Health and Feeding

Bear River Doodles

Health and Feeding

Good Health comes from a good diet and proper exercise and regular vet care.

   A healthy dog is not fat or too thin , you can feel his ribs when you press gently on his sides and he has waist but he is not so thin that you can see all of his ribs when just looking at him. He should have clear eyes and a shiny coat.

   Proper exercise for a puppy is play, play and more play. Walks are appropriate when he is fully vaccinated, until then you can work on leash walking skills in your own yard.

    Vaccines should be given at least 3 weeks apart and not doubled up. Many vets like to give a DHPP and Rabies at the same time but we don't recommend it. Seperating them is best.

What to look for in a dog food:

A premium dog food will have meat or meat meal in the first 2 ingredients and preferably both in the first 3 ingredients. It will be corn and by-product free. It should not have preservatives like BHA or BHT but instead use natural preservatives like mixed tocopherals. The Whole Dog Journal rates foods each Feb. At Bear River we feed Canidae, but there are many other brands that are excellent. We also feed raw food.

Raw Feeding:

Here at Bear River we feed 2x a day one kibble meal and one raw meal.

A raw meal includes meat, bones (raw not cooked, sometimes ground), veggies and supplements. I use I-Flora, a probiotic formula . My dogs really look forward to their raw meals. I feed anything that is on sale ie: chicken, gr. beef, lamb etc. or I use a premade mix by Grandad's, Halshan's, or Oma's Pride. On the days I make up my own mix I puree the veggies as they don't break them down very well on their own. For each cup of meat I add about 1/4 c of veggie mix. Veggies are whatever is on hand . I do not give ice berg lettuce, onions.

For more information on Raw feeding you can find many books and websites, Raw feeding is often called the BARF diet. There is a lot information on the web a good beginning site to look at is http://www.njboxers.com/faqs.htm#plans