that I frequently see lurking around raw feeding groups or doing searches on various raw-feeding-related topics? I have never seen it here, but it seems that in a lot of places, people are extreme to a ridiculous degree. Generalized examples (not word for word, don't want to get sued or whatever) -
You don't want to feed whole bones? You grind the food? Grow up and get over it! You shouldn't HAVE dogs if you don't feed them prey model.
You don't add supplements? You are KILLING your cat.
OMG you add the occassional vegetable? What is WRONG with you! UR so stupid!
Why do you even have pets if you can't feed them properly? (referring to a 100% raw diet)
Prey model feeders/whole prey feeders are crazy.
BARF feeders are stupid. Even some vegetables are bad for dogs/cats, those supplements are NOT needed, and they grind the food because they are too dumb to understand that cat and dogs have TEETH!
You COOK the food? You are destroying all the nutrients. You may as well feed them Ol' Roy and be done with it. Idiot.
I truly don't understand the animosity. Any pet owner that steps away from commercial food has to deal with vets and other owners who think we are nutjobs who are killing our pets. We are labeled irresponsible, unintelligent, neanderthals, and I have even seen us referred to as a cult. No one feeding method works for every person or every companion animal. The my-way-or-the-highway approach is ridiculous and unhelpful. It drives away people who are already nervous about the choice they have made and leaves a bad taste in peoples mouths about non-commercial food if they are just looking into it. I am sure many go it alone and a great deal more abandon the idea all together.
If someone wants to cook the food and is willing to properly supplement, fine. It is a huge step above commercial food, they know what goes in it, and it is usually 100% human grade FOOD.
Some people are uncomfortable with whole bones for whatever reason. Fine. As long as they grind the bones to include them or give an appropriate calcium supplement, the cat or dog will be healthy. Boneless, large, meaty chunks help dental health too.
Some people DO feed whole bones. Fine. Nobody is going to come to your house and shove chicken necks down your dog's/cat's throat. It may not work for you, or your pet, but apparently it works fine for theirs.
Some people add supplements, for whatever reason. As long as the supplements are in appropriate levels, they aren't hurting anything and can give peace of mind, whether or not you think they are truly needed.
Some people don't give supplements or don't give many. Fine. As long as the cat/dog is doing well, fed variety, and not showing any signs of deficiency, whats the problem?
Some people add vegetables. Whether you think they are needed or not, as long as they don't constitute a huge part of the diet, and as long as they are safe to feed (not cherry tomatoes, onions, etc), if the cat/dog does not show any intolerance to them, fine.
Some people don't have the confidence or finances or both to feed all raw/home-cooked food all of the time. Fine. Point them to be best commercial food in their budget and give advice on the raw/home-cooked part of what they feed. We all started somewhere. Few if any of us have always fed home-prepared diets of any sort. Many will never give 100% home prepared. Some is better than none, and people who actually take the time to look into the topic of petfood instead of grabbing a bag of whatever is on sale of the shelf CARE about their pets, no matter what their decisions, and are generally doing the best they can on an emotional or financial level.
The use of "you" in this post is a general term and absolutey incorrect english writing, its horrible and does not refer in whole or in part, to any one individual.
On a semi-related note, I love this forum full of non-judgemental, reasonable people who, regardless of opinion, are invariable polite and helpful, and rarely if ever critical. Some of these other places really need to take a lesson from Parenting-Furkids.