[carboy]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

So easy to prevent the suffering of both people and dogs by proper control. Sadly, so easy for the responsible authorities to do nothing.

Back when I was a kid (this was of course very long back) - every couple of months, the dog van used to come and round up all strays and kill them. But then Maneka Gandhi got this stopped (this was much much before she became a minister) - back then she was a fervent animal activist. She wanted to get the rounded up dogs neutered rather than killed. So the rule changed to that. Unfortunately, the cost of neutering a dog is far, far more than killing a dog and also requires more professionals. Most of the municipalities do not have the budget to do this. They still operate on their old "kill" budget. The net result of this is that nothing gets done. At most, they round up strays & transport them elsewhere, if at all.

[panesar7]

Hi, any suggestions or if you could share your experiences of travelling with your pets in Indian railways? Also, any medium budget recommendations for pet friendly stays in Coorg/Chikmagalur. We're planning to travel with our Weiler-Dane and Desi Dalmation in the first week of June.

Any recommendations would be most welcome!

Thank you in advance!

[panesar7]

Originally Posted by dre@ms

Does the home food funda works for imported/foreign breeds too or they have to be fed RC?

They'll do better with home cooked food. Think of packaged dog food as serving McDonalds or Burger King to your kids all the time. Can you imagine what it would do to them? Their body? Super size me?

Home food is the best alternative. Just do your homework about the do's and don'ts.

[shashanka]

Originally Posted by dre@ms

Does the home food funda works for imported/foreign breeds too or they have to be fed RC?

We have been feeding good hearty home-cooked to our boxers from the beginning - chapatis/rice, boiled vegetables (no garlic, onions, ginger - they seem allergic to the smell or something!), good quality pork/fish roe pressure cooked with a helping of pellets (your choice - we prefer Drool/Pedigree).

They seem to have thrived on this concoction without ill effects -

[Aroy]

You can dispense with pellets, they are not necessary.

Our 13 year old Lab has been of home food right from day one - par boiled rice, vegetables, garlic, turmeric, dal and chicken carcass. All cooked in a large pressure cooker.

Garlic and turmeric are good for dogs. The former gets rid of most ticks/mites and latter is a good antiseptic.

For vegetables we collect; depending on season; carrot and radish peals, cauliflower stems and radish leaves. To this we add pumpkin cabbage and spinach. These make over 50% if the volume of a pressure cooker.

If you want details with images, there are on one of my previous posts.

[Prowler]

Originally Posted by Aroy

Garlic and turmeric are good for dogs. The former gets rid of most ticks/mites and latter is a good antiseptic.

I have been giving turmeric for all my dogs all these years. But adding garlic is a new idea from you. What is the quantity I add for 7 cups of meat broth ?

I add one half an inch of ginger too. BTW, we cook for a week about 7 cups of meat with water. Then mix it with bowls of rice before we feed. I noticed that you cook along with rice and vegetables. We don't have enough freezer space. How do you manage Sir ?

[shashanka]

Originally Posted by Aroy

You can dispense with pellets, they are not necessary. Our 13 year old Lab has been of home food......

I’m sorry Aroy but I beg to differ on this issue. There has been a fair amout of brand-bashing/brand-praising regarding pellets in this thread, much of it anecdotal – without any clinical lab reports giving comparative evaluation of brands.

For the past 21 years – since 1997 – we have had boxers (three generations of them, including a BOB champion at the INKC show in Mumbai 2004) and all have been hand-reared, after weaning, on home-cooked food with pellets added. They appear to thrive on it. The composition is as mentioned in my earlier post. The one practice we follow is to pressure cook afresh for each & every meal (two square meals a day with two light snacks in between).

Regarding external vermin (ticks, fleas and the like) they have all been on anti-tick collars after attaining adult-hood without any ill-effects whatsoever, despite the dire warnings about pressure on the liver and so on!

They have also been de-wormed every 3-4 months, while changing the de-wormer (as per our vet’s advice, to prevent immunity acquisition) frequently – Drontal Plus, Kiwof Plus, Cantel, Alfanil - as per advice.

I am all praise for the home-remedy formulations that are popular for pet care as suggested by you, and some of my pet lover acquaintances too, but we are happy with the regime we have followed & don't feel the need to change. As I've always maintained - to each his own!

[Aroy]

Pellets and other dog food are a boon for Western owners as they are quite inexpensive for them and obviate the need to cook for their pets. Cooking takes time and effort which for most working families is in short supply. In India on the other hand the Pet food is quite expensive. Add to that our penchant for cooking at home and in case where there are a multiple pets, availability of help makes cooking for pets a breeze.

I have nothing against pellets and dog food as such. What I said is that these are not necessary if you are cooking a balanced meal at home. Any supplement that the pellets give is already there in a home cooked meal.

As said, each to his own. I prefer cooking for pets. As I have only one dog I cook in bulk for at least a week. Portion the cooked food in containers, one for each meal (two a day). The food keeps perfectly in the refrigerator, and all I have to do is to microwave it for a minute or so.

As far as tics and other parasites are concerned I do not use a tick collar. Turmeric and Garlic have ensured that there are none. Except when the dog picks up a tick or two in rainy season.

[carboy]

Only home Cooked food may be OK for dogs but if someone is doing that for cats, then please supplement with Taurine supplements. Also avoid milk & vegetarian stuff. Cats are purely carnivorous unlike dogs.

Unlike Humans & Dogs, cats cannot synthesize their own taurine. They get it from meat & cooking destroys Taurine present in meat. A cat which is without taurine for even a couple of months can go blind or develop heart problems.

Also in store bought cat food, don't keep your cat only on dry food/kibble. Have lots of canned/pouch wet foods. If cats are only on dry food, they may develop major urinary problems & also in general dry food is unhealthy - it has a lot of carbohydrates.

[Aroy]

I agree, cats are one those animals that are purely non-vegetarian. The best food for cats is raw meat and raw fish. Some cats also love milk, some hate it.

[carboy]

Originally Posted by Aroy

I agree, cats are one those animals that are purely non-vegetarian. The best food for cats is raw meat and raw fish. Some cats also love milk, some hate it.

Actually, raw fish is not good for cats. Raw fish contains some enzyme which destroys thiamine in a cat and the cat gets thiamine deficiency. Cooked fish doesn't have this problem. Nor does raw meat.

[blackasta]

We have kept generations of cats, and though some of their off beat preferences have even included grated coconut(!), mostly they take raw fish (small ones) / raw chicken / boiled fish / boiled chicken / whiskas pellets / whiskas gravy. They even do not let table scraps go to waste.

The dogs (strays who don't stray very far) get pedigree pellets / pedigree gravy / parle G biscuits / rice+dal+whatever fish or chicken has been cooked. One of my friends suggested that pellets & parle G biscuits are not good for dogs. They seem to love it, especially when served with gravy. Immediate improvement was noticed in coat / physique when the newest one started getting regular 3 servings of meal a day.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by Aroy

I agree, cats are one those animals that are purely non-vegetarian. The best food for cats is raw meat and raw fish. Some cats also love milk, some hate it.

Cats will drink cow's milk if they are given it as kittens. There is no need to get them started on it: just give water! I don't know if there is anything bad in cow milk for cats? But it is certainly unnatural. Of course, same goes for humans

Originally Posted by carboy

Actually, raw fish is not good for cats. Raw fish contains some enzyme which destroys thiamine in a cat and the cat gets thiamine deficiency. Cooked fish doesn't have this problem. Nor does raw meat.

Thanks, I didn't know that!

Originally Posted by blackasta

We have kept generations of cats, and though some of their off beat preferences have even included grated coconut(!), mostly they take raw fish (small ones) / raw chicken / boiled fish / boiled chicken / whiskas pellets / whiskas gravy. They even do not let table scraps go to waste.

I've seen cats eat cake, peas... all sorts of things. But there is doubt that, as Aroy says, what they really need is meat.

[carboy]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

Thanks, I didn't know that!

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/shifti...ml#post4354699

Age is showing

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by carboy

Age is showing

Shows often. Every day!