# Opinions on Primal raw and puppy?



## Carriesue (Aug 13, 2012)

I'm thinking of switching my pup to a raw diet, I was thinking about feeding the Primal brand because I have a terribly weak stomach and I just don't think I can handle organs or blood.

Any thoughts on this food? I know it's going to be more expensive overall.
Primal Pet Foods: Wholesome Raw Food for Dogs and Cats

Also I know a lot of people here start their puppies on raw, is it really safe(mine is almost 5 months), especially if the pup hasn't been raised with it?

Thank you for any thoughts and opinions!


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## Carriesue (Aug 13, 2012)

:bump:


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## Verivus (Nov 7, 2010)

Never used it, but taking a quick look at the ingredients I don't think I would feed it. Too many vegetables for me and not enough organ sources. All the organ is liver, which is a vital part of a raw diet, but there are no other organ sources. Plus it probably costs an arm and a leg compared to just DIY prey model.


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## Carriesue (Aug 13, 2012)

Thanks for the input, I'm not really sure what to do because I can't get a separate freezer to buy in bulk(if I were to DIY).


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## Verivus (Nov 7, 2010)

If I were you and I did not have a dedicated dog food freezer I would just stick with kibble with the occasional raw meal as a treat. If you have the money to throw at a pre-packaged raw diet I would just feed a good kibble and spend the extra money on training. Wanting to feed raw is awesome, but at the prices they want for the pre-packaged stuff it's a ripoff (IMO), so hold off until you have the space. That's just what I'd do though.


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## MattLink (Oct 23, 2012)

When Link was about 3-4 months I switched him to Raw when my vet introduced me to the prepackaged raw meals by pets4life. It was great, Link was healthy and it showed, he loved it and so did I. After a while though, the cost of that food began to rival my Rent. I worked 12 hour shifts multiple times a week and still didn't have money for myself, and I was missing out on time with Link, which depressed me and wasn't good for him. Before taking up that diet, Id suggest you figure out the actual costs, I didn't want to be jumping around from one food to the next all the time. 

I believe a 4lb bag came in at around $25 (for a cheaper one), and an ideal GSD adult weight is something like 80lbs. So if not now at his current size, eventually a GSD pup would eat 4% of 80lbs a day, totaling about 96lbs a month which comes to about $600/month. Of course you can buy larger quantities at a little less but this is a fair assessment of what you may pay at these rates. Then add in vet bills, toys, etc. 

Don't get me wrong, nothing against the food, I'd recommend it if you can handle it, and eventually the amount he eats gets cut in half, just think it over first, it's not very cost effective for large breeds. I now DIY raw meals, and the learning process is/was a huge hurtle. I also don't have a freezer for my dog but am able to store almost 2 weeks of food at a time in my fridge freezer on one shelf, along with my food, and the two other adults here on the other + in the door. Also, if you can afford prepackaged raw, you should be able to pick up a small used freezer. 


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## Courtney (Feb 12, 2010)

I switched from Bravo to Primal last year...no issues. I switch between the different varieties. It is costly but I personally like the convenience so it's worth it to me. I do give raw meaty bones a couple times per week because he likes to crunch the bones...turkey necks, etc. I also give raw green tripe from A Place For Paws.

One day I will do the DIY raw....but not today


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## Angela (Mar 22, 2011)

The commercial raw diets are generally much more expensive than feeding prey model raw meaty bones and organs, easily 4x the cost, depending on your meat source. Whole pieces of meaty bones are much better for their teeth and jaws than eating a diet of ground up food. The commercial raw foods are much higher in fat and lower in protein than raw meaty bones and organs. Almost all of them include some type of fruit and vegetables or other ingredient to use as a binder and thickener. 

We fed prey model raw for about 4 years without having a separate freezer. We just bought what we needed for them at the same time we shopped for ourselves, we are mostly eating the same thing anyway. We finally got a 20 cu ft chest freezer so I can shop monthly specifically for them. But I'm also buying in bulk for us too, now. 

As far as puppies, our youngest is now 2 years old but we started her on raw right away when we brought her home as a puppy. We just ground the meaty bones ourself, then moved her to chunks and finally whole pieces.


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## Rosie428 (Jan 16, 2013)

Carriesue said:


> I'm thinking of switching my pup to a raw diet, I was thinking about feeding the Primal brand because I have a terribly weak stomach and I just don't think I can handle organs or blood.
> 
> Any thoughts on this food? I know it's going to be more expensive overall.
> Primal Pet Foods: Wholesome Raw Food for Dogs and Cats
> ...


Although most on this particular thread ar discussing, Prey Model, I feed BARF. I have a HORRIBLY weak stomach, and I have gotten used to it. As long as your puppy has no health issues, and you handle the meat correctly, it is very safe. 

For me, the benefit of feeding raw is knowing what my dog is consuming. In the pre-packaged mixes, you really just can't be sure. But I will say, I recommend pre-packed raw over no raw! Good luck!


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## Carriesue (Aug 13, 2012)

Well my problem is that my husband is a vegetarian, he is not against giving the dogs meat, it's just to make things easier we pretty much eat vegetarian at home... So much so that I don't like real burgers anymore.

We rarely have meat in the house, we never have raw meat because I'm not much of a cook and it would only be for me. Our house is small and we do not have room for a separate freezer, I'm also not working right now and there's no way I could convince my husband to buy a freezer for the dogs especially since he is against raw feeding.

Everybody has seemed against the packaged stuff so I've kind of given up on feeding raw for now. I was given some free samples of the packaged stuff so I've been giving him that in his kibble(he's on Fromm LBP) along with raw eggs a few times a week. I also plan on giving him raw bones too.

That's about the best I can do with what I've got right now.


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