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Dietary Needs - Feeding Wolfdogs for Optimum Health

Loosely, there are 3 basic types of feeding programs that wolfdog 'owners' tend to use: all-kibble (bagged or canned processed dog foods), kibble supplemented with real foods (cooked or raw), or an all-raw diet.

We don't recommend any one feeding type, although we do encourage you to consider your animal to be a unique individual and choose a feeding program that is best suited to his/her needs. Please consult a Veterinarian to ensure the choice you make is appropriate for your wolfdog, and so that you are aware of any possible health issues you might need to take into consideration.

Although some wolfdogs can be maintained solely on a high protein dog food diet, many tend to require a bit more "real" foods than can be found in kibble. Usually the higher the content range, the less likely the wolfdog is able to handle the grain and processed ingredients in commercial dog foods.  

We're in the process of putting together our educational materials. In the meantime, below are links to websites which can be of assistance to you in learning more about the dietary needs of wolfdogs.

Wolfdogs for Beginners' Feeding Your Canine

*From the February 1999 issue of The Shape of Enrichment, article titled "Supplemental Carcass Feeding for Zoo Carnivores". NOTE: this is a link to a PDF document. You will need a PDF reader such as Adobe Acrobat to view it.

Stormkloud's What Do You Really Know about Dog Food article.

Information and Sources on the Bones and Raw Foods (B.A.R.F.) Diet.

Whole Dog Journal's Top Ten Dry Dog Food Recommendations.

Betty Lewis, RVT, Dr.A.N.'s article, "Nutrition for Companion Carnivores".

Australian Veterinarian and raw-foods author, Dr. Ian Billinghurst's website.

Fat Dogs

Nutritional Factors from USDA

B-Natural's Newsletter, 1999 Spring Edition Dogs- Anatomy of a Carnivore and Dietary Needs, gives good information however it quotes outdated information on the classification of dogs. Wolves are Canis lupus and dogs are Canis lupus familiarus.

Aunt Jeni's The Importance of Feeding a Natural Diet.

Don't be turned off by the very simplistic front page of Mary's Raw Food Information. This straightforward website is jam-packed with excellent information and references.

Jane Johnson's Bones and Raw Foods FAQ, frequently asked questions about raw-feeding.

Note: Some of the information presented in the above mentioned websites might not be appropriate for wolfdogs. We provide links to these sites to provide you with access to the resources, please learn from them and use your own best-judgement as to the 'worth' of the information.


For more information, please e-mail education@wolfdogalliance.org.

   

   
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