Another Raw question...

[Slingin'Momto4]

I would love to start feeding my 8 mth olf 15 lb Bichon raw but not even sure where to start, how much to give?, do they eat the bones? Its very interesting reading about it but I need amts, like you give her 1 cup of raw food a day or something like that...lol! Thanks.

[Ola_]

With raw food you normally feed by weight rather than volume. For a 15 lb dog you're probably looking at about 1/2 lb per day on average. This means that on some days you can feed less, others more. I think you already saw the other thread about meat, bone, and organs. Since your pup is small I would try something like a chicken thigh or drumstick.

Everything else from the other discussion holds for a dog of any size. Eventually (not in the first week or so) you will want to add other proteins to give you a balanced diet, I would say 3 are probably the minimum I would be comfortable with. You will feed a small dog a bit differently in that you will probably use smaller pieces than someone with a 100 lb dog might. However if your pup will stop when full you can give her a big piece (slab of pork ribs say or a whole chicken.) and pick up when she's had enough. Stick it in the fridge and give it again the next day.

It may be less intimidating for you to feed smaller things at first though. There are many options - for example you can use boneless meats such as beef, pork and lamb and give them with a boney chicken item like a wing or a couple of chicken feet. Your pup can probably handle some pork riblets just fine too (that's what they call the triangular end piece of the ribs around here). I don't feed my dogs beef bones for the most part because they are so hard, so there are certainly ways to work around it.

Here is a website with some pictures of dogs (and cats!) of all sizes eating - it may help you picture it better.
http://rawfeddogs.net/
(click on Recipes, then on the item, then on the picture to see the different images)

[Slingin'Momto4]

Originally Posted by Ola_

With raw food you normally feed by weight rather than volume. For a 15 lb dog you're probably looking at about 1/2 lb per day on average. This means that on some days you can feed less, others more. I think you already saw the other thread about meat, bone, and organs. Since your pup is small I would try something like a chicken thigh or drumstick.

Everything else from the other discussion holds for a dog of any size. Eventually (not in the first week or so) you will want to add other proteins to give you a balanced diet, I would say 3 are probably the minimum I would be comfortable with. You will feed a small dog a bit differently in that you will probably use smaller pieces than someone with a 100 lb dog might. However if your pup will stop when full you can give her a big piece (slab of pork ribs say or a whole chicken.) and pick up when she's had enough. Stick it in the fridge and give it again the next day.

It may be less intimidating for you to feed smaller things at first though. There are many options - for example you can use boneless meats such as beef, pork and lamb and give them with a boney chicken item like a wing or a couple of chicken feet. Your pup can probably handle some pork riblets just fine too (that's what they call the triangular end piece of the ribs around here). I don't feed my dogs beef bones for the most part because they are so hard, so there are certainly ways to work around it.

Here is a website with some pictures of dogs (and cats!) of all sizes eating - it may help you picture it better.
http://rawfeddogs.net/
(click on Recipes, then on the item, then on the picture to see the different images)

Thanks so much! Do I cut it up for her? I mean a chicken thigh is kind of big...would she be able to eat it? Chicken feet? They sell those?

[Slingin'Momto4]

Now all they eat is protein right? Hearts, livers, meat and things like that? How do I know she will be getting enough protein and other vitamins/minerals?

[Sailor]

You can cut it up for her, sure. Especially in the beginning if she's not used to raw, cutting helps. Don't cut it into bite size pieces though. You want her to be able to get her teeth in there and chow down without accidentally swallowing everything whole.

They sell chicken feet, yes. Find a nice butcher and become friends with him. You can get stuff for free this way. For instance, organ meat and chicken feet are not popular where I am. No one buys it, and my butcher sets some aside for me for free.

Chicken feet and necks, I usually use as treats. Like a chew toy of sorts, that gets eaten.

There is a percentage (which escapes me right now) of how you should be feeding: X% meat, X% bones, X% organs. It's dependent on your dog's weight. I know if you google BARF you can find the percentage. I always blank out on the numbers for this!

Edited to add: BARF will also tell you to feed eggs, yogurt, food processed veggies. That stuff doesn't hurt, and it totally depends on your dog - whether he needs it. I don't feed it, but my dog doesn't do well with yogurt. Sometimes I'll give him an egg, though. Raw whole - he likes to crunch it.

Otherwise, yes, dogs are carnivores and will do well with a high protein diet.

[Ola_]

I wouldn't cut it up for her myself. Really a chicken thigh is small my greyhound gets half a chicken, lol. One of the good things about raw is that it makes them use their brain a bit, they have to figure out how to chew the item, etc. Just hand it to her and give her 10-15 minutes to see if she figures it out. If not you can score into the meat a bit to give her an easier place to grab it, but she may surprise you.

Now all they eat is protein right?

Not exactly. They need meat, bones, and organs. I think there is more info in the other thread you posted in, but normally it's like 70-80% meat, 10-20% bone, and 5-10% organs. Those are not hard numbers, they're just to give you an idea of what the proportions should be.

This kind of raw diet is not all protein though. The meat/bones/organs contain all the vitamins and minerals that a dog needs, remember they have no dietary need for carbohydrates. If you have a lot of time on your hands you can take a look at the USDA nutrient data lab database. It lets you search for different items i.e. "chicken leg" and will list some of the nutrients that your dog will get from eating it. This is why you want to use different meats, because the nutrients in say chicken, beef, and pork are all different. This way you avoid any deficiencies. One of the things you will notice is that each item has a high percentage of water - this is why raw-fed dogs drink a lot less water, because they are getting it naturally in their food (which is also easier for their body to process than dry food and water separately).
http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/search/

[mistymama]

My 10 lb mini dachshund has been eating raw for a few months now and let me tell you, you will be suprised what these little guys can eat! He can eat any piece of chicken just fine, bone and all. That could be a leg, wing, thigh, back - chicken bones are pretty small and easy to chew.

I personally would start the first few weeks sticking with easy to digest proteins like chicken and turkey, then start adding in things like heart & liver. My little guy has a sensitive tummy and it took a little bit before he could tolerate liver, but he's just fine now. I feed him the occasional raw egg (whole, it's a crunchy treat they get to figure out how to open ) and usually I do canned sardenes for fish - unless there is a really good sale on fish in our market. But the majority of his diet is chicken & turkey, some pork, hearts and livers. (And of course the bones in the meat)

As far as quantity, it's really not that hard. Use 2-3% as a guide, but follow your dog's lead - if he seems to be putting on weight, cut back a little. If he seems hungry and is loosing weight, add a bit more to his diet. Like our dog is a growing puppy and eats more now than he probably will as a grown adult - I go by his size, how hungry he seems, etc. rather than a set amount. But use the 2-3% as a guide to get you started.