We think of cats and dogs as carnivores, but in the wild, they eat first the intestinal tracts of their vegetarian prey, and thus the plant matter in them. Cats and dogs instinctively crave plant matter, hence their love of chewing on grass, or, if desperate, houseplants. Back when I had grass in my Denver yard then this yard, Sweety and my cats Angel and Luvyu daily nibbled on long tender shoots. Now that this yard is also grassless, I add raw chopped plant leaves to Sweety's "stew" which is based on a canned food she likes, with dry oatmeal added (gives her large firm stools which express her anal glands each time she poops), plus at differing times either a splash of olive oil or coconut oil, a few drops of Lugol's Solution for the dietary iodine that has about 90% reversed the hypothyroidism and subsequent sickly skin and other sad issues that a $200 vet visit overlooked), some food grade diatomaceous earth for dietary silica (I add it to my own food for the same reason), plus a fish oil capsule. I zap it in the micropwave for maybe 30 seconds, then sprinkle on a capsule of CoQ10, and a small handful of chopped raw greens, in this case, the edible, nutritious weed "chickweed". I stir it all up, and my sweet 13 year old Sweety scarfs it down. I think that had she lived on commercial dog food alone all these years vs. these high fiber stools, she either might not be here, or be in very poor shape. I've also always given her boiled cow bones and her teeth are white, tartar free, with healthy gums and zero "dog breath". Give this approach a try with your dog...there are many recipes on-line that are variations of this basic concept of high fiber, raw plant matter, and essential fatty acids. The pic of Sweety is from the winter of 2000 when we first started living in this house each winter before making that godawful (reluctant) drive back to Denver each spring, and when there was still grass growing here. John
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