Going to feed my dogs raw food!

[collie/grey 238]

Well i never thought i would be doing this! BUT Rainmaker has inspried me, i feel awful feeding them dry, now i've read the facts. I'm going to phone around tomorrow and ask plenty of butchers etc for all their waste and start. My daughter has already started with her 2 dogs, she went to the supermarket and bought 10 chicken wings for £1.40.

 

Now she wants to know if this sounds right. She measure how much dry food she gives them and then measured the wings out the same. The lurcher weighs 29kg and measures out 2 chicken wings, the borzoi weighs 33kg and measures 3 chicken wings, does this sound right as it looks abit too little a portion.

 

Thanks in advance.

[barney 0]

Sure you won't regret the move to raw feeding....possibly except if you spill some tripe and pick it up with bare hands :sick: .

I suspect that the number of chicken wings you mention won't be enough for your daughters's dogs if thats their only meal tho I'm sure someone more knowledgeable than me will be better able to advise you.

On the days mine get two meals they all get 3 chicken wings(unless really big ones) in the morning:from how you describe the dogs they're bigger than mine(collie x lab; 25" lurcher and jtr x).They have a pack(450g) of tripe,lamb or chicken with veg at night time between them.None of mine work and these ammounts keep them at a weight I'm happy with.

Good luck with finding a butcher to get your meat from.I haven't managed to find a reliable supply and order the food from a supplier in Dundee(sadly Landywoods doesn't deliver to my area as their prices seem pretty good to me.

Your dogs will love you!

[Nipper 0]

C/G get back to your James Wellbeloved..............)

[Guest JOEB]

Any local butcher will sell you liver (pigs) and heart for about 50p a pound, depending on how many dogs you have or how hard they work you could probly do it on £1.50 a day, with 1 night of fasting (if thats your thing)

On working days, it will cost me either .....nothing, as I feed what I catch or £3.00..........

Probaly get cheaper, but that will get you going.

JOEB

 

P.S......Venison (road kill) for the dogs tonight and it didnt cost a penny, rabbit tomorrow and that will cost nowt aswell.

[collie/grey 238]

A have a fair few dogs mainly 23'' plus and 23kg plus. Im geussing my daughters 2, will need far more than 2-3 chicken wings then! I have looked at rainmakers website and it's great, totally changed me. He says most butchers will gladly give all the waste to you for nothing, or a small donation.

[HBG 350]

been feeding raw meat and and raw veg(both minced together) for a while,do you find you have to worm your dogs more often than you did before you fed raw?

[collie/grey 238]

been feeding raw meat and and raw veg(both minced together) for a while,do you find you have to worm your dogs more often than you did before you fed raw?

 

Was wondering that myself.

[Guest JOEB]

been feeding raw meat and and raw veg(both minced together) for a while,do you find you have to worm your dogs more often than you did before you fed raw?

 

Not at all..........

JOEB

[MIKE 18]

Drontal plus every three months as normal no matter what you feed ..............

 

Collie /Grey ...........you will need to feed much more than 2 chicken wings to a 23kg dog ............a rough guide I have a bitch that is 24" and 54 pound she gets one pound of best beef 2 slices of wholemeal bread ,6 oz of veg and oils as her basic everyday ration .I add to that bones two or three times a week and the odd whole chicken carcass if she has been doing a bit this keeps her in top shape but you will learn what is best suited to your dogs over the next few months

Edited September 26, 2006 by MIKE

[Guest Ditch_Shitter]

Check out Breast of Lamb, mate! I don't know what it's like in england, but I've cornered the market in my own local town. They charge me about 50c per breast. That's around 35p, I imagine? I go from butchers to butchers, taking all the lamb and the Ox Hearts I can carry. If my back's breaking by the end of the run - we have four butchers! - the ones I leave out try to catch my eye! I'm sometimes almost crying with glee at how much fantastic, fresh, human grade meat and bones I'm bringing home for my happy Dogs! I can't believe how good I have it here!

 

'Mind you, sometimes when I open a bag and look at all those Huge 'Lamb Chops' the butcher's kindly insisted on band sawing into managable chunks for me? I could Really cry! ~ As I consider the el cheapo f***ing Beef Burgers I know I'm about to tuck into!!!

 

Beware of too much Liver. Not good for a Dog. Couple of times a week should do it. But Ox and Lamb Hearts are piss takingly cheap. And, over here at least, the Breast's they can't seem to wait to saw off and thrust at me!

 

I ever get a set of top dentures? F*** the Dogs!

[kiwi 4]

totally agree mate, lamb brisket is the best tucker ya can get, all our dogs live on it or we just kill our dog tucker sheep and feed them that, offal is fine but only in small lots apart from heart which is great. fresh fish is good to keep the coat clean and they really enjoy chewing on them

[Rainmaker 7]

Hi guys,

 

C/G has a new PM addressing his questions/concerns about feeding amounts, worming etc fully.

 

Nipper, the more I see you post the more I think you're either a pet food sales rep or otherwise have vested interests. Why do you persist in this manner? You prefer kibble despite the available evidence. That's FINE! Your choice. But you raise so many bogus objections to raw feeding, tell C/G (who has already stated he's made his OWN decision to feed raw) to get back to James Wellbeloved... Hmm...

 

Why are you so against him (C/G) spending a month or two feeding raw, to see the change for himself? If you're right, he'll have impaction problems, broken teeth, scouring and all manner of trouble and will come back onto here and shout for all to hear "THIS RAW DIET IS BULLS**T!!". Then all us "raw romantics" will have to shut the hell up, and you'll be happy.

 

But the thing is, all the people on here who HAVE switched to raw HAVE seen the benefits, NONE of these so-called problems, and we are ALL shouting "RAW ROCKS!". So let him see for himself as we all have done. C/G - go for it and join the fun

 

Not that she was to know C/G (so this is NOT a dig of any sort), two chicken wings for a nigh on 30KG dog is far too small a meal mate. You can understand the logic (same weight as dog food) though - I'm sure I made that mistake at one point too

 

Chicken wings are also high bone-flesh ratio so best not to use them as a staple long term. That said I found them invaluable in my start onto raw feeding and they certainly shouldn't do any harm for now by all means - they're a great step away from kibble. And besides, tell your daughter that two chicken wings beats the crap out of the same weight in dry killer kibble so bloody good on her!

 

The general rule is 2% to 3% bodyweight in food (carcases, rmbs) per day - or 20% per week. So for a 30kg dog you're looking at feeding 600g to 900g of rmbs a day. That's half a pack of wings! No need to go so expensive, it's also a breast of lamb (lamb brisket) which you could get for 35p or so.

 

It's also about the weight of a small rabbit (free), a rack of ribs (free from many butchers/abattoirs), a couple of pigs trotters (free)... you get the idea!

 

So while making the switch and experimenting, chicken wings are fine - but you'll find a dog that big enjoys a WHOLE chicken much more, and it'd cost less overall until you source your free stuff My own butcher GIVES AWAY hearts, lights, ribs, necks, chick frames etc. The abattoir I share with Gnipper (not Nipper) does pork/cow heads, trotters, frames, necks, tails...

 

It's important to remember that the SIZE AND TEXTURE of the food is just as important as the CONTENT. So while so-called barf mince has good ingredients (whole carcases, ground up) it does NOT clean the teeth. In fact it leaves sticky residue on the teeth and facilitates periodontal disease just like kibble does. This is why LARGE portions of carcases/RMBs are important.

 

The chewing, tearing, grinding and crunching action of a carnivore eating a large slab/portion of carcase or RMB is what does the magic. Humans brush and floss our teeth separately to anything else. Carnivores on the other hand wash, scale, polish and scrub teeth WHILST they eat. Big portions ensure teeth are buried in meat and bone, massaging gums and cleaning the intra-dental and periodontal spaces.

 

Just to be absolutely clear, this isn't a dig at people like Mike who feed a raw diet including mince, bread etc. It's not my cup of tea, BUT he provides RMBs to clean teeth. This is a whole different ball game to kibble/canned - and therefore it's not the barf diet I'm digging at here.

 

As was said above, the standard 3 monthly drontal worming is just that - standard. No need for extra worming, and in fact if anything a healthy dog can HANDLE some worms so a raw fed dog is in a better position to handle the odd (and they ARE rare) worm infestation.

 

Ditch, we're in a similar boat with the suppliers mate. I have three or four butchers, an abattoir, and a meat wholesaler all within 20 mins of my house - and I too gaze in wonder at the wonderful meat products my dogs get. The Mrs moans like feck tho, cos "them dogs eat better than we do - when was the last time you got ME a nice lamb steak or some prime beef?" haha

 

(edited for clarity)

Edited September 27, 2006 by RainmakerKennels

[Guest JOEB]

Been to the butcher this moring, 20lb ox & pigs liver...£10

This will also be suplemented (spel?) with whole rabbits (skined & gutted), meaty bones, chicken carcass ect which will in fact string the whole lot out for about 2 weeks or so.

My mate feeds that minced chicken that you buy from the pet shop....... COOKED and IMHO its shite!

The dogs stools are very sloppy, I gave it to my dogs ONCE went through em like water.........never again.

You woulnt feed large amounts of processed shite to your kids........why give it to your dogs when all you need is a freezer?

JOEB

[spike 0]

Like Collie/Grey I am going to take the plunge. I have a terrier which is currently fed Autarky, a dry complete food which he can take or leave. Going from Rainmakers (excellent) guidelines of 2-3% bodyweight I am looking to feed only 200 - 300g a day for a 10kg dog. I have just experimented with a 100g pice of braising steak - looked too big so I cut it up; he swallowed the first piece whole :11: I have therefore been sat having a tug of war over the other piece to ensure he chewed & tore at it He couldn't get enough & is trying to get onto the garden table where I was sat.

 

Do I need to make a graduated transition between the complete/raw as you would if changing between other types of food?I would have thought so but thought it best to check with those who know!

Also, is there anything I categorically SHOULD NOT be feeding?

Will get round the local butchers as soon as I can; think there's an Abbattoir nearby also.

I'm actually looking forward to this

Edited September 27, 2006 by spike

[Guest daisytaff]

I'm feeding 12 x 6 week old pups and the mother so cost is an important issue! I'm on good terms with my local butcher and he saves me all the waste and chucks in 2 chopped up breast of lamb every day for £2. They also have been getting mackeral that my brother catches and brings me a bucket full every week. Family and friends have cleared out their freezers for me too. I found that too much liver gave them the shi'tes so once or twice a week only. They are solid pups with good coats and the bitch is springing back by the day. Having said all that - I'll be glad to see them go - loads of crap ! :sick: