Don't booster yearly
Don't use conventional wormers
Don't use conventional flea control
Don't feed pet food

Not intended to start a debate on what we should or shouldn't do but as I don't use any of the methods on the list, I'm really interested in what alternatives others use and whether or not you feel your dogs are:
a) as healthy
b) healthier
than dogs you may have treated conventionally in the past?

I don't do any of the above and although I don't booster I have titre tested and everyone is fine so boosters are not required
I don't worm as my dogs do not have worms - I have fecal samples tested at the vets from time to time and no issues
I have never in 20 years of dog ownership had fleas - I put it down to not being a cat owner but who knows (my theory is that cats go out and mingle LOL) so never needed flea treatment

I feed the best quality meat and veg and whatever else I feed that I can afford, and am certain that the ingredients are better quality than commercial dogfood.

My dogs are very rarely ill and certainly less so than before I did things this way but that could also be down to more knowledge on choosing a breeder etc etc

I don't know, i do all the above and mine are perfectly helathy with the exception of a couple of congenital problems.

> I don't know, i do all the above and mine are perfectly helathy

Me too and I use them all :-)

I don't booster and I've never had the need in most recent years to use anything for fleas as my dogs haven't had any for many, many years.

I do all the above. I wouldn't trust anything else because I'm not a natural gambler. Even my premium bonds, which I've had for nearly 50 years, have never given me a penny, so I know that luck is not on my side! I haven't used a flea treatment for a year or so because they haven't had them - but if I saw a flea on them they'd get Frontlined PDQ! They get Drontalled every so often because they eat sh*t and prey which are known infective agents.

Don't booster yearly ....................... No I don't - but do titre estimate instead
Don't use conventional wormers.......Yes I do although never see a worm or cyst microscopically but perhaps that's why.
Don't use conventional flea control........Don't have fleas but sometimes a flare up of Cheyletiella and use Frontline.
Don't feed pet food..............................I do use some but all dogs have 'home cooking' in the main.

I would always do the first three.. (although i dont use flea control unless my dogs have fleas).... only had to de-flea abbie once in 3 years..
They are wormed because they eat the most discusting things sometimes on walks haha
(labs will be labs)

If i had the time i would feed them on a meat/raw based diet but i dont know enough about it and the extra things they would need.. my brother feeds his bullmastif X on meat.. and if he doesnt have any he will feed a cheap tin of dog food and the leftover meat from his dinner etc.. the dog is 9 now and looks about 4, lovely dog and hasn't had one health problem ever..

I also have a friend with a greyhound and he 15 now.. very spoiled and picky and he will only eat tins of dog food... crumpets and toast .. not saying i agree with this but he is still very happy and healthy and is definately not slowing down at 15 haha

>Don't booster yearly

I titre test.. one of my girls has not been vaccinated is 5 years.. her titres show she still has full imunity, yet 2 of my youngsters needed boostered at their annual check..

>Don't use conventional wormers

I still use conventional wormers.. My dogs eat raw, sometime fallen stock.. wild rabbits etc.. I play safe here

>Don't use conventional flea control

Have never had fleas in over 10 years.. (I feed garlic)  When I did use conventional methods.. I was constantly spraying house.. and animals

>Don't feed pet food

My father never fed commercial pet food.. I did for many many years.. I never noticed much difference between feeding raw (barf) and feeding commercial... I feed raw now.. but I do still use commercial occassionally.. (if its edible (or not) my dogs will eat it)  :-)

My dogs dog well on either..

I do all of those, never used to worm or flea on a regular basis as they didnt have fleas or worms. But recently im now going to stick to the routine 3/4 times a year wormer and flea treatment twice a year. They picked up fleas (dogs Fleas) no idea where from must be the long grass, and then one of mine unsure which one was sick and there was a round worm in it. So straight off to the vets. It will just keep the fleas at bay, as my girl was making herself bleeding itching and my boy has an allergy to fleas so im using it as a prevention (we also have a rabbit and fleas carry mixy virus) . My dogs are fed on a half barf diet with raw tripe, heart chunks and poultry neck and mixer biscuits for fibre and good oral health.

There are alternative ways but i would prefer to stick to tried and tested, i am not going to risk their health and both of them are healthy, good coats teeth and bright eyes. Plenty of energy and firm stools. I know you can tell when your dog has fleas but how do you know about worms and how ''naturally'' would you prevent worms. All types of worms including heart worms (i know we dont have those over here but still) Isnt it just better to routinely worm? As they are just parasites, and i know its a different thing to boost or not too boost, but as i intend to take my dogs abroad and they may have to stay in kennels its needed. I would probably do it anyway to be on the safe side, wouldnt want to be on the wrong end of parvo or distemper.

Louise

WHAT ABOUT TICKS
where i kive lots of ticks so mine are frontline from apirl to oct and wormed evert 4 to 6 months,

after 6 years dont boost,before that age i do every 18 months.

Dont boost,use garlic to keep the fleas away,as my Dachie had a very severe reaction to frontline,and worm every 3 months,as my GSD eats allsorts when out yes that and all.

I have my girls shots every year (except for rabies, which is every two years here), and they get the KC vaccine.

I have them on Heartworm meds all year round.  used to be advantage Multi, but saw no real reason to pay that much for one more thing it covers, so now on interceptor. 

I feed commercial dog food, and am having a hard time finding one I like.  The dogs will eat it no matter what, but I miss Canidae. 

Flea Control, used to have them on it all year round, but have noticed that short coat dogs dont seem to have a problem really, in compared to long haired dogs.  (Joy got them long before, and were harder to get rid of then Casie when she got them). 

And I dont worm on a regular basis, only when one of them is found to have worms in their stool samples.

i havent boostered yet as my dog is 11 months, but i was advised by the vet to use advocate (worms and defleas) on my dog every month which i do by pet food i mix jwb with raw tripe, and give garlic tablet every other day

Don't booster yearly - Yes i do, though looking into if the vets do the vaccination which can be done every 3 yrs

Don't use conventional wormers - Yes i use Advocate, many farm animals round here, not worth risking

Don't use conventional flea control - Yes again, they seem to pick rabbits and the like, also have cats in the house

Don't feed pet food - i don't i feed raw, started on complete but it didn't agree with my boy. Other dogs in house are fed complete.

Im really confused now, I have always took Maisie for her boosters, flea'd but never had flea's, wormed but never had worms, should I still be doing these things ?

I booster, kennel cough, both have had ticks so we use Advantix. I also use Natures Best & Beta and both dogs look really healthy. There 19 & 17 months so early days but we had kennel cough here last summer so I did them both.
I am not confident enough to BARF but with more time I would but I hardly find time to shop for us let alone the dogs as there is no such thing as a butcher around here at all. I use drontal (when I remember) but I have never found a flea or a worm and they eat awful things as well so i would rather be safe than sorry.