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Raw Feeding FAQs

102K views 94 replies 50 participants last post by  Galathiel 
#1 ·
This post will answer some of the frequently asked questions about feeding a raw diet. Feel free to post your questions on this thread and I'll update the top post with the answers!

What is a raw diet (BARF, SARF, SARD, etc)?

A raw diet is exactly what it sounds like - feeding your dogs (and cats) raw meat and bones.

Aren't bones dangerous for dogs to eat - like chicken bones? My vet said they will puncture the dogs stomach/intestines!

COOKED bones are dangerous. RAW bones are safe. We have members of the board that have been feeding their dogs raw chicken bones for over a decade and never had a problem.

What do all those acronyms stand for?

BARF = Bones And Raw Food (this acronym is attributed to Dr. Ian Billinghurst, a Australian vet who is credited with starting the raw feeding movement)

SARD = Species Appropriate Raw Diet
SARF - Species Appropriate Raw Feeding (these both came about when Dr. Billinghurst copyrighted the use of the term BARF in regards to raw feeding)

RMB = Raw Meaty Bones (any food item that contains meat and edible bone)

MM = Muscle Meat (any meat without bone)

OM = Organ Meat (liver, kidney, brains, eyes)


 
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#7 ·
What about Salmonella and other bacteria? Won't my dog get sick from eating infected raw meat?
Dogs' digestive systems were made to handle food heavy in bacteria... they are very short and contain strong acid. Kibble takes longer to digest, and that is why you see e-coli/bacteria related recalls with kibble.

why are a lot of vets against feeding a raw diet? I know my vet is against it and she was naming Salmonella and other bacteria as a major problem?
Generally, vets certainly mean well, but were likely given incorrect information in vet school since the very few nutrition courses they took were likely sponsored by a pet food company (usually Hills (Science Diet), Iams or Eukanuba). Pet food companies are, of course, going to say that ONLY dog food is good for dogs. Additionally, with all there is to learn in vet school, there simply is not time to focus too much on nutrition.

How do raw feeders handle vacations, like a week long without access to a freezer? How long can the raw be kept NOT frozen before feeding?
I usually bring along a cooler. I will keep the majority of the dogs' food frozen, knowing that it will slowly thaw out in the cooler. If I'm going on a really long trip, one cooler will be stocked with completely frozen meat, and I won't open it until my other cooler (containing non-frozen meat) has been used up.

If I know there's a grocery store in the area I will be traveling to, I will plan on buying some meat on the road.

As far as how long it can be kept unfrozen... for dogs it's considerably longer than humans. We will go a week or more with unfrozen meat and still feed it to the dogs. Be forewarned that it may get a bit stinky... but the dogs usually don't mind!
 
#3 ·
I am glad that this is posted and I will be following it.

Some more questions, why are a lot of vets against feeding a raw diet? I know my vet is against it and she was naming Salmonella and other bacteria as a major problem?

I will say that from the time I regestered on this forum, it has appeared to me that the majority of the dogs getting sick, weather it be from runny stools or vomiting or just not eating has been from kibble fed dogs. The "raw fed" group seems or appears to be having less problems.
 
#5 ·
I am glad that this is posted and I will be following it.

Some more questions, why are a lot of vets against feeding a raw diet? I know my vet is against it and she was naming Salmonella and other bacteria as a major problem?
Vets who seem to stay current and who don't have a vested interest in any dog food company would not hold that opinion.

I will say that from the time I regestered on this forum, it has appeared to me that the majority of the dogs getting sick, weather it be from runny stools or vomiting or just not eating has been from kibble fed dogs. The "raw fed" group seems or appears to be having less problems.
Dogs can eat things that would make most humans very sick or very dead. The design of the canine digestive tract is quite different from ours. My own dog is raw fed (since July '10) and since switching she has put on weight and never has had any runny stool. Also, as a side benefit, stool volume with raw fed dogs is quite small and breaks up into an ash fairly quick so much less yard cleaning necessary.
 
#8 ·
Alot depends on WHERE you are going.

Most every town in America has a grocery store of SOME type ... and they have meat. Even if you just feed chicken for the week it won't harm the dog.

When we went to dog camp for the weekend we took the food, frozen, in a cooler. By the end of the weekend the last of it was mostly thawed.

If you are going camping, in the wilderness, where they really won't be ANYWHERE to buy stuff and you can't carry a cooler - I would just get some good kibble to feed for that time and then switch back to raw when you return.
 
#9 ·
What is the reason behind not mixing raw and kibble?

I have been mixing a small amount of pre-made raw (Natures variety) into my dogs kibble and she has really liked it and seems to be doing well on it. I have also mixed in some meat scraps from when I am cleaning meat into her kibble and she likes it.

What is the issue with doing this?
 
#11 ·
What is the reason behind not mixing raw and kibble?
The thought is that, because raw and kibble digest at different rates, it can cause digestive upset and/or increase the risk for salmonella/e-coli, etc. Honestly, though, I've heard of plenty of people who feed both at the same time without issues. I personally do not do it because I feed 100% raw.
 
#12 ·
I take frozen food and put it on ice when I travel, but would find grocery stores if it was for longer than 5-6 days. When I went to Germany I used Embark, a dehydrated food from The Honest Kitchen. Just add hot water and let soak. Then I added some table scraps.
 
#14 ·
You will find many differing opinions on this one. I am of the opinion that if you are feeding a well balanced raw diet, there is no need to add any vitamins, etc. I don't think it hurts (and can only help) to add supplements like chondroitin, glucosamine, and MSM for joint support. I personally use Longevity by Springtime, Inc. as a supplement because it contains a lot of good stuff and nothing I feel uncomfortable feeding. I chose the Longevity over the plain Joint Health supplement because my Rottweiler tends to get bad gas no matter what we feed him, and the digestive enzyme in Longevity really helps with that. :)
 
#15 ·
We will be getting our pup middle of September as the litter will be due mid July. So I have been researching food and was told by a dog trainer to go with Tollendale?? And she said it was raw food, so i looked it up only to realize it is actual meat! Like the ones you buy at the store. I had no clue you could feed this to dogs! What I am confused about is how do you plan the meals? Do you buy for a whole month? Here chicken and meat is extremely expensive. LIke 12 bucks for 4 chicken breasts. Isn't this alternative a lot more expensive? And I'd imagine you would need a big freezer for all this meat? I'm so confused with all this lol. Sorry but really want to make an informed decision with the dog food. Lastly how much would you feed a puppy compared to a full grown female gsd?
 
#17 ·
When feeding raw, dogs don't care if they get the chicken breast or the left-over back and other lower quality parts that people eat. In fact, the bones and cartilage and parts of internal organs still sticking to the chicken back is very important part of a balanced raw diet. Raw diet is more than feeding just meat. You want to approximate the natural diet of wild canids which will eat a small prey whole. Grouse, Rabbit, mice - they eat the whole thing: Fur, feathers, internal organs and bones. Feeding only meat with no raw bones or organ meat is NOT balanced, and can lead to health issues.

Fortunately, the stuff that is good for dogs is pretty inexpensive compared to buying premium chicken breasts. Reading more on Raw here on the forum is a start, and this is an excellent website that many people (including myself), have found invaluable to help one get started:
Raw Feeding
This is Laurie's website, the person who started this thread.

As for amounts, the website goes more into detail on how to calculate how much to feed, but as a general guideline, count on feeding both puppies and adults about 2 lbs of raw per day - puppies will eat the same as an adult because of how fast they are growing.
 
#16 ·
I apologize if this has been asked before, but is it bad to feed my dog as minimal of a raw diet as possible? Minimal meaning primarily meat. Right now, he's getting a mix of kibble (Taste of the Wild Bison/Venison) and my own homemade food (ground turkey, yams, white rice, garlic, olive oil and crushed egg shells for calcium). He's starting to lose interest in the latter, but LOVES raw meat (and it's darn near impossible to get him to eat fruits, like a banana).

Any suggestions?
 
#18 ·
Yes, you can feed a mix of kibble and raw. I say that any raw and/or home-cooked added to kibble is better than none. If feeding minimal raw, I would still feed bones and stick to the ratios set out here: The Basics

You could do one kibble meal and one raw/home-cooked meal a day, if you want. Some people feel it is better to not mix kibble and raw together.

One of my dogs will eat all kinds of raw fruit and vegetables with gusto, and the other one will spit them out! One thing that I have done that has worked really well is to make a doggy "shake", blending fruit and vegetable together with water or broth, and adding raw liver to the mix to make it appealing to the picky one. That is always a big hit. Though again, some people feel that it is not necessary go feed fruit and veggies in a raw diet, but it certainly isn't going to hurt anything if you do.
 
#19 ·
isnt blood bad for dogs , or is it okai to feed the meat that is along with blood?
and can raw diet be of te butcher leftovers??
 
#22 ·
LOL yeah I figured as much. It really varies I feed once a day because Jinx only gets 20 ounces a day and if I give her just a tiny meal she'll look at me like I'm nuts and "thanks for the snack now feed me" She needs to lose a few pounds at the moment also so her portion will be getting back even more however for dinner tonight this is what she will be getting.

About 8 ounces turkey neck (Im not a big fan of necks but these are SUPER meaty necks like well over a pound a piece)
About 2 ounces chicken liver
About 6 ounces beef roast
about 4 ounces fresh/frozen/thawed beef tripe

I really try to give about 4-5 ounces of tripe with each feeding sometimes only 2 or 3 depending on if I have a precut size of muscle meat that I wont vary.

She has one more day (after today) of the beef roast and the chicken liver so then we will be using the turkey neck, beef kidney, lamb heart, and tripe
After this bag of turkey necks is gone I'll switch over to Chicken leg quarters for my RMB depending how long they have been on the kidney I'll switch over to lamb liver then since I'm using chicken for my RMB I'll do turkey hearts for my MM and of course my beef tripe. When I switch back to turkey for my RMB I will switch form the turkey hearts to beef heart or some pork cut.
 
#23 ·
I have only been feeding raw for a little over a week so take this with a grain of salt.

Monday: Chicken quarter, boneless chicken breast, chicken gizzards,
salmon oil, multi vitamin
Tuesday: Chicken quarter, ground beef, liver, salmon oil, multi
vitamin
Wednesday: Whole rabbit, ground beef, kidney, raw egg, multi
vitamin
Thursday: Pork spare ribs, boneless chicken breast,liver, salmmon oil,
multi vitamin
And so on. I have fish but have not given it to her yet. For amounts, I use the formula on rawdogranch.com. Percentage of activity by projected adult weight. I hope this helped a little.
 
#24 ·
Man you guys really work hard at this --time consuming, too, I would guess...And this is all uncooked meat?? excuse my ignorance, I do know what raw means but ya'll gotta have some strong stomachs to do this..I applaud your love for your dogs and the amount of money this must cost?! I bought a beef heart a couple of weeks ago and made treats for the dogs, and I gotta say there were some things I was cutting through that caused my eyes to water a tad.. God bless you..You are good moms. Thanks for the info, though I had no idea..
Jan:eek:
 
#25 ·
oh sorry I forgot to add supplements (they are a constant so I didnt think about them)

I give 1500 mg of ester C (vitamin C)
around 2,000 mg of salmon oil (just the capsules from the regular store for humans)
every other day I give 1 vitamin E capsule
Then I give Nupro as a multi-vitamin for her weight she is supposed to get about 3/4 of a scoop (its powdered) every day for a maintenance dose however I give 1 full scoop and I use the nupro silver which also has glucosamine complex in it.
 
#26 ·
yes its all raw and you get used to it. Part of feeding raw is finding good sources so you don't pay a fortune and a spare freezer is basically a MUST so you can buy in bulk and stock up on savings. It really doesn't take that much time a little more then feeding kibble but I spend less then 5 minutes a day doing everything for it and feeding her.

Tripe STINKS! However, I got super used to it. Some things are a little creepy about the diet (lamb testicles being one that grossed me out) or when I was breaking turkey necks down the inside trachea tube flopped out and on my arm which definitely creeped me out because it was like a long slimy noodle/straw then my dog grabbed the end of it and slurped it off me like a noodle which just sent me over the edge on being grossed out. But, you get over it all because you know how much healthier it is for the dogs and to see how much she loves it I wouldn't change it for the world.
 
#27 ·
To add to Holmeshx2, It doesn't take too much time. I have been going to ethnic grocery stores and buy two weeks of food at a time. I am finding I am spending about $20 a month more than a premium dog food. So I just cutt out my morning Starbucks to make up the difference :) Prep time only takes me an hour or two the day I buy it. Then I fridge or freeze as needed. that way during the week when I am busy I just take out and feed just like kibble. Since feeding raw I have never seen my puppy look better or have more consistant energy. She is also finally putting on weight and has never been so excited to eat before.
 
#28 ·
I buy in bulk so I'll go buy 40 lb boxes of stuff leave them in the tub thawing once they are thawed enough for me to break apart I throw it all into gallon size freezer bags then throw it all in the big chest freezer and will take out a bag of each thing to thaw in the fridge overnight. I have my RMB in one bag MM in another tripe in another etc.. so I take it one bag of bones one bag of MM and a roll of tripe each bag is about 5 days worth so I open the bag of necks toss a 8 oz chunk in the bowl open beef roast bag toss a chunk in open liver bag toss a chunk in open tripe and grab a chunk to round off the rest of the 20 oz and bam I'm done close up all the bags throw in fridge til tomorrow take out and repeat. I'm sure I could take some time off by putting each full meal into a bag and freeze full meals but I prefer my way its just simpler for me.
 
#30 ·
Holmeshx2, in post #22, you wrote "... not a big fan of necks ..."

I'm still in the learning process and want to thank you....(and everyone!) for writing about feeding raw. All my girls are now almost exclusively raw ....(during some of the training exercises is the exception). It's okay if you don't want to say, but hoping you will so that I can learn.....how come you're not a big fan of necks....and is it just concerning turkey necks or ....or I don't know what....lol.....thanks in advance for writing about raw feeding!
 
#34 ·
i hope this is the right spot to ask this :)
i'd like some opinions on raw feeding for young puppies, did anyone do raw and kibble? our maltese is on raw and will eat BB wilderness small breed, took a year to find a food she'd eat, which is how i ended up doing the raw, she was hooked on people food and treats when we got her , she was already a year. Our new furbaby will be the first from puppy Ive tried raw with.

I read the link from somewhere on this site about goat milk and ground turkey for the first week.

I'd love to hear what you all did with just weaned puppy.

Picking up our puppy this weekend:)

Got kennel, toys and baby gates etc ready. Thought I should get the food prepared too:)
 
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