Need opinions on Rivens diet

[Root Beer]

I've also fed yogurt with good results. Sammie often has yeasty ears, but when I feed him yogurt on a regular basis, they clear up.

 

Maybe they don't "need" it, but I don't think anyone can say for sure that they derive absolutely no benefit from it whatsoever.

 

Same with veggies. I don't give a lot of veggies to my raw fed dogs, but they get them on a regular basis. Sometimes I take leftover veggies that we have (lettuce, cucumbers, asparagus ends, squash, etc), and grind it in the food processor. Then I put them into ice cube trays and freeze them. Speedy and Dean enjoy the "veggie popsicles" with great enthusiasm.

 

I don't look at yogurt and veggies as the base of their diet, but I tend to think that there is some benefit to giving them those types of things as part of the whole diet.

[OurBoys]

Sammie often has yeasty ears, but when I feed him yogurt on a regular basis, they clear up.

 

Ditto. Even though, at the time I was giving Jake too much yogurt, he didn't get yeasty ears. When I stopped the yogurt, he got a yeast infection in his right ear. When I started feeding it to him again, at a lower amount, he has yet to get another infection. I'm thinking it's the active cultures in it???

[mbernard2424]

I'm new to this raw thing and am transitioning slowly (cooking the meat at this point). I haven't received my first shipment from hare-today.com so I can't speak personally about their products, but it got good reviews from other raw feeding sites and users. I like that I can get it delivered to my door since I could not find any butcher here who would grind bones and I'm not comfy with the whole bone thing at this point.

 

I've been feeding a 100% raw diet to my cats now for almost fifteen years and wrote a book called Raising Cats Naturally which will give you all the information you need on switching your cats to and feeding them a properly balanced raw diet. I fed four generations of cats the diet detailed in the book. I am not writing to you to sell my book but to tell you that your cats are apt not to like the ground meat you are getting from Hare Today. Like so many small companies, their product was good to begin with, but when they became popular, their quality went downhill. I've heard from numerous people whose cats once ate the meat from Hare Today who are now turning their noses up at it. If your cats (dogs) won't eat the food, that's a lot of money to throw away.

 

To the original poster, your dogs may not be hungry enough to eat well. I find that my male, who is on the thin side, will often only eat every other day. Given that he still looks good and performs well, I let him eat that way. Put the food down for fifteen minutes and if he doesn't eat, then put it away until the next day.

 

Regarding feeding kibble with raw meat, not a good idea. Many kibble manufacturers add ingredients to the kibble to slow the digestive process (to help digestion of grain/plant matter, something carnivores have difficulty (or in some instances, cannot) doing); you don't want to slow down the digestion process if you are feeding raw meat for fear of bacteria contamination. Food is supposed to travel quickly through a carnivore's digestive system. That's one reason why they can safely eat raw meat.

 

When feeding a raw diet, variety is incredibly important. I have seen dogs who are fed diets consisting almost entirely of chicken necks, backs, gizzards and various other inexpensive chicken parts. They do not look or act well. My dogs and cats get many, many different kinds of meat. I do a lot of running around getting meat. For example, on Friday I drove 40 miles one way to meet my rabbit supplier and on the way, stopped at a Mexican grocer and got pork kidney, chicken hearts (virtually impossible to source) and goat meat. My freezer is chock full of meat for my eleven cats, two adult dogs and new litter of puppies (who will be weaned on raw). As soon as I have room in my freezer, I'll be taking one of this year's lambs to be processed. It is a lot of work, but well worth it, in my opinion.

[jvw]

One thing people often forget about feeding "raw" is that the calcium to phosphorus ratio is important. That is why the bone is so important. If you feed ground meat without bone you need to add bonemeal to it. I forget the amount.

 

Jennifer

[Guest LJS1993]

Sometimes I think people get a bit too carried away about dog diets. I don't find a reason to be strict to the book. I have trouble finding raw, our markets will not sell you "off time" food of ANY kind. (I know some of you can get veggies) The fruit stand will sell you stuff, but you have to be there, they won't call you, they won't save it.

For a long time I fed a bit of raw, a bit of kibble. Didn't matter what kind of raw, or what kind of kibble. I am not going to waste my time "hunting" anything. My dogs did fine, beautiful coats, good weight, no upset tummies. Dogs vary, as do their needs of course. Go with what works for you. Don't discard raw just because you can't commit to it every meal. Talk to your vet, keep an eye on your dogs, and do what works for your pets.

 

How many of us follow a strict diet? I am allergic to milk, but once in a blue moon I will eat a bit of ice cream. Sure I pay for it, but I live, and it was a nice treat. No big deal. There are TONS of articles out there that tell me not to eat milk, they don't know me. There are tons of articles that say do not mix raw and kibble. Of course they are going to say that, they are promoting a certain kind of diet. If half raw half kibble works for your dog, go for it.

 

I agree with your post. It all depends on what works for your dog and what is practicle for your financial situation.

[Guest TheRuffMuttGang]

I just wanted to say that I had no idea, Michelle, that you were a member here. I used your Blakkatz website almost solely when I switched my cats to raw. I also think your information on over-vaccination is well-worded and easy to read and understand. Kudos.

[bc4pack]

As far as raw with kibble, I still say it depends on the individual dogs. Some dogs are fine, some not.

Just recently on a nutrition list we went round and round about raw and kibble digestion times...and

still nothing set in stone...every dog is different. I still say that anything fresh is going to be better than

kibble alone... Could it depend on the kibble? Sure... Maybe I've got dogs with cast iron stomachs, but ,personally I have never had a problem.

 

If one isn't comfortable feeding kibble and raw together,well...don't.

 

Again, the dogs are the best judges ....

[mbernard2424]

I just wanted to say that I had no idea, Michelle, that you were a member here. I used your Blakkatz website almost solely when I switched my cats to raw. I also think your information on over-vaccination is well-worded and easy to read and understand. Kudos.

 

Thanks. Just put up a web page for my BCs with a raw diet and vaccination page (still working on herding, agility, etc.) Let me know what you think:

 

http://www.spellcastbodercollies.com

[Guest WoobiesMom]

I am not writing to you to sell my book but to tell you that your cats are apt not to like the ground meat you are getting from Hare Today. Like so many small companies, their product was good to begin with, but when they became popular, their quality went downhill. I've heard from numerous people whose cats once ate the meat from Hare Today who are now turning their noses up at it. If your cats (dogs) won't eat the food, that's a lot of money to throw away.

 

Aww man! I sure hope they eat it since it's already on its way. I suspect I may have trouble with the younger fatter cat, he's not even eating the tiny pieces of cooked chicken, just eating the canned cat food off of it and spitting it out. The older cat who lived on the streets for many years seems alot happier with the changes. I'll just keep plugging away and if the fat boy won't eat it, I'll just continue to feed higher quality canned to him. I'll at least give it a try. I'll definitely be checking out your book, thanks!

[mbernard2424]

Aww man! I sure hope they eat it since it's already on its way. I suspect I may have trouble with the younger fatter cat, he's not even eating the tiny pieces of cooked chicken, just eating the canned cat food off of it and spitting it out. The older cat who lived on the streets for many years seems alot happier with the changes. I'll just keep plugging away and if the fat boy won't eat it, I'll just continue to feed higher quality canned to him. I'll at least give it a try. I'll definitely be checking out your book, thanks!

 

If he (they) won't eat it raw, lightly saute it with a little bit of garlic (a little bit!) and that may get him to eat it. It's funny, I get my rabbits from a breeder (they breed show rabbits, I get their culls). They have a neighbor who has the same breed of rabbits, feeds the same type of food *but* they don't care for them as well as the people I normally get mine from. My cats won't touch the rabbit from the neighbor.

[Vickkers]

Caena~ Actually I think the grass thing might have been me (unless someone else was having the same problem)... my dogs have finally picked one spot (8' by 3') to dig in and that's "their spot" to wallow and dig and generally muddy up and they love it and leave the rest of my yard alone. It wasn't my choice to have them do it but they love it and with my injury it's taking me a while to recover and give them the exercise that they are used to so at least this gives them a little exercise.

 

As far as the debate on whether just chicken is OK, that's mostly what my girls and boys get (with some canned salmon, mackeral, sardines, eggs and the occational rabbit (but at $3 a lb that's not very often)). My dogs hate fresh fish (whole prey model) and unless I cut the fish in half and leave it outside all day until they are so hungry they have to eat it (ewwwwww) they won't touch it. They do love canned salmon and mackeral and sardines in water though. I also notice a difference when I give the kids omega 3 fish oil caps and flax oil caps. Some people say that it's unnecessary but I've noticed a HUGE difference in the skin and coat of my BCs (not so much my mix) when I do give them the suppliments versus when I don't.

 

I've also noticed that I can get whole chickens for a LOT less at WalMart then at the butcher or anywhere else... who can beat 77 cents a lb?? It's not difficult to cut up a chicken and storage is a lot easier than the big bulky packages that I get from the butcher.

[sweet_ceana]

The grass was in a plastic container and it could grow on cinder blocks, if I see it again I will post the name in coffee break.

[ErinKate]

Patch Perfect

[Vickkers]

super cool, thanks! I'll check it out