If I had known this much of a fuss would have happened, I never would
have asked about other raw feeders on the group. I agree with what
Danee said, it's more important that pets are getting a nutritionally
sound diet with ingredients that will most benefit the pets.

Meryl-- I don't know where you're getting your assumptions from but I
find them immature and downright insulting. You say why not dogs and
cats too, on the natural diet. My cats and dog are eating raw. It's
because their GI tracts are designed to consume what I choose to feed
them and they have digestive enzymes that kill the bacteria we fear so
much. As for humans eating raw meat, I'm sure at some point in the
past, humans did. However, we do not have the digestive enzymes that
dogs/cats/ferrets have to kill bacteria such as salmonella. Also: Cats
have a small, nonfunctional cecum. Dogs have a relatively small cecum.
Ferrets totally lack a cecum. Humans have a decent sized, fully
functional cecum. The cecum is where fruits/veggies/plant matter is
digested.

Please know, even though I feed raw, I am not a "raw snob." I've had
pets live long, healthy lives on kibble. I choose to feed raw now
because it is what I believe to be the most beneficial for MY pets. I'm
not saying it's the most beneficial for anyone else's pets. I can't
stand to see when raw feeders knock on kibble feeders for "not having
time." And I read things such as "Well I have a full time job but I
still feed raw." Good for you. I know that if I were still in school
and working at the same time, I never would have been able to feed raw.
When I first started the raw, I spent hours agonizing over feeding
amounts, what to feed, did he chew that bone well enough, etc, etc.
It takes a lot of getting used to and it's not for everyone.

I'm sure there was a lot of controversy when kibble first started
coming out. People used to feed their dogs scraps, and suddenly there's
a "dog food" but they had to pay for it? Cats were mousers, why buy
kibble when they sustain themselves for free? I for one, am very glad
to see this matter laid to rest.

Cassandra, LVT

[Posted in FML 6244]