# New to BARF Diet



## Sibze (Jan 30, 2013)

Hello everyone!

We are getting a little German Shepherd puppy come May. I have done a LOT of reading on the BARF diet and love what it does for the dogs and really want to continue the BARF diet for him.

What I need a little bit of help with is WHAT to actually feed him. I have lived on Welcome to the Raw Dog Ranch (amazing site - thank you!)

So from what I have read this is how I see breaking it down:

Based upon him being 80 Pounds (I obviously cannot say for sure how big he will be, but I thought this would be a good starting point. His dad is 85 pounds)

2.25% of body weight is 1.8 pounds or 28.8 ounces of meat per day.

45% Raw Meaty Bones
50% Muscle Meat
5% Organ Meat

Rounded to 28 Ounces per day:
RMB – 12.6
MM – 14
OM – 1.4

2% - 1.6 Pounds or 25.6 ounces
Rounded to 25 Ounces per day:
RMB – 11.25
MM – 12.5
OM – 1.25

So, as long as I have done that right rolleyes what meats should I buy to put into those categories and how often should I be switching it up??

I know RMB should be things like chicken neck and chicken wings however, I KNOW I cannot just give him 12 ounces of chicken wings everyday...

MM - Beef heart, and pork heart?

OM - liver or kidneys?

So... I am a newbie, I am sorry. Any help for the newbie? Just want to make sure I am doing the right thing for the little guy.

After I get all this down, I will then have to research and probably ask all of you again, how to edit this for a puppy.

Thank you!
Chris


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## Sibze (Jan 30, 2013)

One more quick note. 

I know there are a lot of threads on here about menu's and I have gone through them. I am just confused as they list a lot of different meats all in one category. I know as I get more and more comfortable with BARF feeding I can change things up, I am just looking for a starting point.


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## jprice103 (Feb 16, 2011)

When starting the diet, you may want to start with one protein source, then work up to the others. This is a good way to rule out any allergies to any food.

Here is what I would start with:

RMBs - chicken wings and chicken necks, like you said. They are small enough that a puppy won't have any issues. 

MM - I'd start with ground chicken, or just cut into smaller pieces.

OM - chicken livers would be good to start with.

After a week or two on that, then you can start adding additional protein sources like pork, ground turkey, ground beef, beef heart, pork heart, etc. I would only add 1 new protein a week just to make sure he does well on it.

I'd stick with the chicken wings and necks, until he gets bigger. Then you can add chicken backs, turkey necks, chicken thighs, chicken legs, chicken leg quarters, pork necks, etc.

And for OM, just stick with any liver or kidney. I usually feed beef liver/kidney mix that I get from my supplier.

I've been feeding raw for about 8 months now, and am loving it! Its kind of intimidating at first, but you'll be a pro in no time!


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## jprice103 (Feb 16, 2011)

I just wanted to add that I feed chicken thighs and legs for RMBs EVERY day. I mix up the proteins in their MM to give a variety, but the RMBs are always chicken. So you really CAN give them every day, as long as you add other protein sources elsewhere.


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## Sibze (Jan 30, 2013)

So would you have different meats at the same time at some point? Or do you just feed a different meat a different day. 

So what I am trying to say (lol) I have a few weeks of Chicken Necks, then I add some Beef. Would you take away some weight of chicken necks and add the beef? Or just give the beef on a different day?


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## Sibze (Jan 30, 2013)

jprice103 said:


> I just wanted to add that I feed chicken thighs and legs for RMBs EVERY day. I mix up the proteins in their MM to give a variety, but the RMBs are always chicken. So you really CAN give them every day, as long as you add other protein sources elsewhere.


 
Haha ok! So does your RMB's stay the same all the time and change up the MM's?


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## andreaB (Nov 6, 2011)

My boy is on raw 8 months now, doing great.
I also give chicken with bone every day, and sometimes pork with bone. I find out he was picky about kidneys and some days livers, so what i do past 2 motnhs is i ground all organ meat (kidneys, liver, gizards) together with heart (beef) and sometimes other musle meat. He will eats all,no picking no leftovers. Still looking for other kinds of meat, but for now i feed chicken, beef , some pork and fish.


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## jprice103 (Feb 16, 2011)

Sibze said:


> Haha ok! So does your RMB's stay the same all the time and change up the MM's?


Yep! I make a mixture of MM, OM, Tripe and Eggs. I always get ground muscle meat and make a mix that looks like a meatloaf consistency. Sometimes the muscle meat is beef, sometimes turkey, sometimes salmon, but the RMBs are almost always chicken. Every now and then, I'll get some turkey necks or duck necks, but not very often.

For OM, I mostly use the Beef Organ Mix, but will sometimes use a Pork Organ mix. My dogs aren't too big on pork, but when it is ground and added to the mixture, they don't even realize its in there!


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## Sibze (Jan 30, 2013)

andreaB said:


> My boy is on raw 8 months now, doing great.
> I also give chicken with bone every day, and sometimes pork with bone. I find out he was picky about kidneys and some days livers, so what i do past 2 motnhs is i ground all organ meat (kidneys, liver, gizards) together with heart (beef) and sometimes other musle meat. He will eats all,no picking no leftovers. Still looking for other kinds of meat, but for now i feed chicken, beef , some pork and fish.





jprice103 said:


> Yep! I make a mixture of MM, OM, Tripe and Eggs. I always get ground muscle meat and make a mix that looks like a meatloaf consistency. Sometimes the muscle meat is beef, sometimes turkey, sometimes salmon, but the RMBs are almost always chicken. Every now and then, I'll get some turkey necks or duck necks, but not very often.
> 
> For OM, I mostly use the Beef Organ Mix, but will sometimes use a Pork Organ mix. My dogs aren't too big on pork, but when it is ground and added to the mixture, they don't even realize its in there!


 

Thank you both! GREAT info!


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## Sibze (Jan 30, 2013)

Do you feed once a day? Or more then once?


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## andreaB (Nov 6, 2011)

I use to feed twice, morning usually ground meat ( my all meat/organ mix)with Nupro and musle meat and bone evening. I switch to once a day two weeks ago, will see how it goes.


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## andreaB (Nov 6, 2011)

I did not start him on raw when he was puppy so i can really help with that part of you question. sorry


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## jprice103 (Feb 16, 2011)

I feed twice a day. MM and OM in the morning and RMBs at night.


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## Cheyanna (Aug 18, 2012)

Fiona has been on raw BARF for a week now. I do 1 pound in the morning and 1 pound in the evening. She is almost 9 months and 60 pounds. I follow the % for RMB, MM, OM. She acts hungry all the time. Going back to her bowl to lick it clean again. Is this normal? Am I not feeding her enough? She will sometimes eat a cup of kibble before bed, her choice.


Sent from Petguide.com Free App


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## Sibze (Jan 30, 2013)

So my wife and I have been talking about the raw diet a lot. She is concerned that it is going to take up too much time and is complicated.

What would be an example of a meal that could keep it simple but also still give the dog what it needs?


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## andreaB (Nov 6, 2011)

won't lie it did take some time to get organize. By how i have routine down. Have to see what is working for you. I ground organs with meat once a month, devide in plastic containers. And other containers have meat with bones, mix of chicken, pork, turkey, also try do prepare monthly, but somethimes more often. So I prepare all and than it goes from freezer to fridge as needed. It does take some time, but he is doing so great on raw


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## USMC-k9 (Feb 6, 2013)

Sibze said:


> Hello everyone!
> 
> *We are getting a little German Shepherd puppy* come May. I have done a LOT of reading on the BARF diet and love what it does for the dogs and really want to continue the BARF diet for him.
> 
> ...


I was under the impression that you feed a raw diet based on current weight and not adult weight. Can someone else elaborate? I too am new to the raw diet.


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