smileyzookie Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 Im terrified of overdosing my animals on pills or something with this raw diet. By pills Im mean like capsules of whatever. I read to give Rohan fish body oil pills and I just wanted suggestions for Riven AND Rohan of what people would add onto a normal meat/bone raw diet. Like what supplements, and how much do you give your cat and dog? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tumblehome Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 Im terrified of overdosing my animals on pills or something with this raw diet. By pills Im mean like capsules of whatever. I read to give Rohan fish body oil pills and I just wanted suggestions for Riven AND Rohan of what people would add onto a normal meat/bone raw diet. Like what supplements, and how much do you give your cat and dog? You need to not panic. Panic is not productive. If you feed a variety of protein sources and a variety of body parts (suitable for cats when feeding cats and suitable for dogs when feeding dogs), you will not miss any significant nutrient and if you should fall short in some areas on some days, over the long haul variety will even everything out just fine. The best way not to overdose is to not dose unless and until you have adequate reason to do so. "Just because" and "on account of" and "it can't hurt" are not good enough reasons. If you are just starting out--and because very little of anything happens over night--you will have plenty of time to adjust both menu items and amounts to benefit Rohan and Riven. As regards fish body oil, it is often recommended for any critter (humans included) that eats a diet heavy on Omega 6 which--if the critter (humans included) eats a typical diet of feedlot livestock and factory poultry and grains--is generally the case. The fish oil provides Omega 3, ideally in doses high enough to reduce the Omega 6:Omega 3 ratio to about 4:1 (down from the typical ratio of 16:1). However, the more pastured/grassfed livestock, the more freerange chickens, the more of certain fish you eat/feed, the greater the levels of naturally-occurring Omega 3 the diet contains; and the less one has to rely on supplemental O3. Not really that much different from eating right overall. Chris O Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maralynn Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 I don't do alot in the way of supplements. Missy gets a couple of fish body oil caps about 3x/week and a 200 iu vit e whenever I give her the fish oil. She also gets biotin if she gets itchy, and a glucosamine/msm supplement a few time a week to help ward off joint trouble (she's very active, and I'd like to keep her that way for as long as I can). I do mix in some kelp or blue green algee in with her hamburger (excellent source of trace minerals), along with some alfafa powder and a little vit c. She gets maybe the equivalent of 1-11/2 teaspoon of each a week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Root Beer Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 I give Speedy some supplements because of his allergies and his arthritis. Aside from Dog Gone Pain, he gets 1 teaspoon of fish body oil (I bought a bottle) and I sqeeze a 200 IU caplet of vitamin E onto his food daily. He also gets a little vitamin C. If he didn't have any particular issues, I wouldn't supplement. I started him without supplements and then added different things specific to his issues. Some things, like glucosamine and MSM didn't work, so I didn't stick with them. The nice thing about supplementing is that you can use what you need when your dog needs it and wean them off it of when they don't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smileyzookie Posted March 31, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 Have I told you guys how much I love this board??? Its such a relief to hear that I dont have to supplement and make this decision right away. My other concern is that Rohan is on antihairball food (well was on). I give him catlax every 2-3 days, think that is enough to prevent his colitis again? Or do you think there's something extra I should give? Riven has been diagnosed with allergies about 2 months ago (not tested-just because of her itchy feet and tummy). THe vet said just give her Benadryl if she gets itchy. Do you think I should get her tested before I go on raw? Or should I just go and switch her? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tumblehome Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 Have I told you guys how much I love this board??? Its such a relief to hear that I dont have to supplement and make this decision right away. My other concern is that Rohan is on antihairball food (well was on). I give him catlax every 2-3 days, think that is enough to prevent his colitis again? Or do you think there's something extra I should give? Riven has been diagnosed with allergies about 2 months ago (not tested-just because of her itchy feet and tummy). THe vet said just give her Benadryl if she gets itchy. Do you think I should get her tested before I go on raw? Or should I just go and switch her? When you get to feeding Rohan a proper diet, you won't likely have to continue the hairball stuff. For cats and dogs both, a good raw diet includes raw meaty bones, organ meat, and meat. The bones and the connective tissue (sinew, cartilage, tendons, etc.) in the diet generally are quite effective hairball fixers. So if you need to use the stuff now--while you are introducing raw foods and making whatever transitional compromises you need to make (cats can be a PITA)--do it. Oh just switch her. There's nothing testing will tell you that you don't already know by seeing. The chances are high that the same meats (assuming of course Riven is sensitive to meat proteins and not something in the environment, which is more likely anyway) fed raw will not be reactive. Because you can pick and choose the meat proteins you feed, you have a lot of room to work in. Start simple, don't rush to feed everything in the buffet, but start. Chris O Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maralynn Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 Riven has been diagnosed with allergies about 2 months ago (not tested-just because of her itchy feet and tummy). THe vet said just give her Benadryl if she gets itchy. Do you think I should get her tested before I go on raw? Or should I just go and switch her? On a raw diet, Riven's allergies may just disappear, especially if she has a grain allergy. The reason I made the switch to 100% raw with Missy was because of allergies - she was licking, scratching, sneezing. It could be controlled by benedryl, but I figured I'd try all raw to see if it made a difference. And it did. She gets benedryl once in a blue moon now. If you do notice Riven's allergies acting up, you can also try giving her some biotin. I've seen it reccomended as a supplement for dogs with allergies, and I think it does help Miss. I got a 60 count bottle of human grade biotin at wal-mart for about $1.50. Missy gets one a day for a week or two if she starts scratching or licking at her paws. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smileyzookie Posted March 31, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 Ok, so I'll go ahead and just switch her the end of this week. I know she'll eat beef raw, but she just wont get into chicken...she does eat chicken feet though. Maybe if I do like a leg and thigh she'll realize its the same idea as beef ribs ect... I read on one of the sites that Pacific NW Salmon isnt good for them? Does anyone know why or if that is bunk? I found some pretty cheap frozen Herring (?) I thought maybe I'd try that on the 2 of them as well. You guys rock. Im so thankful for this board. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
haleigh Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 It's true about the salmon. They can carry flukes ( type of worm, AKA flat worm) but it's only certain types of salmon. The salmon is only in the pacific NW, including California-Alaska and POSSIBLY including British Columbia. I just simply don't bother with feeding salmon. I feed herring, whiting, tuna, and occasionally haddock if I can find it. I get big bottles of fish oil from the vitamin shoppe. According to fish oil grades, they have the best fish oil along with...get this!...Walgreen's. I give one 1000 mg capsule (joy pops it herself) every couple days with some eggs stuck through the blender along with some plain kefir for probiotics. I wouldn't feed animal specified fish oils. They aren't as high quality, and they're more expensive. The risk of fillers and unnecessary additives are much higher than human grade. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
haleigh Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 Also adding-whole eggs don't harm dogs. They say the whites bind to the biotin, but it has been bunked. I can't find the link, thoug.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Root Beer Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 Also adding-whole eggs don't harm dogs. They say the whites bind to the biotin, but it has been bunked. I can't find the link, thoug.... If the whites were fed raw alone, the biotin would be a problem over time, but if you feed the whole egg with yolk, the yolk has something in it that cancels that out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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