Coco the purebred Malaysian mutt and Shanti the Akita + some other breed mutt.
Coco is from SPCA and Shanti was rescued from the side of the road by a home-rescuer who shall remain nameless. All I will say about that is I am supremely thankful to said rescuer for actually rescuing her and giving her to me (or at least giving her to me initially before she lost her MIND).
We are switching Shanti from her rather rojak feeding to a purely raw diet – which she really takes to like a fish to water. She just crunched up half a whole 2kg chicken. Coco, on the other hand, took the chicken in her mouth daintily, spat it out on the ground then looked at it like it was an alien hand from Mars. She makes her eyes really big, clamps her mouth shut and looks away like “it’s not there if I can’t see it” if i tear off a little chunk of chicken meat for her to try. See. Even dogs can be in denial.
Shanti is really unfit. She can prance and run for a short while before she just conks out and sort of drags herself along. We’ve been taking her for 30 minute runs / walks every day, but that’s about her upper limit. Coco, on the other hand, could go for 2 hours I suspect.
Here’s Shanti when I first came out tonight. She’s really perking up on the raw diet and her coat is much slicker and softer than when she first came home. She even jumped up on me and licked my face today! Which is a first… I used to pick up her front legs and her back legs would just collapse.
Shanti is smiling. Smiling is not natural to dogs in the wild and is learnt behaviour. It is a sure sign that Shanti has happy human interraction with lots of smiles directed at her and that she gets a positive reaction in return when she smiles.
Congratulations on your two new additions.
Thanks Gus.
Coco is not a new addition though
we have had her for 1 1/2 years now, she was from SPCA and a really scared little pup when we first got her.
Hi! Shanti is a beutiful Akita mix. I have a Akita to, they are realy nice and beutiful animals if you treat them right! Good Luck with the dogs!
*PUKE* This blog is ridiculous!
Thanks Kaikaku, yes she is lovely, and her jumping up on me to kiss my lips every day after work is the best part of my day.
Thanks Melissa! I’m glad you find saving the environment ridiculous! It completely matches everything I already know about you!
You want to leave sick messages on my dog’s blog, I’ll return the same favor to your blog too. Maybe it’s you or your brother. Don’t be so childish to start up a blog using Amber’s old blog URL & pretending to be me looking for a soul mate. And now you have so much time (when saying you don’t) to search for Amber’s new blog URL on the net & start leaving more sickening messages of guys looking to be my mate. You call me a kid? Look who’s a kid now. No one disturbed your blog until YOU or your brother did. Well, I think it’s fair for me to leave the same kind of messages you or your brother Marcus has been leaving on my dog’s blog. Please, stop harassing Amber’s blog. If you say you can’t stomach Amber’s blog, then don’t visit. Simple as that. Common sense. Or I will spread rumors about you & you ONLY to the whole blogosphere. Please don’t push me lady. I’ve had it with you, honestly.
*sigh*
Again, I never bothered commenting on this girl Melissa’s blog, nor did I use her old blog address. Any idiot knows that the minute you delete your blog, if it is a high traffic one with lots of incoming links than a spammer will post something – ANYTHING to take up the blog address to utilize your traffic count. It’s happened to me before with my first high traffic blog.
She creates drama playing the ‘victim’ and crying, when all the while she is the one spreading spurious stories about me being a dog trader, a criminal and a dog abuser all over the internet. I have emails that she cc’d to everyone accusing me of just that, as well as making racist remarks and harrassing me every way she can, hoping to intimidate me into admitting that I did things I never did!
And she says she’s had it with ME! HA!
Hi. I remember a previous mention about Shanti’s diet – Pedigree – and her apparently subsequent weight loss.
I have an explanation for the apparent weight loss after the dietary change from Pedigree to the raw food diet.
Pedigree is not a good dog food. It is literally the lowest of the lowest of dog foods and full of fillers. It has a lot of bulk in terms of volume but very little food value – hence the very low price. It is literally canine junk food.
Over time, a dog fed on pedigree gets so little nutrients that their bodies will store water and fat in a desperate attempt to retain as much water-soluble and fat-soluble nutrients as possible. I know of dogs fed on pedigree who eat their own poo in a desperate attempt to retain/ obtain whatever nutrients they can get. Disgusting but true.
These dogs get sluggish because they aren’t getting the nutrients that they need to fuel their bodies. They just don’t have the nutrition to do more than exist. Then after, all the health problems start to set in from inactivity.
A change to higher quality food will show changes over time. First the dog will put on a little weight from the increased nutrients then, as the dog starts to regain vitality and activity increases, the weight will start to fall off. First, from water retention since this is the easiest to lose then the fat begins to convert to muscle. Eventually, the dog will begin to look toned and sleek.
To those unaccustomed to seeing the initial change in the dog’s physique, it might be mistaken for skinniness because the dog’s skin will appear flabby.
Later, as the muscles build up from the good quality protein it is now being fed, the dog will begin to look more toned and have lots of energy.
Hope this helps
Hi again Gus!
Thanks for the info… actually one of the primary reasons I was anxious to take Shanti to my own home and away from the rescuer is because I found out she was feeding the dog Pedigree. Honestly, I thought she knew better than that. I know Pedigree is a rubbish dog ‘food’.
In any case, Shanti went to the vet today – she weighs 30kg now!
Melissa / Helena claimed they brought her weight from 16kg when they found her to 21 kg when Shanti left her care. So she has put on 9kg while she has been with me
I think a lot of muscle weight though, because she does look leaner than before.
SO relieved that I know for sure Shanti has a clean bill of health and is at a good weight, it renews my confidence.
Appreciate the info Gus. Here’s to enjoying my dogs without the drama!
Haha… i just read Melissa’s entry… like, who’s the one who has already been spreading rumours! *sigh* pointing fingers when there’s no real concrete evidence – yet again.