Comparison between raw diet and kibble

[Lobobear44]

I heard from a GSD owner I know and other owners with different breeds do the raw diet thing and they say it's more healthier than kibble. When I asked a friend what do you look for in a breeder, she answered "you want to make sure they have raw diet only." The raw diet is said that dogs live longer than those who eat kibble which shortens dogs lifespan. What is true? I'm in a big confusion about raw diet and kibble and which is better. Is there only 1 answer like raw diet people say?

[GusGus]

There is a whole forum on raw feeding. Lots of useful information.

[volcano]

I dont agree with shuffling every raw topic off to the raw forum. Is there a kibble forum? why are we segregated? I understand that theres a forum for raw, but does that mean you all dont want to hear about it so you put us in a corner? it feels that way.

The question was raw vs kibble/ of course shes gonna get one sided info on the raw forum.

[Lauri & The Gang]

Originally Posted by volcano

I dont agree with shuffling every raw topic off to the raw forum. Is there a kibble forum? why are we segregated? I understand that theres a forum for raw, but does that mean you all dont want to hear about it so you put us in a corner? it feels that way.

There's a Diet & Nutrition forum that's mainly geared towards kibble. The raw forum tends to have more people with experience feeding raw.

If someone came into the raw forum and asked about kibble I would send them to the D&N forum as I know very little about kibble.

The question was raw vs kibble/ of course shes gonna get one sided info on the raw forum.

I like to think we raw feeders are more open minded than that. I do not believe the raw diet is the ONLY way to feed. I personally think it's the best way to feed but that's my personal opinion.

[Lauri & The Gang]

Originally Posted by Lobobear44

The raw diet is said that dogs live longer than those who eat kibble which shortens dogs lifespan. What is true? I'm in a big confusion about raw diet and kibble and which is better. Is there only 1 answer like raw diet people say?

Well, I know people that eat a completely healthy diet and die young. I also know people who eat like crap and live to be very old.

No ONE thing works best for all circumstances.

That being said - when I switched my dogs to raw I found less shedding, greater energy, better focus, less scratching, less output (poop) and better breath.

I managed to get a dog off high doses of steroids when she was switched to raw. I managed/limited my Cocker's seizures by switching to raw.

I've fed raw to over 13 dogs, numerous fosters and raised 3 litters of puppies directly to raw (weaned from Mom to raw - never tasted kibble).

I never had a Shepherd bloat on raw (had one bloat on kibble before I switched). In his 13+ years of life my Cocker Spaniel only had problems with his ears when he would manage to get into something with carbs (like when he stole a loaf of bread from the counter).

Is raw the best? I personally believe so.

But when it comes to kibble - there are definitely ones that are MUCH better than others. Pretty much anything found in a grocery store is not worth the money. You are paying for fillers that just make your dog poop more and get less nutrition.

[msvette2u]

I don't believe dogs live shorter life spans on kibble than raw. As Lauri said, there's different grades of kibble, but then again I've known dogs to live 15+ years on Purina (the green bag)!
I believe keeping dogs' teeth clean plays as large of role as a good diet and also keeping them trim and fit, daily exercise even if it's just dinking around in the yard, and I also think keeping them inside or at least giving them a nice bed to sleep on if they are outdoors, especially as they age, so their joints don't get worse out before their minds.

The last few things I say because we've gotten in some very nice dogs that lived outside their entire lives and their joints are just broken down, and their teeth were horrendous and both I believe shorten their lives.

Genetics will play a large role, as well.

[Lobobear44]

True I heard from owners that dogs with raw diet sometimes die of a raw bird bone or something. I think it all depends what works. Some people see more beneficial in raw food and others kibble. If a breeder says, "this kind of diet with kibble or raw has always work." than I'll go along with it.

[nitemares]

I personally have not heard of a dog that died from eating raw bones and I am a member of one of the 2 largest raw groups one on Yahoo and one on facebook. yahoo has i think over 100,000 members while facebook has over 30,000 members. if a dog had died from eating raw anything i'm pretty sure they would have posted about it.

As for the comparison, I definitely prefer raw, but on the other hand not everyone can manage raw correctly. My advice is research a lot on raw and if you feel it's too much or won't fit your life style then by all means give high quality kibble, quality kibble might be better than a bad raw diet.

[Lobobear44]

@nitemares I thought that dogs aren't supposed to eating any raw bird bones thats what vets, spca, and some owners say.

[Lobobear44]

unless if the bone is not any bird bone.