Help?? Low protein vegan dog food recipes
Posted by fernandosgirl on Oct 10, 2012 · Member since Jan 2008 · 1 posts
Does anyone know how much protein should be in dog food I make to feed my dog? He is a 77 lb, 5 year old boxer and his protein level is too high and leading to kidney issues, possibly failiure if we cant get it under control. If anyone has any idea please help me out. I want to make his food rather than buy it to save some money since I just spent over $300 on vet bills to find out what is wrong with him. 
Any advice would be most welcome!!
Thank you!!
Dogs are carnivores. A vegan diet is NOT species-appropriate for them. Think about it: Wild dogs and wolves don't dig for vegetables or eat fruit they find on the ground--they don't even eat the stomach contents of their herbivore prey! Your dog's kidneys are probably failing because you are feeding him foods that his digestive system is not designed to derive nutrition from at all. While I hate buying meat at all, I know that it is the best possible nutrition for my dog because it is what nature designed her body to eat. The ethics of veganism just don't apply to a species that is not omnivorous. Raw meat is the best and most species appropriate food for a dog, but if you can not or don't want to feed that, you need to get him on a high-quality, grain-free canned food. Please do some research on species-appropriate diet and nutrition for your dog. rawfed.com/myths and rawfeddogs.org are great starting points.
(Also--I have a cat with kidney failure so I have done a lot of research on it. Most veterinary studies out there advocating for a low-protein diet for kidney failure were only done using high plant-based protein vs. low plant-based protein food, not with animal-based protein, which is species-appropriate. The studies indicated that low-protein is best because the particular low-protein diets studied had less of a species-inappropriate source of food. A lower protein diet is not really needed until the end-stages of kidney disease. Low phosphorus is what you really need to be striving for since the kidneys lose the ability to filter it out of the blood as kidney failure progresses.)
Dogs are carnivores and need meat...raw meat. My husband and I decided for a life-style change with our meals and have decided to go Vegan... Still in the early stages and learning as I go. Feel like I have to learn to cook all over again...but, I'll get there. Our dogs, English Mastiffs, are on a raw food diet and have been since they were pups. It's a long story as to how we decided to open up shop in manufacturing this food for others but, that is not what this forum is about. You need to include green tripe in your dog's diet. We base our dog food on green tripe and then follow with a protein such as ground chicken, bone and all. We do include veggies and fruits but those are finely ground so the body can absorb more of the nutrients. I have a couple of customers whose dogs were diagnosed with IBD. They were almost at the brink of going broke. They switched to our food and what do you know...no more issues. The dog's body is made to digest real food, not the over processed kibble "fast food" that is on the market today. Dogs have canines for a reason and that is not to eat 'cereal' for, no matter how organic the protein source is in the kibble, it's gone when its cooked to create the kibble. Go raw and your dog will love you for it. My dogs haven't seen a vet in years! It may cost more but, you won't have the vet bills...which can be quite high... If you want to know more, mail me.
Bes
Hi FerrandosGirl. I'm sorry to disagree with other folks on the thread, but dogs can definitely be vegetarian. Unlike cats (who are obligate carnivores), dogs are omnivores!
I raise a vegan dalmation, and dalmatians also have problems digesting high-purine/protein foods. It causes urate kidney stones.
My little guy (15 now) has been vegan pretty much his whole life and he eats natures recipe vegetarian food, potatoes, squash, indian food, vegan pizza, popcorn, etc. I'd recommend Dr. Pitcairn's book, _Guide to Natural Health for Dogs and cats_.
Although the little guy is showing his age, he's been with me longer than I'd hope for, and I count his vegan diet as a big part of it.
I have a dog (a sweet little 5 lb yorkie)who has pancreatitis and has to be on a diet with almost no fat and low protein. Needless to say-I read every food in the stores and was totally confused. I am now buying $2.50 per can prescription dog food. I feel bad every time I feed him because it has "meat by products" in it and I know that's horrible stuff-but I feel that he'll die if I don't feed him correctly.
Help!!!