, I have also learnt an important lesson, and that is, I have to focus on her needs and suit her diet exclusively to what she needs. 

Every one is different. What one does well on, does not necessarily mean another will do well too. Thus, I have to determine what Rossi gal really needs to thrive on. Also, since young, she has always been very sensitive and so, all the more, I have to take extra care when it comes to her diet.

There are those, who are sceptical of the raw diet, with some even against it, without even knowing or bothering to find out what the diet is all about.

On the other hand, there are also those, who have attempted raw, but when they encounter some setbacks or do not see what they hope for, they choose to give up. With this, they turn back to their previous diet (eg.kibbles), thinking that raw is not for them, when it could just probably be due to some lack of understanding or research.

To me, this is just sad, especially so for the latter group.

All in all, raw is the best I have ever done for my Rossi gal. I'm so very glad that I took the plunge a year back. If I had not taken this 'plunge of faith', I wonder what will become of her now. I'm very sure she will look & smell horrible now and I cannot bring myself to imagine the degree of her horrible-ness. @x@

If there is any regrets in going raw, yes, there is one regret I have.

I regret not going into raw right from the start. If only I have known better then...If only I have not been hoodwinked by commerical pet foods then...

But luckily for her, she is not too late. 

Rossi gal, our precious baby, daddy and mummy are looking forward to more good years ahead with you. We love you.  

Rossi gal's New 'Frens'

Rossi gal's new 'frens' from Madagascar :D

First encounter with her 'frens'

'Socializing'