The question that always pops into my mind when I
read this type of information is "How did all those
hunting dogs from my childhood survive when they were
eating everything that's bad or lethal for canines?"

We scraped our plates into a pan that went out to the
kennels. No thought was ever given to what we had
been eating. Food seasoned with onions and garlic,
chocolate cake, meat scraps, chicken bones, pork chop
bones, veggies, rice, potatoes, pasta, cheese,
fruit...whatever was leftover the dogs ate. I don't
recall my family ever buying dog food.

I'm not saying that onions, garlic and chocolate have
not been known to cause illness or even death in
canines. I'm just wondering why the dogs I knew 25
years ago never seemed to suffer ill effects. They
all lived long healthy lives. I can only remember one
dog dying, and she died of old age. I don't know how
old, she had been around since I was born and died
when I was 12. Dogs were often traded or sold to
fellow hunters, so many did not live their full lives
with our family.

Is this just a country girl perspective? Seems like
in this age of science diets and optimum nutrition
we've destroyed our dogs' ability to eat like the
scavengers canines once were. Also seems like a whole
host of illnesses have come along with the advent of
commercial dog foods. Pushing this even further,
perhaps it is the continued inbreeding of most dog
breeds that makes them pre-disposed to
hyper-sensitivity to many substances.

Any thoughts?

===
Amy Garner
Confederate Collies
http://home.att.net/~rpgarner/
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