What Do You Feed Your Dogs?

[noisymina]

Completely raw (prey & prey model) fed here...to both ferrets and dogs.

I haven't had to worm for years (I have a faecal test done once a year, which has always comes back clear).

Oh...that's a thought. I used to do it with the horse, but I didn't think to ask if one could do that with dogs.

[matilda1]

Completely raw (prey & prey model) fed here...to both ferrets and dogs.

I haven't had to worm for years (I have a faecal test done once a year, which has always comes back clear).

what about heart worm?

[TeamSnag]

Mine are on raw and get heartworm every month

[shelby-001]

Our dogs get a huge variety......

Breakfast:

Roo mince or occasionally chicken mince, vegies, cottage cheese or natural pot set yoghurt, once a week I throw a raw egg in each of their bowls. One day a week they get assorted chicken pieces instead of the mince- I get them from our IGA for $2.99/kg and they have legs, wings, thighs etc, (thinking of trying vets all natural muesli but for now I have started using up left over vegies - I wasn't adding any until this week - we've only had them 3 weeks though - adopted them, Boof is 12 months and Lilly is 5 months)

Midday occupier:

A roo tail, or a chicken carcass, or a piece of roo jerky etc

Dinner:

A couple of chicken necks, or offal (lamb's heart, lamb's kidney, chicken liver, lamb's fry), or sardines in spring water, or a chicken leg/wing each

Bedtime:

They get a small bowl of EP Holistic Select Anchovy put out at bed time, they often wake up in the middle of the night after a solid few hours sleep, have a little run, a pee a nibble and back to bed. Between the two they'd share maybe 1 cup!

Now as for portions, I work it out depending on what I have out of the freezer for their midday occupiers and dinner as to how much they are fed at breakfast, over the day my big boy gets about 2.5% of his body weight in wet/raw food (which is within the guidelines of 2-3% of bodyweight) and our puppy girl probably gets about 6% of her body weight (which is a bit lower than the advised 10% but she is stacking the weight on so we figure she is getting more than enough). I don't push the big fella to eat any more as he picks at the kibble over night (when she doesn't hog it all, LOL, which is another reason we don't give her more than about the 6%).

We have found very quickly that they are much better behaved when full and tired, so now we go for our morning walk, home for breakky.... then they sleep. We have a midday walk, home for occupier and then we sleep. Evening play in the back yard, dinner snack. Then to bed with a bowl of nibbles.

Also you'll note there is no beef in there. Boof has some skin issues so a holistic vet has told us to avoid beef and beef offal. This is also why we went on to EP Holistic Select, but after reading the ingredients properly, I can't believe I ever bought the other crap.

Edit: They are on annual heartworm injections!

Edited October 17, 2010 by shelby-001

[Babesmum]

I noticed how many of you are feeding raw eggs and some other food which worry me as a vet nurse:

Raw Eggs: Contain an enzyme called avidin, which decreases the absorption of biotin (a B vitamin). This can lead to skin and hair coat problems. Raw eggs may also contain Salmonella

Avocado: The leaves, seeds, fruit, and bark contain persin, which can cause vomiting and diarrhea.

Some nuts: Contain an unknown toxin, which can affect the digestive and nervous systems and muscle

Also with the people who feed raw I was just wondering if you have adapted your worming routine to suit? This not a critcism, I am really just wondering. Sometimes i wish i could feed mine more raw, but as it turns out it is not something my dogs do well on :D

Raw meat: May contain bacteria such as Salmonella and E. coli, which can cause vomiting and diarrhea.

A very interesting topic, I would love to learn more about the nutritional benefits of feeding raw. I have done a lot of study on Commercial foods and a balanced diet but not from the raw aspect. I am open to all well researched material

Hi Belladonna,

I thought I better clear up that I only feed my girl soft cooked eggs OR raw yolk only.This along with the Brazil nuts, avocado and raw meat are all part of a diet designed by a holistic vet. She has never had diarrhoea or vomiting (thank goodness!)

Cheers!

Lis & Babe :D

[TeamSnag]

I thought nuts and avos are bad for dogs?

[Gayle.]

I thought it was the nut out of the avocado that was poisonous, not the flesh.

[Guest belgian.blue]

Since when was raw egg bad for dogs?

[Elsha_UK_AU]

My 9 month old gets just over a third of a cup of Royal Canin Intestinal Kibble morning and night (with CKCS specifc RC mixed in as we are wheening him off the Intestinal). My 22 month old gets 3/4 - 1 cup of RC CKCS specific, plus the odd chicken neck thrown in.

Their treats when we leave the house to go to work are carob scooby snacks.

[Skitch]

Personally I dont think raw eggs are bad for dogs.. mine get them atleast once a week. They love them and devour them shells and all!

[noisymina]

Since when was raw egg bad for dogs?

If you Google salmonella + eggs, you will get the story.

It's only a chance thing, but it seems it does happen.

Mine has had many eggs without a problem. She gets a max of two in any week, sometimes none at all.

I am thinking about cooking them now, tho.

.

Edited October 17, 2010 by noisymina

[Kyra]

I fed advance for about 2 years but now ive changed them over to science diet sensitive skin kibble.

They also get tucker time and meaty bones.

[Skitch]

I've been feeding our cattle dog mix raw eggs 2 - 3 times a week for the entire duration of her life (11 years!) and have never once had a problem.. maybe we just got lucky? Dont know really.. but after 11 years I dont think I'll be stopping anytime soon lol.

[mackiemad]

i've always thought that a healthy dog's gut should be able to deal with bugs like salmonella. after all they are designed to eat food after burying it for a couple of days/weeks/months!

but i've never gone out of my way to dis/prove that...

i forgot to mention that i always keep a few tins of natures gift handy. if my boy is constipated then he gets a small tin with his dry mixed in-also if he isn't fond of eating in the hot weather cos the smell entices him.

[~Anne~]

i've always thought that a healthy dog's gut should be able to deal with bugs like salmonella. after all they are designed to eat food after burying it for a couple of days/weeks/months!

but i've never gone out of my way to dis/prove that...

i forgot to mention that i always keep a few tins of natures gift handy. if my boy is constipated then he gets a small tin with his dry mixed in-also if he isn't fond of eating in the hot weather cos the smell entices him.

Yes, the issue always confuses me too. Perhaps it is related to the type of baceria that develops on certain products and meats?? I mean, a dog can bury a meaty bone and then dig it up some time later and eat it without ill effect it seems.

[noisymina]

i've always thought that a healthy dog's gut should be able to deal with bugs like salmonella. after all they are designed to eat food after burying it for a couple of days/weeks/months!

but i've never gone out of my way to dis/prove that...

i forgot to mention that i always keep a few tins of natures gift handy. if my boy is constipated then he gets a small tin with his dry mixed in-also if he isn't fond of eating in the hot weather cos the smell entices him.

Yes, the issue always confuses me too. Perhaps it is related to the type of baceria that develops on certain products and meats?? I mean, a dog can bury a meaty bone and then dig it up some time later and eat it without ill effect it seems. :D

For sure. I've seen them ingest some pretty disgusting stuff ............................and survive.

Ok, I won't bother cooking the eggs.

[TeamSnag]

i gave my guys raw egg one time.. never again made them very very ill.. i cook them, well runny a lil

[shelby-001]

i've always thought that a healthy dog's gut should be able to deal with bugs like salmonella. after all they are designed to eat food after burying it for a couple of days/weeks/months!

but i've never gone out of my way to dis/prove that...

i forgot to mention that i always keep a few tins of natures gift handy. if my boy is constipated then he gets a small tin with his dry mixed in-also if he isn't fond of eating in the hot weather cos the smell entices him.

Yep that's what I thought as well....... our two LOVE their raw egg day each week!

We have 'MY DOG' on hand for emergencies (which I don't forsee happening considering how full my freezer is) but it's the only one I could find that didn't have a million preservatives or pasta or wheat flour etc in it and there was only two varieties that were like this, the others were like all the other brands. It's basically just meat and juicy stuff.

Edited October 18, 2010 by shelby-001

[aussielover]

some strains of salmonella are more potent than others, but i feed my dog raw eggs and haven't had a problem. If anything, her poo has become firmer and more normal after being put on raw/bones etc and we've definitely had less gastro incidents.

[Loves Dogs]

good topic! I've often wondered what others feed their dogs.

My girl Babe had chicken necks or chicken mince morning & night, with cooked veges and/or fruit. Veges include mashed pumpkin, beetroot (fresh not tinned), brussel sprouts, avocado, spinach, or bok choy, and fruit is either apples or melon. Whatever is in season she gets so it varies from time to time.

A couple of times a week she also gets a soft cooked egg and once a month she has a liver or a heart.

Every night she has two crushed brazil nuts and 3 ml of Omega 3,6 & 9 oil on her food along with her vit C, chelated zinc and another vitamin powder (she gets these last three in the morning too).

I'm looking forward to seeing others menus.

Cheers!

Lis

Just be aware that Avocado's are not good for dogs and it is not recommended that they eat it.

Mine get something in the morning, either a bone, large crunchy dog treat, dried roo flap, tendon etc.

Training treats sometime during the day (fourlegs ATM)

Dry foo and either, meat, sardines, yoghurt, cottage cheese, sometimes dog roll etc for tea.

And whatever they manage to counter surf and steal! buggers!

Avocadoes were recommended by her holistic vet as she has an auto-immune skin condition. They are full of good oils. Though with the price of them atm she isn't getting any!

Cheers!

I am interested in this vet recommending avacado as I am a vet nurse and have been told never to recommend avo and or onions. Maybe come to think of it , it is the avacado skin that is bad. I am going to do some research and try and get back to you guys on this one. My two get Optimum dry food and either chicken necks, sardines or eggs on top. They also get marrow bones through out the week while I am at work but then the amount of dry food is dropped on those days. There skin coat and weight are always looking in tip top condition. I find if I change the dry food my girl gets itchy skin.