(Scout) 
(Maggie)
For the Better Part of their Lives I fed them Dog Food ..I chose what I understood to be a higher quality Dog Food and used Eukanuba. Both of them had their allergies and Hotspots (what has been said to be notable things in goldens) throughout the years.
Well on the note of Yellow Spots ..which is common to females because they have a high acidity level in their urine I was told. Well we fought burnt grass for years ..running out and washing the lawn everytime they went to the bathroom ..making sure to pick up after them ASAP as not to leave anything to burn the lawn ..etc. We also bought products that claimed they would get rid of the yellow spots ..and we even went the natural route and used dish liquid soap and water to spray down the lawn ..to rid it of the urine as well as the smell...
NONE of which ever worked. It was really an endless and tiring battle. However we came to terms with the fact we loved our girls and yellow spots and all they were here to stay ..and we would just replace the lawn as needed.
Well about a year ago ..Many of you may recall our oldest Scout ..had some health issues ..and I can't prove it ..but after 3 occurences we linked it to her dog food ..She would get ill ..She couldn't eat her dog food ..we would give her an out of the ice box natural diet ..she would come back ..and then we would begin giving her, her dog food ..and once again she would relapse. ( yes this is leading to the yellow spots) ..Finally we made the decision to begin feeding her an all natural diet made right here at home.
Fast Forward ..6 months ..and Maggie ..was having trouble with severe arthritis as well as being overweight and a Massive tumor growing on her shoulder. From her Eukanuba Senior Maintenance diet we were feeding her the recommended amount of 3 cups ..but poor thing just kept gaining ..So I started cutting her food back until we were down to 1/2 a cup a day and still she wasn't losing but poor thing was ravenous for food. So Off to the vet we went for her arthritis and her weight .
I love the Vets office I have ..they really care about the dogs and are not opposed to holistic ideas even though they are not holistic vets. And they don't run 20 million tests and charge you a 1000 dollars and tell you to give the dog 5 prescriptions a month .for the remainder of it's life ..No ..they are out to cure the animal ..not put a band aid on it and I salute them for that !
Anyhow ..the day I took Maggie in Dr. said ..that had we considered feeding her naturally and getting her off dog food. That She needed a diet ..that had less Fat and less protein ..which would keep the tumor from growing any larger and would help her get to a good weight. Well of course we were already doing it for Scout so why not Maggie ..and why I didn't to begin with ..after seeing what happened with Scout I don't know ..Sometimes our brains just don't fully function do they ...LOL !
So That week ..we weaned Maggie off her dog food by mixing veggies in with it ..It wasn't hard to wean her ..she was getting so little dog food anyhow.
We began feeding her and Scout at night ..Chicken (that had been pressure cooked) Fresh Grated Zuchinni, Grated Squash, Grated Carrot, cucumber, and celery...all mixed with Chicken broth from the pressure cooked chicken poured over it minus the fat ( we strained that off). We came up with our own amounts and ways of putting it altogether according to different articles we read ...In the morning ..they would get 1 hard boiled egg, 3 frozen strawberries, 1 banana, and some softened whole oatmeal.
Well here we are 3 month later ..and Guess what ... NO MORE YELLOW SPOTS ON THE LAWN !!! Amazingly We live in a drought ridden area and have not seen rain in a year ..we lightly water our lawns during the week ...and they stay green ..all that said ..the dogs are still going out there as much as before and there is not any burnt grass anymore. All the dead spots have filled in with green grass ..!!
My conclusion ..After reading about what goes into Dog Food ..I am appalled ..Our animals wouldn't have eaten the stuff they are putting in their food when they were in the wild ..so why do we feed it to them ?? It's like everything in life we just take all those in powers word ..and believe that they are doing the best for us ..or in this case our pets ..and they are not !!! We need to be vigilant in all areas of our life .... to check things out for ourselves ..research and find out the truth. Once again all that said ..the acidity levels that were in their urine ..were caused from the Dog Food !!!
Oh and Maggie went from 104 lbs to 87lbs in 3 months..She is at a perfect weight now ..her arthritis isn't as bad ...and They LOVE their breakfast and dinner ..!!! Also ..neither have suffered from any allergies or Hot Spots this summer which is a First !
So if you are suffering from burnt yellow spots in your lawn and have a female dog ...I highly recommend trying a natural diet for your dog .. as well as if your dog has allergies or is a breed that suffers with hot spots ..Try a natural diet !!! I think you will be amazed that your dog will thrive.
Your probably thinking it takes to much time ..Well we Buy two Whole chickens and pressure cook them ..(they can eat raw meat but my dogs won't) Those 2 chickens will last us near 2 weeks ..and we just keep the meat off them in the frig ..(However if you pressure cook the chickens longer until the bones are soft mush ..you can feed them the soft mush bones and it's actually good for them ..BUT the bones must be so soft they turn to mush in your hands.
Then each night it takes me about 10 minutes to grate their veggies and mix it all up ..and In the morning it takes me about 10 minutes to fix their breakfast ..I just do it while I'm fixing mine and multi-task it.
Well I hope this info. is helpful to even just one person out there ..Our animals are important too !!
Blessings ..Sara
