Raw feeders? Talk to me please (poo warning!)

[DeathByPuppy]

My working type lab is 11 months old and is currently fed on dry food (Gentle, which is a German made, British owned dry, cold pressed complete formulation, scores really well on allaboutdogfood) with cooked chicken breast or white fish mixed in, twice a day. He eats well and enjoys his food, his weight and condition are correct for his frame.

So all seems good, right? Not quite, his poos are really soft. Formed on ‘exit’ but they lose that form when picked up (sorry). He does a couple of poos on his first walk of the day. The first is soft but formed, the second is, for want of a better word, ‘splatty’, difficult to pick up. The vet has examined him several times and nothing is awry. He has had the tubes of protexin & chicken & rice, not much help. His poos have always been on the mushy side. No mucus, no blood, no weird colours or smells, just soft (he’s had upset tums treated with antibiotics with these things, so I know what they look/smell like .

I’ve heard that raw feeding really changes the poo, that’s my primary reason for being interested in it. Is that a universal experience? Has anyone not had that experience?

How do you move over to raw? Is it the same as moving to other food? Gradually adding the new food in over a few days until meals are 100% new food?

Is raw feeding awkward if your dog boards/stays in kennels? We don’t go away a lot but we do have a couple of nights away booked where the dog will be in a home boarding scenario. Obviously, I need to check that the boarder caters to raw fed dogs but beyond that, do you find it more of a pain than other feeding methods?

What are the cons of raw feeding?

Thanks and sorry for the looooong post

Morning. We’ve recently started raw feeding our pup and yes, almost immediately poo was harder and less of it. He loves is and it feels right for him. With raw it’s just a straight swap to al raw foods. We feed completes to make it easier (80/10/10 meat/bone/offal) and it’s going well. People suggest to start on one protein at a time to check for any intolerances and then build up from there.

Thank you, @AmIReallyThough. That’s good to know re the straight swap. I’ve got loads of other dog food left to use up, I’d rather use that first as it’s all expensive stuff (around 60! Edgard & Cooper and Forthglade wet trays for Kong stuffing).

I’d definitely go for a complete version. I can’t be faffed adding extra in and I worry that I wouldn’t get the balance right. I’ve been looking at ‘Basil’s’ as a brand. What brand do you use, @AmIReallyThough?

We had exactly the same issue with our border collie and raw food sorted it. I thought it was going to be a pain but the brand we use (Nature’s Menu) comes in frozen nuggets so you can measure out exactly how much you need. We defrost in microwave rather than overnight.

On holiday we go back to cans which ain’t ideal but we didn’t really have an option. His pops go back to runny, his farts stink (!) but otherwise he’s quite happy.

I’m a raw food convert however. It has definitely made a huge difference

What do you do about snack when out and about? Things to keep him/her occupied when you are having a pub lunch for example? I’d usually take a chewy stick or other low mess, low stink chew with us to keep him busy and calm. Is there a suitable raw equivalent? I’m assuming that things like dental chews and whatnot are out and that you should feed 100% raw everything all of the time?

Are there any good resources out there to help me work it all out? Preferably not ones by raw feeding companies .

Good to know, CollieDug. It’s a shame you have to revert for holidays though.

We use DAF. We find it great as it’s good quality, there’s so much choice (you should eventually aim for at least 5 different proteins) and it’s really reasonably priced (costs us approx £5 per week for our 6 month old Cavapoo).
In terms of teeth, feeding meaty bones alongside the minces cleans their teeth as they chew. You just need to watch the bone content here so we feed some boneless mince in between the completes as the poo can become chalky and white which is a sign of too much bone which can lead to constipation.

For chews, we just use ones that are 100% dehydrated meat. So tendons, chicken feet etc. There’s loads out there to choose from (we just get it from our local natural pet shop).

I’d really recommend it. Our pup loves it and seems to be thriving!

Straight swop to raw food is usually fine. Dogs will do less poos as there is less waste in raw food. Nutriment or Natural Instinct are easy ways to start.

Re treats out and about I use real food so bits of cheese cooked chicken cooked beef, liver cake etc You can use apples and carrots if your dog chews them.

Frozen carrots work as well as dentastic. You can also stuff kongs with yoghurt safe peanut butter etc.

However if you want to stick with Gentle try feeding a bit less. A sign of over feeding is when you have sloppy poos after better formed poos or look at the chews you are giving him now. They are usually full of stuff that does not settle well with many dogs.

Thanks for the advice, @RiaRoth. Chews wise, he has a Purina Dentalife or a chicken foot alongside his 2 meals a day. I know what you mean re overfeeding and Ive read the same but wouldn’t we see that in his body condition? Wouldn’t he be looking fat? He has always had softer poos and his body condition has always been lean-ideal (as confirmed by the vet), so I’d be reluctant to cut his meals down by too much more.

Worth trying him on raw then. Most dogs do really well on it. I would not give him the dentalife anymore - a raw bone would also be a good subsitute, not probably want you would give him at the pub though

That’s fair

Not what you asked... but have you tried him on a grain free food?

The grains in gentle are the usually better tolerated ones, but grain free would be one of the first things I’d try tbh.

Yes, he used to be on Arcana Regionals Wild Prairie, which is grain free and it didn’t have any impact. He had a good few big sacks of it and was introduced gently, so it isn’t like he didn’t have a chance to acclimatise. I’m sure grains aren’t ideal but I’m not convinced that they are the answer here.

“I’m sure grains aren’t ideal but I’m not convinced that they are the answer here.”

Well not you’ve tried that already, no, lol... lots of dogs do fine with food with grain in it, but I was just asking as it’s a real easy one to rule out before committing to a completely new feeding regime.

But you have already, so...

Ok

Am lucky we use homeborder and they happy to raw feed .I provide day a weeks bit if going longer they have key come get out my freezer

I’ll definitely have a chat with my lady, @Gingerninja4

Oh bugger, this is my non-puppy name