An Intro To Raw Feeding

[AussieGirl]

I mentioned in another thread I was helping a good friend learn about raw feeding (they are getting a new fur baby in two weeks) and a couple of you asked to see it. So here it is, it is basic info to get her started hopefully not so full on as to confuse her (I was overwhelmed when learning myself and felt a bit turned off and I didn't want her to feel the same way), as well as preparing her for the reactions of some non believing vets (there are many over here). I tried to remove stuff that wouldn't be relevant to most of you -suppliers over here etc. Sorry about the length, I did try to make it as short as possible but wanted to make sure I covered the most important things. Examples I have given are things that are pretty cheap and easy to aquire over here there are many more different things you can feed depending where you live, availability and budget.

Raw food is the most natural diet to feed, it is the type of diet dogs would eat in the wild and the type of diet their digestive systems are designed for, which means it is easier for them to digest and puts less stress on them than a commercial food will. Think of it this way – would you feed a cow or horse meat? Or would you feed a lion vegetables and grains?
The Benefits of a Raw diet:
•no pet odour
•naturally cleans teeth - no need for toothbrushes, de-scaling jobs, or gum disease
•the time it takes for a dog to chew a raw meaty bones give their stomach adequate time to get the acids moving
•much less stools produced - and they are firm, and turn chalky after a couple of days
•decreased or non-existent vet bills (your animals are healthier!)
•the ripping and chewing involved in eating raw meaty bones develops the jaw, neck, and shoulder muscles. Commercial foods will never assist in this important muscle development.
Be warned most vets will tell you to feed a commercial food and say a raw diet is not good for a dog, what most people don’t know though is that nutrition is not covered in the studies they do at university the only “lesson” they get is usually from a rep from Hills Science - ever notice that it’s in nearly every vet surgery - well that’s why (it’s actually a very low quality food). The vets that actually bother to do further studies and study animal nutrition will actually recommend that you DO feed a raw diet.

A BALANCED RAW DIET

A balanced raw diet should consist of 80% muscle (meat), 10% bone and 10% offal – 80/10/10. You do NOT need to feed the 80/10/10 for EACH meal it should however be balanced over a period of about a month. So you can feed some meat meals some days, bone meals other days and add offal to either when it is easiest to do so. Personally I work over a 10 day period, I feed meat with minced offal mixed in 8 – 9 days then bone meals for 1 – 2 days (depending on whether or not the bone meals are very meaty or not – I will explain more later). If you provide a balanced raw diet covering the 80/10/10 requirements you DO NOT NEED TO GIVE SUPLIMENTS e.g. calcium (they get calcium from the bone portion of their diet), you do not need to add vegetables and fruit but you can if you like (personally I do as she likes it and when feeding a bigger dog makes it go a little further), the fruit and veg would be in the meat portion – don’t reduce the offal or bone.

HOW MUCH TO FEED

You would generally feed an adult dog 2 – 3% of their ideal body weight. Puppies are fed between 10% and 3% of their current weight so an eight week old pup would be fed 10% of their current weight. As the pup gets older you decrease the percentage. By the time puppies are around 6 months old they will be eating the amount they should be fed as an adult. This is a guide – just like the ones on the commercial food packets, some dogs require a little more, some a little less it just depends on their exercise levels and some have a faster metabolism (just like people) so keep an eye on the condition of the pup/dog (you should be able to feel their ribs but not see them – except breeds like Boxers where the last two ribs should be slightly visible) and fiddle with the amounts a little. Pups usually require a few meals a day so when you have worked out current weight and percentage divide it by the amount of times you will be feeding per day to get the correct amount for each meal eg. 10 week old pup that weighs 7.5kg and is fed three times a day would be: 10% of 7.5Kg =750g ÷ 3 = 250g per meal. Some Raw feeders work out the amount to feed by guestimating the adult weight of the pup and feeding 2 – 3 % - personally I am not comfortable with this method because even with pure bred dogs there can be a large weight difference between dogs of the same breed.

STARTING OUT

It is recommended that you start out with one source of protein for a few weeks (most start with chicken) and then slowly introduce other sources one by one. We started with chicken, then kangaroo, beef, turkey, rabbit and most recently lamb. After you have given some meat meals for a few weeks slowly introduce the offal. You really need to do this one slowly as it can give them the runs badly if they aren’t used to it. We started by adding ¼ of the amount of offal she should be having for a few days and checked her poop was okay (solid) then we went up to ½ of the amount she should be having and again checked her poop, then ¾ of the amount again waiting a few days and finally the full amount she should be having. When giving bone meals to pups be mindful they still have their baby teeth and may not be able to get through bigger bones so chicken necks and frames might be best until you feel they can handle something a bit bigger. The types of bones I am referring to are bones the dog can eat entirely not recreational bones (i.e. bones they chew on but cannot eat) I will give examples later. Until your dog gets used to their raw diet they may vomit up a little bit of bone, this is normal it will not hurt your dog and will only happen a few times until they adjust (it only happened for us in the first month), it can also mean they are getting too much bone in their diet. You should ensure that your dog gets a variety of protein sources so they don’t develop allergies from being fed the same thing repeatedly (that is of course after you have slowly introduced them).

SOME IDEAS OF WHAT YOU CAN FEED

Chicken mince/Kangaroo mince/Beef mince/Lamb mince/Hearts/Gizzards
These would be part of the meat (muscle) portion. They do not need to be in minced form - this is just readily available to me
Chicken necks /Chicken frames/ Lamb necks (might not be suitable for smaller dogs, our girl handles them well - won’t harm to try them)/Turkey necks/Ox tail
These are examples of things to use as the bone portion, there are more it’s just a matter of seeing what you can get your hands on (we are pretty limited up here) notice these are things that do not have very much meat on them but the bones are soft enough and thin enough for a dog to chew through and eat entirely.
Whole chicken/Whole rabbit/Chicken quarters
These are examples of things that have the right amount of meat and bone (gives the 80% meat and 10% bone) so add offal and these are completely balanced.

Liver /Kidney /Green tripe /Lung /Brain
These should be included in the offal portion.

As you get more confident keep an eye out at the butchers for specials and include other cuts and types of meat, ribs and kangaroo tails are another good thing to include. Avoid cuts that are cut on the butchers saw as they often have sharp bits!

Eggs - once a week raw great for their coat, crush the shell up and feed too as it gives them calcium
Plain Yoghurt with acidophilus - spoonful few times a week helps the digestive system
Whole fish - is a complete meal helps give a healthy coat and skin (raw of course, you may want to cut the fins off if sharp)
Cottage cheese - can give occasionally
Add a bit of olive oil or flax seed oil
These are examples of other things you can include

**NEVER FEED ANY TYPE OF COOKED BONE**
IF YOU WANT TO FEED KIBBLE AND RAW YOU CAN BUT ONLY AT SPEPERATE MEALS – DO NOT MIX THEM AS KIBBLE TAKES ALOT LONGER TO DIGEST, MIXING THEM AT THE SAME MEAL WILL CAUSE YOUR DOG TO BE UNWELL (RUNNY POOP AND OR VOMITING). YOU CAN FEED KIBBLE FOR AM MEAL AND RAW FOR PM MEAL OR THE OTHER WAY AROUND.

SOME USEFUL WEB SITES
Raw Meaty Bones
Raw Feeding Myths
Raw Feeding Calculator
Raw Fed Dogs check out the recipe section for ideas on what to feed
Raw Learning

If you notice any of the links no longer working please PM me so I can fix it - sometimes web sites move or update their site and links can be broken

There is also plenty of great information here on Boxer Hub, have a look through past discussions using the search feature

[daisy'smom]

Very well written! The kangaroo tail made me smile. One thing that I am concerned about. Here in the states our beef and pork is loaded with antibiotics and hormones. I don't think you have that problem. Isn't your beef mostly grass fed? Anyway that concerns me. That is one of the reasons that I am reluctant to feed raw. I don't know any hunters to get deer or elk. Is it OK to just feed chicken and turkey?

[AussieGirl]

Yes they are mainly grass fed over here I understand you would be concerned about the steroids and antibiotics as it isn't an issue over here I'm sorry I can't give any advice. While chicken and turkey are good you need to include at least one source of red meat, I have heard of people putting adds on Craigs List (is that right? we don't have it here) for freezer burnt meat - so why not try and add for unwanted game meat?

[daisy'smom]

Another question, I give my dogs eggs more than once a week is that OK?

[AussieGirl]

It's advised no more than twice a week. I tend to err on the side of caution with everything - no apple/pear cores never garlic even though some do in small amounts. I meant to add before about the Roo tails I had never even thought of giving them until DH friend told me he cuts them into smaller pieces and freezes them for hot days - he calls them Roo Pops LOL.

[whitedaisy]

You did a very good job!!! the only thing I can think to add or say differently then you is that instead of the 80/10/10 - I like to refer to it as a "whole prey model". So I don't go by percent but a 'whole' rabbit is the perfect ratio of bone, meat, offal, or a whole chicken, or fish or whatever.....

Tanny you should try for 3 or more protein sources. You can buy canned Mackarel too, or fresh fish. I have my son fishing for me this summer. And craigslist or freecycle is a good way to get freezer burn (dogs don't mind it this way). Also, there are yahoo groups dedciated to raw feeding. I subscribe to 2-3 lists, that help you find sources in your area.

[AussieGirl]

Originally Posted by whitedaisy

You did a very good job!!! the only thing I can think to add or say differently then you is that instead of the 80/10/10 - I like to refer to it as a "whole prey model". So I don't go by percent but a 'whole' rabbit is the perfect ratio of bone, meat, offal, or a whole chicken, or fish or whatever.....

Thank you. Yes that is another debate constantly going on with raw feeders when really IMO it's the same thing - different way of saying it, unfortunately when buying whole chickens, rabbits etc over here they have done such a good job of cleaning them out there is not enough offal left so we do have to be aware of the 80/10/10 - it would be alot easier to just give a whole piece and not have to work it all out, in fact I am a little envious of those who don't have to do the math

[bruinsBoxers]

Very well written .

I also feed raw ( and reccomend it ) and have for the last 4 years . I do want to add that it is common for there to be a detox period when switching to a raw diet , sometimes a week or more. Many people see their dog getting loose or mucusy stools and think the dog is reacting badly to the raw food and switch back to kibble .A detox is totally normal and is not a cause to switch back to kibble .

[daisy'smom]

Thanks for the info. Now I will have to get over the YUCK factor and get a freezer if I decide to go that route.

[Ron]

great info thanks for sharing