Re: Which Kefir better for dogs?

[Guest guest]

Laurie,

I've given my dog milk kefir for several years now. Her problem is not digestion

but food allergies. I mix it with canned pumpkin for purposes of digestion. She

gets some packaged dry food but that is as treats throughout the day. Generally

we feed her a raw vegetarian diet. In her case that works because she loves

veggies. I also give her food grade diatomaceous earth mixed in with her kefir

and pumpkin. I drink water kefir but have never given her any. I'm not sure the

sugar in it would be that good for her, and she definitely doesn't need the

extra calories.

Hope this helps,

in Oregon

[Guest guest]

Hi Laurie,

I would give your dog the milk kefir, not water kefir. I have been feeding my

cat raw milk for about 8 months now...with my cat detoxing a different times

from the horrible food I used to feed him. There is also frozen raw meat for

pets at the local health food store. If it's a coop, you probably want to join

it so you can get a discount, that is what I do. As far as the digestive issues

and gas problems your dog is experiencing, you may want to try homeopathic

medication on him. I've used homeopathy with my family and my pets...even a

chicken...and it's pretty dramatic. What's

great about homeopathics, it doesn't just take away the symptoms you

are having, but it actually gets to the root cause of the problem and

corrects it. You can find great homeopathic remedies for pets on the

http://www.kingbio.com/store/catalog/Natural-Pet-orderby0-p-1-mf-3.html

From what I know about dogs, they are carnivore and require meat to be healthy.

Feeding your dog a raw food diet is probably one of the best things you can do

for your dog. You will shorten your dogs life by giving him a cooked food diet.

I'm not sure if you know who Dr. Bob Marshall is. He has the show Healthline on

the radio and gives suggestions to people for their health problems. He also

talks about pets on occasion. He has said that feeding dogs and cats cooked

food will shorted their lives by about half. He has dogs that are in I think

their high teens or 20's. It's been a while, so I don't remember the specifics.

Here is the link to his website and his show times are listed on the right hand

side. When you cook any foods, it reduces the nutrional content and kills off

beneficial enzymes which helps us digest our food...this goes for humans and

animals. There are lots of places on the web to get freeze dried raw pet food,

or just find out about the raw food diet for your pets. They are actually more

satisfied after eating raw meat/foods and therefore eat less. But there is one

thing you may not have thought about is that your pets can also go thru a

healing crisis (detoxing).

http://healthline.cc/about-us/about-dr-bob-marshall/

I could not find a search button on his website, since I was looking for him

saying something about the raw food diet for pets. There was a holistic

veterinarian website that is bookmarked in my other browser, which I can't get

to right now. They recommend a raw food diet, with some cooked foods that are

grains/veggies, but I don't know what they are because I haven't been on the

website for a while. You may want to do a search for holistic veterinarianns

and raw food diet in the same search.

I hope this helps,

Al

Which Kefir better for dogs?

I have been doing some reading on making kefir for my dog. I would like

to know the difference in benefits between Milk and Water. By growing in sugar

water, does that mean you consume the sugar?

Some background - my dog Bowser is a large breed (90 lb) Newfoundland/Chow mix.

He just turned 13 in March and has had arthritis since he was 2. Around 6 years

ago I started raw feeding him and treating him holistically. I don't use any

chemicals on him or in our home. He gets a lot of supplements for his

joints/nutrition. Bowser has been having digestive issues since last fall. He

gets gassy at times and his stools are not real firm and smelly. It has been

suggested by a couple of people to start feeding him a home cooked diet. I am

concerned about the change because I know nothing about it but I'm also reading

a book and on a few groups. I have been experimenting with cooking some of his

meat and adding quinoa to the meals and he seems to be doing better in the gas

department. I have also been giving him Probiotics and enzymes for months.

Does anyone have any experiences they can share with Kefir helping their pets

with digestive issues? Also, which kefir would be better?

Thanks,

Laurie

[Guest guest]

Pertaining to the posts about dogs eating kefir/yogurt, my experience, and from

what I have read from holistic vets, is that dogs are omnivorous--not just

carnivorous. They do eat vegetables--pumpkin, for example. And they can eat

raw veggies and fruit. The enzymes in fruit and veggies are beneficial. When

food is cooked, many of the enzymes are destroyed. Dr. Billinghurst, the first

of the raw dog food experts, suggests that certain pureed raw veggies and fruits

are good for your dog, while others are not good. He says this is especially

true for large breed dogs with arthritis, dysplasia, or other joint issues. He

also doesn't like grains for dogs.

I have a 9 month old German Shepherd and since January I've been feeding her

pureed oranges, apples, bananas, sweet potatoes, raw eggs(including the shell,

beets, carrots, spinach, and pumpkin. I use a vitamix to blend all of this. Then

I mix it with ground raw chicken and beef (including some heart, gizzards,

liver), add a little black strap molasses, and then I scoop servings in plastic

wrap, bag it, and freeze it.

When I fix her breakfast or dinner, I have a serving that is almost completely

thawed. I add vitamin C, vitamin E, some probiotics, salmon oil, and some

glucosamine/chondroitin. I serve this raw fruit/veggie/meat mixture with a

little homemade goat's milk yogurt (no sugar added), or plain raw goat's milk,

and she loves it! There is never anything left over. She also gets raw meaty

bones. She appears to have no health issues. Great coat, losts of energy . . .

I have also fed my two Great Pyrenees this diet and they love it, too. They

would enjoy kefir, too, but I can't part with it yet as I don't have enough

grains to make kefir for us and the doggies.

I'm no expert on kefir, but I would think the sugar in water kefir would not be

good for dogs as it has no nutritional value. Milk, however, especially raw

goat's milk, does have great value.

Hope this helps someone,

[Guest guest]

I have a dog with pretty severe digestive issues. Before I discovered kefir (I

discovered it for myself and then, made the connection that maybe it would help

him), he threw up multiple times per day. I started him on a medicine that it

got it down to a few times per week, but he still just didn't feel well. He

hardly played and always (ALWAYS) wanted to just cuddle on my lap as much as

possible. I felt so bad for him.

I started including cow milk kefir in his diet. I was able to cut back to his

medicine that he once needed every 12 hours to only once every 3 days. The

medicine increases his risk for stomach cancer substantially, but I didn't know

what else to do because he couldn't keep any food down without it and was very

sick. The medicine at least kept him doing ok.

I've been giving him the cow milk kefir twice daily for a long time and his

medicine once very 3 days. As long as I was giving him that, he hardly ever

threw up, and I did see an increase in energy, though I could tell he still

didn't feel the greatest.

Well, I've recently, in the past month, had a new discovery. I started using

goat milk for my own kefir after finally finding some in my area that is not

ultra-pasteurized. It is $16/gallon. So, I was just making that for myself and

making it stretch and then, buying cow milk for him since it was so much

cheaper.

Well, I ran out of the milk for him one day and wasn't able to get to the store

for the next few days. So, I shared my goat milk kefir with him every morning

and night.

His puking stopped COMPLETELY. He seemed to just do so much better, so I

withheld his medicine to see how he'd do...over a week went by and no puking at

all. I switched back to cow milk kefir just to see, and the next day, he was

puking again. I put him back on the goat milk kefir and he hasn't puked since

and I have not had to give him the medicine since.

Adding to this...he is finally acting like a dog! I took him to my parents' a

while back and he was running and running and running and running around in

their yard while we were outside. He never does that! He has been playing and

running around...I can't describe the difference. I feel bad that he has

suffered for 5 years when there was a solution. but, at least I found it.

So, I don't know if it is just my dog, or if most dogs would digest goat milk

more effectively. But, maybe it's worth a shot if you're looking to improve

digestive issues.

>

> I have been doing some reading on making kefir for my dog. I would like to

know the difference in benefits between Milk and Water. By growing in sugar

water, does that mean you consume the sugar?

>

> Some background - my dog Bowser is a large breed (90 lb) Newfoundland/Chow

mix. He just turned 13 in March and has had arthritis since he was 2. Around 6

years ago I started raw feeding him and treating him holistically. I don't use

any chemicals on him or in our home. He gets a lot of supplements for his

joints/nutrition. Bowser has been having digestive issues since last fall. He

gets gassy at times and his stools are not real firm and smelly. It has been

suggested by a couple of people to start feeding him a home cooked diet. I am

concerned about the change because I know nothing about it but I'm also reading

a book and on a few groups. I have been experimenting with cooking some of his

meat and adding quinoa to the meals and he seems to be doing better in the gas

department. I have also been giving him Probiotics and enzymes for months.

>

> Does anyone have any experiences they can share with Kefir helping their pets

with digestive issues? Also, which kefir would be better?

>

> Thanks,

> Laurie

>

[Guest guest]

One thing I will mention...regarding uncooked eggs and the shells, I have read

in several places that you should partially cook eggs before feeding them to

your dog. There is something in it...but, I can't remember what it is

called...starts with a B I think...that dogs convert into something that is very

hard on their liver over time. However, cooking it slightly breaks it down and

makes it safe. You do not need to thoroughly cook the eggs. Just slightly cook

them. Just wanted to mention it in case you want to look into it.

My dogs love raw chicken wings a couple times a week. It is good for teeth

cleaning and a good source of calcium when they eat the bones. For those who may

freak out, raw chicken bones are safe for dogs to eat...it's cooked chicken

bones that are dangerous because they are brittle and can break, creating sharp

pieces in their digestive tract.

At any rate...my dogs absolutely love kefir. Of course, they love food in

general, haha. But, kefir is the only food item that my little chihuahua will

try to sneak out of my glass if I'm not looking. I think I mentioned this in

here before, but one time, I left a mug of kefir on the coaster on the arm on my

couch and went to the kitchen for a second. I thought nothing of leaving it

because my dogs are very good about leaving my food alone and waiting for their

own food and never get into my food. Well, I walked back in and my chihuahua was

lapping up the kefir from my mug. I ran across the living room shouting, " No! "

Normally, if she's doing something wrong and I react like that, she stops what

she is doing and cowers down. But, this time, she just started lapping up the

kefir even faster to get as much of it as she could before I got to her to stop

her, hahahaha. Kefir is the only food item she has ever done that with and every

time I'm drinking it while sitting on the couch, she tries to sneak it when I'm

not looking! She can't resist it!

>

> Pertaining to the posts about dogs eating kefir/yogurt, my experience, and

from what I have read from holistic vets, is that dogs are omnivorous--not just

carnivorous. They do eat vegetables--pumpkin, for example. And they can eat

raw veggies and fruit. The enzymes in fruit and veggies are beneficial. When

food is cooked, many of the enzymes are destroyed. Dr. Billinghurst, the first

of the raw dog food experts, suggests that certain pureed raw veggies and fruits

are good for your dog, while others are not good. He says this is especially

true for large breed dogs with arthritis, dysplasia, or other joint issues. He

also doesn't like grains for dogs.

>

> I have a 9 month old German Shepherd and since January I've been feeding her

pureed oranges, apples, bananas, sweet potatoes, raw eggs(including the shell,

beets, carrots, spinach, and pumpkin. I use a vitamix to blend all of this. Then

I mix it with ground raw chicken and beef (including some heart, gizzards,

liver), add a little black strap molasses, and then I scoop servings in plastic

wrap, bag it, and freeze it.

>

> When I fix her breakfast or dinner, I have a serving that is almost completely

thawed. I add vitamin C, vitamin E, some probiotics, salmon oil, and some

glucosamine/chondroitin. I serve this raw fruit/veggie/meat mixture with a

little homemade goat's milk yogurt (no sugar added), or plain raw goat's milk,

and she loves it! There is never anything left over. She also gets raw meaty

bones. She appears to have no health issues. Great coat, losts of energy . . .

>

> I have also fed my two Great Pyrenees this diet and they love it, too. They

would enjoy kefir, too, but I can't part with it yet as I don't have enough

grains to make kefir for us and the doggies.

>

> I'm no expert on kefir, but I would think the sugar in water kefir would not

be good for dogs as it has no nutritional value. Milk, however, especially raw

goat's milk, does have great value.

>

> Hope this helps someone,

>

>

[Guest guest]

It is something naturally found in eggs.

I found it. It is called avidin, and it is an enzyme that binds to biotin (a B

vitamin), which means it prevents your body (and your dog's body) from absorbing

and utilizing that B vitamin. Heating it causes this enzyme to break down.

Remember, birds make eggs with what is in them because they're good for their

baby birds...not because they're good for us or our pets. So, just because

something is natural and done the right way doesn't always mean that it's 100%

safe and healthy.

It's not going to kill your dog to feed him/her raw eggs. But, if it's a daily

thing, I'd partially cook them before putting them in the food.

>

> >

>

> > Pertaining to the posts about dogs eating kefir/yogurt, my experience, and

from what I have read from holistic vets, is that dogs are omnivorous--not just

carnivorous. They do eat vegetables--pumpkin, for example. And they can eat

raw veggies and fruit. The enzymes in fruit and veggies are beneficial. When

food is cooked, many of the enzymes are destroyed. Dr. Billinghurst, the first

of the raw dog food experts, suggests that certain pureed raw veggies and fruits

are good for your dog, while others are not good. He says this is especially

true for large breed dogs with arthritis, dysplasia, or other joint issues. He

also doesn't like grains for dogs.

>

> >

>

> > I have a 9 month old German Shepherd and since January I've been feeding her

pureed oranges, apples, bananas, sweet potatoes, raw eggs(including the shell,

beets, carrots, spinach, and pumpkin. I use a vitamix to blend all of this. Then

I mix it with ground raw chicken and beef (including some heart, gizzards,

liver), add a little black strap molasses, and then I scoop servings in plastic

wrap, bag it, and freeze it.

>

> >

>

> > When I fix her breakfast or dinner, I have a serving that is almost

completely thawed. I add vitamin C, vitamin E, some probiotics, salmon oil, and

some glucosamine/chondroitin. I serve this raw fruit/veggie/meat mixture with a

little homemade goat's milk yogurt (no sugar added), or plain raw goat's milk,

and she loves it! There is never anything left over. She also gets raw meaty

bones. She appears to have no health issues. Great coat, losts of energy . . .

>

> >

>

> > I have also fed my two Great Pyrenees this diet and they love it, too. They

would enjoy kefir, too, but I can't part with it yet as I don't have enough

grains to make kefir for us and the doggies.

>

> >

>

> > I'm no expert on kefir, but I would think the sugar in water kefir would not

be good for dogs as it has no nutritional value. Milk, however, especially raw

goat's milk, does have great value.

>

> >

>

> > Hope this helps someone,

>

> >

>

> >

>

[Guest guest]

I'm not able to get raw milk in my area without driving a long way, and I'm

unable to do that. I don't have time to drive 1 1/2 hours to the burbs every

time I need milk (I live in the city of Chicago). But, as I said, he drinks the

goat milk from the store that I ferment into kefir, and he has not puked in

weeks. I had to search and search and search to find a goat milk that was not

ultra-pasteurized, and finally found that Whole Foods sells it. hopefully, they

won't stop selling it because it's the only place I've found that sells it

around here within a reasonable distance from me.

He was puking because his body over produces both acid and bile. When he'd get

too much acid and bile in his stomach, it would make him sick and he would puke.

In the same way that kefir helps with acid reflux disease, kefir helps him. The

medication he used to take is actually a medicine humans take for acid reflux

disease. The kefir keeps him from over producing the acid and bile, so he

doesn't puke.

My dogs' diets are half raw and and half not. I can't afford to feed them both a

100% raw diet, though I do at times when I can and wish I could do so more.

Gotta be able to pay the bills.

>

> I would recommend using RAW cow or goat milk, not pasturized. He was vomiting

because he was getting something that wasn't good for him. Pasturized milk does

not have the enzymes and probiotics that raw milk does. You will see your dogs

health get much better if you feed him a raw diet, that's mostly raw meat, eggs,

etc. He could still go thru some illness periods where he is detoxing, but

homeopathy is absolutely wonderful, even for pets. You can use the exact same

remedy you would for humans. Whatever his symptoms, match it with the

homeopathic remedy. Go to kingbio.com and look up the symptoms. I even used

the homeopathic remedy of Bone Strengthener on my chicken that was laying

shell-less eggs (she laid 9 of them). After I started giving her the

homeopathy, she started putting a shell on her eggs.

>

> Al

>

>

[Guest guest]

Regarding feeding dogs raw eggs, I found this and I think it gives a good

explanation about the raw egg questions.

http://tuxedodogs.com/raw-eggs-for-dogs-beans-loves-his-raw-eggs

Basically the author says, while raw egg whites can contribute to a biotin

deficiency, balancing the dog's diet with raw liver, for example, is a way

to avoid a biotin deficiency. In the wild, there are no cooked egg whites.

The author also points out that the worry about this originated with a study

done in 1963. Dogs were fed a diet high in egg whites-not the whole egg.

This is quite different from giving a dog a couple of eggs each week.

The author isn't a vet, but he appears to be well researched on the topic .

.. .

[Guest guest]

Vaccines do NOT cause diseases. People, please get your puppies and kittens

vaccinated. Parvo and distemper were around before vaccines against them even

existed, so they in no way caused these diseases in the first place. They can't

even make a vaccine without having a sample of the disease.

I've seen plenty of puppies pass away from parvo or suffer permanent brain

damage from distemper. Their immune systems, no matter how healthy, do not have

the ability to mount an attack against these diseases quickly enough to conquer

them. Before someone argues those puppies just weren't healthy...ANY immune

system requires time to make the cells necessary to beat a specific disease. The

body could not possibly make enough fighter cells, which specifically fight ONE

type of disease and no other (very specific, target attacks, which usually is

the best way), to fight all diseases...there simply wouldn't be enough room in

the body to store them all, let alone energy. The body waits until it is visited

by such a disease and then, signals the body to make cells that will fight THAT

specific disease. That takes time for those cells to reproduce, no matter how

healthy your immune system is.

Some diseases do very severe damage in the body very fast. The dangerous ones

are the ones that can do damage in a shorter amount of time than the amount of

time that the immune system requires to mount an attack. That is why we

administer vaccines. It keeps a steady amount of those cells there and ready,

already reproduced and ready to attack as soon as that disease enters the body.

Even vaccines don't work without a healthy immune system, so they are in no way

intended to replace a healthy diet and lifestyle.

It is true that you do not need to vaccinate every year...that is totally not

necessary. In spite of that, vets are not trying to get your pets sick so that

they can make money. I have 2 friends that are veterinarians, and that is an

offensive thing to say and presume.

However, vaccines have never been shown to cause disease, and any " studies "

people site to say they are have not been conducted in a valid and

scientifically accurate manner. No one has ever shown me a study in which I can

review its stats and data, which is what a scientific study is supposed to do

unless it has something to hide so that I can review what they did, if the data

was collected in the correct manner and if they ran their stats in a correct

manner. Every one I've seen simply didn't reveal its data or stats at all and

even if it had, I could tell by what little they revealed about their

experimental method that they had all kinds of confounding variables, and they

were not making this known to their readers who, unfortunately, usually do not

have the training necessary to critically evaluate the study.

I'd love to see any real studies done in an accurate way from beginning to end

that supports this idea that vaccines caused disease in the first place.

Please keep your puppies and kittens safe by getting them vaccinated.

>

> > Hmmm, never heard of that about the eggs. Perhapse it's where the eggs come

from...factory farm vs pastured eggs from chickens that eat grass, bugs, weeds.

>

[Guest guest]

Thanks...Edgewater isn't too terribly far from me. The only places I had found

were literally a couple hours away, far past the burbs. I will check this place

out.

Although, I am currently trying to get pregnant after having a miscarriage last

August, and I won't take a single sip of unpasteurized milk products while I'm

pregnant whenever I am pregnant again...but, maybe for afterward, I'll check it

out. I'd like to check out their meat options as well for now.

>

> >

>

> > I would recommend using RAW cow or goat milk, not pasturized. He was

vomiting because he was getting something that wasn't good for him. Pasturized

milk does not have the enzymes and probiotics that raw milk does. You will see

your dogs health get much better if you feed him a raw diet, that's mostly raw

meat, eggs, etc. He could still go thru some illness periods where he is

detoxing, but homeopathy is absolutely wonderful, even for pets. You can use

the exact same remedy you would for humans. Whatever his symptoms, match it

with the homeopathic remedy. Go to kingbio.com and look up the symptoms. I

even used the homeopathic remedy of Bone Strengthener on my chicken that was

laying shell-less eggs (she laid 9 of them). After I started giving her the

homeopathy, she started putting a shell on her eggs.

>

> >

>

> > Al

>

> >

>

> >

>

[Guest guest]

Good point. Maybe we can give our dogs egg yolks and then, cook the whites for

ourselves for a low calorie omelet.

>

> Woldn't it make sense then to feed your dog only the raw egg yolks then?

>

> Al

>

[Guest guest]

Oops, think I just sent one without signing it.

I said, good point. Maybe we can give our dogs the egg yolks and then, cook the

egg whites for ourselves for a low calorie omelet.

>

> Woldn't it make sense then to feed your dog only the raw egg yolks then?

>

> Al

>

[Guest guest]

*** You really should nor go around telling people what to do with their

animals. People can do the research for themselves and make their own

decisions. ***

I for one, am incredibly thrilled that groups like this exist with people

offering opinions from various walks of life and experiences. Sometimes

the opinions are couched in ways that we do not like, but as long as there

is no bullying, I will still listen/read and learn. I do agree with your

view on vaccines, Al, but we are always telling people what to do, even if

it does not appear so. Our opinions sway people. Our voices are not always

diplomatic, but hopefully we see through it and just value the info that is

shared. Yes, many can research on their own, but lots of people are not

good at it, or do not have time for it. Here, in these groups we get the

condensed versions of the research and hopefully can come to an " educated "

decision of what to do, in whatever situations. Sometimes I am a bull in a

china shop and do not say things in the most pc way, either. Ah

well..those were my 2 cents worth. If I misunderstood something or am

misinformed here, let me know.

--

" Always surround yourself with people that make you a Better Person "

with thanks, Miriana

[Guest guest]

Our Westie 12 week old girl, just loves the raw milk keifer we make. Seems to be

her favorite treat. Every other day she can have some excess kefir grain. She is

a healthy relaxed girl very good for an alpha!

We look for natural methods but we do vaccinate when needed. The most important

is the flea drops. We think drops are a pesticide introduces into the

bloodstream. So we use the tag which used the dogs own energy to protect. We

also use a spray that repels fleas and ticks. Seems to work fine.

Regards,

n on

>

> *** You really should nor go around telling people what to do with their

> animals. People can do the research for themselves and make their own

> decisions. ***

>

> I for one, am incredibly thrilled that groups like this exist with people

> offering opinions from various walks of life and experiences. Sometimes

> the opinions are couched in ways that we do not like, but as long as there

> is no bullying, I will still listen/read and learn. I do agree with your

> view on vaccines, Al, but we are always telling people what to do, even if

> it does not appear so. Our opinions sway people. Our voices are not always

> diplomatic, but hopefully we see through it and just value the info that is

> shared. Yes, many can research on their own, but lots of people are not

> good at it, or do not have time for it. Here, in these groups we get the

> condensed versions of the research and hopefully can come to an " educated "

> decision of what to do, in whatever situations. Sometimes I am a bull in a

> china shop and do not say things in the most pc way, either. Ah

> well..those were my 2 cents worth. If I misunderstood something or am

> misinformed here, let me know.

>

> --

> " Always surround yourself with people that make you a Better Person "

> with thanks, Miriana

>

>

>