# Started RAW...Am I feeding him enough?



## zorroGSD (Jan 24, 2012)

Zorro is now 14weeks and wanted to move him to RAW. Did my research but still wasnt confident enough to start...then finally thought lets do it...and gave him a Chicken drumstick...he loved it...took nearly 15mins to chew the whole thing and after making sure all the bones were crushed he swallowed it(is it ok to swallow). So for the past 3days this is his diet:
Morning - 1cup Acana wild Prairie kibble
Noon - 2Chicken Drumstick + 1liver
Evening - 2Chicken Drumstick +1liver.


I feel I am feeding him a lot and cut the liver and 1drumstick for lunch today. Am I feeding him a lot? I read somewhere that I should be giving 2%his body weight of RAW..that makes it 0.5lbs...is this enough?
What are the choices to give from poultry and fish? I dont eat beef and pork and I am not comfortable to give those..but if they r the best for him then I dont mind giving it a try.

I know there are lot of newbies like me asking this question..but a suggestion or two will give me the confident that I am doing the right thing for Zorro.


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## lhczth (Apr 5, 2000)

Stop with the liver. Add one thing at a time. Organ meats, liver especially, tend to give many dogs diarrhea when first given. Not something to feed when in the beginning. 

I can't help with amounts since I have never fed raw and kibble together.


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

If you are not comfortable feeding meat, then stick with kibble. Your chicken leg isn't enough muscle meat and certainly not enough for a meal. Instead of a drumstick, go with a leg 1/4...that has some organ meat connected if it has the back attached and is a perfect sized meal/bone,meat ratio if it weighs nearly a pound. 

A 14 week old can handle chicken bones fine, but teething is taking place so make sure your pup is chewing ok. 
Look at Welcome to the Raw Dog Ranch for more information. 

A dog that will weigh 80# at adulthood should be fed around 2# of raw per day(1# per meal) with a good metabolism/activity level. There is a ton of info in the raw/barf forum...I would read some of the threads on kibble/raw combo meals. I don't feed kibble either~just raw.


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## Verivus (Nov 7, 2010)

Do you plan on staying half kibble? I would cut out all organ meats for now. If you only plan on feeding half kibble/raw he would need 1 lb/day, which is roughly the size of a chicken leg quarter. If you plan on going completely raw it's roughly 2 lbs/day. The 2% feeding is based off of adult weight, not puppy weight. Start with one protein only, once stools are normal you can add other proteins or small amounts of organ until stools are normal, etc etc.


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## Josie/Zeus (Nov 6, 2000)

If you can find Bravo in your area, start with that since you are a just starting out.

I will feed your puppy, just chicken for a whole week, then beef, turkey and so on. 

Also, join yahoogroups and look for BARF feeders in your area, best to buy in bulk. 

Where are you located?


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## Tuckland (Jul 22, 2011)

No need to feed both. Stop kibble and calculate 2-4% of the dog's weight (depending of the energy level 2% for lower energy up to 4% for very active dog) to find out how much raw to feed. Then, of that, feed 50% muscle meat, 45% raw meaty bones and 5% organs. Be careful with organs. It can be toxix if you give too much. Check out www.rawdogranch.com and www.preymodelraw.com. They give lists on exactly what is considered MM, RMB and organ meat. Hope this helps!


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