Wow! I've never heard of this before. Is wild game (like deer) ok? If so, it would be VERY cost effective here in KY to have a raw diet.

Wild animals have parasites, so if you choose to feed wild game, make sure you deep freeze it for a week or two to kill them all off (they say around 42-72 hours, but IMHO, better safe than sorry)

hypers987 wrote:

Wild animals have parasites, so if you choose to feed wild game, make sure you deep freeze it for a week or two to kill them all off (they say around 42-72 hours, but IMHO, better safe than sorry)

Good idea! I would never have thought of that. Here's another question... would it be ok as a suppliment as in to feed raw when you can and kibble at other times? Just curious.

Someone that has more experience feeding raw can answer that for ya lol I just feed a dehydrated raw food (The Honest Kitchen). I do Taste of the Wild kibble in the morning and THK at night.

Keimo&Izzi wrote:

Here's another question... would it be ok as a suppliment as in to feed raw when you can and kibble at other times? Just curious.

Yes, it's absolutely fine to supplement a diet with raw or to supplement a raw diet with kibble. Since kibble and raw digest at different rates it is often recommended to feed them separately, for example feeding kibble at one meal and raw at another. I've never had a problem feeding kibble and raw together though, and none of the people I know who've done the same have ever had an issue either.

That's awesome! Thanks for the info. I may try to feed some raw then. I'm not sure that I could afford it all the time, (not really any good sources for meat in my area) but during hunting season, I might be able to get the dogs some deer meat. :-)

hello,imgiving him some raw and cooked.,but hes not eating the suplement but he does eat organs cooked.im worried that he is not getting all the nutrients he needs ,ill be giving him chicken fish rice,chikne liver and chicken hearts and gizzards..of course not all at once i try to aletrnate hes meal

Perhaps try a different supplement?

Also be sure to use other protein sources as part of his rotation, not just chicken. I'd also try weaning him slowly onto raw organs rather than cooked. You can do that by slowly lessening the amount that the organs are cooked each time.

thankyou so much i will do that before he dindt eat it either way,so i try the greated chease now ill do the same in the way ur telling me.last nighti sprinkled some greated chease on top of supplement and chicken and he ated all .,1more question what bones can i give him i being giving him some marrow bones uncooked,should what other bones can i give him? thankyou again!

Marrow bones are good. The only other bones my dogs get are the raw bones in their food. Perhaps someone else might have other suggestions for you.

I also give my 2 raw marrow bones.....and they also get Zukes Z-Bones (which help keep their teeth clean), Himalayan chews which are fully digestible, and salmon skin bones which are dried salmon skin tied in a knot at both ends to form a bone.

I just rescued a 6 year old female husky who only weighs about 16-17 kg. She was neglected in her last home and I want to give her the best.

I decided to do a prey model diet, but today I gave her Sardines for breakfast and chicken necks later in the day.

Should I just give her the chicken backs and carcasses for the next 2 weeks and not mix the sardines and chicken?

Sorry I just read the prey model diet page, and was previously going off a friends advice! And I don't know what food she eats (seems to love chicken so far!)

Welcome Renee, and kudos to you for rescuing!

Some dogs require more time to change than others, so it really depends on the individual whether you will need to take things more gradually or not. If the sardines are agreeing with her then I see no reason for you not to give them alongside the chicken as you are now.

Not sure where exactly this belong's, but I started Hayden on the raw diet January 20th. Since then he's done GREAT, but when I first started him on it, I noticed his stool was "mushy" and like black in color! I noticed this when he had an accident on my hardwood floor, because his poop actually stained the floor (he had an accident in the middle of the night). I thought maybe it was because his tummy was adjusting to the new food, but it's now March and his poop is still the exact same consistency! It's not runny, it keeps form, it's just very dark (almost black), and more loose than kibble poop would be. Is this normal raw diet poop?

No, that is not the typical stool of a raw fed dog. It is normal to have soft stool and even diarrhea during the transition period but I would expect that to last no longer than a month at the most. The typical stool for a raw fed dog should be small, firm, and white...and it should crumble and almost disintegrate when dry.

I would start your own thread in this forum specifically for this issue that Hayden is having so we can address it more personally. I'd copy the information in your above post and also include what your typical menu for Hayden includes (including average meal weights and what parts you're feeding and how often).

I've always given my dogs chicken and beef livers, raw eggs and veggies, but I'm going to research and see what I can find out. It may be too expensive with 4 dogs, but I'm definitely intrigued. I'm always up for a way to make my furbabies healthier!

My mom has two Yorkshire Terrier's that she is wanting to switch over to raw. One of the Yorkie's has had two GI surgeries. Do you think it would be ok to feed the cornish hen or do you think it would be better putting him on something like Vital Essentials where it's all ground up?

Hayden has been on Vital Essentials since January and I want to start giving him actual meat w/bone "Prey-Model" diet. Would starting him off with a bone-in chicken breast be good and add organs in a few week's or should I just start with organs now since he's already been on Vital Essentials for 5 months?

I would like to feed raw. My brain hurt after reading the first post. So confusing

brady.law wrote:

I would like to feed raw. My brain hurt after reading the first post. So confusing

What is confusing?

There are many ways to go about doing raw, some people pick barf for convenience sake, however, barf is not raw in my humble opinions.

Hayden_69 wrote:

My mom has two Yorkshire Terrier's that she is wanting to switch over to raw. One of the Yorkie's has had two GI surgeries. Do you think it would be ok to feed the cornish hen or do you think it would be better putting him on something like Vital Essentials where it's all ground up?

Hayden has been on Vital Essentials since January and I want to start giving him actual meat w/bone "Prey-Model" diet. Would starting him off with a bone-in chicken breast be good and add organs in a few week's or should I just start with organs now since he's already been on Vital Essentials for 5 months?

That I couldn't say. May I ask what was the nature of the surgeries? If you have a pro-raw vet I would ask their opinion. Of course asking a vet who doesn't agree with raw feeding is useless.

Pre-mades are expensive but you can always start out on one and switch later. If bone is not recommended for your mom's dog then perhaps she could just do the raw meat and organ with ground eggshell and/or a calcium supplement.

I thinks it's fine to wait on adding organs if you want or add them in, it's up to you. Personally I prefer to take things slowly when trying something new.

Hi

I am getting an 8 week old siberian husky puppy on September 9. She has been fed a kibble puppy diet from the breeder, however I am hoping and want to transition her on to a prey model raw diet.

I have read several posts and articles regarding raw diets for siberian huskys, however I am wondering if anyone can give me any tips and advice for easing my new puppy on to the prey model raw diet safely and effectively when I get her home.

Thanks

Scott- new husky owner

Scott, what specifically would you like to know? Your question is very broad, but you really don't need to ease into a raw diet, cold turkey is usually the way to go. We also have a lot of common questions answered in other previous threads if they might be of any help.

Hey Val,

More specifically what would you or anyone who has started an 8 week old on a raw diet, recommend for feeding when I get her home for a first meal... Cold Turkey? Should it be with raw bone, cut into pieces? How much should she be fed per meal/per day. I have read that it is about 1-2% of her current body weight but would you suggest starting off with less until she gets acclimated to the change?

I want to "hopefully" avoid any GI problems (vomiting, diarrhea,) from switching from the Kibble to the raw.

Obviously a prey raw diet is innately what she would eat in the wild so perhaps I am thinking too much into it.... as far as switching her right away from the kibble to the raw.

Thanks for your help and time

Scott

Many people start young pups on chicken wings and often hold them in the beginning to prevent the pup from swallowing it whole. Once you know your pup will chew appropriately you won't have to hold it. You don't need to cut it into pieces.

For puppies you generally feed about 2-3% of their expected adult weight, or if you don't know that then anywhere from 5-10% of their current weight. If going by current weight I'd start at the middle ground around 8% and adjust from there.

You can expect some digestive upset with a new pup, whether due to stress, food change, parasites or a combination thereof...so I wouldn't be alarmed when, not if, it happens.

I would take it easy on organs in the beginning, many people don't even introduce organs in the first month and after that introduce them in small quantities and build up or spread smaller portions into multiple meals. It's whatever works best for you and your dog.

A few common issues that people often encounter with raw, sometimes if you see diarrhea, mucus, or soft stool it could mean you need to increase bone content or even simply remove excess skin from the meat. Also, if you see rock solid stool that the dog has difficulty passing that could indicate you need to decrease the bone content. Keep in mind also that raw food digests more fully and faster than kibble, so expect to see fewer, more compact stools. Raw stool is white and will disintegrate so it's not nearly as messy as kibble stools.

Val,

Thanks so much for the info... Much appreciated