I am going to chime in a bit here, but try not to step on any toes. We are all entitled to our own opinions with what is best for our canine friends just like we are all allowed to have our own oponions about our own diets :-)

That being said, I have shown dogs and had hunting dogs for most of my life. We have for years fed absolutely no kibble. The dogs are raised on meat, both raw and cooked, as well as fresh vegetables and fruits. They get Omega supplements and other vitamins. We have never had a dog with kidney or any other trouble. Most of ours have outlived the expected life span of their breed by many years. Currently I have a coming 8 year old BullMastiff who is in excellent health. Not even a touch of grey on her. The veterinarian actually kept a printout of her bloodwork to use as an example as being "almost perfect" when she had her checkup last year. She is mostly fed raw chicken necks and backs, but also gets grass fed beef, fish, and the occasional fresh deer leg to chew on. On top of that she gets all sorts of veggies and fruit.

Now, not saying that RAW is the perfect thing for everyone, but this is what a dog was eating from the beginning. If we know that processed foods are "probably" the cause of many of our health and weight related issues today, why is the same not true for our canine friends?

My dogs eat Purina Dog Chow. And of course the occasional table scrap. I've always been a purina fan and the vet recommended that as a great choice and not to switch them up often. So I'm happy:)

Do you mean, we should only give them what we would eat? I have ferrets and in their raw diet, they NEED to have things that are 'leftover' from the animals that I normally wouldn't eat. Like, hearts or kidneys, livers and pretty much any organ I can find to feed em'! Organs are a very specific part of their dietary needs especially because I do not give them enough whole prey to get a whole animal each day. So, they get a very specific ratio of muscle meat/organ/bone. Mine not only get the chicken breast, they eat the whole darned chicken-and I would say that my furkids eat better than I do. I would rather starve than see them suffer, honestly. There have been times when they're eating steak and I am eating beans for two weeks straight. And organs/hearts ARE yummy to my ferrets-as well as a lot of other stuff I consider to be pretty much disgusting-like raw meat in general. You should see the good spirited squabbles over a prize piece of gizzard or liver-a fish head will bring everyone to hissing over it in this house. If that's not a sign that they love it, I dunno what is. I have one ferret that refused to eat anything but raw since the first day I got him and he tried the livers in his bowl. I dunno if that is what you meant, but I just wanted to contribute my .02$. Ultimately, diet for our pets should be the best that we can do-whether we feed them kibble or raw, one thing is agreed-we all love our pets!

well, liver, heart, stomach etc. are also eaten by humans. for example french liver pate and so on. where I buy meat they also sell organs, my mother-in-law also loves a stew that is made of cow stomach.
However, what I'm trying to show is that I think that the mentality "It's good enough for animals/Leftovers are disgusting to me so they will be good enough for my pet" is wrong and I cannot agree with it. The thing is that some people feed they're pets with leftovers (and leftovers only) because they think that animals don't deserve better. I wasn't really denying the natural diet of omnivors or any other animals, I was just trying to say that we should try to give our pets the best we an because they deserve it and we love them.
hope I wasn't too confusing :)
EXACTLY!!!!!

I am currently feeding my 2 senior dogs Science Diet Mature. It was at suggestion of my vet since my
youngest (who is 11ish) is over weight. But I am strongly considering going all out and feeding a raw diet.
A lady on my dog board has 7 of the same breed, and she does raw for them all the time. Except for one
whose stomach can not handle it. I figure I could do it for my two.

I feed my collies Canidae. I used to also add in meat scraps, but the meat gives them digestive problems (Hershey Squirts) so I won't do that anymore. Eating only the kibble gives them consistent stool, and they are at good weights and in good heealth overall, according to my vet (who is a collie breeder).

I must have misunderstood. On that idea, I wholeheartedly agree. My furbabies, since I agreed to take care of them and give them a good home in exchange for their company, I have to make good on my end of the deal. It's a responsibility that I take very seriously, and I hope others do too. everyone here seems to, because we all care so much about the well beings of our pets. Sorry for misunderstanding. :^:

Okay...ever since I read and posted in here, I've been feeling like a bad parent and was on a quest to try and feed Fishy better kitty food. I've tried the foods suggested here, (ones that I could find anyway.), and tried feeding him regular meats..I've tried raw, semi cooked, and cooked meats. Fish, chicken, beef, and pork. he won't touch it! The only luck I have is when I make a gravy for him. He licks the gravy up, but won't touch the meat.

This is too expensive so its back to the indoor formula since he gobbles it down. lol I tried...

You are by all means NOT a bad fur parent. The fact that you even were concerned at all means you care. You tried a number of things. Cats are pretty stubborn and food switches mean a full on ordeal. You're just fine-him eating something that is pretty healthy is better than him eating not at all!

Thanks. I've since discovered that while he won't eat any of the meat I put in front of him, he will STEAL it off the counter and eat all of it. Maybe I ought to make it interesting for him and hide it in plain sight where he thinks he's being a bad boy, and really he isn't..lol

Silly thing! I love temperaments like that in an animal. 'Sneakiness' is cute, especially with cats!

I just got a cat in the beginning of July and she was eating Special Kitty dry cat food. Her coat was so dry so I switched her up to Fancy Feast canned food and Purina cat chow for dry. Her fur is nice and soft now.

She just had 4 healthy kittens yesterday because the people who gave her to me failed to tell me that she (an unspayed female) had been let outside for 2 weeks before I got her. Once the kittens are weaned and gone I will be getting her spayed and there is no chance of her getting back outside before that happens. I live on the ninth floor of a nine-floor building. :)

Nutranuggets and one tablespoon of wet. If only I was so disciplined with my own food!

Congratulations to your pets for training you so well. No need to call the dog whisperer.

I believe the labels when they state "Complete Nutrition". I feed my cats 2x a day a mix of cheapest dry food combined with a little canned food. They are all (6) very sleek and beautiful. I feed them outside on the driveway, and by the next feeding time, birds have picked up all the leftovers. We live on a very large wooded/pasture property, so there are no neighbors to bother with cat droppings. The cats are also all spayed and neutered and up-to-date on their innoculations.
I have 3 large dogs, too. I did have trouble at first with our pitbull, spayed female. She had the most itchy skin. It looked and smelled okay, but she was forever scratching. I put her on Purina One - for sensitive systems - it's Salmon and rice. But she tolerates well the lamb/rice and the new chicken/rice, too. The other two - a male boxer and a spayed female lab/sheperd mix are on GravyTrain. All three are fed 2x a day a combo of the dry mixed with a couple tablespoons of whatever the cheapest canned food is available. I avoid all the Beef ones, because I think that is what aggravates the pitbull. Either beef or wheat. Anyway, they all love their meals and except for the pitbull "Freckles" who is a tad pudgy (poor thing, she gets way less than the others) Roscoe and Heidi are also as fit as athletes.