Your Raw/natural Diet

[alotanewfs]

Did a quick search for this, so apologies if it is repeated.

I have begun to feed my dogs a more natural diet, no more kibble. One of my dogs was not doing well on dry. Fed early in the day, every day, I would find that Lukas would wake me at 1-3am every night to go outside to eat grass and throw up bile. Something he was eating was not right for him. So we switched to natural and he is doing great!

Being just a beginner with the natural feeding, I'd love to have some of your diet sheets.....

I worry that I am missing something out, or feeding something I shouldn't.

Current diet for my dogs - two Newfoundlands, female 10 years, 60 kilos, male 8 years 68 kilos

(fed twice a day)

Cooked Pasta with Carrot and Silverbeet

Raw Minced Chicken Frames from Leonarnds.

6-7 Chicken Necks

Jalna Natural Yoghurt

Twice a week they get a raw egg and Sardines in water.

Is there anything else they should be getting, or something I should eliminate?

Thanks for any ideas you can give.

Edited August 30, 2010 by alotanewfs

[cj-b]

Offal is also recommended, from memory I think it's roughly 10% of their diet or it may be 5% I'm sure someone will be able to tell you the exact amount. In the form of heart, liver, tripe, kidney etc. When I made my own I found Woolies to be reasonable priced, but I was only feeding a small 6kg dog, so you may want to source it from a cheaper supplier for 2 big dogs

Maybe adding a Omega Blend could be of benefit as well. Great for bigger dogs joints, and also skin and coat. There are a few online stores that sell big bottles (I think as big as 5L), so this would be a cheaper option as well.

I bet your babies are big beauties :D

[Mas1981]

My poor dog does not get a very balanced diet as he has allergies, at the moment he is living off roo and lamb with veggies and fruit, he also gets fish oil and evening primrose oil, suprisingly he does way better even on these limited ingredients then he ever did on kibble.

Guess what I am trying to say is that most dogs do well on raw, it is good to also add some organ meat in ( I do heart and liver) but I dont add it in every week. Not sure what others do?

[alotanewfs]

Thanks guys!

Do you give the offal raw or cooked? I can get good priced Oz Heart and Liver and Sheep Brains near me.

Will get some Omega Blend too, thank you!

[cj-b]

Raw is fine. You can either add small amounts to their daily feedings or just a bulk amount once a week. Whichever you or they prefer I guess. Good luck.

Edited August 30, 2010 by cj-b

[stormie]

Raw offal is fine, but just be sure to worm monthly with something that covers for hydatids. Even though it's human grade what you get from a supermarket, its designed to be cooked. Better to be safe than sorry :D

Should add, liver and hearts give Orbit terrible diarrhoea, even in smaller amounts. I would try it first with smaller portions rather than a sudden bulk day - the out put can be pretty foul!!

Edited August 30, 2010 by stormie

[oakway]

Did a quick search for this, so apologies if it is repeated.

I have begun to feed my dogs a more natural diet, no more kibble. One of my dogs was not doing well on dry. Fed early in the day, every day, I would find that Lukas would wake me at 1-3am every night to go outside to eat grass and throw up bile. Something he was eating was not right for him. So we switched to natural and he is doing great!

Being just a beginner with the natural feeding, I'd love to have some of your diet sheets.....

I worry that I am missing something out, or feeding something I shouldn't.

Current diet for my dogs - two Newfoundlands, female 10 years, 60 kilos, male 8 years 68 kilos

(fed twice a day)

Cooked Pasta with Carrot and Silverbeet

Raw Minced Chicken Frames from Leonarnds.

6-7 Chicken Necks

Jalna Natural Yoghurt

Twice a week they get a raw egg and Sardines in water.

Is there anything else they should be getting, or something I should eliminate?

Thanks for any ideas you can give.

Yes, get rid of the cooked pasta and vegetables

Pasta is wheat similar as to what is in dry food.

If you feel the need to feed veges put them through a food processor till they are liquefied or through a juicer

and mix the juice and pulp together in with chicken mince. :D

[Diva]

What oakway said, plus you need more variety in the meat source. Chicken alone is not sufficient, you need to add at least one sort of red meat. Aim for variety.

Offal should be around 10%, of which half is liver (eg 5% of the total diet is liver). Don't overdo the liver, it's the one thing you must have some of but shouldn't have too much of. Other good offal includes kidneys, brains, sweet breads - heart is great food but counts as a muscle meat, not as offal.

Not every meal needs to be balanced, you are aiming for balance over time. Not counting vegies, you are aiming for roughly 10% of the diet as edible bone, 10% offal, 80% meat.

The cleaned white tripe is nutritionally pretty useless, but if you can get 'green' tripe, snap it up. You'll be lucky to find it in Australia though, unless you get it direct from the person who slaughters the animal.

Also for dogs the size of yours I'd be aiming for chunks of food more challenging than mince and chicken necks - you want to exercise those jaws and necks with bigger pieces of food.

Edited August 30, 2010 by Diva

[Tiggy]

I'd leave out the pasta and feed bigger bones than chicken necks so they get chewing exercise, welcome to the wonderful world of raw feeding .

[alotanewfs]

Thanks so much everyone for the advice!

OK, so what about the pre=packed Barf? There is a supplier near me and I wondered about giving this? Would I still need to add anything?

[t-time]

Reckon it wouldn't be very economical to be feeding the Barf patties/sachets to giant breed dogs

You could up their eggs each week - my 3 kilo dogs get a whole egg at least once a week and sometimes twice - once again giant breed so you could give up to perhaps 4 eggs each a week?? (Just an estimate)

Sardines can be in vege oil or spring water and once again, my toys get about 3 sardines each in a meal once a week - I would imagine it wouldn't be a hard stretch to say that your dogs might need 2 tins each per meal?

Like the other advice you've been given

Edited August 30, 2010 by t-time

[Sandra777]

I'd leave out the pasta and feed bigger bones than chicken necks so they get chewing exercise, welcome to the wonderful world of raw feeding .

x2 - with dogs that size I'd be looking at a half or whole chicken each, lamb necks, mutton flaps and that sort of thing. When adding new things do it bit by bit - don't add a pile of things all at once until the dogs are used to variety. I know some giant breed raw feeders use rolled oats, you could no doubt find someone a bit more experienced with giant breed raw feeding to help on that one. Veges are a waste of time unless crushed - but if all you want to do is fill up a bottomless pit then raw vege would do the job

[perfect partners]

Did a quick search for this, so apologies if it is repeated.

I have begun to feed my dogs a more natural diet, no more kibble. One of my dogs was not doing well on dry. Fed early in the day, every day, I would find that Lukas would wake me at 1-3am every night to go outside to eat grass and throw up bile. Something he was eating was not right for him. So we switched to natural and he is doing great!

Being just a beginner with the natural feeding, I'd love to have some of your diet sheets.....

I worry that I am missing something out, or feeding something I shouldn't.

Current diet for my dogs - two Newfoundlands, female 10 years, 60 kilos, male 8 years 68 kilos

(fed twice a day)

Cooked Pasta with Carrot and Silverbeet

Raw Minced Chicken Frames from Leonarnds.

6-7 Chicken Necks

Jalna Natural Yoghurt

Twice a week they get a raw egg and Sardines in water.

Is there anything else they should be getting, or something I should eliminate?

Thanks for any ideas you can give.

I feed my Newf all raw. Generally, for breakfast, she has a turkey wing piece or turkey drumstick or 2 turkey necks (when I can get them) or a chicken maryland, or a few chicken necks if they are really large ones or a couple of chicken drumsticks. About once a week she has a tin of mackerel or sardines. For tea she has pureed vegies and fruit - basically anything except potato, with minced chicken carcasses, or turkey mince, or sometimes lamb or pork mince, or chopped chicken thigh fillets. I also add some heart/liver/ or kidney. I also add calcium ascorbate powder, kelp powder, alfalfa powder, salmon oil capsules, cod liver oil, an egg once or twice a week. Occasionally she might have a lamb neck for tea. Occasionally she has a marrow bone (cut lenthwise). I buy most of the meat when it's on special - Turkey from Safeway, Pakenham, chicken mince from Not Just Poultry, Pakenham, frames and necks from there too or from Tasman Meats at Berwick (they have bigger frames). I used to buy bulk packs of marylands, thigh fillets, etc from Get Fresh at Narre Warren but they are re-vamping their meat section so haven't had much lately. I also sometimes feed the BARF commercial food. It is a bit expensive but you can get bulk packs which are a bit cheaper than the individual packets.

I mostly follow Kymythy Schultz's recommendations as she's a Newfie breeder and a nutritionist.

If you want to chat about it or borrow her book or The Barf Diet book let me know on here and I'll ring you. I'm a club member so have your phone no.

[Diva]

Thanks so much everyone for the advice!

OK, so what about the pre=packed Barf? There is a supplier near me and I wondered about giving this? Would I still need to add anything?

I'd still add some big meaty bones.

Edited September 6, 2010 by Diva

[Red Fox]

For a 36kg Ridgeback I feed:

Breakfast- 300-500g of raw meaty bones; Roo spine/tail, chicken wings/thighs/drumsticks (occasionally a whole small chicken), lamb flaps/shanks.

Dinner- 350g meat (usually roo) PLUS, *veggie slops, a scoop of natural yogurt and a few supps (vit C, ACV, green lipped mussel powder, probiotics).

To that I add one of the following most nights: offal (liver/brains/heart), tin of sardines or mackeral, an egg, very occasionally I'll add a bit of left over rice or pasta.

He also gets a small amount of goats milk after his dinner and usually a 4x2 biscuit or a small bone (chicken wing or drumstick, small lamb flap or roo tail piece, etc) as well.

*My veggie slops has fruit, veg, omega pet oil, eggs, kelp, garlic and parsley in it.

I have a diet sheet which I'd be happy to email to you if that helps

[BCPuppy]

20kg BC diet for 7 days approx 2.5% of her weight

1.75kg Raw meaty bones - chicken carcass, drumsticks, wings, kangaroo, lamb shanks, flaps, brisket, goat

400g fish

450g minced roo or chicken

500g vegie slops (veg & some fruit blended)

200-300g offal mainly kidney & liver added to meat meals

egg

yohurt

omega oil

once a week I get everything out and usually bag this into 2 x days fish & bones, 3 x days mince & bones, 2 x bones only

get loads of veg once a month (ood and specials) and freeze into 100gm blocks

if hungry I give her extra vegie slops (fills her up with less calories)

total amounts can vary sometimes more sometimes less

good luck and have fun

[kat99]

for my 2 belgain shepherds 1 is 27 kg and the other is 29 kg .

i buy 10 kg chciken frames , 2 bags of beef brisket bones , 3 bags of turkey necks , 1 5kg of chicken mince and 1 5kg of roo mince , 4 cans of sardines , natural yougurt ,egg and rolled oats

i don't feed vegies at all no pasta or no rice .

for breakfast i cook up rolled oats the night before then i use a fork and crumble it as they dont like it clumpy lol though that i put yougurt and sardines they love it .

for lunch they get a chicken frame eac and also a beef brisket bone

for dinner they get a turkey neck eac maybe two depending on size of the neck , and 2 cups of roo or chicken mince

i also get liver once a month i really hate handling this lol but they do get it. and i vary the mince so they get chicken 1 week and roo the next .

i also get lamb shanks when i can get hold of them .

my dogs have a very natural diet and its very easy and cheap to feed i always get comment on how soft and shiny my dogs coat are and they have lovely weights too .

Edited August 31, 2010 by kat99

[alotanewfs]

WOW guys, thanks so much!

You have given me a great start in feeding my dogs naturally.

Went and got liver/hearts/brains this afternoon, and their afternoon snack was raw Ox heart.

Next question.....is it OK to get all the ingredients I am using and mix it uptogether, freeze and then defrost as I need it? Or should I keep the different ingredients seperate and mix as I do their meal each day?

I have a problam with getting Lukas to eat raw Beef, so if I get the beef mince, can I mix it with the chicken mince or is that not OK?

Am off to supermarket now to get some meaty bones, thanks again!

[Red Fox]

I bag my meat and bones in the right portion sizes and freeze, do my veggie slops once every 4-6 weeks and freeze in ice-cube trays, then just pull things out and defrost as I need them. It only takes a few minutes on a night to mix it all together on a night and I find it gives me more choice in what I want to feed that day.

[perfect partners]

WOW guys, thanks so much!

You have given me a great start in feeding my dogs naturally.

Went and got liver/hearts/brains this afternoon, and their afternoon snack was raw Ox heart.

Next question.....is it OK to get all the ingredients I am using and mix it uptogether, freeze and then defrost as I need it? Or should I keep the different ingredients seperate and mix as I do their meal each day?

I have a problam with getting Lukas to eat raw Beef, so if I get the beef mince, can I mix it with the chicken mince or is that not OK?

Am off to supermarket now to get some meaty bones, thanks again!

Check prices as I've found the supermarkets are more expensive for meaty bones - eg chicken necks are over $3/Kg and only $2/Kg at the chicken shop.