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Feeding Dogs: Dry or Raw? The Science Behind the Debate
"Modern canine nutrition demands we trust the science more so than actually understand it because to pull back the curtain just a little reveals the magic show for what it is – a very clever illusion."
From the vet health professional to canine professional to the avid canine enthusiast, Feeding Dogs is a fascinating, at times shocking and utterly essential portrayal of canine nutrition today. With a clear and tangible passion for the subject but with an entertaining, highly readable style, Dr Conor Brady forensically translates the available research on a great variety of topics, detailing for us not only what dogs should eat but what they are currently being fed. Crucially, modern diet strategies are linked to many of the diseases that plague our pets today, including obesity, cancer, pancreatitis and bloat. As the scientific and corporate tricks reveal themselves, the fantasy of a 'complete' diet falls away, replaced with the knowledge that formulating a balanced dog diet by ourselves is not only uncomplicated but utterly essential to their health and longevity.
With more than 500 pages and 1200 references, Feeding Dogs is the most thorough examination of the canine nutrition debate to date. Over four large sections, it Each chapter comes with a complete bibliography and handy take-home points.
Finally! A well-written, well-referenced, thorough examination of the raw dog food debate. Dr. Brady provides a detailed summary of all the issues, leaving the reader well-educated and ready to engage in a knowledgable conversation with raw-ignorant or naive pet professionals looking for more information. A fantastic gift for your favourite veterinarian.
Dr. Karen Becker, DVM
“In this masterfully researched and written exposé, Conor Brady details the raw truth about canine nutrition; why dry dog food is so damaging, how modern research is designed to sell product, never to find truth, and the enormous benefits that only a fresh raw and whole food diet can provide. A valuable addition to the serious raw feeder’s library.”
Dr. Ian Billinghurst, best-selling author of Give Your Dog a Bone
“This remarkable book is the first of its kind. Researched comprehensively and meticulously detailed, it remains pleasantly readable and credible to the academic and home raw food enthusiast alike. It is a must for everyone with even a passing interest in species-appropriate nutrition for dogs. Dr. Nick Thompson, Founder of the Raw Feeding Vet Society
From the vet health professional to canine professional to the avid canine enthusiast, Feeding Dogs is a fascinating, at times shocking and utterly essential portrayal of canine nutrition today. With a clear and tangible passion for the subject but with an entertaining, highly readable style, Dr Conor Brady forensically translates the available research on a great variety of topics, detailing for us not only what dogs should eat but what they are currently being fed. Crucially, modern diet strategies are linked to many of the diseases that plague our pets today, including obesity, cancer, pancreatitis and bloat. As the scientific and corporate tricks reveal themselves, the fantasy of a 'complete' diet falls away, replaced with the knowledge that formulating a balanced dog diet by ourselves is not only uncomplicated but utterly essential to their health and longevity.
With more than 500 pages and 1200 references, Feeding Dogs is the most thorough examination of the canine nutrition debate to date. Over four large sections, it Each chapter comes with a complete bibliography and handy take-home points.
Finally! A well-written, well-referenced, thorough examination of the raw dog food debate. Dr. Brady provides a detailed summary of all the issues, leaving the reader well-educated and ready to engage in a knowledgable conversation with raw-ignorant or naive pet professionals looking for more information. A fantastic gift for your favourite veterinarian.
Dr. Karen Becker, DVM
“In this masterfully researched and written exposé, Conor Brady details the raw truth about canine nutrition; why dry dog food is so damaging, how modern research is designed to sell product, never to find truth, and the enormous benefits that only a fresh raw and whole food diet can provide. A valuable addition to the serious raw feeder’s library.”
Dr. Ian Billinghurst, best-selling author of Give Your Dog a Bone
“This remarkable book is the first of its kind. Researched comprehensively and meticulously detailed, it remains pleasantly readable and credible to the academic and home raw food enthusiast alike. It is a must for everyone with even a passing interest in species-appropriate nutrition for dogs. Dr. Nick Thompson, Founder of the Raw Feeding Vet Society
- GenresDogsNonfiction
540 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2020
21 people are currently reading
158 people want to read
About the author
Conor Brady
19 books28 followersJournalist, author, former editor (@IrishTimes, The Sunday Tribune), former Commissioner, Garda Siochana Ombudsman Commission.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
April 1, 2024
It is clear that humans we create institutions that wreak havoc on human and animal lives, institutions that are indifferent to wellbeing or harm, truth or falsehood, and have the inertia of a cargo ship whenever anyone seeks to alter their course. This book is mainly an account of this phenomenon occurring in what could be termed the ‘pet food/human food/veterinary industrial complex’. He exposes the contradictions, compromised values, and conflicts of interest tacit in so much of what is taught, published, and sold in the world of animal nutrition.
Feeding Dogs is an interesting and absorbing read. It segues often into the world of human diet, the integrity of human research, and corporate indifference to human harm when there is profit to be had, and this makes the book about so much more than dog food! At over 500 large pages it is a weighty tome of a book, but its length and dimensions belie how readable it is: it is very well structured, its sequence is logical, and it provides a surprisingly page-turning experience. In this way Conor Brady is to the pet food industry as Ben Goldacre is to Big Pharma, and Gary Taubes is to (Big) sugar, and he writes as well as both of them.
This is is a thoroughgoing and extremely well researched book- most chapters have 100 references or more. However, Dr Brady’s authority was undermined in places by some disquieting elements: His introductory reference to a personal epiphany when connected to the scientifically dubious Vega machine; his references to anti-vaccine literature (which to be fair all appear scientifically valid); and worst his two page defence of homeopathy.
In In one passage he favourably compared theories explaining the apparent ability of dogs to detect scent at the impossible molecular concentrations in homeopathic preparations as being akin to the evidence for the existence of dark matter. Can we assume the homeopaths’ methodology to be as robust as the mathematically precise measurement and calculations that are possible in physics? How exactly did they assess the positive detection of scent by a mute canine subject? We are not told. By this point I was glad I had earlier read his description of the Andrew Wakefield/MMR/autism fiasco, where he roundly condemns this fraudulent and damaging work, or I would have been worried more by all of this credulity.
Unfortunately it was when the book moved on to present the counter-case for the positive benefits of a raw food diet for dogs that I almost revised my positive opinion of the book altogether. In his discussion of phytochemicals he glibly asides that remedies like these ‘won’t be recommended by your doctor, for some reason’. This is despite the fact that in the immediately preceding list of phyochemicals was aspirin, probably one of the most widely prescribed drugs in the world! If he has read much of Ben Goldacre he should be familiar with the principle that as soon as a herbal or any other alternative remedy becomes supported by properly conducted science it leaves the world of ‘alternative medicine’ and becomes just ‘medicine’. It gets worse still when he uncritically expounds the reason for feeding particular organs as part of a raw food diet (some termed excretory organs, despite many having nothing to do with excretion). He implies eating pancreas could help ‘diabetic doggies’, that eating an adrenal gland is somehow good because it contains epinephrine, and that neutered dogs should eat testes to replace lost hormones! He also gives a shameless plug for his own seaweed based products, backed with no evidence, just a ‘money back guarantee’- this was a particular low point.
More generally when it comes to the case for raw food he offers very precise recommendations without any convincing evidence to back them up- which is exactly basis of much of the criticism he levels at the dry food industry. He is open about this but doesn’t let the intrinsic contradiction stop his evangelising. His theoretical case rests on the same argument as that used by advocates of the Paleo fad diet for humans, even though he accepts there has been some evolution of dogs toward omnivorous abilities under the Darwinian selection pressure of domestication.
I guess for me it was probably enough for him to have demolished the sham of pet food marketing, and to have exposed the nonsense the whole enormous industry is built on. I was persuaded at that point, and did not need the wool pulling over my eyes to convince me that an alternative might be better.
Some typos and scientific inaccuracies irritated and I hope mentioning them might prompt correction for subsequent editions:‘Dilated Cardio Myopathy’ (dilated cardiomyopathy), Animal Zoo Pharmacognosy (I presume animal zoopharmacognosy). The glycolytic pathway burns glucose not glycogen, glycogen is not found in blood, and taurine is not a protein.
I don’t think I have ever written such a long review, which is testament to how stimulating I found this book. It was clearly a labour of love for the author to complete, and it is an incredible piece of work; I wouldn’t wish my criticisms to detract from this. The final FAQ about vegetarian diets for dogs was particularly erudite: a stand-alone essay both giving the answer for curious owners, and outlining the difficult challenge of making dog ownership align with the demands of climate change. To read a vegetarian dog lover’s account of this was a brilliant moment, and was a fittingly eloquent and important epilogue to a tour de force of a book.
Feeding Dogs is an interesting and absorbing read. It segues often into the world of human diet, the integrity of human research, and corporate indifference to human harm when there is profit to be had, and this makes the book about so much more than dog food! At over 500 large pages it is a weighty tome of a book, but its length and dimensions belie how readable it is: it is very well structured, its sequence is logical, and it provides a surprisingly page-turning experience. In this way Conor Brady is to the pet food industry as Ben Goldacre is to Big Pharma, and Gary Taubes is to (Big) sugar, and he writes as well as both of them.
This is is a thoroughgoing and extremely well researched book- most chapters have 100 references or more. However, Dr Brady’s authority was undermined in places by some disquieting elements: His introductory reference to a personal epiphany when connected to the scientifically dubious Vega machine; his references to anti-vaccine literature (which to be fair all appear scientifically valid); and worst his two page defence of homeopathy.
In In one passage he favourably compared theories explaining the apparent ability of dogs to detect scent at the impossible molecular concentrations in homeopathic preparations as being akin to the evidence for the existence of dark matter. Can we assume the homeopaths’ methodology to be as robust as the mathematically precise measurement and calculations that are possible in physics? How exactly did they assess the positive detection of scent by a mute canine subject? We are not told. By this point I was glad I had earlier read his description of the Andrew Wakefield/MMR/autism fiasco, where he roundly condemns this fraudulent and damaging work, or I would have been worried more by all of this credulity.
Unfortunately it was when the book moved on to present the counter-case for the positive benefits of a raw food diet for dogs that I almost revised my positive opinion of the book altogether. In his discussion of phytochemicals he glibly asides that remedies like these ‘won’t be recommended by your doctor, for some reason’. This is despite the fact that in the immediately preceding list of phyochemicals was aspirin, probably one of the most widely prescribed drugs in the world! If he has read much of Ben Goldacre he should be familiar with the principle that as soon as a herbal or any other alternative remedy becomes supported by properly conducted science it leaves the world of ‘alternative medicine’ and becomes just ‘medicine’. It gets worse still when he uncritically expounds the reason for feeding particular organs as part of a raw food diet (some termed excretory organs, despite many having nothing to do with excretion). He implies eating pancreas could help ‘diabetic doggies’, that eating an adrenal gland is somehow good because it contains epinephrine, and that neutered dogs should eat testes to replace lost hormones! He also gives a shameless plug for his own seaweed based products, backed with no evidence, just a ‘money back guarantee’- this was a particular low point.
More generally when it comes to the case for raw food he offers very precise recommendations without any convincing evidence to back them up- which is exactly basis of much of the criticism he levels at the dry food industry. He is open about this but doesn’t let the intrinsic contradiction stop his evangelising. His theoretical case rests on the same argument as that used by advocates of the Paleo fad diet for humans, even though he accepts there has been some evolution of dogs toward omnivorous abilities under the Darwinian selection pressure of domestication.
I guess for me it was probably enough for him to have demolished the sham of pet food marketing, and to have exposed the nonsense the whole enormous industry is built on. I was persuaded at that point, and did not need the wool pulling over my eyes to convince me that an alternative might be better.
Some typos and scientific inaccuracies irritated and I hope mentioning them might prompt correction for subsequent editions:‘Dilated Cardio Myopathy’ (dilated cardiomyopathy), Animal Zoo Pharmacognosy (I presume animal zoopharmacognosy). The glycolytic pathway burns glucose not glycogen, glycogen is not found in blood, and taurine is not a protein.
I don’t think I have ever written such a long review, which is testament to how stimulating I found this book. It was clearly a labour of love for the author to complete, and it is an incredible piece of work; I wouldn’t wish my criticisms to detract from this. The final FAQ about vegetarian diets for dogs was particularly erudite: a stand-alone essay both giving the answer for curious owners, and outlining the difficult challenge of making dog ownership align with the demands of climate change. To read a vegetarian dog lover’s account of this was a brilliant moment, and was a fittingly eloquent and important epilogue to a tour de force of a book.
January 31, 2023
It was huge pleasure reading this book. And for my dog. You will get so many no's for the kibble it will take weeks telling this to your neighbours. It will get crystal clear about dogs nutrition like on meditation.
Let's strart from Cons. The first and the last photo you gonna find is on the cover. Lack of graphs/iliustrations and photos. This would make life much easier to understand hard topics/terms/processes/data. To visualise it!
The layout is as in University. Not much love in it. The book and the font is big. After reading for a few hours you will feel like in a wonderland browsing your cell phone – everything will seem so small! And you have to lay down it on the table while reading – it's a bit heavy to hold it for longer.
It will take a lot of time to read, to check what you didn't know or understand.
Okay. Now Pros. This is WOW book. WOW! For the first time and in one place I could read so much about human nutrition! In dogs book! It is so much interconnected.
The content is well prepared and crafted. You can feel the craft by the author in any small detail he made. References for the data and researches looks like infinity.
You will go all the way from evolution, dog behaviour, dog food revolutions, science discoveries and dark science, digestion, nutrition and diets, diseases and conditions, dogs well being, a bit about cats and zoos, regulations, corporations, politics and so much more! Each topic is a deep dive and supported by science or told that there is no science at the moment.
The book is practical to vets and home users.
Conor Brandy is a true frontier for the raw food. We appreciate your enormous work and kudos to your supportive family.
Let's strart from Cons. The first and the last photo you gonna find is on the cover. Lack of graphs/iliustrations and photos. This would make life much easier to understand hard topics/terms/processes/data. To visualise it!
The layout is as in University. Not much love in it. The book and the font is big. After reading for a few hours you will feel like in a wonderland browsing your cell phone – everything will seem so small! And you have to lay down it on the table while reading – it's a bit heavy to hold it for longer.
It will take a lot of time to read, to check what you didn't know or understand.
Okay. Now Pros. This is WOW book. WOW! For the first time and in one place I could read so much about human nutrition! In dogs book! It is so much interconnected.
The content is well prepared and crafted. You can feel the craft by the author in any small detail he made. References for the data and researches looks like infinity.
You will go all the way from evolution, dog behaviour, dog food revolutions, science discoveries and dark science, digestion, nutrition and diets, diseases and conditions, dogs well being, a bit about cats and zoos, regulations, corporations, politics and so much more! Each topic is a deep dive and supported by science or told that there is no science at the moment.
The book is practical to vets and home users.
Conor Brandy is a true frontier for the raw food. We appreciate your enormous work and kudos to your supportive family.
April 18, 2023
Es un libro imprescindible para entender qué debe comer tu perro (también aplicable a cualquier carnívoro doméstico).
Recordemos que las empresas que venden pienso también se dedican a vender pañales y pastas de dientes. Yo no me fiaría de ellos.
Y sobre todo si es legal meter animales atropellados y eutanasiados ahí (incluyendo perros y gatos eh).
Una pena que sólo se pueda encontrar en inglés y no se puede comprar fácilmente
Recordemos que las empresas que venden pienso también se dedican a vender pañales y pastas de dientes. Yo no me fiaría de ellos.
Y sobre todo si es legal meter animales atropellados y eutanasiados ahí (incluyendo perros y gatos eh).
Una pena que sólo se pueda encontrar en inglés y no se puede comprar fácilmente
June 26, 2022
Not A Recipe book! I'm a vet tech with 10+yrs experience. I've always been picky about my dog food choices and have never agreed with the veterinary world endorsing Hills, Purina, and Royal Canine. Due to malabsorption issues, I've had to homecook for 1 of my 3 dogs. I'm also starting up a Nutrition Consultation plan for my hospital. This book has been reccommended to me on Amazon since its release date and I've ignored it thinking it was a recipe book. I was wrong! It's FULL of studies regarding raw, kibble, and supplements. I loved it!
January 10, 2022
A must-read for every dog owner. Very detailed insight of the dog food industry and it’s influence over veterinary education. Every factoid referenced with scientific literature. You’ll learn a lot about human health, as well. Only the final chapters address what to feed, because it’s so much simpler than so many make it out to be! Please read this book.
August 12, 2024
This book stands out as one of the best resources on the benefits of feeding your dog a raw diet. It's incredibly well-researched yet written in such clear and accessible language that even those without a scientific background can easily grasp the concepts. The author does an excellent job of breaking down the issues with kibble and makes a compelling case for switching to fresh, raw foods for your dog.
However, I did feel that the book could have delved deeper into the specific benefits of various foods within a raw diet, such as different types of organs, bones, and vegetables. This additional detail would have been valuable for those looking to tailor their dog’s diet more precisely.
Overall, this is a fantastic read that I highly recommend to any dog owner considering a raw diet. 4.5 stars.
However, I did feel that the book could have delved deeper into the specific benefits of various foods within a raw diet, such as different types of organs, bones, and vegetables. This additional detail would have been valuable for those looking to tailor their dog’s diet more precisely.
Overall, this is a fantastic read that I highly recommend to any dog owner considering a raw diet. 4.5 stars.
November 16, 2025
I was already aware of some of corruption and bad science within the dry pet food industry, however I was not aware of the full extent of this or the fact that the pet food industry is self governing and used as a dumping ground for waste food products. Our dogs deserve better. This book has really opened my eyes and educated me further on canine nutrition. I love how the statements in this book are backed up by lots of scientific references. This is a book I’ll refer to again and again as I strive to feed the best diet possible to any dog in my care and also to help others with nutritional advice. All dog owners need to read this book.
July 18, 2022
Must read for dog owners. Or anyone that considers having a dog in future. Great introduction to what dogs need, what we don’t know yet about their diets and how pet food industry uses our love for pets to make more money.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews