I have read about the BARF diet, but so much info to take in. Worried I wont get balance right and dogs may lack vits or minerals. Is it ok to give cooked now and again; will their digestive systems cope ok? I’m in UK. Thank you.
thank you for responses. have looked at sites recommended, but all seem US based. want sources in UK please. Great support in US. finding bones in UK, especially locally not been productive. Local butchers dont get bones (done at market) supermarkets only have chicken wings/legs.
I feed raw. Dogs are anatomically designed to kill, tear, and eat prey. Dogs living in rural areas still survive in this manner – killing small prey and eating it entirely whole. So don’t be nervous!
Some dogs tolerate raw/cooked diets very well. Others don’t. The only way to find out how "strong" your dog’s stomach is is to experiment. Once your dog is eating a raw diet, throw in some cooked meat to see how he fares. If he does well (no explosive diarrhea or vomiting), chances are he can tolerate it. It is not, however, recommended to blend cooked and raw food in one diet since there is speculation that the two are digested differently.
There is one rule when feeding a raw food: Variety! Rotate food items and use whatever you can find, provided it isn’t toxic. Use all different types of meat: chicken, turkey, beef, lamb, rabbit, etc. Use varying types of veggies like lettuce, kale, broccoli, squash, etc. I also like to use multi-vitamin supplements, yogurt, and eggs on a daily basis. Remember: the goal is "balance over time".
My girls have tinned winalot for their meals, purely to make sure they get any vits and mins they would lose out of by my feeding them fresh meat only.
Once or twice a week they get steak cuts, chicken breast, mince, fresh tuna, very rarely liver, and occasionally a happy meal!
they do really well with the mixed diet, never get a wasted morsel out of their cooked dinner bowls!
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How did dogs manage before all these fancy dog foods were provided for them I wonder.
My dogs at home (when I was a child) were fed on a mix of table scraps and whatever off cuts of dodgy looking meat the butcher gave my mum for them.
I never remember them being taken to the vet, never remember them being ill, and they lived to a ripe old age, and died of natural causes!
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I feed my dogs Dr. Billinghurst’s BARF diet. He is the guru of BARF diets. All "patties" come pre-made all you have to do is thaw and feed
No having to worry about not feeding your dog a balanced diet that lack minerals. You do not add anything to the BARF diet.
http://www.barfworld.com
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Veterinarian Technician
if your thinking of giving raw meat, that’s okay but about 20 minutes before you give it to the dog place in another bowl and pour boiling hot water over it to make sure the any Bactria is kill on the outside just to be safe let it stand for 20 minutes then transfer to another bowl….
i warn you that it will be messy to clean up…..
but only give raw meat 2 times a week at first….
a varied food diet with tripe 2 times a week will help….
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Raw food is the best way to go, make sure and research. but this is what dogs are meant to eat, not kibble made out of preservatives and chemicals. I buy prepackaged Raw food by Nature’s Variety and change the Meat source each week so my dog can have a whole food model, one week chicken, next lamb, next venison. etc. But in the beginning, you will need to let their stomachs become accustomed to eating raw. Introduce slowly so they don’t get GI problem such as runny stool, etc.
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Don’t give them raw chicken apparantly they can get food poisoning from it just like we can. Raw neck of lamb is good, but a bugger to cut up, and minced lamb is also good. Years ago they got their veg from dead animals stomachs, which was digested, so give your dogs cooked ccarrot and broccoli, don’t give them cabbage as it gives them stomach ache, peas are ok. A bit of pasta or rice would be nice and some biscuit for crunch. You could also add the contents of a cod liver oil capsule for their joints. Or buying a bottle of cod liver oil may be cheaper so check with vet on how much to give them as i don’t think you should give them too much.
It might be a good idea to change their diet over slowly otherwise it could upset their digestive system if you just do it straight away. Start by giving them 3/4 of current diet with 1/4 new diet for a few days then move on to half and half for a few days, and so on untill they are completely on new diet. See how it goes and how they seem, and if all is well or better, then great.
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i think that is great that is what dogs are supposed to eat because they are carnivors…
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I feed raw. Dogs are anatomically designed to kill, tear, and eat prey. Dogs living in rural areas still survive in this manner – killing small prey and eating it entirely whole. So don’t be nervous!
Some dogs tolerate raw/cooked diets very well. Others don’t. The only way to find out how "strong" your dog’s stomach is is to experiment. Once your dog is eating a raw diet, throw in some cooked meat to see how he fares. If he does well (no explosive diarrhea or vomiting), chances are he can tolerate it. It is not, however, recommended to blend cooked and raw food in one diet since there is speculation that the two are digested differently.
There is one rule when feeding a raw food: Variety! Rotate food items and use whatever you can find, provided it isn’t toxic. Use all different types of meat: chicken, turkey, beef, lamb, rabbit, etc. Use varying types of veggies like lettuce, kale, broccoli, squash, etc. I also like to use multi-vitamin supplements, yogurt, and eggs on a daily basis. Remember: the goal is "balance over time".
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I personally feed a raw prey model diet. My dogs are so healthy the vet was in awe. She said they were the healthiest dogs she had seen in a long time. She was amazed that I don’t have to use flea and tick treatments, since my dogs go everywhere and never get fleas (even at the dog park!)
http://www.rawmeatybones.com
http://www.rawfeddogs.net
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/rawfeeding/
It is much easier than barf, and you don’t have to deal with all the veggies and supplements.
Good luck.
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Okay I was a vet tech and no meats are bad for dogs. Thay are mammals just like we are. Some cooked meats are okay. But health wise give them greenbeens, that fills them up while giving vits. Also, do not give them corn it tears up digestive system.
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ask this dog trainner guy for some guidlines
http://www.centexk9academy.com
Almost every answer here so far contradicts the previous. One says it it is messy to prepare. The next says add supplements like oil etc. The next says green beans or whatever it was. The next says pour boiling water over it for twenty minutes. ‘Raw neck of lamb is hard to cut up’, Nobody cuts it up for them in the wild as you seem to suggest we all feed. Dogs have now become domesticated. As for food having bacteria on it. Dogs bury their food and then dig it up later for god’s sake! Bad water is more dangerous for them but I still see people let their dogs drink out of skanky puddles!
I prefer a good quality chicken based food for my dogs. No additives needed. It’s all there. I open the bag and there it is. My dogs have never complained once! Yes. the convenience of it is good too! My dogs have worked professionally for more than 45 years, too, and still work. My vet also, compliments me on how healthy my dogs remain.
Edit… In May of this year my dogs and I toured the country for ten days for competitions, covering 2200 miles. and I wonder how you people on ‘fresh’ food would have got on?
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45 years of training people to train their dogs
I feed a partly raw diet. They have been on raw tripe for around 20 yrs (not same dogs, obviously!) As long as you give them a variety you don’t need to get too hung up about balance – do you worry about getting all the right vits etc yourself? My dogs don’t have skin problems, very rarely have stomach upsets & never have fleas. I don’t remember the last time I had to take them to the vet.
It’s only in recent years that so-called complete foods have been available & dogs managed perfectly well before.
The only precaution I take is to only give raw mince after it has been frozen & defrosted. Change them over gradually, most dogs cope extremely well changing to raw, but just to be safe do it slowly, adding just a bit of raw to their current food.
My thinking is that you wouldn’t eat a diet of 100% processed food yourself, so why should your dog?
Since BSE, butchers have not been allowed to sell bones, however if you can find a butcher who actually does his own butchery (as opposed to just sellin the meat), you may find he is glad to give you bones as otherwise they have to pay to get rid of them as waste. If you only have one or 2 dogs, it’s probably not practical, but a large freezer is a good investment as there are firms who sell bones & other raw meat in bulk,
Go for it & good luck.
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my nana used to feed her’s raw carrots for a while, aling with sum dog food or as a snack…. vet said the dog was getting fat, she loved them
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