Hi Cyndi –
Looks good. 🙂
That Dr. Harvey’s wholefood supplement and 1/2 tablet one a day multi should take care of the gaps and account for the lower organ meat content. I don’t think it looks like too much bone. The Deli Fresh, beef grind and tripe all fed in the a.m. will have balanced calcium to phosphorus ratios. The turkey necks and chicken backs fed in the evening technically should be within the “safe” 1:1 – 2:1 C:P ratio but on the high side, with the addition of the gizzards the meat to bone ratio should be spot on. My rule of thumb when feeding RMBs is 2:1 RBM to boneless ratio – so if my dogs get 1 lb. turkey necks they’d get 1/2 lb. gizzards/hearts/etc. If you were feeding too much bone you’d probably know it, just watch the stools.
Thanks for your explanation too Patty. That makes sense as well. I just do what I’m told, lol! Ha ha!
I don’t know whether that is an apt discription of the benefits of fasting on the immune system or not. I don’t know if fasting actually puts mild stress on the immune system, but fasting does allow the secreting glands of the digestive system to have some down time and it allows the intestines and stomach time to completely empty anything that has been mixing around in there but hasn’t exited, before adding something new. It probably starves some of the bacteria that feed off sugar, if they have short life spans. And as was previously said it is natural for dogs to eat this way, so it probably does help to keep their system balanced.
Thanks for explaining that, HDM…..way better than I ever could. When you get a sec, can you take a look at my question to you a few posts up?
Hi NectarMom –
Fasting is beneficial for the dog’s immune system. I fast my dogs once a week. Feeding dogs daily or twice daily is a complete human invention – dogs are designed to live a lifestyle of feast and famine (this is why their stomachs are so large compared to their bodies and they can consume such a large amount of food in one sitting). The way fasting was explained to me was by comparing the effects of fasting on the dog’s immune system to the effects of weight lifting on muscles. When you lift weights you actually damage the muscles by creating microscopic tears, but when the muscles recover and heal they are stronger than they were before. Because about 70% of the dog’s immune system is in the gastrointestinal tract – when you fast a dog you put a mild stress on their immune system (a level of stress healthy adult dogs are able to handle). This mild stress in a sense “exercises” the immune system and leaves it stronger than it was before. It also allows for some of the energy that was normally be used for digestion to be used for healing.
It’s just what I’ve learned to do from people on here and reading elsewhere. Makes sense, in the wild, wolves don’t make a kill and eat every day. Sometimes they go days without eating. Also, I guess it’s good to give their body a chance to get rid of everything in it every once in a while. I guess the same reason some people fast sometimes.
I’m with you NectarMom, I’m not a Darwin’s fan either but not because of the fruits and vegetables (I think fruits and vegetables in small quantities are a VERY important part of a balanced raw diet). The reason I don’t like Darwin’s has nothing to do with their food really, I just found them to have extremely poor customer service. I had to call about 4 or 5 times on two different days during their business hours before someone answered my call – unacceptable imo. My favorite commercial raw foods and what I’d recommend are Aunt Jeni’s or Answers. I also recently tried a brand called HPP (it’s not high pressure processed, the HPP just stands for healthy pet products or something like that) and it was really fresh looking and reasonably priced (similar price to Bravo Balance).
Why do you fast? Honestly I see no reason for it other than getting your dog use to Raw from the beginning? Just curious
Oh & I forgot to mention, I do fast Bailey every Sunday evening. She gets her food Sunday a.m., and then doesn’t eat again til Mon. a.m.
I’ve spent about 2 hours reading dozens and dozens of reviews and q&a on this site. None seem to fit my situation so I’m posting it. Please forgive me if I missed a thread. My dog Josie is a 4 year old terrier mix. She’s a rescue so, that’s all we know. While I don’t have a lot of money, I would and have spend just about anything to get and keep her healthy.
She seems to have major diet, digestive, allergy issues. I don’t say I’ve tried “everything”. I surely haven’t. The short and skinny is, allergies have always been an issue. Flaky coat, itchy ears, scooting, ugh. Always with the scooting!! Anyway always been an issue. Then she got a hold of an ibuprofen bottle a year after I got her (I know, I’ll never forgive myself. I was gone 15 minutes and she got it off the table). She almost died, went to the ER, etc but all tests after that were normal and they said she was “fine and would have no long term damage”. Well I call bs on that. She has been a ridiculously finicky eater ever since. One day it’s fine, next day it’s not. If she doesn’t eat for 12 hours or more she’s throwing up bile everywhere. Not to mention her stools. She either strains to go and it’s tiny, it is super loose and smelly, completely loose, can’t go at all, I mean, it’s awful. You’ve never seen someone so excited when their dog has a normal stool. I’m jumping around the backyard, “good girl!” as if she controls it.
She’s recently been diagnosed with hypothyroidism so she’s on meds for that and now her left elbow is making a popping noise when she walks sometimes. Oh, and she’s overweight at least 5 lbs. The vet is so fed up bc we have wormed her twice, blood work, xrays, etc. Nothing. He says she’s fine. She’s not fine. I spend you can’t imagine how much time trying to get her to eat (so she won’t vomit) and coming home to let her out bc her her bm are so inconsistent. I can list all food she’s been on over the years but that would make this post too long. Currently, she is on (and refusing to eat) NVI LID LAMB.She was on the turkey, hated that too. I top it with with NVI canned. Hates that for the most part. Gave in and started topping it with NVI raw bites. Tried to pick out the raw and eventually refused it too. Stella and Chewys freeze dried she likes but will spend an enormous amount of time picking it out of her kibble. Even moistened I don’t think that’s enough moisture and due to cost, I’d really like to use kibble as a base. NV is not the issue issue don’t think but I don’t know. She did worse on other foods but I’m happy to switch her again. Considered Brothers but their use of turkey, beef etc concerns me since these are known allergens.
What a mess. And poor Josie. I’m a vegetarian and really don’t want to do full raw unless I have to. (Plus, she seems to have little interest in raw.) Sorry the post is so long. Thanks…
HDM or anyone else, I’d like to run down what I’ve been feeding Bailey on a regular basis to see if I’m doing ok & she’s on 13 days of solid, perfect stools, so that’s a plus.
I balance her days meals out to be about 1 1/2 pounds, what she’s supposed to be eating and I don’t do exactly 3/4 lb. for each meal, but I do get pretty exact for the day.
A.M.: about 1/4 Deli Fresh (working on phasing that out), 1/4 lb. Ground beef grind (from Hare Today)(Beef, organs, tripe and bone), & I just started mixing in more ground green tripe, every other day I give her either 1/2 pouch of sardines in water or 1 cage free egg w/shell, I scoop yogurt (usually every other day) & every day she gets Dr. Harvey’s Multi Vitamin Mineral & Herbal Dog Supplement, 1/2 tablet one a day vitamin & 1/4 tsp. coconut oil.
P.M.: Turkey neck & gizzards or 2 small chicken backs and a chicken foot and chicken livers & gizzards.
I think I got everything. I’m wondering if I’m giving her too much bone. Her poop is solid and not coming out white and powdery or anything. Do you think I’m doing ok? It’s been exactly a month since I started her on raw. I think I might have moved along too fast introducing new stuff, but Bailey’s been doing great as of late…
http://www.congoraw.com/products.html
Complete Dinners consisting of Meat, Bone, Organ and a Vegetable/Fruit Blend which is comprised of organic celery, blueberries, romaine lettuce, radicchio, banana and parsley.
He doesn’t stay outside a lot and he’s brushed everyday, the problems are in his inner back legs, not much hair there, it’s very fine.
I wonder if adding fish oil will help.
He’s getting heartworm/flea pills.
thanks for your comments, appreciate them
Hot spots are not caused from diet. It can be caused from fleas and also double coated dogs are prone to hot spots if you do not keep the under coat brushed out. Does he stay outside a lot?
What is Congo Dinners? Whatelse is in it besides the proteins listed above?
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This reply was modified 12 years, 10 months ago by
NectarMom.
It could be due to an imbalance in the raw. It might need fish oil added to it and if you aren’t feeding some tripe, I would add probiotics too. You’re dog could be sensitive to one of those protein sources. Chicken is a commonly allergenic food. Try putting him on just one protein source for a month and see how he does, then switch him to another and so on until you know if it is a particular one he is having a problem with.
I have a 4yr old Shiloh shep, he’s on the raw diet for over 6 months now, he loves it, i love it as his teeth are white etc etc. He’s got, it looks like hot spots. I had him on EVO before and he never had hot spots. Vet says it’s his diet, he’s against raw diet. I’m thinking of switching him back to EVO but i love the raw diet and benefits of it. Vet gave me pills and it cleared up but came back and i’m not paying $150 for pills all the time. Think i should switch back? He’s eating Congo dinners – chicken, duck, lamb, rabbit. Also eating duck necks, duck feet and lamb necks.
Thoughts?
Hi panda –
I agree with NectarMom – allergy tests are not accurate. I think they’re just a waste of money, they often give false “positives.” If you really want to find out if a food is causing the reaction you should perform an elimination diet. If you’re interested in feeding raw that’s great because elimination diets are much easier to do with homemade foods than commercial foods like kibble (due to the inclusion of so many ingredients). What you would do is feed your dog a novel protein and novel carbohydrate (something your dog has never eaten before) for at least two months. Once the symptoms clear up (which they should if the issues are food related) you would gradually start introducing new ingredients one at a time and carefully monitoring your dog’s reaction to each ingredient. This way you can pick up on what ingredients elicit the allergic response. There’s a lot of information about elimination diets online and your vet may be able to walk you through the process.
I hadn’t heard of “Mrs. Meady’s” so I just checked out the website. It looks like they offer quality products but you’re going to need to research prior to feeding a “food” such as that. They aren’t balanced foods (just different organ meats and RMBs, some vegetables) and you’re going to need to be knowledgeable about your dog’s nutritional requirements to create a balanced diet from items such as these. There will be some supplementation necessary when not feeding a pre-balanced raw food. Dogaware.com is a great online resource and “Unlocking the Canine Ancestral Diet” by Steve Brown is a great book for beginners.
Good Luck! 🙂
No problem! We’re always here to help 🙂
HDM, you have NO idea! Absolutely no turning back now! 90% of the food in my fridge/freezer is Bailey’s. She eats better than I do! I know I have you awesome people, especially you, to come to if I need help! & thank you again for your input/opinions on how you would have handled our minor setback. I was all set to just give up the raw, but I am so very glad I didn’t. & I am so very glad I found this site!
I totally missed the phone number on the site but Tracy called me this afternoon and told me what I needed to do. Shes very knowledgable on the Raw topic. I placed my order for ground Rabbit and Rabbits small chunks and some ground Sardines. She recommended no veggies or fruits. I think she is right on the fruits and veggies being that even some veggies have some amounts of sugar and when trying to clear up yeast issues it is best to stay clear of them and she said they are not a part of a wolves diet in the wild so same for dogs. The Rabbit was the lowest fat and next would be young beef which we will offer that at a later time. Tracy said a month at least on the Rabbit then slowly introduce beef and the other meats but she said my girls need to build up their systems on Lean raw before we offer other proteins.
You are correct Patty, Goat is not a low fat but it isn’t really high either. Tracy recommended Rabbit for now since it is a white meat and eventually we will need to feed a red meat. I just wonder if I can use Steve Browns mix with the Rabbit or would that be over kill? I bought 3 bags a while back and need to use them. They are in my freezer right now.
I called the vet just to ask some questions. They said they would like to do a physical, and another fecal test. If it came back negative they would do more tests, like blood tests and testing his gut to see if he is even digesting his stuff correctly or if his gut needs something. I think instead of jumping the gun on this I will wait and on the 18th when I bring him home I will start him on raw and see how that goes for about another month. I will start the fiber if in 2 weeks that he is on raw his stools haven’t improved, that way I know which one worked for him if any at all :). If it fails off to the vets I go. Who knows maybe he just needs a bit more time to gain. I mean he is acting normal, hyper puppy, loves everyone, eats all his meals. If he was acting sickly and off his food I would go right away for sure.
The kennel he is at doesn’t have a scale so they are just going by body condition. I don’t have a dog scale either but usually stand on the bathroom scale and then pick up the dog and stand on it again and minus out my weight. So the true answer of whether he’s gaining even just a little is a mystery.
My vet isn’t totally opposed to the raw diet, but have “heard many people’s pets don’t do good on it.” I assured him that I had done the appropriate research and that my dog will eat raw when he got back from training. I told him if the kibble and honest kitchen haven’t done his stool any good now, the raw won’t hurt him one bit 😛 .
And it sounds like to me I need to be getting some of that DE!
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This reply was modified 12 years, 10 months ago by
DieselJunki.
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This reply was modified 12 years, 10 months ago by DieselJunki.
Glad to hear it, I bet you’re happy you stuck with it! 🙂
Just wanted to share some more good news with all of you! Bailey’s poop is still normal (small, solid) (knock on wood, lol!) AND I gave her chicken liver with her dinner, for the first time yesterday, and she loved it AND it didn’t give her runny poop! I did only give her a little bit, but I was all prepared for it not to agree with her, but she’s been fine. Yay! 🙂
EVO Red Meats Small Bites and EVO Herring and Salmon (both have egg), California Natural Grain Free Lamb/Salmon/Kangaroo, Canidae Pure Sea, Canine Caviar GF Wild Ocean and Buffalo and Wilderness formulas, DNA lamb, venison or beef (has egg), Nutrisca Lamb (chicken fat) or Salmon (egg), Earthborn Holistic GF Coastal Catch or Meadow Feast (lamb), Fromm 4 Star Nutritionals Pork or Beef (egg), Grandma Lucy’s, Hi-Tek Naturals GF Fish (egg), Horizon Legacy Fish (egg), I and Love and You Red Meat or Fish (egg), Instinct Raw Boost Beef and Lamb, Lamb & Salmon, Instinct Rabbit (chicken fat), Instinct Salmon. Instinct Limited Ingredient Diet Lamb or Rabbit. Instinct has small kibble.
I will definitely have to try that then Patty. I always viewed it as masking the issue but the way you explained it makes sense as well. It will have to be after the 18th as that is when he comes back but I will get a few cans of pure pumpkin. Is pumpkin the only way you can add fiber to the diet? Or can I add it other ways? How much pumpkin per lb of dog do you usually give?
The kennel also called and said that he is drinking a lot. They say they have to pull him away from his water. This is a little concerning. I’ve never really had a problem with that before, but then again he’s never been in this kind of hot weather either. The kennel has a/c but they go out and train multiple times a day and sometimes go on field trips as well.
I do notice with The Honest Kitchen that much of the stuff still comes out whole in his stool. I wondered if any of you guys have fed this food and also noticed this?
As for that earth stuff I’ll have to give it a look into. I’ve seen it on some raw sites but never paid it any attention as I had no idea what it really did.
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This reply was modified 12 years, 10 months ago by DieselJunki.
For the life of me I have never been able to get Moose’s stools to become firm. They are always very soft, never any diarrhea but real soft. And I mean since we’ve had him at 8 weeks he has never really pooped firm (He has been threw a couple brands of kibble and then The Honest Kitchen). He also goes like 8 times a day. I boarded him again for another month at a totally different facility and while he is there I asked them if they could try and get some weight back on the guy as he is still so skinny. They mentioned to me it could be a parasite due to his soft stools and trouble gaining weight. I don’t believe he has trouble gaining weight I just think the other kennel wasn’t paying good attention to the way you could see his hip bones. I wouldn’t believe he had a parasite either as his soft stools have persisted threw 2 stool tests from the vets office. One was even given when he got all the rest of his shots a few months ago.
I give him Mercola Pro-Biotic and the Enzymes and still has always been the same issue.
Anyways, the new kennel asked if they could do an experiment and feed him 8 cups a day total, 4 in the morning and 4 at night for one week to see if he gains any weight. He is much more active at this new kennel as well. He is back on The Honest Kitchen Love as they will not feed raw. I am not sure if feeding him a raw diet will fix his stool issue as he ate it for 1 week and still had soft stools, and that was before I even gave him the organ mix too.
What on earth could be the issue behind this. Maybe this is normal? I’d try canned pumpkin but I really want to get behind the issue of these soft stools instead of trying to mask it as it’s not a once in awhile thing.
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This topic was modified 12 years, 10 months ago by DieselJunki.
Thanks Sandy, & yes Bongo Buddy it did clear up. Here is a link to the thread that pugmomsandy was talking about. The last 2 comments of mine address that issue.
/forums/topic/all-natural-dog-shampoo/
My suggestion to you Bongo Buddy, read, read, read, take notes, ask questions, etc. I researched for about 2 and a half months before I finally bit the bullet and started my dog on raw. I am SO glad I did!
Good luck to you! There is A LOT of information in the forums and you can always ask questions. The people here helped me more than I could have imagined and if it wasn’t for them, I don’t think I’d have stuck with it! It’s the best thing you can do for your dog!
Bongo Buddy,
It did clear up. She posted about it in the “all natural dog shampoo” thread.
Cyndi,
I read thru this whole post, so I’m dying to know if the diarrhea problem is gone? I’m new here & want to try raw too.
I have a few questions. I know my dogs cannot handle high fat in raw and I am going to keep them on Brothers Turkey and Egg as the main diet and they have been back on Brothers for 6 weeks but they just smell so yeasty even though they get their tea tree and aloe baths and they are itchy and chew the heck out of their feet. I know since our Pancreatitis episode we have to get past the Candida yeast again since antibiotics but I feel if I just start them off slowly on lean young beef with Steves topper for the added vitamins mixed with the lean young beef that they might benefit from that quicker than just being on kibble 100% of the time?? I would order it from My Pet Carnivore. They just smelled so different than when on kibble. Am I trying to fix this sooner or do you feel this would be ok to try in small amounts?? Please I seriously need some help here.
Well, I ended up buying Earthbath Meditteranean Shampoo from Chewy.com when I ordered Bailey’s supplements. I gave her a bath about an hour ago & I LOVE that shampoo! (Thanks Sandy!) I took Bailey outside after her bath to sit on the deck to dry in the sun & holy crap does her coat shine! I am amazed! Not that it was that dull, but man, what a shine! & she is so soft & smells amazing! So, she’s been eating a raw diet for a month now, got a bath with all natural shampoo & she looks awesome! She’s got a soft, shiny coat, bright eyes, whiter than white teeth & a very happy mommy! 🙂 Thank you everyone for all your help, suggestions & opinions! I couldn’t have done it without you! I hope everyone’s having a great weekend!
AnonymousInactive
I’ll leave the advice on raw to the experts, I just want to add that you’d probably save money in vet bills feeding your girl a raw diet.
WW, i’m NOT an expert, but a friend had a St. Bernard with diet /digestion…. I told her about Probiotics & Enzymes and it helped a TON. Along with a few other changes, the dog is VERY healthy , now. I’m NOT a science diet fan, BTB. I think you can do better. I’m sure there’s a brand that meets your vet’s recommended nutrient ratios that is higher Quality. I like Wellness kibble a LOT, but i supplement it – meaning, i get the bagged kibble to make sure she gets all her vit/mins and basics, but not a huge amount. I give her homemade proteins( chicken, red meats, sometimes canned salmon)) and some whole grains/veg/fruits/cultured dairy, rotating the type of each as i go. Not a restrictive diet, fun to feed her, and she loves it. I don’t mix all the ingredients together, she chooses to eat raw egg first, then yoghurt, then meats ….
My friend fed a chicken/grain diet for a week with the probiotics and enzymes. She then added one ingredient a week, and stopped if the dog reacted poorly. This way, she knew just what causing the trouble… the probiotics/enzymes should be full spectrum…. Good luck…
I think the Raw Food Advocates would point out that regardless of the quality of the ingredients, even in the 4-5 star levels for dry dog foods, that much is lost to the heating process. What bodes well for these higher levels is the lack of substandard or bad elements. Maybe this is the void that products like Dinovite fills in. Their product is freeze dried and has not been subjected to the heating process(?). Grover’s Mom quit feeding at about 6 weeks. Maybe if he was supported by his mother’s milk another few weeks he wouldn’t be so sensitive to his diet or environment and I wouldn’t be looking for additions to his nutrition now. He has always been on so called quality processed dog food but something wasn’t enough. To date he has been doing Dinovite for about 10 weeks and no paw licking, no ear infections. I am pretty happy about this direction. One vet had suggested I put him on a maintenance Benadryl type product. A ridiculous solution to a dog barely 2 yrs old.
” If you find that the increased amount of boneless is the only thing that makes her pass stools, you could continue with what you’re doing however I’d recommend adding a multi (it would be the simplest thing to do to ensure balance). I’d give one at about 1/4 of the recommended human-dose of one that would provide about 100 mg. calcium for that dosage. It’s just with 75% of the diet being un-balanced foods I’d be concerned about her getting adequate levels of vitamins and minerals.” from HDM
I know it is here, somewhere, on some thread but can you or anyone else tell me what a recommended multi is? Not a chewable unless I can crush it up.
I believe we will be going back to Darwins when I’ve exhausted most of what I have for boneIN.
My head is spinning with information however and I am confused as to what I do for a mix (of Darwins and boneLESS). Are you saying that if I use Darwins as my boneIN, I can add the boneLESs as I have been and just add the multi?
What if I want to do a mix of foods, with raw, canned and dehydrated? Do I still need the multi? This won’t come for awhile, need to exhaust most of my Hare.
Sorry if I;m being dense.
Lol! Party animal! Lol! Cmon, Patty, admit. Now we’re all gonna find out about the real you! Lol!
Then there’s autocorrect on my iPod, even when I spell it right it still tries to switch out the word on me. Whenever I type my own name it tries to make it party. It is supposed to learn the words I commonly use, I’m not a party animal.
I usually use dictionary.com, especially for work. But, I just don’t care most of the time, & I figure if most of the letters are there, & somewhere close to where they should be, people should know what I mean, and I’m lazy, lol! It doesn’t help that my computer mocks me by underlining the word, telling me its spelled wrong, but won’t tell me the right way to spell it!
& Yes!! Woo Hoo, no runny poop!!
You had all the right letters. That’s better than I do. I’m spelling challenge, I actually have a learning disability that makes spelling a huge challenge. I keep a dictionary app by my side at all times and a know it all 17 year old child and I still find myself misspelling word after word. Sometimes I’ll see something I wrote three days before and all of a sudden I can spell, at least I can see what I misspelled three days ago.
Anyway, take your victories where you find them. WooHoo, no diarrhea today!!
Ha ha!!! Ain’t that the truth! I can’t for the life of me, ever remember how to spell that damn word anymore! I’ve just given up. I spell it different every time I write, but I figure you guys know what I mean, lol!
Diarrhea is the pits, both dealing with it and spelling it!!!
2nd poop today, HARD!! 🙂 🙂 🙂 Finally, a whole day without diarreha! (sp?)
I don’t think so Sandy. If she was getting too much, wouldn’t that have the opposite effect of runny poop? I thought her poop would be too hard if she was getting too much bone. I really haven’t been giving her that many chicken legs. & she’s only had a turkey neck twice, tonight being the second time. Thanks for your input though. I really appreciate any feedback, just in case there IS something I’m missing.
Do you think she’s getting too much bone? Chicken legs and thighs and turkey necks have more bone than say – a whole prey that is about 10% bone.
Hard poop – yay! 🙂
And yes – it’s perfectly fine to feed more at one meal and less at the other.
Thanks so much HDM! I tried so hard to figure that out and my brain just goes elsewhere after a few tries, lol! That’s actually about what I’ve been feeding her, maybe a bit less. I don’t exactly know what an “average” activity level is, but that’s what I always assumed. I would imagine it’s ok to feed less at one meal and then more at her 2nd meal of the day, but making sure she’s getting very close to what she should be eating for the day. Sometimes, like when I give her a turkey neck, I adjust her other meal for the day accordingly.
Not sure if you saw what I wrote earlier, but she pooped this morning on our walk and it was HARD!!! 🙂 Made my day! Thanks for ALL your help!
Hi Cyndi –
No one’s ever accused me of being good at math either…well at least not calculus lol. Raw food calculations are one of the few mathematical calculations I can handle though!
In general, dogs should eat (as a percentage of their weight):
-1.5% for weightloss
-2.0% for inactive dogs
-2.5% for adult dogs of average activity level
-3.0% for active dogs or dogs of average/low activity needing to gain weight
-3.5% for very active dogs or active dogs needing to gain weight
-4.0% for working adult dogs and puppies (8 weeks – 1 year)
-4.5% – 8.0% for heavy-duty working dogs, puppies under 8 weeks and pregnant/lactating females
Based on these guidelines, assuming Baily is of average activity level Bailey should be eating:
53 lbs. X 0.025 = 1.325 lbs. or 21.2 oz. per day
To factor in her 24 hour fast:
[(21.2 oz./day)(7 days/week)]/13 meals per week = 11.42 oz. per meal
Keep in mind – these are just guidelines, you’ll need to assess her body condition frequently and adjust her portions accordingly. Gus eats about 2.5% of his body weight, Mabel eats about 3.5% of her body weight and Gertie eats about 4.0% of her body weight (with their weekly fast factored in). Also – these calculations are for the meat portion (muscle meat, organ meat, bone) only. Don’t count veggies toward the calculation.
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This reply was modified 12 years, 10 months ago by
Hound Dog Mom.
Ok, need someone’s help, please. Math was always my very worst subject. I’m trying to figure out how much I should be feeding Bailey at every meal. She did weigh 53lbs. when I started her on raw and I’d like to keep her there. No clue what she weighs now, because I had my boss weigh her on his scale and it broke, because he got on it holding her to figure out her weight and he’s a BIG guy anyways. I know she hasn’t gained or lost a whole lot. Anyways, I feed her twice a day and I fast her on Sunday evenings for just the one meal. I don’t think I’ve been feeding too much, and like I said to Sandy, I may be feeding too little.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
I have been feeding her chicken with just about all the skin off. & she’s not overeating, because I weigh everything. If anything, I might not be giving her enough, because I never really adjusted how much I’ve been feeding her since I fast her once a week.
We just got back from her walk and she pooped! A Hard One!!! Yay!!! Lol! It had a bit of moistness with it, in a way, but when I picked it up, the poop was really hard. So, that’s a plus. I was very excited! I guess I shouldn’t be, but it’s better than what she was doing. She’s having a turkey neck for dinner, with no skin, so that shouldn’t be a problem either, so we’ll see how she does…
Maybe she’s getting intolerant of chicken. Are you feeding with fat on or off? Have you adjusted her portions up or down? Could she be overeating?
I know, right? But I think I’d rather have Bailey poop every other day, lol! I have been going crazy trying to figure out what the heck is going on, but with any luck, I’ll get it all figured out. Thanks Marie! 🙂
2 months, 1 week ago
