How Does Raw Dog Food Affect A Dog's Digestion?

Will my pet’s stools be affected if they are changed over to a raw food diet?

The answer is almost certainly yes, and for the better. The stool represents the difference between what a dog eats and what it has digested and absorbed. Your dog will excrete less because most of the food he or she is now ingesting is being properly utilized by the body...thus, less waste.

The general observation and feedback we hear from our customers feeding a Cotswold RAW diet is that a dog on a raw diet, with the appropriate amount of raw bone, will have a smaller, drier, more solid stool that may appear paler (due to the bone content) and that is consequently much easier to pick up.

Can a raw diet be fed to a pet with a sensitive stomach?

As a general statement the answer is yes, in fact a raw meat diet can very often solve a sensitive gut issue. Many holistic vets attribute a pet's sensitive stomach to the pet’s reaction to having to digest cooked, processed, starchy, high grain foods, ingredients that its digestive system has not evolved to handle.

If you know that your dog has a specific allergy, strong intolerance or you are worried about the health of their digestive system we would highly recommend visiting a specialist natural or holistic vet. These vets have studied animal nutrition to a greater depth than the short introduction that is included in most vet qualification studies.

What are digestive enzymes and probiotics, and why is their use recommended?

Digestive enzymes break down food so that it can be absorbed and utilized by the body. Raw food contains abundant enzymes which supplement those produced by the body. When your dog eats Cotswold RAW it receives plenty of enzymes from the natural ingredients, hence there is no need to add any supplements. When dogs eat cooked food, which is devoid of enzymes, the enzyme-producing organs must work overtime to compensate. It doesn't matter what you put into the body if the digestive system is not equipped with enough enzymes to break it down and put it to good use. Supplemental enzymes can, therefore, be beneficial when feeding processed food and in cases of digestive disorders.

Probiotics are beneficial bacteria. They are normally present in a healthy intestinal system. Beneficial bacteria keep unwanted bacteria from disrupting homeostasis. Beneficial bacteria are killed by antibiotics and for a dog recovering from such treatment the supplemental use of non-dairy probiotics can help re-establish normal intestinal function.