Well, it's the family dog and my parents paid for her. They had to pay $540.00 but she had her 1st and 2nd shots and can you believe she was seperated from her mother for the previous 2 weeks before we got her?
Anyway I found out on the Shirleys Wellness Cafe that she pulverizes the raw egg with the shell before giving it to her dogs, as they need the calcium too, and wolfs naturally eat eggs out in the wild (you wonder how)??
So I'll try blending an egg really extra good to see how she likes it, and I know cottage cheese over her kibble with some liquid flax oil will really spark her up.
I know Cane Corso will have some good advice.
Here's what I copied from Shirley's Wellness Cafe:
http://www.shirleys-wellness-cafe.com/puppy-care.htm
Routine Vaccinations, puppy food…..
The Puppies Pantry (excerpt)
Diet is extremely important in the growing months of a dog's life. There are many processed food products designed especially for puppies which offer a convenient method of feeding. But as with all dogs, regardless of breed or age, puppies benefit from variety in their diet. We strongly recommend feeding fresh, mainly raw food to your puppy ( and dog) because the best nutrition maintains the best health, especially over the long-term.
Pups will also eat small pieces of raw meaty bone such as chicken wings or frames. We start to offer chicken wings from approx. 6 weeks of age. Obviously this varies from pup to pup. A very small piece of chicken wing should be offered at first, to assess how well your pup will cope. Chicken is good for starters because it is soft, easily chewed and digested. To assist a very small pup, the wing can be placed on a chopping board, given a good smack with a mallet to break up the bone – of course one does this before handing the wing to the pup ! This action is also reassuring for the owner, who has visions of their pup choking with a whole bone stuck in its throat. Rest assured, they won’t !
We give 4 small meals daily till 10 to 12 weeks, then reduce to 3 meals with a biscuit snack for supper . We give mid morning and afternoon snacks sometimes but not every day. By watching for the growth spurts which are generally preceded by increased appetite, its easy to increase their food as they need it, then ease back a little as the rapid growth phase slows up again.
At six to seven months we reduce to two meals a day. The pups still have a lot of growing to do over the next few months, because they grow more slowly than kibble fed puppies, so they still need reasonable amounts of good food.
Each pup is different and each pups needs can vary from day to day, just as your own needs vary. So if the pup still seems to be hungry after a meal, listen to him. You can give him extra right away or give a small snack later. However, be wise to the greedy pup who will eat till he bursts if you let him ! more
If you prefer to feed mostly dry or canned food for convenience and cannot be persuaded to change, it’s a simple matter to top it off with a spoonful of cottage cheese, yoghurt, or substitute some of the canned food with a serving of some of the meat and vegetables that you are eating yourself. Your pup will certainly appreciate the change !
"The common practice of feeding meat without bones (or bone meal) is nutritionally disastrous for dogs and cats. There are far too many people giving eggs and meat to their pets without providing a balance to all the phosphorus they contain. Meat contains no calcium, and lots of phosphorus; bones contain lots of calcium. Eggs contain lots of phosphorus; the shells contain calcium. That is nature's balance. If we feed meat without bones or eggs without shells, or aren't sure of the correct ratios of those things to feed, we must use something to replace them. It is a common and tragic mistake to give a diet far too high in phosphorus to cats and dogs." Christie Keith from Natural diet.... what is it? Raw fat is also vitally important in carnivore's diet for optimum health and performance
http://www.shirleys-wellness-cafe.com/sampleraw.htm
Note from Shirley - I fed my former dog Shasta a homemade grainless balanced raw food diet which included raw meat, raw eggs, raw veggies, seavegetables, grounded flaxseeds, etc. (see recipe). My new dog, Kuuma, is very finicky and won't eat veggies, flaxseeds, etc. He only likes to eat raw meat such as chicken, pig feet, beef heart, etc. However, I won't feed my dog meat exclusively. I believe that flaxseed or flaxoil, kelp, glyconutrients, eggs, greens and other nutrients are important to support a dog's health. Therefore I supplement Kuuma's raw meat diet with healthy kibbles, which he seems to enjoy.
Plenty of raw eggs (I pulverize the eggs with their shells in the blender. The shells are an excellent source of calcium and other minerals.) I wouldn't think to feed Shasta corporate-industrial-farmed-produced eggs where a million beakless chicken are cramped into dark cages and soaked with antibiotics and hormones. I feed her only fresh eggs, produces by free-ranged, antibiotics and hormones free chickens. These eggs are available at health food stores and outdoors farmer's markets. (Some people only give eggs to their dogs once or twice a week. Wild animals do not eat eggs everyday. Maybe they eat eggs only during the egg-laying season. Perhaps it is not wise for me to give eggs to my dog everyday but whipped eggs are very convenient to flavor her veggies and her kelp and make these palatable.)
About eggs (p 38):
"Eggs from hens, ducks, or turtles are a rich source of mineral salts and vitamins.... Eggs must be fresh, as staleness renders them indigestible. They should be fed raw, because cooking causes them to adhere to the digestive tract.... Eggs are quite a natural food to the dog, for dogs will seek out and eat the eggs of sea-birds and other birds, such as game-birds, which lay their eggs on the ground. Eggs are very *unsuitable* food for sick animals because of their highly fermentative properties. During the heat of fever, for instance, they rapidly poison the body instead of strengthening it. Egg-and-milk has long been the most misguided of orthodox medical-recommended invalid foods; the giving of such food has done about as much to spoil cures by orthodox treatment as has the popular use of the destructive sulphonamide group of drugs. It is claimed that raw egg-white harms health: I do not agree. Egg-stealers, such as foxes, weasels, cats and rats keep very well, thank you!"
http://www.shirleys-wellness-cafe.com/sampleraw.htm
Occasionally I mix grounded raw nuts, raw cottage cheese or raw yogurt to flavor her vegetables.
I do NOT feed cooked grains to Shasta. (why grains are harmful to carnivores)
About 1/2 to 1 tablespoon of dry kelp meal (marine plants) mixed in her meal (see the recommended kelp Feeding Rates )
About 1/2 to 1 tablespoon of fulvic acid minerals ( Fulvic neutralizes toxins and can eliminate food poisoning within minutes. Fulvic are naturally occuring absorbable plant derived minerals)
About 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of dry Pascalite clay powder mixed in her meal (and I add a teaspoon of pascalite in her drinking water. (non chlorinated water) It has helped cows with scours and pneumonia. Veterinarians use it on dogs, cats, horses, etc... for various afflictions including injuries and infections.
Grounded raw flax seeds (about 1/2 to 1 cup per meal) or a tablespoon of flax oil. Whole flax seeds do NOT get digested. Use a coffee grinder to grind them. I also add a couple of tablespoons of olive oil (extra virgin, cold pressed), and a couple of tablespoons of grapeseed oil. Bee pollen granules (rich in naturally occuring vitamins and minerals) to her food. These contain natural source of B complex, vitamins and minerals. It is very good for any animals, but especially for the sick, young or old pets.
Occasionally I may also add a couple of tablespoons of raw carob powder and unsulfured blackstrap molasse. (rich source of vitamins and minerals).
Shasta's stools are always firm, shapely and the odor is never offensive. When she was eating kibble or canned food her stools were soft, runny or watery and extremely malodorous.
Shasta eats RAW bones everyday.
Only cooked bones are dangerous. Raw bones are safe to eat and are an important source of calcium and other minerals. In the wild animal do not debone their prey (birds, rats, squirrels, etc) before eating them, or do they?
I give Shasta 1/2 to 1 pound of RAW beef or pork bones everyday, which she devours completely. I do NOT give her the hard marrow bones which can't be cracked or eaten. She gets the ribs, and other small and soft meaty bones which she can completely swallow after a good 10 minute chewing work-out.
For Shasta, raw pig feet are even better than soup bones because they have tough, thick skins and tendons, which makes wonderful chewies. It takes Shasta about 45 minutes to completely eat a whole small pig foot and she absolutely adores them (pig feet cut in half lengthwise may be easier to eat for some dogs). Meaty bones strengthen her jaw bones, massage her gums while stimulating her salivary and digestive glands, help reduce plaques and calculus accumulation on the tooth surfaces, clean teeth and reduce occurrence of gingivitis (dental hygiene) and provides her with a good source of calcium and other important minerals. (Some people are reluctant to give raw pork to their animals because of fear of certain worms. Shasta has been eating raw pork for years without problems. Perhaps it is advisable to check with a holistic vet before giving raw pork to your animal. I would appreciate if you could keep me informed of information that you would learn about this matter.
She also eats raw chicken legs, thigh, necks and backs which are inexpensive. And yes, she eats the chicken bones too. (I once saw an animal documentary demonstrating little foxes hunting doves. They would swallow their catches whole, feather, beak, claws, bones, and all!)
Shasta has been on this diet ever since for the past 8 years. At 10 years of age, she is in vibrant health with the energy level of a dog 1/2 her age. She NEVER has to see a vet because she is never sick. She eats the same food with no variation. She loves her food.
