How many feed their dogs....

[Chamomile]

I just got a new puppy and she has been eating a diet of raw feed. Her hair coat is gorgeous! She is nice and big and is so healthy. I feed a very high quality dog food, but have been doing some research and have decided to change all my dogs over to the raw diet. I just wondered if anyone on here is feeding it as well?

Although I do have to say... it's rather gross to prepare her food

:

 

[luvmycritters]

[SIZE=10pt]I have always given my dogs tablescraps along with their daily regular dry food. And when ever a new dog has seen the vet ( or if I have switched vets for instance ) I always get asked - "what do you do to make their coats so shiny and soft? I have always attributed that to the tablescraps that they get. ( Please - no flames - I have heard all of the hullabaloo. ) Really the only raw meat they get is when deer hunting time rolls around and the husband is butchering. And the outside dogs get much more, the house dog only gets a few little scraps. That's just my system and it has always worked out for me. Lori[/SIZE]

 

[runamuk]

Either people are for the barf diets or they aren't usually.....I am not a fan of "tablescraps" per say but I do keep the liver and heart etc from turkey, chicken, or when we have lambs put in the freezer.....I will chop this up on occasion and feed the dogs...they have to fight my 14 yr old for the chicken/turkey livers he loves them and I boil those for him.......

my dogs occasionally get baby carrots or pieces of apple or banana, they all like to get into beet pulp

: and of course there is an abundance of mice if they hunt them...oh yest and then there are the tirds and tirdcicles :new_shocked: ......my dogs eat a very decent dog food as it is easier for me...I have 5 and they are big dogs.....in the past I have had dogs on a raw food diet and I may again just depends on the dog.......

 

[Shelley]

Although I do feed my dogs a scoop of raw beef along with their kibble, I am not and will never be an advocate of the barf diet. I know the barf diet is the popular thing to do nowadays, but my view is that these dog food companies pay people the big bucks to out the correct nutritional formula to put in their feeds. Who am I to say, "oh, I'll throw them a raw chicken back, some blended veggies and throw in some vitamins" and have any idea whether they are getting what they need or not?

A friend of mine had his dog's levels checked and it came back that showing very high protein level for the kidneys to handle, but was probably due to the raw diet. So he thought that since they knew why the levels were so high, that made them ok!

Standing ringside at dog shows, I sure can not tell you which dogs eat the barf diet by looking at them. My dogs are healthy, in good weight, and their coats look every bit as good as their competitors that eat raw.

One thing I do have to admit about it though is that it is great for keeping the teeth clean.

Shelley

 

[runamuk]

I tend to agree...I find that a GOOD kibble as the basis then a few extras thrown in seems to work the best for most dogs. I had one dog that we had to cook for she had too many allergic reactions to food and we had to figure out which ones caused all of her problems...turned out she didn't tolerate chicken or corn or soy

:

: .....I had one other dog that was fine as long as she didn't eat anything beef she was easier.......I have a very tough time feeding bones to dogs period having seen some bad bad results.......in fact my borzoi ate an entire ham bone with alot of ham.......and she also drank a margarita...the only ill effect it had was a bit of the runs...but man it scared me to death......so research before jumping in......I just do not have time to balance a dog diet from scratch...have enough trouble feeding the family right and the sheep and the horses

: :bgrin

Although I do feed my dogs a scoop of raw beef along with their kibble, I am not and will never be an advocate of the barf diet. I know the barf diet is the popular thing to do nowadays, but my view is that these dog food companies pay people the big bucks to out the correct nutritional formula to put in their feeds. Who am I to say, "oh, I'll throw them a raw chicken back, some blended veggies and throw in some vitamins" and have any idea whether they are getting what they need or not?

A friend of mine had his dog's levels checked and it came back that showing very high protein level for the kidneys to handle, but was probably due to the raw diet. So he thought that since they knew why the levels were so high, that made them ok!

Standing ringside at dog shows, I sure can not tell you which dogs eat the barf diet by looking at them. My dogs are healthy, in good weight, and their coats look every bit as good as their competitors that eat raw.

One thing I do have to admit about it though is that it is great for keeping the teeth clean.

Shelley

 

[Jill]

No way.

I feed a high quality kibble to all but Winston, who's on Hills u/d prescription food.

 

[ChrystalPaths]

Please be more specific. What are these raw diets? My dogs are on a salmon based food now with no preserves, colors or adds or corn. Smells awful but they are not itching anf their coats sure are shiney.

 

[runamuk]

Please be more specific. What are these raw diets? My dogs are on a salmon based food now with no preserves, colors or adds or corn. Smells awful but they are not itching anf their coats sure are shiney.

google BARF for a real in depth look...

basically the proponents believe dogs should be fed bones and raw foods......much of the diet consists of chicken necks, wings, game hens, soup bones and then raw vegetables a few fruits and berries...no grains, corn or fillers and nothing cooked. Many swear by it...many swear you will harm dogs doing this....I just think it is too expensive and time consuming when there are perfectly decent dog foods available.

 

[Sterling]

I had a friend jump on the bandwagon and try to convince me to do it. But I really don't have the time to put 3 meals of raw food together...and worry about if my girls are getting all the proper nutients and vitamins in what raw stuff I give them. For me I have to agree it is too time consuming, and it took me a while to finally find a good dog food for my dogs, a good balance and one they really like and eat readily every meal. On occasion they get people treats....hey they're only "human" !!!

:

 

[mininik]

I am neither for or against a raw food diet for dogs. Honestly, I believe a person's success or failure feeding this way has to do with the amount of research they did, properly handling the raw foods AND finding the "perfect blend" of nutrients for their dog(s). I know many people who's dogs have had AMAZING results and still others who's dogs failed miserably on a raw diet. I can say I've seen the same results for dogs fed crap kibbles like Pedigree, Science Diet, Iams/Eukanuba etc., but one thing I will NOT do is feed my dogs "McKibble" just as I won't eat a diet of pure junk food and claim to be "healthy" even if I can look it on the outside and live a long life.

: To take the guesswork out of feeding raw you all might like to try Innova EVO. It is a high-protien, raw kibble and my dogs simply flourished on it although I now have them trying other varieties of wholesome kibble.

 

[Conundrum]

Hi everyone, I am new on this board only joined today. I was suprised to see a post on dog feeding, but had to jump in, I do feed raw, but BARF is a bit dated now, most eaw feeders will feed what is called pey model. Our dogs internal systems are meant to deal with big hunks of raw food, bones and meat and organs, if they are fed this, they need no additives, or any thing else, just good raw food. I have been feeding this way for quite some years now and would never go back to any sort of kibble. I will not give my hard earned money to the "pet" food companies who have brainwashed us for the past 70 or so years, nope, mine get what their guts were designed to deal with. Its really no harder than putting out a bowl of kibble, just takes a different mindset.

ANYWAY, I am glad to be here, I have the Conundrum stud of Miniatures in England. I recently imported a young stallion from Lacey Carnell at Bepetton miniatures in North Carolina. I breed and show in conformation and this winter we are training 3 of our horses to drive, can't wait for the show ring this year!!

I also breed show and judge Border Terriers ( I judged the US specialty last yerar)

Hope to make new friends and learn lots,

Jane Parker

www.conundrum.biz

I also make loads of typos...as you can see from above :no:

 

[Chamomile]

Thanks guys for all your input! I have done extensive research online. The breeder I got my puppy from is also a good friend and it took her years to decide to change her dogs over. I only feed one big meal a day, as I have always done when feeding the kibble diet as well. A dogs stomache is like an accordian, and in the little folds is the acid needed to properly use and digest the food we feed. If you feed a couple small meals a day the dog isn't properly using the food. I know my dogs are always shiney and healthy. I also fast them one day a week. I'll do the same if and when I switch to the raw diet. The puppy I'm feeding the raw diet to right now is thriving. She has her vitamins every day as well as her meal of chicken. She chomps on the bones and the skin and doesn't seem to have any trouble. I watch her though, as I do my other dogs, who inhale their kibble, no chewing involved. They scare me more than the puppy who is chewing her food :bgrin My husbands German Shepherd inhales her food, then does that snorting, choking thing. I can't wait to switch her over! She'll have to slow down. On days when I feed the dogs a big bone with meat on it they can take hours to eat their meal.

Also I learned that feeding the raw food along with the kibble is a no no. Kibble can take up to 12 hours to digest and the raw food only takes 4 hours. If the raw food gets in the gut behind the kibble it can go bad before the body gets to digest it.

It's interesting to listen to everyones ideas... it can be just as diverse as the horses diet! Thanks again guys and I look forward to any other info from you...

:

Edited to add: Welcome Conundrum! It's great to have you here! This forum can be so informative on all levels... as you can see! Be sure to check out the mini horse forum too!!