fearing letting my dog walk around, and feeding him

Share questions, perspectives and relevant material about Animals here
Post Reply
User avatar
Nicklk1795
Posts: 265
Joined: 19 Mar 2013, 00:06

fearing letting my dog walk around, and feeding him

Post by Nicklk1795 »

So my dog doesn't like his dog food. I assessed the situation, and have the current idea that he would enjoy healthy "human" food. He likes eggs, but I'm still contemplating on what nutrition he needs, without just strictly eating eggs. He's eaten green beans, but online it says dogs can eat oatmeal, yogurt, peanut butter, and some other foods like carrots and broccoli. My question - what can I feed him currently that would give him the proper nutrition, while mostly having processed food?

The next point is about walking with him outside of the boarders of my house with no leash. What was supportive for him, was me walking without any energy moving me as much as possible. With this I walked through the alley and was throwing out pecans for the birds to eat (the conscious intent of the birds eating it), and eventually we were walking in front of my house across the street. There was a fear of him getting run over by a car, but that fear was disproved from multiple points of myself and Dexter (the dogs name) that I saw in the moment.

There was a problem before I decided to grab him and take him back to his restricted boarders of the house. He went to the neighbors back drive way, and where he wanted to roam through the driveway. I went into this intermittent fear of the neighbors coming out and telling me to get Dexter, and eventually I went to pick him up while he was walking towards the gate to communicate with the neighbors dog. I went to go pick him up without allowing energy to go through me, but automatically I swiped my foot on the concreete, and the neighbors dog started barking.

My question - is there any perspectives, or factual information that anyone knows or have applied to walking a dog outside without a leash, with the precaution of not having the dog get run over, yet while still feeling physically comfortable with walking with the dog. Is there any tests or ways I can experiment with walking with Dexter outside without him being on a leash.

Thank you
User avatar
Maite
Posts: 575
Joined: 13 Jun 2011, 19:08

Re: fearing letting my dog walk around, and feeding him

Post by Maite »

Hey Niklas,

In terms of food: we give our dogs kibble, but supplement their diet with giving them raw lamb bones once in a while. I would suggest researching your dog's breed and finding out where they used to live originally and what they would be eating there, this helped us to find the supplements for our dogs in addition to kibble. When you find points you want to test - I would say add one new thing at a time - for like 2 weeks - and see how he responds to the change in his diet. Look at whether he avoids it in his bowl, or if his coat becomes dull or more shiny, so - any changes you notice in terms of his physical condition as well as his eating behavior. Based on that, you can then assess whether to keep giving it, how much and how often.

In terms of walking your dog without a leash, my first question is what your starting point is within it - whether there is a judgment towards a leash or what it is you want to develop through doing walking him without one, etc.

I personally walk my dogs always on a leash, because I walk them in the fields on the farm. And say - if suddenly a bokkie or a bird that's been hiding in the grass, jumps out and runs from us - my dogs can snap into pursuit mode - where, no matter how stable I am - if I don't catch it in time, to correct them, they're off chasing the animal. So - a leash supports for those unpredictable moments; increasing your ability to direct your dog in a moment where either something happens in the environment (say another dog off leash comes to bark at your dog), or your dog suddenly insists on doing something they're not supposed to. Your stability or reactions are only one factor - your being stable is not a guarantee that everything will go well, there are always other factors that may require you to be able to act quickly and efficiently to prevent consequences for yourself/your dog/someone else.

So - if you really want to walk your dog off leash - I would suggest doing so in an environment where unpredictable things are less likely to happen - perhaps a forest where not many people walk their dogs or something like that.
User avatar
Nicklk1795
Posts: 265
Joined: 19 Mar 2013, 00:06

Re: fearing letting my dog walk around, and feeding him

Post by Nicklk1795 »

Thank you maite. I realized that I judge the leash as a point of "imprisoning Dexter". There's a demonic/major fear within myself about my cat that died 2 years ago just about. I used to abuse the cat directly his first half of his life, and then the second half I tried "making it up to him", and he ended up during fairly young. So thank you for the assistance and support. This will be a new point to face. I just want to make sure I'm stable while facing it.

Thanks again.
Post Reply

Return to “Animal Support”