First Time Puppy Owner

Thanks for the responses guys - I am formulating my meal plan this weekend and will post to get feed back from you guys!

Ok that make heaps more sense now - thank you molasseslass!

Ok for those who have used the Triangle of Temptation? I am not following certain bits as K9 Force (Steve) hasn't stated where the bowl is - once the dog looks at you the first time and you say yes do you a) put the bowl down or b) was the bowl already on the ground out of the dog's reach and also do you hold on to the collar shen you unclip then say Ok to release the dog and let it eat the food??? Sorry I'm blonde and also rather a visual person - wish there was dvd!

Hello Raw Feeders I have some more questions of the knowledgeable peoples! 1 - If you feed pet mince (ie bones ground in)- chicken or beef, would that have a sufficent amount of calcium and phosporous if I could only feed a raw meaty bones on a Saturday and a Sunday? 2 - How do you medicate your dogs? I currently have Benson on Advantix and Interceptor Spectrum. But do dogs need to be wormed every mth for intestinal worms or just heartworm, and other worms three mthly?

Thank you - I think so too! I am so in love with them!

Well he's not really a puppy - but I personally think all woofas are puppies forever! Lughie is a rescue boy 2 yrs and 2 mths old and just such a snuggle pot! Lughie Lughie and Benson - best mates already!!!

I would suggest (froma very basic point of view I might add) if you feed more vegies (pulped through juicer or processor) and combined with natural full fat yoghurt you could cut down on the amount of meat she eats. Plus the cost will come down when you buy minced meat/chicken which includes the bones, skin, offal - plus it will be more balanced! See this thread - been excellent for me as I am still learning about raw feeding and researching it has been much easier because of the wonderful helpful posts everyone is putting up! http://www.dolforums.com.au/index.php?showtopic=172826

Thanks Star and AG! I was thinking that it would be benefical to feed the minced chicken inclusive of the frames and skin rather that just meat. Still researching everything Plus I am not sure I am going to be able to feed bones for sometime as I have a new woofa in my life as of Saturday - Lughie (prnounced Louie) and I am currently feeding them separately until I have time to work out if they are going to behave when eating, as I don't want to cause issues between them cause they have become the very best of mates already!

Gremlins

HH - super duper jealous! I want a dishwasher too!

Thanks Bub - it gets delivered on Sat

Oh good, I'm not tragic after all! We have a really nice side by side fridge/freezer in the kitchen but for buying up on specials for the dogs it just didn't cut it cos I never had enough room. But now I have a whole freezer just for their food (and a few loaves of bread) and it's awesome cos I can buy as much as I want and know I can easily store it. A few months ago, I would have thought no, I'll just keep some dry on hand for emergencies but really, they have so little of it at the moment, and if I forget to defrost meat, I can always mix up a meal of tinned fish, eggs, cheese and grated veges for them. That take but a few minutes and it's nutritious and a change from their usual. Not tragic at all! ...... or .... maybe im the only other person out there who thinks this is cool :D You've got a great system worked out Gayle. Nothing defrosted and your still sorted. Good on ya Love! Im so jealous of you and your freezer!! Then I am incredibly tradgic cause with almost all my tax money I went out and bought a 90 ltr upright freezer on the weekend that fits into the cavity of the dishwasher space (I rent and there is a cut out for a dishwasher but one was not provided with the propety ) and a 1000W food processor instead of a juicer so I can use it for myself too sometimes Plus I told the sales person at Good Guys that both purchases where for my dogs but thankfully she understood as she is a doggie person too *phew*

Really quick question (sorry work is crazy at the moment ) when you get chicken mince is it human grade or is it from Lenards Chicken Shops that contain minced chicken frames ie chicken pet mince?

If you do processed green veges along with some probiotics/natural yoghurt, IMO that's probably about as close as you're going to get to the real thing. Thank you Star - I do feed yoghurt so I will note to combine the grated veggies with the yoghurt!

It looks like unless you know some one in the business then there is no sourcing it. However I have been speaking with Laneka and she was able to get some - not quite green but certainly not bleached and said it went right through her dogs - so I think I may give up looking for it and do green leafy/root veggies instead.

Naawww thank you YG - Benson sends you slobbers! And thanks for the welcome! I have been goggling green tripe to no avail in Australia - how ever I have emailed a breed in Sydney that said on their website that they feed it to see if it's possible to get from their source. Will let you know how I go. I am so pleased to hear your two have come along in leaps and bounds since beginning raw feeding - can I ask how long you have been at it now?

That's it - I mean it may not always work but worth a shot before putting them under general anaesthic!

How old was the dog?? Just wondering if I could try this with midnight. I think she was five mths - see Lindyx was looking after Maddie at the time for Addicted2Goldens while they were in the states and Lindyx started stressing out about the tooth not falling out and the adult tooth groing in front of it and was thinking 'holy crap I might have to take her to the vet', but all the breeders on the thread said to try frozen bones and hey presto the tooth was out within 3 days and Lindyx was so relieved

I would try feeding a couple of frozen brisket bones or chicken frames over the next week - if no change then go to the vet! The bones worked a treat for one of the Golden Retriever people!

I am absolutely in love with this thread - so much so I printed it off and took it home to read last night Quick run down on my boy - Benson is a Golden Retriever with Atopic Dermatitis (Atopy) and we are trialing immunotherapy (aka desensititation injections) to assist with his allergies (sadly doesn't look like a cure). He is allergic to grasses, trees, wheat, oats, feathers (no birds thankfully) and tobacco. No known proteins. I am currently researching raw feeding and intend to begin within the next couple of weeks to see if this will further assist him. Presently I am feeding daily - 1 cup of Artemis Maximal Dog, table spoon of Natural Yoghurt, 8 Fish Oil tablets, 4 Evening Primrose tablets, a Brisket bone a can of Sardines every second day. A big question I have is about vegtables - if you were feeding green tripe (can you get in Australia?) how much would you have to feed a dog that weighs 39ks to be equivalent to the veggies others are using in their raw diets? Thanks YG for starting this awesome thread!!!

Sorry leaving work now - hope you can get in and they can help her feel better!!!

Hi First Time Puppy, Thanks for your reply!! Sahla copies our other pup and vice versa so when one drinks the other does so she is still drinking plenty. Her stools were soft for most of the week, but today it's runny so that's why I'm worried. At first we thought it may have been a change of water and environment so I wasn't too worried, but now I'm starting to get worried!! I'll post the results after we go to the vet this afternoon. Best of luck - I'm sure it's nothing serious - my boy did it to me over night at 5mths vomiting and the trotts all cause the little cheek had found a egg shell that rolled under the fence from neighbours compost and must have been a little too off for a baby's stomach! Sorry was the appointment this arvo - if not, go anyway!!! Edit - Why I say that is cause I waited for 10 hours and then went and it ended up costing me $600 cause he had to be put on a drip!

Are you adding anything to her food such as yoghurt?

Is Sahla ok - have you been to the vet yet??? Keep her hydrated if possible - if she will not drink water - try melting some honey and mixing it with cooler water till its drinkable in temp! Edit - are the stools just soft or are they like the squirts cause if just soft it could be the stress of leaving the litter.

Just picturing the giant sized one now Stormie! :D :D At least his is small GoldD!