|
|
| | |
| |
|  |
|
| How to choose the right diet for your animal's life stage-and your lifestyle |
If you're like most folks, you pay careful attention to your own diet, making sure you get your daily servings of fresh fruits and vegetables, watching your saturated fat intake, and getting high quality proteins and carbohydrates. Most likely, you take a vitamin/ mineral supplement. But when it comes to your animal, do you play by the same rules? Without realizing it, many folks are giving their beloved dogs and cats the canine and feline equivalent of junk food. And their best friends are paying a terrible price. Young dogs and cats are showing up in veterinary offices with chronic conditions from skin disease and allergies to cancer, liver disease, diabetes and other complications. We've seen our share of heartbreaking cases through our 25 years of practice. But over and over again, we see health restored once animals are switched to a high-quality diet and vitamin program. We'll never forget Brandy, an English Springer Spaniel with the worst case of skin disease we'd ever seen. Within a few weeks on the Goldstein Food Plan, Brandy looked and felt like a new dog. Then there was Chica, an eight-year-old Pomeranian who rebounded from a kidney and liver crisis after she was introduced to natural foods, daily vitamins and fresh vegetables...and these are just two of hundreds of success stories in our files.
Your dog or cat, regardless of age or health status, can also benefit. Just follow the Goldstein Food Plan-it's amazingly simple-and you'll see results in what seems like no time at all: more energy, healthier coat and skin, bright eyes and most importantly a strong immune system.
We've divided our food plan into three levels for your convenience. You can mix and match as often as you want. Our program makes feeding your animal a nutritious diet easy. You won't believe how even the most basic dietary adjustments can boost your friend's overall health, or revive an ill or aging animal. We'll take you step by step through the three levels of the Plan and show you how each one will benefit your favorite four-footed friend.
Ready to get started? Let's go! |
|
| |
|
Level I: Switch to a natural brand of dog food to build a strong nutritional foundation
Every year, we research and analyze the labels of leading brands of premium dog and cat foods, both canned and kibble, then make a list of those that meet our approval. You may see your animal's food on our list already. If you do, that's great-stick with it. If your current choice is not listed here, or you can't locate one of the top-rated foods in your area, consider selecting a brand that can be shipped directly to your home. Here are the standards we use for deciding whether a brand is in the top-notch category for optimal health: |
|
| |
|
|
 |
High-quality protein (and, unless you're feeding a growing puppy or kitten, less of it). For dogs 14 months of age or older, we advise feeding a senior or "lite" formula-it won't overload the dog's system with excess protein or fat. If you're sharing your home with a cat, continue to feed higher levels of protein-just make sure it's high quality.Formulas such as those on our list offer plenty of protein to keep your animal's body and immune system healthy without overstressing the liver and kidneys. To assess the quality on any pet-food label, look for chicken, turkey, lamb or beef as one of the first two ingredients; avoid byproducts, which often include rejected meats and waste parts. Most giant pet food companies use protein from sources that are not fit for human consumption-all too often, it contains traces of hormones, insecticides and antibiotics and is mostly taken from animals that were rejected for human food because they were either diseased or disabled. And, you can do your dog or cat a major nutritional favor by adding an excellent source of fresh protein, such as poultry or tofu, every day. |
|
|
|
|
Vegetable oils rather than highly processed animal fats. This is important for two reasons. First, the chemical additives and preservatives used to process chicken fat and beef tallow can cause chronic allergies and skin problems. Second, even though dogs can digest fats more efficiently than we humans do (which protects them from our higher risk of clogged arteries), highly saturated animal fats like poultry fat and beef tallow will congest their skin, lungs and liver and deposit fat throughout the body. It's another reason why we like the "senior" formulations: they are lower in saturated fats (about 5% to 8% by volume). And, with a premium food, you'll get not only lower quantity but also higher quality fats. |
|
|
|
|
Whole grains, with their fiber and nutrients intact. Stay away from sources that include grain byproducts such as wheat middlings, bakery fines, brewers rice and white flour, which have had most of the nutrition processed right out of them. |
|
|
|
|
Fruits and vegetables for flavor and nutrition, instead of refined salt and sugars. Many premium foods now include blueberries, apples, sweet potatoes, carrots and other healthy ingredients that are far superior to artificial sweeteners. |
|
|
|
|
Natural preservatives, such as vitamin E and rosemary, rather than chemical additives such as ethoxyquin, BHA, BHT, propylene glycol or propylene gallate. Despite a growing body of evidence that chemical preservatives are harmful, adding them to pet foods is still the industry norm.
Chemical preservatives and additives can lead to skin allergies, regurgitation after meals, hyperactivity, mood swings and aggressiveness. These conditions quickly disappear once the chemicals are removed from the diet. (By the way, tocopherol is the chemical name for vitamin E, one of the natural antioxidants and preservatives that you do want in your dog's dry base food.) |
|
|
By switching to a natural, premium food from our chart and following the rest of our guidelines, you'll strengthen your animal's immune system and boost overall health. Within about 21 days, you should be able to sit back and admire how much better your dog looks and feels.
Although switching to one of the foods listed on p.3 will make a big difference, we highly recommend that you incorporate Level II into your dog's daily diet. This is especially important for those of you who have senior dogs, active dogs or dogs with any type of chronic condition. |
| | |
|
Level II: Supplement your dog's basic diet for powerful protection
Although the new generation of premium natural foods is a vast improvement over the supermarket generics, here's the catch: all commercially available pet foods, even those brands formulated as "all-natural," are cooked at high temperatures, destroying many of the naturally occurring vitamins and minerals and virtually all of the precious enzymes. These vital, "life-force" nutrients are found only in raw foods. Adding a vitamin-mineral supplement along with daily servings of raw vegetables and fruits will give your dog nutrients that are quite different from the poor quality vitamins added to "enrich" most commercial pet foods. The results of Level II feeding are remarkable: older, sluggish dogs move with new ease, dander retreats, eyes sparkle, energy returns. But if you're a busy person, how can you possibly take your animal to Level II? It's easy! After years of searching for a high quality daily vitamin, we realized that we couldn't find a product that met all of our requirements. So we decided to make it ourselves. It took years to get the formula just right, but Dr. Bob finally created Daily Health Nuggets. They're the bridge from Level I to II. When you can't cook every day-and let's face it, who has the time?-you can rest assured that there will be no gaps in your dog's diet. (By the way, for those of you who also share your home with a cat or two, we also formulate Nuggets for your feline friends.) Daily Health Nuggets contain "life-force" enzymes, vitamins and minerals blended into a soft, lecithin-based nugget that doubles as a treat or training aid. Its nutrients come straight from more than a dozen vegetables and fruits still teeming with live enzymes. That's possible because Nuggets aren't cooked-the vegetables are dehydrated at low temperatures and then gently blended. So your dog gets all of the potent nutrients that nature intended. With one fun and easy snack-served straight from the palm of your hand or crumbled into the food-your dog is nourished, and you have peace of mind. Here's another supplement we'd like to share with you. Shortly after the Nuggets came out, we developed Internal Powder as a shield against fleas, ticks and mosquitoes. Our goal was to produce a natural supplement that would supply the vitamins, minerals and nutrients to help boost the immune system, fortify the skin and make the dog "unattractive" to biting pests. Among its ingredients are garlic, a traditional repellent and healer; B vitamins, which are often drained by parasites or stress; and brewer's yeast. Recently, we added an herbal formula for dogs who are allergic to brewer's yeast. Both products are available from Earth Animal. Here are some other supplements we recommend: |
|
|
|
|
Dr. Goodpet's Maximum Protection Formula, 800/222-9932 |
|
|
|
|
Animal Essentials, 800/373-5971 |
|
|
|
|
Whole grains, with their fiber and nutrients intact. Stay away from sources that include grain byproducts such as wheat middlings, bakery fines, brewers rice and white flour, which have had most of the nutrition processed right out of them. |
|
|
If you use a supplement other than Daily Health Nuggets, drizzle a little virgin olive, sesame or flaxseed oil over your animal's food. By the way, Internal Powder sprinkled over your natural base dry food and stirred with a little warm filtered water makes a terrific, appetizing gravy. Don't Forget the Fresh Veggies! You can improve your dog's health rapidly by offering grated organic carrots and some of your leftover chopped greens. An easy way to do this is to share some of your salad (minus the dressing) with your friend. Antioxidant-rich carrots are our favorites, but almost any vegetable will do: try spinach, celery, asparagus or string beans. We also recommend watercress, parsley, and dandelion and beet greens. Feed one or more of these with meals or as snacks daily, if possible with each meal. Organic chopped apples or grapes make handy training treats or snacks between meals.
Raw or lightly steamed vegetables nourish your animal's immune and organ systems. Their abundant living enzymes help your dog digest carbohydrates, proteins and fats, reducing the incidence of tummy upsets and improving digestive efficiency. Now we're ready to move on to Level III, the Enhanced Meal Plan. This level is for the pinnacle of health. It will give your dog the fastest results and is the best option for chronically ill or stressed canines or felines. Meals take only a little more time to prepare, and we'll show you plenty of shortcuts to make meal prep even easier. |
| | |
|
Level III: Lift the ban on table scraps! Introducing the Enhanced Meal Plan
Our Enhanced Meal Plan incorporates all of the elements from Levels I and II-plus some "home cooking". This can be as simple as sharing portions of your own healthy meals with your friend, or cooking up a big pot of grains and protein and serving them all week. Healthy foods >link to Healthy Foods Shopping List< for you and your dog include whole grains such as brown rice, millet, barley and oatmeal, rich in complex carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals. To these, add chopped fruits and vegetables. Here's how: Reduce the amount of natural commercial base food by about one-fourth. Then, replace what you took out with equivalent amounts of protein, whole grains and finely grated or chopped vegetables (read on for our top picks). Here are the approximate amounts of healthy extras to add to the base food: |
|
| |
|
|
|
Small Dog (1-14 lb) 1/4 cup |
|
|
|
|
Medium Dog (15-34 lb) 1/2 cup |
|
|
|
|
Large Dog (35-84 lb) 1 cup |
|
|
|
|
Giant Dog (85+ lb) 1-11/2 cups |
|
|
Our Table Scrap Plan Is Easy on You. Mixing grated or chopped raw vegetables-particularly carrots-into the natural base food is the most important addition you can make if you want to do something easy. But if you're already cooking wholesome food for yourself, why not share some with your dog? And despite what you may have heard, feeding table scraps can be good for your dog, provided you follow our guidelines: |
| |
|
|
Treat table scraps or leftovers as a supplement to your dog's base diet. Increase the amount of healthy "people" food gradually, especially if your animal has been dependent upon commercial pet food. In our household, we make sure there are leftovers from each meal. If we're cooking up a batch of oatmeal or baking potatoes, for example, we make a few extras to share with our Boxers, Jack and Vivienne. |
|
|
|
|
Collect raw vegetables from your salad (oil-free please, unless you are using virgin olive oil alone) and any of the throwaway parts of vegetables (no moldy ones, of course) and leftover steamed veggies. Chop or grate what you gather and store in your refrigerator. Keep raw vegetables separate from steamed-raw foods will spoil faster because of naturally occurring enzymes and bacteria. Try to use up the veggies within four to five days of preparation. Along with the vegetables, consider these healthy extras: |
|
|
|
|
Add a dollop of plain, low fat or non-fat, preferably organic, live-culture yogurt-for improved digestion. |
|
|
|
|
Drizzle on some cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil, sesame or flaxseed oil-all good sources of highly beneficial omega-3 essential fatty acids-to enhance skin and coat health and quell itching from the inside out. |
|
|
|
|
Offer organic egg yolks, poached, soft-boiled or gently sautéed in a small amount of virgin olive oil-rich in sulfur for cellular integrity. |
|
|
Here are some more nutritious "table foods" dogs love. Yours will thoroughly enjoy daily taste-tests as you explore the list for new favorites: |
| |
|
|
Brussels sprouts, green beans, watercress, broccoli, zucchini, cabbage and beet greens-raw or lightly steamed. |
|
|
|
|
Our animals adore baked potatoes. (Potatoes are one vegetable you never serve raw.) Organic is best, or scrub the skins well before cooking. |
|
|
|
|
Oats are great, as are all kinds of whole grains, such as brown rice, barley and millet-your dog needs daily roughage and fiber, just like you do. |
|
|
|
|
Fruits are fine, combined with grains or as a snack. Organic apples, grapes and bananas are a favorite with our dogs. |
|
|
|
|
Add some extra protein if you selected a senior formula. Choose free range or organic meat free of hormones and additives. Good choices include lean beef, skinless, boneless chicken or fish (pick out all bones carefully). If you can't buy organic meat, remove the skin, since that's where chemical residues are highest, and avoid any cuts that are pre-prepared, chemically preserved, salted or sugared. Save out an unseasoned portion, steam lightly and serve. Tofu is another great protein source and so are organic, free-range eggs, now readily available in supermarkets. |
|
|
Steer Clear of These Foods... |
| |
|
|
Avoid foods made from refined wheat flour and white rice and any grain byproducts, such as wheat middlings or bakery fines. |
|
|
|
|
Go sparingly on acidic foods like tomatoes and citrus. |
|
|
|
|
Avoid foods that have been genetically modified; look for the "BST-free" label. It always fills us with joy to see a previously sick animal return with a renewed quality of life, tipped off by that sparkle back in his or her eyes. Even seriously ill animals with cancer, arthritis, liver and kidney failure respond beautifully to living foods and juices in their diets |
|
|
The Last Course: Food Program Wrap-Up
We know this program will improve your dog's life and simplify your own. Even if you can only manage Level I at first, take heart that you're doing your friend a lot of good. Don't feel guilty if you're not up to Level II or III right away-although we do encourage you to try tempting your dog with fresh veggies and a home-cooked meal at least two to three times per week. Once you see the results, you may find that it's not that much trouble to go to the next level after all-and boy, is it worth it. Busy? Aren't we all! A good way to begin is simply to purchase your first bag of natural food and a jar of Daily Health Nuggets. Then, grate some organic carrots along with a dollop of low-fat, plain organic yogurt. Share your enthusiasm with your dog for this very important change in his or her diet. Visualize the "new dog" you are about to bring to life. Take a few moments to review the areas you marked. If necessary, pick out one, maybe two, steps to explore with your dog. On the day you start your program, mark your calendar with a big star. Then, 21 days later, take stock of how much healthier, happier and more vibrant your dog appears. You will be amazed at the difference even small steps will make in your dog's health and attitude, and you'll reap the benefits of knowing you've done a good thing for your friend.
Diet is the blueprint of health, creating a strong immune system that's naturally resistant to disease. Month by month, we'll give you the building blocks to create a healthier life for your dog, one that is free of the burden of constant veterinary visits and multiple medications. If your dog is dealing with a chronic condition and you're been frustrated with the results, we can help. We are excited for you and your canine companion as you embark upon this journey with us. We've seen the transformation in thousands of animals, and we have experienced the joy that is waiting for you and your friend. |
| | |
|
| Tempting Tips for Finicky Eaters |
We enjoy the challenge of working with finicky eaters and have several tricks up our sleeves to win fussy dogs over to our food plan.
Sometimes, a very resistant animal needs to skip a meal before he or she can accept the new foods. A sugar addict is going to leave your loving efforts (morsels of raw veggies) behind. His or her taste buds are now accustomed to synthetic flavor enhancers. Think about it-if you were to raise a child on candy-coated cereals and donuts, this little person would stick up his or her nose at the introduction of a carrot! So if you're not winning out of the gate, rethink, reposition, re-strategize. You may need a more subliminal approach. Try adding organic chicken broth and fewer veggies. Other flavor enhancers include low-fat plain yogurt, low-fat cottage cheese (feed organic dairy products if you can), grated cheese and poached egg yolks. |
|
| |
|
| Healthy Meals Shopping List You'll find that enhancing your dog's daily menu is much easier than you might have ever imagined. Here's a shopping list to get you started: |
|
| |
|
|
|
organic bulk carrots |
|
|
|
|
free-range, organic eggs |
|
|
|
|
green foods: broccoli, spinach, watercress, etc. |
|
|
|
|
whole grains: brown rice, kamut, millet, whole oats or quino |
|
|
|
|
virgin olive or flaxseed oil |
|
|
|
|
shredded Parmesan, Romano or mozzarella cheese |
|
|
|
|
plain, low-fat, organic yogurt with live culture |
|
|
|
|
organic garlic cloves |
|
|
|
|
source of supplemental protein, such as tofu, free-range chicken or turkey, or organic beef or lamb. |
|
| |
|
| Getting Started: Tips for a Healthy Animal |
|
| |
|
|
|
Toss out those plastic feed and water bowls and replace them with ceramic or stainless steel. Plastic bowls leach petrochemicals into the water and can irritate the membranes around the mouth, causing depigmentation of the nose |
|
|
|
|
If you have a large breed, feed at chest level to reduce the risk of bloat, a deadly condition in big dogs. |
|
|
|
|
Offer fresh, pure drinking water daily. A water filter is your best bet, but if you purchase bottled water, be sure to store it in glass containers, and keep refrigerated. |
|
| |
|
What About Raw Food Diets?
We agree in principle with raw food diets but are greatly concerned with the potential for contamination (from bacteria, handling, etc.). Since there is no guarantee that your dog won't contract food poisoning from eating raw food, we recommend slightly steaming all meats and poultry, and cooking all eggs, to reduce and eliminate surface contamination.And, if you are going to go for the raw food approach, be sure to feed range-fed or organic meats from a farm that takes pride in the quality of life and honors the animals they raise. |
| | |
|
| RECIPE CARD: Jack and Vivienne's Daily Meal Plan |
|
| |
|
|
|
Fresh organic protein-egg yolks, chicken or beef, tofu |
|
|
|
|
Cooked, organic brown rice |
|
|
|
|
Grated carrots and/or variety of chopped greens-watercress, zucchini, broccoli, parsley, beet greens, etc. (organic preferred) |
|
|
|
|
Chopped fresh organic garlic (introduce gradually) |
|
|
|
|
Organic, cold-pressed flaxseed or olive oil |
|
|
|
|
Organic, plain, low-fat yogurt |
|
|
|
|
Daily Health Nuggets and Internal Powder |
|
|
| Sometimes we serve our two Boxers, Jack and Vivienne, oatmeal and plain brown rice as the base. When we do this, we add more veggies or grated organic apples and applesauce with extra protein, such as tofu. We never serve a meal with just straight dry dog food unless we're in a critical rush-our dogs would revolt! |
| | |
| |
|
