While many believe supplementation is a basic requirement in food the reality is somewhat different. When you look at supplementation there really are only three reasons to include them:

• replace something missing in the diet
• for performance
• to treat a specific malady or disease

If you answer no to all of the above the supplementation is not required.

If the diet contains a large portion of chicken with bone ground in, a variation of vegetables, the occasional addition of liver, fish, other organ meats, beef, tripe, eggs, supplementation may not be required. All the essential nutrients - fats, minerals and vitamins are contained in those items. Of course that means they are not cooked. We do suggest the addition of Kelp, as that is an excellent source of iodine a mineral that has been leached from the soils of most vegetable farmed land due to overproduction. The emphasis should be on variety as that ensures a full and complete diet.

Do not get supplementation of the raw food diet, confused with supplementation of the dry commercial food! The dry commercial foods are lacking in essential fatty acids, and have been fortified with minerals and vitamins in their chemical forms. Both of these conditions create adverse reactions in dogs that respond well to supplementation. Adding these same supplements to a raw food diet can create different problems as the dog responds to an over abundance of one nutrient or another.

In most instances for the raw food diet 'less is more'. So when considering supplementation please check with a homeopathic vet and or someone familiar with the condition or expectations you are looking for.