Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Melissa S. on February 26, 2010 at 9:08pm

may I ask what Bravo is?

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Permalink Reply by Sam Tsang on February 26, 2010 at 9:56pm

Its a brand name.

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Permalink Reply by Melissa S. on February 26, 2010 at 10:05pm

:) thanks Sam!! I will check out that site!!!!

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Permalink Reply by Ann on February 25, 2010 at 3:32pm

It helped tremendously with Gizmo's allergies. I used to feed a high grade kibble (Before Grain, Orijen, Evo) but he kept getting hot spots, and would throw up foam about once a month. It's been over a year and he has no more hot spots, doesn't lick his paws incessantly, and doesn't itch unless I wait too long for a bath.
I think human grade raw is enough. To feed organic raw would be cost prohibitive for me. I also tried a few commercial brands of raw food and he did better on some and not others.

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Permalink Reply by Joanna Kimball on February 25, 2010 at 4:14pm

I've fed it to groups of dogs from tiny to huge for over a decade now.

The downside is storage - if you want to do it economically for more than a couple of dogs you need to have a freezer.

If you want to mix raw and a conventional (grain-based) kibble, you need to give them completely different digestion times, so feed each for a week at a time or, at the very least, a day at a time. Not different meals on the same day. Grain-free kibble seems to be somewhat better tolerated.

I don't feed only organic and I don't feed free-range or anything like that. I feed raw meaty bones (chicken backs, pork neck bones, lamb necks, etc.) from human-source restaurant supply companies, so I know they're fresh and clean, and I feed organs that I know to be fresh as well. Other than that I don't worry.

You have to have a plan but it's really common sense. Dogs are meant to eat rabbits and deer and elk and birds. If you cannot feed whole rabbits and deer and elk and birds (and lots of people do; hare-today.com is based entirely on whole-prey feeding and it's a fabulous resource), you need to replicate it as closely as you can without going overboard. Muscle and bone and organs. You can feed veggies and fruits and oils and certain supplements if you're worried that you don't have access to a wide enough variety of organs.

Buying a pre-mixed raw is foolproof and very convenient, but it's expensive. If that's important to you, doing it yourself is certainly not difficult.

As long as you're not just throwing raw steak into a bowl for weeks in a row (a day or two in a row would be fine) you will be fine. There are THOUSANDS of websites out there telling you how to do it correctly.

I don't worry about bacteria any more than I worry about the food I make for us. I wipe off the counter, that's about it. The dog food bowls get washed regularly but I'd do that anyway (it's not like kibble is sterile!). If I had a child with immunodeficiency I might do something different, but I've done this through a total of three newborn babies who are now toddlers or older.

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Permalink Reply by Melissa S. on February 26, 2010 at 9:13pm

so what is a sample recipe some of you are using? or "plan"??
some things I have read have you adding all kinds of vitamins and stuff! what is your take on that? my sister showed me this one site the other day, and they had sample diets but every meal called for a ton of minerals, and of course that site sold that type of stuff, so assumed it was a sales ploy?!?!

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Permalink Reply by Melissa S. on February 26, 2010 at 9:37pm

right now Walker is on Innova, and I add a mixture I cook him. Its either ground lamb or ground beef, dpends on the day, a little bit of white rice, and a tablespoon or so of pumpkin and natural organic yogurt!... the only reason I add in is because the stink is super picky and HATES everything I buy! I am starting to think that just maybe raw is the way to go just to get him to eat better! If I don't add in he wont eat! and he is not gaining weight , in fact vet says he is immaculate as far as body condition goes

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