Lhasa Apsos are first and foremost dogs and dogs need good, natural nutritious dog food, not processed, cooked, dried or 'humanised' foods!  It seems that many people are afraid to feed their dogs on natural dog food and many veterinarians promote processed products, but DIET is NOT part of Veterinary training!

Anyone who will not take the time to study and learn about what they are feeding their dog and research the veterinarian facts about illnesses in dogs that are increasing, is neglecting their dog.  Processed and dried foods that claim they are "scientifically" made are expensive - why is that?  For the "usual reasons"... if you claim something is the "best" then you have to back that up by putting a high price on it and in this case to also make owners feel as if they care for their dog so much that they will pay anything!  GOOD FOOD IS NOT ABOUT MONEY - it is about using our common sense and studying, researching and learning.  

Did you know that since the 1960s when processed dog foods became been available (in Australia and much ealier in the USA and UK), there has been a massive rise in degenerative disease within our pet population?

Three girls from one litter were raised from puppies on BARF and all three are the healthiest, brightest Lhasa puppies we have had! Our other dogs have responded superbly too and will refuse anything but raw foods now, however, I can see the difference in those that were raised totally on a BARF diet and only wish that I had never cooked the meat. I did not do so years ago and the cooked meat only became part of my dog's diet when I got my first Apso - why, I do not know, save to say that she was small and so much a part of the household that I made the mistake of treating her too much that way and of course that included her diet.

WHAT DO WE FEED OUR PUPPY AND ADULT APSOS?

Puppies get finely mushed up ground beef and BONES with meat on them.

From 8 weeks of age they are fed a variety of raw minced meats: lamb and beef mainly. Plus they get a raw egg three times weekly, sardines in oil at least once weekly and a 1/4 of a BARF pattie which we mix in with their meat.

Around 14 weeks of age we introduce chicken mince (with ground bones) into their diet as well.

Basically, this becomes their diet for life!

WHAT DO THE TIBETANS FEED THEIR APSOS?

Since having to flee their homeland due to the Chinese invasion of 1959, Tibetans have changed their own diets and consequently that of their dogs greatly as the herbs and berries available in Tibet, together with dried Yak meat just is not available. The Tibetans told me how their dogs were deteriorating in health, not just from the lack of altitude but also from the foods they were now forced to feed them. The standard diet in Tibet was RAW MEAT, FINELY GRATED RAW VEGETABLES AND DRIED BERRIES and of course BONES! Puppies were raised on bones...

Tibetans have a highly developed and intelligent form of Veterinary science and their animals were very carefully attended to. They are renowned for their horse races and love of dogs.

Milk was either from the Yak or the Dhri (a Tibetan cow of huge proportions) and butter was plentiful. Many Tibetans in exile have died from the lack of butter in their famous butter tea! Their Lhasas were also given a small saucer of this tea, but it is not like ordinary tea and as one Lama said to me "it is more like soup"! Which it is, as it is made from freshly picked tea that looks like a bird's nest - this is brewed for a long time and then the butter is put into the very large butter churn and pumped up and down until it is frothy and soft. Tea is then added and this is mixed and served. Personally, I find it most unpleasant, but my daughter relished it!  

Since their exile, the Tibetans have been drinking less and less Tibetan tea and more chai or 'sweet tea', so the dogs got this too - full of sugar, sweetened condensed milk and ordinary tea.

In 1984 I was presented with a beautiful little 4 month old dark brown and white particolour female Lhasa Apso from the Kargyu-pa Monastery in Boudanath, Nepal.  We only had her a couple of days when I noticed a lump in her stomach.  My friend, Lama Ganden came rushing back and took her away, begging me not to tell my son (4 years of age) that she had cancer.  Cancer in dogs was not heard of in Tibet.  Ganden later told me that they just could not get the right foods any more and things were "difficult" for Tibetans now.  The Tibetan people are strong and courageous, they do not tell of the horrendous things that have happened to their family, themselves or others.


LHASA APSOS IN THE WEST

Things are not "difficult" for us - we live in an affluent society and can choose whatever we wish to eat, so it is our DUTY to feed our dogs correctly and not believe advertising blurb about processed foods being good for our dogs.  The proof of our NEGLECT is there - dogs are becoming increasingly ill.


There is no point in me writing all about this healthy, natural method of diet, as Dr. Billinghurst has written it all and he is a revolutionary expert in this field, so please CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW and LEARN WHAT DAMAGE WE HAVE BEEN DOING TO OUR ANIMALS AND HOW TO STOP IT NOW!





"... smaller pets have a larger body surface area in proportion to their weight than large pets." Dr. Ian Billinghurst, B. Vet. Sc.

ABC INTERVIEW WITH DR. BILLINGHURST...

The world is in the grip of fad diet mania. There's the Cabbage Soup diet, The South Beach diet and perhaps most infamous of them all is the Atkins diet. Hollywood celebrities swear by the regime and pet owners are now being told their overweight companion could benefit from it as well.

New South Wales veterinarian and author Dr Ian Billinghurst says that high carb and low protein dog foods on the market are increasing obesity and related disease in our pets, much the same as in humans. So what is wrong with the high carbohydrate pet food we're feeding our cats and dogs?

Dr Billinghurst explains that when humans and animals eat the wrong foods, high carb foods, the body produces a greater level of insulin, which works to store sugar as fat without burning it off. High insulin levels are also responsible for producing high levels of cholesterol. So not only are pets obtaining cholesterol from food, they're making a heap of it also. The pet food around today is poor in animal derived protein; it's high in chemicals and low in protective nutrients, he adds.

What does this all mean for our pet? Dr Billinghurst believes it's this poor quality of food that's responsible for the massive levels of arthritis, diabetes, coronary heart disease, renal disease and liver disease. And, says Dr Billinghurst, it could be the cause of our pets bad breath. "The conditions just go on and on."
"This is great for the vets and great for the drug companies but not so great for the pets and not so great for the animal owners."

The problem he says is that vets and pet food companies don't know and don't believe that the products are bad. Nobody is looking at the evolutionary diet of the pet and therefore nobody is making the connection between what animals eat and the onset of obesity and disease.

So as the Atkins diet recommends for humans, it's time for pets to go back to the hunter and gatherer days of only eating meat, veggies and leafy greens. "All we have to do is leave out the processed carbohydrates.

Dr Ian Billinghurst

For those in America and Canada, CLICK ON THE BANNER BELOW:

ARKoz gives a list of Natural Therapy, qualified Vets in each state in Australia.