I started feeding my dog raw chicken and now he has diarrhea and vomiting. My fiance is not happy and blaming the raw meat. I did some research and learned that any harmful bacteria will only be on the surface of the meat. So, is it possible to quickly cook the meat i am giving in order to kill the bacteria, but still have it raw for the most part bones and all. Also, what would be the best method for slightly cooking ( ~ 1 minute of boiling?).
My assumption here is that if I take for instance a frozen chicken drumstick and drop it in boiling water for a minute that the bones will remain uncooked and not splinter?
Happy belated birthday Haley. So sorry I missed your actual day.
My girls had THK Zeal for breakfast today. They also had a couple of blueberries and a little piece of banana each just now. My three love to eat which is so funny because you would think they would all be a bit obese and yet they all maintain their weight and are all actually on the lean side. I think it’s probably that they are on raw diets for the most part. They don’t bother to stop and sniff. Lola whines the entire time I’m preparing all meals or cutting up fruits and/or veggies. Katie twirls in circles (vet calls her our circus dog) and Hannah sits and stares at me and every move I make.
Thought I’d mention that Katie and Lola have never ever turned down any food. There has been only one food that Hannah has refused to eat and that was Grandma Lucy’s Pureformance Goat. First time she ever sniffed a food and backed up and would have no part of it. That was the one and only time she’s ever done that. If it hadn’t been that Lola and Katie ate theirs just fine I would have thought their was something wrong with the food. I offered Hannah something else just to make sure she wasn’t sick and she ate her food just fine. With my girls being such eaters, if one of them misses a meal I figure there is either something wrong with the food or she’s sick. That was a couple of years back when I was constantly in search of foods that Katie could eat. Needless to say I never bought Grandma Lucy’s again. I hadn’t liked the food anyway so regardless of whether Hannah had eaten the food or not I wasn’t going to buy it again.
My cats get a different food & brand every meal too including some commercial raw thrown in. They just like giving me a hard time.
Is the kitty going all raw or still some canned thrown in?
That’s funny, Bobby Dog! I’m glad mine doesn’t really get sick of any one food. Then again, he gets something different every single meal. Nothing two meals in a row, and hardly every even the same brand two meals in a row.
Oh! Forgot to tell you guys! I’m going to be starting the cat on raw 🙂 Him and Bentley can be food buddies lol
All yummy stuff, everyone!
Bruno’s menu today was 1/8 cup of Castor & Pollux Ultramix GF and 1/8 cup of Wysong Nurture with Quail (transitioning to it now), topped with 1 tsp of Sojo’s Beef – all that was for breakfast, and dinner was a raw chicken neck. Mid-day snack was 1/2 of a six-inch Etta Says deer chew (hoping for no loose stool from it) and a few Wellness CORE puppy kibbles as treats. I took him to the dog park today and he got nice and muddy, so when we got home, he got the full service – pawdicure, brushing, and bath by yours truly. He got the chew as a reward for enduring the “torture” and the kibble-treats for a bit of training. 🙂
-
This reply was modified 10 years, 10 months ago by
Naturella.
The girls had Nature’s Logic Raw Venison this morning for breakfast and OC Raw Rabbit for dinner. Some blueberries, raspberries, and bananas mid morning and afternoon as treats.
I have received samples from the following awesome companies:
Annamaet (samples of the GF formulas plus a full-size bag of treats)
Dr. Tim’s (sample of one formula and literature)
Canidae (a whole bag of PURE Sea plus full-size bag of treats)
Wysong (samples and literature)
Brothers Complete (had to purchase the samples, BUT they doubled my order either by mistake or just because for free)
Victor (had to purchase the samples, I ordered more than the limit, but they honored my order)
Big Dog Natural (had to purchase the sample)
Companies that did not send me samples when I contacted them:
Nulo (sent me coupons instead)
Fromm (said they have money-back guarantee, so if I buy it and Bruno doesn’t like it or whatever, I’d get my money back)
Merrick/Castor&Pollux/Whole Earth Farms (said they have money-back guarantee, so if I buy it and Bruno doesn’t like it or whatever, I’d get my money back)
TOTW (said my local store should give me samples)
My local store, however, offers free samples ALLLLLL the TIIIIME, and I have obtained samples of Fromm, Victor, Merric, Wild Calling, TOTW, NVI, Stella and Chewy’s (RAW! FREE sample starter bag! WHAT?! 😀 ) and more.
I love all the samples I have as I use them to spice Bruno’s menu up and I use them as training treats. 🙂
there’s a whole forum on DFA for home made food. You might also check ingredient lists for some of the premade meal mixes. If those don’t contain the problem ingredients that might be the easiest for you. Just mix the powder into your own meat and you have a complete meal. There’s a discussion about meal mixes on the raw feeding forum but you can also use a mix with cooked food if you prefer. Good luck.
I want to start making my pups raw food and want to know which pre-mix is the best one out there. I want to put this in the rotation with the other raw that I already use.
Any info would be appreciated and, also, do I feed that same with the home made as I would with the store bought raw?
Hi Kristin –
I’m not sure if there will end up being a recommended treats list. Going over users’ posts it became clear that people look for very different criteria when searching for treats. It’s hard to say which treats are safe to give dogs unsupervised because, technically, a dog could probably choke on anything and it also varies based upon the dog’s chewing style. If you worry about your dog choking I’d recommend avoiding things like rawhide, bully sticks, pig ears, dental chews, etc. while you’re not home. A safe and healthy (and yummy!) treat to make that will keep your dog busy while you’re away would be to stuff a kong with canned food or layer it with kibble and canned pumpkin and freeze it. It will take longer for your dog to eat if it’s frozen. Making “konsicles” like this is also pretty cheap to do – unlike many of the dental chews and natural chews on the market that can be quite expensive. If you want to keep your dog’s breath in check, I’d recommend regularly brushing it’s teeth – dogs really should have their teeth brushed at least 3 times per week.
Thx. I knew I came across that list before. Lol. Benefits/drawbacks for the labs in regards to grain free vs. Grain inclusive?
Thank you much, crazy4cats for responding. Old vet, (since my pup wouldn’t even eat much, (a few kibbles) of the high quality dry foods, like Royal Canin, Nutrisource, and Wellness – too rich for her,) New Vet recommended I give her the Purina Pro-Plan SELECT Sensitive Stomach/SALMON. She has been eating this for awhile, however, the recently opened bag she has eaten from, the Vet determined was the cause of her issues. (Very Scarey, Vet thot renal failure). I will never feed her that anymore! All of the times she has transitioned to new dry food – did it very, very gradually. Am stymied, I don’t mind paying the price for a good quality dry food but don’t see any others for sensitive stomach. She loves boiled lean hamburg and rice but know she needs other nutrients. Am so very willing to make home made food, (am retired, so have the time) yet, having seen so many ‘recipes’, (many raw meat, which I won’t use) don’t even know where to begin. “Snowy” is such a cuddle bug, 1/2 Great Pyr, 1/2 St. Bernard. She is small for the mixed breed (both parents seen in person were small, too) weighing 80 lbs. Her only other med issue, (6 months ago) was a Seresto Collar making her very aggressive, which when removed, she was back to her loving self.
?????? Want to give her the best, but don’t know where to start. Thank you, crazy4cats!
Melinda
Cheryl, the mix I used was from Know Better Pet Food. If you go back to the first page you’ll see I originally asked about a mix for my dog. Bobby dog gave me links for a couple of companies that sell mixes and I decided to try a mix for the cats to save myself the trouble of constantly lugging home cases of canned cat food (I have 5 cats and a dog). But the cats are not cooperating. I have used Honest Kitchen for Jake and the aroma is not as strong as this other brand, I agree, it smells pretty good!
Jake is helping me use up the raw cat food I’ve made so it will not go to waste. He’s a happy boy at least!
Just checking in with an update. Cats never would eat the raw turkey mix. I made the cooked mix today with some ground turkey. One cat tried it and seemed to like it but a little while later I heard the sound of a cat vomiting. Yep, it was that cat, Teddy. There was a hairball involved so maybe it was just a coincidence. Fingers crossed. I’ll give it a few more days and see how it goes. These mixes have a strong aroma, kind of like a boullion cube. Maybe the cats aren’t happy with that part of it. Do the other mixes have an odor?
Peggy, meal mixes are a supplement powder you mix in with your own meat to make a complete meal. Some are for raw meat, others are for cooked.
Hi Peggy,
I too, am trying hard to figure out how to introduce the various commercial raw proteins to my girls, I think we just have to do it!!! Slowly, but, I do truly believe it is their best interests long term.
My new puppy Millie is on orijen & horizon kibble both excellent, but I do think as many have advised if she can handle all raw I am going to go for it. Today will be the 1st for the Vital Essentials Fish, I am keeping my fingers & toes crossed she & my older gal Pepper will do ok.
Pepper has been doing ok on the Honest Kitchen, which i plan to introduce to Millie soon.
Good luck to you –
I just took a look at Nature’s Variety frozen raw foods. They say they are complete and balanced, but they don’t have any vitamins or minerals added either. Isn’t that the purpose of feeding raw? To get the vitamins and minerals from the actual food due to the fact that the good stuff isn’t cooked and processed out? I’ve read Hound Dog Mom say more than once that if you are concerned, you can always give a multi vitamin.
Aimee, if you’re around would you please check this forum out. Tracy has a question on Big Raw Country dog food. Specifically their dinners. I’ve gone to their site to try and help her but the foods contain no vitamins or minerals whatsoever that I could tell. I don’t believe they are complete and balanced. At least they don’t appear to be unless Canada has different thoughts on what’s complete and balanced. Thanks.
Hi Tracy. I’m a commercial raw feeder to my three girls. Maltese, Maltipoo and a Yorkipoo. If the food you are feeding is complete and balanced than no supplements are required. When you say that you were told that the food contains no cheated minerals, are they saying they contain synthetic minerals or just no minerals at all? That’s an important thing to know. With probiotics, once again, if it’s a truly complete and balanced food than, no, in my opinion there is no need for probiotics. Have you been to their web site and read up on the food itself and checked out ingredients and guaranteed analysis. If not, I would suugested you do that. Whatever food you are going to switch to please remember that since your dog has been eating kibble and canned, YOU MUST transition him slowly to see how his gut does with raw so that he doesn’t have diarrhea or loose stools. Once you know he doesn’t then your good to go. Once he’s been on raw for a bit I would suggest that you introduce different proteins and then different brands. That will benefit his gut and he’ll be able to make the switch from one food to the other with no issues whatsoever. I rotate brands and the different proteins within all the brands that I feed with the exception of poultry of any sort as one of my girls has food intolerances and for convenience sake for me I feed them all the same. I believe that a rotational diet is the best and healthiest way to feed. Also less chance of them becoming sensitive to the same protein fed day in and day out. Also it makes meal times more interesting for them. Anyway, all this is my opinion and my experiences with my three. So very glad you’re switching to raw. Yay!
Hi Cheryl. A lot going on right now. My husband had surgery for cancer two years ago so I’ve been busy sitting around waiting rooms while he goes through a battery of tests. We should be getting results sometime next week. My brain has been a bit scattered and I’ve been on pins & needles. Thx for thinking of me.
Now, on to your question. I don’t transition my girls from one food to the other anymore but I’ve been feeding them this way for a long time. What I would suggest to you for a couple of months or so is every time you’re going to introduce a new food add some of the new to the old for a couple of days or so. If you see there are no issues then you can just make the switch. Do that with new proteins for a bit until you have fed a few different foods that you can rotate with. Once you see that all is well with no gastro issues you can just switch whenever you want. Dogs fed raw don’t appear to have the same transitional issues that dogs fed exclusively kibble do. Introducing the different proteins slowly will also let you see whether Millie or Pep are going to have a sensitivity issue with a food. Unless you’re one of the lucky ones who has dogs with no food intolerances. If you are, I’m quite jealous. I’m at the point where I never feed the girls the same food in a day. Actually I keep a number of foods for them in the freezer and just switch their menus around constantly. It keeps their meal times a little more exciting for them I think. As for fruits and veggies, it’s just whatever I have in the fridge or bowl on counter. I don’t go out and buy special fruits or veggies just for the dogs.
Hi Tracey-
I am not a raw feeder, but was curious about the food you bought. The website claims that the meals are complete and balanced. So you should be fine without any supplements. You could probably add some fish oil or sardines a few days a week but other than that it looks like you are good to go!
I do add some frozen or freeze dried raw to my dogs’ kibble two or three days a week and they love it and do fine with the mix. Hopefully I will be able to eventually even feed it more often.
Good luck with your new adventure!
Hi! I have a 5 year old shih tzu/bichon mix that I have been feeding Fromm Grain Free kibble and canned for the last 2 years and after much reading on the benefits of a raw diet, I went out and purchased raw dinners from a local company ( Big Country Raw) located here in Southern Ontario. I went with the dinners because they included vegetables and fruits along with the meat.
My question is do I have to add any supplements to this food? I’m so nervous he won’t be getting the required amount needed. I want to start him on it in the morning and is it ok if I don’t have the supplements if needed then?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated 🙂
I like Hounds and Gatos a lot, this is one of the foods I use in rotation for my cat. I had to take her off raw due to constipation issues and this is one of the few premium canned foods she will eat. At 13 yrs she is doing very well. I would feed it to my dogs, too, if I could afford to.
For fish oil, you want to make sure she is getting 100mg combined of DHA and EPA per 10 lbs of body weight, so the supplement you gave her could be given much less often. If you are moving towards raw or some raw, replacing one meal a week with sardines or herring should give her enough omega 3s.
The first time I switch to a new raw food, I do half and half, but after I know mine tolerate it well, I just switch.
BC,
Thank you so much you Dori and a few others have been invaluable.
If Pepper & Millie could talk they would say thank you too-I know they talk just not in a language we understand 🙁 .
I checked out Hare Today wow they sell everything -it scares me since I am not ready yet to go “REAL REAL RAW” -I will have to see about the tripe that both sell.
I did get my local feed store to get the Vital Essentials tripe-so maybe I will try that first –
could you check out my post on “Commercial Raw” and if and when you have time please give me your opinion-this all so new to me
Thank you so very very much again
To start with, I would get just plain tripe, nothing added. The supreme and others are great if you are going totally raw and need a little of this or that to balance things out. They aren’t bad for toppers, but with the organs in them, they can be rich, so make sure your dog does well on just tripe before you add something to the mix that you don’t know if it is going to cause an issue.
Hi everyone,
This is a question for Dori or anyone who feeds commercial raw.
Is it o.k. to just go from one protein source to another without a transition period when feeding commercial raw. I am almost finished with my bag of Primal rabbit -can I just say tomorrow give my gals Vital Essentials fish alone or do I have to add a small piece of fish patty with the rabbit?
Thanks so much ,so sorry if this question seems like a no brainer to most of you!
Dori
How are you haven’t seen you posting, hope all is well with you
I have a Rotti/Malmute mix, now 11yrs old, diabetic x 3 years. I’m a fan of rotating foods but must be careful of glycemic index and glucose spikes. The best food for good control for the longest time was Merrick canned, then suddenly she lost her desire for the food.She did this sudden change in the past w/ Freshet rolls, Primal raw, Evo canned… I wondered if they changed recipes?… Currently on Canidae – can chicken & rice – she is finicky and this is what is currently working. Any suggestions for top diabetic foods? (I joined this editors forum I don’t don’t have to do the the calculations…)
Thank you!!!
Jan
Lol well he gets one tomorrow! He already ate his ground pork tonight :p Usually it’s the cat I have to worry about when fixing up Bentleys meals. I tend to have to throw him scraps to keep him off the table LOL I about sat on him when I put the package of meat on the table and went to sit in the chair! I tend to get a lot of help in the kitchen and while eating… LOL
I want to get the cat on all raw here soon, as well. I gotta see how I handle it with Bentley. And I may not do completely raw, come to think of it, because I seems cats need a lot more per pound than dogs do. Might not be able to afford it. May just have to half and half balanced raw and canned or something like that.
I will honestly admit that in the beginning when we adopted our Bruno, I got on the “grainfree” bandwagon and really did think grain-free is necessary and better. Now I know better thanks to the above ladies and many more, and as far as dry food is concerned, I’d look for high-protein, low-carb foods, with loads of meat as first few ingredients. Many of the foods I have stocked up on happen to be grain-free for this year, but it is not a rule at our household to keep it this way.
I do eventually want to work up to feeding balanced raw though, which I consider the ultimate best/species-appropriate food.
Hi Everyone,
I need some advice if Millie my 7 month old mini schnauzer is : 1. too young to stop Puppy kibble? 2. If she isn’t too young to stop the puppy kibble, can I feed her the various kinds of the grain free Honest Kitchen(that would be the rotating) with toppers of lightly cooked meat or poultry for 1 of her meals? Does the Honest Kitchen have enough nutrients for a young gal or would i have to add various supplements/antioxidents/oils to that meal?
For the 2nd meal would it be ok to give her commercial raw? Rotating within say Primal or Vital Essentials (or whatever raw co. that will ship to me) their various lower fat proteins.
I do know the VE does not add the fruit/veggies so could I top that meal off with maybe some cooked veggies.
BC mentioned that it may be time to cut out her noon meal,so I am trying to figure out how to get her off kibble & increase the raw & introduce the dehydrated.
Thanks so much to all for the great advice and guidance you ALL have given me in these past months. I can’t tell you how much it has meant to me & the girls 🙂
Hey guys- Have you checked the freezer section where you shop for your dog food? The local feed store in my area carries beef heart and chicken liver treats in their freezer section where they also keep the raw bones. I think the brand is Rogue River or something like that. I add an ounce or so of these treats to my pups’ kibble a couple times per week.
Naturella,
My late husband ADORED TRIPE their is a dish called Menudo (no not the group), that he ate like it was candy!!!
On another note has anyone ordered the tripe from “mypetcarnivore.com.?
If so can a recommendation be made as to which kind to get. Is the food offered on this site of good quality. And excuse if this next question sounds off the wall, this is giving real raw correct? Or is it the same as say giving Primal. I am a newbie to commercial raw but slowly trying to get my 2 girls on it full time.
I also wanted to try the ABC diet and see this website has the hearts I cannot seem to find anywhere else.
Thanks in advance for the feedback
Hi Michelle T-
Have you taken your dog to the vet to make sure that she doesn’t have an infection or that the crystals have not returned? I don’t believe that any of the supplements that have been mentioned in the above posts will actually dissolve crystals or cure infections. I do think that they are great preventatives of these conditions. Also adding moisture to their diets is very important, either by feeding canned or raw or adding as much of it as possible to their kibble is very helpful. Plenty of opportunities to go potty is another important preventative measure. I have also read that stress and anxiety can lead to these issues as well. Have you had any big changes in your household lately?
I wish you luck on your quest to help your doggy!
“http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19366336 Diffuse osteopenia and myelopathy in a puppy fed a diet composed of an organic premix and raw ground beef”
“Aimee, is there a way of knowing what pre-mix it was that the dog was fed?”
——————–
Akari, I recognized the name D Geiger as one of the authors of the paper.
It was Sojo’s pre-mix. According to Geiger, the malnourished pup was a patient back in 2006, and Sojo’s refused to reformulate or even acknowledge a problem, when it was clearly deficient when used as directed, UNTIL Geiger and colleagues finally published the paper in 2009.
IMO, Sojo’s current formula is STILL questionable whether the pre-mix makes a complete and balanced meal when used as directed, for some vitamins/minerals.
This is what I am using in my current rotation :
Canned:
Walmarts Pure Balance puppy food, $1, 5 star
Tractor Supply Store’s 4health beef and veggie stew $1, 5 star
Dry:
Rachael Ray Nutrish zero grain, available at walmart and and most supermarkets $22 for 14 lbs, 4 star
Dr Tims Kinesis grain free, order online for $65-$75 for 40 lbs, 5 star
I’ve also used Whole Earth Farms grain free, Petco has it ans maybe petsmart too.
Walmart’s Pure balance Canned has a dedicated puppy food, and the others I listed are approved for all life stages.
Pure Balance also has a dry grain free line, 4 star, budget friendly, but i wasn’t crazy about it
and prob won’t use it again.
I feed raw on the weekends with Sea Spot Live Longer premix. Cheapest boneless muscle meats I can find are chicken hearts ($1 per lb) and pork shoulder roast, has a small bone but easy to remove ($1.69 per lb). Raw pork products should be kept frozen for 2 weeks before serving (kills parasites apparently).
Canned water packed sardines once or twice a week (65’cents per can),
and a recreational pig foot or chicken foot once a week or so ($1 per lb)
I saw frozen pigs heads at walmart for $1’per lb, but decided I don’t want that thing staring at me every time I open the freezer.
-
This reply was modified 10 years, 11 months ago by
Z B.
-
This reply was modified 10 years, 11 months ago by Z B.
Hi Peggy:
IMO you can find good and bad dog treats in any store. I have come across some really cute packaged treats at the boutique stores I shop with ingredients that I don’t need in my food let alone my dog. One of the reasons I make my own. As Marie wrote you need to take as much care choosing treats as you do your dog food.
I don’t like any treats with sugar or molasses, but out of the two I would rather see molasses and for it to be towards the end of the ingredient list. I also like minimal ingredients. If you have to take more than 15 seconds to read the ingredients it’s too many for me. Of the three listed, Newman’s looks decent.
Since you are helping your dog slim down I recommend you consider freeze dried treats or dried vegetables. You can find these type of treats at most pet stores. You can even buy freeze dried food and feed small amounts for treats. Remove some kibble from your overweight dog’s meals to compensate for the added calories from treats. If your dogs are like mine it’s more of the ritual of receiving the treat rather than the amount of the treat. Mine loves to be made over and adding a treat to the attention is just an added bonus. If you are shopping at Petsmart check out these dried veggie and freeze dried treats/dog food:
http://www.petsmart.com/gsi/webstore/WFS/PETNA-PETUS-Site/en_US/-/USD/ViewParametricSearch-Browse?SearchParameter=%26%40QueryTerm%3Dfreeze%2Bdried%2Bdog%26OnlineFlag%3D1%26Pets01%3DDog&PageSize=24&SearchTerm=freeze+dried+dog&_t=Pets01
http://www.petsmart.com/dog/treats-rawhide/simply-nourish-trade-natural-grain-and-wheat-free-dog-chips-zid36-4716/cat-36-catid-100007?_t=pfm%3Dcategory%26pfmvalue%3Dfaceted
If you are shopping at Wal-Mart they have a few healthy selections as well. Can’t remember the brands I saw last time I was there, but here is one:
http://rileysorganics.com/
A starting place would be my stickie in the Dog Food Ingredients forum here for grain & potato free foods. It id not up to date but a place to start. My yeast prone dog has had no problems since being on raw.
Hi everyone,
I was at Walmart looking for turkey, chicken, or beef hearts and noticed they had raw beef tripe. No hearts though, they are so difficult to find.
Has anyone ever cooked raw beef tripe and if so do you boil it for a bit, dice it up & feed?
I was thinking it would be a lot less costly than say getting the frozen raw tripe.
All though I would want to cook it a bit, wouldn’t it be just as good as the commercial raw??
Thanks for the feedback
My guess is that the kibbles are too hard for such a small puppy. Try canned, dampening the kibble with some warm water, or smaller a smaller kibble (or a combination of the three).
That said, this puppy is going to stay pretty small. Some dogs, with good reason, just do not like commercial dry diets. You could try a raw diet, either commercial or home made. I’m currently using See Spot Live Longer premix (which is off the market for a few months right now while they set up to be able to produce a larger quantity and other formulas) and various meats for my 8 lb Jack russell mix, at about $20 a month. There are other premixes as well, and they’re pretty easy to find, with a google search. If a raw diet isn’t something you want to try, there are also premixes for home cooked diets.
That’s right! I totally knew that lol Silly tripe and it’s grossness :p
I’ll go out maybe today (or after work tomorrow) and talk to the meat department guys and get a list of exactly what they can order, but I’m pretty sure they’ll all come from mostly beef and chicken, and only at the extent of what I’ve listed off. I wish I could get rabbit for something different every now and then, but they’re like $20 for a small, couple pound animal! Plus the shop they come from is far away lol I think I’ll be able to shop sales on lamb, at least. Variety sucks here lol
Ok, so he weighs 7.8lbs, or 124.8oz. He’s a very active dog (being a terrier) so I wonder if I should keep him at the 5oz he’s eating on SSLL, rather than doing the 2-3% body weight thing you’re supposed to start at (3% for him would be 3.74oz)? At 5oz right now, even on 30% fat pork, he keeps a good, lean, muscley weight.
I think, just to be sure I cover all my bases, I’ll rotate between all raw and the SSLL mix. A just in case sort of deal, you know? I’m still a bit unsure about this whole do-it-yourself business when it comes to balanced raw because if you screw it up, it can be very detrimental. That said, I may go for the multi vitamin deal for some extra insurance. I actually have some kids chewable multi vitamins. Could that be something that would work (They’re all natural and organic, made of fruits and veggies)? If not, what’s cheap that you would recommend?
Hi Akari –
Tripe is not considered an organ mean, it’s considered a muscle meat. Additionally, any tripe sold at a grocery store or butcher shop would not be what you’re looking for. Tripe sold for human consumption is bleached and thoroughly cleaned (why it appears white) – this removes all the benefits of raw tripe (e.g. enzymes, beneficial bacteria). What you want is green tripe (uncleaned), but this can’t be sold in places that sell product for human consumption. I order it from Hare Today or My Pet Carnivore.
Obviously the wider variety of organs that you can feed and the more protein sources you can attain them from the better, however liver and kidney are the two most crucial organs and if you can get them from a red meat source and a poultry source you should be okay – especially if you are still feeding a commercially balanced diet. Feed 5% liver and 5% kidney and rotate between beef and chicken a few times per week.
If you want to go ahead and add a multivitamin to the homemade meals you don’t need to be concerned about adding organ meat all (although you certainly still could).
@Naturella Oh yeah lol it was fully cooked. I’m afraid of even commercial raw (even though I know I shouldn’t be.), so no way am I doing homemade raw at this point. 😛
@Peggy It’s great that you’re cooking some fresh food for them! Have they liked eggs when they ate them in the past? Maybe that was why. Anyway, skipping a meal won’t hurt them, and I’m glad they liked their dinner! 😀
Hey guys! I’ve been looking in to going all raw for Bentley (currently on SSLL) but I’m not sure about organ meats at all. After checking with the grocery store meat department (thank god I work there or they’d think I’m nuts LOL), the only organs I can get are tripe (I assume beef), chicken and beef livers, beef kidneys, beef and chicken heart (muscle, but you know what I mean). I may be able to get lamb or pork organs, I’ll have to double check. I asked if I could get pancreas, and they said that’s its not something they are able to order.
So my questions are, if I can only get beef and chicken organs, would this be enough variety? Also, would it be ok to only use liver and kidney, since there’s really no other place close by to get anything else? After much consideration, it’s not cost of space effective to order online for us. These questions asked, would it perhaps be a good idea to continue SSLL in rotation to pork, chicken and beef muscle meats, and the limited selection chicken and beef organs (assuming I can not get pork or lamb organs)?
And my last question, Bentley weighs something like 7-8 pounds, and is eating 5 oz of muscle meat and SSLL a day. About how much would he be eating on all raw, and how much of that would be organ meat? At his small size, what’s the best way to get him his organs (he loves them, so large meals of them wouldn’t be a problem)? And how do I estimate bone content?
I think that’s all I’ve got for now, but more will come up, I’m sure. Thanks in advance!
According to research, it should not be a coloring in the food. It can be a bacterial or fungal infection in the tear duct, and many people here have noticed tear staining changes with food changes. It could be the reduction in carbs reducing the food for whatever bacteria/fungus is causing it. It could be that the raw/food change is improving your dog’s immune system.
I’ve transitioned my Maltese (mix?) to half raw, half kibble/wet. He gets 1/8th cup kibble (TOTW High Prairie) with a dollop of 4/5 star wet in the AM, and 2.5oz PMR in the PM.
It’s been roughly a month, and I’ve gradually noticed that his once very prominent, reddish brown stains have gradually been going away. There are now only faint, old stains. However, I’ve noticed he still has eye ‘goop’, it’s just now clear, instead of colored. Is this due to possible coloring in the kibble? I was wondering if it was perhaps the reduced carbs.
His eyes have always been very wet (they bulge a lot, and he has issues with his eyelashes)
Even more motivation to make the full switch to raw, though. 😀
Oh my goodness! This is so sad. I’ve never heard of anything like this before. Did your vet have any discussion with you as to how this may have occurred? You didn’t mention what he was eating before. Dry, canned, raw, dehydrated, freeze dried? Did he get blood work done to make sure everything else is ok? Heather I am just so sorry this has happened to your dog. 🙁
I just googled Necrois of the tongue and the sites state that a biopsy is crucial. Did your vet to a scraping or anything for a biopsy? It sounds like some form of vasculitis but it could be some other things also.
-
This reply was modified 10 years, 11 months ago by
Dori.
Some dogs can take longer than three weeks. Were their stools good during the transition? I usually will suggest not increasing the percentage of new foods until stools are normal. Natural Balance grain free is very low in protein and Merrick is high so that was a big change. Sometimes transitioning to something “in the middle” is a good place to start before moving on to a higher protein food. That would be a food in the 3.5-4 star range. You can go back and add some NB to their food until their stools become normal and that will bring the protein down some (closer to mid-range). As an example of a dog needing a long transition time, one of my dogs took two or three months. You can also keep “mixing” foods together just to add variety and to get the level of protein that you want.
I foster and have many dogs. I did get some Merrick grain free of them once and put too much of it in their food at first and 4 or 5 out of ten maybe had GI issues. I just cut the Merrick some more with a lower protein food and they finished the bag without any issues and I’ve fed it again since then (mixed) and no one had issues.
My personal dogs have tried a dozen kibbles and have worked up to eating raw foods. You can just give it more time or try another food as there are many to chose from.
Hi Elissa-
Typically if a brand is safe for dogs, it will be a good choice for cats as well. Us cat lovers that also have dogs are patiently waiting for a cat food advisor that hopefully will be available in the future. In the Meantime, check out these sites. They are my favorite cat resources. I believe that all four of them have a recommended list or chart of cat foods. All of them suggest feeding as much canned, raw or homemade food as possible. They believe that kibble is not species appropriate for cats as they are carnivores.
I’m sorry about the loss of your pets and best of wishes with getting your current pets healthy.
Home
http://www.naturalcatcareblog.com/
Feeding Your Cat: Know the Basics of Feline Nutrition
http://www.felinecrf.org/
Good luck!
BC,
If you wouldn’t mind I need your input.
Millie my 6 1/2 month old is eating A.M. 1/3 c Orijen Puppy kibble (which is about to go out of the rotation) mixed w Horizon Legacy Puppy (that bag is larger so she will be on that a little longer) as a topper she is getting 1 oz lightly boiled beef.
Noontime: 2-3 Primal Rabbit nuggents w either carrots or cooked squash & zucchini 1-2tbsps.
Suppertime: 1/3 c kibble (same as brkfst) w 1oz boiled chicken.
She does get cocotherapy dried fruit or veggies 2 handfuls
A few times a week she will either a bully stick or a cow ear.
I want to take the noontime feeding out as well as eventually giving her kibble less frequently and adding the honest kitchen in the rotation
She picked up wt. very quickly she is close to what the breeder told me was her adult weight (15lbs).
In your opinion am I feeding her enough? too much?
According to the bags of kibble & that is if she were only eating kibble she should have almost 1 c per day. But since I add the meat as toppers & the raw for lunch, I hesitate to increase the kibble.
Thanks so much
