i have a question. i am new to the BARF diet, and i am looking to add more variety to my dogs diet. i am stationed in Italy and my supplies are limited. However they have other meats avilable, such as horse meat and pigions, would it be a good idea to add either one of these to my dogs diet? please help.
Would you kill your dogs for meat to send to another contry?
I know horses are used for meat but I would not go out and buy a food made of horse meat to feed my dogs.
Dogs do better if they are given a steady diet and a reg. bases. There should be plenty of good foods where you are at without increasing the curlity of horse kills here is the states. The horse that are sold for meat a lot of times end up going out of the US.
Can't you just get dog food? Some of the brands are sold all over the world. Why kill horses? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />
Tom Bearden Webboard User Reg: 01-26-2004
Posts: 58
Loc: Washington State
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Brett,
I'm sure you will get some good information from some of the experienced folks here. However, I think your question would probably get some good responses also from some of the dedicated Raw groups (BARF-Lite, rawfedgsds, rawfeeding, etc) . Yahoo has quite a few. Do a search.
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Valerie,
You would be surprised at the different, acceptable meat sources in other countries. Don't let your own cultural blinders affect your answer to what is being asked. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />
There's nothing wrong with using horse meat. When you look at it from a diet perspective, it's no different than beef, venison or anything else.
There's a place here in Texas that me and some people in my club recently started buying meat from. they sell ground horse meat packaged for zoo carnivore diets. it's available with fat content in 5% increments up to 25% and has some added nutrients in it as well.
And the best part? it's $1.00/lb. (you have to buy 40 lbs. - comes in 5 lb. vaccuum sealed packages). Try finding hamburger for that price.
As for killing horses for meat - the horses they use are the ones that don't sell at auction, that no one wants for some reason (crippled, old, whatever). They're going to be slaughtered for something - better to end up as part of a healthy, balanced diet for my dog or some lions in a zoo than in a bottle of elmer's glue.
then again, some kids eat that - so maybe you can attack the horse meat industry from the "feed the children" angle...
I plan on buying a BIG deep freezer if something should happen to one of my horses. I won't be needing to buy dog food for awhile if that happens. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" />
Robert VanCamp Webboard User Reg: 11-28-2001
Posts: 3916
Loc:
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Most horseflesh comes from culled animals (old, injured, etc), so there really isn't much of a moral objection to feeding dogs meat from horses.
I've done it for some time.
I do feel that there are a few animals who's working history and dedication to man should raise them up above the status of everyday livestock, but when an animal is to be put down there isn't any reason the flesh shouldn't be used to sustain your dogs.
Will Rambeau Moderator Reg: 01-25-2003
Posts: 5983
Loc: Idaho
Offline
Valerie,
It's of course your right not to feed your dog any products that contain horse, but horses *are* a prey animal to most carnivores, remember - so it's natural to them.
And ancient man ate a lot of horse in the stone age, given the bone evidence.
I'm sure that there are cow lovers that feel the same way that you do about horses towards their cows. Just most of modern society won't agree with them...
And your statement that dogs do best on a steady diet has no basis in fact. Dogs are opportunist carnivores and scavengers in their natural state with a varied diet of virtually anything that they can catch or find, which supplies them with the greatest range of nutrients .
Will,
I more than understand that dogs are prey animals.
My culture does not blind my way of thinking when it comes to killing horses for dog food. I simply completely see no need for it and feel it is wrong.
Some Countries raise and kill dogs for meat, but I guess that is ok with you also.
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