feeding dog raw

[rawispeace]

I will be getting a chihuahua soon and they are very sensitive to diet and their eating must be monitored. Its easy for their blood sugar to be too high or low. So my question would be how and what to feed it raw. I searched the forum but found all info on cats and raw. So aside from letting the puppy eat any fruits or vegetables it wants what is a good raw dog food and I want to ask if its safe but I assume its safer than the crap thats in reg puppy food.
Has anyone had any experience with feeding a puppy raw?

and has anyone heard of vitamin wafers for dogs and cats called nuvet labs?

[jaurequi]

I wouldn't feed a dog just fruit and vegetables. Being domesticated, dogs need daily supplementation for all their needs. I feed my dog WOW BOW (http://www.wow-bow.com/petproductnews.html) vegan dog food.

Cats are pure carnivores and should be fed organic, if possible, cat food.

Best,

[ambiguous]

I can't help you with what to feed your dog, but I can tell you not to feed it onions, garlic, grapes, or raisins (or of course chocolate). These can all be dangerous for pooches.

PS cats will eat grasses and other greens, hence they aren't pure carnivores . . .

Have fun with your new pup!

[pjries]

Hi Rawispeace,
I posted some information about feeding dogs raw in the Indiana thread:
http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=10445&page=2&pp=25

Several websites listed and some manufacturers. lane also has some comments in that thread which may be of help to you.

I've been feeding raw since the fall of 2002 and they're in pretty good shape!
The great thing now is that there are lots of commercially prepared diets on the market which makes life a lot easier than it was a few years ago. Good books, too.

Best resource you can find is a supportive vet, tho they're hard to come by. We have been lucky. Please feel free to PM me if you want additional details or have questions.

Oh, and ambiguious, yes, you're right about all of those not being good for dogs with the exception of garlic, even tho it's a member of the same family as onion. Garlic, in small amounts, is fine for dogs and can even help combat fleas.

Pam

[sigtau66]

First off, I must reiterate what others have said, please do not feed your dog only veggies and fruits. That will harm the dog more than it could ever benefit them.

There are many companies out there that package raw meats for dogs. The one I have investigated and I know many people who use them is a company called Bravo. If you're looking for good kibble, the biggest piece of advice I can give you is to STAY AWAY from anything you can buy in the grocery store. You'd be better off feeding your dog nothing but fruits and veggies. I feed my rottweiler a brand called Innova Evo. It's as close as you can get to a raw diet in kibble form. Innova also makes some other dog foods. You can find their website at: http://www.naturapet.com

Another brand I've fed in the past is Canidae. They are another high quality food. Those are the only 2 high quality foods I've had experience with personally. There are many more out there.

One thing you should be aware of is that if you buy these high quality foods, it will cost a lot more than buying from a store. But, I think in the end, it's worth it because it makes a more healthy pet.

Finally, if you want to do this on the cheap, start reading up on how to feed raw without buying pre-packaged raw foods. Your local butcher shop will often have cheaper things (avg per pound) than anything you buy prepared. That will take a lot of research though because you must also supplement your dog with the correct balance of nutritional vitamins and minerals.

Anyway, good luck. Luckily you have a small dog who want eat much. I go through a $45 bag of food with my rottie in about 3-4 weeks. :eek:

[sweetgoddess]

My dog had severe skin issues. The top quality dog food and supplementation did not allieve this for him. I tried everything and finally decided to feed him my diet. Not only did his severe skin issues clear up very quickly, but he looked incredible!


I feed him a raw vegan diet with the exception of organic eggs. I make him a mash of carrots, ground flax seeds, coconut oil, garlic, greens, parsley veggies etc (alternating them) and give him that twice a day with 2 raw organic eggs mixed in. Then he snacks on thai coconuts, avacados, bananas, apples, lettuce and carrots.

I tried doing some of the raw dog diets I read about, but bones and my dog do not mix well and one got stuck on its way out. It was very traumatic so I never did that again.
The diet I listed above, he has been thriving on . When I took him off of it, his skin issues came right back.
Just my doggies experience. :)

[RowanC]

I found out dogs were omnivores when I tried to plant a garden in the Arizona desert and the coyotes stripped my plants every night! :::laughing::: Man, those pooches LOVED cantaloupes and tomatoes!

[sigtau66]

One thing in Sweetgoddess' post I must point out if someone is interested in feeding a raw diet to a dog, you should grind up almost all bones. Not only do they get the full benefit of the bone, but they also have no chance of swallowing a large piece and having to pass it. :) It can be traumatic. Also, it will prevent possible guarding issues by the dog if there is nothing to guard. Once a week or so, I would say let them chew on a big thick cow thigh bone (or smaller bone if you have a small dog). Chewing on bones helps keep their teeth clean and healthy. I just wouldn't make a regular practice of it.

As for any allergic reaction a dog may have to food, it's a trial and error method to resolve it. Usually you start out with some chicken and rice meals and slowly start adding things to the meal until you find what is causing the problem. This may take some time, but eventually you'll get it. If you don't want to do it that way, there are also dog foods with very little ingredients and the ingredients that are in the food are natural ingredients with no bad additives.

Rawispeace: If you're still interested, shoot me a PM and I can get you a list of high quality dog foods. I was posting last night right before going to bed, so I didn't have time to get a bunch of names and links.

[chilove]

Hi there,

I feed my chihuahua raw. You DO NOT have to grind all bones up for them. Look at their teeth! They are natural meat eaters, they can handle the bones as long as they not too large. Here is a good link for you to check out http://rawfed.com/myths/. I also know of someone who does raw food consultations for pets over the telephone who is very knowledgable in raw food for people and pets. Her website is www.rawschool.com. I feed my dogs raw chicken, necks and quarters, cut up with poultry shears, as well as some organ meat like livers and hearts. She also gets some veggies mixed up with raw egg once a week. It's actually very easy and cheap to feed raw once you get the hang of it. You can always use one of the commercially prepared raw foods, but stay away from any that contain grains, dogs do much better without any grains in their diet. Keep in mind that there might be some vomiting or diarhhea the first few days on a raw diet. That is very common and you shouldn't worry about it.

Best of luck to you!!!

[jaurequi]

carnivores: Organisms that mainly prey upon animals.

The carnivores are meat-eaters, although not all carnivores eat meat only

cats are pure carnivores; they eat meat and other matter along with it; hence the suggestion to feed cat food.

[sigtau66]

You DO NOT have to grind all bones up for them.

I know you do not have to, but it was offered as a suggestion. Some dogs like to inhale their food. This can cause problems. Chihuahuas are probably too small to inhale their food like a big dog could. It was offered just as a general suggestion, not necessarily to be followed. Otherwise, I love the link you included. Lots of good info there.

Thanks!