A Question or Two For The Dog People

[Beekissed]

I've had dogs I could leave with an open feed bag and they never sampled and I've had dogs I couldn't leave with anything food related...the two I have currently are just such dogs. Both from large litters, both very hoggy about food and will stuff themselves until they can hardly breathe.

 

[Nyboy]

When I was a teenage I bought home a old Irish Setter. Before leaving for work my mother would take a package of meat out of freezer to defrost. I can't tell you how many times I had to run to supermarket to replace dinner the dog ate.

 

[thistlebloom]

I just realized how fortunate we were with our Newf 35 years ago. She got into the shed and ate an entire bag of cat food, probably 5 to 10 pounds worth.
She was bloated and a little green around the edges when I discovered her.
She survived fine, and I didn't know enough to be alarmed, just mildly annoyed that I would have to drive all the way into town to get the cats more kibble.

 

[Nyboy]

Thistle our childhood dog was never vaccinated and maybe went to Vet 2x in her life, ate cheap dogfood lived to almost 15 years old. Now 10 years old is average.

 

[Smart Red]

When I was a teenage I bought home a old Irish Setter. Before leaving for work my mother would take a package of meat out of freezer to defrost. I can't tell you how many times I had to run to supermarket to replace dinner the dog ate.

My son's (two) great Danes have done the same with dinner meat. NOT a good thing with the saving grace of not hurting the "lucky" dog because it was always raw meat.

My Cee Cee has never done that. Once shortly after I got her she did clear the table of chicken bones -- my fault entirely, they shouldn't have been left there -- but had no ill effects.

Perhaps I don't usually leave meat on counters to defrost all day so it hasn't been a problem, but I usually bring home Doggie Bags from eating out. Cee Cee knows they are for her, but leaves them on the table or counter until I feed them to her.

Only once has she helped herself to a doggie bag. If I have a few scraps, I will put them on the back seat for her right away. If I have more, I will keep them -- usually on the dash -- and mix it with her food later. One night I had a lot of leftovers, but I put it on the floor in the back of the car. I'm sure she thought I'd intended to put it on the seat and missed my mark, because when I got back from the store she'd helped herself and eaten the lot.

Boxes of food on the car's dash have never been taken. She often moves to the front seat to keep mine warm when we leave her in the car. I appreciate the warmth when I get into a cold car.

 

[Beekissed]

Thistle our childhood dog was never vaccinated and maybe went to Vet 2x in her life, ate cheap dogfood lived to almost 15 years old. Now 10 years old is average.

That's how ALL my dogs live...no vetting unless they need it. No vaccinations past the first rabies vac they get when they get spayed or neutered, eat cheapo dog food and live outdoors. They never ail, never have skin or digestive issues, live to a ripe ol' age except for one Lab that had cancer, which is pretty common for Labs, when he was 8 yrs old and had to be put down.

Even then he didn't have any symptoms up until that last day and by then it was too late to do anything about it. A former pound pup, I only had him for 4 yrs but they were really, really great years...that dog made a name for himself and will go down fondly in the memory of many people for years.

Just picked up a fresh road kill deer~small yearling~and dropped it off up behind the coop for the dogs to feed on. First time I've ever done that but I'm resolved to do it more often...especially when the young fawns start getting hit on the road. No need for that fresh meat to go to waste when I have dogs that will eat it and it's really good for them. Jake can only eat the softer parts, as his teeth are pretty worn, but Ben can consume just about anything on that deer.

When I pulled up in the truck and they scented that fresh meat, they went crazy!

 

[so lucky]

So, Bee, are you not afraid they will gorge themselves on deer meat? Raw meat won't cause bloat, I guess?

 

[Beekissed]

So, Bee, are you not afraid they will gorge themselves on deer meat? Raw meat won't cause bloat, I guess?

Harder to eat if they have to gnaw it off the carcass, so they eat slower and they will get a full gut but I've never seen them gorge so badly that they couldn't breath. I've seen that happen when they got into the dog food...couldn't sit down comfortably even, as the pressure of the food restricted their full lung expansion, so they had to either stand or lie down flat to even breath well.

 

[thistlebloom]

Harder to eat if they have to gnaw it off the carcass, so they eat slower and they will get a full gut but I've never seen them gorge so badly that they couldn't breath. I've seen that happen when they got into the dog food...couldn't sit down comfortably even, as the pressure of the food restricted their full lung expansion, so they had to either stand or lie down flat to even breath well.

That makes sense as dry kibble will swell in the gut.

 

[Nyboy]

Thistle is right as usual,that why I soak all dry food before feeding . It expands in bowl not stomach. Red I love my dogs, but doggy bags are for me when I watch TV