# Vegetables In Raw Dog Food Diet



## Secretariat (Aug 12, 2016)

If I may ask, should the vegetables in raw dog food diet be cooked or pureed? If yes, what is the reason for this?
Thanks in advance.


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## Momto2GSDs (Mar 22, 2012)

Some raw feeder's do not use vegetables or fruits.

I do use a percentage daily for intestinal function, antioxidants, and detoxification due to the inevitable toxins they are exposed to.

All vegetables and fruits need to be pureed to a smooth consistency so that the dogs body can digest and absorb them. I use a little water with them to make it easier on my blender. 
Always peel your veg or fruit when applicable b/c of the chemicals used during growing periods. And discard seeds and cores.

Vegetables like sweet potato, yams, parsnip, acorn, butternut or spaghetti squash, need to be cooked and then pureed. I blanch green beans. Most of the rest of the veg/fruit, example: cucumber, zucchini, broccoli (do not use broccoli every day), different types of lettuce, carrots, peppers, apples, blueberries, cantaloupe, watermelon, asparagus, parsley, is pureed raw. A proper ratio of the type of veg/fruit used is needed.

Hope that helps!
Moms


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## Magwart (Jul 8, 2012)

You can also freeze veggies to make them digestible. Freezing breaks the cell walls (that's why most fruits and veggies change consistency after being frozen...) 

The idea with pureeing, cooking, or freezing is to break the cell walls to make them more nutritionally available -- all 3 methods do that. 

However....fairly new research in _humans_ shows that pureeing some fruits and veggies definitely makes certain nutrients more available, but it also robs gut flora of food because they thrive on the undigested chunky pieces that make it to the large intestine. That makes me think that we may need to rethink some of the old thinking about bioavailability in canines -- i.e., there may actually potentially more value than previously thought regarding those little chunks of fruits and veggies that pass intact into dog poop (e.g., in the Honest Kitchen products). The conventional wisdom used to be that chunks of fruits and veggies in poop means the food isn't digested and is therefore useless. The new research (from humans) points to a different possibility: those chunks may actually likely be feeding the healthy gut flora in the colon. That is, if the human research translates to canine. Very little is known about canine gut flora compared to human gut flora, so this requires a leap not yet supported by science, but that's at least plausible. 

Dr. Michael Gregor has a video reviewing the human science on this -- Are Green Smoothies Bad for You? | NutritionFacts.org


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## voodoolamb (Jun 21, 2015)

> That makes me think that we may need to rethink some of the old thinking about bioavailability in canines -- i.e., there may actually potentially more value than previously thought regarding those little chunks of fruits and veggies that pass intact into dog poop (e.g., in the Honest Kitchen products). The conventional wisdom used to be that chunks of fruits and veggies in poop means the food isn't digested and is therefore useless. The new research (from humans) points to a different possibility: those chunks may actually likely be feeding the healthy gut flora in the colon.


This.

Besides what it may or may not do for gut flora. The chunks of veggies provides another very important and often over looked bit of raw dog feeding: fiber.

Wild canids ingest a lot of fur from the hides of their prey which acts as dietary fiber. Ever see coyote scat? Go google image search wolf and coyote scat. You'll see what I mean. Sometimes the poop looks more like a mucky hair ball!

For those of us who feed frankenprey veggies help fill the role of the missing hides. With the added benefit of the antioxidants and other nutrients that help fight against age related health concerns. 

I don't necessarily think small tiny poops are what we should always strive for. Lots of dogs with anal gland issues absolutely thrive on the honest kitchen thanks to the big fluffy carrot chunk poops it creates.


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

When one of my dogs needed his raw diet tweaked due to acute kidney failure, I added in cooked sweet potato, frozen(cooked) mixed veggies and pearled tapioca to make a veggie stew. I had to remove all bone from his diet so I replaced the bone with baked, ground eggshell. I did notice the poops were larger than the other dogs that weren't getting this added fiber. My dog thrived on his diet, his kidneys slowly returned to normal. I often give the dogs snacks of fruits and some veggies, but I don't make a point of adding it to their meal.


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## Magwart (Jul 8, 2012)

Does baking the eggshell make the calcium more bioavailable, Jane?


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

Magwart said:


> Does baking the eggshell make the calcium more bioavailable, Jane?


yes, it absorbs easier and the grinding to powder also helps. I now just do raw egg, with the shells crushed, I assume there is absorbtion, but not the same as the other way I was doing it. I followed the nutritional advice from a kidney support fb and yahoo group and this site: DogAware.com: Diet & Health Info for Man's Best Friend was most helpful. I never used phos binders and yet the phos levels were quick to come down while the kidneys recovered.


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

Monica just posted this on her fb group https://www.facebook.com/groups/K9K...if_t=group_activity&notif_id=1475420613237475 : 
FEARLESS VEGGIE ADDITIONS 
My response to " I'm afraid to add veggies to my dog's kibble in case I mess up the balance of the food" :
The following are beautifully balanced in calcium and phosphorus, so they're not a problem.
Acorn squash, butternut squash, celery, dandelion leaves, dill, green beans, leaf lettuce, parsley, peppermint, romaine lettuce, spaghetti squash, turnip, watercress. 
This applies to both raw, or cooked. Go for it! Just be sure to introduce slowly because too much veg can loosen stool. Rule of thumb: root veg firms stool and ones that grow above the ground loosen it. Combine the two and you've got this!


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