Raw feeding.

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Hi all just some quick questions. Fluffypup is 16 weeks old now (it is going so quickly) anyway I was thinking of switching to a raw diet. We’ve tried a few different dry foods and he does have raw duck necks and raw cow hide chews (this is before the processing has happened). I have a few reservations about raw though. We have kids and i’ve heard that raw isn’t great for dogs if you have kids about, then i’ve heard that they poo a lot more, i’m worried i’d not get the bone, meat, offal ratio right. will it make his poos runny to start with? I’ve heard that you can’t switch over slowly because pups digest raw and kibble differently. I had a dog years ago who ate raw and his poos were white, i figured i was doing something wrong so switched him back to kibble. I don’t want to make his sensative tummy any worse.
sorry for all the questions and thanks in advance.

Dogs on raw poop a lot less (and in smaller quantities) than dogs who are fed on kibble. The poop does go white if left out for a day but that's normal (and makes spotting it a whole lot easier)
Both of my boys are raw fed and I use one of the complete minces so that I don't need to worry about ratios. I just weigh out the right weight and they wolf it down. I do add in some fish every night for their coats but even this is available in mince or chunk format.

You might have a couple of days of softer poop when you switch but they shouldn't get the runs. You can always add some tripe in if you're worried about the transfer. It's like actimel for dogs and will help the process.

Raw fed dogs poo less.

As for not being safe - as long as you follow the normal protocols for handling raw meat you will be fine.

Ratios are as per pic.
I recommend joint my Rawfeeding Rebels of FB.

Thank you both :) think i am going to make the switch.

Is there a reason you've fed so many foods and raw when he is just 16 weeks old? That's an awful lot for such a young pup, especially as he has a sensitive tummy. You could be making things a lot worse switching like you are currently. I've got one who has IBD and needs B12 injections; he gets intolerant to a protein source the more he eats it so I have to rotate him around as many as I can over as long a time period as possible to stop his intolerance flaring up to everything I can get my hands on.

I am an experienced raw feeder but also unfortunately experienced in having a very poorly dog, I would be really careful about another big change like this.

He was on a poor quality food when he came to us and since he’s been here We’ve only tried step up and lilli’s kitchen, both wet and dry food. He gets on better with the LK food than step up but it’s still quite soft. And he has the frozen duck necks as treats. He did get some prescribed GI food for sensative tummies from the vet but that was five days worth and that was the transition from step up to lilli’s.

Start with a ready made raw food eg nutriment or natural instinct. This will be cheaper than lilys kitchen food

White poo is because your dog had too much bone (not that is not picked up for a few days)

The ready made raw is easy just defrost and serve - then over time if your dog likes it you can start adding in home made meals which will be cheaper.

He will poo a lot less and it will not be very smelly at all - he may also appear to drink less as he is getting moisture from the food so do not worry about that

I recommend pale ridge completes. They come in the ratio of 80/10/10. No added vegetables either which can make dogs itchy. Start with one protein for 2 weeks them slowly add in new ones so you can see if your puppy has any reactions to different meats.

Bananarama12 where is there evidence that vegetables makes a dog itchy? That is not something I have heard before or experienced

The most common allergens are Wheat, barley and beef AFAIR (can dig out he study). Have never heard anything about normal veg being a problem and I know many raw feeders who add it.

My vet recommended against feeding raw because we have a one year old. He said that any bacteria on the raw food could potentially transfer onto anything the puppy chews. Apparently for healthy adults this wouldn't be a problem but a young child whose immune system isn't yet fully developed, it has the potential to be a problem. He did say that it wouldn't be so much of a problem if my daughter was older.

I don't know how much of a risk it realistically is as I'm new to all this so we just followed his advice and will perhaps reconsider when my daughter is older

They CAN help cause yeast problems. Not saying they definitely will, just the case with my dog.

Bananarama12 weird that it would be vegetables maybe fruit with high sugar. I guess not a great risk to the average dog.

Bambamber this is an interesting comment by your vet but it is not proven. Also interesting kibble has a high rate of ecoli and salmonella in it and there are often recalls over this. So the argument would also effect kibble fed dogs. However dog are dead clever and the reason they can digest raw food and not die! Is that their saliva and stomach acid is different to ours.

There saliva contains an enzyme called lysozyme. This kills bacteria also raw feed dogs will have less plaque than kibble fed dogs and plague will harbour the germs. Their stomach acid will kill off any bacteria in their food - it is obvious that this happens or all raw fed dogs will die!

However good hygiene between dogs and DC's is obviously very important

We use natural instincts complete meals.

I was considering moving to kibble - because it is a faff remembering to order it and defrost it, especially as badly pup is just at the age where they eat a ton of it.

But “kibble poo” is distinctly less pleasant to pick up and therefore we are staying on raw.

I raw feed our dog ready-raw food from Bella and duke. dog defo poos less and firm. I keep the food in the freezer, defrost it the night before, dog wolfs it down and bowl goes straight into dishwasher. its very easy and dog is healthy and happy.

We switched our mini poodle on to Nature's Menu complete raw nuggets when he was about 8 months old, as he got sticky eyes a couple of times and we thought raw might help clear it. It absolutely did and he's had no health issues since, poos less (and it doesn't whiff as much!) and although he was quite a fussy eater, he loves the food. I was also concerned about possible transfer of bacteria but had a chat with the Nature's Menu rep at Crufts and was reassured that dogs' saliva kills bacteria anyway and as long as you follow the normal hygiene rules for handling raw meat, you shouldn't have a problem. I was a but anal about it to start with and was wiping our dog's mouth after he'd eaten but it seemed like too much of a faff so i stopped and we've not had any problems. Our dog is on 3 meals a day as he gets stomach acid if not fed quite regularly, so his lunch (which is his smallest meal)is actually Nature's Menu wet food. We chose to do that so that he gets even more variety in his diet in terms of taste/different meats and fish and also, so that he's used to eating wet food and will happily have that if we've gone out for the day or are on holiday and can't take/get raw food

Hi all, I got fluffypup weighed today and because of his upset tummy he hasn’t put on any weight in the last two weeks. The vet wasn’t worried but said she wanted him to stay on the sensitive diet From science plan. I’m just not sure though, I mean it’s all very well getting his poo nice and firm while he’s on the science plan but then what do I do? I don’t want him to stay on that so do I just switch to raw and ignore what the vet has said?

I've got a Springer and he's done really well on a mix of raw food and kibble. We started with Natural Instinct, but switched to Jack Wolf last year - its a bit cheaper and has same ingredients.
We started raw because we wanted to increase the protein of his food with out the bulk of kibble. Crazy young spaniel, we couldnt get any weight on him! Raw worked really well.

Well i’ve done it. I bought some natural instinct food and beef jerky and lamb lung stuff. He is currently tucking into a bone stuffed with beef jerky and lung. He’s loving it. The woman in the shop was great, she advised to switch him over a teaspoon at a time and by the end of 2 weeks he should be fully switched across. So fingers crossed he’ll start gaining weight and his tummy will settle down.
Thank you all.

No it's vegetables and it's a well known fact. OP rawfeeding rebels fb group is good to join for tips etc.