# wanting to start raw



## abifish21 (Oct 3, 2014)

Hey everyone!

I have a 5 yr old shepherd (90 lbs) and a 4 yr old mix (35 lbs) we are currently feeding them merrick grain free kibble with a raw beef bone once or twice a week as a treat. 
I am wanting to switch them to raw and have been doing some looking around. I am interested in doing the honest kitchen's mix and adding in meat but am unsure on portions and how to make it cost effective. 
It just seems so expensive! Any help would be greatly appreciated and any resources (we are in the portland or area) are great too!


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## counter (Feb 20, 2009)

You're in the perfect place to start raw. I don't know anything about Honest Kitchen. We switched our dogs from kibble to raw while living in Portland. We just moved to Idaho Dec 2013. Here are the best places I found while living there. First is Willamette Valley Meat Co. in downtown PDX. They are a bulk distributor for many of the local restuarants, and they also have a pet menu:

Pet Products

*Willamette Valley Meat*
336 8th St NE *Portland* *Oregon* 97232 







503-232-0933 



> *Pet Products*
> 
> Pets deserve high quality *food products* too! We are proud to offer a variety of Beef, Chicken, Game, Lamb, Mutton, Goat, Pork, Tilapia, and Turkey products tailored to meet a Pet's dietary and tastebud needs.
> A large majority of the products are ready to be shipped, but those needing to be cut require an additional days notice for processing.
> ...


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## counter (Feb 20, 2009)

Sorry, I tried to spruce that up, but 10 minutes was not enough time and now I can't go back to edit it. Anyways, you can get all of your meat, organs, muscle, and bones from WVM. That's all we used once we found them. We also went to Meat For Cats and Dogs at 2244 E. Burnside for all of our supplements like Wholistic Pet Canine Complete/Joint Mobility and Salmon Oil. They are a specialty store that is geared towards a raw diet. Meat for Cats and Dogs

You should also check out this group/co-op that joins forces to buy bulk meat to help drive down the overall cost per lb: https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/WAzzuOR_BARF/info

We used them before we found WVM.

Good luck!


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## counter (Feb 20, 2009)

Oh, and with WVM, you just have to call in your order about 1 hour before you need to pick it up, and they will have it ready for you. They are open Mon-Fri, so just plan ahead to get you through the weekends. I had to buy a standup bulk freezer to store all of the meat. It was worth it.


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## abifish21 (Oct 3, 2014)

Thank you so much! I Wil definitely check out wvm next week on my day off. We went into meat last weekend actually to get some treats for them and it was a great store. 
My boys and I really appreciate the help!


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## counter (Feb 20, 2009)

abifish21 said:


> Thank you so much! I Wil definitely check out wvm next week on my day off. We went into meat last weekend actually to get some treats for them and it was a great store.
> My boys and I really appreciate the help!


If you go there again and the owner is working, please tell her I said HI. She'll probably remember me as the Air Force guy who would come in every 2 weeks. She knew I had 2 GSDs and 2 Huskies. She would also remember that I moved to just south of Boise Idaho. Those were the things we would talk about while I was in there. Oh, and I would go there with my 3 kids and they would play with the big stuffed GSD toy, and the other stuffed animals. All of that would refresh her memory. Oh, and I see that the store has moved. I believe it was at 2205 E. Burnside before. So I was a customer at the old location on the corner.

And you're quite welcome! What I would do is go in to Meat and tell them what I'm feeding, and then ask what is missing in the diet. They were usually pretty good about helping to figure out which supplements you might require adding. Good luck!


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