Raw feeding

[cottonn]

Hi all, this a my first post so bear with me

Anyway, we have a beautiful 14 week old Springer Spaniel pup, while taking him out for his first short wonders we met alot of other Spaniel owners who all stopped to say hello. Almost everyone got on to the topic of raw feeding, this being our first dog we had no idea about raw feeding. He is on kibble at the moment, Jameswellbeloved, however he isnt overly keen. So after so many people saying so many positive things about raw feeding i was hoping for some opinions, advice, info, anything really about it.

Thanks in advanced.

 

[{97702}]

My 4 greyhounds are all fed raw - it suits them completely, they produce about 1/4 of the waste they would do on kibble, their coats are shiny and they are the picture of health The food goes within about 30 seconds of me putting their bowls down, they absolutely love it.

Because I have quite a few dogs I invested in a second hand chest freezer specifically for dog food, and I have a monthly delivery from Manifold Valley Meats who deliver to my door (note: other raw dog food suppliers are available!). It costs me about £160 per month for my 4 dogs which range from 20 - 35 kg in weight.

The ratio of feeding should be 80:10:10 for muscle, bone and offal, and it is usually recommended that you feed 2-3% of your dogs bodyweight. Puppies should be fed more obviously as they are growing.

I personally do not meticulously ratio out the food daily, I average the 80:10:10 out over the course of a week which works fine for mine. I also feed by eye a lot - MVM deliver in frozen 'sausages' of meat, so the 3 girls have one and a bit each per day and my dog has 2 per day. I keep an eye on them all the time and can easily increase/decrease as needed.

MVM deliver a range of products, most of which contain muscle meat and some which contain bone and offal. Their pricelist is here:

http://www.manifoldvalleymeats.co.uk/barf-diet-products/

I have been a customer for about a year now and I find them incredibly friendly and helpful, nothing is too much trouble for them, and the food is always top quality. It may not be the cheapest, but I don't compromise on feeding my dogs

Can't think of anything else you might need to know immediately but if you have any questions then there are lots of raw feeders on here who will be happy to help

 

[jodie3]

Pretty much exactly as Levrier has said - when I got my youngest as a pup last year I started her on raw too and she, like the others, looks really well with a great coat and sparkly teeth.

I think it is easy to get bogged down in the percentages but you will learn quickly how much to feed to suit your dog. If you are on Facebook there are several raw feeding pages, beware of the hardcore raw page if you are a bit squeamish!

I use Daves doggie dinners who are based in Kent but deliver all round the south. They deliver once a month and I know they go down as far as Southampton so not sure if they would go as far as you. They do MVM, DAF and Natural Instinct too.

 

[loopiesteff]

the food goes within about 30 seconds of me putting their bowls down, they absolutely love it.

30 seconds?! I've filmed Wibble polishing his off in 11.2 seconds at one point!

Because I have quite a few dogs I invested in a second hand chest freezer specifically for dog food, and I have a monthly delivery from Manifold Valley Meats who deliver to my door (note: other raw dog food suppliers are available!). MVM deliver a range of products, most of which contain muscle meat and some which contain bone and offal. Their pricelist is here:

http://www.manifoldvalleymeats.co.uk/barf-diet-products/

Another MVM user here! They're great! I also have a seperate chest freezer in the spare room just for dog food!

Raw feeding is great, and once you get into it, it's so easy!

 

[Saneta]

Most raw food suppliers have some/excellent guidance motes on their websites http://www.naturalinstinct.com, http://www.naturesmenu.co.uk, http://www.rawfeddogs.net. It's a great way to keep dogs healthy, so good luck!

 

[twiggy2]

am watching this with interest

does anyone know how much Davids doggie dinners charge for delivery, i have emailed to ask but am sometimes rather impatient

 

[Lunchbox legend]

Another fan of feeding raw here . There are loads of books about it nowadays and if you go on to Amazon you can 'look inside' some of them to start getting a feel for it. I first started with Ian Billinghurst's book 'Give Your Dog a Bone' some years ago (...and yes, I know some people don't like some of the things he says to feed dogs, but that was the book I first found and I can't change history ). I still like his book though. I would find one you like and then buy it to refer back to from time to time.

There's also loads of info on the web but obviously, just check to see where that info is coming from i.e. dog food companies/vets etc. as they'll be biased. If the vet tells you it's not good for your puppy, don't be bullied into not doing it, if it's what you want to do. Many of them don't seem to like us feeding raw but - hey ho . My pup loves it, has been on it since I first got him and is a really healthy, happy little lad.

I still do DIY raw and just keep 'commercial' raw (in the freezer) as back-up. I'm afraid I'm one of the sad people who get really excited about a bag of 'yucky bits for the dog' from our local butcher . Nowadays, feeding raw is as easy as feeding commercial.

Good luck with it. And good luck with a spaniel puppy! I had one of those once - that's where all the grey hair came from

 

[loopiesteff]

If the vet tells you it's not good for your puppy, don't be bullied into not doing it, if it's what you want to do. Many of them don't seem to like us feeding raw but - hey ho .

This. Took my pooch in for an "MOT" - being a fit healthy competition dog I like to make sure he's medically sound in all aspects! The vet was extremely impressed by his teeth, glossy shiny coat and the amazingness of his fitness and physique saying that he was the fittest healthiest looking dog she's seen come through the doors and asked what I fed him. "I feed raw" I said. Her eyes popped open wide. Thought I was about to get a lecture about it and how we shouldn't feed it, but she said "I don't usually like the idea of raw feeding, and we vets tend to sway against it, but after seeing how amazing this dog looks, my mind is changed!"

She now recommends raw to some clients who might benefit!

 

[cottonn]

Thanks for all the great replies everyone (and very sorry for my late reply).

We switched our pup to raw about 2 weeks ago now, we found a lovely place about 20 minutes from us so were able to go in and talk to someone, they even did the shopping for us so we could get a feel and understanding about what we were buying, which was great. The result ... Oscar LOVES it, every bowl we have put down has been gobbled up in seconds, it is the first time since we have bought him home as an 8 week old that he has been interested let alone finished a meal.

At first, i must admit i was a bit scared about the thought of all the ratios but it has been ALOT easier than i thought, and alot easier to prepare. I don't think i could ever touch commercial food again!

So thank you again to all the helpful replies, from both me and Oscar.