Whose dogs are on a raw diet?

[View Discussions]

Hi again,

Little by little I`ve come to the conclusion that raw food is the best I can do for my dog...

I am wondering if many of you guys practise it the same way we do... and what are your experiences?

 

I have to admit there`s still 10 kg of Acana left and I will feed this... then.... I think... I will turn into a crazy barfer ;-)

How about you??

[Teresa]

I don't feed a raw diet, and honestly it has never crossed my mind to change my dogs... But I have seen so many people changing and speaking wonders about it, that I just have to wonder...

I get the dogs like it more, i also prefer a steak to a cereal bar, maybe someone that feeds raw could answer some of the questions I have.

How often do you have to go and buy food, and how long does it take to go bad?

How do you make sure your dog has a complete diet? I mean dogs don't need just meat, so what do you give them to complete the diet?

Does the coat condition or the smell change?

And last but not least, I'm very concerned about parasite infection? Human doctors keep telling we shouldn't eat raw meat or fish because the risk of getting a parasite infection is much bigger, I assume with dogs it is the same, so how do you control that risk?

[Astrid Landsaat]

Hi Teresa,

just for you I post this link again:

http://www.rawmeatybones.com/

and another one about dog food:

http://www.orijen.ca/orijen/ORIJEN_White_Paper.pdf

I hope that both links are useful.

[silvia]

Hi Teresa!

we also dont feed Oberon a raw diet, at least not yet, since he's very well with a  natural wet diet in the morning plus cooked meat+rice+yogurth+pumpkin  in the evening and occasionally dry food during the walks.... But , since in the past he had an episode of bad tummy that turned him in a fussy eater (or maybe its' the age, we'll never know, he's nine months now so the worse "teens" age...), we are keeping an eye on the raw diet, just in case we need to change in the future..

 

to answer some of your questions (that were mine as well!!!) we were suggested a company, in the UK, that provides   a "complete" raw diet: http://www.naturalinstinct.com/categories/All-Dog-Food/

 

(look at the raw food, not the puree one, the latter is not complete is just meat).

This company delivers and , even if we are working, their frozen containers can be left at the door till the evening without defrosting, so, even if you dont have a large freezer and you look for a weekly deliver (or something like)  it does not sound  not too unpractica..l. Not sure if there is something similar in Portugal...  

 

as for the parasites, for  the meat we can buy at the butcher, i still have to make my conclusions.. I tend to give it at least a couple of minutes in the microwave...but I admit that I love sashimi and raw fish, so I am taking the risk on myself for something I like :) I guess the best answer is to look for high grade meat that can be eaten raw.. expensive, but probably less risky.. (people eat "tartare" in the end;) .. the other thing is that if the meat has been frozen before I think the parasites are killed (at least, this is true for the fish I eat!)

 

cheers

s

 

 

 

 

[Teresa]

Thank you all,

You have been very helpful, it's interesting to see the raw diet from your point of view when it comes to the pratical aspects of it and your feedbacks on your dogs.

The links you posted have also been helpful. I am still struggling with some aspects that go against what I was thought to believe, but I'm getting there :)

I don't believe I'll go on the raw diet yet, but maybe I'll make some changes - It'll be hard to find a good supplier of meat and even harder to keep it frozen as I have a very small freezer right now, but I'll definitely look into it and try to find an alternative - even if i just start with raw treats :)

[Deb Bouttell]

You don't have to go all the way!

For their main evening meal,ours have mainly raw mea . Bones/ chicken wings once or twice a week and liquidised vegetables 2/3 times a week

In the morning they have a couple of handfuls of Arden Grange with goats milk.

They seem to do well on it and yes they do have the occassional tin when we get our 'amounts' wrong!

(BTW they love it, I think it's like kids with junk food)!  

[sue morgan]

Hi Theresa, I have fed raw  for 13 years +,I   buy 300 lb  of meat at a time,this lasts 3 bitches about 13/14  weeks, they also have 2 raw chicken wings and wholemeal biscs,they never have tummy/skin problems,their coat is fine obviously  slight changes  as to when they are  in season as with any bitch,there is no smell,as the diet is not  too rich so no windy problems, no parasite infestation from meat/fish as  the freezing process  kills any parasite, I have been reliably informed that as the meat is frozen from fresh it has a freezer life of 24 + weeks, I hope this helps you to go Barf

My girls also have raw veg,any fruit they manage to pinch,I pay approx 35 p per lb meat/fish,so is also cheap n easy

[Kay Donnelly]

I started using Natures Best two months ago. This is a raw food diet the easy way - it is prepared in nugget form and comes frozen!!! Just defrost and serve. My boy absolutely loves it. He was a lazy eater - coming and going from his dinner.  Now he dances with excitement when he sees his bowl and dinner is eaten with great gusto!!! It's great to see him licking his lips with satisfaction afterwards. Not alone do I get the nuggets but there is a variety of minced meats available (lamb, tripe, rabbit, fish....) and also meaty chunks which are great for teeth. I get it delivered to my door and all in all it is cheaper to feed than the kibble which I had to supplement with mince etc to get him to eat. His coat is lovely and the clean up had decreased very noticably!! I'm a convert!!! All that you need is freezer space!!!!

[silvia]

Oh well, Oberon loves fish, in particular all bits we cut as left over when we do some raw fish (sashimi, tartare.. ), and expecially he loves bits of salmon ;)..

he also discovered that those cheap crab surimi sticks that sometimes we find in the supermarket for saladsetc are great as treats ;)

But we once tried a fish dog food/dog treat and he didnt like it.. strange.. he only want the fresh fish, otherwise meat is better ..

 

 

 

[silvia]

yup, i should add that we only use bits of fish as a treat when we have some at home.. but otherwise is meat (chicken/beef, usually cooked) or naturediet food :)

 

Interestingly: triggered by this discussion and by the enthustiastic comments of some of you,  I tried to give him a piece of raw meat (it was a piece of neck lamb with a little bone inside). He doesnt understand it is something to eat, he seems just play with it a bit and then he's totally uninterested.. I just boiled the meat for a minute and he glump it enthusiastically :)

 

It this meaning that this dog will never be a raw food eater? he's definitely unimpressed  by the raw stuff.... everything at least half cooked (1-2 minutes in the microwave is enough!) is much more welcome..

s

. 

[silvia]

thanks, we'll try again then :)

[Eunice Marott]

Molly and my previous setters have been fed dry food with raw meat from the butcher. Nothing fancy but she seems to like it. I also give her raw scraps from meat that we eat. sometimes homebrand fish but not that often

[Peter Hennig]

Hi guys we have always fed our dogs raw mince chicken or beef and dry biscuits no additives or preservative in either; as well as raw chicken and beef bones to clean their teeth.As far as I can tell dogs were unable to cook anything in the wild they scavenge or hunt and kill therefore unlikely to eat human processed grain products
cheers Peter