# Raw feeders: Do you fast your dogs?



## WonderPup (Oct 26, 2008)

I'll be interested in hearing answers to this. 

I don't feed raw but I do occasionally fast my dog's for 24 hours. They have water but don't get fed in the evening. I'll feed them again earlier than normal the next day. My guys only eat once a day. We just did a fast actually b/c one of them had eaten something and was sick. So everyone fasted and then had chicken and rice the next night as a bland meal and then returned to kibble. My dog's think they've died and gone to heaven if I made them chicken and rice lol. I guess that's good since it makes them happy when they have a tummy trouble.


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

No, I do not fast my dogs and I don't plan to either. Now, they may occasionally miss a dinner or something if I my schedule gets crazy, but that is quite rare. The only time I would purposely fast my dog is if he or she was sick.


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

I agree - I only fast for sickness. But then, mine are tiny.


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## Olie (Oct 10, 2009)

I do not fast and have not heard of doing it either. I may feed once a day from time to time BUT they get their entire feeding amt for that day.


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

I have heard of people doing it - especially "gorge and fast" - it's commonly recommended on some of the raw feeding forums I belong to. But, I don't think its appropriate for my dogs. 

General recommendation for a dog that has already had GDV is to feed small, frequent meals from that point on. This is the main reason I will not purposely fast my dogs. Nor will I feed once daily, even though it would allow me to feed some larger, more fun things to the dogs.


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## Ruth (Nov 18, 2010)

I don't think there's a reason to fast them, unless there's a medical reason or if they're getting tests done. I have heard and read about people recommending it, but I still don't think it's a good idea.
Why should I feed my dogs a super large amount of food and then fast them? No, thank you.
My dogs will eat a reasonable amount twice a day, no fasting.

Some people base this recommendation on wolves behavior. But wolves do it because they don't always have food, so some times they have to eat as much as they can not knowing when the next meal is going to be. Our pets have no need for this imho.


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## schnauzerpoodle (Apr 21, 2010)

Thanks everyone for your input. I am giving my dog reduced portion (or only smaller portion of bones) every Saturday and he's doing fine. It gives his system a chance to rest and detox. Saturdays are usually our intensive training days too so with the reduced portion fed, he's SUPER motivated by the treats. I'll see how this goes.


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## AgilityIG (Feb 8, 2009)

I have been feeding raw for about eight years and have never fasted a dog unless they were sick. Never had a problem.


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## Liz (Oct 2, 2010)

schnauzerpoodle said:


> Thanks everyone for your input. I am giving my dog reduced portion (or only smaller portion of bones) every Saturday and he's doing fine. It gives his system a chance to rest and detox. Saturdays are usually our intensive training days too so with the reduced portion fed, he's SUPER motivated by the treats. I'll see how this goes.


I'm considering fasting Mia for one meal/week. I feed her twice/day, and I noticed recently that she gets "finicky" about once/week and skips breakfast. Since this trend has been consistent for the last month (since she was about 6.5 months old), I may institutionalize it.


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## bigpoodleperson (Jul 14, 2009)

I used to, but i dont anymore. I just felt bad, and didnt really see ANY benefit/improvement/plus to doing it. He eats one time a day anyways, so the rest time in between meals is long enough.


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