I mention these, but make no unilateral endorsement...read for yourself and decide, but these were three books that influenced the diet choices i made for my dog.
1. Foods Pets Die For [ scathing and scary] Ann Martin
excerpt:As discussed in Chapter
Two, companion animals from clinics, pounds, and shelters
can and are being rendered and used as sources of protein
in pet food. Dead-stock removal operations play a major
role in the pet food industry. Dead animals, road kill
that cannot be buried at roadside, and in some cases,
zoo animals, are picked up by these dead stock operations.
When an animal dies in the field or is killed due to
illness or disability, the dead stock operators pick
them up and truck them to the receiving plant. There
the dead animal is salvaged for meat or, depending on
the state of decomposition, delivered to a rendering
plant. At the receiving plants, the animals of value
are skinned and viscera removed. Hides of cattle and
calves are sold for tanning. The usable meat is removed
from the carcass, and covered in charcoal to prevent
it from being used for human consumption. Then the meat
is frozen, and sold as animal food, which includes pet
food.
2. Give your dog a bone - Dr Ian billinghurst
excerpt:
The philosophy behind using BARF, or the hypothesis on which it is
based is that the diet a dog evolved to eat - over many millions of
years of evolution - is the best way to feed it. This is the hypothesis
accepted by most modern zoos or any zoologist concerned with preserving
a species of endangered animal. It is not the theory endorsed by pet
food companies or the people they train - and that includes
unfortunately - most vets.
If you want to feed your dog BARF, it means not feeding your dog cooked
and or processed food. That is, not feeding your dog a diet based on
cooked grains, no matter how persuasive the advertising. Artificial
grain based dog foods cause innumerable health problems. They are not
what your dog was programmed to eat during its long process of
evolution.
3. Dr Pitcairns Natural Health for Dogs and Cats ;
FROM AMAZON.com ___The book that is the definitive guide to a natural lifestyle for dogs
and cats is now completely updated and revised--for the first time in 9
years. Writing with the warmth and compassion that have won them a
national following, veterinarian Richard H. Pitcairn and his wife Susan
Hubble Pitcairn, noted specialists in chemical-free nutrition and
natural healing for pets, show dog and cat owners how to provide the
very best in companionship and lifelong care.
Cheers
Denise Herman
http://www.empireofthedog.com