[Susan L]

I have been feeding dogs raw meat for approximately 15 years. Only once has a dog had sensitivity to food or the environment. But I have learned over the years that most dogs can be desensitized, or cured as it were, of most allergies. But it takes time.

The dog with the environmental allergies (diagnosed with blood test) broke out in sores & itched like crazy. I believe it was brought or activated by a rabies vaccination. I soaked the sores thoroughly & rubbed off the scabs to prevent infection. I used TrizCHLOR 4 shampoo which was very soothing. Gave her 1 drop of Thuja for 1 week, followed by 1 week of Silica 30c place on the gum area next to her cheek (retreated her 3 weeks later). I also gave her Livton Liver Cleanse by Standard Process- which can be found on Amazon (for humans & dogs) for 2 months initially. It was so effective I currently use it for 1 month every 6 months on all my dogs.

I switched all raw food to “cool” or ‘Neutral” foods for the sensitive dog with great results. Chicken is warm, lamb & venison the hottest meat. Some sites & vets characterize turkey as a neutral meat, some a cool meat– I have found it fits more accurately in the cool category. Other cool meats are duck, most white fish & rabbit. Pork, eggs, sardines, tuna, tripe, quail are in the neutral category. I also fed leafy & regular veggies from the neutral & cool category as well. (I feed pork raw to all of my dogs & have for years, trichinosis has been bred out of pigs– but if you like freeze it for 2-3 weeks).

It did not happen over night, but after 2 months of treatment & the food change i was able to take the dog back to dog parks which had allergens she tested positive to: Cottonwood trees, grasses etc and she did well– if she later itched it stopped with a bath. After 4 months she can go, roll on the ground, pick up & chew twigs from the trees she tested as “allegic” to and no more problems. Luckily her hair grew back–and she is a bounding, happy, 1 and a 1/2 year old dog with no symptoms of allergies of any kind.

[Sara G]

Thank you, that is very helpful. I was looking for a food that I could feed both my dogs, and Victor recommended this one. However, I realize now that they are totally different and therefore likely need different food. My other dog is a highly rambunctious, scrawny boxer (1-1/2 years old; Boxer Beagle is 4 y.o.). He leaps and bounds and never puts on weight and if we aren’t careful, he can be too thin. So I think I better look for two different foods. Thanks so much for your input, really very helpful. Merry Christmas!

[patty m]

I’m trying to find a solution to a problem of the mess when I am hacking up raw meat for my dogs. I am a long time raw feeder, but recently moved into a new home that has an open counter top. It’s open to the living area. I will chop up large turkey wings or turkey necks with a cleaver to split them up between my two dogs. This hacking at the meat pieces causes a splatter. In my previous home, this would splash up on the back splash where I could clean it off. Now the space I have to place my cutting board is open to the living area. Does anyone have any grand ideas of how to block the splatter? I first searched for cutting board splash guard, thinking that someone may have already invented some sort of useful tool to use in these situations but it only came back with results for kitchen back splash.
So far, my only idea I had was to duct tape together two flexible kitchen cutting mats together so they are at 90 degree angle and place them upright on the backside of my cutting board to block the splatter, but i would prefer something I could put in the dishwasher.

[Jane E]

Let me initially state that I have never had personal experience with a dog with lupus. I have had other auto immune issues in dogs however (currently a Cushings dog and in the past Addison’s). In my experience I have found turkey to be the best tolerated across the board and lamb being one of the most problematic on the GI system. This is over many years in dogs with a variety of issues. I like Natures Logic ,Horizon and Pure Vita. I love Ziwi Peak but they don’t have a turkey but they are an excellent company with the highest of standards. If you are even flirting with the idea of feeding raw get in touch with Answers Pet Food…they are gold standard and are very well versed in nutrition and what can help a dog,speak to Jacqueline

[Jordan C]

Hello all,
I am new to making my own raw dog food but have been feeding my pup raw since forever. I got my new grinder today and saw all the extra sausage attachments. I have always hated dealing with a raw pile of slop and was wondering what would be wrong with stuffing organic sheep or cow intestines with raw food? Eventually make raw dog sausages? I haven’t seen this anywhere before so I assume there must be something wrong with it

[Rose G]

We’ve had a Rottweiler who initially was fed whatever my husband (single at the time) fed him…crazy stuff Probably dog chow and table scraps and he lived for 16 years. He died of, we believe diabetes.

A Brussels griffen, who also ate dog kibble for the most part but was also growing up at the point that people where not paying as much attention and the melanmie issue came up. Then we switched to better dog food, probably higher protein the last 5 years of his life. He only lived for 10 years and died of liver cancer.

A Brittany, who was also fed similarly to the brussels griffen and we just had to put her down in July because of cushing disease, she had also gone blind a year prior. She was 12.

I keep reading and reading about dog food and get so confused…raw/high protein/low protein/no grains/with grains…it is overwhelming to try and figure out what is best for my dogs healthy life. We now have a 5 year old/45 lb shepherd mix and an 8 lb 2 year old mix of some sort of shitzu/brussels…truly Heinz 57.

[Cannoli]

When I used to feed my dog raw I would call and ask the company if their supply chain and production process have been reviewed by the FDA to earn the Human Grade distinction. Human Grade means ‘food grade’, ‘edible’, or fit for human consumption.

But none did. So I opted out.

[Amanda R]

Hello all. I’m the main content creator at Holistic Pet Radio. We started out as a podcast and have since begun making YouTube videos geared towards newcomers to the raw feeding movement. Our first video is all about how to choose a commercially prepared raw food. I run through some questions to ask, such as did the animals have access to the outdoors (in relation to Vitamin D deficiency concerns).

Link: https://goo.gl/yUhQcX

I am hoping to get some feedback from some experienced raw feeders on our content and suggestions for things you would like to see us address. Any input is welcome! Thank you!

[Cannoli]

Anon101-I think she is cooking the salmon first (poaching) but agree with you feeding raw fish is no good.

Although I do indulge in sushi grade sashimi, which once in a full moon I give to my dog and myself. But I get this from a reputable Japanese restaurant that knows how long and at what temperature to freeze their fish.

• This reply was modified 8 years, 3 months ago by Cannoli.

[anonymous]

https://www.vetmed.wsu.edu/outreach/Pet-Health-Topics/categories/diseases/salmon-poisoning (excerpt below, click on link for full article)
This information is not meant to be a substitute for veterinary care. Always follow the instructions provided by your veterinarian. 
Fishing can be wonderful recreation, but sharing the catch with your dog can be an act of kindness that kills. 
Salmon Poisoning Disease is a potentially fatal condition seen in dogs that eat certain types of raw fish. Salmon (salmonid fish) and other anadromous fish (fish that swim upstream to breed) can be infected with a parasite called Nanophyetus salmincola. Overall, the parasite is relatively harmless. The danger occurs when the parasite itself is infected with a rickettsial organism called Neorickettsia helminthoeca. It’s this microorganism that causes salmon poisoning. 
“Salmon poisoning occurs most commonly west of the Cascade mountain range,” says  Dr. Bill Foreyt, a veterinary parasitologist at Washington State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine. He adds, “Canids (dogs) are the only species susceptible to salmon poisoning. That’s why cats, raccoons and bears eat raw fish regularly with out consequence.” 
Generally clinical signs appear within six days of a dog eating an infected fish.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

I have several customers who swear by Under the Sun Whitefish for anal gland problems. My own dog did well on Canidae Pure before I switched him to raw, and he consistently had anal gland problems at the foster’s house while being fed Earthborn. I’ve also heard of good results with people using Super Snouts balance GI or NaturVet No Scoot as a supplement.

[Tom M]

We need more people posting about their dogs & how old they were, what food the ate.

I have 2 Lab mix males, they are on canidae all life stage kibble, both are 5 years old
so far their healthy.

Years ago we had a Pointer that was fed Raw meat & bones only, he lived until 10 years.

[Bonnie M]

My 12 year old beagle basset hound mix is also a very picky eater and when I found this food Honestly Bare she gobbled it up just like you all have commented. As I was reading I noticed this product was made by Purina. My dog eats the Honestly Bare, Slow-cooked Tenders, the Chicken Apple & Sweet Potato formula, but it has “Beef Glycerine” & the “natural hickory smoke flavor” powder which are not good and is probably the reason why she gobbles it up.

I too have tried too many types and brands to even name including raw brands like Stella and Chewy’s, Darwin’s, etc, but she hated the raw and would refuse to eat for almost 2 days at a time. However, I was told to stay the course and when she gets hungry she will eat. I also had her on Acana and Orijen dry Foods but of course she only liked the ones that were too high in either fat or protein for her that gave her diarrhea. So I too have spent a fortune trying different types of dog food. I also tried Ziwi Peak and she liked it but it is too expensive for my budget.

I also put a request in to have this food reviewed. I just became a member about 2 hours ago and I am so excited to gain wisdom and insight about the dog foods on the market and hopefully find a food sooner than later that will be healthy for my dog as she has struggled with pancreatitis in the past years ago although she hasn’t had a problem with that now but she does have thyroid issues and is on medication twice a day for that and has recurring yeast infections in one of her ears which drives me crazy I’m not sure what to do about this so hopefully finding a food will help with all of this. I also will give her cooked chicken or beef or turkey with some of her dry food of which I cut the portion of dry food when I add the cooked meat.

Any suggestions or tips or ideas or recommendations are greatly appreciated and welcomed. Thank You, Bonnie M.

[Anonymous]

I recently started my 3 y/o pit bull on the Nusentia Miracle. If any of you have a pit bull you know how toxic they are when passing gas! Plus, my boy had horrible breath. After just one week he breath started getting much better. As far as his bowel movements, they don’t smell as much and are much more regular. A few days ago I also started him on Merrick Backcountry raw freeze dried lamb, rabbit and duck. He is doing well on it. He doesn’t throw up and he gets SUPER excited when it’s time to eat. I’ll count that as a win. I just want my baby to live forever so I am glad he is doing so well on these products.

[Anonymous]

I recently started my 3 y/o pit bull on the Nusentia Miracle. If any of you have a pit bull you know how toxic they are when passing gas! Plus, my boy had horrible breath. After just one week he breath started getting much better. As far as his bowel movements, they don’t smell as much and are much more regular. A few days ago I also started him on Merrick Backcountry raw freeze dried lamb, rabbit and duck. He is doing well on it. He doesn’t throw up and he gets SUPER excited when it’s time to eat. I’ll count that as a win. I just want my baby to live forever so I am glad he is doing so well on these products.

[aimee]

Hi K9Ancestraldiet,

I typically don’t feed raw but have used some freeze dried raw and have purchased raw diet to lightly cook before feeding.

But in answer to your question no I wouldn’t use your food. I start by evaluating the company and like to see one that meets WSAVA criteria and from your website I don’t see that. Maybe you do but it isn’t evident from the site.

The site makes statements without any references to back the statements up which is a real turn off for me. For example this: “Raw dog food is 99% digestible, resulting in smaller stools and increased activity for all organs. (The more they work with less rate of passage, the more blood flow to the organs and longer organ life) and this “Did you know that students at Kansas State University ground up a old boot and sent it in for analysis and it was selected as a commercial dog food for the market by AAFCO?”. I think this is referring to a promotional piece from Hill’s Science diet but somehow way skewed from what that marketing piece was about.

There isn’t any caloric information on the site, the feeding recommendations are vague and don’t look to be accurate as caloric requirements are not linear.

All in all from the material presented my first impression is that the company understands very little about nutrition, and doesn’t fact check. These are not the qualities I want to see in a company I’m trusting to meet my dog nutrient needs.

[InkedMarie]

It’s nothing I would buy because I don’t use produce as a part of my dogs raw food.

[Christie]

I recently purchased Crave Dog food when it was on sale. My two dogs had been eating Instinct Raw Boost Healthy Weight formula, but neither liked it. I transitioned to Crave Lamb and Venison and one dog really liked it and the other took a few bites and then left it alone and waited until I guess she was hungry enough to finish. On my next trip back to the store, I found that they were completely out of the Lamb so I purchased a small bag of Crave Salmon and Ocean Fish. It was my own fault for waiting until I had run out and assuming that the store would have what I needed. I didn’t know how they would tolerate a switch in protein formula.

The dog that didn’t like the Lamb loves the Salmon and the dog that liked the Lamb eats the Salmon (to be honest he’d eat almost anything) but sometimes he’ll let it sit before he does.

Can I mix the two formulas and feed them both at the same time? Or could it lead to digestive upset?

[K9AncestralDiet]

Hello all,

I help manage social media for a local raw dog food company in Colorado. I understand this forum isn’t for spam, but I did want to reach out to this community and have you take a look at our foods – We offer three raw recipes in beef, bison and lamb varieties, and I would love to know what you think about them! Is this food something you would consider for your dog? If not, why?

https://k9ancestraldiet.com/ Thanks and let me know what you guys think!

[a c]

Aimee,

Thank you for the investigation. I have stop giving No Hide Chews for sometime. I am now giving Smart Bones, the healthy alternative to rawhides. The package also said it’s rawhide free. It’s made in Vietnam. It gets good reviews from a few places. Have you heard anything about this one?

[GSDsForever]

Laurie is absolutely correct:

Skin issues are one of the most common health issues for German Shepherds, so much so that vet books reference things like “German Shepherd Pyoderma” for example. Very, very commonplace. These bacterial and other infections typically have an underlying health disorder that is primary.

GSDs are *frequently* are mentioned in veterinary literature among the dogs most commonly suffering allergies. Allergies or autoimmune system dysfunction are known to underlie skin troubles in GSDs.

Laurie, I too believe that a fresh home prepared diet is ideal.

But in a food allergy dog, it’s all about removing the allergen in the diet — whether commercial kibble/wet, raw, or homecooked.

I’m so grateful to have my dog no longer suffering from allergies! She is doing beautifully, is so much more comfortable and happy, and looks gorgeous now. But we had to change diet (food allergies), address inhalant and environmental allergies in care, and she receives Cytopoint injections — multipronged approach.

[Laurie J]

Patti L., please don’t make generalized statements like “GSD are not allergic dogs, please start making your own food for him……..”. I’ve raw fed my 18 month old GSD for over a year, with a huge variety of excellent human grade ingredients, and it’s extremely balanced, plus with added fish oil, digestive enzymes and probiotics. I’ve done every recommended thing from reputable forums for scratching/chewing/hot spot dogs. Guess what? He’s allergic to something! And it’s a very long, frustrating and expensive process to go through to find out exactly what the culprit is. In fact, the state university veterinary dermatology clinic we go to sees a whole lot of GSDs with skin/allergy issues. I truly believe that a balanced raw or home cooked diet is best for our dogs, but it certainly isn’t the cure all for GSDs or other breeds/dogs with skin and allergy issues.

[aimee]

I received the lab report on the Salmon No Hide chews. This was done at a veterinary diagnostic lab by a forensic pathologist. The sample was submitted by my dog’s veterinarian. The lab rehydrated the chew in deionized water. The pink coating is described as gelatinous and friable which floated within the water. The chew itself described as tough and not able to be manually torn or pulled apart. The white/tan chew material was processed separately from the pink coating material

The coating material is described as having no distinct organization and an accumulation of eosinophilic strands. “The strands of material occasionally have multiple nuclei along the periphery and rarely cross striations are observed ( consistent with skeletal muscle) The myocytes [muscle cells] vary in diameter…….There are numerous aggregates that are clear ………….and brown crystalline structures within the material”

Comments: “The filling material appears to be a mixture of animal product (identification of skeletal muscle) mixed with a filler product( plant based material?)”

For the chew itself: “The material appears to be composed of streams of eosinophilic material( no observable nuclei) with relatively distinct margins. This material is birefringent using polarized light.” I didn’t know what that last sentence meant and looked it up. I found that it is a measure of symmetry and is a reported characteristic of collagen.
Comments: “The majority of the rolled product appears to be composed of collagen like material”

I found this interesting not only for what it says but for what it doesn’t say. The company describes the chew as being high muscle content ” meat is an essential part of the “dough” portion of the No-Hide” and ” The wild caught salmon has been carefully hand-rolled, cooked, and uniquely dried for a one of a kind chew your dog will love!” yet no muscle tissue was found on microscopic examination of the chew, only in the coating. Additionally, the chew had been described as being made of rice vegetable gelatin, oil and eggs with the protein added but no description of plant based products intermixed with animal based in the chew description ..only in the coating description. The chew is uniformly composed of collagen-like material.

Rawhide is the dermis of the skin which is a mat of collagen fibers. The pathology of this No Hide chew is consistent with dermis.

So what next.. I’ve already got hundreds invested into this and I’m going to take it farther. I’ll send out a labeled rawhide chew and have it processed as the No Hide was so a direct comparison can be made. Then depending on cost have specialized stains run.

Right now to my eye this forensic pathology report is consistent with this product being rawhide.

[Dexter P]

Katherine, in our situation we went back to the Pure Balance Bison kibble that they really seemed to enjoy, this is only about a 1/2 cup mixed with their raw food, but within a matter of a couple days it had all cleared up and their appetite returned and they actually seemed happy back with the Pure Balance. Im not really big on any retail kibble but this seemed to be better than a lot of them. I do hope your pup is doing batter.
Dexter

[poodaddy]

Same topic (collaboration request) as posted under the Homemade Dog Food section. Am interested in a group of interested parties who want to walk step by step through the proper conversion of USDA raw food data through the conversions needed to compare raw food data to the AAFCO standards.

[poodaddy]

Anyone interested in collaborating on this topic, please reply.

• This topic was modified 8 years, 4 months ago by poodaddy.

[GSDsForever]

Oops! I sooooo did not catch in my skim read through the thread that “anon101” explicitly recommended “Fat Dogs.” My apologies. Therefore, let me SECOND the recommendation — with good multi-vet support and client results to back it.

Honestly, with people using it for their dogs, I’ve/they’ve not encountered any side effects from this food in those pets like diarrhea/bowel problems. Just excellent, speedy weight loss and full, satisfied dogs.

I’d give it a shot if what you’ve tried thus far hasn’t netted results.

(Hate that title, btw, but I guess it quickly gets the point across! lol. But imagine the uproar if a food for human children was marketed by that name!!!)

p.s. Susan also mentioned green beans. I was surprised to find, after vet recommendation, that my dog just loves them, raw (crispy, crunchy) even, esp. when I buy the bags of thin fresh ones from farmer’s market/produce grocery.

Another idea for you, re the foraging (which, like you, I would let her do): sprinkle some green beans around your grounds maybe?

Subtract an estimated calorie count from treats/foraging outside from her total calories allowed per day when determining cups of food. That will help a lot.

• This reply was modified 8 years, 4 months ago by GSDsForever.

[GSDsForever]

Chris,

I’m just seeing this. But I thought I’d throw in a few more suggestions, as they’re not mentioned above.

My vet recommends green beans as a treat or added ingredient to food — including for weight loss, satiety filling up on low calories (raw or cooked). Many people here buy the giant organic frozen bag Costco sells — such a deal!

If you are able to afford it, Zeal from Honest Kitchen is a food I’d strongly explore using, try. VERY low fat, high protein. Excellent ingredients, quality sourcing & quality control, from a great company. Caveat: Yes, higher calories — but you would just feed less of it, and add in healthy veggies/fruit (low cal, low fat, non-sugary/starchy) for desired bulk/satiety.

“Fat Dogs” by Natural Balance is a dry food some good vet practices — ones that otherwise promote & sell higher end “health food” commercial brands of dog food — prescribe to clients with overweight dogs and get compliance and excellent results quickly. Extremely low calorie (250 cal/Cup), very low fat (7.5%), pretty good to decent ingredients. Well worth considering, trying — esp. for short term, quick weight loss.

Anything you feed, remember that you will have the best results from monitoring & tightly controlling overall calories in a day, feeding (w/vet advice, supervision) UNDER what is recommended for your dog’s weight, and increased regular EXERCISING your dog with you.

[haleycookie]

A healthy dog should be able to easily switch between brands in my opinion. Switching brands can help avoid recalls if you’re particular brand has one so you have different options. Also helps prevent allergies further on as feeding the same protein for prolonged periods of time can cause allergies to that particular protein. I rotational feed my cats (a bit different I know) and it’s mainly because my female cat won’t eat the same food twice usually. Especially canned food. So she gets a different kind of Can everyday. As far as kibble goes I switch around mainly whole earth farms, natures variety raw boost, and performatrin. I don’t really like whole earth farms dry for cats but she likes it. Those are the only three foods she’ll eat with any kind of passion. They never have diarrhea or any other issue. I don’t feed fish really and they all have super soft plush fur. I brush their teeth as well. Kibble doesn’t clean teeth just a little fwi if you didn’t know.

• This reply was modified 8 years, 4 months ago by haleycookie.

[Dexter P]

So for 7 months now we have fed our two dogs a raw food diet of about anything you can think of, raw chicken wings, hamburger, fruit, eggs, pork, turkey…….you name it they have eaten it. We also supplement a small amount of kibble with this. These two dogs have the most iron clad guts you could imagine, one is 14 and the other 1 year of age. We came across this Mossy Oak supposed Super Food and thought we would try it. Day one is the only day they ate all of it, and both had bloody loose stools in 1 1/2 days. By Day 2 there was diarrhea everywhere……and they would not touch their food at all. They literally would identify the Mossy Oak food, and walk away from it and their other food. I understand the transition thing, but these two get kibble switched up all the time since its so little they get, and there have never been problems…..heck we didn’t have a problem when they devoured raw catfish we had caught fishing. There is something not right about this food it seems……..especially when you hop on here like I did, just Googling it, and you have all these horror stories. I’m just saying………be advised.

[organic n]

Hi all, I’ve been researching a lot about what to do with my dog with kidney problems. He had acute kidney failure 2 years ago, and has since been doing well but often has episodes where he is not hungry and throws up. Usually clears itself up within the day, however. He also gets pancreatic problems when exposed to things high in fat (learned that the hard way).

I don’t have his bloodwork levels with me (I was actually going to see if i could get a copy from his vet in the next few days for my own records) but I do remember his BUN being higher than normal but the vet never said anything about it in terms of lowering it, but I feel like my vet doesn’t really see it as a problem despite him having high values.

Anyway, he is a few months shy of being 16 years old, and he is a 6-7lbs dog. We stopped feeding him dry kibble for many many reasons (around a year ago), and now we make his food at home. I don’t do raw meat (I don’t feel like trying out the raw meat thing at his age and conditions is worth it), his meals consist of:

Lean ground turkey cooked with white rice, carrots, peas, and green beans. I use a vitamin supplement (Only Natural Pet® Senior Ultimate Daily Vitamin Powder). After reading however, I will make some changes to his food by swapping out the peas (heard they are high in phosphorous) for some other veggies. And maybe switching out the turkey for ground beef 10% fat. He does get treats too – and if he is willing fruit as well particularly apples.

Also, I would like to start my dog on some more supplements – particularly green food supplements (have heard kelp is high in sodium though and the ones i’ve looked at contain many types of kelp..hmm), switching out the vitamin powder to VetriScience Renal Essentials Kidney Health Support Dog, adding salmon oil, and adding pre/probiotics to my dog’s diet.

Is the salmon oil necessary if I use the VetriScience kidney support tabs?

Can someone who is knowledgeable with kidney disease in dogs advise on the supplements I would like to add to my dog’s diet? I know the best thing is to consult my vet, but perhaps someone on here who has gone something similar can advise.

[Jessica M]

Thank you all for the great feedback. Everyone says to start with chicken, and i have given them raw chicken, without the bone, no problems there. I can`t find chicken necks or feet to start them on so, would anyone recommend chicken leg quarters or drumsticks?

[Anita L]

Kind of interesting that anon101 dismisses “homeopathic” (actually holistic, not homeopathic) sources of information and their own source happens to be quite biased too. The availability of vets who are aware of kibble-alternative diets may depend very much on where you live. Where I live, there are many holistically trained vets do not use only traditional veterinary knowledge, as helpful as that can be for many people.

A well-researched post about transitioning from a brick & mortar organization specializing in raw pet foods: https://sfraw.wordpress.com/2017/02/09/transitioning-to-raw-sfraw-recommends/ Hope it’s useful!

You can get the meats & bones at any butcher you would go to for your own meats. Bones are really inexpensive – just get small bones such as chicken necks, feet, to begin with, and avoid weight-bearing bones.

Personally, we give our 15 lb dog at least 2-3 meals of meaty chicken bones a week. We just approximate her usual 1/2 cup serving size from how big the bone looks. This is as a supplement to high-quality kibble and homemade (cooked) food, using Dr. Richard Pilcairn’s recipe. You may find his book helpful if you wish to learn more about alternative diets.

We have also fed prepackaged foods such as Primal brand, which comes in frozen patties. If you are open to freeze-dried, Stella and Chewy’s is also great. Ziwipeak is air-dried and an amazing food for the money (considering you can use it as a treat since it comes in little squares and is apparently delicious). All are more expensive than feeding raw sourced from grocery stores but those are premium brands for minimally processed food.

[Susan]

Hi Bailey,
thank-you for rescuing a shelter/pound dog, it could be a few reasons why he’s not eating, the antibiotics he’s taking are making him feel unwell, nausea, also having no food in his stomach then taking a tablet with a little treat isnt enough to absorb the tablet then makes him feel sick, only give antibiotic after youn know he has eaten at least 1/2 cup of food that’s if you can find something he likes to eat…
Is he happy, lively, excited etc or does he seem unwell?
I’d ring shelter or your better off going back to the shelter 7-9am in morning & ask the morning carers was he eating his dry kibble? he would have been feed a dry kibble coming from a shelter, the person feeding the dogs of a morning may remember him, if they say yes he was eating his kibble ask which brand was it & it’s the antibiotics making him unwell, how much longer does he have before antibiotics are finished? ask vet can the antibiotics be stopped & see if he starts to feel better, it will take about 1-2 days for him to feel good again…
He may be very depressed & is missing his old life/owner, he needs to gain trust with you & this takes time, he will come good it just takes some time & patience, best to get him in a routine, daily walks same time everyday, meals same time, get a plate or a chopping board not a “bowl” & put food on plate/chopping board in a certain place all the time that’s his special eating spot somewhere quiet & safe & walk away DO not look at him, NO eye contact just call him “Dinner” then walk away…

What I’ve found sometimes these rescue dogs have been feed a raw diet, not kibble/wet canned food, have you tried a raw meaty turkey leg take off the skin & sharp bone that runs along leg bone, run leg under hot water to take off chill off the meat & put in his special eating spot or outside on his chopping board & walk away & try watching him from afar but don’t let him know you’re watching him also egg have you tried whisking a egg, scramble lightly cook or add some boiled sweet potato & some cut up chicken pieces mixed thru… I buy the reduced cooked BBQ chickens from supermarket…

There’s a reason he’s not be eating, try & work it out why, the best place to start would go back to the shelter & ask staff more questions the people who does the feeding & hosing out cages of a morning, there’s always a few favourite dogs, he may have been one of the favorites & one of the carers took a liking to him & got to know him, how long was he at the shelter?

[poodaddy]

Or,… alternatively, anyone can take matters more into one’s own hands and start down the path of knowing what is a properly formulated raw canine diet. Easy to say but requires effort. You will be amazed at the power (applied through knowledge) that nutrition science overlaid with the love of your canine companion will bring you.

If so inclined, look up some of my posts and if you are interested in what you see, send me a note. The only feedback I have received on anything is from Anon and Dr Sagman (through LinkedIn) but no substantive discussion is occurring on this forum (with my project).

One approach to take is first gaining some understanding of the canine digestive tract, what its chemistry is designed for versus versus our human ones. Then we started on the personal education of what is kibble, how is it manufactured, then studied up on canine obesity so we understood some of the connectivity, then moved into macro nutrient profiles and learning from Vets specializing in canine nutrition what the macros should range in. Then we started down the road of raw food experimentation on a small scale which led us into planning, designed, manufacturing 100% canine raw menus and food for (our) dogs. The path traveled has been an incredible journey and still continues, albeit we are now in the last 1%-2% of the original project to implement a raw food model so we knew exactly what was in the menu and could correlate causes and results.

[Susan]

Hi Iva,
So sorry about Ralf, but he wants to play & is full of life this is a GOOD thing very good but start feeding him his home cooked diet again he’ll get more nutrition from a cooked diet, then the Hills Z/d, my last dog was put on the Hills Z/d she had Mast Cell Tumors 2008 & I didnt know anything about pet foods, I feed cooked & raw diets never had to feed a vet diet before, I thought cause I’m paying $140 for a vet diet this must be really good food & will help my girl she hated the Z/d dry kibble & she would cry in pain at night, her vet said she was just spoilt, unbelievable some of these vets, they have no compassion, she wasnt fed a dry kibble before so of cause her stomach hurt after she ate 2 big cups of dry kibble, probably when teh kibble swelled up in her stomach, I always think of my Angie if I only knew what I know now & we had internet sites like we have now I wouldnt have Put Her To sleep she was cancer free in the end but I couldn’t handle her crying of a night & she just didnt want to be here no more, she lost that spark in her eyes, NOW I know different my next dog I rescued he has IBD & we’ve been to hell & back the first 2 yrs, listen to Ralf if he wants cooked feed cooked or raw whatever he can eat….
I wonder if you contacted “Ketopets they do special diets for sick dogs & dogs with cancer they’re on facebook as well here’s their site http://www.ketopetsanctuary.com/ send them an email see if they have a recipe for Ralf,
Why do you keep the fat low? I did the same with Patch then the last 6months I’ve done the opposite, after looking at the Ketopet diet it’s high in fat, high in protein & very low fiber, you only add healthy green veggies for fiber, I’ve increased the fat protein in his diet, can you increase the fat in his diet & feed healthy whole foods high in omega fatty acid fats like Sardines, Salmon, Almonds, Turkey, Mussels etc, it’s taken 3-4 years & finally these last 6months my boy has gained weight finally he’s nilly 19kgs instead of being very lean 16-17kg, his vet wont believe it when she see’s him, she hasn’t had to see him since May-June….
Do you feed 4 smaller meals a day? I feed 5 smaller meals a day I might stop 1 of his meals now he’s gained weight…..
Ralf will get there, I know you will get the help Ralf needs… You are both in my prays….

[Susan]

Hi Jessica,
are you on facebook? join a few raw feeding groups, find 1 you like, also join “K-9 Nutrition” group it’s run by Lew Olson she has a book called “Raw & Natural Nutrition for dogs, very easy to follow recipes, I feed one of her recipes but I cook it instead minus any bone & I tweak it a bit for my IBD boy, there’s also “K-9 Kitchen” run by Monica Segal, follow Rodney Habib on his f/b page & get Dr Karen Beckers book “Real Food For Dogs & Cats” simple homemade food, her books are very hard to get a hold of & some nut was selling 1 of her books on Amazon for a ridiculous sum of money, I cant remember how much they wanted but I saw Karen’s in a video telling everyone do not pay any ridiculous amounts of money for her book as she is releasing another new book, it should be be out by now go onto Dr Karen Beckers f/b page & send her msg she answers, another really good person is Steve Brown he’s often in Rodney Habibs video’s giving advice how to balance your dogs raw diet….
There’s, “Hare Today Gone Tomorrow” https://hare-today.com/ sells what you need
or sometimes there’s places making homemade premade raw diets with human grade ingredients in your area, once you join a raw few feeding groups & ask question people will post cheap places in your area where to buy good quality meats in bulk, the Raw groups I belong too are Australian raw groups, there’s this group called “Raw Diet & Nutrition For Dogs” looks like it might be American, there’s lots of help in this group…
Good-Luck & keep us posted how they’re going…

[crazy4cats]

Hi Jessica M-
I mix some commercial raw into my dogs’ afternoon meals with great results. You could give that a try. I mostly use Nature’s Variety, but have also fed Primal and NW Naturals. These are already complete and balanced so I don’t have to worry about them not getting all the nutrients they need.

Other meals, I mix in either canned good, eggs or fish. I also think that bones are risky. Good luck to you!

[anonymous]

BTW: Have you tried the search engine here
/forums/search/raw/

Lots of opinions, not to be confused with professional veterinary advice 🙂

[Jessica M]

Thank you for the info, some great topics to take into consideration. I have tried to talk to three different vets in my area, and they all refuse to discuss it. They push for the science diet they have in their office. I`m no veterinarian, but from the research i have done and a few people i have spoken with, i really do believe a raw diet is best for my dogs health.

[anonymous]

Discuss with your vet, the one you take your dogs to for annual checkups (hopefully) before making such a dramatic dietary change.

Some science based information here
.http://skeptvet.com/Blog/?s=raw+food

[Jessica M]

Hi,everyone i been researching raw diets for my dogs and want to make the switch, but where do i start. I have a Cavalier King Charles mix (25 pounds) and Australian Shepard Border Collie cross (38 pounds). What types of meat/cuts should i begin with ? Where do i buy the meat and bones ?
Any help towards the right direction will be greatly appropriated!!

[Susan H]

I didn’t leave the green beans whole. I smashed them up with my fingers and mixed them in with the dry kibble after I had moistened it with some warm water.

I started my new puppy on Stella and Chewy raw frozen. She adores it, and it has not upset her stomach at all like the dry kibble and canned food. So I’m sticking with that.

I had also fed Merrick’s Lil Plates which is small kibble, I think it’s important to feed the correct size for small breeds. But since Purina has bought them out, I decided against it.

Good luck with the Annamet lean. I hope it works for your pup.

[poodaddy]

For those interested in a dialog based (solely) on verifiable nutrition science behind canine raw feeding, with zero anecdotal influence, please view the related posts I have made in several of the areas related to questions being posted about “home-made”, “raw”, “menus”, “grinders”, etc etc etc.

We just completed our second annual physical for our two dogs along with a lengthy discussion about the Vet’s prior diagnosis over a year ago, updating that diagnosis, and the entire documented changes in our two dogs’ health that is backed up with detailed data of diet, canine nutrition, and facts. Our Vet is closely aligned with other Vets who have specializations with canine nutrition HQ-based in Los Angeles, and the bottom-line is our Vet has asked me to engage with those Veterinarian nutrition specialists, (solely) due to the nutrition model’s database, algorithms, real application by dog owners, AND the documented real outcomes in canine health experienced in the first year of an on-going practical application of moving from commercial dog food to (personally-researched, designed, prepared, fed) diet. I was also asked if I could make the model available (and that answer is of course no), but will be sharing with her (our primary Vet), the basis of database, calculations, metrics, and peripheral outputs such as charts, trends, and nutrition factors that get applied.

No gimmicks, no opinions, no conjectures, no debating, just application of nutrition science, nutrition data, and a 100% commitment to facts, results, and demystification of conflicting data and information.

[poodaddy]

All (100%) of our canine-related issues (digestive dysfunctions including stools consistency, on-set of periodontal disease, anal gland operations, ignorance of canine nutrition) vaporized when we made the decision and committed to stop feeding commercial mass-produced dog food and committed to raw food AND regular teeth brushing.

[poodaddy]

For anyone interested, KevinB included, made some time to do some modifications, for”other than raw food”, to the Canine Nutrition application (in development) and the below is the output. Note that since I have still been unable to get a response from the manufacturer of Prosense Vitamins (Dale) (see above), I have not included any contribution to the diet of KevinB’s menu. Here is the output. What is not included below is a comparison of the menu to a standard, such as FEDIAF Nutrient Guidelines Canines or AAFCO Nutrient Requirements for Dogs as such, the below stops short of “analysis”. Copying data from Excel into this web page is problematic. Perhaps someone can instrucvt me on how to do it so the data stays aligned and tabular. Each of you can assess the menu now based on the nutrition science data for the food groups listed. All data was taken from nutritiondata.com which uses the USDA tables as the foundation. I have not yet found an instance where nutritiondata.com foods did not align with the USDA testing/data. I have QA-checked about a hundred (80%) and so far 100% checks with USDA databases.

FOOD GROUP Weight g %
ORGAN-MARROW 226.7960 3.89%
MUSCLE MEAT 3095.5520 53.16%
VEGITABLE/FRUIT 2501.1560 42.95%
OIL (Supplement) 0.0000 0.00%
MACROMINERALS (Supplement) 0.0000 0.00%
MACRONUTRIENTS g per day % per day
Prot 73.3489 53.40%
Carb 41.8999 30.51%
Fat 22.1016 16.09%
kcal (449 calc) 650.3830
kcal (ref calc) 670.3673
MACROMINERALS mg per day % per day
Calcium 220.2701 3.78%
*Phosphorous 490.8865 8.43%
Magnesium 114.1447 1.96%
Potassium 536.6109 9.21%
Sodium 152.5461 2.62%
Chloride 0.0000 0.00%
MICROMINERALS mg per day % per day
*Zinc 17.9585 0.31%
*Copper 0.6985 0.01%
*Iron 7.6319 0.13%
*Selenium 0.0901 0.00%
Iodine 0.0000 0.00%
Manganese 1.8323 0.03%
Chromium 0.0000 0.00%
Cobalt 0.0000 0.00%
Fluorine 0.0014 0.00%
Molybdenum 0.0000 0.00%
Silicon 0.0000 0.00%
Sulfur 0.0000 0.00%
VITAMINS mg per day % per day
Vitamin A 1.4918 0.03%
Vitamin B1 (Thiamin) 0.2384 0.00%
Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin) 0.6905 0.01%
Vitamin B3 (Niacin) 6.6424 0.11%
Vitamin B5 (Pantothenic Acid) 2.8011 0.05%
Vitamin B6 (piridoxine) 0.7010 0.01%
Vitamin B7 (Biotin) 0.0000 0.00%
Vitamin B9 (Folic Acid) 0.0328 0.00%
Vitamin B12 (Cobalamin) 0.0014 0.00%
Vitamin C 1.9644 0.03%
Vitamin D 0.0003 0.00%
Vitamin E 1.8694 0.03%
Vitamin K 0.0220 0.00%
Choline 243.2345 4.18%
FATS & FATTY ACIDS mg per day % per day
Polyunsaturated Fat (Omega-3) 439.6228 7.55%
Polyunsaturated Fat (Omega-6) 5010.4205 86.04%
Saturated Fat (g) 6.8897 0.12%
Monounsaturated Fat (g) 5.7914 0.10%
Polyunsaturated Fat (g) 6.1491 0.11%
Cholesterol 425.9580 7.31%
DATA & METRICS
Dog weight units lb
Dog weight 27.5
MERF 1.4
RER (kcal/day/dog) 464.5593
MER (kcal/day/dog) 650.3830
kcal/batch 8130.6591
Days/dog/batch 12.5013
Weight Batch g (no bone) 5823.5040
Weight Bone g 0.0000
Batch g per day per dog 465.8303
Ca:P 0.4487
Fat:Prot 0.3013

[Susan]

Hi Ginger.
here’s the Honestly Bare link https://www.honestlybare.com/about-us/
I looked at the Honestly Bare, Slow cooked tenders formula’s, here’s the Chicken, Peas Carrots formula ingredients, {Chicken, dried peas, dried carrots, “beef glycerin”, salt, “natural hickory smoke flavor”, potassium chloride, preserved with mixed-tocopherols, choline chloride}, also the Chicken Apple & Sweet Potato formula also has the “Beef Glycerine” & the “natural hickory smoke flavor” powder, these are not good or natural ingredients…”hickory smoke flavor” is a powder type flavoring to make the food more appealing & the Glycerin is a binder & a sweetener…
Some dog treats also use the Glycerine, I avoid those treats, your dog probably likes & eats this cause of the salty hickory flavoring…
The Honestly Bare slow cooked tenders formula’s are not freeze dried, it’s made to appear like the natural freeze dried formula’s, the Honestly Bare “Wholesome Topper” formula’s are freezed dried, you’re better of adding the Honestly Bare Wholesome topper to his kibble, you add water & then add to his Acana kibble as a topper the Wholesome topper don’t have the Hictory smoked powder or glycerine & the ingredients look natural but it’s just a topper not a proper balance meal…
When you read the “Wholesome Topper” it does say freeze dried chicken & 100% natural when you read the “Slow Cooked” doesn’t say 100% Natural & says 75% chicken…

When I’m on the other side of DFA the “Comment” section a few people who have very Fussy dogs have been posting that their dogs are doing really well & love “Fresh Pet” pet foods there’s, Freshpet Select, Vital & Nature’s Fresh, here’s the Freshpet link
https://freshpet.com/our-foods/our-brands/
there’s their Fresh Baked grain free formula’s & their Loaf style rolls that you can cut in sections & freeze…
Another really good Air dried food is “Ziwi Peak” https://www.ziwipets.com/
send “Ziwi Peak” an email & ask for some samples, give your address etc so they can send you the samples, Ziwi Peak is air dried & propely balanced so can be feed as main meal, your dog will probably like their NZ Tripe & Lamb it’s for Picky eaters & the Mackeral & Lamb, Ziwi Peak also do their raw wet canned foods, I bet your dog will love Ziwi Peak then just roatae between the different meat proteins, my cat goes nuts when I feed her the Ziwi Peak wet & dry food, she inhales it & doesn’t chew, the wet canned food can be a bit expensive so best to buy when on special….

[Susan]

Hi ac,
Why I like the freeze dried Mussels is cause the shell is eatible, You need the shell for the Glucosamine & Chondroitin….
Steve Brown does recommend the cheap frozen mussels from supermarket, but the shells are still hard shells, cause Steve Brown feeds his dogs a raw diet his dogs would just crunch & eat these hard shells, Why I like the freeze dried mussels they seemed to be cooked, so some silly reason I feel better giving Patch the freeze Dried Mussels cause of his IBD….
My cat loves them, she mooooeeeewws the place down like she’s being killed when she see’s me getting out the mussels, I just say mussels & she comes running so does Patch he gets 2 & Indy just gets 1 freeze dried mussel, they’re a bit expensive the freeze dried mussels & they do have to be used within 10-14 days of opening the packet, it says on 1 of the New Zealand brand I buy….The freeze dried mussels just crumble as soon as they bite into them & I know Patch is getting his Glucosamine & Chondroitin from the shell for his joints, bones & his EPA, DHA, Manganese, Iodine, fats, Vitamin D from the mussel meat…
2 x Mussels + Shell are also good to balance a raw diet, Steve said some raw diets are usually short of Iodine, Manganse, Fats & Vitamin D…

[Lyndsay D]

Good afternoon!
I have a big but little lab/pointer mix puppy on natures variety raw and he has a potato allergy (And a few other allergies) . Finding a no potato crunchy treat is almost impossible.
Does anyone have any ideas where I may be able to find some? or recipes that can be crunchy and satisfying for this pup?
Thank you!

[haleycookie]

Might try a puppy food until you can get weight on her. I know natures variety raw boost is a higher calorie food. But any good quality puppy food will likely be high in calories to put the weight back on her.