A growing number of pet owners are choosing to feed raw meat-based diets (RMBDs) to their dogs and cats, seeking a more "natural" approach to canine nutrition. The trend was apparently started in the early 1990’s by an Australian veterinarian who wrote a book promoting the virtues of feeding raw food to dogs [1], and the abbreviation “BARF” (usually taken to mean either “Biologically Appropriate Raw Food” or “Bones and Raw Food”) is now a widely used acronym in this context. In recent years, raw pet food sales have increased by at least 15% annually (1) and approximately 15% to 25% of dogs and 10% of cats are fed some raw meat. While some owners report positive outcomes, such as improved coat condition and increased energy levels, it is crucial to weigh the potential benefits against the documented risks, especially when considering a BARF diet for puppies.
What is the BARF Diet?
BARF rations are oriented towards adapting the predator-prey system for domestic dogs and cats, giving them food consisting essentially of raw meat, with a high proportion of “meaty bones” and organs (Figure 1). On top of this fruit and vegetables, nuts, oils and herbs are also fed, with eggs and dairy products in lesser amounts. The feeding of grain products is generally not recommended, although other carbohydrates such as potatoes or pulses are sometimes allowed. BARF, also known as the raw food diet, is a feeding regimen in which all of a dog's food is supplied in its most natural state, either in whole or ground form. It’s natural for dogs.
Potential Benefits of a BARF Diet
Advocates tout the benefits of a raw food diet for dogs to optimize canine health. A diet of whole, raw ingredients could bring many potential health benefits. Some owners feeding RMBDs report that their pet has a healthier body condition, higher energy level, shinier coat, cleaner teeth, and normal bowel movements. A raw diet can help your dog have more energy, healthier skin, and cleaner teeth. Meat on the bone can reduce bad breath and improve dental hygiene in dogs . Your dog’s coat can become shiny and healthy by following a raw diet. The higher-fat content of most raw food diets promotes healthy skin as well as fur.
- Improved Digestion: Proponents of the so-called "barf diet" point to a number of benefits for both cats and dogs. They argue that this type of diet is more natural for pets, as it closely resembles the kind of food they would eat in the wild. In addition, the barf diet is said to be more digestible for animals and can help to reduce gastrointestinal problems such as vomiting and diarrhoea. Some pet owners also believe that this diet provides a more complete nutrient profile than commercially-prepared pet food.
- Weight Management: If your dog tends to gain weight easily, a raw diet can help keep its weight in check.
- Dental Health: Meat on the bone can reduce bad breath and improve dental hygiene in dogs.
- Allergy Reduction: One of the benefits of feeding raw is that it can help to reduce the risk of puppies developing allergies. This is because feeding raw allows puppies to build up a tolerance to allergies over time.
Potential Risks of a BARF Diet
Potential risks include: Threats to human and dog health from bacteria in raw meat, An unbalanced diet that may damage the health of dogs if given for an extended period, Potential for whole bones to choke an animal, break teeth or cause an internal puncture.
- Bacterial Contamination: Some raw meat contains bacteria and parasites that might lead to infections in your dog. Even if your dog seems healthy, bacteria might bring an underlying health issue to the surface by making it worse. Meat can contain viruses, bacteria and parasites. Possible bacterial pathogens include intestinal micro-organisms such as E. coli, Salmonella, Campylobacter and Yersinia, and endoparasites (e.g., tapeworms such as Echinococcus spp.) can of course infect dogs or cats.
- Nutritional Imbalance: The evaluation looked at five raw diets, three homemade and two commercially available. All had nutritional deficiencies or excesses that could cause serious health problems when given long term, according to the report. Feeding your dog a raw food diet means taking their nutrition into your own hands. While this can be one of the main appeals of the diet, it can also lead to severe health issues if not properly balanced. The specific vitamins and minerals crucial to dog nutrition may not be present in raw ingredients, which means a raw food diet could leave your dog deficient.
- Injuries from Bones: With a raw diet, there’s the potential that your dog might be injured by bone fragments in the meat. Bones can pose a choking hazard, break your dog’s teeth, or cause an internal puncture.
Risks Specific to Puppies
While the potential benefits of a BARF diet might seem appealing, it's essential to consider the specific needs of puppies. Puppies require a carefully balanced diet to support their rapid growth and development. Nutritional deficiencies or excesses can have severe and long-lasting consequences, including skeletal abnormalities, stunted growth, and weakened immune systems.
Read also: Calculate Your Dog's BARF Diet Needs
DeLay, Josepha, and Jenny Laing cover a case involving a litter of puppies that were fed a raw diet upon weaning. The puppies all exhibited symptoms of malnutrition as well as weakening of limbs. Veterinarians performed necropsies on the puppies of this litter and found evidence of poorly developed bone tissue, as well as fractures due to extreme calcium deficiency caused by the raw diet.
Concerns over Diet Completeness and Balance
Concerns over whether the diet is complete and balanced according to the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) Dog or Cat Food Nutrient Profiles (2,7), especially with small companies which use only whole food ingredients, avoiding synthetic nutrient supplements. It is difficult to get all the vitamins and minerals from natural ingredients into muscle-based food in an economical combination. Vitamins and minerals usually must be added to a diet of meat and vegetables, and the calcium to phosphorus ratio needs to be approximately 1:1. Strict adherence to these guidelines ensures that manufactured pet foods should be balanced and safe for pets to eat.
Some pet owners reject any food supplementation, such as extra minerals, as being “artificial”, and want to cover their pet’s requirements using exclusively “natural sources” such as fruit, vegetables, nuts and herbs. Note that the vitamin and trace element content in these products are usually broadly overestimated and the levels are too low to deliver an adequate supplement when using realistic doses. To formulate a BARF ration that covers all nutrient requirements based on single components and without the use of mineral and vitamin supplements is possible but complex, and should only be done with professional nutritional advice.
Bacterial Concerns in Raw Meat
Meat (especially ground meat) and eggs for animal or human consumption carry microorganisms (2,15). Raw pet food poses similar risks for pathogenic bacteria as do raw meat and eggs for humans (2,15). Freezing, freeze-drying, or dehydration results in a reduction in bacterial counts but viable pathogenic bacteria survive (2-5,15). This is of real concern if the household includes, or is planning, pregnancy, children under 5 y of age, the elderly, or any person who is immuno-suppressed (2,15,16).
The hygiene risk due to raw meat is played down in almost all BARF publications. It may be that nowadays our food is generally so safe that potential dangers are almost eliminated and the awareness of risks is low. BARF products however are often not sourced from the human food industry. In addition, there is now a market whereby raw meat and meat by-products can be ordered online for use in BARF diets; such products are usually shipped frozen but are not subject to the same hygiene guidelines as food industry items, so there is no guarantee that the transport containers are always disinfected and that the cold chain is maintained. Furthermore, various raw commercial diets are currently available, and several reports have noted that these products are of poor quality in terms of microbiological contamination [9] [10].
Read also: The Hoxsey Diet
The Issue of Time and Cost
Preparing a 100% raw diet at home for your dog can take up a lot of time. It’s also more expensive than buying kibble at the store. Dry dog food can cost around $1 per day, while a one-day supply of raw chicken can cost anywhere from $2.50 to $5.
Veterinary Opinion
Various veterinary associations have issued position statements discouraging the use of RMBDs including the CVMA, AVMA, WSAVA, and AAHA (22-25). And in every case, I record my advice and the owner’s decision in the pet’s medical record, a copy of which is provided to the owner. Veterinarians also worry that pet owners who feed their pets raw diets may not be properly handling or storing the food, which could lead to cross-contamination and foodborne illness.
Alternative Options: Freeze-Dried Raw Food
For those wanting all the benefits of raw food without the hassle of preparing, many dog owners turn to freeze-dried raw dog food from us at Lecker Bites. freeze-dried raw food retains all of the nutrients and enzymes that are found in fresh, raw meat, making it a super healthy option for dogs. Serving up raw food can be messy and smelly, which is why Lecker Bites has created a line of freeze-dried raw dog treats that are easy to feed and mess-free.
Read also: Walnut Keto Guide