>> How much Raw Food should you feed them?
>> How often should you feed them Raw Food?
>> What about Puppies and Raw Food?
>> Are there any problems with Bacteria?
>> What should I know about Raw Meaty Bones?
>> Do you have a sample of a balanced feeding schedule?
>> What should I know about the full meals you offer?
>> What do I need to know about switching my dog to Raw Food?
>> What about my cat making the Raw Food switch?
How Much – On average you should feed about 2% of your dog’s body weight (dog’s weight x 0.02). Larger dogs will generally eat proportionately less than that and small dogs will generally eat proportionately more. This is just a guideline; you should monitor your dog’s waistline on a regular basis. You should be able to easily feel ribs along your dog’s ribcage. Obesity in dogs causes the same types of problems that it does in people (higher incidence of cancer, bone disease, heart, kidney, liver problems etc.) Keeping your dog thin is one of the best things you can do for their health.
How Often – Adult dogs are generally recommended to eat once a day. This allows the digestive system to fully stretch and utilize all of the glands in the digestive tract. Dogs, like wolves are designed to take on lots of food at once and then fast for a period of time. Wolves have been documented eating as much as 20lbs in one meal, but who knows when he will get to eat next. Use common sense when feeding your dog, twice a day is not bad for them, do what works best for you and your pet.
Puppies – Proper nutrition for puppies is extremely important! Bone disorders begin in puppyhood. Feeding raw meaty bones to a puppy does two very important things for their health. First it allows them to grow slowly, this is crucial to avoid bone and joint disorders. Raw food is biologically appropriate and the levels of protein, fat and calcium are suitable for their growing bones and muscles. Kibble often contains too much fat, protein and synthetic calcium. This causes fast uneven growth and too much synthetic calcium interferes with the absorption of other essential vitamins. The raw bone in a biologically appropriate diet provides essential calcium however will not interfere with vitamin absorption, if the pup ingests too much bone it is just eliminated in the feces. Secondly raw meaty bones provide tooth cleaning at an essential time. If bacteria are allowed to grow in the mouth of a pup, when they lose their puppy teeth there is a greater chance that the bacteria will get into the puppies system when the tooth falls out. Pups can start on chicken necks and wings as soon as they begin the weaning process, once your pup is 15lbs or over we recommend switching to bigger raw meaty bones such as chicken backs, whole chicken parts and duck necks. Remember slow growth is the best; everyone wants their puppy to grow the fastest and be the biggest healthiest looking puppy around. However by doing this you could be causing irreversible bone damage. If people comment on how “lanky” your puppy is, take it as a compliment on what a great job you are doing growing your pup slowly. Puppies should eat between 4% and 6% of their body weight (puppy’s weight x 0.05). Puppies should eat 3 times a day until they are about 6 months of age. From 6 months to about 1 year they should be fed twice daily. Once they are fully grown they can then be switched to one meal a day. Also remember that your pup’s bones are still very soft, so avoid too much exercise and any high impact activities.
Bacteria – Unless your dog or cat is severely immune compromised (in which case I suggest you seek the advice of a holistic vet) bacteria should not be a problem for them. They have a stomach with an extremely low ph (1 or 2). This is an inhospitable environment for salmonella and other forms of bacteria. However we unlike our pets are not designed to eat raw meat, these bacteria can be harmful to us. Handle your pet’s raw food like you would handle your own. Wash your hands after contact, clean any surfaces that have come in contact with raw food, do not leave raw food out for your pet for more than an hour or two. It is best to have a designated area for your dog or cat to eat raw meaty bones, during the summer outside is great; during the winter have them stay in an area that is easy to clean, such as a mat or towel, the bathroom or their kennel. Dogs have been shown to shed salmonella in their feces, so ensure you wash your hands after cleaning up after them. Following is an informative article about raw food: http://www.positivepetzine.com/salmonella
Raw Meaty Bones: Always err on the side of feeding bigger raw meaty bones, this allows the full dental benefit and will prevent your dog from trying to swallow the item whole. Below is just a sample to give you an idea of what you can feed your dog. Chicken is used as the main staple, to keep the expense to a minimum. You should feed a wide variety of proteins and some of the more expensive items can be fed once or twice a week as a treat. Adjust the amount of food according to your dog’s weight. The RMB balancer is used to compliment raw meaty bones, approximately 50% of the diet should consist of raw meaty bones and 50% RMB balancer. The raw meaty bones provide your dog with meat (protein) and bone (calcium), as well as chewing exercise. The raw meaty bone balancer provides everything else that your dog needs - muscle meat, fat, organs, tripe, eggs, veggies, fruit and a few supplements. You can feed the RMB and the balancer in one meal, or one for breakfast and one for supper (example number 1.) You can also feed the balancer one day and raw meaty bones the next (example number 2.) Remember balance over time, not every meal has to be complete. Following is a link to a site that has lots of information about feeding raw meaty bones and the benefits: http://www.rawmeatybones.com/petowners.php
Sample of a Balanced Feeding Schedule:
Example 1
Sunday |
Monday |
Tuesday |
Wednesday |
Thursday |
Friday |
Saturday |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken parts, beef RMB balancer | Chicken parts, 1 beef RMB balancer | Beef necks, Lamb RMB balancer | 1 Lamb neck | Chicken parts, Beef RMB balancer | Bison necks, Beef RMB balancer | Ostrich necks, Beef RMB balancer |
| Chicken parts, Beef RMB balancer | Chicken parts, Beef RMB balancer | Beef necks, Lamb RMB balancer | Beef necks, Lamb RMB balancer | 1 Lamb neck | Chicken parts, Beef RMB balancer | Chicken parts, Beef RMB balancer |
| Chicken parts, Beef RMB balancer | Chicken parts, Bison RMB balancer | Bison necks, Lamb RMB balancer | Ostrich necks, Beef RMB balancer | 1 Lamb neck | Chicken parts, Beef RMB balancer | Chicken parts, Beef RMB balancer |
| Bison necks, Lamb RMB balancer | Chicken parts, Bison RMB balancer | Beef tail, Lamb RMB balancer | Chicken back or necks, Beef RMB balancer | Chicken parts, Lamb RMB balancer | Beef necks, Lamb RMB balancer | Chicken parts, Beef RMB balancer |
Example 2
Sunday |
Monday |
Tuesday |
Wednesday |
Thursday |
Friday |
Saturday |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken parts | Beef RMB balancer | Bison necks | Beef RMB balancer | Chicken parts | Beef RMB balancer | Beef necks |
| Lamb RMB balancer | Ostrick necks | Lamb RMB balancer | Chicken parts | Lamb RMB balancer | Chicken parts | Lamb RMB balancer |
| Chicken parts | Bison RMB balancer | Chicken parts | Bison RMB balancer | 1 Lamb neck | Bison RMB balancer | Beef tail |
| Beef RMB balancer | Chicken parts | Beef RMB balancer | Bison necks | Beef RMB Balancer | Chicken parts | Beef RMB balancer |
Full Meals – These are designed to provide everything in one meal. These full meals are more expensive and do not provide any tooth cleaning benefit. If your dog cannot or will not eat raw meaty bones the full meals are a great way to provide fresh, natural food for your pet. Feeding the full meals is a bit simpler; just feed the correct amount once or twice a day. However make sure that you do provide some variety of proteins, there are 4 varieties of full meal, beef, chicken, bison and lamb.
Switching to Raw – Most dogs do better with a cold turkey switch, rather than combining raw with kibble. Start out simple with a single food item for a couple of days, like chicken backs. Once your dog gets accustomed to these add in a raw meaty bone balancer like bison or beef. Your dog may experience detox symptoms like runny eyes and nose, diarrhea, film on the coat etc. These symptoms should subside within a week or two. Once your dog is doing well and has adjusted to eating fresh food, (which usually takes a week or two) you can start adding different proteins and some variety to their diet. Sometimes dogs who have eaten kibble for several years won’t know what to do with a raw meaty bone, in these cases you can start with full meals and once the dog gets the taste for real food the switch to raw meaty bones is easy. If feeding full meals, stick with one protein source for about a week, once they are used to eating fresh food add in some more variety of full meals. If your dog or cat has a pre-existing condition, you should seek the advice of a holistic vet.
Cats - Cats are naturally suspicious of new foods, so be patient and realize that it may take a little time to complete the switch to a raw diet. Cats should be fed once or twice a day, if you are free feeding kibble your first step to switching to a raw diet should be to make meal times for your cat. Some cats will take to raw right away and some will take some convincing. Try to test your cats interest by placing a small amount of raw food in with their regular food, if your cat takes to it you can begin adding more until you no longer include any kibble. If your cat avoids it try mixing a small amount of raw food in with the regular food to disguise it and gradually add more and more. If your cat doesn’t take to raw right away, be patient this does not mean that your cat will never eat raw it just may take some time. Once your cat is used to eating fresh, raw food you can begin to incorporate raw meaty bones like chicken wings and necks. If you feed raw meaty bones 3-4 times a week you will keep your cats teeth clean and healthy. Following is a link to a great site that has a lot of information about feeding cats raw and many suggestions to make the switch:
http://rawfedcats.org/practicalguide.htm
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