toy poodles eating habits

Question

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The text above is a follow-up to ...

-----Question-----
Hi Keisha,
I have a 5 month old toy poodle who only eats people food.  I initially didn't want to introduce him to "our" food, however, my mom made a comment that "back in the day", dog's only ate scraps that people gave them, since dog food did not exist.
Even before I started giving him people food, he was very finicky with his dry and wet foods.  I thought that people food would be a healthier alternative since I was giving him vegetables, proteins, and some carbs.
I've since talked to many people that have discouraged me from this practice, stating that my dog will not get the proper nutrients.
This is what I don't understand:  how can my dog be getting better nutrients from dried dog foods that lose many of their nutrients from the over baking process, or from the wet foods that have (god knows what kind of) bi-products, when I'm giving him healthy choices.  Please educate me on this, as it is very hard to know who's opinions to trust.  

Thank you in advance for your reply,
-Annette
-----Answer-----
I am the first person to tell you that I am not an advocate of BARF diets.  I have never liked what they have done for my poodle and their hair nor have I liked their weights while on a raw diet.  There are a LOT of breeders out there that do love the BARF diets and their dogs do well on them.  I would highly suggest that you check out one of these BARF diet help groups on yahoo groups and talk to those members about the diet and get their ideas of what to use and how to make what you are doing just perfect for your dog.  There are a lot of sites out there on the net too that talk about the BARF diets that have great info.  I personally just feed my dogs top quality dry dog food.  I dont believe in feeding my poodles wet dog food as toy poodles are notorious for having bad teeth and the wet food just adds to that issue.  Dont worry about your dog being finicky, that is just your typical poodle.  Some are so picky its hard to get them to eat.  If the BARF diet is working great for your dog then that is what you should keep doing.  Just check out those groups on yahoo and as for ideas on fine tuning the diet for a poodle.  I believe there are a couple of these groups that are just purely for poodles that are eating raw diets.
Here are some sites on the web that I found in passing that talk about BARF diets.  These arent groups but they may be able to help you more and help guide you to a good group for you.

www.barfworld.com
www.njboxers.com/faqs.htm
www.canismajor.com/dog/barf.html
www.bluegrace.com/barf.html
www.parkvets.com/petsandvets-barf.html
and you may also find some information at peteducation.com


Keisha,
I apologize for not being completely clear about how I feed my 5 month old toy poodle.  I don't do the BARF diet, I actually cook for him.  Example: 1 egg (scrambled) with very little cheese (and I actually mix in some kibble-which is one of the only ways he'll eat it).  I also give him broiled chicken with cooked vegetables, brown rice, or some mashed potatoes.  I've only given him raw foods (such as veggies) on occasion, and I wouldn't think about giving him raw meat.  As for the "crunch" factor for keeping his teeth healthy, I give him rawhides on occasion or treats that are crunchy.  I also give him some doggy vitamins daily for assurance that he's getting his daily intake of nutrients.  I do want what's best for my dog, as I would like him to live a long, healthy life.  So any more information on this matter would be highly appreciated.

Thanks again,
Annette

Answer
That is fine.  However this is still considered a BARF diet.  Even though you cook the meat.  Most people do not give raw meat.  BARF means Bones and raw food.  I dont know many people that do the BARF diets that do not cook their meat.  As I said before you would best be informed and helped in one of the yahoo groups for people that feed their dogs this way.  I personally believe in feeding my dogs a high quality dry kibble and the only thing I supplement them with is yogurt daily to keep the yeast under control in the ears and to reduce the amount of tearing in the eyes.
Too me it sounds as though your dog is getting the proper nutrients already.  And with you supplimenting with vitamins the only thing I would be concerned about is that he may be getting too much of certain vitamins.  But those groups can help you with that and let you know how to adjust if you need too.  If your poodle were not getting the proper diet it needs you would know it.  The hair quality would be poor. dry and flakey, the dog would either be too skinny or over weight.  You would also notice that you were having more issues with the dog itching a lot or having excess tearing in the eyes and issues with ear infections.  The people that do feed their dogs raw diets like this will tell you that this is the best way to feed your dogs.  Others that feed dog food will tell you this is the best way to feed your dog.  This is a subjective subject.  If your vet says your dog is healthy and thriving on its diet then dont question what you are doing when people tell you it isnt good to feed "people food".  But I DO HIGHLY suggest that you join one of the raw diet talk groups and tell those people what you have been experiencing and what you wish to learn.  People that feed that diet are the best ones to get information from.  I am not a dog nutritionist and can not tell you for certain if your dog is getting what it needs.  Between these people and your vet you should be able to keep your dog on a diet that is great for both you and your dog.