# Buying raw food



## kbella999 (Jan 6, 2012)

I've been doing raw for about 3 months now and my dogs and I love it. I was really scared at first because I wasn't sure of where I would get the food. Going to Petsmart and picking up a bag of food wouldn't work anymore. I bought a lot at the local grocery store and had friends pick up stuff from Texas when they went down there. I was able to get a local wholesaler to get me some beef heart for $1.16 lb. At first he didn't want to talk to me but when he found out that I wanted over 100lbs he was interested. I ended up with 120 lbs of beef heart and now my freezer is almost full. I feel like I hit the lottery with this. I figured it up and I am now paying less than what I was paying for the bagged kibble.


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## 4score (Nov 4, 2011)

Glad to hear you are doing well with your dog's raw diet! Are you altering the protein source (chicken, lamb, turkey, duck, etc)?

We are trying to rotate different meats with our 5.5 month old. He LOVES it!

Cheers!


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## Packen (Sep 14, 2008)

You definitely need to shop around more, we buy wholesale pretty cheap @ 40lbs boxes for $13 each.


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

Beef heart is not something I'd feed daily unless it is just a partial portion. 
40# of what Packen? 

I get leg 1/4's for about 70 cents a pound, turkey necks are $1# and pork neck bones are $1.29(not in bulk) 
Liver is less than a buck#, but turkey hearts and ground turkey is almost $2 per #. 
Green tripe in bulk runs almost $2#. 
I'm in a co-op and pay $70 per month for about 160# of past sale date meat from a big box. It is really only $40 but I give the source extra for fuel costs. 

If you feed raw, you should be feeding a balance of meat/organ/bone and adding supplements, it isn't just what you can get cheap and feed it until the supply depletes.


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## Emoore (Oct 9, 2002)

onyx'girl said:


> Beef heart is not something I'd feed daily unless it is just a partial portion.


Why not, I thought it was just a muscle meat?


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

Very rich, and if that's all you are feeding, it can cause runny poo. Even with bone, it wouldn't be something I'd give as a lone MM.


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## Emoore (Oct 9, 2002)

Good to know, as I expand my raw "palette."


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## Packen (Sep 14, 2008)

onyx'girl said:


> 40# of what Packen?


Yummy chicken necks


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## 4score (Nov 4, 2011)

Packen said:


> You definitely need to shop around more, we buy wholesale pretty cheap @ 40lbs boxes for $13 each.


That's pretty good...our coop has 40 pounds of chicken necks for $21.74.


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## kbella999 (Jan 6, 2012)

Chicken necks would be a lot cheaper than beef hearts. I was only posting about the good deal I got on beef hearts. I do also feed chicken, beef liver, beef kidney, turkey, some pork and some duck. They also get tripe and soon they will also get sardines too. 


Packen said:


> Yummy chicken necks


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## jprice103 (Feb 16, 2011)

Emoore said:


> Why not, I thought it was just a muscle meat?


Wouldn't heart be considered organ meat? This is why I am scared to go raw...I'm so afraid I'll mess something up!!


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## kbella999 (Jan 6, 2012)

No, heart is considered MM. I was also afrait to start but I was lucky to have a friend to hold my hand and answer all my questions. 



jprice103 said:


> Wouldn't heart be considered organ meat? This is why I am scared to go raw...I'm so afraid I'll mess something up!!


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

Heart is a muscle, hence heart = muscle meat. 

Organs are kidneys, liver, brain, eyes, lungs ... those are the most common.

Beef heart used to be my main muscle meat. Dogs would get half their daily intake in beef heart since I could get it around $.60/lb. It's the one beef item ALL my dogs can eat.

Pork heart is also a good MM.

I never had problems feeding my guys heart. Mauser would get 16 ounces of it once a day, every day for a week and not a single problem with loose stools.


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## Minnieski (Jan 27, 2009)

What about gizzards? Are they muscle meat or organs?


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## 4score (Nov 4, 2011)

Minnieski said:


> What about gizzards? Are they muscle meat or organs?


Gizzards are considered muscle meat. Apparently not the best MM to use though.


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## staceybullock (Mar 22, 2012)

Where in Texas are you getting 40# of chicken necks for $21.74? I'm in Houston, and looking for good sources of protein besides chicken ~ eventually ~ I've just started feeding Raw and Baron has a VERY sensitive digestive track, so its slow to change or introduce anything new. Right now he's doing well on Chicken necks, hearts, leg quarters, and ground organ meat, most of which I purchased at Bones2go, but they're far, and sounds like a little high...


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## Packen (Sep 14, 2008)

staceybullock said:


> Where in Texas are you getting 40# of chicken necks for $21.74? I'm in Houston, and looking for good sources of protein besides chicken ~ eventually ~ I've just started feeding Raw and Baron has a VERY sensitive digestive track, so its slow to change or introduce anything new. Right now he's doing well on Chicken necks, hearts, leg quarters, and ground organ meat, most of which I purchased at Bones2go, but they're far, and sounds like a little high...


We get 40lbs chicken necks for $13 from 
Bassham Foods


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## kbella999 (Jan 6, 2012)

You should check out texastripe.com. I believe #40 of Unenhanced chicken necks would be about $20 and I think they deliver to Houston. 



staceybullock said:


> Where in Texas are you getting 40# of chicken necks for $21.74? I'm in Houston, and looking for good sources of protein besides chicken ~ eventually ~ I've just started feeding Raw and Baron has a VERY sensitive digestive track, so its slow to change or introduce anything new. Right now he's doing well on Chicken necks, hearts, leg quarters, and ground organ meat, most of which I purchased at Bones2go, but they're far, and sounds like a little high...


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## krystyne73 (Oct 13, 2010)

Hey at least you are getting responses lol
Apparently my post of raw in Oklahoma doesn't help 
 not enough raw feeders in OK I guess 

I am starting raw next week when their dog food runs out.


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## PoBD (Feb 12, 2012)

We gave our GSD and Sibe raw meat and bone yesterday, they were in heaven, we really really want to have them both on the raw diet asap, it just seems like right now we can't afford it. I did read through the entire thread and I'm going to make some notes and start calling coops and butchers to see what I can get....

does anyone include veggies and fruit?? We've been advised they need a little vegetation with their meat


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## TimberGSD2 (Nov 8, 2011)

PoBD said:


> We gave our GSD and Sibe raw meat and bone yesterday, they were in heaven, we really really want to have them both on the raw diet asap, it just seems like right now we can't afford it. I did read through the entire thread and I'm going to make some notes and start calling coops and butchers to see what I can get....
> 
> does anyone include veggies and fruit?? We've been advised they need a little vegetation with their meat


My min pin loves his carrots and bell peppers as treats but I do not feed them veggies/fruits as a staple of their diet. From what I've researched they don't need it but it won't hurt to give as treats. It all comes out the way it goes in.


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## PoBD (Feb 12, 2012)

TimberGSD2 said:


> My min pin loves his carrots and bell peppers as treats but I do not feed them veggies/fruits as a staple of their diet. From what I've researched they don't need it but it won't hurt to give as treats. It all comes out the way it goes in.



Moro (husky) LOVES pears, we have a pear tree in our yard. We haven't given Juno anything yet as far as veggies. I think carrots would be a good start, like you said as treats or mix a few baby carrots in with meat.


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## kbella999 (Jan 6, 2012)

Research the difference in prey model raw vs Barf. You will find lots of information on whether or not to feed vegetables. Then make the decision you feel is best. For me, it is prey model and no vegies.



PoBD said:


> does anyone include veggies and fruit?? We've been advised they need a little vegetation with their meat


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## tarvern (Apr 10, 2012)

hello green valley farm is just in the next state to you they are in georgia cartersville they have whole frozen rabbit with heart, liver, lungs, kidneys and with or without head and fur and they only charge us $3.50lb and thats really good price for rabbit we use them and love them you can pick up at thier farm or they can ship to you either way so when you start to feed raw i recomend them we have used them for several years and wouldnt trade them for any thing they are great and every thing is vac. sealed when you get it infact they even sale goat meat its a little more costly but we buy it from time to time its like $4.00lb


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