moosepup Posted January 31, 2009 Share Posted January 31, 2009 (edited) We currently have a 10 year old Maltese X Chihuahua who loves her chicken necks & wings. We alternate these with a commercial pet food (so shameful!!). I want to move her over to a BARF diet so that when the puppy arrives in 3 weeks they will both be eating BARF. I'm going to get some BARF patties today to try her on them before attempting to make my own. Anyway I digress... Can you please suggest other types of RMB (non-chicken) that I should try her on? I've been reading but never having any other dog fed RAW I get a bit confused about what kinds of bones to ask the butcher for, how much meat they should have on them etc etc. I'm new to all this so worry that I'll give her something harmful. It's doing my head in lol. Also, should add that I will be giving the same RMB to the new chihuahua so suggestions suitable for him as well would be great. Edited January 31, 2009 by moosepup Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravyk Posted January 31, 2009 Share Posted January 31, 2009 hi moosepup, you can try nearly any kind of RMB. chicken is really good for older dogs and for pups as well, because the bones are nice and soft and easy for them to chew. lamb offcuts can be good, just be careful as some lamb offcuts tends to be quite fatty. try getting the rib sections of the lamb, the bones a quite soft i have also heard rabbit is really good for dogs but i'm yet to try rabbit [waiting for my neighbour to go out shooting them] but i personally stay away from beef bones...they tend to be very hard and dogs can break their teeth on them...and somehow i dont think chi's could handle such big bones anyway Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miranda Posted January 31, 2009 Share Posted January 31, 2009 but i personally stay away from beef bones...they tend to be very hard and dogs can break their teeth on them Brisket bones are fine, I feed them all the time, it's the weight bearing bones (marrowbones) that are hard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BC Posted January 31, 2009 Share Posted January 31, 2009 I love lamb necks, lamb flaps (ribs) and brisket bones The flaps come in the "full set" so to speak, so for a smaller dog or puppy I just slice them into smaller peices Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mita Posted January 31, 2009 Share Posted January 31, 2009 One of the experienced breeders recommended Purina Dental Chews for my 14 yr old Tibbie girl. She'd had troubles getting thro' chicken necks or chicken wings, as she had in the past. I get them in Coles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moosepup Posted January 31, 2009 Author Share Posted January 31, 2009 Thanks for all the suggestions. In my head I was picturing throwing her something like a whole lamb chop lol. So if I just go to my local butcher and ask for some brisket and lamb offcuts for my dog I shouldn't get too many odd looks??? I think they might be good to start with by the sounds of it. She does tend to put on weight quite quickly so maybe if they are too fatty I can just trim them up. The breeder currently feeds the pup a mix of chicken (pet mince) patties mixed with veg, dry biscuits and Tuckertime... is it okay for me to start him on barf and bones straight away when I get him or ease him onto it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravyk Posted January 31, 2009 Share Posted January 31, 2009 just for your info, many supermarkets stock lamb offcuts in their pet food section in the meat fridges. they cost about $2.50 for a about 1kg of offcuts and normally there is a wide range of choice [bones or muscle offcuts/ribs or mixtures of both] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moosepup Posted January 31, 2009 Author Share Posted January 31, 2009 just for your info,many supermarkets stock lamb offcuts in their pet food section in the meat fridges. they cost about $2.50 for a about 1kg of offcuts and normally there is a wide range of choice [bones or muscle offcuts/ribs or mixtures of both] Okay, thanks Ravyk, I will go check the supermarket tomorrow. Got some BARF patties today, Zoe seemed VERY interested which is good. Excited to give her one in the morning lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
huski Posted January 31, 2009 Share Posted January 31, 2009 I usually just go to coles or woolies and see what sort of meat is on special or cheap - I got some great lamb forequarters today (four big pieces for $4), and I also get lamb necks, chicken drumsticks (you can get a bulk buy on special quite often), lamb shanks as a treat and whatever meaty bones look good. I also make up a BARF mix that has mince meat (human grade chicken and/or beef) with lots of grated vegies and fruit, chopped offal, sardines and yoghurt and the dogs get this every day or two as well as the bones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MissAloof Posted January 31, 2009 Share Posted January 31, 2009 I tried butchers' bones down here and was disgusted, they were huge, not the best looking but worst - I thought they were off. literally. I tried a few butchers and gave up. My mum was getting chicken flesh/bone mix from a chicken shop for me, and my dog loved it. I managed to get her on raw quickly and she loves BARF too. The other day I was in Coles checking out their stuff and found a lot of little meat and bones suitable for little dogs. They had little bags of smaller bones (ie not too huge for my kid to pick up, which the others were) and they also had small packs of neck bones which have gone down a treat, just the right size, nice quantity of meat and fresh and clean looking too. I'd also earlier found smallish bones at another supermarket, so if your butchers don't please you, poke around at some different supermarkets to get what you need. It took me a while but I found the right stuff in the end. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moosepup Posted January 31, 2009 Author Share Posted January 31, 2009 Yeah I am thinking now that the supermarket is the way to go. The woolies near us always has heaps of fresh chicken necks and small wings which she loves. I've never actually looked for anything else so will go there tomorrow and check out the lamb necks etc. Thanks heaps for all the suggestions. I've been driving everyone nuts talking about the BARF diet and bones etc so good to talk to other dog lovers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
huski Posted January 31, 2009 Share Posted January 31, 2009 (edited) Yeah I am thinking now that the supermarket is the way to go. The woolies near us always has heaps of fresh chicken necks and small wings which she loves. I've never actually looked for anything else so will go there tomorrow and check out the lamb necks etc. I just cruise around the meat section looking at all the different cuts and checking out the prices :D Like today with the lamb forequarters - they are nice and meaty and were very reasonably priced. One would be big enough for a meal for a smaller dog. I use low human grade mince when I make up my BARF mix purely because I prefer to use fattier, meatier mince for the dogs. I stay away from using pet mince because it's generally ground bones and it doesn't have enough meat content for my liking. I get a kg of low grade human mince from the supermarket for around $5 p/kg so it's not expensive especially once you bulk it up with vegies, offal, yogurt etc. ETA: Little Cherry in my signature below is ten years old and she is loving the BARF diet! She still eats a little bit of kibble because she struggles on some bones, but we feed her the BARF mix, chicken necks and chicken wing tips/half chicken wings. Edited January 31, 2009 by huski Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moosepup Posted February 1, 2009 Author Share Posted February 1, 2009 I just cruise around the meat section looking at all the different cuts and checking out the prices Like today with the lamb forequarters - they are nice and meaty and were very reasonably priced. One would be big enough for a meal for a smaller dog.ETA: Little Cherry in my signature below is ten years old and she is loving the BARF diet! She still eats a little bit of kibble because she struggles on some bones, but we feed her the BARF mix, chicken necks and chicken wing tips/half chicken wings. Helloooo, I'm back again with more questions, sorry! Huski - thanks for the suggestion of lamb forequarters - just picked some up in Woolies, so cheap!! Also picked up a bag of frames and a bag of necks, all for $15!! And should last for ages. She also tried her BARF for the first time this morning and seemed to love it. Hope it sticks!! Now my question is in regards to the frames... I cut them up into approx. 4 pieces (down the middle then each half into 2 pieces). Some of the bones seemed really quite small (especially the ribs) and sharp. Should I be concerned that these will cause a problem in her throat or tummy? Am I just worrying too much???? I might need to just stick with the wings and necks for all the angst it's causing me lol. PS. Huski - your Cherry is so adorable! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
huski Posted February 1, 2009 Share Posted February 1, 2009 \Helloooo, I'm back again with more questions, sorry! Huski - thanks for the suggestion of lamb forequarters - just picked some up in Woolies, so cheap!! Also picked up a bag of frames and a bag of necks, all for $15!! And should last for ages. She also tried her BARF for the first time this morning and seemed to love it. Hope it sticks!! Now my question is in regards to the frames... I cut them up into approx. 4 pieces (down the middle then each half into 2 pieces). Some of the bones seemed really quite small (especially the ribs) and sharp. Should I be concerned that these will cause a problem in her throat or tummy? Am I just worrying too much???? I might need to just stick with the wings and necks for all the angst it's causing me lol. PS. Huski - your Cherry is so adorable! Glad you found some lamb! My dogs had theirs this morning and LOVED them I don't feed frames to my little Cherry - I give them whole to the bigger dogs but the smaller dog and the cat just get chicken wings cut in half and chicken necks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
puggy_puggy Posted February 2, 2009 Share Posted February 2, 2009 Lamb ribs (flaps). If your dog can't chew very well make sure you get the ones that don't have the sternum (breast bone) still attached as that bit is much harder then the actual ribs. Alternatively you could cut the sternum off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moosepup Posted February 2, 2009 Author Share Posted February 2, 2009 Again, thanks for all the suggestions! I think I will stick with just the wings and necks in regards to chicken like you Huski. Frames scare me a bit with such a small dog lol. Hi puggy - I will look out for lamb flaps next shopping trip. She really hoed into the forequarter, I think she thought it was Christmas! This probably sounds like a dumb question but when she ate the forequarter there was a lot of bone left over (obviously cos it was huge compared to her) but is she still getting the right nutrients out of the bone? Is just chewing it enough? I realise that meat to bone ratio is important for health so just curious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
huski Posted February 2, 2009 Share Posted February 2, 2009 This probably sounds like a dumb question but when she ate the forequarter there was a lot of bone left over (obviously cos it was huge compared to her) but is she still getting the right nutrients out of the bone? Is just chewing it enough? I realise that meat to bone ratio is important for health so just curious. If you are feeding her other types of bones (like the necks and wings) I would say she will be ok, my bigger dogs can eat all the forequaters but I'm sure its good for your littley to have a good chew, and they are quite meaty too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moosepup Posted February 2, 2009 Author Share Posted February 2, 2009 If you are feeding her other types of bones (like the necks and wings) I would say she will be ok, my bigger dogs can eat all the forequaters but I'm sure its good for your littley to have a good chew, and they are quite meaty too. Thanks Huski, you always know what to say to make me feel better. She will be getting chicken more often than forequarters and she pretty much eats those whole so you're right, I think she'll be fine. She also has Dr B's Patties that have ground up bone in them. I know this way of feeding will be so easy once I get used to it!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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