Honestly, a lot vets know next to nothing about dog nutrition. The majority of them seem to try and steer people away from feeding a raw diet and come up with the most pathetic excuses for it too. I don't feed raw yet, but am planning on it soon. I think it's the best diet out there that you could ever feed your dog. I know quite a few dogs who are fed raw, and while I don't see that many differences between them and Tango (my kibble fed dog) as far as energy goes I have noticed that they don't itch often, they don't have 'dog breath', they don't have that typical doggy odour, and their coats are a bit softer than hers is (they're also the same breed as she is, so it's easy to compare). I think feeding Runner a raw diet would do wonders for her, and you'd be very happy with the switch. I also recommend getting a good shampoo (my personal favouritie is earthbath, but the one mentioned above is good as are many others). The conditioner in a spray bottle is also good, I do that with Tango before I brush her eventhough she doesn't smell bad.