New Raw diet and phasing in a conditioning regiment

Hey guys,

Real simple question, than I'm just looking for opinions on, as I know there is no "one way" to doing things.

I recently (7 days ago) switched both of my pooches over from kibble to a Raw diet. Right now it consists of 2 meals per day.

Jade is 5 and has been on Science Diet her entire life, and thus far has done extremely well on the switch to raw. Stool looks decent for a cold turkey switch.

Brutus is 10 or 11 months now, and was on Blue Wilderness, and the switch gave him loose stool for a couple days, so that is why they are on a higher Chicken back feeding schedule right now, just to give them some substinance and to help keep their stool formed.

I try to vary the meals day to day. So on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday, they get Chicken backs equaling to 2% of their weight.

On Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, they get a Thigh in the morning and a leg at night.

My question that I wanted to ask was, for those of you that were feeding kibble and then switched to raw, how long did you wait before you started conditioning your dogs, for the first time, or just picking back up on your old routine?
Did you just give a couple weeks for them to acclimate to the new food intake, or did you start back working your dogs a few days in?

The reason I ask is because after Jade turned 2, and I left for the Army, she became a couch potato and started putting on weight, although it isn't a terrible amount, I'd like to get her back to her former self.

I just want to avoid any mistakes that may cause any unhealthy situations.

I'm just looking for advice from those who have some experience or knowledge that they wouldn't mind sharing. Thanks!

 

i see that you started raw just 7 days ago so its good that you have stuck with just one protein source for now, just remember that you will most likely want to feed them other protein sources aswell so they get a balanced diet once they are adjusted. you dont want to base their diet on just one protein source. i add eggs sometimes and sometimes veg. aswell but some dont think that is needed. hopefully someone else will chime in but i would say aslong as the stools are good and youve made sure theyve emptied then it would be ok to work them. dont work them right after a meal though. good luck

 

heres a link to a thread i found to be a very good read with some good info

Need a little help with my raw diet.

hope this helps
regards

 

Jbpits91 - Yeah, At least for the first 3-4 weeks, I want to keep them on one source, and after I'm sure they've settled into it well, and I am able to maintain a good weight with little fluctuation, I'll feel more comfortable adding in new sources slowly.. Eventually we will branch out to been, then fish, pork, and then organs... Slowly but surely we will get there..

A$h - Thanks for the link! I appreciate it! I'll start digging into that here shortly..