RawPetFood(Part1)ByDr.KarenBeckerHi, ImDr.KarenBecker,andtodaywerediscussingmy favoritetopic:raw fooddiets forpets.Weregoingtodiscusssomeofthemythsandtruthssurroundingrawfooddiets.Butbeforeweget intothegoodstuff,itsimportanttohaveafoundationofunderstandingaboutbasicnutrition.Onepointthatnooneisgoingtoargueaboutisthatforoptimalhealthtooccur,animalsmustconsumethefoodsthattheyweredesignedtoeat. Icallthisaspeciesappropriatediet.So,vegetariananimalsmusteatvegetationforoptimalhealth.Andcarnivorousanimalsmusteatfreshwholepreyforoptimalhealth.A good place to startwith our carnivorous pets is to go back to a dog and cats roots prior to thedomestication. The domestic dogwhose taxonomic name is Canis lupus familiaris is a domesticatedformofthegraywolf,whichisamemberoftheCanidaefamilyoftheorderCarnivora.Mostscientistsbelievethatdogsweredomesticatedfromgraywolvesabout15,000yearsago.ButDNAanalysis published in 1997 suggests that the transformation fromwolves to domestic dogs occurredmorelike130,000yearsago.Datasuggestsdogs firstdiverged fromwolves inEastAsia.And then thesedomesticateddogsquicklymigrated throughout theworld.Ofcourse,humansbeganselectivelybreedingdogs tocreateanimalsthatsuitedtheirneedsandtheirlikes.The earliest evidence of cat domestication is a kitten that was found buried alongside a humanapproximately9,500yearsagoinCyprus.ResearchershavegainedamajorinsightthroughDNAtestingintotheevolutionofcatsbyshowinghowtheymigratedtonewcontinentsanddevelopednewspeciesasthesealevelsroseandfell.A2008studyrevealedthatlinesofdescentforallhousecats,whichareFeliscatus,probablycamefromselfdomesticatingAfricanwild catsup to10,000 years ago.And like thedomesticateddog,humansbeganbreedingcatstosuittheirfancy,recognizingover80breedsofcatsthathavebeencreatedtodaybyoneregistryoranother.So,therearealotofdifferentkittyspeciesnowthathumanshavecreated.FeedingPetstheWayTheyShouldDespitehumansdesire tocreatecertainphysicalcharacteristics indogsandcats this iscalled theirphenotypeorhow animals lookexternallybothdogs and cats genotypeor their geneticmakeupremainsessentiallythesameastheirwildancestors,whichshouldtellyousomethingaboutthefoodsthattheyshouldstillbeconsumingandeating.Ofcourse,allanimalsarebiologicallyequippedtoassimilateanddigestfoodsthattheyweredesignedtoeat. For instance,earthworms are reallydesigned toprocessdirt.TheirwholeGI tract from theirmouthtoexcretionwasdesignedforthispurpose.Andtheyresetupperfectlytobeabletoprocessdirtastheirdigestivetask.

Cowsaredesignedtoeatgrass,andtheirGItractsaresetupperfectlyforthis.Cowshavebig,round,flatteethusedtogrindgrassesandanunbelievablerangemotionintheirmandibles,allowingthemtochew,chew,chew,andchew.Theyhavealotofrangeofmotionlaterallyintheirjaws.Dogsandcatsdonothavethismotionintheirjaws.Dogsandcatsjawsmoveonlyupanddownlikeatrapdoororahinge,becausedogsandcatsaregulpers;theyrenotchewers.Theydonthavechewingteeth.Dogsandcatshaveincrediblysharpinterlockingteethdesignedtoripandtearflesh.DogsandcatshaveveryshortGItractscomparedtovegetariananimalsthatneedtofermentfoods,ascarnivorousanimalsconsumefoodswithpotentiallyveryheavypathogenloads.Theywerereallymeanttogetfoodsinandgetfoodsoutveryquickly.Theancestral lifestyleofacarnivore includes lotsofvarietyand seasonalvariability,meaning certainpreysweremoreprevalentatcertaintimesoftheyear.Theythrivedconsumingfresh,living,andwholeanimals.Butcarnivorousanimalsdonoteatcleanfoods.Dogsandcatsdidnotevolvetoconsumesterilefoods. Theyhavedigestive tracts that aredesigned tobe resilient andhandle the loadsofnaturallyoccurringbacteriathatarepresentinthefoodsthattheyate.Theirfoodwasmoisturedense,meaningthepreythattheyconsumedwasprimarilywater.Thecarnivorouslifestylerequiredatremendousamountofexerciseandexertion.Foodwasnotservedtothem,sotheyhadtostealthilycatch it.Thisprovided intensestimulationofalloftheirsenses,plusnervous, skeletal, endocrine, and circulatory system involvement. Carnivorous animals had dailyrigorousworkoutsinanattempttocatchenoughfoodtonotstarvetodeath.Whatsvery important forpetowners tonote is thatpet food isarelativelynewconcept.So,dogfoodandcatfoodthatyouwouldbeabletobuyfromthesupermarkethasonlybeenaroundalittlebitmorethanahundredyears.However, animals have hunted prey or, in the case of dogs, scavenged for millions of years. Andalthough recent research has demonstrated that domesticated carnivores have bodily changes thatshow some adaptations to metabolizing some starches as humans became planters and farmers ofgrains,dogsandcatsreallyhavenotevolvedintovegetariansincethattime.TheTruthAboutPetFoodsInthelasthundredyears,sincemajorpetfoodcompanieshaveproducedthemajorityofpetfoodsfromthebaseofcorn,wheat,rice,andpotato,ourcarnivorouspetshavenothadaflurryofevolutiontobeabletoprocesstheseforeignfoods.Thegoodnewsisdogsandcatsareadaptableandresilientunlikeotherspecies,letssay,snakes.Ifwesuddenly force snakes to eat grains or die, or consume vegetation or die, they would simply die,demonstratingrathervisiblythattheywerenotprovidedwiththecorrectfoodsource.Dogsandcatsaresomeofthemostresilientanimalsontheplanet.Theyareabletowithstandreallysignificantnutritionalabuse,inmyopinion,withoutdying.Degeneratingdoesoccur,butsuddenlydyingdoesnt.So,partof thedeception in feedingdogsand catswith inappropriate foods for the lasthundredsofyearsisthattheyhaventdiedofacutestarvation.Theyveconsumedtheseinappropriatefoods,whichhave kept them alive,but far from the thriving statusof theirwild relatives. Instead,weve created

dozensofgenerationsofnutritionallyweakenedanimalsthatsufferfromdegenerativediseases linkedtonutritionaldeficienciesthatmostveterinarianshavenotacknowledged.ThePottengercatstudyisoneexampleofhowourcurrentsystemofnourishingpetsisreallycreatingalotofchronicdiseaseinourpetpopulations.The truth of thematter is our current population provides a place for recycling in the human foodindustry.Grains that fail inspection,uninspectedpiecesandparts leftover from the seafood industry,leftover restaurant grease, downer cows, dead farm animals, deceased livestock and road kill couldalmostbepickedupanddisposedof throughrendering,aprocess thatconvertsall sortsofanimalproteinintorawmaterialsforthepetfoodindustry.These rawmaterialsarepurchasedbyhugepet foodmanufacturersyouknow, thebigbrandsyourparentsandfriendshaveprobablyfedforthelast50years,whothenblendtherenderedfatandmeatwitha largeamountofunnecessarystarch.Theyaddabulkofvitaminandmineralsupplement.Theyextrude itathigh temperatures,creatingall sortsof toxic reactions includingadvancedglycationendproductsandheterocyclicamines.Andthensellittoyouatanunbelievableprofitandcallitpetfood.Is theentiresystem flawedanddamaged?Yes.But thepet food industrygiantsarerealizing thatpetownersarebeginningtobecomemoreeducatedaboutthissystem.Theyare.Andreally,theyaretryingtocleanuptheir image.Wearebeginningtoseewords likeNaturalandNobyproductson labels.AndwerebeginningtoseeGrainfreeandNaturallypreservedonlabelsaswell.Manufacturersarehearing thegrumblesofeducatedpetownersandarechangingtheirmarketingto tryandregain lostcustomers.MythsandMarketingGimmicksIhavefounditamazingthatpetparentshavefallenformarketinggimmicksthathumanparentswouldhaveneverfallenfor.Forinstance,howoftenhaveyouheardapediatriciansay,Neverfeedyourbabyanything,but Xbrandof baby food,because feeding ahomemadediet couldbe dangerous to yourchildshealth?Never.Butyoudohearthatintheveterinaryworld.Howabout thisone,Switchingyourbrandofbaby foodcould lead toGIproblems,soonly feedonebrandortypeofbabyfoodtoyourchildrenfortherestoftheirlivestoavoidGIproblems.Youwouldneverhear that.Andyet,youdohear that in theveterinary industry. Itsa little startling tome thatentiregenerationsofpeoplehaveactuallybelievedthatpetsmusthavepetfoodtobehealthy.Andthentheresawholehostofothermythsthatyouprobablyhaveheard.Forinstance,thatpetscanderiveallofthenutrientsforavibranthealthfromadrynuggetthatcanbefeddayafterday,yearafteryear;thatiftheydontfeedcrunchyfoodstotheirpets,theirpetsteethwontbecleaned;thatcannedfoodsistoorich,andrawfoodissimplyarecenttrendycrazethatcouldberisky.AlotofpeoplebelievethatmyvetwouldntrecommendXbrandoffoodifwasntgoodformypet;thatallcatsshouldeatfishanddrinkmilk;thatveterinariansarethepeopletotrustforthemostuptodateinformationpertainingtonutrition;andthatdisease,degeneration,andpoorvitalityhavenothingtodowithdaytodaynourishment.Allmyths.StraighteningOuttheFactsSo,whatarethefacts?

Carbohydratesarenotanecessarycomponentofacarnivorousdiet.Catshaveno tastereceptors forsweetflavorsandhavelowratesofglucoseuptakeintheintestine.Theyshouldnotbefedanytypeofgrainsthatmetabolizeintosugar.Catshavenosalivaryamylasetobreakdownstarches.Anddogshavevery lowamylasesecretion.Catsneverhuntedfishfromtheocean,anditsnotanevolutionaryfoodsourceforthem.The intenseheatused toprocesscommercialpet foodsdestroysand reducesvitamins,minerals,andenzymesinthefood.Digestibilityofaminoacidsinprocessedpetfoodhaschangedsignificantlybytheheatingprocess.Processedpetfoodsrequiresupplementationtoreplacelostnutrients.Anddigestibilityofmeatbasedproteinisproventobesuperiortoplantbasedproteinfordogsandcats.So, inanutshell, for99.99percentofthetime,dogsandcatshaveconsumedanaturaldiet.For .001percentofthetime,dogsandcatshaveconsumedanextrudedprocesseddiet.Dogsandcatsevolvedtoconsumealowcarbohydratediet.Andinthelast100years,themajorityofpetownershavefedpetsahighcarbohydrate,lowmoisturediet,creatingsignificantmetabolicandphysiologicstressandtherootcauses of most of the degenerative diseases and inflammatory processes that now plague ourpopulation.[END]