The Raw diet.

So, out of EXPERIENCE...not just reading articles....what are some opinions on the Raw diet? Is feeding only meat, good enough for a working dog? How about a very active APBT who wouldn't be considered "working" dog? It doesn't seem balanced enough, but I've seen others have great results. Say i was to just feed whole chicken thighs...how much would be enough for one days food.

 

IMO and limited experience with BARF, you need to add other foods to its diet to maintain health and performance. Regarding your question about feeding chicken thighs, well, it depends on your dog's weight but no more than 2 lbs (for a very active canine) should be fed per day. Again, greens and grains should be added to its diet. In addition, if BARF is what you want to do, you should "fast" your dog a day per week. In addition, you may want to vary his meat from chicken to turkey to fish, etc.

Here is a site that may help you out in this endeavour:
www.shirleys-wellness-cafe.com/sampleraw.htm#canine

 

Rocky is right. You don't just feed meat. You should definately do some more research. This is the best diet if you do it properly.

Regards,

B

 

So, out of EXPERIENCE...not just reading articles....what are some opinions on the Raw diet?
It’s the best most natural diet for a canine…reality though is most can’t pick out a proper kibble based diet, so to expect them to be able to prepare a nutritionally balanced diet to meet the needs of their dog is asking a lot. If you have multiple dogs or breeds you can’t expect to make an “all in one” BARF diet for them, each will require varying degrees of certain things. For instance a Labrador</ST1:p is one of 6 (I believe) breeds that produce-a skin oil, yet an APBT doesn’t. So if you owned both do you think the dietary fatty acids would be the same for both if weighing 60 lbs?

Is feeding only meat, good enough for a working dog? How about a very active APBT who wouldn't be considered "working" dog?
Feeding a solely meat based diet and nothing else is not wise nor does it meet the nutritional needs of a canine much less a working one.

Say i was to just feed whole chicken thighs...how much would be enough for one days food.
Average raw diet is approximately 2-3% of the dog’s body weight-though that’s a properly balanced diet. More to the BARF diet than throwing something in a bowl and hoping for the best!

In addition, if BARF is what you want to do, you should "fast" your dog a day per week.
What benefit is it to "fast" the dog and logic behind it?

 

I feed Raw , You cant just feed a chicken thigh here and there and hope it helps the working dog. I feed a variety of foods such as red meat ,organ meat , poultry , tripe , whole eggs , salmon oil and a few greens. Every dog is different so feeds are made individually each day and no they dont eat all the above each day. If I use a dry feed its only ever a premium food and not a lot. It takes a little time and research to feed a raw diet but the long term benifits are worth the trouble, better coat, better musle tone and less waste to clean up.

Hope that helps a little , It is only my oppinoin and by no means meant to contradict any one else.

Adam.

 

http://www.rawdogranch.com/index.html

Take a look at how he does it. He breaks it down pretty nicely on what to feed in what proportions.

 

What benefit is it to "fast" the dog and logic behind it?

I fast my dogs at least one day a month, regardless of the diet. It's a good way to help flush toxins from the system, particularly excess nitrogen waste, the by-product of protein. Nothing wrong with fasting once a week, but it will slow a dog's metabolism a bit with that frequency--no problem if you make adjustments in the diet or exercise to compensate. Once or twice a month is more ideal, imo.

 

What is a good type of grain? I give my pups raw chicken but haven't gone completely raw

 

I do not feed BARF yet, but I am researching and learning to end that way.....I would give it whole wheat bread slices or the like. Check your local grocery and you will find 7-grain bread, etc!

Hey TEXASBULLDOGS, did not realize the last question was for me (or rather regarding my previous post). I "fast" my dog once in a while (not once per week due to not feeding BARF) to reset its system but ROCKSTAR stated it better.

 

will some one PLEASE show me literature that states the benefits of feeding dogs "greens" when on a B.A.R.F. diet. Thanks!

 

The BARF diet is great!

 

I feed raw every once in awhile- it seems good- I recently was given some green tripe for my female and she loved it.

 

Greens have certain healthy properties that we know are good for us, anti cancer, blueberries for eyes, crasnberries for urinary, garlic is a great natural anti biotic ect.. Same applies to dogs and cats. Also, in the wild, a wolf would consume the prey animals stomache, which would contain grasses and such. When feeding raw, think animal. What you are feeding the dog, would it be in a deer that the dog found in the woods?
If feeding a barf diet, you do not feed grains. Grains must be cooked therefore grains don't fit into bones and raw food. A homemade diet can consist of grains, but a true barf diet does not.
I don't beleive feeding grains is beneficial to the dog at all, neither my dog nor cats get grains at all. But grains are good for adding weight. With my old GSD I fed her a raw diet plus grains to keep weight on her, she was getting skinny near the end.
Feeding raw takes a LOT of reasearch and knowledge as to what you are doing, but done right, it is the best way to feed a dog.
Find the book from Ian Billinghurst called BARF. It is great. I think you can only get it on the internet though. Also a book called the Ultimate Diet is good and Dr. Martin Goldsteins DVM book called The Nature of Animal Healing is a book I highly recommend to any one with dogs and cats. It covers everything holistic aswell as food, although he does recommend to feed grains.

 

Avoid the Billinghurst book and everything in it-most will tell you the same thing!

 

What book would you guys recommend for someone with completely no idea of feeding the BARF diet? I've looked into it some, but I find that it's a whole lot more complicated than I originally anticipated.

 

I've been feeding my dogs the "BARF" diet going on two years now and I wish I had discovered this ten years ago.

The benefits I've seen since feeding this includes:

-higher energy levels

-shinnier coats

-cleaner teeth

-clean smelling breath

-less stools that are firm, they don't stinnk, and dries up very fast

-excellent muscle tone

-overall healthier dogs

-they don't have the typical doggy scent

There are other benefits but these are the main ones.

Before feeding this diet I highly recommend that you fully research BARF first. (I research about 8 months before I actually starting feeding this).

I will admit however, that some of my dogs do benefit more from this diet than others (just like humans all dogs are different).

I feed my dogs between 2- 3% of their body weight each day. And I ajust trhis based on how they look. Included in this is some organ meat and some veggies ( I feed veggies because I noticed that they strained too much to stool without it).

I try to give them a diferent meat every day. But in a typical week they are fed: Chicken, turkey, fish, pork, beef,and lamb.

Here is an example how my 49 lb dog will be fed today:

Raw Meaty Bone ( Lamb)= 21 oz.
Organ meat (liver) = 2 oz.
Veggies (spinach) = 1 oz.

But I am learning EVERYDAY about feeding my dogs barf.

 

This is what I was getting at. People misinterpret the statement that the same greens that we (people) eat are beneficial for our animals…and while that is somewhat correct…it isn’t entirely. Dogs don’t posses the digestive abilities to break down greens the same way we (people) can…so it has to be done for them…in order for them (pureed, finely minced, etc) to receive anything beneficial from eating them. So when discussing the diet to those seeking knowledge about it..it’s wise to inform them of that bit of information, because it seems most don’t know. Thanks for your time.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p></o:p>