# How did I do?



## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

Ok, so I attempted my first,raw meal last night!
Chicken wing, boneless chicken breast, ground chicken, organic plain yogurt, green beans, and then all that was drizzled with raw honey and coconut oil. 
I didn't use a scale though so I'm gonna buy one today. I just kinda guessed. 
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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

Oh and there are slow roasted sweet potatoes in there too

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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

You added quite a bit(variety) for that first raw meal. You'll know in a few hours how well your dog handled it. If you overdid the portion, you may see some runny poop. Because of the variety, if there is an issue you aren't going to be able to pinpoint the cause.


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## holland (Jan 11, 2009)

Could you suggest a good first raw meal-I am planning to read more about it and thinking of switching


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

A chicken leg 1/4 with back attached is a good first. Either you can cut it or leave it whole. Thats what I've always started with. Most weigh about a pound, so depending on your dogs size go with a smaller one if your dog would only eat 1.5 pounds daily(I try to give two meals per day on raw)
Good idea to get a cheap kitchen scale when you begin so you know approx. what amount you are feeding. Then when you get into it, it is easy to estimate just by look.


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## Flutter (Aug 2, 2013)

You want to keep things basic to begin with. Go with one protein and provide some bony meat and muscle meat for that meal. After a week or two of success then you can add different things in and try different proteins. 

Good idea with the chicken, that's a great protein to start on  With our dog we did chicken, turkey, beef, lamb, boar, then salmon. Turns out he's allergic/intolerant to beef so after beef we did a week of chicken before adding anything different. I think it would be fine if you added things that you know your dog is good on earlier.


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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

Lol there wasn't too much info on how to start! An d when do I add In an organ or two? People keep telling me to go to rawdogranch. Com but the website is down... any other good sites for beginners?

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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

And what about the extras,to make sure they are,getting all the nutrients and,vitamins. I got that right at least,right?

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## carmspack (Feb 2, 2011)

not enough bone -- lacking fat , lacking essential fatty acids


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## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

Do dogs really need green beans, potatoes, honey, etc in a raw diet?

And the raw dog ranch site isn't down... http://www.rawdogranch.com/


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## counter (Feb 20, 2009)

Yeah, the more bone, the more solid the stool will be. I don't give them boneless anything. Ha! EVERYTHING has bone if possible. We found a local distributor of bulk meat in our area. They supply the local restuarants, but they also have a pet food menu. You can call in an order and it's ready for pickup in 30 minutes, Mon-Fri. Very convenient.

As for supplements and "extras", we feed a raw egg to each dog every other day. We also add salmon oil on days when they don't get whole fish. And we use this supplement daily:

The Wholistic Pet


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## counter (Feb 20, 2009)

Forgot to add, we also use Sojos:


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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

Awesome it's up?! The past couple days a couple has been having small issues,with the site. So yay

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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

I'm from metro Detroit... so how would I,go about finding some meat distributors? I,do have friend that went deer hunting  but that's about,all I have right now. Chicken, deer, and a couple turkey wings. Woot. And no I read you don't have to do veggies, it's just added nutrients some are more beneficial then others. But,I have also read they can get everything they need from the raw meat and organs givin to them

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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

And My GSD is still technically a puppy, 55lbs, and will be 7 months old on 11/14. Any info on puppy feeding. When I get my second GSD in March I'm also wanting to start him on raw too (an 8 week old puppy) the puppy portion on raw dog ranch isn't working that's probably what people were talking about... 

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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

If you look in the raw forum, there are many,many threads on feeding raw.
Kira, this distributor delivers often to your area(they were just there 11/02/13: 


Cathy Manning ([email protected])

Now also delivering to Lansing, Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, and Battle Creek. Regular route also includes, Detroit, Royal Oak, Pontiac, Alburn Hills, Flilnt, Imlay City, Port Huron, and Saint Clair Shores, and I-75 south to Toledo.

Order at: [email protected]
Web Site: gnc-raw.com

Office: 
- (937) 447-4441

Delivery numbers (to contact us when we are on deliveries):
- (937) 423-5452
- (937) 621-9095

WILL DELIVER and We SHIP
WE WILL DO SPECIAL ORDERS AND SPECIAL GRINDS.


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## Wolfgeist (Dec 4, 2010)

The meal doesn't seem balanced, which you'll need to do some more research and learn how to properly balance the ratios of meat, bone and organ.

Welcome to the Raw Dog Ranch

^ Great resource, tons of info.


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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

Ha! That's cool, I will definitely get a hold of those people and see what they have! And I like the raw dog ranch site, but the more I'm reading the more I'm concerned cause my jazz is still a puppy. And the puppy portion (like how much to feed and what) is still down. I did look at a few others like rawfed. Com and there is a dog food forum And apparently I gotta make sure the calcium phosphor ratio is right? Or it can cause her bones to not fully develop? And yes. I know about the organs and the ratio but I also read that when starting off don't give organs right away? Just ground meat and meaty bones??? Can't I just go with a puppy multivitamin just in case?? 
I did have her on them for a while but wasn't sure if I should continue? 
And just to be clear on the ratio
RMB 50%
MM 45%
Organs 5%
Other stuff 0-5% 




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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

Too bad a lot of vets and people are against the raw food diet. Instead of bugging everyone I could just go harass my vet. And I'm not gonna lie... there are a lot of sites and people against it, and its kind of Unnerving and makes you wonder if your doing the right thing


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## counter (Feb 20, 2009)

Kira4589 said:


> Too bad a lot of vets and people are against the raw food diet. Instead of bugging everyone I could just go harass my vet. And I'm not gonna lie... there are a lot of sites and people against it, and its kind of Unnerving and makes you wonder if your doing the right thing
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


See if there's a holistic vet in your area. I'd be shocked if they were against a raw diet. We use a holistic vet in Portland, and they're almost militant FOR a raw diet. It's amazing! Ha.


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## holland (Jan 11, 2009)

I live in an area where there are Amish/Menonites and a friend suggested contacting them for raw


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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

I like that njboxers. Com site too. Lots of info

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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

Wow, this kinda makes my head hurt lol. Lots of great info on a lot of these sites... but What about pancreatitis? What would cause an issue like That? And what's the vote on probiotics and supplements? A must? Or a balanced meal should be good? 

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## Springbrz (Aug 13, 2013)

I wish I could find the link...but one of the experienced raw feeding members here posted that for puppies it's 5-7 % of their current weight until they are around 8 months for moderately active pups. Some may need more, some less. After that it's usually about 2% of their weight for the average dog. Again, some more, some less. It's best to do weekly weighs until you get comfortable with raw feeding. 

I feed my pup about 2.25-2.5 lbs. a day and she will be 8 mo. next week and weighs 58.8 lbs. She is lean (which is best) but not too skinny. She has started to self regulate her portions down this past week (she's leaving several ounces of food in her bowl at each meal) so I will cut her back a bit to 2-2.25 lbs. of food and see how she does. 
I hope this was helpful.


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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

Yes very helpful! Thank you! I'm surprised there isn't as much info,for puppies,out there like there is for adult dogs. Thank you!

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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

I always fed my pups the same amount I did as adults, bump up or reduce according to growth spurts and went by feeling ribs. So for a 90# dog, 2# per day of food(1# per meal) for a puppy I fed about 3/4# and 3 meals per day until about 5 months of age) Again this is for active puppies that burn calories. My female and male were both showing a larger structure when they were young, tall and long in body so gauged their adult weight to be about 80-90. Again go by the ribs, and reduce or bump up accordingly. Most adult dogs only need 1.5# a day to maintain. 
Pancreatitis has never been a problem for my dogs, I don't over feed fatty meat or skin, keep portions balanced with bone, organ and meat and give supplements daily or rotate them.
I've always tried to add fresh(frozen) green tripe regularly.
It isn't as complicated as some think, or as scary. 

When I started I was worried I'd not give enough nutrition balance, but my dogs thrived...and my senior 11 yr old really changed for the better. She lived until almost 15, I wish I'd put her on raw sooner.


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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

Ok, so here is today... I tried to adjust from what I'm told and,what I read
Tonight we have a chicken leg quarter (thigh and drumstick and part of the back, (which I weighed all of the meat and it ended up at 1.35 pounds) a chicken liver, half a teaspoon of pumpkin and half a teaspoon of plain ypgurt, drizzled with raw honey and a couple green beans... like.. 5... cause,I made them yesterday and didn't wanna waste them..

How's,that??? Better right???

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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

Where do I find tripe? 

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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

Hey onyx, that info you gave me for Cathy manning, could I get tripe from her?

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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

yes, I'll pm you the current price list. I still think you are over feeding/too much variety. How did she handle the first meal?My rawfed dogs only go poop once a day and it is very small. Everything they eat is pretty much utilized/so no waste.


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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

Lol after you told me about that I have been watching her and so far so good... then again... you never know right, I may speak too soon. Day one was good though. Poo was slightly runny. But not like... full on runs. Her second was smaller and firmer, but I added the small bit of pumpkin in hopes it will help. And the honey is for her skin (or I use coconut oil) And the green beans
Yeah... I probably won't do that again. She,doesn't eat them anyway. And,the yogurt I was told is ok as a probiotics til I can buy a probiotics...which.
I need to see if my local pet stores sell some. I even think what I gave her,may have too much skin on it, so tomorrow I will probably adjust that too


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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

Wow! That's not bad pricing at,all!!! Thank you!

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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

go to a health food store for your supplements, they are better quality and probably cheaper than what a pet store stocks. Probi's are best kept chilled.


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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

Is there info on how much of the supplements I'm supposed to Give her? Like on the many websites that people have said lol (raw dog ranch, njboxers, raw food myths...) and if I understand correctly about eggs... it's almost 3,times a week right? More of a treat rather then part of a meal

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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

At most... not almost... auto correct...

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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

It's kinda nice to see her actually want to eat, and for a change have a full belly... she is such a picky eatter. Seeing her actually have a full belly kinda freaked me out for minute.. cause seeing it my brain automatically thought.. oh ****, it's bloat... and she was just laying there... so I kinda freaked a little but then my boyfriend got on floor and she went back to her normal playful self... she just needed a little nap apparently
But I think I'm gonna cut back. I tried to do what the one person said, but 1.35 pounds of meat seemed to be a lot lol she enjoyed it... But, it may have been a lot for my normally really picky. Puppy lol 

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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

Ok num she just threw everything up... just,gonna watch her for,now

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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

Anything I should watch for??? In case something is wrong... boyfriend thinks we may have just given her too much this time. But just in case? 

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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

Rest her gut, give her small amount of water at a time(3-4 oz) and in the morning do your normal kibble meal. I think you overfed, overdid the variety. 
She may want to eat up what she just barfed, some rawfed dogs do this when they didn't chew up the food the first time, especially bones. I'd wait to start the raw until you do a bit more research and get some probiotics/digestive enzymes to supplement the transition. Green tripe has digestive enzymes naturally, one reason highly I recommend it.
A Place for Paws - Columbiana, Ohio - Tripe - The Other White Meat


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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

Lol yeah... she did want to go and check out what she just barfed. But it still was,enough for me to freak out a little. She is asleep next to me now. And her stomach went back to normal size,after she barfed everything up. It was just the look they give you when they aren't feeling and I knew,something was wrong. Poor puppy 

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## lhczth (Apr 5, 2000)

My 4.5 month old pups eat only slightly more than they will as an adult split into three meals. Since they still can't handle lamb, pork or beef bones (I don't use a lot of the latter) their RMB are chicken (all parts) and turkey (necks since the wings and thigh bones are harder and more dense). When I can get it cheap they also can deal with rabbit. Then the MM they get is beef (some a ground mixture or heart), pork (chunks, heart or when I find steaks on sale) lamb/mutton (mostly what I might cut off of a leg, give them the leg to gnaw on or heart) and I now have access to ground venison. Organ meat is either beef, lamb/mutton, or poultry. I also feed beef tripe. Oh and eggs from free range chickens, 1000 mg of salmon oil per day, and Vit E on occasion. I do not weigh, but this can be helpful for people not to over feed. 

I do not feed fruit, veggies or grains though I have used some canned pumpkin when they first went to unground RMB. 

Right now Felarof might get 1.5 chicken backs for breakfast, a chunk of beef heart for lunch and a large chicken back for dinner just to give you an idea of quantity. He is 40#.


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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

Still laying down next to me.
And I can touch her belly... I'm just freaking out a little cause bloat is common thing for shepherds and some people post some scary stories where there is a few,slight symptoms.
. Its my first puppy (besides the one I had growing up) I'm 24, on my own... I just wanna make sure my pup is ok. 

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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

Puppies seldom if ever bloat. You gave her gut a huge change and she couldn't handle it...between the meat, honey, coconut and veggies(which don't digest easily) she had to work hard to keep it down, and she lost. 
I like to keep a few things on hand for emergencies: gasx dissolvable strips for possible bloat or stomach/gas upset.
Anytime my dogs get a gut issue(barf/diarrhea) I give slippery elm bark capsules help heal the gut. Mix a paste of plain yogurt/2 caps opened of slippery elm bark and give to the dog a 1/2 hour before a bland diet meal after the gut has rested for at least 12 hours.
Plain canned pumkin works too, but slippery elm or perfect form canned by the Honest Kitchen is also a good thing to have on hand.


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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

Lol slippery elm bark? I've never heard,of that! I will look that up. I'm usually pretty good,at knowing herbs. I'm a massage therapist and I play with different herbs all the time. And,I just read that gas x strips are,good. Which.. is weird, and,I would have never thought to use that... but I will get some. Thanks everyone and onyx for helping me with my first attempt at this. I will do some more research and try again in a month or two. 

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## lhczth (Apr 5, 2000)

Yes, you over fed her. Think of how you feel if you stuff yourself at holidays.


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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

Lol right! I'm just a worry wart, when she was a baby she twitched funny... and,I thought it was a seizure lol. She is still sleeping next to me, and,from what I understand with bloat is she wouldn't be able to get comfortable, she would pace, there would be a lot more going on.... at least I hope so lol

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## Flutter (Aug 2, 2013)

My dog had health issues which caused us to switch to raw. We switched quickly and I wasn't able to research as much as I wanted to. However, we found a local store that specializes in raw food for dogs. There are several local companies that make ground raw food. We switched straight to a premade food so we wouldn't upset our dog and that has given us more time to learn about doing raw ourselves 

Might be something you can look into in the mean time 

The improvements we've seen in our dog have been huge. I hope you have the same success when you're ready to try again


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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

Lol thank you, I will we if I can find out more, onyx sent me some good info, and maybe I can contact that person and ask more. Just her throwing up last night freaked me out. She seems fine now. She is rolling around and playing like normal. Not quite eating like I would like her too.

But then again, She never has been a strong eater. Picky freaking dog!! Lol she has had normal everything so far too... and she is drinking..,she puked... so yay!

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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

And I wanted to switch to raw because she will happily eat! Which has been really nice to see, she is a growing puppy and its like trying to get a human child to eat its veggies. Unless she is starving... she will pass... and I've tried several different types of kibble. I finally found she will only eat large breed puppy blue buffalo out of her Kong puzzle toy. Or if I mix either wet food, or maybe some ground beef and honey in to her food bowl with kibble... even then she still only eats barely 3.5 to 4 cups a day. If I'm lucky... but she also has allergies. And she is itchy and has goopie eyes. Ever since I have been giving her raw,honey it's been clearing up. So that's when I decided to take a step further and try raw. And plus since she is so,**** picky it worries me she,isn't getting her,nutrients and could develop hip dysplasia . She is a rescue so I don't know her family history, and I'm trying to just give her a decent,start.

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## Flutter (Aug 2, 2013)

Allergies is the issue we have. A lot of itching and major food intolerance (chronic diarrhea and gas, required metro a couple times (and probiotics) to calm things down because he would go in a downward spiral and get worse and worse). He eventually developed a nasty skin infection. Treated with antibiotics and it went away. Then came back and was treated. Then came back and the vet said it wasn't an infection, it was autoimmune. So we switched immediately to give his immune system a break. Infection was gone within 2 days and diarrhea stopped that day. We gave him some kibble for treats the other day and the next day instead of the pustules he was covered in ulcers (the reaction wasn't big enough to bubble up with pus).

Since she already has issues (do you know if they're food or environmental?) then switching is probably a good idea. Learn what you can and switch when you're ready. For us, switching would have been more intimidating had we not switched to prepared. The people here are very helpful as well, they've helped me quite a bit.


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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

I think it may be environmental. That's why I added the raw honey. Apparently it supposed to do wonders for allergies over time. I did have her bb. Wilderness But like I said picky,eaters.... so for now She will eat life protection large breed puppy bb. Which is fine... I was told it has the vitamins in it to,at least help with hips and joint,growth... but I also add,the honey and instead,of having to clean the,corners,of,her eyes all the time,,I'm not,having to do it nearly as,much, and she,hasn't,been as itchy..
So right now I'm going,with less itchy the better right? Lol at least,for,now,til I can,figure,out,a plan for,her
Either that or the homemade,food,diet... but I'm not,gonna lie I am lazy so I am,leaning,toward, attempting raw again..
Just more research


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## Kira4589 (Jun 21, 2013)

Just to,clarify too, I don't like... douse the food or kibble in honey. Its just a tablespoon or half,a tablespoon to drizzle,over,the,food

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