Bakers

whisp&willow said:
i am also guilty of liking the idea of raw- but circumstances do not lend themselves to it up here.

i dont have the space for a big chest freezer at the moment... and even if i did i wouldnt be able to afford to fill it with meat for one dog.... from the co-op!!

no local butcher or wholesaler to speak of up here, and its ridiculously expensive to buy meat for us to eat, let alone the dog!

out of interest east kent/ other "barfers": can you give me an idea of what and how much i would need to be feeding a 60 lb (ish) american bulldog?


x
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Wrong calculation.

About 1.5lbs a day :D

Abe for example has 1.2lbs a day.
Today he is having:
1 turkey leg
1/3 beef tongue
3 cubes of liver.
 
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KL, I agree, really satisfying to see a dog enjoying a meal so much - I compare the pup's reaction to the kidneys to a kid the first time it tastes chocolate. And I have nicks all over my hands from the chicken-wing-incuded mad fits he takes :p

Big dog as you know cannot tolerate a wholly raw diet but he does enjoy his big mahoosive bones from the butcher.
His sister used to hock everything straight back up despite much effort...

Whisp, the purists may disagree with me but I tend not to overthink it - tripe is the main body of the dog's diet, Skinners for training aid from my pockets, then chicken wings, tuna, pig's ears, whatever I find in the bargain bin, if dog is thin, feed more, if dog is fat, feed less.
 
As I said I would love to feed raw, as I speak/write our freezer is choc a block,my daughter bought home a big bag of ice cubes wtf because they were cheap:eek:. Glad they were cheap because there is no room in the flicking freezer.
 
I think the original post should be posted in soapbox. There are plenty of people with dogs who never come in here and as the last food post in there proved there are a lot of people that think bakers is the best.
 
For me the best part is the poo. (:o)

Took them both to visit family yesterday, Ricoh went for a poo in the garden, uncle was in hysterics at the fact that he produced nothing but a fart of chalk dust, they are now known as the magical chalk-shiteing dogs.

They'd had only chicken frames for two days as I had a glut of them from the butcher, they don't normally poop dust. :p
 
I have just agreed with my butchers to pick up bags of bones, trimmings, offal, pluck etc at least once a week - this weeks 5 bags cost me a fiver:D Mollichop is going to share it with me so should cost us both a tenner a month to feed our 4 dogs:D

I do buy tins of tuna. sardine and pilchards etc for a change and any fish etc in the bargain sections of any supermarket I am in:) They both steal enough fruit and veg from my pantry to suit themselves:rolleyes::D
 
katielou said:
Whatever you've got.

I try to make it equal out to about 10% bone 10% organ and 80% muscle meat over a week or more but its all by eye and no exacts.
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see- its all the maths that confuses me!!! :eek:

my main problem is that i am over 80 miles away from any supermarkets, or pet shops such as pets at home. there are a couple of butchers "localy" but i'd need to get an idea of how much meat, and what things i'd need. and i have a feeling it would still prove very costly?

also, if betty has any more than one bone in a week she spews... i am first to admit- im a fan of the post bone poop though... very easy to pick up!! :D

do you not need to feed veggies too?? as for all the meat that you get from wherever- i take it you just freeze, and thaw when needed?? i seem to remember reading something about needing to freeze stuff for a certain amount of time before feeding?? what do you do with all the raw bones you pick up? freeze them too?

also- how often are you feeding bones?

re- fish... do you just gut them and feed them raw?? we catch lots of mackerel...!
 
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blackcob;9939737 Fish4Dogs is good stuff if it must be a dry food said:
a lot of posters vouch for this brand i might give Fish4Dogs a go. ideally, id like to mix something moist into the dry food to make it a little more palatable. i will drizzle gravy on it or something like that.
not sure if thats just making it more appealing to me rather than the dog though!
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I don't feed veggies. I feed prey model raw. I don't believe dogs need veggies, dairy or grains.

I freeze it and thaw when needed but i am also happy for stuff to sit in the fridge for a week or more before i get round to feeding it.
You should freeze wild caught stuff for around 3 days if you are worried about parasites. My dogs have been on raw for years and now have acid from the gods so i don't worry about it much any more.
I feed bones as part of a meal most days.

I would say yours in being sick either because her tummy is not use to it and you have to introduce slowly or because she is having to much bone in relation to muscle meat.
Mine will occasionally bring stuff back up and then re eat it. That is fine and natural.

Fish i wouldn't gut just give whole or cut up if they need smaller amounts.
 
lula said:
a lot of posters vouch for this brand i might give Fish4Dogs a go. ideally, id like to mix something moist into the dry food to make it a little more palatable. i will drizzle gravy on it or something like that.
not sure if thats just making it more appealing to me rather than the dog though!
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I agree.
If for some reason i couldn't feed raw i would feed good quality wet food. I think it is far superior to dry food but i also understand its not easy to source a good one and its expensive.

You may try some low sodium chicken stock over the top.

Also do what blackcob said and join the breeders club so you get money off the fish4dogs
 
I liked the idea of Raw, but had far too much on my plate to consider it...

But my Inuit has had a rash since birth, and at the age of 3 I decided I'd had enough.

I started Raw in June. I started by reading the Raw thread on here and reading this
http://preymodelraw.com/how-to-get-started/

I have two dogs, an autistic teenager, two horses and a full time job.

I am the only driver in the house.
No-one helps me with the walking of the dogs or looking after the horses.
I am the only 'chef' in the house.

And I also mix my own horse feed supplements too.....

Not only do I manage - I ENJOY it:)

At first I bought chicken from Sainsburys.
Now I go to a butcher on a Friday and buy beef hearts, pork belly/shoulder, kidney, lamb breast and liver. Bones come for free.
I bag up each day's and leave it in the fridge. It took a bottom drawer of the fridge and a drawer of the freezer (for two, large dogs).

But I have just had a new kitchen (only took 16 years to save for it!) and a new fridge freezer, so the old one has gone in the shed.
So I am going to buy a month's worth from a specialist company that delivers to my area so I don't have to worry about getting to the butcher when winter closes in.

I was buying kibble at £12 per 15kg sack - so YES, Raw is more expensive for me. But the lack of itching and the spring in my old girl's step is priceless.
 
slinkyunicorn said:
I do buy tins of tuna. sardine and pilchards etc for a change and any fish etc in the bargain sections of any supermarket I am in:)
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is this fish fed raw slinky or does it have to be cooked....and likewise with butchers offal?

sorry, i havent a clue about raw feeding.:o
 
lula said:
is this fish fed raw slinky or does it have to be cooked....and likewise with butchers offal?

sorry, i havent a clue about raw feeding.:o
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Most of the stuff in tins is already cooked isn't it?

But whatever feed it straight out the tins. Feed the offal raw but be careful not to feed much at first. It should be the last thing introduced into the diet because you will get the runny poops or spewing.
 
Re veggies, I fed the pup frozen carrots when he was teething and I still throw them to him periodically to keep him occupied. No real nutritional value but it's something to keep him busy, cheap and not full of rubbish like a lot of store-bought chews.
 
oh she re-eats the spew... but she eats what comes out of her bum given half a chance...!

i am very interested in feeding raw and have been trying to convince myself to go for it...!

like i say its just a bit scary...! sorry to be a pain- but would anyone give me a breakdown of what they feed over a week??

also how would you start off feeding raw?
 
CaveCanem said:
Re veggies, I fed the pup frozen carrots when he was teething and I still throw them to him periodically to keep him occupied. No real nutritional value but it's something to keep him busy, cheap and not full of rubbish like a lot of store-bought chews.
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I made my own bully sticks in the dehydrator the other day. Just a note to warn you never to try that. My house still stinks!
 
whisp&willow said:
oh she re-eats the spew... but she eats what comes out of her bum given half a chance...!

i am very interested in feeding raw and have been trying to convince myself to go for it...!

like i say its just a bit scary...! sorry to be a pain- but would anyone give me a breakdown of what they feed over a week??

also how would you start off feeding raw?
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You can start by just doing it once or twice a week to ease yourself in.

Have a look at the raw sticky i think that has lots of weekly menus in it :D

Start with chicken always.
Feed a single protien source for 2 weeks before you start to add in others.
So chicken for 2 weeks.
Then add in a little pork for 2 weeks
Then add in beef for 2 weeks etc

Have a look here:
http://preymodelraw.com/how-to-get-started/
 
I'd never really heard of raw of BARF before I came on here, TBH I found some of the posts a bit evangelical, judgmental and intimidating :p but it's borne out of frustration about how large multinationals hoodwink well meaning dog owners into thinking they are feeding their dogs a 'balanced' diet full of 'everything a dog needs' with 'vitamins and minerals' and blah blah other keywords and advertising slogans.

But look at me now :D :p and I went so far I copied KarynK's sister and got myself a black GSD to feed raw :p

I still rate foods like Orijen, Fish4Dogs, Arden Grange, Skinners etc but the bin end of the market is sadly, the market leader and even one or two days of raw a week could make a huge difference to a lot of dogs.
 
I've stuck this in Soapbox too.

For anyone switching to raw, please read the raw sticky. Some of us have spent a lot of time adding to it so it's really informative.:)
 
Fish should be raw and with bones in.

I gave them both a mackerel each in July and they vomited all night:p

It's because I went too fast. I should have chopped ONE up and added a little each day.

I've been feeding tinned pilchards in tomato sauce since then, but am ready to try again.

Unless you are able to afford organic meat, then the meat you'd get are lower in omega 3 oils. That's why fish is needed.

If someone cannot get the dogs to successfully eat it, then you can buy Wild Salmon oil to supplement.

Going too fast is the biggest mistake newbies make in Raw.

Chicken pieces only for the first two weeks, and then introduce new meats each week. Slowly, slowly to train the dog's stomach to create the right type of acid to digest the raw meat and bones.
 
whisp&willow said:
thanks for that: i'l have a look at that link. ;)

i thought you couldnt feed pork raw???:confused:
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Yes you can. If you're worried, freeze for up to two weeks first, but my lot get it from the butcher/supermarkets direct. You can feed anything raw, just introduce slowly and one type at a time.
 
whisp&willow said:
thanks for that: i'l have a look at that link. ;)

i thought you couldnt feed pork raw???:confused:
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Any bacteria in pork wouldn't stand a chance against doggie stomach acid.

Any parasites would be killed when the butcher froze it.

I told my husband that if I left his hand in a cup of my doggie's stomach acid for the night - his whole hand would dissolve.

He's scared of me now:)
 
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