[Linda C]

I am acquiring a 5 yr old Black Russian Terrier. I want to switch him from the kibble and mix he has been eating – need some advice as to best food, and method by which to switch him. Curious about raw/frozen raw – but unsure about where in my area to purchase – we’re in Central FLA. Help, Please?

[RescueDaneMom]

Hi Linda,

I have a 8 year old Great Dane and live in Apopka, FL. I currently feed homemade raw. It is by far cheaper than buying commercial raw like Primal, Stella & Chewys, Bravo, etc. I still buy and feed it for some extra variety but using it as the basis of the diet will send your food bill skyrocketing.

There is a co-op for central florida raw feeders on yahoo groups. Here is the link (I hope it works), if not just search for it: https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/CentralFLRawFoodCo-op/info
I personally have never ordered from the co-op because they only have beef and their pickup time and location doesn’t work for me.

I am currently getting my meat from a meat market that supplies to the public as well as restaurants in Fort Pierce (I just moved from their 5 months ago and still go back on the weekends). I am currently looking into a supplier in Sanford called Hopkins Meat Packing.

I am following recipes by Steve Brown using his book “Unlocking the Canine Ancestral Diet.” I also have “Real Food for Healthy Dogs and Cats” by Dr. Karen Becker. Those are by far the best two in my opinion. Also, if your dog gulps his food or you are skittish about feeding whole bones (which I am), you might want to invest in a meat grinder. I bought one on Amazon for less than $90.

This is one of my favorite topics so please ask away. I’m sure more people will chime in too but I was so happy to see someone else in the Central Florida area! 🙂

-Caroline

[Linda C]

Thanks so much, Caroline! I will pick up the 2 books you recommended. Please let me know how your trip to Sanford, Hopkins Meat Packing, works out. Have you ever tried to special order through any supermarkets? Like Publix? I would like to understand more about supplementing, if I do something like that. Appreciate your time and response!
Linda

[RescueDaneMom]

I will definitely let you know, Linda. I imagine that Publix could probably special order for you, I just don’t know how their pricing would be. If you buy in bulk they’d probably give you a better buy. I have gotten chicken hearts, gizzards, and liver as well as beef heart and beef liver from Publix. I found beef kidney at Winn Dixie this past weekend. Ethnic supermarkets are also a great place for harder to find items.

Both books I recommended have ample information about supplementing so you are not lacking anything in the diet. Also, be sure to check out the Raw Food forum, especially the Suggested Menus thread. Hound Dog Mom is the queen of homemade raw food and balances her recipes from scratch. She even did a nutritional analysis on some of them. I’ve learned most of what I know about feeding raw from her posts and those two books. You have come to the right place to learn how to feed raw!

[Linda C]

So glad I happened upon this site…so much GREAT information, and folks sharing on all kinds of topics. We all just want to do the best by our critters! 🙂

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