[GoldenGirl]

Hi Everyone,

There is so much great info on feeding raw here but it really is overwhelming. Does anyone know of a good book that would provide a step-by-step guide to switching over from kibble to raw?

I'm really looking for something to tell me: if your dog weighs this much, start Week 1 day 1 meals with X, then Week 1 day 2 meals with Y etc...

Thanks,
Jean

 

[jdatwood]

Getting Started (quick start) | Prey Model Raw

How to get started | Prey Model Raw

:wink: :biggrin:

 

[RawFedDogs]

Hey Jean,
If you haven't already, check out my web page at Skylar, Zack, and Abby on the WEB . Also go to Tom Lonsdale's site at Raw Meaty Bones. From Tom's site, you can download a copy of his book, Work Wonders, for a very resonable price.

 

[DaneMama]

Hi Everyone,

There is so much great info on feeding raw here but it really is overwhelming. Does anyone know of a good book that would provide a step-by-step guide to switching over from kibble to raw?

I'm really looking for something to tell me: if your dog weighs this much, start Week 1 day 1 meals with X, then Week 1 day 2 meals with Y etc...

Thanks,
Jean

Feeding guideline: Feed 2-3% of your dogs weight per day. If your dog weighs 60 pounds, feed 1.2 to 1.8 pounds per day. This might have to be increased or decreased depending on your dogs activity level and age.

First two weeks:

Fast your dog the first day, no kibble or treats or raw food. Water is ok.

NOTHING but bone in chicken. This means for your sized dog:

Chicken backs or frames (feed several per meal 2-4 depending on size)
Chicken quarters (feed one per meal)
Chicken thighs (feed one or 2 per meal)

Give one meal in the AM and one in the PM

Third week:

Add in turkey on alternating meals (chicken meal in AM, turkey in PM). This means:

Turkey necks (feed one per meal)
Turkey wings (feed one per meal)
Turkey frames (feed 1/2 to 1 per meal)
*** pretty much a whole turkey can be fed, but butchered up into portions.

Fourth week:

Add in pork alternating days with chicken and turkey (feed chx AM, pork PM...then next day chx AM and turkey PM...then chx AM and pork PM....so on and so forth). This means:

Pork neck bones (feed one per meal)
Pork ribs (feed a good sized slab, you should be able to eye ball a meals worth)

Fifth week:

Add in fish alternating days with chicken, turkey, and pork (feed chx AM, fish PM...next day chx AM, turkey PM...next day chx AM, pork PM....next day chx AM, fish PM...so on and so forth)

Sixth Week:

Add in beef, same routine as before. This means:

Beef heart (eye ball a good sized meal chunk)
Ground beef (not ideal source of beef but it will be ok if fed only once a week)

***You should strive to feed a different protein source everyday of the week, and then start over with your rotation again the next week. Add in as many protein sources as you can afford or what is convenient (you could even be on a two week schedule if you have that many choices of meats).***

DO NOT add organ meats (liver and kidney) until 2-3 months into raw feeding. Add in VERY slowly and in VERY small amount to an already well established meat meal (ie chicken meal) once every 2 weeks. Then gradually work it into your rotation weekly.

 

[SunnyTX]

danemama08,
From you post, it sounds like you feed your dogs the whole piece of meat and do not grind it up. Am I interpreting this correctly? I currently feed my dogs ground up meat/organs/bones and add RMBs to their meal. Is grinding everything really necessary?

 

[DaneMama]

We do give our dogs the whole chunks of meat and they do just great with them. Grinding is not necessary. Dogs are equipped to handle whole raw bones, as long as they're not cooked or weight bearing bones from cows or other large herbivores.

If you feed exclusively ground up raw good you don't get the dental hygiene benefit from the dogs chewing on the bones, which naturally scrapes tartar.

 

[RawFedDogs]

Hey SunnyTX, welcome to the group. Dogs have wonderfuly efficient grinders built-in. We call them teeth. They do a very good job of handling most any animal part fresh and whole. :smile: I have been feeding raw for 8 years and have never ground anything. Very rarely I will feed ground beef or turkey if I find some so cheap I can't pass it up or I will feed ground deer meat when it's given to me. They may get ground food once every 4 or 5 months.

 

[lk9984]

Hi Jean,

I've been looking for the same thing! The people here have been fantastic, but it would be nice to have something in "hard copy" that you can read and look at. The info on the web is great as well, but I need something on paper in front of me, at least for the beginning. I've printed out a lot of stuff I've found online But I also did order the following books from Amazon:

Works Wonders - Feed Your Dog Raw Meaty Bones by Tom Lonsdale

Raw Dog Food: Make it Easy for You and Your Dog - Carina Beth Macdonald
and
Natural Nutrition for Dogs and Cats- Kymythy Schultze

I just started looking and got a couple that were reasonably priced and sounded basic. If anyone has read these books or knows anything good or bad about them, please let me know! I've not received them yet...

 

[GoldenGirl]

Feeding guideline: Feed 2-3% of your dogs weight per day. If your dog weighs 60 pounds, feed 1.2 to 1.8 pounds per day. This might have to be increased or decreased depending on your dogs activity level and age.

First two weeks:

Fast your dog the first day, no kibble or treats or raw food. Water is ok.

NOTHING but bone in chicken. This means for your sized dog:

Chicken backs or frames (feed several per meal 2-4 depending on size)
Chicken quarters (feed one per meal)
Chicken thighs (feed one or 2 per meal)

Give one meal in the AM and one in the PM

Third week:

Add in turkey on alternating meals (chicken meal in AM, turkey in PM). This means:

Turkey necks (feed one per meal)
Turkey wings (feed one per meal)
Turkey frames (feed 1/2 to 1 per meal)
*** pretty much a whole turkey can be fed, but butchered up into portions.

Fourth week:

Add in pork alternating days with chicken and turkey (feed chx AM, pork PM...then next day chx AM and turkey PM...then chx AM and pork PM....so on and so forth). This means:

Pork neck bones (feed one per meal)
Pork ribs (feed a good sized slab, you should be able to eye ball a meals worth)

Fifth week:

Add in fish alternating days with chicken, turkey, and pork (feed chx AM, fish PM...next day chx AM, turkey PM...next day chx AM, pork PM....next day chx AM, fish PM...so on and so forth)

Sixth Week:

Add in beef, same routine as before. This means:

Beef heart (eye ball a good sized meal chunk)
Ground beef (not ideal source of beef but it will be ok if fed only once a week)

***You should strive to feed a different protein source everyday of the week, and then start over with your rotation again the next week. Add in as many protein sources as you can afford or what is convenient (you could even be on a two week schedule if you have that many choices of meats).***

DO NOT add organ meats (liver and kidney) until 2-3 months into raw feeding. Add in VERY slowly and in VERY small amount to an already well established meat meal (ie chicken meal) once every 2 weeks. Then gradually work it into your rotation weekly.

Natalie,

Thank you so much for this! This is really, really good info and will help tremendously.

Quick question: My golden is around 88 pounds but he should really be around 80. Should I base his portions in the beginning on what he does weigh or what he should weigh?

Thanks,
Jean

 

[DaneMama]

Definitely on his *ideal* weight of 80. Since dogs use more of the raw foods, its more bioavailable to them, its easy for them to put weight on. So its important to keep an eye on his physique. If you notice him gaining weight, lower the amount of food, and vice versa. I go completely by what our dogs look like rather than their weights. But using the 2-3% guideline gives you a good starting point.

 

[GoldenGirl]

Getting Started (quick start) | Prey Model Raw

How to get started | Prey Model Raw

:wink: :biggrin:

Excellent info - thanks!

- Jean

 

[jdatwood]

Excellent info - thanks!

- Jean

Happy to help :biggrin:

 

[SunnyTX]

Thanks for the great info! Glad to hear that I don't have to buy a grinder to prepare my pups food!