Making the Leap to Raw

[Dutchringgirl]

Kristie, over the winter my hands were screaming too! the cold and having the little shark teeth grab the treat. What I have always done, and it seems to work , but you have to endure the pain a bit, is dont let them take it until they take it nice. A few times Sadie would try using her back teeth to take it but she did figure out that if she took it gentler she would get it.

[Christie M]

For client dogs who eat me during training, I wear leather gloves. However, my own dogs that get too harsh - I'm not real nice about it and I often feed them off of a fork. They teach themselves how to take things nicely that way.

[Kristie E]

I sent her away for a few weeks she went back to old shark girl... sigh.. I don't let go until she is nice either. I ll have to use the fork maybe to save my fingers... amazingly Izar takes everything so gently that big ole maw that could fit my entire arm could be quite scary. Gwen eats like the food is running away..

[Aztechalo]

Lots of good info Randall and all things that I agree with. Part of the biggest challenge for me was really understanding that raw means going to the human store and buying meat (or begging hunters for scraps) and not having to get a "pet" food. I don't know why I had such a hard time really grasping that concept. I don't need someone else to package this meat. Once I got over that, it was all smooth sailing. I feed everything in a whole form- chicken, chops, cow lips (I get them from the mexican market. When I exclaimed, "You eat that?" the butcher insisted that he personally did not. ). I had to teach her how to eat the whole chicken parts, which was a fun challenge for a vegetarian. I had to think like a wolf and play with the food. Nothing like tug of war to stimulate the food drive!

Having had her on the diet for four months, I can see a tremendous difference in her. She has more energy (maybe not everyone want to switch for that reason ) She put on 7 lbs of solid muscle and her coat is practically metalic. I like feeling like I did te right thing and seeing how good she looks means to me that I got it right. Now, if only I could figure out how to go it for less...

[Dutchringgirl]

Been doing some reading, Im now seriously thinking of going to raw.

For tuna, I know for humans the mercury isnt good, but what about dogs?

[Lauren]

I am not certain about tuna (i think it is fine) but I think that Salmon and sardines are ok. Xena has been on raw since I got her and my 3 cats for several years before that. My Standard poodle was switched to raw this summer and the changes in him have made me ashamed that I didn't do it sooner.

Some of his tumors have disappeared, his eyes are a little brighter, he finally put on some weight and his teeth look like a youngster. My problem is I am caught in a chicken rut. (that is one of those sentences that you never ever thought that you would have to type, isn't it) I am a little unsure as where to go from here. I am raising rabbits for dog food ( ) , and I do feed them pork necks, but other than that I am unsure...

Also between the BARF diet and the PREY diet I am not sure where to go with additives... But i do know that any of it suits them better than even the expensive dry foods did.

Go for it! after a week, you will know if it is right for you and your dog.

[Dutchringgirl]

I am defiantly going to do it. I found some good sites for info, I am still a little overwhelmed but its starting to sink in.

Thats great that the tumors disappeared!!!!

[alspyce]

Raw is easy once you get the hang of it, and IMO better for your dogs. You'll do fine. Don't over-think it or make it a lot of unnecessary work. Having an extra freezer can be a big help.

[Dutchringgirl]

I always tend to over think and over analize things so im already doing that . Ive been reading all morning and its starting to sink in, now I just need to get my head around the bone thing.

[Dutchringgirl]

I have had my girls on raw now and I am over the bone thing and they think they have died and gone to heaven, they just LOVE it.

As far as treats, I do have the Milkbone for my kids to give them treats. People here have posted they use small bits of their raw food for treats.

[Choochi]

I give my guys an occasional bully sticks. I bought a box of them a while ago (cheaper in bulk) and I still have a pile to go through. I'm not crazy about them but the dogs go ga ga for them! Although.. I could wave a kleenex around and they'll go ga ga for that too.

For snacks they get turkey necks, still frozen. I just lock em in their crates so they don't make a mess. They eat them just about as fast as the bully sticks. I really like them for cleaning their teeth and at least they don't have that bully stick greasy feel and stink.

[CaroleBoaz]

your saying that its either only kibble or only raw at one time? Ive fed my DS for years, veggies, turkey and kibble, same for my parents basset, and never had a problem.

If you are moving to a totally raw food, I would just go cold turkey, but stick to only one protein source for the first week. This is what I've done in the past.

I don't feed a 100% raw diet anymore, it's just too expensive with three dogs. But, I usually feed a kibble meal in the morning and a raw meal in the evening.

An exception is, sometimes at a meal I'll give half kibble and have ground turkey. Just the ground turkey from the grocery store, not a whole ground bird. I've never had a problem with this. But my dogs get fed a variety of stuff and not the same kibble every day. (Unless I'm really low on cash for the month.)

Today they had Taste of the Wild kibble for breakfast, and for an early dinner they each had a huge chicken breast and a cup of a special tripe/beef mixture. They also had a taste of my beef brisket.

[CaroleBoaz]

I am not certain about tuna (i think it is fine) but I think that Salmon and sardines are ok. Xena has been on raw since I got her and my 3 cats for several years before that.

You need to be careful with Pacific salmon. It has a parasite that can kill your dog. So you either need to cook it, or I heard if you freeze it for long enough, it will kill the parasites.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salmon_poisoning_disease

For tuna, there's a website someplace that gives the amount of safe tuna. A lot of people just feed their dogs sardines and herring instead. I'll look for the tuna website. Well, i can't find it. I think for a DS it's about 2 cans a week.

[Schlussdibusti]

I am not feeding raw exclusively either, some homecooked stuff in the morning and raw in the evening.

Most experts argue for raw to be the most appropiate diet for dogs since their ancestors eat that way. BUT a wolf does not eat meat every day, must go without it several days sometimes. Which is almost like a fast for the body. I think feeding raw AM/PM might overtax the system in the long run. Nothing scientific, just me thinking...........

[Choochi]

I am not feeding raw exclusively either, some homecooked stuff in the morning and raw in the evening.

Most experts argue for raw to be the most appropiate diet for dogs since their ancestors eat that way. BUT a wolf does not eat meat every day, must go without it several days sometimes. Which is almost like a fast for the body. I think feeding raw AM/PM might overtax the system in the long run. Nothing scientific, just me thinking...........

Raw is actually the easiest for the dog to digest, you want to talk about over taxing, kibble twice a day! Raw twice a day is much easier on the dog's system from that stand point. Kibble can sit in their gut undigested for hours. If you've ever had a dog throw up their morning kibble meal in the evening you'll know just how incredibly intact some of the kibble can still be. The raw pretty much flies right through them within a couple hours.

That's the only issue with feeding a mixture of raw and kibble. If a dog has kibble still sitting in their gut blocking the way and their raw meal just wants to zip through. It can cause bacterial infections, even blockage in some extreme cases.

..and plenty of people fast their dogs once in a while, I also think it's good for them unless your dog has some sort of a medical condition.

[Schlussdibusti]

I agree with the kibble digestion. That's why my guys get homecooked stuff, not kibble.