Switching our dog to a homemade diet

[Weeg]

There are a lot of raw pet food stores that sell pre made raw here in Washington. Northwest Naturals works WONDERS for our Dogo with allergies to everything known to man. She not allergic to raw chicken though.

A lot of the Asian Markets have the best prices for meat I’ve seen so far. Here’s a peek of a two hour long prep session I used to do twice a month.


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I’ve been feeding raw for 8 years and will NEVER go back to kibble. For any reason. Since moving to property, our time is limited so have switched to pre made raw and add filler meats to stretch it out. Lots of raw eggs and shells, cheap stew meats, venison etc. mix it up and perps will love you forever.

Cooking isn’t necessary, as they’re designed to consume raw meats. But if it keeps the perps from eating kibble then bring on the home cooked meals!

Thank you so much! I'm really glad you don't have to do anythgin special with the meat. I'm stocked! Next time we get a deer, we can use all the organs and meat we usually throw away, and give it to Comet. Perfect!
Until then, I'll work on the local butcher for leftover scraps they don't want, and we can use that. Maybe we could even raise something for him, were doing Cornish X right now, (not gonna use that because of the chicken allergy) but maybe we could do Turkeys or something.
Otherwise, with the raw diet for your dog, do you feed veggies and vitamins? I think I will, I know Broccoli and Spinach is good for them, I also want to do sweet potatoes for easy digestion. Thanks for taking the time to write and help out!

 

[Weeg]

I can tell you from years of personal experience that raw is better. Just make absolute sure to add in all the proper organ meats to have a balanced diet.

That is perfect! We throw away so much organ meat from deer every year. Of course, "we" doesn't include me lol! I can't kill anything! Hahaha! My family does though.

 

[Weeg]

I'm so sorry, that sucks. I wish there was a way I could help, or a way to suggest a solution, but I'm stumped. Other then finding a way to make some money for better food, I can't think of anything. I'm sorry, other BYC members may have ideas, try making a thread about it and see what people say. Kids make, "convincing there parents to get chickens" threads all the time, I bet this wont be much different.

Yeah, sadly my dogs eat pedigree. One of the dogs is fine, but the other stinks, has awful gas, and his skin and coat is god awful. My dad will literally scream at me if I suggest a different food. I've tried convincing him every which way, and my dog is 53 lbs and eats 1 1/2 cups of food, I don't have a job or any income, so I cannot afford to feed him. Sigh.

 

[Weeg]

Willing to try again though. Best thing I can do is suggest a bagged dog food, he will not allow me to feed raw. Any ideas? I'll email him my thoughts.

I like Canidea. Its a healthier food, not as good as raw but pretty good for kibble. Its not all natural or Organic, but its still pretty good. Its WAY better then Pedigree thats for sure, so it will be better then nothing.
Its also not to much more expensive then the Iam's we were feeding, so shouldn't be to hard to convince him. Hope that helps!

 

[Weeg]

I have a 53 lb dog, and a 100 lb dog. Do they eat less since its raw?

ehh I googled it and its way over budget. i think the cheapest I can suggest is 40 dollars.

Oooooor. Look up fresh dog food on google. I like Ollie best. Its WAY more expensive then Pedigree, and the food we're feeding now, but, maybe you could convince him. Spot and Tango makes and Unkibble, which is dehydrated veggies, vitamins and animal proteins, so its the the healthiest kibble I've ever seen. That brand also makes fresh option so thats an option to. You can also do fresh kibble toppers with Spot and Tango, then use Canidea for the main food, but the fresh kibble topper for the health benefits.
I can get links to if you need them.

 

[ShannonsChimkens]

Thank you so much! I'm really glad you don't have to do anythgin special with the meat. I'm stocked! Next time we get a deer, we can use all the organs and meat we usually throw away, and give it to Comet. Perfect!
Until then, I'll work on the local butcher for leftover scraps they don't want, and we can use that. Maybe we could even raise something for him, were doing Cornish X right now, (not gonna use that because of the chicken allergy) but maybe we could do Turkeys or something.
Otherwise, with the raw diet for your dog, do you feed veggies and vitamins? I think I will, I know Broccoli and Spinach is good for them, I also want to do sweet potatoes for easy digestion. Thanks for taking the time to write and help out!

Venison is fantastic! Any meats you can get your hands on from hunters is the best. This does also include fish. People fish and freeze their catches all the time, but never eat it. Let everyone know that you are interested in their freezer meats they’re going to toss. Free meat and still way better for the dog than kibble.

If it’s possible, let wildlife officials know you’ll take their deer/elk road kill if they call you. If your parents are up for it, you can get several deer or elk a year this way. People hit them, kill them and don’t know that they can take them home

I don’t currently add anything to their raw, as now most of their diet is Northwest Naturals plus filler meats. So it already contains the proper vitamins and minerals. When I made their food, I added a “topper” like someone else had mentioned and also maintained the proper percentages of organs. I checked that link out and it does look like a good additive. So you wouldn’t need to purchase many more vitamins to fill the void.

 

[ShannonsChimkens]

Raw chicken bones are just fine. They will crunch down on them or swallow them whole. If you snap a raw chicken bone, you will find it to be a bit rubbery. Then snap a cooked chicken bone and you’ll see right away why it has killed some dogs. The broken pieces of the cooked bones are like razorblades.

 

[ShannonsChimkens]

This is what @Tycine1 was referring to

https://perfectlyrawsome.com/raw-feeding-knowledgebase/raw-meaty-bones-rmb/

 

[ShannonsChimkens]

Got it, I didn't think about cooked vs. raw, that makes sense. Thank you!

You’re welcome

It looks like there are some other raw feeders on here that can help too. So nice to see!

 

[ShannonsChimkens]

I also have some questions about feeding our new puppy raw. By the time we get her in a few months, I expect Comet will be on a consistent raw diet. For the puppy, I want to be sure she's getting correct vitamins and minerals for her growing body. Should I purchase a bag of Canada puppy food to mix with the raw? Or I bet I could get my parents to purchase a topper for fresh food. Spot and Tango sells a fresh food topper for kibble, but I may be able to mix that with the raw. What would you do for a new puppy @ShannonsChimkens?

In all honesty, I have never fed a puppy differently. Just in the amount and frequency. There is so much more nutritional value in raw that commercial puppy food was never needed. When we got our miniature dachshund, I just fed Northwest Naturals in the frozen cubes. He would only eat 8 to 10 little cubes a few times a day. As he grew larger I added in chicken wings and organs. Since he’s such a picky little turd, he would pick the liver and heart out of the bowl and put it on the ground! So had to get clever and hide it.

Best way to think about a puppy’s diet... wild dogs don’t feed their pups different than what they consume themselves. As long as it’s balanced, they’re fine.

Same goes for raw food vs kibble. Would you, as a human being who is trying be healthy, stick your salad in an oven? Nope! Because that would deplete your salad of pretty much all the nutrition.