Do you feed raw?

[zoomer]

Do you feed your dogs raw?

[GreyhoundGirl]

No, it seems like it would be too much effort and too gross- i feed bagged

[zoomer]

No, it seems like it would be too much effort and too gross- i feed bagged

I totally agree with you! I think it's gross and unessacary, I'd try it once or twice, but wouldn't really feed it on and on if you know what I mean.

[.sarah]

Yes and I would never go back.

[zoomer]

Yes and I would never go back.

Why wouldn't you go back? Do you like feeding your dogs raw that much?

[.sarah]

Why wouldn't you go back? Do you like feeding your dogs raw that much?
Their health is 100x better and yes, I enjoy it. It is fun feeding them a variety and it is fun watching them actually enjoy their meals.

[PinkSunshine]

Ditto what Sarah said... Been feeding my 3 for going on 3 years now and I'd never go back to doggie kibble. WAY too many unecessary additives/ingrediants in kibble, not to mention the cancer causing agents

[Crazy-Cat-Lover]

Like Sarah, I feed raw and would never go back to kibble.

[binka_nugget]

Yep, another raw feeder here. I'll never go back to kibble. I like knowing that my dogs are eating what their bodies were made for.

[Danegirl2208]

i feed raw too...i actually just started recently and i already agree that i will never feed kibble again

[Glacier]

Like pretty much every musher on the planet, I feed a mixed diet. High fat/high protein kibble and meat. More meat in the winter and more kibble this time of year. The meat my guys get is mainly wild game and arctic char. I get the wild game for free and pay 10 bucks for 100 pounds of char bits(the dogs are particulary fond of the heads!) Occasionally one of the local grocers gives me a box of beef and pork scraps. The dogs think that's a huge treat!

[The Cat Factory]

I feed Chester raw, I'll never switch back to kibble.

[mrspunkysmom]

Spunks and Sams don't care for raw. I fed a combination of raw, cooked, can prenium cat food to Maggie (RB) and Rosie (RB) and they lived long, healthy lives. I had to work at it and those two (Maggie, Rosis) came around. I can't get the fellas interested in it. They won't let me groom them either. I ahve to do it with my fingers while lovin' them.

Spunks and sams do get cooked meat and seafood. Spunks loves shrimp. No sauces or anything. Just good meat. They also get premium food, since Spunks can't tolerate the bone meal in the cheaper foods. Kidney stones are no fun.

Anne

[Chilli]

No. The main reason is because we don't have a good place close to get meat that is suitable.
Also, I despise touching meat... the feel is so nasty.
I might switch them to raw later in life... I would love to now, but its just not really easily done.
If Frisk has survived 6 years (and Ethan has survived 3) on dogfood, I'm sure he can last a few more. ;)

[cali]

fed raw for 6 years and never going back to kibble. I know just watching the differnce between Perky and the rest of the senoir dogs in freestyle is amazing, I watched her do a group routine with 3 other senior dogs, the other 3 were moving slowly, the way you would exept a senoir dog to move. meanwhile Perky(raw fed), the same age as the other dogs(all kibble fed), is leaping 3 feet in the air, grinning, her tail moving a mile a minute and barking all the while, basicly behaving more like a 7 month old then a 7 year old.

then there is Shadow, at 4 her arthritus was so bad that she was unable to stand, the vet told us to consider putting her down as she would not see her 5th birthday. instead we switched to raw. as I type Shadow is 10 years old, with NO signs of arthritus.

[lute]

i don't. i probably won't ever fed raw. not that i don't like it. i just prefer to feed kibble.

[dab_20]

I don't either. I might when I'm older and have dogs of my own.

[Tollers-n-Dobes]

I don't, but would like to start later on in life. Probably when I get my Toller.

[*LabLoverKEB*]

Right now, I feed both of mine kibble, but I would like to try the raw diet.

[Alysser]

Sadly, no. I want to. But I doubt my mom would go for that and I have no decision making on Sassy's diet. Plus, I doubt Sassy would like it. She has been fed kibble and commercial dog food since I got her, which was 8 years ago. When I get my own dogs, for sure.

[finn's mom]

I feed raw, and, will only feed kibble if I have to. I'm totally grossed about by raw meat, but, for all of you folks grossed about by touching raw meat, I wear gloves. I buy a box of latex powder free gloves and wear them every time I deal with raw meat, whether it's for we people or Finn. (My boyfriend's dogs are kibble fed, but, I just switched them over to a high quality kibble. I won't ask David to switch his dogs, it's his choice. But, he did compromise and is allowing me to take them off Iams, yay!)

[JenBKR]

i don't. i probably won't ever fed raw. not that i don't like it. i just prefer to feed kibble.

Same for me :)

[cloverfdx]

I feed raw and will never go back to kibble/ commerical food, i like knowing what is going into my dogs bodies ;).

[k9krazee]

I can't right now but I'd at least like to give it a try when I'm older and have my own place.

[Danegirl2208]

I feed raw and will never go back to kibble/ commerical food, i like knowing what is going into my dogs bodies ;).

couldnt agree more ;)

[IRescue452]

Happy to say I feed raw now. After reading that book I'll never buy another bag of kibble again. Autumn just has a small meal a day of kibble to finish what she has. I'm starting to form worse opinions of owner's who feed processed foods without concern for their dogs' health and I'm definately recognizing health problems in dogs at work who are fed on kibble.

[sandragonfly]

awesome! to find SO many of you feed raw too!

I, too been feeding my golden and cats for almost a year now and repeat, kibbles? you kidding me, never again! :D

well, they are their, especially crayola's occassional treats. just junk treats when he's being soooo good boy! :)

[Lori Jordan]

I also have been feeding Raw.Now here is another Question,Do you find it costs alot more than kibble?

[cloverfdx]

I can feed 3 medium - large dogs on $20 a week, alot less than kibble.

[Lori Jordan]

I spend way more than that,But i'm also in Canada i go to the Butcher here in town and it is costly.

[finn's mom]

I don't spend any more to feed Finn, who's 85 pounds...than I do to feed Freckles and Dudley, who are both under 30. Finn eats raw, the others eat kibble.

[IRescue452]

Very cheap. For 50 cents a pound I can buy a 10 pack of chicken legs for 2.50. I make sure its as close to $2.50 as it can get because then I know each leg is .5pounds and I don't have to do any dividing or measuring at home. This is her main meat, costing $15 per month. Organs are cheap. Its less than a dollar for a pound of some other meat I can split into two days. An egg costs 3 cents a piece now and again. I don't do yogurt because Autumn has always gotten regular milk daily, but a big bucket of plain would be a dollar. Veggies and nuts are grated from the human supply at home on occasion. Flax seed, ground, was $1.38 for a big box that should last over a month. So basically it costs me about $20 per month.

[sandragonfly]

posted by lori jordan
Now here is another question, do you find it costs more than kibble?

not, if you shop right! ;)

I feed crayola about two pounds a day, blended veggies and a calium egg each a day, it takes him two weeks to eat $10 dollars.

I used to spend $40+ junk kibbles on him a month and he's happier ever.

[GreyhoundGirl]

Raw meat just doesn't seem... healthy. I can sorta see giving them cooked meat every now and then.


Like, yesterday for example, my dad made too many hamburgers, so jenny got 1/2 a hamburger ( without the bread ) but it was fully cooked.

[sandragonfly]

posted by greyhoundgirl
Raw meat just doesn't seem... healthy. I can sorta see giving them cooked meat every now and then.

yikes. why not?

cooked meat, unlike raw diet raise risk chances - develope gum infections, bladder problems, heart lesions and cooked bone meat often are organ cutters - splinters. sometimes no matter how really you cooked it.

[Danegirl2208]

Raw meat just doesn't seem... healthy. I can sorta see giving them cooked meat every now and then.


Like, yesterday for example, my dad made too many hamburgers, so jenny got 1/2 a hamburger ( without the bread ) but it was fully cooked.

plese look at this site..A Raw diet is very healthy..Cooked meats are not
http://www.netpets.com/dogs/reference/food/cookorraw.html

[Roxyluvsme13]

Yup. For about 2 weeks. I won't go back either if it's my choice.

[wolfsoul]

Yep, and I'm never going back to kibble. The changes are amazing.

[bckrazy]

Yes. =)

It's really, really cool to see so many "Yes" votes. PT has some healthy raw dogs, fo sho. I completely respect people who do research their kibble and feed a high quality kibble, but I totally agree that I won't go back to all kibble, ever. Even half raw is hugely beneficial.

It does kind of sting to hear "raw is gross". I totally believe that raw is miles from gross, compared to the nasty, raunchy by-products & fillers that go into grocery store & low-grade kibbles. Raw is healthy when it's fed in a balanced manner, because naturally dogs are built to digest it and function optimally on it, not on cooked meat. Raw bones are also suuuper good for teeth & for the whole body of a dog.

[IRescue452]

It not only stings me to hear that "eww its gross", it makes me feel people would rather let their dogs be unhealthy than touch a piece of raw meat. I hope them people are vegetarians, because if they ever grow up and move from their parents then they will be the ones to put the meat in the pan when they are cooking meals. You can't avoid touching raw meat once in a while if you plan to eat it cooked.
Several things I learned about even the healthiest kibble would keep me on raw. One is that carnivores don't eat balanced meals everyday. How often do you see a lion eat a zebra, some vegetables, milk, and ground flaxseed in one meal? Never, because their stomach works best with one food at a time to digest. Two is the myth to feed one dog food and don't switch. This is the cause of allergies. Feeding the same high quality kibble everyday will cause as many allergies as a low quality kibble. Dogs don't require a monotonous diet to be healthy. And lastly, kibble is kibble and will still cause dental diseases and even enlarged organs because of the amount of processing.

[bckrazy]

I KNOW! I completely agree. Raw meat really is not disgusting, if it's clean and especially if you wear latex gloves. I've been a vegetarian for almost 2 years, but I handle meat every day, because it's so worth knowing they love what they're eating and it is what they are built to eat.

[.sarah]

I've been a vegetarian for almost 2 years, but I handle meat every day, because it's so worth knowing they love what they're eating and it is what they are built to eat.
Wow Erica, I didn't know you were a vegetarian! (or maybe I forgot :p) I've been a vegetarian for almost 2 years too, and I handle meat every day too ;) :D

[wolfsoul]

I just use bare hands and rarely wash them after I handle raw meat lol. Don't have salmonella yet. :p

[finn's mom]

I always use gloves, as I just don't like the feeling of meat. I don't worry about the germs as much as I just don't like the way it feels. I use gloves when I'm separating his food out of the containers or bags from the store and into freezer safe containers. But, when he eats, I usually just hold the container, and, he pulls the meat out himself. :)

[WarahGirl1995]

No, I feed Kirkland Kibble.

[Lori Jordan]

Kirkland is a Cosco Kibble is it not?I find my guys enjoy raw also,They are off Kibble for good now have been for awhile,and my dogs look healthier than ever!