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Comment by Lucy Hicks on June 6, 2008 at 10:39pm

I am also a mommy to a 'Lilley' who is 6 months old. Aloha's advice about checking out the dog food site is excellent. Our Lilley is fed Blue Authority puppy food. She also gets a little bit of wet food mixed with cottage cheese. The wet food/cottage cheese will no longer be part of her diet when she becomes one. Good luck

Comment by momto3ltlgrlz on June 6, 2008 at 9:45pm

I am going to talk to Lily's vet about this, only to just let him know that we are going this route. We have an appt. for her on Tuesday to be spayed so that will be a good time to discuss this. My husband is actually the one who has recommended this path, I was going to try the Artemis brand first. That is so funny because he tries to be this big bad man but he is really a softy! I remember when we got Lily, he was so protective of her! And it was he who decided on the name Lily Bart instead of Lauren Bacall! Such a softy!

Comment by Charlie on June 6, 2008 at 5:23pm

I like the concept of feeding raw (and the convenience of using a mix). My discomfort would be with not being sure that I was including all the proper vitamins/mineral ingredients to meet the dog's needs. The Sojos site does recommend adding a supplement like their Missing Link product. I would consult with a holistic veterinarian before trying to mix or make Charlie's food. I just don't know enough about complete dog nutrition to feel comfortable without consulting an expert.

Comment by momto3ltlgrlz on June 6, 2008 at 3:05pm

Okay, so after looking at a LOT of sites, I have discovered the Sojos food. I think that this would be a good idea. I am not opposed to making Lily's food for her and doing this. What would you all do? The site seems really interesting! Look at www.sojos.com

Comment by James on June 6, 2008 at 2:57pm

oh, haha. Thanks

Comment by James on June 6, 2008 at 1:47pm

Whats the bannana idea?

My pup used to refuse to eat, and now he is a picky eater. For the first 4 weeks I needed to put something in his food to get him to even look at it, and then stand there and watch him eat it playing with some to get him to down it. Now he will eat one meal by himself (while I sit within 3 feet from him) and the other meal he usually eats half and I put some greebbeans or yogurt on the rest so he will eat. He does get alot of treats which I think may be the case.

Comment by Vannette on June 6, 2008 at 1:29pm

Mine love all veggies, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, green beans, etc cooked or raw. They usually get raw ones because I don't cook alot. LOL If you feed canned pumpkin make sure it's just pumpkin not the pie mix. Pumpkin is good for either diarrea(sp) or constipation. It is fine to give your dog a spooful a day. Mine love it. I also give 1/4 c tomato or veg juice a day if I remember. It's to help combat those brown spots on the lawn. If fed kibble, I like Dick Van Pattens Natural Balance. There are lots of better foods besides Science Diet. Just about anything you buy in a grocery store, Walmart is not good food.

Comment by Charlie on June 6, 2008 at 1:12pm

It is true that veterinarians only have maybe two course on dog/cat nutrition out of 8 years of vet school. Those courses are usually taught by vets who are hired and paid by the manufacturer of Hill's Science Diet foods. Not much nutrion training and the training is a bit biased.

For the same price a Science Diet, you can get a much better food. I like the way that this site rates foods, and feel comfortable with any of the 5-Star foods. (The 6-Star rated foods are too rich for puppies and non-athletic dogs, in my opinion.)

www.dogfoodanalysis.com

Whole raw carrots are great for puppy chewing/teething, but as Aloha suggests, for nutritional purposes a small dice or puree is best. You can give her any fruits/veggies she likes (except onions and grapes), but only as a treat or small portion of her diet. You want Lily's main food (90%) to be a nutritionally balanced dog kibble or mix of kibble/canned. There are a lot of vitamin/mineral ingredients in kibble that are hard to replicate with a home-devised diet.