So, I've been doing a lot of research, talking to a lot of people, and really studying the nutritional value of feeding raw, and I'm going to give it a try. The boyfriend isn't particularly happy, because he thinks it's going to be more expensive than buying kibble, but I'm determined to prove him wrong, and let the dogs show him how much healthier they'll be after eating raw. I'm very excited about this transition. We just finished up the last of the kibble (le bf refused to let me throw it out) and we will be starting today.

I can't wait to see my male put some weight on his bones. He's always been on the thin side (though he's completely healthy) and I've been considering satin balls for him for about a month. Well, why feed satin balls when I can just go raw.

Anyways. I'll be giving them their first raw portion this morning, and I'm going to hit up a local food market to get 10lb of chicken quarters for around 5$. My biggest concern, however, is storage. I generally wont use meat that's been in the fridge for more than three days. Does this go for dogs, too? I only ask because our freezer is tiny. I want to buy in larger amounts when the meats are on sale, but I don't want to feed the dogs bad food either. If it makes a difference, I generally buy meat and repackage it in ziploc bags when I get home.


Oh, another question. For feeding beef, what type of bones do you feed with that? And is ground beef ok to feed if I throw some bones into the mix? I was thinking of throwing some ox tails in for the 'bone' (or some equivalent, since ox tails can be pricey) and feeding ground beef. I guess I'm asking, what part of the beef do you generally feed, and how do you feed it.

Yes, I use the same principle with the dogs meat that I use with mine when it comes to the fridge. I accidentally left the dogs chicken in the fridge for over a week and it smelled putrid when I finally opened it up and fed it. It was my chihuahua, Glory's, meat and she normally eats anything without hesitation (including poop!) but she really did NOT want anything to do with the chicken that sat too long in the fridge. Since then I definitely do my best to use the meat thawed in the fridge within 3-4 days.

I don't feed bone-in beef, all my beef products for the dogs are boneless. I usually feed beef heart, beef liver, beef chuck, and ground beef. However all their chicken, turkey, and pork that I feed does include bone. I don't worry about bone on my beef days since I feed beef the least considering I usually cannot get it for very cheap.

Point blank you'll need a freezer. Try Craigslist, you can find them for $50.

You have a co-op near you. Search raw4pets. They have a yahoo group. Bulk meat, cheap prices. Nice product I hear too.

We use turkey necks and duck carcasses as our staple RMB's - muscle meats range from venison, to hearts, to thighs. Simply depends on what my Co-op has from our supplies. I always have turkey hearts, those are my favorite. Very lean, about 3 oz each so easy to measure and the dogs LOVE them.

arooroomom wrote:

...Point blank you'll need a freezer...

^^^What she said!^^^

I really need to find a co-op that focuses on raw food for pets...

Thanks for the suggestions, guys. Kristina, you make me happy I live in Fl. xD You know so much more than I do about Tampa. I purchased 20lb of chicken leg quarters the other day and they fit in the freezer better than I thought. So I'm not AS worried. I'll be searching cl though for some cheepo freezer.