IMPORTANT NOTE: IF your dog has a compromised immune system, please consult a Holistic Veterinarian who specializes in Canine Nutrition for specifics on how to feed fresh, real food. I do not believe total raw is an option for a compromised immune system or very sick dog, unless specifics are outlined by a Holistic Canine Nutritionist. I can assist you with a list from the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association in your state.
Now……Dogs are carnivores……see the sharp pointed canine teeth they have? Those are for crunching bone and tearing flesh. Their teeth are not flat like a horse or cow, who are omnivores/herbivores…..whatever. Their jaws ONLY move straight up and down (open/close). They cannot move their jaws side to side like a horse chewing hay or a cow chewing its cud. Dogs are wolves……carnivores, their genetics say so. They need MEAT not a bunch of grains. Their systems were designed to eat meat and utilize the nutrients and enzymes from it. OK…now, that we have that cleared up, 
there are two schools of thought to feeding raw diets:
Dr. Becker’s in-depth explanation can be read at: http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2011/03/17/prey-model-diet-sparks-online-demand-for-wild-game.aspx
1. THE PREY MODEL: has a couple of variations:
- Feeding whole prey (all inner’s included) and nothing else.
- Feeding chunks of meat with some amount of bone, plus organs and eggs.
2. SPECIES APPROPRIATE OR BARF: contain muscle meat, organs, a vegetable/fruit puree, supplements, possibly ground bone, eggs & fish.
Unless you are feeding the whole entire animal, such as a rabbit, that contains everything such as its spleen, brains, pancreas, the blood, and yes, even the fur, it is NOT a complete diet. People who are feeding bony meats and chicken quarters are missing components that provide an essential balanced diet. These components should not be omitted. We need to substitute the specific nutrients that are missing, through vitamins, minerals, organs, eggs, sardines/salmon and oils. Dr. Becker says that she is seeing more and more raw fed dogs coming to her clinic with irreversible damage due to an incomplete raw diet.
As for kibbles, they are cooked at high temperatures killing off most of enzymes and nutrients. Did ya ever wonder how long your kibble sits on a shelf and what kind of preservatives they have to put in it to keep it there for a year or two? What if your dog was lost out in the country, would he run into a corn or wheat field and chow down on the grains OR would he find some road kill or a nest of bunnies and eat that? Hmmmmm
I realized years ago, when I first did research, that most people could not or would not feed raw because of it being time consuming and a little more expensive than high quality kibble. I recently re-researched dry kibble and wrote the “Dog Food Brand Review” so that you could become informed of what the ingredients are in the kibble that you are feeding your dog and maybe change to a better, cleaner food. Of course raw, real, unprocessed food is the best choice, but, let’s face it: it is a commitment and it takes a little time. But, keep an opened mind and maybe consider a combination diet of kibble and raw food!
The following explains how I got to where I am today and why I feed the way I do.
I have been feeding raw food and using a “natural” approach to health for about 17 years which began in desperation to save our beautiful black, long coated, GSD, Shamrock. She was suffering and literally dying from a sever condition called Enzymatic Pancreatic Insufficiency or EPI which we believe was caused by over-inoculations, food, and probably being pre-disposed to it through heredity. I had to find a way to help her.
I read the book “Food Your Pets Die For” by Anne Martin, and many, many other articles and books. I found out that there were actually COMPANION ANIMALS in my dogs expensive kibble! It was then that I determined that I wanted to prepare what went into my dogs body myself. I wanted to have complete control over the ingredients to try and get her as healthy as she could be, considering her condition. Back then, there wasn’t too much out there on the subject of raw feeding. I found two books, “Reining Cats & Dogs” by Pat McKay, and “Natural Nutrition For Cats and Dogs” by Kymythy Schultz and combined the two diets. I also used homeopathy, many different supplements, acupuncture and chiropractics. We had many ups and downs finding the right balance of things for her and had to adjust many, many times, but she survived until she was almost 12 years old!
5 years ago, when we got our GSD puppy Teeghan, I was fortunate enough to find Dr. Karen Becker, co-author of “Real Food For Healthy Dogs & Cats” who became our personal veterinarian. I re-formulated parts of my version of a raw diet to hers and have followed it ever since.
My suggestion is to get Dr. Becker’s book and consider switching your dog to a raw diet. Her diet is basically contains, 75% meat (which is 93% lean muscle meat, 7% fat) organs (heart and liver) and about 25% combination of vegetables and fruit and added vitamin supplements, fish, eggs, and oils. I recommend her diet instead of others, as I do not believe that the others are “complete & balanced”. The Whole Dog Journal also recommends it. Quote: “Dr. Becker’s Real Food for Healthy Dogs & Cats is the perfect book for those who want simple, clear recipes that meet NRC and AAFCO requirements for both puppies and adult dogs.” Whether choosing her diet to make yourself or a choosing a commercially prepared raw food diet, it will help your dog live a longer healthier life, have a healthier immune system to fight against disease, less allergies, beautiful coats AND lower vet bills!
If you feel you cannot commit to a total raw diet, consider a combination diet of human grade kibble and raw food. It could be in any combination such as kibble in the morning and raw food at night, or raw 3 times per week or raw on the weekends. The point is to feed your dog SOME raw, to give your dogs body what it really needs.
Please contact me if you have questions or need assistance in planning your move to raw or partial raw and kibble meals. I have coached many people in different states. I’d love to help! 
Commercial raw diets are not all the same. They tend to have the same problems as dry dog foods…………cheap ingredients or questionable supplements. They need to contain vitamins, minerals, vegetables and oils. The following is a list of raw foods that I feel are the better ones.
DARWIN’S NATURALS: www.darwinspet.com
STEVE’S REAL FOOD: www.stevesrealfood.com
STELLA & CHEWEY’S: www.stellaandchewys.com
PRIMAL: www.primalpetfoods.com
BRAVO: www.bravorawdiet.com/
AUNT JENI’S: www.auntjeni.com/ supplements and oils need to be added to this diet.
wendy hudson says:
HI Karen??????
Its that time of years 3 rabies vac. due now. Ive asked my vet to get the merial 3 year for me I hate to vac. at all, But the boys go out of state to tourys. Any other ideas for me.
Also have food question just don’t know what to feed any more??????
Have time please get back to me…
Karen Murray says:
Hi Wendy!
Sorry for the long answer, but I think necessary to explain in detail.
So don’t trouble yourself with that! Also, don’t forget that they are giving your 10 pound Terrier the same amount as they are giving a 250 pound Mastiff! One size fits all???? Doesn’t sound logical to me! 
PLENTY of ideas for ya!
First and foremost, get your babies “titered” before ANY vaccinations are done! “ An “antibody titer” is a laboratory test that measures the presence and amount of antibodies in blood. The antibody level in the blood is a reflection of past exposure to an antigen (namely rabies, parvo, distemper, etc) or to something that the body does not recognize as belonging to itself.” And, if it is present….the dog or cat does NOT need another one! There are separate ones for all 3, Rabies, Parvo, & Distemper and WELL worth the price considering the money you will spend to deal with the aftermath if they should develop a reaction to vaccinations, let alone the pain to the animal, and the heartache to you. I am SURE there are plenty of antibodies in them from the previous vaccinations! No one at the competitions is going to ask you to see your vaccination records!
Dr. Jean Dodds and Dr. Ronald Schultz, through their extensive studies on the subject of vaccinations, have found the following:
Minimum Duration of Immunity for Canine Vaccines per Dr. Schultz:
Distemper- 7 years by challenge/15 years by serology
Parvovirus – 7 years by challenge/ 7 years by serology
Adenovirus – 7 years by challenge/ 9 years by serology
Canine rabies – 3 years by challenge/ 7 years by serology
Dr. Schultz concludes: “Vaccines for diseases like distemper and canine parvovirus, once administered to adult animals, provide lifetime immunity.”
He adds: “The patient receives no benefit and may be placed at serious risk when an unnecessary vaccine is given. Few or no scientific studies have demonstrated a need for cats or dogs to be re-vaccinated. Annual vaccination for diseases caused by CDV, CPV2, FPLP and FeLV has not been shown to provide a level of immunity any different from the immunity in an animal vaccinated and immunized at an early age and challenged years later. We have found that annual re-vaccination with the vaccines that provide long-term immunity provides no demonstrable benefit.”
These studies are out there for vet’s to re-educate themselves, problem is, they make too much money giving “booster’s” to all their clients, so they really do not want to know!
As for food, if you cannot feed raw, the second best is definitely The Honest Kitchen dehydrated brand products. They are ALL HUMAN GRADE……NO garbage or chemicals in them! You could also do a modified feeding program of half raw by feeding Honest Kitchen Preference to which you add your own ground meat. I prefer the “non-grain” items but if your dogs do not have any issues, they have come out with some cost effective ones too. If you decide to go total raw, let me know and I’d be happy to coach you through it and tell you the in’s and out’s!
Karen
Let me know how I can help!
wendy hudson says:
Hi Karen I do feed raw a good part of the time. Just not sure my dogs are getting what they need.
Grinding is not a problem.
Just am not sure what I should be adding.
Right now i use carrots, pumpkin, green beans.
I used to buy Omas but that got too costly.
I also feed sum Orjen.
will look into Honest Kitchen.
Thanks and yes I would love to talk to you.
Karen Murray says:
Sounds like Honest Kitchen Preference may fit well with you by adding your own ground meat to it, but make sure that you use 93%meat/7%fat. That seems to be the problem with commercially made raw foods, the fat is too high. Also the Orijen is one of only a few better products. Using Pumpkin and Carrots is giving you a lot of carbs (k-cals) but you might need that with your active/working Terriers, when others shouldn’t get that much.
Dr. Becker says that she is seeing more and more dogs come in to her clinic with various problems, some major, because people just thought that throwing there dogs/cats pieces of meat was a sufficient diet. There is a science to it to mimic a wolves’ diet. The raw diet is basically raw meat, organs, and and about 25% vegetables/fruit. For instance, you would get 9 pounds of ground turkey (93%meat/7%fat, very important raito), 1 pound of chicken liver, and 2.5 pounds of ground vegetables/fruit, that would make the meat mix. You would rotate the meat source and vegetables periodically or weekly or even daily, if you choose, so that the dogs would not possibly become allergic to one type of meat/veg. To that, you at least, would need add a calcium supplement (if you were not grinding your own whole chickens with the bones included) and a multi vit., enzymes and omega’s like Krill Oil, Hemp Oil for beef and Coconut Oil for chicken/turkey because the meats do not provide it all. In her book, she also suggests things like pro-biotics, joint support and super green foods if you really want to do it all. There is a little more to the diet than this(I wouldn’t want a reader to think this is the whole diet), but that is the basics.
Let me know if you want more info!
Lynn Maniatis says:
Karen can I give my dogs whole pigs feet for a treat? Checked the internet everybody says yes, but want to check with you first. Thanks Lynn
Karen Murray says:
It will be fine if they are use to eating bones.
If a dog has not grown up on bones, one should be cautious. You wouldn’t want them to gulp it and choke. If they are not use to them, lay down an old sheet or blanket, hold on to the bone, or in your case pigs foot with a paper towel, and let your dog chew away while you are watching TV!
Also, if they have not eaten these before, they might get a stomach upset and possible diarrhea, so limit the time they have it. You can also freeze it to make it more of a challenge to them!