[Dawn R]

My puppy Bella is an 8 month old 9 pound schnoodle that has been suffering from severe diarrhea accompanied by occasional blood & mucus as well as vomiting since November 2014. I have spent thousands of dollars at the vet to eliminate other possibilities such as addisons, parvo, liver shunt etc etc. She had giardia when she was very little and treated with metronidizole. Good news is so far all tests are good (liver enzymes very slightly elevated as is potassium), bad news is we still don’t have a definitive diagnosis, however the vet seems pretty sure it is colitis/IBD/HGE. What the vets are not helping me with is putting her on a diet other than the Hills W/D which she doesnt want to eat. I started her on Merrick dry kibble when I first took her home. When she stopped eating that, I mixed in Merrick wet food. This worked for a month before she had terrible diarrhea. In addition she seem to be allergic to something in the merrick food which caused a chronic cough & eye discharge. Then She went on Natures VAriety for a short while, but would ONLY eat the freeze dried raw bits and not the kibble. So because of this I then I put her on Stella & Chewys freeze dried lamb & duck patties. That also worked for about a month and then she had another bout, this time extremely severe. Through each bout (which seems to happen 1-2 times per month) they put her back on metronidizole again, so I never really get the chance to see if a food is working or not. Vet wanted to try the whole novel protein diet and put her on Hills prescription D/D. Tried it for 2 weeks and she would not touch it and lost 1.5 pounds. At that point I gave up and needed to just get food into her system so I put her back on Merrick but this time tried the grain free duck. One week into it and she started back with diarrhea again and is now back on metronidizole. This time the vet wants me to put her on Hills W/D because of the low fat/high fiber. I already use a probiotic (restore) and give her a tablespoon of pumpkin everyday (which incidentally seems to make the diarrea worse). Took her off all bully sticks (still love the brand BEST bully stick, but never again). No treats either. I have read extensively and there seems to be many different opinions on what to give a dog with GI inflammation of sorts. I have read everything from Canine cavier to Addiction and more. Having had signed up for the editors choice, I am hoping for some good solid recommendations. I do not want to give her Merrick or Hills anymore. Cost is not an issue, but I don’t think puppies this tiny are ok with raw food (just my experience since the worst she ever was when I fed her Stella & Chewys, even though I think its a great product for most). She is going in for spay surgery on May 7th (health permitting) and the vet is saying if I am not able to regulate her with diet in the next month that they want to do an intestinal biopsy which I have a real problem with especially if the intestine is ALREADY inflamed. I have an appointment for her with a holistic vet tomorrow and am really hoping to get some suggestions that I can speak to the holistic vet about. I have read all about pre/pro biotics, digestive enzymes, glucose, fructose, hypoallergenic, L-glutamine and plan to ask the holistic vet which of those she thinks I should try, but I find it troubling that I have not gotten any viable food options from my vet to date. Any advice would be greatly appreciated by Baby Bella & her Mom!

• This topic was modified 11 years ago by Dawn R.
• This topic was modified 11 years ago by Dawn R.
• This topic was modified 11 years ago by Dawn R.

[Jennifer H]

I would stick with Fromm. Taste of the Wild is manufactured by Diamond, and while the food is good, the company is pretty shady and has a long history of recalls. A lot of people here recommend a rotational diet with kibble, there’s a few threads on it around you may be interested in 🙂

As for feeding raw. I personally wouldn’t mix them in the same meal, as this can give some dogs digestive upset. I would feed one meal as kibble, and one meal as raw. For raw, you want to feed him 2% of his body weight per day. So if you’re only feeding one meal of raw, cut that number in half. So since he is 100~lbs, he would need 2 lbs of food per day. Since he is only getting 1 meal a day of raw, that would be 1lb of food at his mealtime.

Start him out slow with just poultry for awhile to get his tummy used to it. Then you can gradually start introducing other meats like beef, pork, etc and organs, which are an important part of the diet. When feeding something bony like a turkey neck, add in some nice meaty meat like chicken breast or hearts (about half the weight of the bones worth) to cut the calcium and prevent constipation.

I currently feed my dog kibble in the morning and raw at night (next week we make the switch to full raw!!) and he does well on it.

For chews, you can try giving him a frozen turkey neck and let him work on that. It can keep a dog busy for hours.

You could also look into antlers, although I know some people have reservations over them being too hard.

This is a good thread to read to find some information on raw food – /forums/topic/menus/

[Rachel M]

Hello! I am very new to the raw dog food world, and I’m finding it to be overwhelming! But… I want what’s best for my dog child, so I need some help please 🙂 I will fill you in on the details first, since I’m not sure what you all need to know. My canine child is a 1 year 3 month old Doberman Pinscher. His health is normal. He is currently on Fromm Gold Large breed dog food. He eats 5 cups a day, 2 1/2 in the morning, 2 1/2 at night. He was previously abused, so he has some problems with eating quickly *or at least I assume the abuse was a huge factor*. I have given him raw turkey neck before as a treat *AFTER I searched to make sure it was safe*, and he loved it. I started looking more into it, and that’s when I found all these things about raw feeding and how it’s great for them. I can’t afford to feed him entirely raw, so I’m looking to supplement. I was thinking of switching him to Taste of the Wild, but I am wondering if this would be a wise switch as well. We tried the puppy pacific stream formula when he was young, (3-5 months?), but that was right after we had picked him up from a situation where he wasn’t being fed. The food was too rich for him at the time, and he had mushy poo’s. We ended up trying a few different foods, but went with Fromm, as it seemingly fixed his poo problems. I’ve been reading that Taste of the Wild is a good food, but I wasn’t sure if I should try it again.
I am also always looking for long lasting chews for him. I made the terrible mistake of giving him a beef knuckle bone when he was young, and he ground his canine teeth down a little bit 🙁 I will feel terribly guilty for the rest of my life for that. Regular rawhide scares me, so right now he gets Digest-eeze and pork chomps. These are not enough. He FLIES through these.
SO BASICALLY, I am wondering
A. If I should supplement his kibble with raw? And if so, how should I do this? How much raw? How much of a kibble cut back? And how often should I feed raw? Is this something I should mix WITH his kibble every day? Or feed raw in the am, kibble p.m? I am so lost!
B. Is mixing a kibble while also feeding raw going to hurt him?
C. If I should switch his food to TOTW? Is this worth trying again?
D. ARE THERE ANY CHEWS OUT THERE THAT WILL LAST LONGER THAN 10 MINUTES FOR MY DOG THAT AREN’T GOING TO HURT HIM?!?!
Haha! Crazy dog mom essay over. Thank you in advance for your help, and I apologize for all of the questions! I am just totally overwhelmed!

[aquariangt]

Chuck and Dons have plenty of great options, I haven’t lived near a fleet farm so i haven’t been there in about 15 years.

A few that I like from C+D: Fromm, Earthborn, Orijen, Acana-among others. just be careful on Diamond manufacturing at least 3 brands i saw on their website-Taste of the Wild, Canidae, and Solid Gold (not all varieties-i use Barking at the Moon). They have other great options as well, and some raw food

Petsmart: Nulo, Nature’s Variety, Wellness

Walmart: Pure Balance

[Alan I]

I changed my 8yo Jack Russell onto a raw food diet about four months ago. A few weeks later she started having little urine accidents in the house which she’d never done before. Concerned I took her to the vets.

A few hours later I received a panic call to say her ketones were very high and her glucose curve none existent – at the time this meant nothing to me – and that she had diabetes. Since then I’ve been injecting her with insulin twice a day.

The vet tried to get me to change her food to diabetic kibble but I refused. So they have accommodated my determination to keep her on raw food, checked the diet I use (it’s fine and balanced but without carbs) and I monitor her ketones and glucose everyday.

Here’s my problem. I’ve done lots of research online and feel like I’m between a rock and a hard place. Whilst there is very little about dogs there’s lots about humans and ketogenic diets. What that tells me is that ketone levels rise dramatically when you remove carbs from your diet and your glucose curve flattens (as you don’t have glucose spikes because you’re not eating carbs). This seems to suggest high ketone levels in my dog are normal – it’s obvious really, she doesn’t eat carbs so she needs ketones in her blood to process the protein; and that the standard measure of diabetes (glucose curve) might not to relevant either!

So here’s my quandary. I don’t know if my dog actually has diabetes anymore. I wonder if everything is a function of her diet. That leads me to be concerned as, if I’m giving her insulin she doesn’t need I’m poisoning her and she’ll create triglycerides that are very harmful to her.

Does anybody have a view? Any research or papers I can read?

[Alan I]

I moved my 8yo Jack Russell onto a Raw Food Diet about four months ago. She suddenly started urinating a lot and having accidents in the house (something she’d never done before) so I took her to the vets. I then received a panic call to say her ketones were really high and that she had critical diabetes. I was obviously rattled by this and we began (7 weeks ago) to inject her with insulin twice a day. The vet tried to get me onto diabetic kibble but I refused.

There isn’t much online about ketogenic diets in dogs but lots on humans and what it all says is ketone levels are always high which you cut out carbs and rely on protein for your energy – it’s obvious really when you think about it. Having read these threads I’m starting to think that her increased urination was a function of the change and her ketone levels had nothing to do with diabetes but were just natural.

I have now challenged the vet – no response yet – to find another measure for diabetes. Obviously they also did a glucose curve which was very shallow (it’s supposed to spike after food then drop) but I watched a lecture on ketogenesis online yesterday that said those on a ketogenic diet don’t have spiked glucose curves – again this is obvious as they are not having to produce lots of insulin to process the sugar in carbs.

I’m wondering if anybody has a view. I now fear my dog doesn’t have diabetes, in which case I could be poisoning her with insulin. Over production of insulin causes triglycerides which lead to weight gain and all sorts of other complications! I feel like I’m between a rock and a hard place.

HELP!!

[Kathleen C]

Well, I may try the dehydrated or at least look into it. Olson’s Grain where I get his dog food carries it and may be able to help me decide. I agree about raw.

[Lori]

Kathleen, I actually am not supposed to feed my lab, Chuck a raw diet because he is a service dog to me and also just got certified as a therapy dog this month. They don’t allow it either as a service dog or therapy dog. Dehydrated is okay, however. I just think raw is gross 🙂

Lori

[Kathleen C]

Chuckles, I think this is the same one sent before. Also, thanks for the other information. Still not sure I would try raw even though it sounds ideal. Have to think about that. Has anyone tried Wysong Epigen Original Chicken Formula for a very high protein and very low carbs? High fat but seems a bit “out there” otherwise. Not sure what kind of weight lose it would cause.

[Liz S]

I know this is an old post, but I’m compelled to share! My little scruffy rescue thing is an allergy pup. We’ve been dealing with his food allergy & intolerance issues since he entered my care at 6 months of age, and even more so after I officially adopted him at 9 months (2010) via elimination diets & trial/error. He seems to acquire new allergies every few months to a year. I work in the veterinary field, so after a recent rapid decline in his health (and trips to the emergency vet) I bit the bullet and we allergy tested him.
He is allergic to chicken, duck, turkey, beef, bison, venison, rabbit, lamb, fish, dairy, egg, barley, flax & pea. He is intolerant to raw carrots (cannot digest them – vomitting), corn & soy (tear stains, upset tummy). (Enviro allergies are bayberry & corn pollen).
That’s nearly every protein source available to us. Our options are pork (did not react), possibly boar, possibly kangaroo, possibly goat & possibly brushtail. Try finding ANY of those foods in high-quality kibbles (none), canned without pea or egg (none), raw without flax or egg or barley (two – OC Raw Dogs Goat & Addiction Raw-Dehydrated Summer Brushtail) so it looks like raw will be the winner! He is currently eating Orijen Six Fish & Cetirizine HCL SID or he breaks out in hives DAILY.

I might add – he also did not react to oats, green bean, pumpkin, sweet potato, potato, rice or alfalfa. Small miracle.

[Lori]

Katlhleen, Yes, the carb level is high, I think most weight management food will be. Right now I’m alternating between Victor’s Grain Free Salmon and Northwest Naturals Salmon, which is a raw that my pet store gave me to try out. It’s the nugget kind so easy to pour into bowl and thaws out pretty quick. This would, however, be too expensive to feed my dogs regularly. I think the price here was about $35 or so (under $40) for 6 pounds. My dogs love it and had no trouble with digesting it or with their output. I was told feeding raw would take the weight off quicker than kibble, which I believe, but again, it’s to pricey for me to do full time. I’m on the fence about raw still also.

[Kathleen C]

What is the difference between freeze dried and dehydrated food? I’m leery of raw food since my vet is against it, but does that include the dried and dehydrated? I would be willing to try something else than kibble.

[olivia m]

Nothing rawhide. I just learned that rawhide is processed with something called tannen?

[JeffreyT]

The owners of Raw N More have boxers and are incredibly knowledgeable and passionate about dog health. I highly recommend speaking to them.
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Raw-N-More-LLC/401302566583566

[C L]

Rhonda, I’m new to raw myself. What I see people do is to feed their dog in a space that’s easy to clean up, so a tiled area. You can feed your dog outside. You can provide a piece of linoleum for your dog to consume raw on it. You have to teach your dog to stay on it. Some put down a cloth, or you can use a drop cloth (plastic). It is a messy thing to feed raw. I’ve seen people feed their dogs in a large wire crate.

You can take a bone or meat away and refrigerate it for another day. I’ve never seen anyone address if they bury it.

Depending on the size of your dogs, some bones are more appropriate than others. People tend to feed bones that can be consumed. One that are hard are the ones that a dog can chip/break a tooth on, so many serve chicken. Where ever you feed your dog, you need to watch your dog consume the bone. They can choke. You have to be ready for that. I don’t see it mentioned on my raw site, but Capri got the keel bone of a chicken breast stuck in her mouth. I looked over and she was not moving. I removed it and gave her a few pressure compressions, because she looked like she wasn’t breathing, then she was okay. No one talks about that, so it’s something to be aware of and that they can choke.

I belong to a raw FB page called Raw Feeding. You can join and ask questions there. They have files on the page that they want you to read up on first, because they can answer questions (they’re articles). I’m still learning.

Something that they do that I didn’t learn right away is “trading up”. If your dog is at the end of their piece of meat or bone and you think they will gulp it, you offer them something they like better to get it away from them.

[Kathleen C]

aimee, from your answer above: “When fewer calories were fed as fat and more as carbohydrate the dogs lost more weight and a greater percentage of fat (Borne).” This is what I find hard to comprehend. I always think of carbs as the reason for dogs getting fat to begin with, for some reason. And no, I’ve not thought about canned, raw or dehydrated food. I would like to get him away from the chicken though. Since hearing dogs can have a problem with chicken allergies I’ve looked at regular kibble but nothing out there is low calorie. His first owner fed a low quality salmon food from Costco and she said he never seemed to have any ear allergies like he does now.

[Rhonda L]

New dog… new to raw… new to healthy bone options… oh, mercy! So much to learn. Thank goodness for you all. I’ve ordered Darwin’s pre-prepared raw food so we can get going while I’m learning. When feeding a raw bone, do you take your dogs outside? (Trying to chill about it, but struggling with the idea of raw bones being smooshed all over the floor.) If they haven’t eaten it all in a certain amount of time, do you remove it? If they bury it, do you just leave it for a future discovery? I always thought I was a semi-intelligent person — may have just been kidding myself — but this raw diet / bone business has had me reading for days, and feeling sadly under-informed. Still, determined to figure it out. My sweet rescue pup deserves a little dinner love.

[Kathy J]

Thanks for the advice about THK. I continue having trouble with the digestibility aspect of THK or any other dehydrated foods (or raw for that matter). I would not cook it because it would probably dilute the supplements that are added in.
So, right now I will stick with Fromm – or Acana and maybe Nature’s Variety or Wellness and some canned and my added in home cooked things while I study cooking for him.
I need to figure out what supplements to add, etc. As I am “older”, I definitely did not want to do the cooking thing but after that horrible video “Pet Food – A Dog’s Breakfast” my solution may be to cook most of the meals and fill in with “quality kibble and canned”.

[Anonymous]

I don’t do raw feeding, but I thought that you folks that do, might be interested in this:
http://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/raw-roundup/?mc_cid=fe3be7b7d0&mc_eid=cb2524c2fa
Brought to you by Dogs Naturally Magazine, this conference will be led by some of the world’s best veterinarians and canine nutrition experts – live from your computer, anywhere in the world!

“This LIVE, ONLINE and INTERACTIVE event will deliver more health boosting diet plans and ideas for your dog than you can shake a stick at! An amazing opportunity for learning and networking”.

[aquariangt]

What about canned or raw? Or like Marie said, something dehydrated-all of these tend to have way less carbs.

[pugmomsandy]

Tucker’s uses USDA materials and a USDA facility (tuckersbones.com). Also K9 Kraving is USDA approved (K-9kraving.com). These are raw foods. Weruva Human Style canned food is made in a human food factory (weruva.com).

[Jennifer H]

Sooo…this is the menu I’ve drawn up for next month for Toby’s raw diet. Would anyone care to check it over and see if I’m good for calcium/phos, vits/mins? I try to stick to the meat being in the PMR range, but I add veggies and supplements as well to balance everything out.
Toby weighs 13lbs, although I think he should weigh a bit less. The morning mixes consist of ground whole prey (Hare Today), with added cooked/pureed veggies (varies according to season availability, but usually consists of a base of pumpkin, spinach, parsley, sweet potato, berries and I add an 8oz can of Oyster for manganese) and added egg. I mix up as much meat as I would need for all 4 weeks, then add half that amount in veggies, and then 2 eggs w/ shells from my backyard flock.
He also gets .5oz of veggies in the evening. (I make a big batch and then portion into ice cube trays.)

His organs consist of 2lb beef liver, 1lb chicken liver, 2lb beef kidney, and 1lb beef pancreas that were ground and mixed together and then portioned into ice cube trays for ease of use.

AM
Monday – 2.5 oz Tripe Mix
Tuesday – 2.5oz Llama Mix
Wednesday – 2.5oz Rabbit Mix
Thursday – 2.5oz Tripe Mix
Friday – 2.5oz Llama Mix
Saturday – 2.5oz Rabbit Mix
Sunday – 2.5oz Mutton Mix
PM
(Meals total roughly 3oz)
Monday – Skinless Chicken Neck, Chicken Gizzard, .5oz Organ
Tuesday – Chicken Foot, Beef Heart
Wednesday – Goat, Sardine, Beef Gullet
Thursday – Duck Neck, Turkey Gizzard, .5oz Organ
Friday – Chicken Back Piece, 1oz Organ
Saturday – Cornish Hen Wing, Goat, .5oz Organ
Sunday – Goat, Sardine, Beef Gullet

His supplements are as follows –

MORNING – 1/2 TSP Missing Link Skin and Coat – Daily
15 IU Vit E – Daily
Carlson Low A Cod Liver Oil – Daily
2tsp Kefir – Daily
Fish Oil – Mon, Wed, Fri
Coconut Oil – Tues, Thurs

EVENING – 1/2 TSP ONP Daily Greens – Daily
15 IU Vitamin E – Daily
2tsp Kefir – Daily

I’m also looking at adding k9 Natural Health Skin and Coat to his evening meal as well….but only at half dose or less (their doses seem extremely high).

Does this look okay? I’m learning all the time, and hoping to create a nice varied but balanced diet for Toby. He loves his raw, and he’s done so well on it.

• This reply was modified 11 years ago by Jennifer H.
• This reply was modified 11 years ago by Jennifer H.

[Anonymous]

http://www.embracepetinsurance.com/blog/harmful-side-animal-sourced-dog-chews
http://www.embracepetinsurance.com/pet-care/dangers-of-rawhide

They are junk, treated with toxic chemicals, imo

Also, listen to what the homeopathic vets have to say, some of it makes sense
http://vitalanimal.com/natural-dental-prevention/
I give my dogs an occasional frozen beef marrow bone to chew on, however, these are not without risk. They can chip a tooth, and one of my dogs had to go to the emergency vet because of abdominal pain and vomiting, x-ray showed calcified material in her colon and stomach, luckily it passed.

A raw carrot is a good treat. But don’t be alarmed if you see carrot chunks in their feces….they don’t digest veggies well.

[q m]

No…no raw pork. I was feeding my dog Eagle Pack, and the vet told us that was NOT good because it contains pork.

Also, i see a lot of the chewables are of pork (rawhides, ears, etc). What is the consensus on these pork items? So far, I’ve stuck with beef chewables, from what the Vet said about pork.
My dog has been eating the Iams adult dry food for the last 2 years with no known issues…only rated a 3 of 5 here.
Thanks
QM

[K-Rae]

SO I posted my question two years ago…March 2013….We have been on raw ever since. We continued on with the chicken, started feeding less of it to the dogs effected with excessive urination and it totally went away. We feed a lot of chicken and turkey still since we now have 7 dogs, and have never encountered the problem again. So my best guess is that it was their systems getting in check with a proper raw diet.

[InkedMarie]

AJ A,
look at Hare Today and Reel Raw Dog. Both offer grinds (no produce) and whole meats and bones. It’s what I buy for raw.

[theBCnut]

There have been some reports that some dogs can’t handle processed pork fat. If your dog doesn’t have an issue, I wouldn’t worry about it.

My dogs eat pork regularly, however it’s raw pork. Commercially raised pork has next to no danger of Trichinosis anymore, because of the practices used when raising it. Pork that is raised more humanely needs to be frozen at 0 degrees Fahrenheit for at least 2 weeks before feeding it raw, I freeze for longer, just because I always lose it in the bottom of the freezer.

[Bobby dog]

Hi g m:
Were you feeding raw pork?

[AJ A]

By the way. I have tried Primal and Natures Variety Instinct, over $100 still sitting in my freezer. If I think about raw meat I expect to see raw food and not a paste looking mushy something once defrosted. Also the smell is anything else than close to raw meat.
The only real raw food I found is Darwin’s. It was all real meat, unfortunately the meat was ground and dogs should get at least little chunks to satisfy their way of eating. Darwin’s uses 10% veggies in their food and veggies should not be offered to dogs as well. They don’t hurt but their body is not designed to digest veggies. Dogs are carnivores and their body is all made for eating whole carcasses, skin, feathers, fur, organs, in other words the whole prey. On their menu you can sometimes find some wild berries and grass, assisting in digestive disorders.When you see a dog eating grass he has an upset stomach.

[AJ A]

I just found the cause of the excessive urinating in dogs after feeding raw organic chicken. Please check out this link:
http://www.cookinglight.com/m/eating-smart/nutrition-101/sodium-in-chicken

I will certainly stop feeding this kind of chicken for my dogs as we speak and myself as well. I always asked myself why chicken meat contains all this liquid. WOW, I spent all this money for organic certified chicken for my dogs and was feeding high amounts of sodium. Thats just wrong!!!
.

[AJ A]

Thanks for all your opinions and experiences, I am glad I received replies.
I won’t ever go back to kibble EVER.
And I don’t run to the Vet all the time. I am organic myself since 15 yrs and haven’t seen a doctor since. Not even once!
I use common sense and needed to see if my case was only happening to my pup. As I can see it is definitely the water in the meat. Thats why they dont need to drink as much water as they do with kibble. Today I controlled a little the water intake and he pees less often, but still bigger spots than before and specially after feeding the chicken. He is doing just fine and has top energy, his coat started shining and it is growing faster than it was 1 month ago.
Before I switched to raw I did a deep education to be prepared, asking raw feeding breeders all over from Australia to Germany, checked everything online and started to understand that raw diet should not contain veggies neither grains like the BARF diet.. Wolves dont get a complete balanced diet everyday, neither do we and certainly they wont be searching for carrots, spinach and grains in their habitat. They receive the fermented enzymes from the digested food of their prey’s tripe, thats the good stuff, thats what they will eat first, thats where lots of balanced nutrients are.
When starting a raw diet with puppies (especially small breed) you best start with chicken, because low fat and easier digested than ground beef. Because I tried both, beef (grass fed 95%lean) and chicken. He regurgitated the whole ground beef everytime he ate it. He never did with the chicken. The wing helps cleaning his teeth and he gets supplements from the core of the bone and calcium.1 egg a week for breakfast. I give bone meal since he does not yet get enough bones in his food yet. Once he is used to the chicken and wings/necks I will start to join some liver and heart and green tripe little by little to not upset his digestion. Than we will do the same with duck, lamb and rabbit including organ and muscle meat as well. Of course a meaty bone everyday or 3 times a week.
Once established his likes than we can start feeding 1 day chicken, next duck and so on. I forgot the fish. Some fresh fish once a week is important as well.
I think probiotics , enzymes and clay are a must have in the kitchen. So is ionic silver and therapeutic grade essential oils like geranium, peppermint, frankincense and lemon. When they get lose stool some clay with enzymes/probiotics and diarrhea is cleared.
I use ionic silver to disinfect drinking water, once in a while internal against parasites and to clear my Shih Tzu’s eyes (14yrs). He suffers dry eyes and since he is on raw diet as well since 2 weeks his dry eye symptoms are already totally gone!! Yeahhhh! Now I hope to see changes in his coat like color and softness. His constant fear should disappear as well and his appetite should get better and better. I really hope to gain some more years of his company. I love him so much and hope we can gain back as much health as he has lost due to those bad kibble diet. He lost some of his hair on his back and I truly hope the high protein intake will fix most of his problems.
I stopped using vaccines on my Shih Tzu since 10yrs, neither I believe in spaying/neuter dogs. My pup received vaccines from her Vet, he won’t ever receive any other vaccines in his life. I dont believe it does any good, not for pets and neither for humans. Build up a healthy immune system and eat organic food and you will be fine!!! Same for dogs. THEY ARE DOGS NOT HUMANS!!! THEY DESERVE TO EAT HOW NATURE DESIGNED THEM TO.

[aimee]

Hi Losul,

The physiology behind it is the same reasoning as with people; urea is a solute. From Nutrient Requirements of Dogs and Cats ” For example, higher protein and/or mineral content of food may increase the solute load and subsequent degree of water consumption and urine production” From Applied Veterinary Clinical Nutrition in regards to patients with renal compromise: “Modified protein diets can help diminish the degree of polyuria and polydipsia because less solute is delivered to the kidneys in the form of proteinaceous wastes.”

There could be other factors as well. I’d think it reasonable that with a raw meat based diet you would have less water loss via feces than a commercial kibble diet.

Yes absolutely, low protein diets ( much lower than AAFCO) will cause dilute urine. The reason again is solute load. In this case is it so low that the concentration gradient in the kidney isn’t maintained.

[losul]

Aimee, I tried a search on “protein dehydrating” and “protein dehydrating in dogs” all I came up with was an article or two pertaining to humans and high consumption of protein.

It’s interesting though that I found this article, that said this;

“Other potential factors behind polydipsia and polyuria are low protein diets,”

http://www.petmd.com/dog/conditions/urinary/c_multi_polydipsia_polyuria

K-Rae, I couldn’t come up with much info on the ingredients in carnivora.ca from their website, not sure, but I get the feeling from reading on it that they are against any carbs in the food? Regardless, I would be trying a different raw diet, and don’t be afraid to to use a good balanced one that does include some moderate carbs, they might do much better on it. It could be that your dogs are still drinking in excess as part of a learned/ingrained behavior from dry food days. I agree with the others though that this polyuria should be reason for concern, and should be investigated further. Seeking vet care/tests would be best, but you could at least do a phone consultation with a vet that knows raw feeding, and then go from there.

AJ, you CANNOT feed your 12 week old puppy nothing but chicken breast and wings, if that’s what you are saying. He will DEFINITELY have malnutrition disorders if you do so, and I would strongly suggest getting him back on a complete and balanced diet.

[DogFoodie]

Hi AJ,

I’d also take a look at the raw threads in the forum because the diet you’re currently feeding doesn’t sound properly balanced. Are you also feeding some organ meats?

[Bobby dog]

Hi AJ:
If I observed my dog urinating more often the first thing I would do is take him in for a check-up. However, I also have another thought on the subject. I don’t feed a prey model diet, but I do feed some commercial raw. The increase in urination could be from the extra moisture content of his new diet. Maybe someone else will have some thoughts for you as well.

[Anonymous]

I don’t know much about raw diets. But, I am wondering if some of the dry food/kibble (even good quality) have a high sodium content. A decrease in sodium might lead to an increase in urination, I think.

[AJ A]

I am having the same probems, not sure if it is a problemem or just occuring because feeding raw chicken breast?
Anakin, Lhasa Apso puppy of 12 weeks today
I switched from holistic Fromm kibble to raw diet 2 weeks ago. Today we are on all raw chicken breast and 1 chickenwing a day. The poop is kinda lose but not running and only a tiny poop 1 or sometimes twice a day. He eats quite a lot, 2x times a day, and he eats it within 1 minute.
Now his pee is just a lot. They seem like lakes. On kibble he peed yellow and normal quantities. But now the pee is clear and just a lot of pee. He does not drink more water. Kinda concerned if this is good or not. On kibbles he pees as expected, so kidneys are ok.
Anyone can help me here?

[simmy]

Today I prepared my own raw dog food. Everything was okay but that kidney odor is killing me. I know that white part in the kidney is the source. Should I remove that part or grind it completely? Is any nutrition in there?

Do commercial raw food companies add that part into their food or remove it?

[Rhonda L]

Thanks so much everyone! Sounds like there isn’t one single way to go about it, but lots of good options if applied with a heavy dose of common sense. I’m especially glad to see the suggestions about topping a quality kibble with raw/canned/freeze dried. I had read a few comments in other threads about potential bloat problems with toppers, but it sounds like that’s not a big concern. I appreciate the expertise and time in replying! It’s reassuring!

[Terry G]

Hi theBCnut! I’ve never fed my dogs the Blue brand of foods & I don’t plan to change from the “Small Batch” raw foods I use, but I had a woman tell me last month that Purina is the company that instigated all the law suits against Blue & she thinks they are just trying to harm the Blue brand ~ that there really isn’t a quality problem with Blue, there’s a profit & popularity problem as far as Purina is concerned. Do you think there is any truth to that? Thanks!

[Bobby dog]

Hi Rhonda:
How often you rotate is up to your pup. Some do well rotating brands frequently, some need a longer transition period. My dog can eat different foods for each meal with no issues whatsoever.

I feed about half a meal of kibble topped with either canned, fresh foods, or commercial raw freeze dried or frozen. His kibble is the most constant out of the rotation. He will eat one brand/recipe of a smaller bag until it’s finished, about a month. Then I switch to another brand with a different protein and carb source. All other foods change with every meal or every few days for canned food.

Sounds like you’re set for your pup’s treat menu! For commercial raw my dog does well on Stella & Chewy freeze dried Chicken, Pheasant, Venison, or Duck, Duck, Goose, Primal freeze dried Turkey & Sardine, Primal frozen Venison, Nature’s Variety Instinct freeze dried Lamb, Nature’s Variety Instinct frozen beef, lamb, or venison.

Here’s a few DFA articles on rotation and info to help you choose a commercial raw food:
/frequently-asked-questions/diet-rotation-for-dogs/
/choosing-dog-food/raw-dog-food-fat/
/best-dog-foods/raw-dog-food/

[theBCnut]

When you are just starting a rotational diet you need to take it slowly. Choose a food you like and slowly transition to it and then go choose the next food you want to try. When you get near the end of the first bag, start mixing in the new one. Start out with changing monthly, then as your dog gets used to rotating, you can decide to rotate more frequently or keep it at monthly. You can also add canned, fresh, freeze dried, or whatever as toppers and change those more often.

I rotate kibbles weekly and feed half raw, which I change daily, but everyone does it differently.

[Rhonda L]

New to the forum, and loving all of the great info here. We rescued a precious little doggie about 2 weeks ago, and want to transition him to a great diet. Best guess, he’s a cockapoo, but others have guessed Maltese, along with other assorted possibilities. He’s 2 years old and about 17 pounds. Would love info about frozen, freeze-dried, air-dried foods. Not sure I’m knowledgeable enough yet to go totally homemade raw. Have a dehydrator and have made some tasty treats… beef and chicken livers, sweet potatoes, carrots, bananas, apples, etc. plus some pumpkin/peanut butter/rolled oats no-bake balls. Am interested in a rotational diet, but don’t know how to go about it… rotate daily, weekly, monthly, AM/PM. What’s the best way to go about designing a rotational diet for my sweet boy… and anything else I need to know to pamper a formerly tossed-to-the-curb angel?

[Cleo]

I’ve been giving my 4 mini Schnauzers cut up Raw Carrots or bits of Apple (no seeds!) But I just bought a bag of Zuke’s Mini Natural bits! They absolutely love the taste! I hope they’re not bad for them, I think Dog Food Advisor recommends them? Please never give them anything from Purina! Ingredients come from China! Milk Bone are bad, too! *puppy hugs! 🙂

[DogFoodie]

Charlee Bear treats were created by Steve Brown, a highly respected expert on raw feeding and canine nutrition. Steve is the author of Unlocking the Canine Ancestral Diet and has made contributions to this site. If you have questions about his products, shoot him an email. He’s very responsive.

[Susan]

Hi Sally, I’d say who ever owned her before you has let her lick human plates & bowls & has probably feed her left overs from their plate, she probably even had a biscuit dipped in coffee, When I first rescued Patch he wouldn’t eat kibble either but he has health problems, IBD, kibble gives him pain, he too can’t eat water foods like stews, he brings them back up…..
Your girl may never eat kibble or dog tin foods, she has had a taste of good food fresh human food, If I owned her I would be googling some easy to make dog recipes, then make the meal all up & then you freeze them in little containers & take out the night before & put in fridge…there’s even places that cook meals for dogs, the ladies on this group may know some names of home cooked meals for dogs in America as I’m in Australia, I did have the name of a few in America but I can’t find the links..
I get 1 kilo turkey breast mince (grounded) mix in 1 egg & I make little bite size rissoles, you roll the turkey breast mince into little bite size balls & put the little balls on a baking tray, they bake in about 15mins, then I freeze them all, they thaw in about 15-20mins when left out on bench, you can feed the turkey rissoles as treats or I put some in the blender add some boiled pumkin that I have thawed out & some sweet potates that I have also thawed out…once a fortnight I boil half a butternut pumkin cut into pieces & freeze, I also freeze sweet potato, I have boiled rice frozen in the freezer aswell…there’s a few cook books that are balanced diets & real easy to make, google Lew Olson, Raw & Natural Nutrition for Dogs her book cost about $12 online, it has real easy recipes too follow & are balanced…I cooked for my last dog & I never balanced her meals & she was so healthy, shinny coat, she had all her teeth, her teeth were still nice & white at the age on ten, I never ever gave her any bones or kibbles, so that’s not true how kibble cleans a dogs teeth…

[Akari_32]

I must resist because of this:

http://i765.photobucket.com/albums/xx294/Akari53/F7CFEA89-03D9-4CEA-8458-C4AE5FAB6EF1_zpsn3bbsz6u.jpg

This:

http://i765.photobucket.com/albums/xx294/Akari53/01459E6D-7AF8-4B68-AD57-C087F5AC4D78_zpscjizoj0t.jpg

This:

http://i765.photobucket.com/albums/xx294/Akari53/46079128-AC7A-4EA3-92B4-92024D698A9F_zpst59uy4h4.jpg

This:

http://i765.photobucket.com/albums/xx294/Akari53/85631139-F7BE-4473-B145-A6A767BEFC0F_zpskjprdxqs.jpg

This:

http://i765.photobucket.com/albums/xx294/Akari53/7F91040B-DA5A-4F56-AE99-5C276FF6AA3E_zpsno3jaeqk.jpg

And this:

http://i765.photobucket.com/albums/xx294/Akari53/51B89979-6F01-4756-B3D1-D075C516BF0D_zps0yju4wz8.jpg

Side note: look how low the cat food cabinet is!!! Can’t wait to get him all the way on raw 😀

[dawn m]

I use the kong for my girls afternoon treat – AND she lets me know when it’s that time of day˜! I LOVE the suggestion of putting the food in the kong and then freezing it, I usually put some frozen organic veg/fruit in the kong along with organic mini raw carrots, banana, and canned food. Usually first put in organic spinach to plug the small end, then frozen organic peas/g.beans/mixed berries [big bags from Costco] and an organic mini carrot or 2 and finish off with the canned food (Dave’s grain free 95% Premium or Dave’s grain free turkey and bacon) and a small pc. of banana squished in the end. I am going to try putting all ingred. in and then freezing the kong and see how she likes it that way.

She also gets a small treat every time she comes in from going outside and I am not sure of what is good. I’ve done Nutro crunchy treats [I like that sm size but not convinced on it’s qlty], I also get Fromm treats but they are too big to give her so often, and I’ve got THK treats but they are also too big {she gets one at bed time only}. She [Bella] is a 45# boxer.

I’m also looking for a chewing treat/toys but not sure what is safe/non-toxic/good. I bought her a split antler – she loved it but it was splintering so I took it away. AND her favorite place to eat the kong and antler is on my new area rug because she can hold it down since it slides all over on her on the hard wood floors – UMMMMMM maybe I need to get her a Bella rug˜! 🙂

I would appreciate any suggestions – I would prefer to buy not make her treats since the kitchen is NOT my favorite room in the house [meaning I don’t like cooking any more than necessary – but I do want healthy non-GMO, grain free, free range when possible, no rBGH, foods and treats – for Bella and me].

Thank You˜!

[Vincent C]

Everything people are saying sounds so familiar. I definitely agree with what Susan said about trying different meats (kangaroo, venizen, etc), special shampoos (I found MalaPET to work better for me than Malaseb – perhaps due to the ketoconazole), and avoiding foods with potato ingredients. Rabbit meat (Nature’s Variety Instinct Rabbit Meal) really seems to have made a difference for my dog, but there are still bad days. My next step is to try a raw food diet or at least home made diet at some point if things get worse.

The only other thing I will add is that acidophilus probiotic also seems to help — but it’s really hard to measure the effect.

[Michelle T]

Gave her a small raw turkey neck yesterday. She ate most of it then stopped with 2 inches left…guess she knows when it’s enough 🙂