Feeding raw....

[SwearyMary]

I have just moved my 8 month bitch onto raw food as she was having awful colitis and the only thing that stopped it was Salyzopyrin, as soon as we stopped the meds it would come right back again within 48hrs! She has been having much better poos since changing her diet. At the moment she is having 250g minced meat (chicken or beef) a small amount of cooked rice and perhaps a small chopped apple or some leftover veg twice a day. She has been seeming hungry so I gave her two small chicken wings yesterday too. Is this an adequate diet? She is a very active approx 25kg lab collie.

[QuincyMincemeat]

I give my 25kg lurcher 4-500g of mince and 4-5 chicken wings per day. He looks just right on it. If he looks a bit thin I give more and vice versa. :)

[QuincyMincemeat]

have a look here I don't think you are feeding him enough

[QuincyMincemeat]

Sorry HER

[SwearyMary]

Wow! She IS hungry then! Thanks so much Quincy
Do you also give carbs/fruit/veg etc with the meat?

[QuincyMincemeat]

No. Mine can't even tolerate that. He does enjoy a good graze on grass however :o

[toboldlygo]

My 24kg dogs (huskies) get around 500g a day, a bit more or less depending on what work they're doing, the time of year, whether they're running up thin or putting a bit on. I think she probably is hungry!

I give them leftover veg when we have any just to save it going to waste and because they seem to enjoy it but I don't think it's essential and certainly don't feed any rice or anything extra, just meat on the bone, whole carcasses, minced meat/bone/offal, tripe, fish etc.

[QuincyMincemeat]

No. Mine can't even tolerate that. He does enjoy a good graze on grass however :o

[SwearyMary]

She is having 500g of minced meat divided to 250g for two meals a day....she is a very lean pup and always has been.

So to confirm in a day she is having 500g meat, small amount of rice, veg, two chicken wings. She weighs 25kg.

[UptownAbbie]

Loads of info at the Yahoo rawfeeding group, you need to join the group but well worth it. My lab has been on raw for 6 months and doing great. Definitely no veg needed, although he does graze in the field when he fancies something green.
The group advise starting with just chicken for 2 wks to get dog's system used to raw as too much variety can cause upsets. Ideally chicken leg quarters for a 25kg dog (cheap at Asda) as wings too small and not much meat on them. After 2wks start introducing one new meat at a time. Organs (liver kidney etc) also needed but small amounts.
They advise against mince as more likely to have harmful bacteria as been processed, also dog needs to chew, and recommend giving big chunks of meat. PAH do 2kg bags of frozen beef and tripe chunks (in separate bags not beef and tripe together) for around £4. Warning - don't breathe through your nose when you open the tripe bag

[QuincyMincemeat]

Ahhhhhh. I missed the 'twice a day' bit :o

[toboldlygo]

And me.

[Inthepotty]

Its never a definite, just a guideline- sometimes my pup (19kg) has more than the rec amount, sometimes a bit less. If she feels a bit thin, add a bit more mince/wing or whatever. I very rarely measure stuff. Whole chicken carcass from the butcher seem to fill mine up, as does eating a rabbit whole (fur, feet, the lot!) as it takes longer too eat them than mince.

[cminor]

Presumably you raw-feeding people throw the food outside and leave your dogs to eat in the mud? I'm not over-fussy about hygiene but can't imagine the stink and mess of raw meat and dead animals indoors.
Also presume that you follow a 1000 year old diet yourselves.

[QuincyMincemeat]

Smells less than stinky tinned food. My dogs a very tidy eater actually!
Are you anti raw then cminor?

[LadyDamerel]

I feed my two in the utility room. There is no stink and mess from raw food. It's just meat - raw meat doesn't smell unless it's rotten, in which case you wouldn't be giving it to the dog.

Tripe is a bit pongy, I grant you but it's only out in the air for a matter of seconds (well, it is with my labs anyway!) so it doesn't have a chance to smell the room out.

I don't follow a 1000 year old diet but I do cook from scratch using fresh ingredients and avoid processed food as much as possible.

Fresh, nutritionally balanced food vs processed, artificially 'balanced' food, there's no contest whether it's for me, the dcs or the dogs.

[QuincyMincemeat]

Tbh the meat's never around for more than 5 seconds once it's down for him! So no time for it to stink


And since you're asking yes, I'm actually following primal style diet myself.Have lost weight and feel great, thanks for asking.

[SwearyMary]

Thanks everyone for the advice.

I guess I follow a 1000 yr old diet too. Fresh, natural, wholesome food, sometimes cooked in a couldron, sometimes over a fire. Even cooked outside at times.....