# Fairly new to raw feeding... Questions!



## GypsyGhost (Dec 29, 2014)

We recently switched both of our dogs to raw after discovering Bash had some pretty serious food intolerances to the binders in kibble. Anyway, Bash's switch went great. He hasn't had any digestive upset since starting raw. Roxy, on the other hand, isn't doing as well. She has very soft stool. Right now, she's only on chicken, and I haven't even added skin or organ meat to her diet yet, as her stool is pretty terrible. Other than icky poop, she seems pretty much fine. Maybe a little more tired than normal, but she is about 9 years old, has MCTs, spondylosis and arthritis, so the tiredness may have nothing to do with the new diet.

My question is this... How long does it typically take for a dog's digestive system to adjust to raw? Should I be concerned that she's been eating raw for a week and still has icky poop? Could she possibly be intolerant to chicken? Should we try a different meat source? We just ordered a NutriScan test for her as well, but obviously don't have results yet. Any advice or personal experiences will be greatly appreciated!


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## Cschmidt88 (Nov 24, 2010)

Every dog is different, by mixed breed boy took a month to fully get through the detox stage. His coat looked horrid at first. This is what I went by for switching him. 
How to get started feeding a Prey Model Raw Diet - Raw Chat - PMR Articles - articles - Prey Model Raw

Are her stools just a bit loose, or totally? 

What type of chicken are you giving her? If she's nto getting enough bone that will give her loose stool as well. When first starting a dog you want more bone than usual. For example, I started my boy on chicken backs. (Some dogs can get away with less though)


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## GypsyGhost (Dec 29, 2014)

Cschmidt88 said:


> Every dog is different, by mixed breed boy took a month to fully get through the detox stage. His coat looked horrid at first. This is what I went by for switching him.
> How to get started feeding a Prey Model Raw Diet - Raw Chat - PMR Articles - articles - Prey Model Raw
> 
> Are her stools just a bit loose, or totally?
> ...


Her stools are pretty loose. I'd say almost soft serve consistency. It's also a weird orangey-brown color. We just had her yearly exam done, so we know there is no other cause for the loose stool (at least not of the parasite variety). She only goes once or twice per day, and there doesn't seem to be any urgency about it for her. I've been feeding her bone in chicken breast and chicken thighs. No skin yet. No organs. She definitely has a delicate GI system. It took us a long time to find a kibble that worked for her. I will try to find chicken backs, as that would surely be more bone than she's getting now. 

Thanks for the link!


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## Cschmidt88 (Nov 24, 2010)

I have one boy who seems to need a bit more bone than most dogs, I feed him whole leg quarters (this is after he adjusted), thighs or breasts are too little bone for him and his stool would be loose. Hopefully the backs clear it up for you until she adjusts. Unfortunately I've never had a dog sensitive/allergic to certain meats so I Can't quite help there.


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## Shade (Feb 20, 2012)

Definitely try adding more bone and see if that firms things up


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## Neko (Dec 13, 2012)

I don't feed raw, never will, but wanted to add that my dog is allergic to chicken protein and eats salmon based food. Just make sure it's not that  Our vet has found a huge number of GSD'S that come to him allergic to chicken and an amazing transformation since those dogs stopped it in their diet.


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## GypsyGhost (Dec 29, 2014)

Neko said:


> I don't feed raw, never will, but wanted to add that my dog is allergic to chicken protein and eats salmon based food. Just make sure it's not that  Our vet has found a huge number of GSD'S that come to him allergic to chicken and an amazing transformation since those dogs stopped it in their diet.


That's why we're doing the NutriScan test. Weirdly enough, all of her scratching and paw licking has stopped since being on raw. I'm really hoping she's not intolerant of chicken. We can do raw without it, but it is going to cost a lot more if chicken isn't in the rotation!

I used to think I'd never feed raw, but when you have a puppy that has diarrhea for months on end on numerous different kibbles, you'll try anything. Now I can't imagine ever feeding a dog kibble again!


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## GypsyGhost (Dec 29, 2014)

Shade said:


> Definitely try adding more bone and see if that firms things up


I added more bone to her morning meal. There was no change so far, but maybe there will be tonight. One can hope!


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## Shade (Feb 20, 2012)

GypsyGhost said:


> I added more bone to her morning meal. There was no change so far, but maybe there will be tonight. One can hope!


It usually won't show until the next meal, then it's done 'processing'

Fingers crossed, pumpkin is another thing you can add to help firm things up as a short term fix


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## Neko (Dec 13, 2012)

GypsyGhost said:


> That's why we're doing the NutriScan test. Weirdly enough, all of her scratching and paw licking has stopped since being on raw. I'm really hoping she's not intolerant of chicken. We can do raw without it, but it is going to cost a lot more if chicken isn't in the rotation!
> 
> I used to think I'd never feed raw, but when you have a puppy that has diarrhea for months on end on numerous different kibbles, you'll try anything. Now I can't imagine ever feeding a dog kibble again!


I know how you feel. Zeus had that problem for 8 months, but we found the problem and now he is almost 3 and as healthy as can be  I know alot of people feed raw and that's fine, but for example chicken is cheap, but dogs really don't eat bird in the wild so weather it's really better or not is questionable. I don't want to start a debate as it has been done a million times, I am not against raw, but there is a wrong way to feed raw also and so called animals in the wild don't live as long as house dogs, people overlook that. I just trust my husbands who is a doctor and an amazing vet, they worked together to get our puppies where they are now. Our vet has been a great resource, he likes raw, but for people who are not that great at balancing it correctly he highly recommends honest kitchen. I wanted to try that as my "next" solution, but the dogs are currently amazing, they look fantastic, in great shape, we are in Florida and have no skin issues at all, just have no reason to do anything differently. I think NutriScan is a great idea!


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## Neko (Dec 13, 2012)

If pumpkin does not work, psyllium husk fiber capsules might do the trick. I don't know if you are working with a vet or solo on all this. But that's something we used to give twice a week. I still have it on hand in case upset stomach etc. but it helped alot. We just have the people supplement from walgreens.


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## carmspack (Feb 2, 2011)

digestion is chemical and digestion is mechanical.

adding pumpkin and bone is mechanical , fibre slowing the motion down .

chemical is your digestive enzymes and probiotics .

" Maybe a little more tired than normal, but she is about 9 years old, has MCTs, spondylosis and arthritis, so the tiredness may have nothing to do with the new diet."

this sounds like the dog is going through a detox sequence which does make them tired and which will have the less than beautiful poops and which might show as gooey eyes , shedding coat , and flaky skin. It's all being renovated ! 

this is an older dog so body repair is going to take longer and there is likely more extensive damage . 

first action is removal of waste and toxins and sloughing off damaged tissue to allow rebuilding to begin.

secondly the gastro intestinal tract is going have its gut flora re-seeded -- 

this is the repair and restoration . Allow the dog to rest .

work with the body , don't try to impede .
the body is trying to rid itself of waste , let it !

go slow , start low . don't expect an overnight result.

many times a day of fast is recommended for detoxing as this allows the body's enzymes to catch up with the removal of massive amounts of toxic waste , and , allows the initiation of autophagy.

Just reading one of the books written by a gastroenterologist who was the assistant to Dr Crohn , Hiromi Shinya medical pioneer and inventor , developer of what is now standard procedure non-invasive colonoscopic surgery , professor of surger Albert Einstein College of Medicine , head of Endoscopic Center Beth Israel Hospital as well as advisor and vice chairman to Japanese clinics and Japanese Medical Association in USA.

he knows his poop.


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## GypsyGhost (Dec 29, 2014)

Thanks, Carmen! Roxy is on Sunday Sundae (as is Bash), so I think we have the probiotics/enzymes covered. I figured it could be a massive detox for her, as she is older. So far, she seems completely happy, so I'm willing to ride it out. Might be a different story if she was totally miserable!


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## GypsyGhost (Dec 29, 2014)

Neko said:


> If pumpkin does not work, psyllium husk fiber capsules might do the trick. I don't know if you are working with a vet or solo on all this. But that's something we used to give twice a week. I still have it on hand in case upset stomach etc. but it helped alot. We just have the people supplement from walgreens.


We are doing it solo, as our regular vet isn't necessarily a proponent of raw. Their office is coming around, but they definitely wouldn't be able to help with making up a diet. Our holistic vet sells commercial raw, and doesn't really do anything with making up meal plans for those who choose not to feed commercial. She did give me a bunch of links to good sites, though, as well as some books to read. It's really not that difficult to come up with a balanced diet, as long as you do your research. I mean, of course you can't have a balanced diet if you're only going to feed ground chicken! It definitely takes a lot of careful consideration to make good choices here. People who aren't willing or can't for whatever reason give their dog a balanced raw diet shouldn't attempt to do it themselves. I'm glad there are commercial raw choices for people who don't want to do this themselves!


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## GypsyGhost (Dec 29, 2014)

Neko said:


> I know how you feel. Zeus had that problem for 8 months, but we found the problem and now he is almost 3 and as healthy as can be  I know alot of people feed raw and that's fine, but for example chicken is cheap, but dogs really don't eat bird in the wild so weather it's really better or not is questionable. I don't want to start a debate as it has been done a million times, I am not against raw, but there is a wrong way to feed raw also and so called animals in the wild don't live as long as house dogs, people overlook that. I just trust my husbands who is a doctor and an amazing vet, they worked together to get our puppies where they are now. Our vet has been a great resource, he likes raw, but for people who are not that great at balancing it correctly he highly recommends honest kitchen. I wanted to try that as my "next" solution, but the dogs are currently amazing, they look fantastic, in great shape, we are in Florida and have no skin issues at all, just have no reason to do anything differently. I think NutriScan is a great idea!


I totally get where you're coming from! I don't want to debate raw vs. kibble vs. homecooked, either! Everyone needs to do what works for them and their dogs. As long as it's balanced, then good on you! I'm totally a convert to raw, though.  I find it fascinating and I actually like researching how to properly balance meals. I like that I can give them individualized meals that will work for them. I'm a nerd like that, though.

We actually looked at THK before we got Bash's test results back. Glad we didn't try it as he can't have sweet potato! PMR seems to be the best way to go for him, as he doesn't tolerate sooooo many things that aren't meat!


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## GypsyGhost (Dec 29, 2014)

Just an update on Roxy... She has finally started to have normal, solid stool. It's been two days of very normal stool, so I'm going to leave the skin on her chicken tomorrow and see how she does. I'm going to give her the rest of this week on just chicken, then I'll be adding turkey!

I started adding beef to Bash's diet earlier this week and he's had a few days of not so great stool. I've backed off the amount of beef. I realize I should have added pork, venison or fish as the second protein, as red meat is pretty rich. Oops! I'm clearly still learning. 

Hopefully I can get them to both have normal stool at the same time soon!


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## BMF_Racing (Jul 14, 2015)

GypsyGhost said:


> Just an update on Roxy... She has finally started to have normal, solid stool. It's been two days of very normal stool, so I'm going to leave the skin on her chicken tomorrow and see how she does. I'm going to give her the rest of this week on just chicken, then I'll be adding turkey!
> 
> I started adding beef to Bash's diet earlier this week and he's had a few days of not so great stool. I've backed off the amount of beef. I realize I should have added pork, venison or fish as the second protein, as red meat is pretty rich. Oops! I'm clearly still learning.
> 
> Hopefully I can get them to both have normal stool at the same time soon!


Anymore updates on how the Raw diet is going?


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## GypsyGhost (Dec 29, 2014)

BMF_Racing said:


> Anymore updates on how the Raw diet is going?


It is going GREAT! Roxy is now on chicken and turkey, shiny coat, no odor, solid stool... she acts like a puppy again instead of a 9 year old dog with a bad back and cancer. It's really amazing! Bash is on chicken, beef and whitefish, also doing fantastic. We'll be adding pork to both of their diets next.


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## BMF_Racing (Jul 14, 2015)

GypsyGhost said:


> It is going GREAT! Roxy is now on chicken and turkey, shiny coat, no odor, solid stool... she acts like a puppy again instead of a 9 year old dog woth a bad back and cancer. It's really amazing! Bash is on chicken, beef and whitefish, also doing fantastic. We'll be adding pork to both of their diets next.


Great to hear. I'm recently new to raw also and agree with their energy level increase (very noticeable when I switched also).


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## amburger16 (May 22, 2015)

Neko said:


> I know how you feel. Zeus had that problem for 8 months, but we found the problem and now he is almost 3 and as healthy as can be  I know alot of people feed raw and that's fine, but for example chicken is cheap, but dogs really don't eat bird in the wild so weather it's really better or not is questionable. I don't want to start a debate as it has been done a million times, I am not against raw, but there is a wrong way to feed raw also and so called animals in the wild don't live as long as house dogs, people overlook that. I just trust my husbands who is a doctor and an amazing vet, they worked together to get our puppies where they are now. Our vet has been a great resource, he likes raw, but for people who are not that great at balancing it correctly he highly recommends honest kitchen. I wanted to try that as my "next" solution, but the dogs are currently amazing, they look fantastic, in great shape, we are in Florida and have no skin issues at all, just have no reason to do anything differently. I think NutriScan is a great idea!



The majority of wolves and wild dogs die of starvation (pups), and fights with other dogs over territory, etc. Wolves in the wild usually live been 6-8 years. Alot of domesticated dogs only live a few years longer, and considering they don't have to fight for their food, find shelter, and fight off other animals while protecting their pups I don't really consider it to be much a feat.


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## brandydan (May 7, 2015)

*Okay, had to jump in here, well, because...*



amburger16 said:


> The majority of wolves and wild dogs die of starvation (pups), and fights with other dogs over territory, etc. Wolves in the wild usually live been 6-8 years. Alot of domesticated dogs only live a few years longer, and considering they don't have to fight for their food, find shelter, and fight off other animals while protecting their pups I don't really consider it to be much a feat.


 
I don't understand how you (seem to) bash raw diets when you're in a raw diet forum.

As a wildlife biologist, I don't recall ever seeing any reports of wolves or wild dogs dying of starvation unless they were too injured/old to hunt or eat (since a pack will share food), or their food either died off from disease or were in turn hunted by humans (like elk which is the main prey for wolves up north). An entire pack will protect the alpha male and female's litter. 

That being said, I recall as a child (about, oh, 50 years or so ago), almost every kid on my block had a dog that was as old, if not older than them, and many dogs lived way past 12 years. Nowadays, if a dog is 12 it's considered a rarity. And it's not just the purebreds, but even our lovable mutts that are considered geriatric at 8 (so much for hybrid vigor). 

So, perhaps I'm misreading your paragraph, but if dogs that are pampered and fed kibble and have vet care live only a year or two longer than a wolf, why the (implied) snark about the CHOICE to feed raw?


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## amburger16 (May 22, 2015)

brandydan said:


> I don't understand how you (seem to) bash raw diets when you're in a raw diet forum.
> 
> As a wildlife biologist, I don't recall ever seeing any reports of wolves or wild dogs dying of starvation unless they were too injured/old to hunt or eat (since a pack will share food), or their food either died off from disease or were in turn hunted by humans (like elk which is the main prey for wolves up north). An entire pack will protect the alpha male and female's litter.
> 
> ...



I'm not bashing raw.. I feed it. I'm replying with facts to someone believes raw isn't any good because wild dogs do not live as long.

But in fact, it is possible for a wild dog to die of starvation. No matter what the circumstances around it...


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## amburger16 (May 22, 2015)

I also just realized how I typed the statement about starvation, and indeed the way I wrote it was incorrect. I'm aware that a pack will share and protect the alphas litter. I'm aware they died of disease, etc. The majority of the time I am on here I'm at work and can get distracted while replying.


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## lweber1215 (Sep 16, 2015)

I am trying to switch my 9 week old puppy over to raw, and am having some issues. So many sources say that it is best to switch cold turkey, and considering her breeder had given her raw food in the past (although not as their primary diet), I didn't think it would be a problem. I gave her chicken backs to start on, with some additional trimmed chicken breast to balance out the high percentage of bone, no organs, very little fat. She had explosive, water diarrhea for a week straight, and started to appear very thin. I was afraid to compromise her growth and joints as we plan to do competition work with her, and switched her back to the kibble she was eating (Earthborn Holistic Grain-Free) with 1tbsp of pumpkin and some additional probiotics until we saw a full week of solid stools. 

Last night, I gave her a raw meal, planning to do 2 meals kibble and then dinner raw to gradually switch her over, and again, explosive diarrhea last night and again this morning. Please help? I've heard about how feeding raw is great for large breed puppies to grow and develop slower (as long as the calcium/phosphorous balance is correct), but I can't even get her to digest one meal. I'm so torn =( 

Also, the breeder let us know that two of the puppies she was shipping out tested positive for Coccidia, which may be the problem, but she was doing ok on kibble. Our puppy's fecal came back saying shes positive for Giardia? Is it possible they got it confused? Should I treat for Coccidia also to be safe? I don't want to risk anything with her growth/health. Of course the vet is constantly trying to talk me out of raw.... Any help/advice would be GREATLY appreciated.


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## GypsyGhost (Dec 29, 2014)

lweber1215 said:


> I am trying to switch my 9 week old puppy over to raw, and am having some issues. So many sources say that it is best to switch cold turkey, and considering her breeder had given her raw food in the past (although not as their primary diet), I didn't think it would be a problem. I gave her chicken backs to start on, with some additional trimmed chicken breast to balance out the high percentage of bone, no organs, very little fat. She had explosive, water diarrhea for a week straight, and started to appear very thin. I was afraid to compromise her growth and joints as we plan to do competition work with her, and switched her back to the kibble she was eating (Earthborn Holistic Grain-Free) with 1tbsp of pumpkin and some additional probiotics until we saw a full week of solid stools.
> 
> Last night, I gave her a raw meal, planning to do 2 meals kibble and then dinner raw to gradually switch her over, and again, explosive diarrhea last night and again this morning. Please help? I've heard about how feeding raw is great for large breed puppies to grow and develop slower (as long as the calcium/phosphorous balance is correct), but I can't even get her to digest one meal. I'm so torn =(
> 
> Also, the breeder let us know that two of the puppies she was shipping out tested positive for Coccidia, which may be the problem, but she was doing ok on kibble. Our puppy's fecal came back saying shes positive for Giardia? Is it possible they got it confused? Should I treat for Coccidia also to be safe? I don't want to risk anything with her growth/health. Of course the vet is constantly trying to talk me out of raw.... Any help/advice would be GREATLY appreciated.


If your pup tested positive for giardia, that would certainly explain the watery diarrhea. I would let the vet know that two of your pup's littermates tested positive for coccidia and see what they say. If she's doing well on the kibble, I personally would leave her on it until you are sure the giardia was gone. Also, I would start your pup on a high quality probiotic, such as Sunday Sundae, immediately to help build up good bacteria in her GI tract.

What did the vet give you to treat the giardia? Bash had that as a puppy, which I think was the catalyst for his food intolerances. Two rounds of panacur cleared his giardia up, after a disasterous round of metronidazole, which actually made him worse.

As for switching to raw, I was advised to up the bone content for a bit when Roxy was having loose stool during the switch. She was not a young puppy, though, so perhaps someone with more knowledge will chime in about that.


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## counter (Feb 20, 2009)

amburger16 said:


> The majority of wolves and wild dogs die of starvation (pups), and fights with other dogs over territory, etc. Wolves in the wild usually live been 6-8 years. Alot of domesticated dogs only live a few years longer, and considering they don't have to fight for their food, find shelter, and fight off other animals while protecting their pups I don't really consider it to be much a feat.


 And captive raw-fed wolves live longer than wild wolves, just like captive (*domesticated*) dogs live longer than wild dogs. Agreed, it has little to do with the diet. People feeding raw normally aren't feeding old, rotting carcasses, which are sometimes what wild animals are forced to eat when they don't take down a fresh kill.

Like you said, there are a variety of non-food-related issues that wild dogs/wolves deal with (and domesticated/captive dogs don't) that shorten their lifespan.


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## lweber1215 (Sep 16, 2015)

GypsyGhost said:


> If your pup tested positive for giardia, that would certainly explain the watery diarrhea. I would let the vet know that two of your pup's littermates tested positive for coccidia and see what they say. If she's doing well on the kibble, I personally would leave her on it until you are sure the giardia was gone. Also, I would start your pup on a high quality probiotic, such as Sunday Sundae, immediately to help build up good bacteria in her GI tract.
> 
> What did the vet give you to treat the giardia? Bash had that as a puppy, which I think was the catalyst for his food intolerances. Two rounds of panacur cleared his giardia up, after a disasterous round of metronidazole, which actually made him worse.
> 
> As for switching to raw, I was advised to up the bone content for a bit when Roxy was having loose stool during the switch. She was not a young puppy, though, so perhaps someone with more knowledge will chime in about that.


Luckily I had a pretty good probiotic on hand, which is definitely making a difference (I forget the name right now). For the Giardia, she is on 5 days of 2g Panacur, which was actually suggested by my breeder to add when she started having the diarrhea, so luckily she was on that pretty early. I actually think she has a UTI now too, because she is having cloudy urine and peed on the floor 5 times in a little over an hour last night, and when we took her outside kept squatting but only a little came out. Poor girl =(

She's been getting raw for dinner the last couple days, with a little higher bone content.. we have whole ground chicken w/ 30% bone, and is having solid poops now (YAY!). So I will probably keep her on that regimen, just so something is consistent, until all the other issues are cleared up to accurately assess her diet. 

Thanks for the input, it's always nice to hear another person's experience with health issues. And good note on the metronidazole, I will definitely stay away from that!


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## Longfisher (Feb 28, 2013)

I'm not sure this helps, but my Zeus dislikes uncooked chicken but loves it cooked with the juices. So, that's who we feed it, given that it's important to vary the protein.

He also doesn't particularly care for completely rate port, beef, organ meats, etc. So, we cut it into cubes and cook it in a fry pan for 10 minutes at low head with, well, a touch of garlic. He won't eat it without garlic as he's so scent oriented and he loves garlic and basil.

We also sometimes see loose stools on his walks. But I don't know whether it's because of the vigorous exercise, excitement due to being out and sniffing everything in sight or from feeding raw. More often, I see well formed, completely stink-free, well-formed, chalk-like stools in the yard (after a few days they dry to powder) which go away with the next rain or watering of the yard.

My wife's grateful that her once every other day vocation of picking up enormous mounds of dog crap are over. No more land mines in the yard for the kids and guests. And, the dog's in better shape than ever in his life.

On reveiw, I see I'm misspelling a few words. Oh, well. I'm old and not getting younger. Apologies where needed.

LF


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## counter (Feb 20, 2009)

Longfisher said:


> I'm not sure this helps, but my Zeus dislikes uncooked chicken but loves it cooked with the juices.


 I'm hoping you mean cooked BONELESS chicken. I want anyone new to raw to understand to never feed cooked bones. I'm sure most, including LF, know this, but I don't want there to be any confusion. Not everyone reads a thread starting at the top. Sometimes they start at the bottom and work their way up through the newest replies first, and might not read older replies that explain to ONLY feed UNCOOKED (aka raw! :crazy bones. People have posted on here that they've fed cooked bones and never had a problem, but that's risk not worth taking if you look at the bigger picture and study the statistics of all the expensive stomach surgeries and potential deaths. Just an FYI to anyone not in the know.


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## lweber1215 (Sep 16, 2015)

Yes only raw bones! Actually she LOVES her raw food... She can barely contain herself while I'm prepping it, throwing herself all over the floor and screaming her tiny little head off. Consuming it was no problem at all, just getting her stool to stabilize. Her poops have evened out and she is doing well now with raw as one meal per day. I think she will be alright as long as we transition her over slowly and not cold turkey as many people have advised. Every pup is different I guess =)


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## Deutsch (Jun 7, 2015)

lweber1215 said:


> I am trying to switch my 9 week old puppy over to raw, and am having some issues. So many sources say that it is best to switch cold turkey, and considering her breeder had given her raw food in the past (although not as their primary diet), I didn't think it would be a problem. I gave her chicken backs to start on, with some additional trimmed chicken breast to balance out the high percentage of bone, no organs, very little fat. She had explosive, water diarrhea for a week straight, and started to appear very thin. I was afraid to compromise her growth and joints as we plan to do competition work with her, and switched her back to the kibble she was eating (Earthborn Holistic Grain-Free) with 1tbsp of pumpkin and some additional probiotics until we saw a full week of solid stools.
> 
> Last night, I gave her a raw meal, planning to do 2 meals kibble and then dinner raw to gradually switch her over, and again, explosive diarrhea last night and again this morning. Please help? I've heard about how feeding raw is great for large breed puppies to grow and develop slower (as long as the calcium/phosphorous balance is correct), but I can't even get her to digest one meal. I'm so torn =(
> 
> Also, the breeder let us know that two of the puppies she was shipping out tested positive for Coccidia, which may be the problem, but she was doing ok on kibble. Our puppy's fecal came back saying shes positive for Giardia? Is it possible they got it confused? Should I treat for Coccidia also to be safe? I don't want to risk anything with her growth/health. Of course the vet is constantly trying to talk me out of raw.... Any help/advice would be GREATLY appreciated.


Our vet likes using metronidazole for dogs with Giardia. Works well for us and our doggy personally, no side effects! Sadly Panacur can be hit or miss with side effects in my experience though it seems like it works a charm for everyone else in the world. Go figure 

Little info about the side effects etc etc (and a handy dosage calculator!) - Metronidazole For Dogs | Veterinary Place

If your dog isn't good with Panacur it might be worth giving that a go. Cheers!


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## carmspack (Feb 2, 2011)

for giardia the dog needs more than probiotics --- the dog needs digestive enzymes , particularly protease , and on an empty stomach .

gypsyghost - so glad to hear that the stools are normal !!


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## GypsyGhost (Dec 29, 2014)

Thanks Carmen! We added pork to Bash's diet this week and he's doing great with it! We just got Roxy's NutriScan results today... No whitefish, pork, venison or eggs for her. She's also intolerant of some grains, but I won't bother listing those as she wouldn't be eating them anyway. I'm even more convinced that the results are accurate now because we actually gave Roxy a little pork before we got the results and she did not tolerate it well (toxic gas and some drooling).


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