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theangrygnomeempress · 2 months

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A Baldur's Gate 3 Rant

tldr: woman is angry at a game and needed to scream and vent into the void. And this is cheaper than therapy.

TW: it's BG3, spoilers, and the game includes themes of abuse in all and every form. This post will be addressing some of those issues. I'm sorry if these matters are displeasing for you. Please bare this in mind going forward, especially with Astarion's part of the rant. I apologize in advance for any harmful emotions I bring up. I pray you are able to heal and continue to grow on your journey.

First off, I am not a gamer. I grew out of gaming back around 2020 since it no longer served as good or healthy escapism.

Most of the games I did play was stuff like Undertale, Skull girls, MK, Smash, Fnaf, and Overwatch. I have more titles under my gaming belt but these are just to name a few.

I am also not a DnD or Fantasy fan. I'm team sci-fi all the way. I just think magic is a cop out and used in lazy writing. Plus I can't play a game where the rules are basically whatever the dungeon master calls it. I need games with decent structure. Plus if I'm able to lift like 250, rolling a 3 shouldn't matter. It's like the will of the dice over rule your action and your stats don't matter.

So how the hell did I even get involved with this game? Youtube! The damn algorithm!

Every. Single. Recommend. Video. Short. Everything!

It was always the damn vampire. Only the vampire. I was almost convinced the game was just about him.

So, because I am a Fnaf fan that should tell you all that you need about my fascination and hyperfixation with gaming lore.

I blame MattPat!

So, I take a look into the game.

Immediately I'm hit with the Spider-Man vs BG3 drama. The absurd racism from some of the fans. The awful takes made about the game that was whole unjustified. And the very very concerning fixation on Astarion. This was all in January 2024.

Months later, the game is still popular. However I am beyond annoyed because the game sucks.

If you're a fan, that's fine. Honestly, it's the fans who drew me into the whole thing. You're a very talented lot who saw the wasted potential the game made. I'm pretty much became a fan of the Fandom. Until all the racism.

That being said, I'm going to be ripping into this game. I never played the game. I'm going off of clips, video essays, and posts that I've seen. I have also had to read some Fandom wiki to make sure I understood some story beats.

Lets get ready to rant!

First the game.

Is there a game? Seriously? Because if you're like me, a asexual who didn't want to romance anyone, what is there to do? I was expecting Diablo and I got some Otome game. Not to say that dating Sims can't be fun, but this feels so much like a dating sim. Almost everything relies on the relationships you make in the game. I just wanted to hack and slash, not.... kiss and miss?

I'm not clever, sue me.

And yes, I never played so how would I know? Almost all the posts I see about the game is about the companions. To me, it's like that's the only memorable parts. A good game should have memorable characters and game play. My example is undertale. It's a wonderful mix of memorable moments with the characters and great fights.

Also you can go on a date with the best boy of the game!

So if the focus of the game is made on the company of your party, how are they?

Bad. Their all bad.

Ok, that was a lie. The women are great, the men suck.

So let me begin with the most romanced character Shadow heart.

And it really shouldn't be a surprise why out of the 6 she's the most romanced. She actually has a story and while yes, all your choices impact the characters, she's the most believable character who would independently choose her path. Be it with Shar or Selune.

Plus she's the easiest to make a life with after the battle. Laezel needs to go to war. Karlach needs to go back to hell. Maybe you can make a life with one of the guys but why would you want to?

While everyone thinks Astarion was the writing room's favorite, it was actually Shadow heart. She has a clear cohesive story that doesn't feel cheap on either ending you get with her because it feels like despite your influence, her actions are hers. And I think it amounts to how the writers wrote her taking accountability of her actions in the clips I've seen. No complaints with this one. Sure, she's the embodiment "it's not a phase Mom!". But that's her charm and part of the reason why I like seeing her growth. 10/10 for me for the independence vibes into her own changes.

Now, Laezel was the second most romanced character and the second character with the best writing.

Another character with clear writing, clear motives, and a decent story.

She's also my personal favorite. Like, if I was isekaied into the game, we're besties. She'd probably hate me, but she would me my best friend.

Her story is ok, even if it's simple. It works.

I don't see much of how other's like her as a girlfriend. And I wouldn't know what her romance is like since I'm not playing the game. But she's a little emotional distant who warms up to you over time is the vibe I get. Which is much better than the vibes I get for Karlach.

I'd give her a 8/10 as a character and companion. Well crafted, but she leaves me wanting more.

Karlach is a 5.

Third romanced for a reason. Her crap story is what dooms her from the start.

She's a victim of the war and possibly a child soldier who's doomed to burn and die. Kinda hard to put your heart into someone who may not live to see if you can build a life together. Her death is certain and it's incredibly hard to see that for a woman so sweet.

All other companions get to be free but her. That sucks! She's pretty much in a doomed timeline. I feel awful for her as there's really no hope and a slim chance for getting better.

It's hard to romance someone with a constant bounty on her head.

Still would pick her over any of the guys any day. She's immature sure, but she's sweet. And if not a soldier, I could see her being that P.E. teacher everyone loves.

I could she her flourishing and thriving if she didn't have to deal with so much crap.

Her personality is a 8, smile is a 10, but she's a 5 because you will need to be constantly fighting to keep her safe. And even then, it feels like you can't.

She has the saddest story because unlike Astarion, she can't be free. There is no cannon event for her to have a proper mechanical heart like Tony Stark. So even if you some how free her from her devil, she's forever tied to hell. That's sad.

Now Wyll is a 4.

He's beautiful but he's morally corrupt. Which is why I couldn't nor could ever imagine romancing him.

Now, this poor man was dragged through the mud for no other reason than being a black man. I see this crap so much with fantasy/magic Fandoms. It's sad that in 2024 we can't have a black man in a video game. There's no justification to whitewash. Most of the critics I've seen of him has more to do with the critic than the actual problems with the character.

If you can't say what about the character gives you the ick, I'm questioning you.

Exactly what rubbed you the wrong way about him? And why can't you say it? There are valid reasons not to like a character. Even if it's just that you never connected with the character, that's OK too. But DnD does have a history with racism so it's sad to say that I shouldn't be surprised.

Wyll is a sweetheart. I love him to death. His romance is a breath of fresh air. I watched a compilation of his romance and I loved it. If he did that to me, I'd swoon. It was great to have someone who you could romance without sex. He is a true prince charming and easy to fall in love with.

However, I was upset when I found out he was a human turned devil and not a teifling. Again, I knew nothing about DnD when I was starting looking into this game. And nothing on his back story. I was smitten by his pretty face ok?

And once I looked into his back story, the image of the prince charming cracked. Instead, I'm left with a man child who wants to play hero.

Let me explain.

It's known that he was facing a evil cult and then panicked. He was a scared 17 year old, raised by the ideals of a lawfully good and just man. I could forgive him for making a deal with Mizora if he wasn't a literal duke's son.

Same situation but if Wyll was a commoner, or even as high class as a nobleman/ aristocrat's son, 100% understandable. He needs to save his people. It was the best he could do at the time.

But he's not a simple man. He is a duke's son. A person who would have had the means of military power. If not himself, he could have gone to a royal advisor and he could have lead a army.

This storyline is about as believable as BatMan. You know you messed up when Batman is more realistic than your character.

Ok, so let's go back to the start of his story. He was a scared kid and in his foolishness, made a deal to save his people. Noble. Good.

But then he served Mizora for 8 or so years. And for what? Powers that he doesn't use? He's the blade of frontiers. Man is a fighter, not a warlock.

And how many other innocent people has he killed because of Mizora? Someone made a really good point about his interaction with Karlach. You and Wyll see her burning, on the attack, and told she's evil not only by Mizora but from the knights.

You have no reason to really trust Karlach on her words alone. It's only through the tadpole that you are able to see her as the victim she is.

How many people has Wyll killed that were like Karlach? How much blood has he spilled thanks to his pact?

It's hard to like Wyll after noticing the hypocrisy. So much so that I can understand why people find him distasteful. (If only he was actually criticized for his actions)

He's not a good guy. He's lawful neutral. He's only good at playing the good guy. I say this as he really only cares about the glory of being a hero and nothing more. I don't blame his dad for disowning him. His dad fought and earned the right to be a Duke. Duke Ravengaurd was a man for the people, a true spirt of a guardian angel. Wyll looked up at him and sadly only saw the praise. I say this as his heart desires not the good of the people, but adventure and the tales of glory to boast about. All his interactions is about him gloating. If he's not gloating, he's playing the moral high ground.

Also, for a character that's so moral that quip to Astarion about the rat diet is out of line.

There's so many things you can make fun if Astarion for, why did you need to make fun of his abuse like that?

To me, Wyll is fools gold. Looks to be of great worth but is nothing more than a shimmering fake.

Because he didn't have to make the pact with Mizora. He chose to. He wasn't in a life or death situation. He didn't have to face the cultists with her alone. Throughout the game, Wyll is highly regarded in his city. You'll see this if he stays human. I find it very hard to believe he couldn't rally up some men to stage a coup, and kill off the cultists that way.

If that was his story, his dad could disown him for being rash, Wyll proves his worth being the blade of frontiers, and everything could still work the same.

Mizora ruins his story. Her addition doesn't feel genuine with the way Wyll is currently written.

Now how to fix that? Make Wyll power hungry. Have him be honest later in the game that he was blinded by the songs and praise such a deal could make. It would make it so much more satisfying for his story.

Unfortunately you are stuck with two characters that don't quite fit together that makes a emotional whiplash of a character.

Plus romance wise because someone mentioned this on reddit, Wyll will cry about being a devil but loves you for seeing more than his horns. But he cannot be seen with you if you become a squid man. That hurts.

Again, the good boy is not being a very good boy. His actions and words don't line up and I kinda hate him for it.

He's a 2 but his smile and charms makes those little red flags look green so he gets a 4.

Gale is a 2!

He may be handsome but, that literally cannot save him from my issues with him.

He is Neutral Good but left to his own devices would become Lawful Evil.

If Tav wasn't there, he'll gladly continue his toxic relationship with Mystra. He'd most definitely become a "god". And who knows what that would entail for a man with a dangerous ego.

But when Tav is there, to love him for who he is, to help him realize Mystra is awful and he can do so much better, he will still devote himself to a woman who will kill him.

Now Gale is a well written story of a male Harley Quinn. Someone so blinded by their love, they cannot see the torment.

I would also like to point out that she did indeed groom Gale. Anyone regardless of race, age, or gender can be groomed.

So whether they met when Gale was a teen or a young man, she groomed him.

Its scary how accurate they wrote someone who's been groomed. The way Gale justified her gaslighting and abuse is a very real response to how victims can't see there abusers as abusers.

But who is Gale if Mystra wasn't around him? He's still be a man who's love for magic causes him to become a wizard and his ambitious spirit is what makes him toxic. Because he needs to be the best. He cannot be humble. He does good things sure, but he can treat the one's closest to him like trash.

This man needs therapy and a class change.

I think this man's ego and self esteem relies too much on Mysta. My man is depressed and needs a hug.

He gets a 2 because while he's truly a 9, Tav cannot save him from his own destruction. And shame on Tara. She's his best friend but I don't see her trying to dissuade Gale from being with Mystra. And even if Gale heals, Tav will always be number 2. It's painful to be someone's rock only to be tossed aside.

It's a difficult romance that leaves you wondering, do you love me too?

Sorry, wrong photo.

GIVE IT UP FOR EVERYONE'S FAVORITE

✨️✨️⚜️ A S T A R I O N ⚜️✨️✨️

So....

I have very very mixed feelings about this character.

Firstly, Astarion is what you make of him.

You play a huge part in his discussions.

Like I know he's smoothed brain but still.

There is no Astarion. There is you.

You control his narrative.

That can be said of all the companions but it feels so much more with our dearest star.

There are two ways to play his character.

You fix him. Make it all better. Your love cures him. And he is grateful. He... is completely codependent.

Or, you can make him worse. Kill 7000 souls, doom them all, and prove him right. That he needed this to be safe all along.

I feel emotionally manipulated by the game devs on this character. Neither of these endings are healthy for him. The best ending is really being his friend and giving support. To show him people can be loving and care wholesome for another.

I feel emotionally manipulated because I don't believe his character nor the themes of abuse where properly used in the game or by the marketing team.

Looking at that onlyfans video Larian!

Similar to Angel dust from hazbin hotel, he's over sexulized. However, in Hazbin Hotel the characters fight against the exploitation of Angel where as it seems only Tav cares to treat Astarion other than a piece of meat.

Even then, with a character who LITERALLY GETS UPSET WITH HIMSELF if Tav wants to have sex with other people, there is no way to romance him without sex.

Like Wyll, there should be a path to allow the player to have a deep romance with him without sex.

It really breaks my heart seeing people over sexulize him or even ship him with Cazador.

This man has been through enough. He was pimped out by his master. Cazador sex trafficked Astarion. That's not a theory! That's a fact!

This man has been traumatized. He's fighting for his life out here and all he can do is think about ascending to finally be safe. To never have to worry. Something a lot of victims, me too, have wanted.

It's cathartic watching him kill Cazador. Many of our own Cazadors are still walking out there when they should be in jail.

This is the part of Astarion that Cazador made.

Cazador made him a scared wounded man who's reduced to his sexuality.

But he's so much more than that.

Prior to Cazador, he was a judge. So we at least know he was smart, wise, and/or trusted enough to be awared such a position. Astarion's also dead so that smooth brain may have more to do with the decomposition or trauma. Trauma changes your brain chemistry so much so we're able to map it on brain scans.

But one thing that people overlook is that he's always been lawful evil.

He was feeding guilty defendents to the Szarr family. This was supposedly a secret between him and the family from what I've read about the early game access. But either way, you don't get chummy with a vampire if not for nefarious reasons.

There's no explanation as to why this occurred. No potential political gain or even a mention of somehow of a relationship with Astarion and the Szarr family. Or even between Cazador and Astarion.

It's kinda obvious that Cazador planned on the attack. We're missing a lot of details as to why Cazador was targeting him. Because what vampire lord is just going to be conveniently walking past a dying man in the middle of nowhere?

Some one here on tumblr said it best. "He's an abuser who found a worse abuser."

He abused his power as a judge. Anyone he sent to Cazador could have been part of the 7000 souls used in the ritual. Anyone he sent faced the same abuse he faced later on the line.

Now, when we are wronged, we want revenge. And if you believe in karma. This very well could have been his karma for sending potential victims to Cazador that he would later use as sex traffic spawn. It's messed up. This is a very messed up back story.

But what truly bothers me is his lack of agency.

If Tav isn't guiding him one way or another, he kinda has to leave your party. There is no way around it. You either have to fix him and make him all better or turn him into an abusive husband. Both of these are wrong.

I have a problem with the "I can fix him", "beauty and the beast", "he's just misunderstood", or "bad boy with a heart of gold" tropes seen countless times in media. YOU CANNOT FIX SOMEONE. THEY ARE A PERSON! NOT A MACHINE!

Astarion needs a loving caring friend first and a lover later. I find the the above tropes vile and concerning because

A. It's always gendered. The female love intrest is held responsible and to the extent of responsibility a parent has over a child for the emotional well being of their male love interest.

B. It's dehumanizing to the male love interest as it perpetuates the idea that only a good woman can fix him. That he needs to be codependent in order to get better. To be better. To heal.

C. While this can be done regardless of the gender of "The broken" and "The Mechanic", to know or find out you're just a project to someone hurts. It breaks the love and trust between them as the mechanic never loved them in the first place. You do not try to make your partner a better person, you try to support them and give your advice. Trusting partners will consider each other's words. Controlling partners will insist they know what's best for the both of them.

Astarion is not going to change any time soon.

He will never be the sweet kind boy you want him to be. He's honest about this and you should listen.

He's a lovable ass and that's all he really cares to be.

Let him be. Let him grow in his own time. If he even does. I do see hope but again, this guy has been trying to win your favor. Who's to say he's above playing hero?

That being said, giving him what he wants kills him again. He is no longer the man you know.

When he ascends, as his master and his master before, it will only continue the cycle of abuse.

He says it so clearly when you break up with him. That he'll use up your love until you are nothing.

Nothing.

No one who loves someone, even in a twisted sense would want them to turn into nothing.

That being said, I feel bad for the Acended Astarion fans but this is a great example of what it's like to be in a abusive relationship. You're love bombed one minute and scared the next. You're now the spawn made to be consumed. And I agree 100% that the whole turning sequence falls in line with a vampire bride. That is your husband. And I am so sorry.

Everyone called out the kisses for being disturbing. They are. And they have every right to be. You fell in love with the monster you made. And you made him. He used your eyes to carve Cazador. He couldn't do it without you.

So, does this mean it's your fault? Are you to be punished for loving someone dearly?

See, this is my most horrific problem with this romance because you are held responsible for Astarion's well being. The blame is put on Tav. Not Astarion!

He tricked you, seduced you, said everything he could to gain your trust. And this is how your repaid? By being in a toxic relationship?

And the Devs answer to the back lash? Honestly, I can't find anything. Alot of people were upset. And to be fair, for months people role-playing as a evil but endearing to each other couple. Those kisses ruined the Mortica Gomez vibe and replaced it with domestic violence.

THAT 🐶 IS SMILING SLAPPING YOUR FACE!

SMUG MUG!

He likes the fear and control he has over you. And he was always like this. You just didn't catch on.

He repeats Cazadors rules.

youtube

He'll tell you till you drop, you're his equal.

But you are his property.

You were always meant to be a tool for Astarion.

Either to heal him or to be used by him.

Listen, I wasn't above his charm. When I first saw him I honestly was put off because he remined me of Prince charming from Shrek. But that didn't quite felt like the right character until I saw the comparison to Preminger. And that explains why when I first saw him, he scared me. Prince charming and Preminger have always scared me because they both kinda give a rapist vibe.

And to be quite honest, Astarion did kinda assult Sebastion. He got that poor man so drunk, kissed his with questionable consent, and then killed him through Cazador.

Because you can mold Astarion into the mold you want, it's easy to mold him into a redeemable character.

I know when I see him sad, my first thought is to comfort him because of all his trauma.

But he traumatized others too.

Hell, I tried to watch his romance comp as I've done with Wyll and I barely got past the bite scene. Just to see what all the hoopla was about.

It gave me flashbacks and I cried seeing it. Just as I did with the AA kisses in the kiss update.

He's a very violent man. He is scary. His love is twisted at best, a play at worst.

He wants you because he wants to use you.

And you, the one who loves him. The desperate need to take care of him, to protect him. You are not a bad person for wanting more for a person so hurt. You are a kind caring soul. And you will be hurt if you date an Astarion.

I'm no better, I was a loki fan girl once. I know what it's like to love like Harly Quinn and have it end up getting me hurt.

-🚩🚩🚩🚩♾️/10

Thank you for making it to the end of my rant.

I didn't feel like anyone else felt the way I did about these characters.

Especially Astarion and Wyll.

For a game so companion focused, they really made all the men toxic to all hell.

I'm sorry if I made anyone upset but Astarion really does scare me. I cannot find the appeal.

While I can sympathize with his character, some of his actions don't sit right with me.

I just wanted to say Neil did a great job as a actor.

Astarion made me every emotion under the sun.

That's a lot of range in one character.

And I'm really curious to see if anyone else felt this way too. I know I'm not the only one to feel like Wyll's fake and charming. But does Astarion scare anyone else too?

#bg3 astarion #bg3 #rant post #tw rant #vent post #im sorry #Youtube

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thessalian · 7 years

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Thess vs Opportunities

I can’t sleep. Again. And since there’s no specific thing I have to be awake for tomorrow, I have made my peace with that. So I’m going to give a quick precis of the current situation with ... well, me.

So first of all, that job I interviewed for on 23rd October. I haven’t heard anything yet. Given that they said they wanted to get someone in as soon as possible, this isn’t entirely heartening, but I did ring the agency that first introduced me to the job on Tuesday, and while I didn’t speak to the person who originally registered me, I was reassured that if I hadn’t heard anything, it was because they themselves hadn’t heard anything. What I’m hoping is that the message I left with them will get them to chase up what’s going on over there. Thing is, I really want this one. It’s the kind of commute that most Londoners can only dream of - in the same transport zone where I live (cheaper commute), under an hour (if only just) and out of the flow of rush hour traffic. The job itself is varied so I wouldn’t be just killing myself typing all the time, and the secretaries actually function as a team. It’s basically perfect. So I'm terrified of applying for new stuff just yet because I don’t want a scheduling conflict if I end up going temp. Then again, if I don’t get my name on the log books for temping soon, if that’s what I need to do, I’m going to get beaten out by medical students doing holiday work. But I want this job.

I keep reminding myself that ‘as soon as possible’ means different things to an organised office than it does to a lot of the places I’ve worked in. I’m probably just a little paranoid because of how my last job ended. I’m going to send an email to my contact at the employment agency asking if I could have an update on how things have been progressing, just to ease my mind, and if I haven’t heard anything by Tuesday, I’ll do one more phone call and send out another round of applications. I mean, to be fair, this is not the only application I’ve sent out. This is just the first one on which I got any bites.

Once again, my primary issue is my qualifications or lack thereof. It’s a stupid thing, really; there are so many things I can do but I don’t have a piece of paper saying that I spent at least three years sitting in lecture halls and writing papers about it so my actual skill means nothing. It’s disheartening. I mean, dude, here’s all this wonderful stuff I can do! I can make perfume and soap and other nice-smelling things! I can write anything from business form letters to harrowing tales of terror and intrigue. Maths is not my strong suit but I can still do it well enough to write dice systems. I can do document production - I mean, hell, I basically did all the design work on our office newsletter in my first job. I could do wondrous, creative things that would make people happy for the rest of my life if someone would give me a chance of doing it in exchange for money enough to live on.

But I don’t have the bits of paper. I can’t afford the bits of paper. I can’t afford to spend a few thousand pounds and three years sitting in classrooms to get documentary evidence that I can do things I’ve been doing for years. Fucking hell; any degree’d be useful at this point ... which I could’ve had if my head hadn’t been so utterly fucked up, or at least if I’d known that it was so I could maybe fix it. Instead all I got when I was struggling was pressure to ‘stop that’, both every authority figure in my life and myself.

Aaaaaand now I’m depressed.

I dunno; maybe one day I’ll have the money and the lack of general pressure, in tandem, to actually sit down and at least get the Beauty Therapy NVQ that I’d need to be a qualified aromatherapist. But for the time being I’ll just keep offering what I can, when I can, and try to find at least one secretarial job that isn’t going to try to kill me, implode or both. Sometimes you just have to make the best of things. And I am looking forward to sending my one $50 Patreon patron the Scent of the Month this month, as soon as I decide which one that is. Which reminds me, I should update the SOAW page to make mention of the fact that the Vox Machina line is in progress, and I’m currently working on Scent of Scanlan. That one’s going to be interesting. These ones I might offer up as a full-on package deal for the holidays, if I can get them all done in time. I’m still debating whether or not I’m going to do Tiberius, but given that I was planning on doing Arkhan, Zahra, Kashaw, maybe Lillith (because I do see Kit Buss at MCM Comic Con when I go and it’d be really awesome to be able to turn up in May and go, “Hey, I made a Lillith perfume for you!” and give it to her), possibly Cassandra and definitely Gilmore? Leaving him out would probably be kinda sucky of me. (No I am not doing Victor; Victor would be ... actually, Victor’d be coffee, gunpowder, valerian, musk, driftwood and something damp and mossy and might not be that bad-- oh my gods I can do this without even thinking now.) Anyway, at least I have Percy and Vex done. I did have Vax’s but his needed to be significantly revised given what happened since.

...See? Give me something creative and even a spark of inspiration and I can maintain. Of course, coffee would help too. I mean, fuck, it’s 7am and I’m still not in a sleepy state so I might as well do something fun, if not particularly lucrative.

#Thess has issues

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feedpetpurveyor · 8 years

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What is Ketosis?

Ketosis is a metabolic state in which fat provides most of the fuel for the body. It occurs when there is limited access to glucose (blood sugar), which is the preferred fuel source for many cells in the body.

Who is a Ketogenic Diet ideal for? A Ketogenic Diet is ideal for both humans and dogs suffering from various health issues like treating and curing diabetes, skin rashes, hot spots, itching and almost all allergies, controlling seizures, and cancer. It can also be used with healthy humans and healthy dogs to help prevent future sickness.

What exactly is a Ketogenic Diet? A Ketogenic Diet is a high fat, moderate to low protein and low carbohydrate diet.

What is a 2:1 Ketogenic Diet? 2:1 refers to the specific type of ratio that compares the amount of fat to the amount of protein and net carbohydrate. A 2:1 ratio means for every 2 grams of fat, there is 1 gram of combined protein and net carbohydrate. In terms of percentages this equates to 82% of calories from Fat and 18% of calories from Protein and Net Carbohydrate.

How long should my dog stay on a 2:1 Ketogenic Diet? There are many factors that come into play here that will determine how long your dog should stay on a 2:1 ketogenic diet. Depending on the health of your dog, and their current metabolic markers, he or she may be on this ratio diet for a number of months. Once we are comfortable with their metabolic markers, we may suggest a ratio change and start throwing in some higher protein (1:1 ratio) days. This will help prevent muscle loss that often is associated with a low protein diet.

How long can my dog be on a Ketogenic diet? If your dog is suffering from some form of metabolic disease, like cancer, epilepsy, or diabetes, it would probably be a good idea that he/she remains on ketogenic diet. Also if your dog is suffering from an autoimmune disease like allergies, lupus, skin allergies or even arthritis, it would be a good idea that they remain on a ketogenic diet as well.

What is the long term effects of a Ketogenic diet? One of the most common long term effects of a ketogenic diet would be weight loss. Caloric intake should always be closely monitored and adjusted to meet the nutritional needs of the dog.

Can my dog eat this diet while on chemo or radiation? Yes they can. As a matter of fact, a ketogenic diet can improve the outcome of these treatments as well as mitigate the harsh side effect often associated with standard of care therapies.

What is 70/30 Ground Beef? Meat is typically labeled by percentage of fat. You’ll see 96/4, 90/10, 80/20 sometimes you’ll even see 75/25 and all that means is the percentage of lean meat to fat content. We recommend using 70% lean meat and 30% fat content because it is a 2:1 ketogenic ratio. You can ask your local butcher or meat dept. if they can make you a 70/30 ground beef if you don’t see it at the store. If you are absolutely not able to get anything less than an 80/20 or 85/15 meat, please let us know and we can give you the additional amounts of fat that we’d like you to add into the meals.

Does the beef have to be grass-fed? If you can afford grass-fed beef, then by all means buy it, because it is a better option for your dog. What a cow eats directly effects the types and level of nutrients you get from eating meat from that cow. Meat from a grass fed cow is loaded with even more nutrition then a cow fed a corn or grain-based diet. At the end of the day it call comes down to what you can truly afford.

What about bacteria and pathogens in the meat? Raw meat should be handled with the same safety precautions you use when you prepare burgers or steaks on the grill. There is no risk of contracting GI parasites from USDA-inspected, human grade meat. If you are still concerned, you can freeze the meat for a few days before you feed it to your pets. Please make sure you are washing pet bowls after feeding and sanitizing eating surface regularly. Also make sure your hands are clean when handling all raw meats.

Is beef the only meat I can feed my dog? No, you may feed other meats, but we always suggest starting with the fattest cuts of meats available to you. Meats like Chicken, Turkey, Venison and Elk are very lean and high in protein, so in the beginning stages if your dog is on a higher ketogenic ratio diet, we suggest you try stay away from those. If you can only get access to leaner cuts on meat like those mentioned above, you will need to add an fat source (fat source list mentioned below) to the meals in order to meet the suggested ketogenic ratio. Also I want to mention that if you don’t see a certain cut of meat it in the store coolers, ask the butcher if he can prepare it for you (most of them will).

What fat sources do you use? Besides the fats found in the beef we use, we rotate the fats source often as it is healthy for them to get a variety of fats in their diet. Rotation also helps prevent our dogs from developing an aversion to a certain fat. We suggest that you rotate fat sources from week to week. The fats sources we suggest are the following:

Monounsaturated Fat Sources: Avocado Oil, Olive Oil, Avocado Mayo. Saturated Fat Sources: Coconut Oil, Red Palm Oil, Ghee, Kerry Gold Unsalted Butter, Unsweetened Coconut Cream and Heavy Whipping Cream.

What about the risk of fatty liver disease with the high amount of fat consumption? Your dog will not develop fatty liver disease from the high fat consumption of the Ketogenic Diet. Fatty liver disease is often the result of abnormal bile flow in the liver and deficient hepatic function. Serious deterioration of the hepatic function can affect the liver’s capacity of detoxifying the bloodstream. Therefor toxins accumulate in the body and can cause further complications.

What vegetables can I give my dog? Now for the fibrous veggies, you can choose any of those listed below, but make sure you finely dice them up or puree them and then mix them up good in the food before you feed them. Please stay away from other veggies sources due to their high carbohydrate content.

Fibrous Veggies: Brussel Sprouts, Green Beans, Cabbage, Broccoli, Asparagus

My Vet suggests that I do not feed RAW. What do I do? Most vets are anti-raw diet due to the threat of bacteria or salmonella. If done properly you will have zero issues with either bacteria or salmonella. Also freezing the meat for a few days before serving can successfully avoid exposing your raw fed pet to parasites.

Can I cook the food? We do not recommend that you cook the food. Dogs have the proper gut bacteria and enzymes to naturally break down RAW food. Also cooked animal fats can lead to pancreatitis, organ failure, and can be deadly if left untreated.

Why is the food measurements you gave me is in grams? We want to be very strict on the caloric intake of your dog, so it is best to measure in the food in grams. If you don’t already own one, you’ll need to purchase digital food scale which will help you make sure you are delivering the exact amount of food suggested.

Are these food measurements correct? This doesn’t seem like a lot of food. Yes, the measurements are correct. The standard kibble diet is roughly 30 calories per pound. This is the #1 reason that approximately 25-30% of the general canine population is obese in North American. Unless the dog is already extremely lean, we start most dogs at 15 calories per pound. This allows us to get the dog into a metabolic state to fight disease. As weight fluctuates, we will make the necessary caloric adjustments.

Why Calorie Restriction? Excess body fat – or obesity – is also linked to cancer in dogs. The precise link is not yet completely defined, but new research has shown that fat cells secrete a chemical called adiponectin, which actually lessens the development of cancer cells. Fat cells secrete much less adiponectin when the body has excess fat in storage, which happens in a heavy dog. Fat cells secrete more adiponectin when the fat cells are being burned for fuel, which happens in a leaner dog. During a ketogenic diet, the dogs are burning fat for fuel.

My dog has very loose stools since starting the Ketogenic Diet. How can I fix this? When changing from a kibble based diet you many experience a short time when your dog has very loose stools. This is due to the sudden change their diet. This will eventually go away as they adapt to the consumption of this higher fat diet. You can add a teaspoon of chia seeds to their meal if they are experiencing diarrhea.

How do I know if the diet is working? The ketogenic diet is the only diet that you can validate with a simple blood ketone test. If the blood ketone test shows 0.3mmol or higher, then the diet is working.

What Glucose/Ketone reader do you suggest? We suggest the Precision Xtra blood glucose and blood ketone reader. You can purchase it on amazon.com. Also make sure that you buy both blood glucose and blood ketone strips.

Where is the ideal location to draw blood to test both glucose and ketones? To draw blood, you can use the side of one of the pads on the paw or the loose skin on their front elbow.

How often do you suggest that I test blood glucose and blood ketones? We highly suggest in the beginning you test blood levels every other day, right away in the morning before you feed them their first meal. Once we see numbers consistently where we want them to be, we can back off a bit and test twice a week (Mondays and Fridays).

What are the numbers we want to hit for blood glucose and blood ketones? Blood Glucose: 75 mg/dL or lower Blood Ketones: 0.3mmol or higher

I recently discovered Ketostix (urine ketone strips). These are much cheaper than the blood ketones strips. Are these ok to use? Ketone urine test strips truly will only work for the first few weeks of a ketogenic diet. In the early stages of a ketogenic diet your body will produce small amounts of ketones, but since your body doesn’t know how to use them yet as fuel, your body will pass these trace amounts of ketones in your urine. It is not until your body has burned off all the glucose that it will start to use the ketones as a fuel source. This is often referred to at keto adapted. Once keto adapted, ketones will no longer be present in your urine. So you can see these urine strips are not the most accurate means to measuring ketone levels.

My dog is losing too much weight, what do I do? The thing about the ketogenic diet is that once in ketosis, the body switches into fat burning stage. The end result of this is weight loss. While this is normally a good thing, we don’t want them losing weight at a rapid pace. Closely monitor your dog’s weight and if they are losing weight too rapidly, please let us know and we can make some dietary adjustments.

My dog doesn’t want to eat their meal. What do I do? It is perfectly ok if your dog misses a meal or even a few meals. They may not be interested and/or even hungry at the moment. If they are not interested, place the meal in the fridge and try feeding at a later time. Please don’t feel like you have to force feed them. Your dog should eventually eat when they are hungry. Often if you exercise them, they’ll eat afterwards. Now, if it has been multiple days and they still haven’t eaten, let us know and we can offer a few tips to try to get them to eat.

Speaking of exercise, how often should my dog get exercised and what exercises do you recommend? As far as metcon (Metabolic Conditioning) is concerned we like to give our dogs (2) 20-30 sessions per day. We like to get them running and get their heart rate up so if possible I’d like you to do the same. Even a long game of fetch for one of the sessions would suffice.

Exercise is also a very important part of our program and works hand in hand with our ketogenic diet protocol. The goal is to get these doggies into a regular exercise schedule daily to increase heart rate, burn calories and stimulate their mitochondria. This keeps insulin low and helps battle their cancers.

What treats can I give my dog? I know you’re probably wondering about what type of treats are ok to feed your dog. To be honest with you, we do not feed our KPS doggies treats. All of the calories our dogs get are in the two meals we feed them. Now I would try to avoid feeding treats as they can easily add a bunch of extra calories to their diet, not-to-mention many of them are full of carbohydrates and protein. Adding these can in fact prevent us from getting your dog into ketosis due to spiking their glucose. It is ok however to give your dog a bully stick once a week to help keep his teeth clean. Also if you must give them a treat, try freezing a tablespoon of coconut oil or unsalted butter in a hollow bone or Kong. Just make sure you give this to your dog outside or on a hard surface so it doesn’t make a mess on your carpet.

Are there any Supplements I should give to my dog? You may want to deliver calcium, potassium, magnesium and an omega 3 supplement with each meal as well as a good prebiotic, and probiotic. We give our doggies the following: Garden of Life Prebiotic Fiber, LivPro Probiotic Fiber, and Yes Oil. But you can go online and purchase similar products on amazon.com. Just do a simple search and you should find a bunch.

** Please avoid giving your dog a multi-vitamin. These contain both Iron and Folic Acid which can feed cancer. **

Suggested Supplement dosing: Probiotic Fiber: 1g per 50 lbs twice a day Prebiotic Fiber: Small dogs: 3.5g, Medium and Large dogs: 6g once a day with AM meal Yes Oil: 0.03mL/lbs twice a day

Why plant based omegas compared to fish/krill? The reason we don’t use fish or krill anymore is because you can’t convert direct EPA DHA into what the body needs. You need to have the parental oil’s which are things such as coconut oil, flax borage oil or evening primrose and high oleic sunflower oil as the 3, 6 and 9 Omega oil’s to be able to make our own…these oils are needed as the precursors. Less than 1 percent is converted to EPA and DHA. So we need the parent oils to convert.

The human body does not produce significant amounts of EPA or DHA on its own, so you must get these important nutrients from Yes supps or Udos (as brand examples).

There are others, but we’ve checked into these companies and their processing of the fats.

And also too often people stuff themselves as much as I can with omega-3’s and you really need the balance of six and nine to make everything work and be able to convert appropriately too much omega-3 is actually bad for you which the general population doesn’t know quite understand yet but more and more is coming out about that we actually need a lot more omega 6 than people realize but 6 from the right places.

Are there any other supplements that are safe for my dog on a ketogenic diet? You want to be careful when selecting additional supplements to give your dog while they are on a ketogenic diet. One reason for this is we don’t want you giving them a supplement that will prevent them from getting into ketosis. There are many supplements that can raise blood glucose levels, so before you give it to them, do some research and/or ask your Vet for advice. Turmeric, Turkey Tail Mushrooms, and Metformin are a few of the safe ones to give them.

My dog has seizures. Will they benefit from a ketogenic diet? Yes, they will most likely see a benefit from eating a ketogenic diet. Often you may even be able to lower the dosage of seizure medications.

Will a ketogenic diet help a dog with diabetes? Yes. If you follow the diet properly and stop feeding your dog non-fibrous carbohydrates, you will be able to lower your dog’s blood glucose numbers significantly. Often our dogs at KetoPet have blood glucose in the mid 50s to low 60s.

Will a ketogenic diet help a dog with arthritis or joint issues? Yes. A diet full of high glycemic carbohydrates will cause a lot of inflammation in the body, especially in the joints of older dogs. Eliminating these carbs and increasing the consumption of healthy fats will often eliminate a lot of the inflammation and joint pain.

What are your thoughts on CBD oil. Can I give to my dog CBD oil? We have never used CBD oil with any of our dogs at KetoPet Sanctuary and because of this we cannot validate its efficacy. If you still feel this is something you want to try with your dog, we highly recommend that you discuss this decision in detail with your vet.

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rivaco · 6 years

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There’s something about Mary. Mary Meeker.

The world is currently divided into two types of people — those who know who Mary Meeker is, and those who think it’s the name of a ready-to-drink soup brand (like Betty Crocker, but for soup).

As someone who’s been on both sides, I’ve managed to get my head around the phenomenon called Mary Meeker and what she represents — intelligence that all of us can use. The type of intelligence that tells you where consumers are spending their time, money, and attention; what they’re consuming, and how you can reel them in.

First things first. I’m assuming you know who Mary is.

Now, Mary Meeker’s 294-slide Internet Trends report has been diced and sliced more ways than a mango in a tropical dessert. So, I’m going to spare you another attempt and give you the alternate tour — the top 5 things that you should know about Mary — from her report to her credit score (nope, couldn’t find it!).

So here are the highlights, in no particular order. Besides, common sense of course.

First up, what did Mary have to say in her humongous report?

She’s analyzed everything — from mobile to e-commerce to the competition between tech giants and tech nations. She’s been doing it since the mid-2000s, and her report is a much awaited tech event of the year. So who are we to stand in the way of her particular genius!

Why should you care?

If you sell goods or services of any kind, or might in the foreseeable future, or need to know where to park your next million, you should pay attention. Everyone is selling something and the internet is where most people seem to be buying and selling.

Think you don’t fit the bill? Hmmm…

If you’re a writer, you could potentially earn big bucks by specializing in UI/UX writing. Read this for inspiration. Why UI? Because the whole world is online..well at least half the world, according to the report. And in a world where you can find the same thing sold for the same price on a million or so websites, a great user experience will make all the difference.

And if you’re in based in China, good news. Your job isn’t going anywhere:

“Alibaba is expanding beyond China with strong gross merchandise volume, though Amazon still rules in revenue.”

Which brings us to the next point.

Which report should you read? Well, reading the original report is a no-brainer. Once you’re finished with that, you could read more analysis and reports. And it never hurt to help a tech writer somewhere earn their supper (or coffee — people around the world have different food habits). You read this report by Recode or this by Adweek. Everyone has picked up a different piece of the pie and bit into it.

The one I’ve enjoyed (and understood) is TechCrunch’s 20 takeaways from Meeker’s 294-slide Internet Trends report, which lays out the facts quick and easy. Here’s one of their highlights:

“Internet adoption: As of 2018, half the world population, or about 3.6 billion people, will be on the internet. That’s thanks in large part to cheaper Android phones and Wifi becoming more available, though individual services will have a tougher time adding new users as the web hits saturation.”

Which job will definitely rule the future?

Data analytics, of course! Imagine the amount of number crunching that went into this report. The surveys that were done, the numbers that were analysed, the pivots that were run, and the facts that came to light.

Oh, and if you’re an entrepreneur looking for people to join your company, you might want to think about hiring remote workers and creating a workplace that offers flexi working options.

Slide 162 of Mary Meeker’s Internet Trends report 2018

Oh, and side note: Mary also proves that presentations are not dead. They are indeed alive and kicking. There you go, Jeff Bezos.

Finally, what didn’t Mary say?

Or rather, what questions have come up after this report?

Should we be worried about the amount of time we seem to be spending online?

Turns out I’m not the only one thinking about this.

According to Amanda Zantal-Wiener’s article on Hubspot: “A lot of teens who come to me for therapy often cite social media as a source of stress,” says Laurie Paul, Ph.D., a psychologist in the Washington, D.C. area. “Many of them talk about inter-personal conflicts with peers that are started or intensified by posts on social media.”

I guess someone’s gain is always someone’s loss. But how much of a loss are we willing to take? Like all great literature, Mary’s report throws up more questions than answers.

Authored by Kushal Saini Kakkar, who believes that actionable insights are the new currency. Also, a content marketer at Flock.

Consider these for your next read:

Introducing the Flock connector for Jira!

Boost your productivity: 6 tech tools for every entrepreneur

There’s something about Mary. Mary Meeker. was originally published in Flock Blog on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

#Flock #Enterprise Chat

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