Raw feeders

[RoseAmy]

.As stated I posted this in case someone was interested. Not to bash what people feed or not or cost or whatever. To each their own.

 

If this information was helpful good..if not move on to the next post.

 

Sorry to have cause a firestorm.

[bcnewe2]

Wow who do you approach to find out more info at walmart?

[NorthfieldNick]

Er, nice as it is to save money on feeding dogs, if the meat was going to go somewhere to feed people in need, I'd have a hard time taking it for my dogs. Even if there is a fee to pay. If the meat was just going in the trash otherwise, though, good way to save money... if you can handle feeding meat that Wal-Mart sells.

[RoseAmy]

If anyone needs more info feel free to pm me.

[bcnewe2]

I can't see any org. taking walmart or any other store up on this type of deal. As RoseAmy said, it's almost expired and the risk would be high for a human. For dogs, not so much.

 

I have a sil that is a McDonalds manager, they can't give old or expired food that they have prepared to the hungry for the same reason. They can't even throw it out in the dumpsters where hungry people can find it. to big of a lawsuit risk.

 

As far as walmart meat. I have no problems with feeding it.

[Lewie'sMom]

I think that's a great idea! Thanks for the tip.

[CLW1]

I'm part of a raw feeding co-op that gets meat this way. If we don't take it it goes to a renderer and on to who knows where...pig farms I think. We get hundreds of pounds a week.

 

Most of what I get is frozen and not even out of date and I'm able to feed my 4 dogs on $.20/lb. I'd love to be able to raise and slaughter my own dog food, or buy organic, etc but that's just not possible. Kudos to those who can do it but I'm not one of those people and I have no qualms about feeding what I feed (I do feed kibble too, but raw if most of their diet).

[Conner22]

I think its AWESOME you have found a way that keeps your dogs on raw for cheap. I hope what I say comes accross positive! But while its great to find a cheap way to feed your dog, you probably have alot of experience with doing so for many years. My concern is twofold- first, if you are new to raw, I'd only feed PART cheap leftover, part "other". feeding cheap "raw meat" is not what Raw feeding is about- but all about balance. Which can be tricky to get from old walmart meat. Organ meat that is even a "day" out is lacking nutrition. it quickly vanishes as it ages. Organ meat being very important as it contains alot of essentials. Bones are very important too, and personally, my dogs can't chew thru alot of the bones from grocery store, since alot of them are weight bearing bones and very hard.

 

I know several people who "switched" to raw, and had very very bad results. Feeding new on raw dogs older meat is NOT good for gut health at all. Attempting to figure out how to properly feed with store bought quality (nutrition can be lacking in some meats), can actually be bad for a dog, especially for a newbie to figure out.

That said, this is an AWESOME option for people who know what they are doing, and want to save a buck but still feed raw! ITs a great suggestion, and very nice that you thought to share it with people so they know options to help with expense of raw. Not judging anyone!

[Pat W.]

This is an interesting thought. I have a Super Walmart 2 min from my house that would be a great resource if I can get them to agree to it. Can you tell me how you approached the manager -was it the store manager or meat dept manager or both? Was there a written agreement that the meat was not to be used for human consumption and releasing WM from all liability?

[Conner22]

"the expense of raw"

has anyone besides myself noticed that you can feed good quality raw (special raised animals) for about the same as a decent quality kibble? My mom spent about $35/month on dry dog food for 2 mini poodles. She now spends $40/month on raw- good quality. And around hunting season, you can get alot of scraps/bones FREE, and that is one of the best meats (species approprate)you can get!

For example- RoseAmy feeds 5 dogs on $50/month, sounds like she knows what she's doing, and getting good results from "average quality" raw. Thats cheaper than most dog foods, even average quality ones! For 5 working dogs I'd bet the cheapest you can go is about (poor quality) $30/month, and good quality probably $70/month! Raw is NOT expensive..... I thinks saying that discourages people from trying such an "expensive" "fancy" diet.

[Lenajo]

I don't feed my dogs outdated grocery store meat. I've fed raw for over a decade, and frankly, based on hard earned experience, it is *not* worth the savings.

 

To add to that, Walmart meat ime is lousy quality, and their leftovers will not improve upon that.

 

If money is tight you would be better served researching and buying quality kibble and supplementing with healthy raw options as you can afford them.

 

I have fed slightly "off" meat that I got from my own animals or from farm sources that I knew. Even off thats well above what a store has - its gone though less hands and potential sources of contamination.

[Maralynn]

"the expense of raw"

has anyone besides myself noticed that you can feed good quality raw (special raised animals) for about the same as a decent quality kibble?

 

Nope. If I could, I'd probably have all the dogs on raw.

 

I'm not sure what your definition of "decent quality kibble" is, but that sound super expensive to me. I spend about $30/month feeding two BC's with decent quality kibble! It costs about $30/month to feed my grain free dog with a high quality kibble. I just got a deal (for me) on regular raw and it's going to cost about $20/month for her. I looked into feeding her specially raised and it would cost an average of $1.75-$2/#. So it would cost me $50-$60/month instead of $20.

 

ETA - I just don't like Walmart meat. Most of it has solutions added to it. I buy meat from a couple small local grocery stores. They buy odd ball bulk deals - last week they had bulk packages of chicken necks. Not as great as farm raised. But it doesn't have any added solutions "to improve tenderness and flavor"

[Conner22]

Nope. If I could, I'd probably have all the dogs on raw.

 

I'm not sure what your definition of "decent quality kibble" is, but that sound super expensive to me. I spend about $30/month feeding two BC's with decent quality kibble! It costs about $30/month to feed my grain free dog with a high quality kibble. I just got a deal (for me) on regular raw and it's going to cost about $20/month for her. I looked into feeding her specially raised and it would cost an average of $1.75-$2/#. So it would cost me $50-$60/month instead of $20.

 

IF i understand you correctly - a good quality grain free kibble was costing you $30/month for one dog- and on raw its $20/month. The HIGH quality raw is approx $50.... so for $20 more that kibble a month, you are feeding your dog specially raised food! seemingly substantially higher.

 

I know high quality raw (specially raised) that goes for $1.5/#

Thus making your average now $45. Add freebies (or cheaper meats) from butchers (local ones that slaughter range fed beef raised specifically for farmers familys), or freebies during hunting, and your average cost will be down to $37. So for $7 more a month you are feeding high qualiy specially raised food to your dog. but currently you are feeding decent quality raw for $20/month.

 

but if you feed kibble, you proabably buy bones for your dogs. (assuming rawhide) which is rediculously expensive for what you get. Add that to your "kibble" cost, but it comes "built in" with raw. I'd imagine for 2 dogs you spend $10 on rawhide/month? So now your 2 bcs on $30 is actually $40. For your one on speciallty- i'd imagine bones are $5/month? So you actually pay $35/month for her kibble/rawhide food......vs $37/month for raw.....

 

How "expensive" is raw?

Oh, and the dry kibble i fed my 2 bcs was $50/month.

[Maralynn]

IF i understand you correctly - a good quality grain free kibble was costing you $30/month for one dog- and on raw its $20/month. The HIGH quality raw is approx $50.... so for $20 more that kibble a month, you are feeding your dog specially raised food! seemingly substantially higher.

 

I know high quality raw (specially raised) that goes for $1.5/#

Thus making your average now $45. Add freebies (or cheaper meats) from butchers (local ones that slaughter range fed beef raised specifically for farmers familys), or freebies during hunting, and your average cost will be down to $37. So for $7 more a month you are feeding high qualiy specially raised food to your dog. but currently you are feeding decent quality raw for $20/month.

 

but if you feed kibble, you proabably buy bones for your dogs. (assuming rawhide) which is rediculously expensive for what you get. Add that to your "kibble" cost, but it comes "built in" with raw. I'd imagine for 2 dogs you spend $10 on rawhide/month? So now your 2 bcs on $30 is actually $40. For your one on speciallty- i'd imagine bones are $5/month? So you actually pay $35/month for her kibble/rawhide food......vs $37/month for raw.....

 

How "expensive" is raw?

Oh, and the dry kibble i fed my 2 bcs was $50/month.

 

You're assuming a lot of things that don't hold true across the board

 

If you can find it for those prices, more power to you. I can't. So that keeps my price at $50. You're also assuming I've got specialty butchers in my area. Haven't found those yet, either.

 

I wouldn't give them rawhide if you paid me to. They get beef ribs once or twice/month that I get for about $1/# on sale. About $3/month. Or nylabones that I get for $5/each (the giant size) when the local pet store has a 50% off sale. I probably spend $20/year on nylabones. So for $35/month I can feed two dogs on decent quality kibble (with named meat ingredients as the first two) and keep their teeth clean. Vs. $74/month for specialty raw. Oh and I won a free bag of dog food last month, so this months feeding is free!

 

So right now I'm feeding 3 dogs (and keeping their teeth clean) for about $50/month. That is actually going down a bit as my youngster has slowed down a bit in the eating department, but I digress). According to your figures, I could do specialty raw for $111/month. Over twice the cost - to a total of $600 extra per year. Gulp.

[Brad]

I find that I can feed raw for less than kibble where I live. Orijen is about 80/bag, and my three would go thru a bag in about 3 weeks. I'm lucky in that a group of us buy chicken carcasses for 0.50/pound. This is a great deal locally. I also have 2 specialty raw stores that sell a huge variety of meats and bones. Mostly I supplement with grocery store meat, which has a sliding price scale as it approaches expiry date. Beef heart/liver/kidney is cheap anyway, and when it only has a few days left, it gets cut in half. We also see salmon on sale certain times of the year, and I can buy pink salmon dirt cheap and fill the freezer. Mackerel can be found cheap certain times of the year as well.

I have approached the meat departments here about expired meat, but they are prohibited from selling it at all.

[RoseAmy]

removed

[stockdogranch]

I spend .68 a pound for decent kibble. I feed some of that daily, along with a variety of raw. I spend on average about .80 a pound for the raw. That's averaging in a combination of lots of stuff--lamb ribs (a real favorite with my working girls), split chicken backs, some chicken or turkey necks, pork brisket bones, 3" marrow bones (recreational), a variety of fish, and organ meats. We are lucky in that we have a raw food coop here in SoCal--we go online once a month and place our order, then pick it up at our designated site a few weeks later. They have a HUGE variety available, and it all comes in 30 or 40 pound cases. I usually order somewhere around 100 pounds of raw each month (although I never really run out--I just keep adding to the freezer), and usually buy two bags of the kibble per month. I am feeding 5 dogs at the moment, often as many as 7 or 8. So I probably spend right around $100 a month to feed the five.

A

[Lenajo]

Roadkill, even rotting, is better than the junk barrel at Walmart.

 

you can't discuss *where* to find food, without looking at the merits of whether it is worth the cost/risk/work.

 

you keep saying that kibble killed your dog - elaborate please.

 

 

 

Just for the record I also buy liver, hearts, kidneys by the cases from a local butcher. Plus the occasional sheep.

 

As I also stated everyone needs to feed what is best for them and their situtation.

 

I'm not here to preachto any one or have my dogs diet evaluated.

 

As also stated I will feed road kill before I ever feed kibble. My dog died eating an expensive high price kibble. As also stated the dog food company was kind enough to pay me the value of my dog and vet bills.

[DeltaBluez Tess]

Roadkill, even rotting, is better than the junk barrel at Walmart.

 

you can't discuss *where* to find food, without looking at the merits of whether it is worth the cost/risk/work.

 

you keep saying that kibble killed your dog - elaborate please.

 

Wendy,

 

Where are your facts to substantiate that Wal-mart meat is worse than rotting roadkill?

[DeltaBluez Tess]

I feed Flint River to my dogs. It's not cheap but I signed up to be a dealer. That was when I order over 100 lbs a month, I get 19% back, which drop the price down to a good price. Free shipping too. It comes out to about $50 for 40 lbs. I feed a lot less too.

 

Plus I also feed raw 2x a week. I get my raw meat from my cull ewes and locker beef (organs, tongues and bones)

 

Since I switched, I see a big difference.

 

Diane

[juliepoudrier]

Wow, why is it these sorts of "discussions" always turn into the battle of the fanatics? RoseAmy, this isn't directed at you, since you were clear from the start that you weren't proselytizing about raw. Too bad other raw feeders can't do the same.

 

Unless you (the generic you) live in the exact same location or have the exact same resources available as the person you're giving cost comparisons too, well, there is NO comparison.

 

I feed my dogs raw when I can. If you're going to buy good quality meats around here (i.e., not WalMart or other similar chains), you are NOT going to find meat, etc., for less than a dollar a pound. There was a time when you could do that, but now it seems that even the parts that used to be cheap because no one wanted them are in demand and commanding much higher prices. Even at WalMart, etc., unless you can find some super sales.

 

Buying from local farms is possible, but you're looking at closer to $4-5/lb, which I don't begrudge the farmers because they need to make a living too. I wouldn't sell someone a sheep for less than that, so why should I expect cheap meats from the local folks?

 

What am I doing? I feed sheep to my dogs and I will soon be butchering my own poultry and the dogs will be the recipients of some of that. During hunting season they get plenty of parts that the hunters don't want.

 

That said, I also feed a good quality kibble. During the time when I fed raw exclusively to several of my dogs, I COULD NOT feed the raw-fed dogs as cheaply as I could feed the rest of them on a good-quality kibble. Sorry, that's the way it worked out for me, believe it or not.

 

So first we tell people they should feed raw because it's healthier for their dogs. Now we're telling them that they have to feed non-grocery-chain meats because they'll kill their dogs with that. What next? You must raise it yourself to the highest standards and then of course butcher it yourself so you know exactly how it was done--no dirt or additives anywhere near the meat destined for your dog who couldn't possibly tolerate anything but the best of the best?

 

So the question is should a person feed raw from WalMart or Ol' Roy? Which is worse?

 

J.

[Brad]

So the question is should a person feed raw from WalMart or Ol' Roy? Which is worse?

 

Personally, I feed my dogs anything I would eat, and I would eat about to expire meat. I don't shop at walmart, so that's not an issue, but I think any meat that hasn't gone bad is good for the dogs. In fact, even if it's a day or two past date, I would feed it over kibble.

For me, I'm lucky that I can get it cheaper than kibble, but I would feed anyay, even if it was more than kibble.

[juliepoudrier]

For me, I'm lucky that I can get it cheaper than kibble, but I would feed anyay, even if it was more than kibble.

Well good for you. If I could feed 11 dogs on raw cheaper than I could feed them on kibble I would do so as well. But I don't think my 13-, 14-, and 15-year olds are having their lifespans shortened because they're on kibble, despite what raw feeders may claim to the contrary.

 

And if I were feeding just one dog, I'd probably have a lot more options as well. But that's not the point of the turn in this discussion. The point is that if someone says they can't feed raw as cheaply as they can feed kibble, there's no sense in disputing them unless you know for a fact that they can, which would mean that you'd have to be in the same location with the same resources st hand.

 

And then when someone notes they've found meats at reasonable prices, they're told that the meat isn't worth feeding their dogs, hence my question about Ol' Roy....

 

J.

[Ooky]

I feed Odin for 5-6 weeks on Origen for $35 a bag (15.4 lb bag or something). Then he also gets his supplements like raw food and canned tripe. The place I buy it at seems pretty affordable - even the largest bag is only in the $50 range, but we don't go through it fast enough. Overall, I probably spend $35 a month on him.

 

I'm not saying it's the best possible food out there, maybe a good raw diet is. But when I switched our cat to origen as well I saw many of the same obvious, fantastic health benefits often attributed here to raw, like coat, energy, weight, teeth, muscle tone, and smell improvement.

 

I don't trust myself to feed a balanced raw diet, especially since Odin's digestive tract seems a bit sensitive - he gets both constipation from too much bone/ligament and diarrhea from too much organ meat, poultry, or fat, so if I try to feed raw exclusively for too many days in a row due to a "meat windfall" we often end up in one of those undesireable areas unless I stick to mostly red meat no bone, which is not balanced. He's also allergic to fish. For whatever reason the kibble seems to help keep him regular and the stools perfect. I'm sure others here could do better but since I've got a good thing figured out I just keep it mostly kibble/some raw/some tripe.

[Brad]

And then when someone notes they've found meats at reasonable prices, they're told that the meat isn't worth feeding their dogs, hence my question about Ol' Roy....

 

J.

 

I guess my point is that I agree with you, and as far as I'm concerned, meat is meat. whether I buy it for 5/pound, or .50/pound. And I feed raw solely as a source of real food, which is how I eat. So cost isn't the deciding factor, I just think it's better for my dogs and myself to eat real food, regardless of cost. If someone wants to feed raw, for whatever reasons justifies it, then saving money is good, and if meat can be found a day before expiring for cheap, then buy it and feed it. I would.