Natural & Safe Cleaners

I forgot to take a "before" photo, her collar
wasn't nearly this orange to begin with!

For Nylon Collars
I tried this method once with Coal's leather collar and I'm pretty sure that was a terrible idea. The vinegar dried it right out, so I recommend only using it on nylon or fabric collars!

 You Will Need:

•  vinegar
•   baking soda
•   warm/hot water
•   a bowl large enough to submerge your collar(s) in

I don't measure the ingredients, but I'd say it's about 1 part vinegar and 5 parts water with about 1/4 - 1/2 cup of baking soda (depending on how soiled your collars are).

Fill bowl with water and vinegar. Submerge collar. Sprinkle with baking soda and watch it sizzle away! Soak for 10 minutes - 1 hr, it all depends on how dirty your collars are. Soaking for longer won't hurt the collar (in my experience).
Rinse and repeat if necessary, otherwise let dry and enjoy!

Refresh The Bed Without Washing
I usually take the slip cover off and wash it in the washing machine. However, I was running a lot in the wash that day and decided I'd see if a similar method I read for human mattresses would work for the dog bed too.

You Will Need:

• dog bed
• vacuum
• baking soda
• vacuum brush head attachment or a stiff bristle brush
• essential oil of your choice (optional)

 Vacuum as much loose dog hair off the bed as you can. Sprinkle baking soda over bed evenly. Add a few drops over the bed of your choice of essential oil - make sure to check that it's safe for your pet! Use the vacuum attachment (as I did) or a stiff bristle brush to gently work the baking soda into an even coat over the entire bed. Let sit for 20 minutes - 1 hr. Use a power-head vacuum to remove the baking soda from deep within the bed. Let the dog enjoy!

I would recommend you still wash the slip cover from your dogs bed, but this is an easy way to remove odors between washing!

The Ups & Downs to Sharing a Meal...

Up until now, I thought one of the more awesome upsides to feeding raw was the fact I could cut off the fatty bits, the ugly bits, whatever and feed those to the dogs. It didn't feel like a waste like it did before I switched the dogs to raw. We often eat the same food as the dog (well, the meat at least!) And so far it's been great! Even a bonding experience with my dogs and our "pack".

Until today... I had the option of buying a whole fish for $7 or a filet already cut up and ready to cook for $22. I decided the choice was obvious, a  bit more work, but at least those -  you know - "fish looking" parts I could feed to the dogs! Not only was I saving money on our food, but the dogs too! What a deal!

So this morning I got to work cutting up this giant salmon. My whole house smelled like fish. I gave Unit the tail, the bits by the head and the fins... Then shortly later she barfed it up on our living room floor and kitchen floor.

My grilled salmon dinner was not very appealing after that...

Sometimes, I think my life would be easier if I fed my dogs kibble. But then I think, my dogs wouldn't be as healthy either.

How to Make: Calcium Powder from Eggs

Rinse the Shells
After cracking open an egg, rinse the shell out and put it back in the carton to store it until you feel you have enough shells. A whole carton yields a few tablespoons generally.

Try not to remove the membrane, it's packed full of nutrients!

Boil the Shells
Boil the shells for about five minutes to clean the shells.

Shells from a previous batch in the
Toast R Oven.

 Lay Them Out
Lay the shells out on a towel to let the water drip off.

Dry The Shells in an Oven. I used my Toast R Oven because it's been so hot out.

Conventional Oven: 200° F for about 10 minutes (varies based on egg size. Keep checking on them to make sure they don't burn!

Toast R Oven: 180° F for 5 minutes, pull the eggs out and flip them over. Let cool for a few minutes and put back in for another few minutes. Keep an eye on them, my first batch in the toaster oven burnt very fast!

 Mill or Blend
I used my NUTRiBULLET and milled the egg shells into a small power. You can also use a blender (sift out any large pieces afterwards if it does not make such a nice fine powder!) or use a coffee grinder. Coffee grinders can be bought fairly cheap (less than $20 at WalMart) so if you do not have something to grind the shells and don't want to invest in an expensive product, a coffee grinder will work just fine!

 Store in an Air-Tight Container
Half of the power is dark, that is from the burnt batch. The colour of your shells will determine the colour of your powder. If yours isn't an eggshell white, it may be due to the eggs being burnt (like in my first batch!) and the colour of the shells themselves will make a difference too!

Add the powder to your pets food according to the appropriate amount (see below). Egg shells are jam packed with calcium, so you don't need much!

Stir in any other supplements and serve with meat!

I've added Green Lipped Mussel from RawPaw for my old guy Coal! Green Lipped Mussels are excellent for old doggy joints!

The amount of calcium powder you add will be determined by the amount of meat you're feeding with it. See the chart below from Pet-Grub.com

Weight of Meat                  Ground Egg Shells


100 grams                       1/4 tsp
200 grams                       1/2 tsp
300 grams                       2/3 tsp
400 grams                       3/4 tsp




1/4 pound                       1/4 tsp
1/2 pound                       1/2 tsp
3/4 pound                       3/4 tsp
1 pound                         1 tsp



1 Jumbo Egg or 1 Large Egg      1/8 tsp
2 Jumbo Eggs or 2 Large Eggs    1/4 tsp
4 Jumbo Eggs of 4 Large Eggs    1/2 tsp
6 Jumbo Eggs of 6 Large Eggs    3/4 tsp
8 Jumbo Eggs of 8 Large Eggs    1 tsp

For more information about the amazing benefits of eggs, 

read my blog entry: Eggs are Excellent! 

Eggs are Excellent!

Eggs are an amazing nutritional source for dogs and humans alike. We buy our eggs from a nearby farm through our neighbors and recently were offered to try some duck eggs for the dogs. They LOVE them, and will even eat the whole shell! Duck eggs are packed full of nutrients, even moreso than chicken eggs, and are something that Patrol Unit can eat no problem (having allergies means there's lots of foods she can't eat! Duck and duck eggs are foods she should be eating, but until now I've had trouble finding at low cost).

What's the difference between duck and chicken eggs?

1.  Duck eggs have twice the nutritional value of a chicken egg and stay fresher longer due to their thicker shell.
   
2.  Duck eggs are richer with more Albumen making cakes and pastries fluffier and richer.
   
3.  Duck Eggs have more Omega 3 fatty acids ..something you can actually see in the salted pickled eggs the Chinese love to eat. Omega 3 is thought to improve everything from brain health to healthy skin and hair.
   
4. Duck Eggs are an Alkaline producing food, one of the few foods that leave your body more alkaline which is a great benefit to cancer patients as cancer cells do not thrive in an alkaline environment. Chicken eggs are an acid food leaving your body more acid.

There is one reason why many people are scared to try a duck egg and that is that the yolk contains about a 1 day supply of Cholesterol ..which is not good for heart diseases..well ... This depends on what you believe about weight control and fat or cholesterol. We are only just beginning to understand the real effects of eating fat in our diet. In practice we know that healthy active people who exercise need fat in their diet, otherwise their bodies would generate the cholesterol itself. So good (HDL) cholesterol is good and will stop your body from producing its own cholesterol. Your body needs to know how to process fat and get the energy benefits. If it forgets how to process fat or has easier sources of fast energy as from hydro carbons then guess what, your body stores the fat as an energy source ...hence your love handles are really stored energy. [1]

Raw vs Cooked

There is a lot of debate out there whether feeding raw eggs to dogs is good or bad. Cooking depletes nutrients, any raw feeder will tell you that. Those opposed to feeding raw eggs would probably tell you that the harm in feeding raw egg is far worse than losing a bit of nutrients. Here's the thing though, the concerns regarding feeding raw eggs are not very large concerns at all and the nutrients lost is far more valuable!


One of the main concerns is that egg whites cause biotin deficiency and contain enzyme inhibitors which can interfere with digestion (especially in the very young and very old). Biotin is a B vitamin that is important for cellular growth, fatty acid metabolism and good skin and coat. Biotin is abundant in the egg yolk. There are other ways of obtaining biotin as well through the diet (liver is a good source of biotin).


If feeding your dog eggs on a regular basis, simply make sure he gets the whole egg, not just the white.[2] Eggs should not be the staple of a dog's diet, and feeding the whole (and organic!) egg will decrease the chances of biotin deficiency (which is pretty rare to begin with!).


Another large concern is often bacteria, salmonella being a big one. Dogs are designed to eat raw foods. They have a short digestive tract that quickly pushes harmful bacterias through the system faster than they can colonize. Not to mention the digestive enzymes in the saliva and strong stomach acid that often kills bacteria before it even gets to the intestines!



Their saliva has antibacterial properties; it contains lysozyme, an enzyme that lyses and destroys harmful bacteria. Their short digestive tract is designed to push through food and bacteria quickly without giving bacteria time to colonize. The extremely acidic environment in the gut is also a good bacteria colonization deterrent. People often point to the fact that dogs shed salmonella in their feces (even kibble-fed dogs do this) without showing any ill effects as proof that the dog is infected with salmonella. In reality, all this proves is that the dog has effectively passed the salmonella through its system with no problems. Yes, the dog can act as a salmonella carrier, but the solution is simple—do not eat dog crap and wash your hands after picking up after your dog. [3]


When you compare the bacteria naturally found in or on eggs to the amount of things dogs lick or ingest I think you'll find that eggs are the least of your worries! Unless a dog is already unhealthy and has a compromised immune system to begin with, the bacteria found in and on eggs is not enough to harm your dog.

Don't Throw Away The Shells!

Egg shells are jam packed with calcium. You can make calcium powder from egg shells relatively easily and without the cost you would spend on calcium supplements! This powdered calcium can be used not only for your dogs but also yourself! Pregnant or nursing mothers require a lot of calcium and this is a great way to get it at low cost! If you're already buying eggs all the time and composting or throwing away your egg shells, start saving them!







How to Make Calcium Powder from Egg Shells
CLICK HERE to read my blog about how to make Calcium Powder!

Unit shows how it's done.
Eating an egg for the first time whole,
and she did it like a pro!

Organic is Best!

When buying chicken or duck eggs you want to find a good source from an organic farm.


Most eggs (those not labeled as organic) at your local grocery market will contain all sorts of carcenogens that otherwise shouldn't be there!



A 2010 study published in the journal Veterinary Record found that the eggs from hens confined to cages, as they often are in factory farms, had 7.77-times greater odds of harboring salmonella bacteria than eggs from non-caged hens. [4]





Whether you're feeding those eggs to your dog or your family, you should be looking for healthy eggs that come from healthy chickens. Stay clear from farms feeding soy to their chickens and if you can, visit the farm! Are the chickens healthy looking? Are they kept indoors, outdoors and/or in cages? Are they fed a high quality feed that does not contain soy?What's Wrong With Soy?



Originating in China, soybeans have been consumed by humans for thousands of years. It’s only been in the last century that the way we eat soy has changed dramatically. Fermentation is how soy was first prepared for eating. It was a side dish that complimented the rest of the meal. Raw soy is not fit for consumption and can be considered toxic. Today’s soy is processed in variety of methods (not fermented) which denatures the proteins and increases levels of carcinogens.


Soy is a prevalent ingredient in almost all processed foods. Those with a soy allergen (it’s one of the top eight food allergens for humans) know this best. It’s in fast-foods, baby food, processed meat, breads, etc. Unless you are very conscious of everything you eat, it is easy to consume an unregulated amount of soy products every day.


Perhaps you are not allergic to soy, here are some other findings that may be important to you. Soy is not a complete protein (as commonly believed), lacking some important amino acids. Soy foods can cause deficiencies in calcium and vitamin D. Soy increases levels of estrogen (possibly simulating the growth of related tumors) and decreases levels of testosterone. It has been related to pre-mature sexual development in females, and delayed development in males. Animal studies show soy foods causes infertility in animals. [5]


[1] LocalHarvest Duck vs Chicken Eggs
[2] Dogs Naturally Magazine Feeding your Dog Raw Eggs - Good or Bad?
[3] Myths About Raw Feeding: The Bacteria in Raw Meat Will Hurt Your Dog
[4] ABC News - The Truth About Your Eggs
[5] Soy Free Chickens - Why Soy-Free?

Not for the Faint of Heart

I'm not sure I'll ever get fully use to handling, chopping and snapping meat and bones. The organs may be my least favorite to handle, with liver winning by a landslide. On several occasions I find myself gagging or squealing "ewwww, WHY DO I DO THIS?!" I look down at my dogs, both with healthy, full coats, bright eyes and white teeth and I think to myself, "oh right, that's why".

But what if you can't do it? What if handling raw meat every day that is slippery, bleeding, stinky and sometimes slimy is just not your cup of tea? Are there alternatives to raw feeding that still have all the same health benefits?

Of course! They just might put a bigger dent in your wallet, that's all ;) I once recieved a sample packet of dehydrated raw food. I thought I had a photo of it but I can't seem to find it! I can't even remember what the brand was, but it was a mixture of green, dried things that when you added water doubled in size and became an extremely smelly green goop. The dogs loved it though, and according to the packaging, it was packed full of nutrition.

Since pet food recalls appear to be at an all time high, pet owners have been educating themselves about natural nutrition for dogs and cats and how they can provide that nutrition for their pets without the scary addatives and doG-knows-what else that has been responsible for so many pets being sick and dying.

The Dog Food Advisor is a great way to keep up-to-date on pet food recalls and what to avoid. They also have lists of dog foods ranked, so you can quickly and easily research the best for your dog. Check out their 5 Star Raw Dog Foods list. My personal philosophy however, is "avoid it all".  I never go down the pet food aisle at Overwaitea anymore, only to buy cat litter. Instead if I'm going to buy pet food products I do it out of town. There is absolutely no nutritious prepackaged foods or treats available for pets in Fort St. James. The rare times I do buy treats for my dogs, I read every last ingredient.

How to Read Ingredients Labels:

• Look for whole ingredients
  chicken instead of "chicken byproduct/meal", chicken instead of "poultry".
  
  
• What are the top ingredients and do any repeat?
  "ingredient splitting" is when companies split an ingredient to make it appear in a smaller dosage than it really is (since ingredients with the largest amount are listed first). Example: corn, corn gluten, corn meal, ground yellow corn, etc. All of these can be listed separately near the bottom of the ingredients list to appear in small amounts, but when added together that's a lot of  corn!
  the top ingredients should be whole foods (see above)
• Avoid unnecessary additives
  for a full list of ingredients to avoid, check out The Dog Food Project's Ingredients to Avoid
• Avoid long ingredients lists
  Keep in mind though, just because something has a long list of ingredients doesn't mean it's all bad. Use the tips above to judge what's in the list. Very long lists are usually full of more junk, and keep in mind that companies are only required to list 1/4 of their ingredients on the bag they may not be listing what is even the main ingredients!
  
  For more information about reading pet food labels visit The Dog Food Project's Label Info 101

The only true 100% foolproof method of knowing exactly what your dog is consuming is by preparing it yourself, and even then it depends on where you're getting your meat, bones and organs from! Of course, organic is the healthiest and best route, but is not always available in all communities. In the end, do the best you can and do what's right for your pets and there's no way you can go wrong! Do your homework (you can start with the links listed above!) and come up with a meal plan that is most optimal for your carnivores!

Happy Pig Organic Farm

Getting the best for everyone in the family!

On Friday, May 3rd, my mother, sister, nephew and I traveled 638km (in total, there and back) to Smithers, British Columbia, stayed the night, then turned around and went to Topley, B.C. where this adorable organic farm is. Happy Pig Organic Farm is a certified organic farm.

The trip was a bit slow going with a 3 month old in the car with us, but considering we were traveling with a 3 month old it went pretty well!

We stayed the night in Smithers before heading to the farm in Topley. Pigs, cows, goats, alpacas, turkeys, chickens and a very happy black Labrador Retriever who met us with an orange Kong to throw! Marlene and her two boys showed us a bit around the farm and talked to us about how they raise their animals vs farms that are not certified organic.

We met with the pigs, who were all quite friendly and of course, happy!

One story I really enjoyed was about how the pigs root up the land and pull out rocks and other little treasures they find and then stack them in piles! (see photo left/above).

Once the pigs have dug up all the rocks and worked the land they're rotated to a different pasture where they continue to dig up and stack rocks and oddities they find there.

 

Unit: is this for me?!

 I did not place an order for any organic meat for our family, simply because of the price. Buying scraps for the dogs was a lot cheaper than it would have been buying meat for us!

40lbs of meat I'd ordered and it only cost me $90! Of course, that's not counting travel expenses, but since there was three of us going to get orders we were able to cut down on costs (plus my mother is extremely generous and loves paying for stuff for us!).

They've had the chance to try kidney and tongue because of this order, and will also get to try some heart too!

Organs are hard for me to come by around here, other than liver, so I was pretty excited about that!




It was kind of sad knowing that these cute little pigs and other animals around the farm would be sentenced to death from birth, I also felt good knowing I was supporting an organic farm that treats it's animals well as opposed to a commercial one that uses pesticides, vaccinations and growth hormones, and some the animals live in very poor conditions! I had some comfort knowing they did get to live happy little pig lives before being slaughtered for consumption.

These guys were indeed, Happy Pigs! 

Think Outside the Litter Box

Well, today is less about feeding my carnivores and more about cleaning up after. Note, I still have not taken the dive and switched the cats over so technically this is just a nice little life hack for you ;)

I hate cleaning up the litter box. Not only is it gross, and smelly but takes a good chunk of time out of my day. Not enough that I'm going to completely avoid it or anything, but enough that it's a bother. So I decided to make my life easier.

We always have litter containers, I often use them for storage after they're empty. They're handy and hardy bins that, once cleaned, can be used for a lot of things! One of which is to help make your life easier when cleaning out the litter box!

 I took a grocery bag (I keep a supply of ones without holes downstairs for cleaning out the cat box) and lined the smaller litter container with it. I kept the lid and keep that dirty gross scooper in the bag with the lid on. It looks nicer on the shelf and is quick and easy, ready for you to grab at the next box cleaning!

 Not only does it keep everything ready and contained, but it also holds the bag open! I love this because I always get so frustrated when I end up dumping litter and cat droppings all over the floor (which I usually sweep first to avoid stepping on the nasty bits of litter that gets stuck to their paws as they exit the box). So this is a life saver when it comes to that aspect!

it a

 I place the container next to the bin, usually closer than this even, so that there is little to no litter being dropped on the floor. When you're done scooping simply tie up the bag and pull it out!

Make sure to replace the old bag with a new one! Otherwise this method is pointless!

For those who are curious: yes, we use a Rubbermaid container for a litter box. Simply cut a hole large enough in one of the sides for the cat to get in and out. I've seen some designs where you keep the lid on. I don't have the lid for mine anymore, and probably wouldn't use it. Cats don't always like to do their business when they feel cornered, an open box makes it easier for them to hop out of they feel cornered by another cat or dog.

I've seen some where you put a smaller Rubbermaid inside a large one. Cut a hole in the short edge of the smaller one and a hole in the long edge of the larger one (so both openings are not facing each other) and put a lid on the large one. This will keep any dogs from raiding the box! I have one that does that, but due to the reason stated above, have not tried this method.

So there you have it! A quick and easy life hack that will cut your box cleaning time down and also make life easier!