[Care]

I was just wondering if any of our members feed their pets a B.A.R.F. (Biologically Appropriate Raw Food) diet? If you do do you make your own? With ground bones and muscle or just muscle and give bones later? Or do you just feed meaty bones? Or do you buy it pre-made? I have been researching for years and know the benefits (especially for dogs with weak immune systems), and was always planning on starting once I feel confident to do my own. But now that Jaz can't have poultry it's harder to find meat. I am thinking of rabbit, goat, venison, lamb, and possibly fish. I know a lot of people don't know a lot about (or agree with) feeding RAW, but I am looking to see if anybody here is experienced in this.

 

[IronstayK9]

I used to feed BARF when I only had 2 dogs and there was a Pilgrims Pride plant nearby. I fed chicken leg quarters and necks and twice a week we would feed organ meat and veggies. I found Dr. Billinghurst's books "Grow Your Pup With Bones" and "Give Your Dog a Bone" very helpful. Since your dog cannot have poultry, that does make a home made meal a little more difficult but it can still be done. If you don't mind spending the money, I recommend feeding Farmore. I have several breeder friends that use Farmore and I even have a friend that feeds Farmore to her elderly lab that has allergies and both hips replaced, the dog loves it and is thriving. I know Farmore comes in Bison so thats a great alternative to poultry.

Good luck!

 

[Care]

Thanks Ironstayk9! I am going to look up those books. I have already read a couple but they differ from each other.

I think I'm going to have to make it. Jaz is a special case and needs more veggies than protein. She also cannot have eggs, or apple cidar vinegar, or vit c. Not all, but a lot of these foods have those products in them. Most all have eggs.

 

[Tia]

The BARF diet is the healthiest diet for dogs. Check out their site it tells you which meats and veggies are best etc...
I feed raw and kibble mostly raw turkey necks, cow backs and big bones for recreation. I also make veggie slop for them all with their supplments and vitamins

 

[IronstayK9]

tia, i have always heard that feeding kibble with raw is a no no, do your dogs do well with the combo? I have always heard that the dog will digest the kibble first and the meat will ferment in their stomachs until the kibble is digested, but I dont know if this is fact or not.

By the way, most fruits are ok to feed but grapes are bad! and too much brocolli is bad because of the amount of calcium. Veggie slop poops are the worst lol

 

[Care]

I'm not sure about the kibble, I know that raw meat only takes like 6 hrs to digest but once it's cooked it takes about double the time. I wouldn't be feeding Jaz kibble or grains. And most (but not all) of her veggies with be green dark leaffy ones.

Tia, when you say check out their site, is there actually a barf.com site? Or what is the site address you're talking about? I'll check it out. I could never count how many raw food sites I've been to, probably over 50 in a couple days.

 

[AllAmericanPUP]

Feeding raw and kibble at the same time is a big no no.
but if you feed raw in the morning(since it digests faster) and kibble at night(at least 8 hours between meals) then it's ok.

i did feed 2 of my dogs a barf/raw diet. basically i fed chicken leg quarters and turkey necks, with chicken liver 2 or 3 times a week and canned mackarel or sardines 2 or 3 times a week. and an egg every other day(with the shell).

it's a great diet, it really helped with maggie's mange and shadow's itching problems. it also made both of them slimmer.

i have decided to stop for now, no real reason other than i'm tired of preparing the meals its not that much work but it is more work than throwing kibble in a bowl, mainly the thawing part and i'm not always home or i'm babysitting or something else and i usually forget to thaw their food, so it makes it difficult. maybe i'll feed it again when my life is a lil less hectic...

 

[Lisa]

I feed both raw and kibble but not in the same meal. Although I will mix canned fish, eggs, and other meat leftover from our meals in with their kibble but I don't give raw meaty bones (chicken backs) at the same time as kibble. I think thats what Tia means as well when she says she feeds both raw and kibble. If I am wrong then she can correct me on that.

 

[Tia]

Lisa you are correct. At different times.
If you go to Esmond Rottweiler Site you can see what meals she feeds and research on the diet. She has some awesome dogs!
www.esmondrott.com
She describes their daily meals

 

[Bremner53]

I was feeding just raw, then I went to Raw and kibble, its alot easier when you travel. Raw takes about 6 hours to digest like said before, Kibble takes about 12-14 hrs to digest. You can tell just by that, how much better raw is for them. Kibble is really hard on their stomach. I think now that I just have Lucy I might start feeding more raw, I am always going to feed kibble too, its just simpler for when we go camping.

 

[Tia]

you are right same reason i do both!
the dogs stool with raw though ,, soooo much better hard little white rocks!

 

[Care]

Lisa you are correct. At different times.
If you go to Esmond Rottweiler Site you can see what meals she feeds and research on the diet. She has some awesome dogs!
www.esmondrott.com
She describes their daily meals

They live about 25 mins from me. Jazmines diet is so hard because I'm not sure about some restrictions. The lady who owns canine cystinuria has been feeding raw for about 20 years and has lots of knowledge and experience in cystinuria. I'm hoping to get some diet advice from her.

Do you guys just feed kibble when you are busy or away? Or is it part of their daily rutine?

 

[Bremner53]

you are right same reason i do both!
the dogs stool with raw though ,, soooo much better hard little white rocks!

I know, Chad is the one who picks up the poop most the time, he keeps saying I should put them back on the raw full time, lol.

 

[Bremner53]

Do you guys just feed kibble when you are busy or away? Or is it part of their daily rutine?

I feed kibble pretty much everyday. This morning I gave Lucy her kibble with her salmon oil, kelp, alfalfa, and Yogurt. Tonight she is going to have half a chicken.

 

[Tia]

i pretty much do the same as Bremner

 

[Redbull]

Do you have to introduce fresh foods from a young age in order for the dog to always be able to digest it? Can an older dog be switched over to a raw diet if it has been on kibble most of it's life?

ps: adding extra kelp to food like DVP u.p. which contains kelp - can this be bad? can a dog get too much of it?

 

[Bremner53]

Bruno was on kibble for 7 years before I switched him to RAW, he did SO GOOD on it. He felt better, lost a little bit of weight, he coat brightened up, it made a huge difference in him.

You can switch anytime. Their stomach has NO problem digesting it, it is a heck of alot easier to digest then kibble, so its easier on their whole system.

 

[Care]

Do you have to introduce fresh foods from a young age in order for the dog to always be able to digest it? Can an older dog be switched over to a raw diet if it has been on kibble most of it's life?

Nope older dogs can do just as well as younger dogs. Infact I have read numerous stories from people who have had arthritic/dysplastic dogs who were running around like years younger on barf. Although I would suggest doing a change very slow. Maybe start with some pulped or blended veggies first. Still give your dog the morning kibble, but give the veggies for dinner. After a week maybe then start giving your dog a nice rmb (raw meaty bone). Some people switch cold turkey, some over time. If you're really interested I have some great links.

ps: adding extra kelp to food like DVP u.p. which contains kelp - can this be bad? can a dog get too much of it?

No, I always add extra kelp! I wouldn't give them a whole cup or anything, but a extra teaspoon (or even tablespoon) twice a day is fine.