# How Much?



## rperry (Jan 18, 2009)

<span style='font-family: Century Gothic'>I know I know, there are probably a ton of posts already out there about this. To be honest, I just don't feel like looking right now.

Anyway, we've been having problems with my 10 month old GSD with itching. Fur loss, lots of itching, spots with no fur, etc. We are going to put him on raw to see if we can figure out if it's a food allergy.

We are going to buy rabbit pieces and give him those for a few weeks and see what happens. Any idea how much to give him per day? Right now he gets about 4-4 1/2 cups of dry food daily. You can buy it in 3 lb packages, and I have no idea how much to buy for about 3-4 weeks!

Thanks for any advice given. </span>


----------



## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

Depending on your dogs activity level you should be giving 
about 2% of your dogs adult body weight per day. So if your dog weighs 100# then you'd feed 2# a day. Schumi is still growing so I'd feed what his projected adult weight will be. Maybe about 1.75# a day. Where are you getting the rabbit? Taylor Pond farms carries it but it is $$. I'd like to find a cheaper source for it! Good luck with this, I hope it helps with his fur loss problem.

This is from a search:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
How much do I feed daily?

Billinghurst recommends 60% RMBs and 40% veggies, etc... however; 60% to 75% CAN BE RMBs and the rest should be a combination of veggies, organs (also known as offal, to include liver, heart, kidney, green tripe, etc...), ground meat (e.g. lean beef, chicken or turkey), eggs and supplements. If you are just starting BARF, remember to start slow by adding new food items every few days or even weeks, until your dog gets used to the new food (especially the richer foods like liver). This is only a guide to help get you started. If your dog is on the skinnier side, up the food (RMBs) and reduce the veggies....if your dog is on the heavier side, reduce the RMBs and up the veggies. To know if your dog is 'just right,' rub the back of your hand.....his/her ribs should feel the same. If you can't feel his/her ribs, then reduce the daily food intake

Multiply your dogs weight by 16 to get the number of ounces he weighs. Multiply that by .02, which gives you 2 % of his body weight. Multiply that by .6 to give you the weight of RMB you should feed. That is chicken necks, wings, backs etc

Go back to the 2% of his body weight again and multiply that number by .4 to get the weight in ounces of vegetable patty mix you should feed

For example: One of my Boxers weighs 70 Lbs. 

Here's the formula I used to calculate the daily food intake when I started:
70Lbs x 16 = 1120 ounces 
1120 x .02 = 22.4 ounces of food per day 
22.4 x .6 = 13.44 ounces of RMB -----60% RMB 
22.4 x .4 = 8.96 ounces of Veg. Patty mix.-----40% Veg. Patty mix.
Remember this is only a place to start - adjust everything up or down, depending on your dogs condition.


----------



## rperry (Jan 18, 2009)

<span style='font-family: Century Gothic'><span style='font-family: Century Gothic'>This is the link that was sent to me by Julie - said she knows someone who loves this place. I'm not going to bother shopping around right now, because I need to get it ASAP! She also did mention Taylor Pond Farms, but their rabbit is on back order right now. 

http://www.hare-today.com/index.php?cPath=21_35</span></span>


----------



## Lauri & The Gang (Jun 28, 2001)

Please do NOT feed rabbit only. It is too low in fat for a dog.

Why not start with something easy to get and MUCH cheaper - like chicken?


----------



## rperry (Jan 18, 2009)

<span style='font-family: Century Gothic'>We are doing rabbit for a few weeks only because it was recommended by our breeder, and then going from there. We had been giving him the chicken/brown rice prairie food from Nature's Variety and he's itching badly. Don't know if it's because of that, but we are trying to figure out what is causing it.</span>


----------



## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

Is it because you are eliminating for allergies? Venison is what was recommended a few times to me, as most kibble has no venison. Most kibble has some type of chicken in it other than a few fish blends. Thanks for the link Becky, a friend gave me the haretoday link too.


----------



## JerzeyGSD (Jun 26, 2008)

Are you buying your rabbit in parts or whole? If whole, you could literally just cut it in half (or thirds or quarters, depending on how much weight your dog should eat) and probably feed it in pieces like that. That would be the easiest way to get the right amount of RMB, MM, and OM since it's already all right there! 

By the way, veggies are not necessary and cannot even be digested by a dog. If you do decide to feed veggies you cannot do it raw. Some cook them, freeze them or puree them to turn them into a form that is more edible for a dog. I, for example, do not include veggies as a regular part of my dogs diet. I feed the prey model, which focuses on feeding what a dog would natural eat if it still lived in the wild (which would not include veggies but, rather, partially digest veggies found in green tripe.) I feed ~50% MM, ~45% RMB and ~5% OM (although I know some people feed 10% OM but I do not have access to any OM but liver.)

Good luck with your venture into raw but remember to do as much research as possible! You cannot skimp on this because feeding raw is a very big decision and requires the owner to be as well informed on dog nutrition as possible. Good luck! This board is a great resource so please use it!


----------



## Little Red (Jan 10, 2009)

Becky, read this link http://www.germanshepherds.com/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=1016252&page=2#Post1016252
and also read the "this thread" and "this thread" within the thread
Good luck with the switch to raw. You will gets lots of great advice here!


----------



## Little Red (Jan 10, 2009)

Becky, here's some more reading for you
http://www.germanshepherds.com/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=1003827&page=4#Post1003827


----------



## Lauri & The Gang (Jun 28, 2001)

> Originally Posted By: Rebecca P<span style='font-family: Century Gothic'>We are doing rabbit for a few weeks only because it was recommended by our breeder, and then going from there. We had been giving him the chicken/brown rice prairie food from Nature's Variety and he's itching badly. Don't know if it's because of that, but we are trying to figure out what is causing it.</span>


Since it's more likely that a dog will be allergic to carbs (grains) than protein I would just try the chicken to start.


----------



## natalie559 (Feb 4, 2005)

If you are trying to diagnose a food allergy feeding a novel protein is a great way to start. Has your dog ever eaten rabbit? I looked at your link and saw they carry skinned whole rabbits. That's what I would buy as feeding the whole animal provides a better nutritional profile than feeding parts.


----------



## JerzeyGSD (Jun 26, 2008)

> Originally Posted By: natalie559If you are trying to diagnose a food allergy feeding a novel protein is a great way to start. Has your dog ever eaten rabbit? I looked at your link and saw they carry skinned whole rabbits. That's what I would buy as feeding the whole animal provides a better nutritional profile than feeding parts.


I agree! I started with whole chickens when I started raw... then you know that, over time, you'll get the right amounts of RMB, MM, and OM as it's all right there! (As I said in my earlier post.)


----------

