# My dog threw up after feeding raw meat



## Marshmallow

I’m new to the raw feeding thing. But I have occasionally given my dog some raw chicken legs, he loves them. So I decided to switch to the raw.

In order to do it right from beginning, I drove 3 hours (round trip) to a raw pet food store. After asking some questions, they provided me with a meat list. 1/2 LB of grounded bones in chicken meat and a cube of tripe for morning, 1/2LB of boneless meat for afternoon, sardine for snacks.

I started to feed him today around 7AM. He didn’t want to eat them at first and then he started to eat and finished them. However he threw up around 9:30. And threw up again at 10AM.

I asked the store owner, he said maybe it's because my dog ate too fast, and I should keep on feeding him. But I'm still worried about it.

What could be wrong? Should I stop feeding him the meat?

Any advise would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.


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## Poodlebeguiled

I recommend some more study on this. A balanced diet is not made up of just meat and bones. You need organ meat too. There are certain approximate percentages of things. And ways to introduce foods gradually. I recommend you visit this forum: 

PMR Feeding Questions - Prey Model Raw

There are some knowledgeable folks there who can really help. There are ways to go about this so that the dog can adjust. I'm sure you can get good help there or maybe someone more experienced will pop in soon here. I've only been feeding raw since mid December I think it was and there were many people here on Pf who were very helpful and people on that other place too. 

My dogs had some diarrhea some days and too hard poops on other days until they adjusted and until I got the hang of getting things more balanced. But I don't remember much throwing up. Is the food you're feeding only chicken right now? It's a good idea to start with just chicken (because it's usually better digested) and then once you see it's tolerated, move onto another protein. One at a time until you go through several...just so you know what you fed that didn't agree with your dog. 

However, sometimes it's recommended to go through a lot of meats and then add organ. I don't agree with waiting too long for organ meat because it's a very essential item in their diet. And if you're dog is a puppy, he really, really needs that for he growing body. 

So, what I did was added 5% of the diet every day...liver. Then after about 3 or 4 days with that being fine, added 5% of the meal another organ. You can find kidney, spleen, lung and more. (chicken gizzards and hearts do not count as organs, but rather, as muscle meat) So, it ends up being 10% organ total, each meal. (1/2 liver, 1/2 another organ) Some people only feed organ once a week...a much larger portion to equal 10% of the week's meals. That can often times upset a dog's tummy. So, I personally aim for balancing each meal while some balance over a week's time in all things. 

Now, if this is meat mixed with ground bone, do you know what the percentage is you're getting? Remember, bone should constitute 10% of the diet, organ meat 10% (5% of which is liver, 5% another organ) and 80% muscle meat. You can use whole bones that are easily chewed...not too hard, not weight bearing bones or larger animals (can break teeth). Or you can do ground like you're doing, though I prefer the bones for chewing enjoyment and cleaning teeth. 

I don't know why your dog threw up. Watch him. It might be unrelated to what he ate. I don't know. But do visit that other forum. I think someone there who is more experienced than I am might have some advice for you. Plus, someone on this forum might see this and give you some better advice than I can. Hang in there. 

Make sure your dog isn't lethargic or feeling lousy. Make sure he can poop by tomorrow...look at the consistency of his poop and let us know. If he has an intestinal blockage, he could throw up but not poop. Just watch him closely. If in doubt, take him to the vet. Don't wait too long if you think something's off. Did you only feed him the ground bone? Could he have gotten into something he shouldn't have? Just trying to think here...let us know.


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## fjm

It could be all sorts of things, including a dodgy batch of meat, so I would hold off feeding that for a day or two - freeze it meanwhile. After a few days of watchful waiting as PB describes to make sure all is well with him, I would introduce raw more slowly, perhaps starting with the chicken legs you know he can eat safely. I know this is not what most raw feeding sites recommend, but I think it will be necessary for you to feel safe. I would feed a kibble meal in the morning, and a small raw meal as a lunchtime "treat". If he tolerates that well give him the rest of that raw meal in the evening. I would do kibble for breakfast, raw for supper for a few days, making sure he doesn't gobble the raw, and then try raw for breakfast. There is a lot of talk about "detoxification" etc on some sites - my own feeling is that dogs' digestive systems adjust to what they are fed - a kibble fed dog may struggle to digest a whole stomach full of raw especially first thing in the morning.

Poppy occasionally does the vomitting thing even now, usually when she has eaten too much too fast. It is not regurgitation - too many hours after eating for that - but seems to be simply an overloaded stomach. Once she has been sick she is fine.


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## PoodleRick

I know this isn't RAW related but when I switch Penny from one brand of kibble to another I do it over a week or so. Maybe you just made the switch too quickly?

Rick


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## Marshmallow

Thank you for the advice.

I will hold off feeding the meat for now and try it again at weekend. Big mess to clean up from yesterday. I have wood floor throughout the house, except for stair runners and a big rug for him to play on. My 15 year old son called me at work:"Rainy threw up on the stairs, how to clean it?" and half an hour later he called again:" He threw up on the rug again....." Oh dear, I don't know what to say.

He seems fine after the vomiting, playful and poop is normal. He is doing his poodle zooming in the backyard while I'm typing.


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## Marshmallow

PoodleRick said:


> I know this isn't RAW related but when I switch Penny from one brand of kibble to another I do it over a week or so. Maybe you just made the switch too quickly?
> 
> Rick


They said there should have 8 hours between feeding meat and the kibble. I don't understand how to switch gradually?


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## PoodleRick

Marshmallow said:


> They said there should have 8 hours between feeding meat and the kibble. I don't understand how to switch gradually?


As far as making the switch gradual with kiddle I used 3/4 old kibble with new for aday or two. Then half and half, not the cream. , for a day or so. Then 3/4 new kibble then all new. So maybe do the same with the RAW/current food proportions. 

Now I'm no RAW diet expert in any way shape or form so this might all be really bad advise. But I thought maybe a sudden switch might upset a digestive system.

Rick


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## Coldbrew

there's no need to wait any amount of time. that comes from a totally unproven anecdote that raw feeders have been spreading because it helps support their claim that "raw is best". Raw is great, of course, but supporting statements with valid evidence is also great 

I've been feeding my dogs 60% kibble and 40% raw for going on three months now and they're just fine - they often get kibble and raw in the same meal. 

your pup might have a sensitive stomach, the vomiting could be unrelated to his food, or a whole variety of other reasons. Since he's not ill I'd assume it was just digestive upset. 

You might try just feeding muscle meat for a day or so and see how that goes. Just some chicken breast or deboned thigh. I like to freeze boneless meat for mine as it gives them a fun chew as well as stops them from scarfing it down too quickly!

Edited to add: the gradual switching that Rick mentioned is great for switching types of kibble, but from what I've read and learned, doesn't apply to switching to raw. Most dogs can go cold turkey from kibble to raw, but the addition of bones and organ to muscle meat can throw their tummies for a loop.


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## Mfmst

Buck has thrown up twice in the two years we've fed an evening meal of raw chicken necks. I think it was because he wolfed them down after drinking lots of water beforehand. If something smells off, he won't touch it.


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## Liz

Lots of good advice, but we're a bit all over the map. Maybe we need more info?

If I understand correctly, you have a 3 year old spoo, have occasionally fed a raw meal, and want to switch from kibble to raw. A store recommended a commercial pre-made raw blend consisting of a morning meal of 0.5 lbs bone-in meal plus tripe and an evening meal of 0.5 lbs boneless meal. Your dog vomited his first meal.

As others have said, there are a few possibilities. It sounds like a good idea to wait to try again on a day when you will be home. If you normally feed twice/day, I would skip one meal before starting raw. It's not because anything bad happens if you feed kibble then raw - rather, it's to make sure the dog is hungry and more willing to accept the raw meal. So if you want to start raw on Saturday morning, skip dinner on Friday.

You may have to work up to the full meal amount of 0.5 lbs. Sometimes when starting, you have to give smaller meals for the first few days until the dog adjusts.

Finally, the store may be right about eating too fast. When I feed ground meat to Mia, she tends to eat very quickly, then throw it up 10 minutes later. Then she eats it again and it stays down. (This is one of the reasons I don't like commercial blends.) One way to counter this is to divide the meal into portions and feed it over, say, 30 minutes. For example, if you're feeding 0.5 lbs, feed one-third of the total meal, wait 15 minutes, feed the second third, wait 15 minutes, and feed the last third.


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## Poodlebeguiled

If you're going to feed raw, then I suggest going all out. AND something that helps most dogs when on a raw diet is feeding just once a day. I feed an evening meal (late afternoon actually) so they don't exercise on a full stomach at all, as they would if I fed in the morning. Natural fed dogs do well to _prepare_ for their meal. Their digestive juices gear up...build up so to speak...get ready for the meal and that helps tolerance and digestion.

Hypoglycemia isn't a problem for prey model raw fed dogs because their blood sugar stays more even, as there are no carbohydrates to cause the pancreas to secrete insulin at higher levels which carbs need to metabolize, (then crash) Those spikes cause a blood sugar roller coaster so even with these tiny dogs, once a day is fine. Carbohydrates also cause the pancreas to have to secrete a lot more amylase, an enzyme that digests carbohydrates and an enzyme that dogs don't have in their saliva, which omnivores do. So the pancreas has to work very hard to produce more and more amylase. Dogs get their energy from protein and fat. Imo they do not need carbs. But that is controversial. So, take away what you want. I'm sure any fresh food diet is far superior to commercial food.


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## CharismaticMillie

Marshmallow said:


> I’m new to the raw feeding thing. But I have occasionally given my dog some raw chicken legs, he loves them. So I decided to switch to the raw.
> 
> In order to do it right from beginning, I drove 3 hours (round trip) to a raw pet food store. After asking some questions, they provided me with a meat list. 1/2 LB of grounded bones in chicken meat and a cube of tripe for morning, 1/2LB of boneless meat for afternoon, sardine for snacks.
> 
> I started to feed him today around 7AM. He didn’t want to eat them at first and then he started to eat and finished them. However he threw up around 9:30. And threw up again at 10AM.
> 
> I asked the store owner, he said maybe it's because my dog ate too fast, and I should keep on feeding him. But I'm still worried about it.
> 
> What could be wrong? Should I stop feeding him the meat?
> 
> Any advise would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.


Probably just the abrupt transition to a very different diet


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## sidewinder

Well, sometimes dogs vomit and it doesn't seem to really mean anything dire. I like feeding chunks of things...whole chicken wings or necks or backs, and chunks of liver or kidney, etc. With ground food, they can bolt it so fast! I think sometimes they swallow their food in one big lump and alot of air with it. You probably need to do something to make sure he eats a little more slowly. 

That said, it's always possible that your meat is starting to spoil. You said you drove 3 hours to the store where you bought the prepared food...did you refrigerate it on the way home? Could be it was a little "off" when he didn't really want to eat it. Or it could be that HE was a little "off" that morning and would have tossed whatever he ate!


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## Marshmallow

sidewinder said:


> Well, sometimes dogs vomit and it doesn't seem to really mean anything dire. I like feeding chunks of things...whole chicken wings or necks or backs, and chunks of liver or kidney, etc. With ground food, they can bolt it so fast! I think sometimes they swallow their food in one big lump and alot of air with it. You probably need to do something to make sure he eats a little more slowly.
> 
> That said, it's always possible that your meat is starting to spoil. You said you drove 3 hours to the store where you bought the prepared food...did you refrigerate it on the way home? Could be it was a little "off" when he didn't really want to eat it. Or it could be that HE was a little "off" that morning and would have tossed whatever he ate!



I brought the cooler and ice with me when I went the store. And they were still frozen when I got home.

Yes, it could be he ate too fast. I gave him the meat with born, he didn't like it. So I gave him the cube of the tripe, this time he loved it. He bit the corners and then swallowed the whole thing.


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## FireStorm

My dog eats 50/50 kibble and raw unless we are traveling in which case he eats only kibble for the sake of convenience. Sometimes he eats them at the same meal and sometimes he eats a kibble meal followed by a raw meal. Honesty, I've found that a lot of people will _say_ you can't mix the two but like Coldbrew, I've found zero scientific evidence to back this. So I don't buy it. Also, Hans is doing great on the 50/50, so no sign of any issues with mixing the two. My parents' two dogs also eat the same thing and they are fine as well.

I think the transition would be a lot easier on a lot of dogs if it were made gradually rather than all at once. Even a change in brands of kibbles can be upsetting to some dogs, and that is less of a change than going from kibble to raw. So I would suggest trying a gradual transition.


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## Marshmallow

Liz said:


> Lots of good advice, but we're a bit all over the map. Maybe we need more info?
> 
> If I understand correctly, you have a 3 year old spoo, have occasionally fed a raw meal, and want to switch from kibble to raw. A store recommended a commercial pre-made raw blend consisting of a morning meal of 0.5 lbs bone-in meal plus tripe and an evening meal of 0.5 lbs boneless meal. Your dog vomited his first meal.
> 
> As others have said, there are a few possibilities. It sounds like a good idea to wait to try again on a day when you will be home. If you normally feed twice/day, I would skip one meal before starting raw. It's not because anything bad happens if you feed kibble then raw - rather, it's to make sure the dog is hungry and more willing to accept the raw meal. So if you want to start raw on Saturday morning, skip dinner on Friday.
> 
> You may have to work up to the full meal amount of 0.5 lbs. Sometimes when starting, you have to give smaller meals for the first few days until the dog adjusts.
> 
> Finally, the store may be right about eating too fast. When I feed ground meat to Mia, she tends to eat very quickly, then throw it up 10 minutes later. Then she eats it again and it stays down. (This is one of the reasons I don't like commercial blends.) One way to counter this is to divide the meal into portions and feed it over, say, 30 minutes. For example, if you're feeding 0.5 lbs, feed one-third of the total meal, wait 15 minutes, feed the second third, wait 15 minutes, and feed the last third.


Nicely summarized, indeed. I will cut them in small pieces next time and give to him one by one.


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## West U

We feed raw chicken in the am, some kibble half dsy, frozen turkey necks late afternoon. The poodle never had any trouble transitioning, the Beagles and corgis I feed canned pumpkin because of tummy or runny stool. Same thing for the cat, my raw food is feed frozen, I dont know if it matters, only thing that is a problem is cooked bones,


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## Marshmallow

Ok, here are some updates. 

I planed to feed the raw meat again this morning. When I was cutting the meat to get it ready for my dog, he came over and sniffed around. And then he started to vomit behind of me.

I was so surprised. What was happening here? He threw up before I fed him! He hated it so much that even the smell made him sick? 

This kind of situation has never happened before. He is three year old and healthy. He loves, loves his food, any kibble. He have been eating Acana for two years now and doing well on it. However, because I noticed that his top back teeth were a little yellow and he seems love the raw meat, so I decided to switch. 

I guess I should stay with kibble, at least for now.


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## FireStorm

If you are mainly looking for the benefit to his teeth, you could easily feed him some raw meaty bones once a week or so (chicken necks, chicken backs, something like that). 

I wonder if dogs are like people - I got food poisoning once, after eating barbecue (the barbecue wasn't actually what made me sick, it was just the last thing I ate). After throwing up barbecue for about 24 hours, I've not been able to stand to eat or smell barbecue sauce. Instant nausea.


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## Marshmallow

FireStorm said:


> If you are mainly looking for the benefit to his teeth, you could easily feed him some raw meaty bones once a week or so (chicken necks, chicken backs, something like that).
> 
> I wonder if dogs are like people - I got food poisoning once, after eating barbecue (the barbecue wasn't actually what made me sick, it was just the last thing I ate). After throwing up barbecue for about 24 hours, I've not been able to stand to eat or smell barbecue sauce. Instant nausea.


Poodles are smart, LOL...... They know what is good for them, just like people.

When you feed the raw meaty bones, are they one meal or snack?


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## FireStorm

I fed them as a snack, because Hans was usually on the thinner side when he was eating only kibble. I would sneak more food into him any way I could because he wouldn't really eat enough kibble to keep weight on. That's actually the main reason I started feeding him half raw and half kibble - I just wanted him to eat, and I can't do all raw because he has to eat kibble when we travel and we travel frequently.


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