LONGEVITY - Page 2

This is a placeholder text
Group text

by ziegenfarm on 04 November 2009 - 16:11

just to underscore comment from nans gsd, i have to agree that what we put into our dogs is as important as their genetic makeup. while we've had gsds for nearly 30 yrs, i have learned a lot in the last 10 yrs that i wish i'd known before. thank god for the internet. i don't think there can be too much emphasis placed on the need for probiotics and enzymes in keeping the dogs healthy and building immunity. once the immune system fails its like a spiderweb crack in a windshield. it goes in every direction; likewise with the dogs' health. stress is another big factor - humans and dogs. we talk about testing our dogs with stress in dogsports. folks, we are not talking about stress testing a bridge or some other inanimate object, we are talking about a living, breathing being. if the dog's nerve cannot handle the stress we impose, the immune system will go to hell. sometimes, it is not obvious. sometimes it is. good health and a strong immune system promotes longevity and enhances whatever the dogs' genes have to offer.
pjp

by Nans gsd on 04 November 2009 - 16:11

Yes luck of the draw is maybe some of it; however, it sounds like you pay good attention to their health and get them what they need. That is also important.

The breeder of my boy Tyler feeds only raw and has for years; however, it did not work for him. Possibly had I kept in on it maybe the pannus would not have surfaced until later in life. Who knows. It is also possible you live in an area with less environmental impact on the dogs lives. That would be grreat. There are places around, however getting fewer and fewer.

I am hoping when I am able to purchase another dog that this show/work lines crap is solved and the work lines can bring some better health and longevity to the breed. One can hope. Nanci

by dAWgESOME on 04 November 2009 - 17:11

There is a very nice example of LONGEVITY being discussed on the other side of the fourm

www.pedigreedatabase.com/gsd/forum/18970.html

by Prager on 04 November 2009 - 21:11

Genetically based Longevity is a one thing and GI problems and environmentaly induced shortening of a life, may be other. If you feed commercial dog foods made out of tumors, Chinese pesticides and chicken lips, ther food which is always void of live enzymes, then be not surprise that dogs die early. I am big promoter of home cooked food. Dogs lived for tens of thousands of years on leftovers and now it's a big NO NO. Purina decided that, you know. In Czech there were very few flipped stomachs until we got westernized and start feeding balanced nutrition in form of granules. Longevity went down too. So it is great to breed longevity into dogs and also stop feeding any(!!) commercial foods.
Prager(Hans)
http://www.alpinek9.com

by snajper69 on 04 November 2009 - 21:11

Commercial food is exactly what it is, a garbage priced to sell, can the dog live on it? surer dogs can live almost on anything, they adapt very well, they are opportunistic animals and will eat whatever they will get to survive, and sometimes even thrive on it. But it will shorten their life span, in one way or other, I am my self from Poland and all the dogs in my life only got table scraps, nothing else they all lived happy and long life. but at the same time we did not over vaccinate any of the dogs just did only state required vaccinations, which in USA would be only Rabies!!!. You add all that crap into a dog and than you expect to be healthy and live long, get a grip. This is not to offend any one, as I do use commercial food, and I did for long time over vaccinate thinking that my vet knows better, but I am constantly evolving, and Raw and minimal vaccination in my opinion is the way to go. Sure not all of us can do it, hell I can't even afford the raw, but after my last episode with commercial food I think I am done, and my dogs will maybe eat less but only table scraps, and Raw diet, that's it. I am tired of the commercial food companies not stepping up to the plate. There is always something, food ingredients change, fashion change (low carb, high, carb, low protein, high protein shit make up your mind).

Sorry ;) but after my female got sick last week I am pissed off!!! And I am back to the dark side (RAW "pray" type feeding).

BTW if any of you think commercial food is the way to go, try eating it for a year or longer and see if you not ready to die by than. lol ;)

by darylehret on 05 November 2009 - 01:11

Good for you (and your dog)! Faro Policia has been on an all-raw diet since age two, and still in fantastic physical shape at age eleven! However, his eyesight has begun to worsen, and no longer has the stamina for live breeding this last year. Luckily, I had the foresight to collect him several times by age ten while his viable sperm rated at 96%, because that too had begun to decline. It's been said that the old DDR lines tend to live longer, and Faro carries quite a bit from that genepool.

by Silbersee on 05 November 2009 - 03:11

We lost her last year in the summer, just a couple of months shy of her 15th birthday: www.pedigreedatabase.com/gsd/pedigree/125867.html
And here is my best friend who died in Summer of 2001 at 13 and a half years of age:
www.pedigreedatabase.com/gsd/pedigree/81111.html
I still miss her terribly. I trialed her for a SchH3 and did a CD with her. We did everything together! She was my shadow!

by ShelleyR on 05 November 2009 - 15:11

PS I get my first post-surgery metastatic check soon.
Yeahhhhh MICHAEL!

by Nans gsd on 05 November 2009 - 16:11

My favorite homemade dog food is: some kind of ground meat; beef, turkey, chicken, even porKis OK is you want; mix 3-5 vegi's add some water and flash cook, just until it all heats up slightly. I put it over an organic kibble and they LOVE it. You can add carbs if you want your dog to gain weight, but without any grain or potatoes they keep a really lean weight with this and the best thing is in their shiney coats and their eyes. They absolutely glisten after a week on this; PS, I am going back to this. It totally takes me minutes to prepare it; you can cook up a batch that lasts 3 days; that is all you want to keep this anyway and you feel like you have really done something for their health.

Contact information Disclaimer Privacy Statement Copyright Information Terms of Service Cookie policy ↑ Back to top

LONGEVITY - Page 2

Pedigree Database