# How much does your spoo eat - raw feeders



## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

Millie eats approx. 16 oz. a day. 116 oz. (7 lbs.) weekly. 

Henry eats 24 - 28 oz. a day. 168 oz. (10-11 lbs.) weekly.


Their meals are balanced over time, not by individual meals. Over time, I feed mostly meat, some bone and some organ. I do occasionally add a veggie slop, but not much as it leads to loose stool and gas for both of my dogs. I do add fish oil.

I will give you a sort of "weekly menu" from the past few days to help you get an idea of what mine eat:

*Henry*:
Mon. AM: 16 oz. Turkey Neck with 1-2 oz. organ meat
PM: 10 oz. Boneless lamb

Tues. AM: 10 oz. Boneless pork heart
PM: 1 lb. Boneless beef

Wed. AM: 16 oz. Turkey neck with 1-2 oz. organ meat
PM: 10 oz. Boneless pork with a spoonful of veggie slop

Thurs. AM: 12 oz. Boneless turkey breast and turkey hearts
PM: 12 oz. boneless beef and boneless goat

Friday AM: 1 lb. premade raw (Nature's Variety lamb patty. I was lazy)
PM: 12 oz. ground beef and boneless goat

*Millie*
Mon. AM: 8 oz. chicken drumstick with 1 oz. lamb organs (note - she is a VERY good chewer. Generally, drumsticks are NOT recommended for medium or large dogs as they can be a choking hazard if gulped. Know thy dog. I would never feed them to Henry)
PM: 8 oz. boneless lamb with spoonful of veggie slop

Tues. AM: 8 oz. chicken drumstick with 1-2 oz. lamb organs
PM: 8 oz. boneless beef

Wed. AM: 8 oz. chicken drumstick with 1-2 oz. lamb organs
PM: 8 oz. pork heart

Thurs. AM: 8 oz. chicken drumstick with 1-2 oz. lamb organs
PM: 8 oz. boneless beef and boneless goat with some veggie slop

Friday AM: Premade patty
PM: 8 oz. boneless beef and goat


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

ETA, how much does Saleen weigh? You can control her weight with or without the addition of veggies by simply feeding more or less. At one point Millie plumped up a little and I cut out 3 or 4 ounces from a few meals until those ribs felt good again. 

Millie eats 2% of her weight and Henry eats 2.5-3% of his weight, just by individual metabolism. If you think Saleen needs to lose weight you may feed her at 1.5% of her body weight until all is well


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## Liz (Oct 2, 2010)

For me, raw is more expensive than kibble. Mia eats about 1.5 lbs/day, and it averages out to over $2/day.

* ^ Chicken quarters - 2 days/week - $0.59-0.79/lb
* ^ Turkey - 1 day/week - $0.69-0.89/lb
* ^ Fish - 1 day/week - $6-8/lb if fresh, or $3/can (the only fish she'll eat canned is salmon)
^ Beef - 2 days/week - $3-4/lb for meat, $3-5/lb for heart or organs
Pork - 1 day/week - $2-2.50/lb

* denotes bone-in meals.
^ denotes organ meals.

I also feed lamb (north of $6/lb) occasionally. Mia doesn't care for rabbit. I don't have easy access to venison, but she loves it. More storage might help: I can store about two months of food.


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

I too pay more for raw than I did for kibble. I pay ~.59/lb for chicken quarters, 1.50 for turkey necks, 2.50 for goat, 3.00 for beef, 3.25 for venison, 3.25 for rabbit, 1.50 for pork.


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

Ouch - I always thought meat was cheaper in the US than the UK - is that for organic, or basic range, Liz? Mine are toys, not Spoos, but they get a similar range to CM's.

I pay around £0.45/$0.70 a pound for turkey, chicken, lamb, mixed offal or beef mince, and around £0.75/$1.20 for heart, venison or rabbit mince (all passed fit for human consumption, but sold for pet food - I pay for delivery on top of these prices). Chunks of beef or tripe are more like £1.70/$2.75 a pound, chicken wings £0.85/$1.35, lamb and pork ribs around £2.25/$3.50. Offal from the supermarket around £1.25/$2.00.

Mine love sardines, which I usually serve with dried brown bread. And scrambled eggs, again with a slice of bread.

The rule of thumb is 1.5 - 2.5% of target weight - mine are not working dogs, and gain weight easily, so I feed at the lower end of the recommendation, and limit the higher fat meats. I reckon feeding raw and home cooked costs me around 1/2 of feeding a good quality kibble - and the savings for the cats are even greater - but I do it because I prefer to know exactly what they are eating.


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## WonderPup (Oct 26, 2008)

ChocolateMillie said:


> ETA, how much does Saleen weigh? You can control her weight with or without the addition of veggies by simply feeding more or less. At one point Millie plumped up a little and I cut out 3 or 4 ounces from a few meals until those ribs felt good again.
> 
> Millie eats 2% of her weight and Henry eats 2.5-3% of his weight, just by individual metabolism. If you think Saleen needs to lose weight you may feed her at 1.5% of her body weight until all is well


I'm going to peg her at 50-52lbs just a guess. I need to take her in for a weight check to make sure her heartworm prevention still covers her weight range. I am not concerned with taking her weight down at the moment. I don't feel like she is fat, I am just so used to seeing skinny mini Saleen that the heavier finally picked up a little weight version is a bit shocking. It could be to some of a grooming issue that makes her look a tad heavier than she is.

I am not adding Veggies to control her weight, mostly for added fiber and partly b/c when I did raw way back when it was more BARF style and veg was a part of the ground mix. So it's what I think of. 

I am mostly interested in how many vs how much by weight I think. Meaning how many Boney bits are you feeding. Does a whole chicken quater = a meal kind of thing. Or if you wanted to feed drumsticks or wings or necks or backs.... how many would a standard need. Probably spoos don't eat wings... but that's not my point lol. I believe in another thread it was mentioned that three ribs was a pretty good meal for a spoo, I *think* that was beef??
I don't consider drumsticks a no no but understand others do and why. 

I am also not planning to switch to raw. Just researching and probably supplementing. I am about to do a kibble switch actually and see if lamb works better for her than Chicken has. Raw lamb is totally OUT of the question unless I buy something a premade mix to add in here or there. Cost IS an issue but not a deal breaker. I'm not trying to spend less as a goal but certain can't spend what I would need to for say 40lbs of orijen or something... ya know?

Oh and by supplementing I was thinking of supplementing with a couple of raw meals a week VS adding raw meat to a kibble meal.


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## WonderPup (Oct 26, 2008)

Oh and to be clear I'm trying to take the aprrox. how many to the store and working up a price for raw here locally. I realize different sources have different prices and the prices for supermarkets can vary by location.


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## Olie (Oct 10, 2009)

Olie and Suri are both around 50lbs. Suri bulked up when i went to Raw and I am still working it off of her.

I feed 2% or slightly less of their actual weight.

I stock up on reduced meat sales as much as I can - this helps bring the price down IF you have a place to store it. I prefer to stay under 80 cent a lb for average.

Their biggest meat sources are chicken and pork. They get chicken almost everyday for one meal.

They also get beef when its on sale and I feed sardines from the can weekly/ they also hate fish LOL.

My dogs do not care for organs so I add them in a little at a time through out the week.


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

WonderPup said:


> I'm going to peg her at 50-52lbs just a guess. I need to take her in for a weight check to make sure her heartworm prevention still covers her weight range. I am not concerned with taking her weight down at the moment. I don't feel like she is fat, I am just so used to seeing skinny mini Saleen that the heavier finally picked up a little weight version is a bit shocking. It could be to some of a grooming issue that makes her look a tad heavier than she is.
> 
> I am not adding Veggies to control her weight, mostly for added fiber and partly b/c when I did raw way back when it was more BARF style and veg was a part of the ground mix. So it's what I think of.
> 
> ...


I gotcha!  Yes, a chicken quarter (12-16 oz.) would be a meal for a standard poodle. A turkey neck (16-20 oz) is a regular sized meal for Henry and a very, very large meal for Millie. Drumsticks (8 oz) are too small for Henry but are a small-regular sized meal for Millie.

If you are supplementing with kibble it may be more confusing to balance the amount of meat/bone/organ you need to feed and I am not very knowledgeable about that. But, in order to balance my prey model diet (go ahead and adapt what I am saying to the way you will be feeding  ) I look up the bone content of a bony piece of meat on the USDA nutrient database. http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/search/ For example, I think a drumstick is about 33% bone. So, to find the ounces of bone in an 8 oz drumstick, I would multiply 8 x .33. I continue to add up the bony meals within a week to find out how many ounces of bone they eat. Then, the rest will be meat and some organ (and in your case veggies too).

ETA: RE: number of bony pieces fed: I feed Henry bone-in every fourth meal. He is fed twice daily. That means he gets bone-in meals with some organ every other day. The other meals are boneless.

I do the same with Millie. Although, this past week I decided to feed her a smaller bone-in meal once daily (the drumsticks) as opposed to the larger bone-in meal once every four meals (chicken quarter).


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

I average one meal meat on the bone, one meal cooked mince/organs, one meal raw chunks or tripe, as a very general rule. If we are staying with family or friends they may have a week of cooked; if I need to empty the freezer they may get more raw/rmb. If they are looking too plump I pad the food out with some veg.


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

fjm said:


> Ouch - I always thought meat was cheaper in the US than the UK - is that for organic, or basic range, Liz? Mine are toys, not Spoos, but they get a similar range to CM's.
> 
> I pay around £0.45/$0.70 a pound for turkey, chicken, lamb, mixed offal or beef mince, and around £0.75/$1.20 for heart, venison or rabbit mince (all passed fit for human consumption, but sold for pet food - I pay for delivery on top of these prices). Chunks of beef or tripe are more like £1.70/$2.75 a pound, chicken wings £0.85/$1.35, lamb and pork ribs around £2.25/$3.50. Offal from the supermarket around £1.25/$2.00.


The meat I buy is not organic - that would be too expensive for me. I buy much of my meat from the regular and ethnic grocery stores. I buy chicken quarters and turkey necks in bulk. Farm raised beef roast at the grocery is $6-$11/lb :scared: (unless on sale) but I generally buy grass-fed beef from My Pet Carnivore for $3.00 lb. 

I consider any boneless muscle meat under $2.00 to be a decent deal. $3.00 is acceptable but pricey. I buy these items in moderation. Anything above $3.00 is very expensive and only used for occasional variety.

It seems that meat prices really vary so much by area. In St. Louis it tends to be a bit pricey - raw feeding is somewhat of a challenge here. I network with some other raw feeders in the area but there is no active co-op around here.


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## WonderPup (Oct 26, 2008)

Thanks for that run down. I went out yesterday evening and found some interesting meats. I found tons of chicken feet that I'd bet my life are local b/c we have a processor here, as well as backs and necks in a grocery store. I also found figs feet, pig necks, ears, tripe that said it was raw, and a big bucket of what my husband says are pig intestines and the bucket proclaimed they were ready to cook, no prep needed. *shudders* I think we'll leave THOSE in the store  I also found turkey necks from butterball but they are only in a pack of two and almost a dollar each. I think I can supplement at least with RMB's fairly easily and some of the more unusual cuts as well. I hear chicken feet are good for them every so often. The non boney meat is a bit harder. I found tounge at walmart and almost passed out lol. It's a bit pricey anyhow. Chicken livers and calf liver were also available but not at a steal of a price. Gizzards are always cheap and my dog's already like those (cooked) for training treats so maybe I can try some of that. The regualar just ground meat or stew meats and such that are muscle I guess were the most expensive. I haven't found hearts yet but I was hoping to. Weirdly my husband who has always been very anti raw is suddenly very insterested in possiblely switching entirely. I'm thinking NO for right now, supplementing will be fine for the time being.


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

WonderPup, be careful of meat from Walmart. I have found that nearly all meat there is enhanced with seasonings and/or saline solution. That being said, I am sure you can find unenhanced meats at Walmart, if you hunt and dig carefully.

Chicken should have less than 100mg. per 4 ounce serving. I am not sure what the general rule for other meats is, but look in the ingredients to make sure salt, saline solution or any other seasonings are not added.

My dogs love tongue - very chewy!! 

Gizzards are wonderful. These count as meaty meat, not organs. 

RE: tripe - was this from a store that sells meat for human consumption? If so, don't buy this meat. Bleached tripe (the only kind legally allowed to be sold in stores that sell meat for human consumption) has little to no nutritional value for dogs. You want green tripe, which can only be sold outside of the human food chain.

I think your husband is on the right track  If you are going to supplement a kibble diet with raw, why not switch to raw fully? You can have 1/2 the benefits or ALL the benefits!  That's how I crossed over to the dark side, LOL.


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## Olie (Oct 10, 2009)

You got a great find in one place!!! 

My dogs LOVE chicken feet. The small breeds go nuts over them. :adore:






I got so excited when I found these last week I took a picture!! LOL. They are hard to find here, I have to go a little more inland to get them.

I opted out on tongue too it was pricy. But I really want to give it a try some time when I get a better deal. 

Millie - where are you getting your green tripe?


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

Oh yes - mine love chicken feet too!! Crunch, crunch! 

Olie - I get my green tripe from My Pet Carnivore - they deliver to various locations throughout the Midwest once each month. They ship too, but I think its pretty pricey...Hare Today sells green tripe, but I think it may be somewhat expensive. It's worth a try if you don't feed a ton of it. I don't feed a whole lot of green tripe, maybe 1-2 meals a week. They LOVE it, though!

Do you know any processors? That would be a good place to find green tripe!


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## Ruth (Nov 18, 2010)

I've never given mine chicken feet. But it's supposed to have glucosamine, right?

How many feet and how often do you give your dogs, Millie and Olie?


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## Olie (Oct 10, 2009)

I am going to check out some websites for this. I am sure this is great for young puppies! This one love it.....aww


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

Ruth said:


> I've never given mine chicken feet. But it's supposed to have glucosamine, right?
> 
> How many feet and how often do you give your dogs, Millie and Olie?


Ruth, I just give them as snacks. I will buy, say, a 1 lb. bag of them when I come across them (they're somewhat hard to find). I will keep maybe 5 or 6 thawed in the fridge and give it as a snack every now and then.


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## Ruth (Nov 18, 2010)

I feel lucky, I see them here everywhere. XD

Thank you, Millie! I'll get some next time I go shopping!


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## Olie (Oct 10, 2009)

I have been using as snacks too. If I plan to give them I do lighten their normal meal. 2 of my dogs are on the thicker side. Although the poms they are almost a meal - the feet I got were big.


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## bigpoodleperson (Jul 14, 2009)

Now, i have never been grossed out by any raw feeding pictures before, BUT those chicken feet are just Wrong!!!! Ewwwww!!!!!! 

Riley is around 75lbs. He is currently averaging less then 1 pound a day. He used to eat about 2 pounds a day, and had no weight problem. Since starting the prednisone last year, i truely believe it has changed his metabolism.


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## WonderPup (Oct 26, 2008)

Almost none of the meat I found at a good price was from walmart, I certainly wouldn't be able to find local feet here. In fact no feet at wally world at all lol. I was looking for hearts, liver, kidneys, that sort of thing at walmart b/c I didn't find it in the smaller local type store. I was also looking for decent prices on chicken wings. THOSE buggers are expensive and I couldn't even find whole ones except at Sams club. I was SHOCKED that Sams didn't have any decent meat prices. Ribs are horriably expensive and lamb, OMG 6 bucks a pound. Wow... I love the girls but no way could we afford that. That is not even going to be an occasional treat I'm afraid. Any lamb we get will be in the form of kibble unless I can find another source. 

I am really confused about the tripe. This was in walmart, so yes for human consumption. They had the regular bleached tripe that I am used to seeing, and have yet to understand why people eat. Below that they had this funky bloody looking package that was labled raw tripe, it looked totally different. I'll have to look again but I thought it said it wasn't bleached. It was late at night so maybe I imagined it. (gotta love a 24 hour walmart haha). I have a place that sells solid gold and sells the green tripe canned food so if I want it I can just get it there. I don't neeeeeed to have it I suppose, it really STINKS


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

WonderPup said:


> Almost none of the meat I found at a good price was from walmart, I certainly wouldn't be able to find local feet here. In fact no feet at wally world at all lol. I was looking for hearts, liver, kidneys, that sort of thing at walmart b/c I didn't find it in the smaller local type store. I was also looking for decent prices on chicken wings. THOSE buggers are expensive and I couldn't even find whole ones except at Sams club. I was SHOCKED that Sams didn't have any decent meat prices. Ribs are horriably expensive and lamb, OMG 6 bucks a pound. Wow... I love the girls but no way could we afford that. That is not even going to be an occasional treat I'm afraid. Any lamb we get will be in the form of kibble unless I can find another source.
> 
> I am really confused about the tripe. This was in walmart, so yes for human consumption. They had the regular bleached tripe that I am used to seeing, and have yet to understand why people eat. Below that they had this funky bloody looking package that was labled raw tripe, it looked totally different. I'll have to look again but I thought it said it wasn't bleached. It was late at night so maybe I imagined it. (gotta love a 24 hour walmart haha). I have a place that sells solid gold and sells the green tripe canned food so if I want it I can just get it there. I don't neeeeeed to have it I suppose, it really STINKS


Yes, the tripe you buy from the grocery store is still RAW but its been scalded or bleached. This has little to no nutritional value for dogs. It would be a good chewy treat at best. It is not legal to sell unbleached, green tripe at a grocery store.

"Green tripe" from solid gold is cooked, may have some nutritional value but is not the same as raw green tripe.

Is there a local meat distributor in your area? Or ethnic markets? What about a local co-op? These are the best places to find good deals on meat.


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## WonderPup (Oct 26, 2008)

There is a small chicken processing plant here and I'm pretty sure that is where the feet came from but as far as butchers and stuff nope, not one. We have Walmart, Winn Dixie, Publix.... Now about an hour away there are a couple of Asian markets I could look there. 
I think I've got the RMB's handled, now I need just the meat and the organs. Maybe the Asian market, well actually it's specifically a Thai market will have something in the way of organs? I'm content to leave the tripe out entirely honestly or use the cooked stuff from solid gold. The little cans they sell are just tripe and the larger cans contain other stuff as well. Honestly though I probably don't need it and it stinks. I don't want to get the dog's in the habit of eating stuff that smells strongly b/c we're thinking about a little sister for Nicholas and well ultra smelly food is just asking for trouble if the first round of lets make a baby is anything to judge by


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

If you google wholesale meat distributors (the companies that sell the meat to grocery stores) for your area, you may be able to find a company that will give you a good deal.

I've been meaning to try that in my area!


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## Olie (Oct 10, 2009)

I just went onto yahoo raw today and posted looking for a co-op closer to me. Hopefully I hear something soon. I do fine at the local stores for the most part, I just buy a lot when I see deals. 

I seen the canned green tripe online, I wonder how that compares?


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## Liz (Oct 2, 2010)

fjm said:


> Ouch - I always thought meat was cheaper in the US than the UK - is that for organic, or basic range, Liz?


Sorry for responding so late - the prices I listed are for basic, no-frills meat. I know, it's expensive. I constantly look for ways to bring down the price. I bought a package of ground beef once because it was cheaper, and I might do it again. I just tell myself I'm saving in vet bills down the road.


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## Izzie (Aug 31, 2010)

im happy to see there`s a thread about how much we give to poodle... 

im ready to start raw but i was just wondering about the quantities.. my poodle weight only 4.8 pounds...so..1 meal for her would be what ? a chicken drumstick ?


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## Apres Argent (Aug 9, 2010)

I do pretty much the same as Millie and Henry's Mom. I also feed a small piece of liver at every meal ( one inch strip) and green tripe with salmon at least twice weekly. I live in a meat producing area and buy all organic/naturally raised meats and stay under a dollar a pound. I do not ad veggies but I make yogurt and all the poodles get a bit daily.


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## WonderPup (Oct 26, 2008)

how do you make your yogurt. I was reading about how to do it on a chicken forum I'm on but I can't locate the post where they were talking about it now. They were also making Keifer... is that how yous spell it??? lol

The egg's we've started giving are not agreeing with the girls so I may knock that off or try them cooked. They have terrible gas, bleh! Saleen farts all the time and she's noisey about it. Crazy dog. They only get them two or three a week but the gas is pretty much constant now. :/


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

2 or 3 times a week of raw egg is a lot - my dogs wouldn't be able to handle it either! Every dog is different though. Eggs are one of those things that are nice to add in but they really aren't necessary.


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

Izzie said:


> im ready to start raw but i was just wondering about the quantities.. my poodle weight only 4.8 pounds...so..1 meal for her would be what ? a chicken drumstick ?


Depending on the size of the chicken, a drumstick would probably be a bit big! Mine weigh around 8 pounds, and get two meals a day, weighing in total 3 - 4 ounces each, plus an ounce or so each of treats. Half a chicken wing is about right for them. Think 3 - 4% of bodyweight per day to start, and increase or decrease that to keep her weight right. So for your little one about 3oz a day - about one chicken wing, cut in half to make two meals.

Not every meal needs to contain bone - you could cut thighs or legs into several portions for her. Small lamb or pork ribs are useful for tinies (I cut off the small end ribs and freeze them for the dogs, then cook the bigger ones for myself!). And green tripe is brilliant - but as others have found, can be quite difficult to source!


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## Izzie (Aug 31, 2010)

thanks for the info !


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## lcristi (Feb 27, 2011)

Hi ChocolateMillie,
I just came across this thread.
I would like to begin to implement a raw diet.
I have used Nature's Variety ; ) also. Thanks for the menu.
Can I ask you ...
Chloe loves anything raw I've never given her raw with bones however. Do you do anything to the turkey neck. She's a good chewer, I'm sure she'll be game. She loves to eat! I'm sure she finds it more satisfying than "dog food" I'm using Orejins right now and adding canned meat and fish or raw frozen.
Chloe is eating about 2 cups/day (8ozx2).


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

lcristi said:


> Hi ChocolateMillie,
> I just came across this thread.
> I would like to begin to implement a raw diet.
> I have used Nature's Variety ; ) also. Thanks for the menu.
> ...


lcristi, I don't know how big your dog is so I don't know if you would need to do anything to the turkey neck or not. Eating 2 cups/day of kibble really means nothing in the raw feeding world. Both of my dogs eat around 2% of their body weight. I feed Henry an entire turkey neck as a meal a few days a week. These necks are usually 16 oz. - 20 oz. This would be _way_ too large of a meal for Millie, who is a bit smaller than Henry, so I cut them in half for her. Luckily, she is a good chewer so it isn't too much of a choking hazard. I always observe while they are eating, of course.  

For example, tomorrow morning Henry gets a turkey neck for breakfast. Millie gets 1/2 turkey neck for breakfast tomorrow morning and I will give her the other half the night to balance out the bone - she'll eat boneless tomorrow night).

Other than feeding the appropriate size/amount of turkey neck to each dog, I do not do anything else to the neck.


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## lcristi (Feb 27, 2011)

*raw food*

ChocolateMillie,
thank you for the info.
Of course I was thinking liquid measure or volume.
2% of her weight (49) would be about 1 lb.
She's very active -agility full on.
I'll research it further, but, will definitely begin to give her raw.
The menu is great! You've fleshed it all out.
Can you recommend "raw diet" books.
Thanks again,
lcristi


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

lcristi, I'm sure you already know this but the sample weekly menu I typed out was only one week's time. I feed a much greater variety of meats and organs, etc. in order to balance the diet properly. I wouldn't feed that exact same weekly menu over and over again without variance.

As far as books I have read a handful and the ones *I* found to be the most helpful include: 
_Raw and Natural Nutrition for Dogs: The Definitive Guide to Homemade Meals_ by Lew Olson and _Works Wonders_ by Tom Lonsdale. 

I also learned a great amount from the yahoo rawfeeding list online as well as many forums. Finally, my holistic vet gave me the shove I needed. 

Good luck and let me know if you have any questions or need a little shove!  It's great to network with other raw feeders so you're not in it alone!

ETA: Millie weighs about 45 - 50 lbs. and eats 16-20 oz. daily, so your poodle would probably, depending on individual metabolism, eat a similar amount.


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## lcristi (Feb 27, 2011)

It is GREAT to network.
I don't know why I waited so long.


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

Oh, I forgot to add! For March, Whole Dog Journal reviewed some books on homemade diets (including raw). I looked through the reviews and ordered this one: Dr. Becker's _Real Food for Healthy Dogs and Cats_


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## taem (Mar 5, 2011)

Bah I always drift OT, will edit:

Do you fast your pooch from time to time, and if so, how often? Lonsdale says 1 or maybe even 2 days a week fasting is good. (Given the prices there are other benefits too...) By fasting does that mean no food for the day to trigger some physiological response, or is it ok to feed little bits?

I also subscribe to the Raw Meaty Bone newsletter from this site: Raw Meaty Bones The site has Lonsdale's practical feeding tips from his book as a pdf, here is what he says about amount:


> Quantity
> 
> Establishing the quantity to feed pets is more an art than a science. Parents, when feeding a human family, manage this task without the aid of food consumption charts. You can achieve the same good results for your pet by paying attention to activity levels, appetite and body condition. High activity and big appetite indicate a need for increased food, and vice versa.
> 
> ...


 http://www.rawmeatybones.com/diet/exp-diet-guide.pdf



ChocolateMillie said:


> Oh, I forgot to add! For March, Whole Dog Journal reviewed some books on homemade diets (including raw). I looked through the reviews and ordered this one: Dr. Becker's _Real Food for Healthy Dogs and Cats_


Another great link from CM! My raw books are great on theory but short on practical tips.


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

I personally don't fast my dogs and I don't mess around with veggies either. 
I occasionally might give them a glob of veggies but it really does not make up any substantial portion of their diet.

I think there is a thread somewhere on this forum where the raw feeders talked about whether or not we fasted our dogs. :hmmmm2:


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## lcristi (Feb 27, 2011)

Sorry to jump in this way...
I wondered if anyone tried drying liver for treats.
How did you-your dogs like it?


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## Apres Argent (Aug 9, 2010)

I dry liver and salmon for treats, they love it!


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## Ruth (Nov 18, 2010)

Yeah, here's that thread about fasting: http://www.poodleforum.com/32-poodle-food/12269-raw-feeders-do-you-fast-your-dogs.html

I personally don't fast, I find no reason to do it. 
Wolves do it cause they have no other option when they can't find food, our pets don't have to be without food just because.


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## lcristi (Feb 27, 2011)

*dried liver*



Apres Argent said:


> I dry liver and salmon for treats, they love it!


Somewhere in here is a recipe I posted in response to a request for it - drying liver for treats.

I do in my oven and dry to a chewy consistency for training.
I'd love to hear about the salmon.
What do you buy?
What do you use to dry it?


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## taem (Mar 5, 2011)

Ruth said:


> Yeah, here's that thread about fasting: http://www.poodleforum.com/32-poodle-food/12269-raw-feeders-do-you-fast-your-dogs.html
> 
> I personally don't fast, I find no reason to do it.
> Wolves do it cause they have no other option when they can't find food, our pets don't have to be without food just because.


Thanks for the link! Read through it, yeah, I think I'm going to skip this bit of advice. Sometimes the bone faction of the raw movement seems to veer away from pet health and into the realm of just predator admiration.


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## nlrussell (Mar 13, 2011)

I've never heard of feeding a raw diet until recently, and while I don't have a pet right now, I do have a few questions.

I have heard all my life that you weren't suppose to feed a dog chicken or turkey bones because they would "splinter" and hurt the dog's throat or internal organs. This is not true?

It sounds as if on the raw diet, you feed mostly meats and very little veggies or grains. I thought dogs needed veggies and grains. Do you supplement with a vitamin?

For our family, we do not buy meat from Wal-Mart because they do "enhance" the flavor with additives, including MSG. We buy our beef from a local organic farmer friend, have it processed at a meat processor, then keep the wrapped meat in our freezer. We never take the internal organs because we don't eat those. I know our farmer friend has his hogs, deer, and other meats processed there. There are also large chicken houses in our area. I'm wondering if meat processors will sell the parts of the animals that other people don't want (such as our beef, where we don't want the internal organs..what does he do with them?)


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## PaddleAddict (Feb 9, 2010)

nlrussell said:


> I've never heard of feeding a raw diet until recently, and while I don't have a pet right now, I do have a few questions.
> 
> I have heard all my life that you weren't suppose to feed a dog chicken or turkey bones because they would "splinter" and hurt the dog's throat or internal organs. This is not true?
> 
> ...


I don't feed raw, but my father-in-law feeds his spoo raw. She does really well on it.

Cooked bones can splinter and are very dangerous. You should never feed cooked bones. Raw bones though, specifically, non-weight-bearing bones (necks, backs, wings, etc) are soft and can be safely consumed. Some people grind raw bones if the dog gulps and swallows too-large pieces of bone. This takes away from the teeth-cleaning benefit of raw bones, though.

Most raw feeders don't ad much to the diet. They feed a variety of raw meaty bones, muscle meat and organs. Most raw feeder do not believe dogs need vegetables or grains in their diets. 

Some people feed some raw and some commercial food, or some raw and some home cooked food, with or without veggies and grains. Some people feed their dogs entire animal carcasses (rabbits, etc). The dogs eat it the way they would in the wild. There is a lot of information avaiable about raw and people have differing beliefs about what is best for dogs. In the end I think it comes down to personal preferences.


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## mandyand casey (Jan 12, 2011)

I posted some prices in your other thread but both Mandy at 30 lbs and Casey at 55 ish eat 1 lb a day approx i havent weighed in awhile but was before. 
Chicken feet here cost more then it does for backs but the enjoy them so look at them as treats 229 a lb is the most expencive thing.
They eat a lot of chicken and i totally stay away from Pork. I can get tonnes of cheap port but Casey smells so bad of body odour on pork it is gagging.

Our walmart sells bags of frozen sardines and Mackerals at about 2.30 a bg and my guys love them like popcicles. Good for coat and skin. 
If they don`t eat something thawed try it again frozen it helped here


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## WonderPup (Oct 26, 2008)

mandyand casey said:


> I posted some prices in your other thread but both Mandy at 30 lbs and Casey at 55 ish eat 1 lb a day approx i havent weighed in awhile but was before.
> Chicken feet here cost more then it does for backs but the enjoy them so look at them as treats 229 a lb is the most expencive thing.
> They eat a lot of chicken and i totally stay away from Pork. I can get tonnes of cheap port but Casey smells so bad of body odour on pork it is gagging.
> 
> ...


I have never seen frozen sardines, I thought they only came in cans. Humm, guess I've learned something new. I am totally going to be on the lookout next time we go shopping. I have been trying to find a fish to feed the dogs but thus far fish is uber expensive :/ The frozen stuff sounds like a decent deal.


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## Kloliver (Jan 17, 2012)

Olie said:


> You got a great find in one place!!!
> 
> My dogs LOVE chicken feet. The small breeds go nuts over them. :adore:
> View attachment 16113
> ...


I feed raw too but _oh the FEET_- :ahhhhh: they look like little hands minus 2 fingers.

_Primal_ sells chubs of bone-in sardine grind. Very handy

My personal concern is that ethnic markets generally source from large factory farms, don't they? Almost all of our healthy local family farms sell their offal to the big cat sanctuary in town. Darn it, how can I compete to buy our own nice antibiotic/ hormone free necks, etc.


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## Kloliver (Jan 17, 2012)

CharismaticMillie said:


> Oh, I forgot to add! For March, Whole Dog Journal reviewed some books on homemade diets (including raw). I looked through the reviews and ordered this one: Dr. Becker's _Real Food for Healthy Dogs and Cats_


Lmk what you think of that book. I like it, I think it's really clear & allows for easy tailoring.

I still have Rango on Bravo & Primal chubs. I was feeding him at 2%. 14 mo intact male, 28", 62# 

He dropped weight seemingly quickly & his hip bones became too prominent for my liking so I've upped him to 3.5%. My eager boy hasn't left a morsel behind so now I feel so guilty that I was apparently "starving" him.


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

Kloliver said:


> Lmk what you think of that book. I like it, I think it's really clear & allows for easy tailoring.


I really wasn't crazy about it. Lew Olson's book is still by far my favorite.


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## Kloliver (Jan 17, 2012)

CharismaticMillie said:


> I really wasn't crazy about it. Lew Olson's book is still by far my favorite.


Pls PM me with your impressions. I dont want to HJ the thread


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