# Nature's Variety



## ch3ckpo1nt (Nov 30, 2009)

I'm starting my 4 month old pup on this stuff next week. I was thinking of mixing a bit of the TOTW I have left in it. With going to this pre-prepared RAW food, is my pup getting all the nutrients he needs to properly grow? I can't seem to find much info on RAW feeding a pup. Thanks for the help guys.


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## rjvamp (Aug 23, 2008)

Hi there!

The website for NV lists this is for ALL Live Stages and the first to meet AAFCO requirements for dog and cat food in a RAW form.

The Nutrient Analysis can be found for each RAW diet by clicking on more information on the raw page - example: 

http://www.naturesvariety.com/raw_products and then I chose the information on chicken http://www.naturesvariety.com/raw_products_chicken

Now this is not in dry matter basis, like kibble. So I would recommend calling NV on Monday and asking them for the analysis on a dry matter basis and if the RAW would be appropriate for Large Breed Puppies even though they say ALL Life stages. I would think it is though. 

1.888.519.PETS
M - F, 8 - 5 Central Time

My dogs are really enjoying the RAW meal in the mornings and Orijen at night. As an FYI - Orijen has a Large Breed Puppy formula.

Cheers!

Robert


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## 3K9Mom (Jun 12, 2006)

> Quote:
> Trust the Nature's Variety Experts
> Nature's Variety Raw Frozen Diets are the 1st and only raw foods to be *scientifically substantiated as complete and balanced for all canine life stages *through AAFCO Protocol Feeding Trials.
> 
> ...



More info at : http://www.naturesvariety.com/raw_info

I like and trust Nature's Variety. I think they're a good company. I prepare my dogs' raw diets myself, but I've used NV foods over the years for my dog who couldn't eat raw. If I needed to use prepared raw food, I wouldn't hesitate to use theirs. 

There's lots of info in the Raw/BARF forum on feeding a puppy raw food, but if you're not sure how to do it yourself, I think that using a commercially prepared food from a reputable manufacturer is a good place to start (provided you can afford it, of course!







). Then, as you learn and _ if you choose to, _ you can start to prepare your own meals. 

But I know people who choose to feed processed raw meals all of their dog's life and are happy with that as well. Whichever route you take, I think you'll be happy with NV.

I personally wouldn't mix in kibble though. The raw diet you're looking at is balanced. Mixing foods may throw off the ratios of certain key nutrients. I don't worry as much about mixing brands of food when I feed only kibble. But a raw diet contains a lot of water (approx 70-80% when we're talking about real meat). Kibble is about 10% moisture. So the kibble is far more nutrient dense; therefore, you would end up with lopsided nutrients -- more from the kibble than the raw. It could skew things.

NV offers their raw as part of a rotation with their other foods, but IMO, their grain free kibble, Instinct, and a couple of their Prairie kibbles are too high in calcium/phosphorous for growing GSD pups. So even their rotation plan isn't appropriate for our young ones, unless you're just rotating with Prairie chicken (which I think is a very good kibble for pups). 

Also, my feeling is that if our dogs like it and tolerate 100% raw diet, why feed kibble? Aren't we trying to get away from kibble for specific reasons (mostly that a raw diet is healthier)? So I figure, donate the kibble to a worthy charity and go 100% raw...unless you have a compelling reason to do otherwise. I realize some people do have reasons to feed some kibble. I just think that raw is so superior, I don't see a reason to keep feeding kibble "just because."


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## rjvamp (Aug 23, 2008)

I've been throwing my Pro Plan out to the birds and squirrels - you should see it each day now - its like Sleeping Beautify in the forest with all the animals around!


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## ch3ckpo1nt (Nov 30, 2009)

Well I switched to TOTW and got rid of about 30LBS of Eukeuba by dumping it because I couldn't find anyone to take it. Now I have a bunch of TOTW I don't want to throw away and I already dumped it out of the bag and into a bin, so I can't donate it. I wanted to mix in the kibble instead of wasting it. Plus, NV I figure is more than $40 a week just in the RAW food, I can cut the cost down a small amount by adding kibble. If it poses a health risk, its not worth it of course.


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## ch3ckpo1nt (Nov 30, 2009)

I did notice that NV stated its for all life stages, but so does my TOTW that has something like 2.3% calcium, which is not good for our pups. Unfortunately, just because it says its for all life stages, doesn't really mean that.


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## Anja1Blue (Feb 27, 2008)

Two other very good prepared raw foods are Bravo and Primal. This is the expensive way to go, though it's a start until you are comfortable preparing meals yourself. Check the archive on this Board for additional help with raw diets, or go to http://www.b-naturals.com - and click on newsletters/recipes,there are a number of articles on raw feeding.

_______________________________________
Susan

Anja GSD
Conor GSD - adopted from this Board
Blue GSD - waiting at the Bridge


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## rjvamp (Aug 23, 2008)

> Originally Posted By: ch3ckpo1ntWell I switched to TOTW and got rid of about 30LBS of Eukeuba by dumping it because I couldn't find anyone to take it. Now I have a bunch of TOTW I don't want to throw away and I already dumped it out of the bag and into a bin, so I can't donate it. I wanted to mix in the kibble instead of wasting it. Plus, NV I figure is more than $40 a week just in the RAW food, I can cut the cost down a small amount by adding kibble. If it poses a health risk, its not worth it of course.


Don't worry yourself....start slow. If your dog is doing find on TOTW then you could continue it to finish the bag. That is up to you. I am doing RAW most days in the morning and kibble at night. As an FYI - NV does have larger containers of RAW so you can get lesser costs if you buy the bigger bags. I figure I am going through a minimum of 2 x 3 lb bags each week....so if I go to the 5 lb it would be a little less in costs for me until or if I'm completely comfortable with the DIY (Do it Yourself) RAW preparation. Since I don't have a freezer it isn't much of a savings for me right now since I can't buy in bulk.

I would recommend calling NV today though to find out about the RAW and Large Breed Puppies - actually - it is 9:28 CST - I will call them now - I'm on vacation


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## rjvamp (Aug 23, 2008)

I just got off the phone with NV and they said all life stages INCLUDES Large Breed Puppies, like a 4 month old GSD. They said the "other nutritional data" is on an AS FED BASIS - so it should be easy to compare between their kibble for example and the RAW and if I did a conversion then it would be about the same or very comparable between the two. The GA is based on the moisture content in the food - so a dry would show more protein as a % but if you took the RAW and converted it, it would be a higher % of protein in the RAW.


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## rjvamp (Aug 23, 2008)

From their website:

How should I feed my large breed puppy?
The needs of a large breed puppy are no different from a small breed puppy. All puppies need high quality protein, low carbohydrate, balanced calcium to phosphorus (CA), bioavailable vitamins and minerals, and beneficial omega fatty acids like DHA (found in fish and fish oil). What does vary with large breeds is the growth rate and how the growth is managed through diet and lifestyle. We recommend working closely with your veterinarian to develop a healthy plan for your large breed puppy's feeding and exercise regimen. We also recommend varying the flavor and format of food fed to puppies – it will help to prevent boredom and possibly prevent food intolerances from developing.

http://www.naturesvariety.com/questions/1


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## ch3ckpo1nt (Nov 30, 2009)

Thanks alot for helping me on that Angeles. Great info! I'm good to go now!


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