Hi everyone, We have our puppy arriving on the 18th March and have been looking to feed him Raw food going forward. We have been advised to let him settle a few days and then convert.... Basically, after research we are looking at going with MVM Meats and would basically be buying Chubbs, but given that they are 80% meat and 20% bone we would need to buy an extra amount of tripe and mix this in, in order to reduce the percentage of bone in each meal for him. Does anyone have any tips/advice on the best ways to do this, or, raw feeding in general please? My partner and I have an idea of mixing all of his daily allowance (defrosted) in a bowl, mixing the chubb & tripe together and then seperating each meal individually for throughout the day. It's a bit more work and preparation obviously, but we want the best for him. (We have also looked at possible negative aspects of raw feeding as my partner is a hygeine freak and he hates the idea of raw food all over our househahaa!) Thank you!
Hi there! Congratulations on your soon-to-be arrival! I fed raw for a long time before there were any sort of prepared raw diets for dogs, so I don't really get buying all the special stuff. I just went to the (human) grocery store and bought good quality (human) food...turkey/chicken necks and wings for puppies, whole chickens for larger dogs, veggies, fruits, organ meats, fish, eggs. It was easy because no extra trip needed for me to get my own food, no massive freezer and defrosting needed. I've not done any current research on raw, though, so I'm not up to date - is there a reason that you need MVM or Chubbs vs. just...well, fresh stuff from a grocery store? Also, I don't really think all the mixing and prep is really all that necessary. Every meal doesn't need to be perfectly balanced - think of it more in 3-4 day "chunks" and think about getting all nutrients in over a certain period, not every meal. Otherwise you'll drive yourself batty. And bones don't need to be pre-ground down. That's the whole point of BARF - the gnawing and chewing is important. Even small puppies can tackle necks and wings. It seems really weird at first (to us humans) but puppies just go for it and have a ball. I get your boyfriend's concerns. I fed my dogs in metal crates or outside, which meant I could easily clean the feeding areas and didn't have to worry about chicken fat on my floors. In fact, when my lifestyle changed and I couldn't bring a metal crate with me and didn't have an "outside" anymore, I had to switch to all fresh home-cooked instead of raw. This worked out great, too, but I do think the raw bones are best. For everyone who feeds raw, there's probably a different opinion of the right thing to do, so take advice in your stride and figure out what works best of you and your pup - and your squeamish boyfriend.
Congratulations on your impending new puppy! There is lots of great raw feeding information here: http://www.thelabradorsite.com/raw-feeding-for-dogs/
That's perfect, Thank you Emily! All kind of advice is greatly appreciated as we are first time pup owners and we hear a lot of different opinions! Yes we have read that the bones are good for him and his teeth etc my worry is that we over do it on something and it causes him issues but, like you said, it is about giving him a balance over a small time period
