# New to Feeding Raw



## Lopez (Feb 28, 2017)

Hi! 

I posted a couple weeks ago about my dogs eating issues and got great feedback and she has been eating better. I weaned her off kibble and she hasn't been eating ground turkey, chicken, and beef with Honest Kitchen base pre mix and a little raw goats milk. She always eats whole eggs usually once a day and eats raw chicken necks once in a while.
What should I be feeding her regularly? Should I be giving her a vitamin or supplement as well? For her food, I want to do something where I can make it on a Sunday and have it ready, so preferably in bulk. I have a great local butcher I could get meat from, just need to let him know what. 
Can someone guide me with a few recipes or started ideas? I want to make sure my girl is getting everything she needs. She is about 8 months old right now, she is not spayed, average activity, and weighs about 60 pounds right now. She's not overweight by any means, and is a healthy lean. Her parents are very healthy, large dogs which they passed down to her. 
And she will eat just about anything! 

Can't wait to hear these pointers!


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## sanjo (Feb 22, 2017)

I am new to all of this as well - but a good video I found (and I'm sure there are many others) was this one.






It should give you a good idea of what is involved as well as appropriate foods and amounts of them like(%bone meat, %muscle meat and %organ meat ratios)

Every dog will be a little different - the overall theme is that RAW diets are a lot of work but honestly after everything I've learned and the pros and cons - I plan to just feed a really high quality kibble like 'Royal Canin GSD' it's the best fit for my lifestyle and the lack of availability of food for a raw diet in my area. That said I will be feeding them raw boneless skinless chicken meat - or salmon/mackerel a few times a month - also whole raw eggs from our chickens once a day. (shell and all when an appropriate age) to ensure proper overall nutrition. (not trying to sway your decision, just what I decided to do)

Good luck on your quest for knowledge!


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## Slamdunc (Dec 6, 2007)

That video makes feeding raw way to difficult. Also, heart is muscle meat and not organ meat. Overall, he does a nice job feeding and varying the proteins, but I would not throw all the fat away either. For vegetables, they need to be pureed before using. Dogs can not break down the cellulose in plant walls unless it is pureed. 

I also use less expensive meat like chicken 1/4's, thighs with bone and 70/30 ground beef for muscle meat. Dogs need fat as an energy source. I do add in tripe and organ meat and occasionally a green smoothie. Yogurt is excellent to add to your dog's diet and I use the 4% whole fat plain yogurt. I only give eggs 2 - 3 times a week, don't over do it on the raw eggs. 

Feeding raw is not rocket science and can be done at about the same cost as feeding a high quality kibble. It is more work than scooping two cups of kibble out of a bag. IME, it is well worth the extra work and time. 

Ohh, the prong collar on that dog at the end of the video is like 6 links to big. It's ok as a decoration, like a MR T starter set, but not as a collar like that. Exactly, how you do not use or fit a prong collar.


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## Mesonoxian (Apr 5, 2012)

To achieve an overall balance, the diet should consist of 80% Muscle meat, 10% bone, 5% liver, 5% other secreting organ (spleen, pancreas, kidney, testes, ovaries). *Note: Heart is not considered an "organ," it is fed as muscle meat.

For adults, you'll generally feed 2.5-3% of their bodyweight daily. Puppies are fed 2.5-3% of anticipated adult weight daily. Adjust percentage up or down depending on your dog's body condition. (% may change throughout the year depending on activity level, as well)

Never be shy about asking for advice - in my experience, most raw feeders are always happy to help a newbie. Just remember, that when you do ask for advice/opinions, you're likely to get *many* varied responses! Which is why...

...Personal research is your friend! Here are some good starting resources:
The Raw Feeding Community (they also have a facebook page.)
Raw Dog Ranch
The Natural Dog - Raw Diet
Raw Fed

And never forget the golden rule of raw feeding: "know thy dog!" - No one sees and knows your dog as well as you do, and you're much more likely to be able to gauge reactions and predict possible issues.


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## Momto2GSDs (Mar 22, 2012)

Hi Lopez!

Since you just switched her to HK Base + meat, why not leave her on that for a while?

Here are other references for you to research raw feeding.
 http://rawfeddogs.net/
http://www.rawfed.com/
http://www.rawfed.com/myths/
http://rawlearning.com/
http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/search/index.html (for finding bone percentages)
Raw Fed Dogs - Natural Prey Model Rawfeeding Diet
Natural Raw Diet For Pets - Dogs Healthy Food & Pet Nutrition Products
The Original Top 50 BARF FAQs for Beginners - BARF: A Bones and Raw Food Diet for Dogs

*RAW PREY MODEL DIET*
*By: Nicki Simonson*

Some of the benefits of feeding raw: 
-fresh breath 
-diminished doggy odor 
-dogs are mentally stimulated 
-dogs generally eat their food right away 
-smaller poops 
-increased energy 
-shiny coats
-slower, steadier growth in puppies (important for large/giant breeds!)

The main points: 

-dogs should be fed 2% of their ideal adult body weight daily*
-the goal is 80% meat, 10% bone, 10% organs.* I generally try to balance this over a week's time.
-go slowly at first... too much, too fast can cause loose stool. 

*These percentages are guidelines. My GSD male needs a lot more than 2% because he has such a high metabolism and is constantly moving. Also, some dogs need more or less bone…… just look at the poop. If it's loose, add more bone. If the dog is constipated, add less bone.
More info: https://www.facebook.com/notes/nicki-simonson/raw-prey-model-diet/437610758104/ 

I start new dogs on chicken. Many people buy whole chickens and cut them up, but I don’t like to deal with cutting them up so I buy leg quarters. (Bone in chicken breasts are generally a good choice for puppies, the bones are the easiest and there is a good bone to meat ratio). Check the sodium content: if it's over 80, it's enhanced and you'll want to pass. Most of the Gold N Plump sold at my local grocery store is un-enhanced. 

You can decide whether or not you want to take the skin and excess fat off the first few days. I did this for a couple of days when starting mine raw, but I don't believe I would've needed to. My dogs were just fine.

Simply hand your dog a chicken quarter (you can feed outside if you like... I fed inside at first because I wanted a more controlled environment). Don't be surprised if he doesn't immediately gobble it up. He may try to lick it to death first.

You'll want to feed nothing but chicken for the first couple of weeks. The bone content will be a bit high... but that's okay since bone = firm poops, and her tummy will be adjusting to the new food. 

Don't be surprised if your dog "guards" his food, even if he's never done this before. It is completely natural. Think about if you've been fed nothing but dry cereal your whole entire life and someone hands you a big, juicy steak. You'd guard that sucker, too! He WILL get used to the fact that he's going to get this fantastic food every day and become nonchalant about eating. The key is to NOT mess with his food. If you mess with his food, he'll start to worry that you will take it away. 

Don't be surprised if, once he starts to realize how amazingly good chicken is, he horks down his food and then almost immediately throws it up again. Let him eat it a second time (gross, I know, but it's what he'd do if he were a wolf in the wild). My Rottie occasionally does this and then seems to learn his lesson for a time... and for the next few days he'll eat much slower and more carefully. My German Shepherd female is an AMAZINGLY wonderful eater. She carefully chews everything. 

Your dog will be on just chicken for two weeks so that will give you plenty of time to choose your next protein source. I decided to go with pork, because it is inexpensive and readily available. When you start your second protein source, add just a bit of it to a chicken meal, so his tummy gets used to this new meat. Gradually increase the amount until you're feeding a full pork (or other protein) meal. Repeat these steps when adding beef, turkey, lamb, venison, etc. 

Most pork bones are fine for medium dogs on up, but smaller dogs will not be able to crunch some of the larger ones. I personally do not feed beef bones. They are generally too dense for all but the giant breed dogs. If your dog is careful and will eat around the bone without breaking his teeth trying to crunch it up, you can feed these “rec” bones. It will give your dog hours of entertainment and you some free time. ;-)

When adding organs, make sure you start small, since they are rich and can cause loose stool before the dog is used to them. Organs are the “powerhouse” when it comes to nutrients, vitamins, etc. If you compare organ meat with vegetables, you’ll find a lot of the same nutrients… but organs have a higher content. That is why dogs do not require veggies… because they’re getting what they need from the 10% organ in their diet. Wolves in the wild may munch on grass or eat stomach content, but they generally do this out of preference rather than need.

You must also add a source of Omega 3. It should be a protein source, and not flax based. Flax is not easily converted by dogs and many of them are actually allergic to it. I used to use salmon oil capsules, but with the recent lawsuits over PCPs in fish oil pills, I’ve started using canned sardines in water. I give each of my dogs a can of sardines 3x per week. A typical week looks like this:

Monday: morning – chicken. Evening – pork, sardines
Tuesday: morning – chicken. Evening – beef, beef liver
Wednesday: morning – chicken. Evening – pork
Thursday: morning – chicken. Evening – pork, sardines
Friday: morning – chicken. Evening – pork, beef liver
Saturday: morning – chicken. Evening – beef, sardines
Sunday: morning – chicken. Evening – pork

I get other kinds of meat (turkey, lamb, etc.) when they are on sale. I get venison whenever I can… it’s the BEST for them…. Plus they love it!

[FONT=&quot]BTW---Pork should be frozen for 2 weeks prior to feeding.


Moms :smile2:
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## ausdland (Oct 21, 2015)

^ 2-3% of ideal body weight for a puppy? Not my pup. Did that and her ribs were showing from the sides and top! I'm feeding 4% and hope that works. If not, back to THK plus meat..


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## Galathiel (Nov 30, 2012)

are you feeding 2-3 percent of her current weight or anticipated weight ausdland? It is usually 2-3 percent of what you think she will be as an adult or 10 % (ish) of her current weight (I've read). My grown guy eats around 2 lbs a day + an extra 350 calories or so a day of THK base mix.


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