Post by georgeharrison on Jan 4, 2017 13:26:25 GMT -5
I know I can look online, but please tell me how you feed raw and how much does it typically cost. I have a 9 year old lab who seems older than her age to me that I would like to start feeding raw.
I know I can look online, but please tell me how you feed raw and how much does it typically cost. I have a 9 year old lab who seems older than her age to me that I would like to start feeding raw.
I used the Prey Model Raw format.
80% muscle (usually heart bc it's cheap) 10% bone (mostly from raw chicken backs) 10% organ (mostly liver + random organs I could find)
Variety is key.
No wild hog, no salmon (I just stick with mackerel to stay on the safe side in regards to fish), and no large weight-bearing bones such as cow legs.
We had a rotation of pig heart, cow heart, chicken backs. Then every few days we would toss them some liver. Once or twice a week we would find a different meat to change things up such as rabbit, duck, mackerel, lamb, bison, etc.
We would also feed yogurt and raw eggs as a treat.
I adopted two 9 y/o dogs a few months ago. I didn't switch them completely to raw. I hired a nutritionist to make a diet that mixes raw with some homecooked foods mixed in.
Post by whiskeytails on Jan 19, 2017 22:17:43 GMT -5
I've been feeding raw for around 6 years now, thanks to resources on this board (and maybe the nest? not sure when converted here).
One of my dogs was always scratching their eyes, ears and mouth until they bled. We switched to grain-free, which helped, but another dog didn't like the kibble..so that's why I tried raw.
I have three beagles and I live in Wisconsin. I found some yahoo groups and Facebook groups to find good resources to for me. I found a restaurant meat distributor near me and buy in bulk and store in a deep freezer.
I rotate between lamb hearts (~$1.50/lb), pork hearts ($0.80/lb), turkey/chicken necks ($0.60/lb) and venison (free) plus some organs. I do the prey model. I've done chicken legs & thighs too, but I don't buy that in bulk.
We lived in a rental while our house was built this past summer and I bought pre-made patties, since we only had a small freezer. It was expensive but necessary. The dogs didn't love the patties as much as the hearts.
My 3 beagles have the softest fur and I get TONS of compliments on how great they look. They also get treats from bestbullysticks.com, eggs, and the occasional pizza crust and left overs. I've given "milkbone" type treats from Costco too, because who doesn't want a cookie now and then?
Post by whiskeytails on Jan 19, 2017 22:20:27 GMT -5
I forgot to mention that the venison is from friends, family and sometimes craigslist when hunters clean out the freezer.
It takes some getting used to for a routine, but once you figure out what works for your dogs, there's very little thought to the whole process. I'm very passionate about raw, since it changed my allergy-prone dog's life.
Post by pamelasaur on Oct 19, 2017 21:54:41 GMT -5
Dogs love raw food. That's in their DNA since in the earliest times, they were used to eating scraps from their owners. I actually fed my dog raw meat last night. She loved it so much. Although, the downside with this is that raw food are often more expensive than normal dog food.