Serious about Animal, People and Environmental Health

FEEDING NATURALLY

 Animals need Protein, Carbohydrates and Fat as well as a certain amount of Vitamins, Minerals, Essential Fatty Acids and Trace Elements for good health. They can take up and store a certain amount of what they require.  Every single meal does not need to be “balanced” as long as there is enough variety in the diet, as the diet will be balanced over time.

BONES AND RAW FOOD DIET

General body condition and energy levels are obvious indicators of internal health but coat quality is often a more sensitive barometer. Through healthy feeding you can improve coat quality and general health and increase energy levels.

The statement " You are what you eat" has become more recognised as people are becoming more enlightened about their own health and that of their pets. 

The highly processed food on offer today for both humans and our pets is highly saturated with chemical preservatives and food colouring. They often contain significant amounts of harmful pesticides, lead, salt, sugar, rancid fat, over-cooked (often carcinogenic) oils, meat scraps and in the case of some pet foods meat which has been condemned for human consumption

Even the "fresh" food available in supermarkets is not what it used to be. Intensively farmed meat, especially poultry, is full of antibiotics, growth hormone and other drugs. The food that they are fed is harvested from chemically treated pastures and crops, often containing significant amounts of pesticides and poisons. These are then absorbed and accumulated into the flesh of these animals and thus become part of the food chain. As if that is not enough, the pastures and crops themselves are grown on mineral deficient soil, as over the years forced growth has depleted them. Deep ploughing methods have destroyed mineral fixing microrrhiza which used to work synergistically with plant roots helping them to take up and absorb many different micronutrients which are essential for optimum health. Fertilisers generally only replace Nitrogen and Phosphorus and not other trace minerals and elements. Type B (occult or hidden) Malnutrition is therefore becoming a huge epidemic for humans and their pets. For these reasons it is important to supplement with a quality, well-absorbed multivitamin and mineral supplement, irrespective of the type of raw food diet given. As far as possible it is best to use Fresh Organic Meats and Vegetables.

Vegetables need to be broken down to be absorbed into the system. Cooking breaks down the cellular walls and releases the cell contents thus making the nutrients available for absorption. Unfortunately, much of the goodness is lost, as the volatile substances evaporate and others are destroyed by heat, including many Vitamins, Minerals and Enzymes. To make the food available without cooking it, liquidising is recommended.

Feed good quality, fresh foods, which are still brimming with their natural enzymes. These enzymes are important for the maintenance of a healthy immune system, and allow food to be broken down and processed by the body in a more appropriate and efficient way, thereby producing less harmful by-products and absorbing more actively useable nutrients for use in the body for growth and repair. Home cooking partially breaks down these enzymes, and processing (usually higher temperatures than home cooking) totally destroys them. For this reason it is best to feed RAW.

There are exceptions to feeding totally raw, as with anything, which will be discussed by your holistic practitioner. The main exceptions occur in older dogs that have a tendency to get very chilly or find it hard to digest raw food properly. Their digestive fire has gone out and first needs to be repaired using holistic healing.

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