Opinions on feeding a Raw diet?????
 

I've been doing a lot of research, and I think the raw diet is good. I don't think I can feed straight raw prey model yet, so am wanting opinions on the alternative raw diet( the kind that you can buy in the store). Any input on what brand you use, do you use frozen raw or freezed dry raw?

I personally don't like it.
My friend has a poodle and she feeds him raw meat.
Last year I took care of the dog for a week and his stool was very watery and he trew-up twice..

Sorry, but this post is going to be long. I have a lot to say. ;)

I fed my 2 PMR for a while. The reason I stopped is because I just got a new puppy & I honestly don't trust myself to make sure she gets all of the nutrients she needs. I know that's sort of a contradiction when it comes to the theory behind PMR. But I wasn't feeding raw because I'm a big believer in a raw diet. I have an extremely finicky eater & I tried every diet imaginable. I must admit, my Yoshi LOVES raw. I've never seen him eat anything with as much gusto - consistently - as he did PMR. I felt really guilty making the change back to kibble. His stools were perfect & he had a lot more energy. He just seemed happier overall. I'm also totally anal about their nutrition, so I stayed in close contact with my vet during the transition. Both of mine were healthy & their teeth had no tartar whatsoever.

I do understand the concept behind raw & I think that with the exception of a few companies, premade raw sort of goes against that concept. I do believe that feeding fresh is better than something from a bag that's been processed. I found a raw food co-op near me & was able to get my meat, offal & RMB straight from the farm. It was a raw feeders dream! I also supplemented their diet with occaisional egg, yogurt, and a few veggies like frozen peas & green beans (fun for them to chew :)).

With regard to premade raw, I really like Vital Essentials. My pups still eat the frozen nibblets occasionally. They love it. They also love their freeze-dried nuggets, which I can free feed. I like the company a lot because of the ingredients, of course. The source of meat is important to me & if you research the company, you'll see that their meat comes from free-range, open-grazing animals. I don't eat meat from inhumanely treated animals. So I really try not feed it to my dogs either. I've had a lot of interaction with the company & their customer service is top notch. I also like the fact that they put more money into their product than their marketing.

Another company I like is Darwin's. Their food comes from excellent sources as well. I've had looong telephone conversations with their customer service & I haven't had a better experience with any other company - food or any other product. The reason I stopped feeding Darwin's is because it's by mail only. It just got inconvenient for me.

I would definitely consider going back to PMR one of these days. It's just that right now, I'm more comfortable with seeing a list of ingredients/nutritional information in print, on a bag. When making the switch back to kibble, I looked for a food from a company I could trust. I'm feeding Royal Canin now & although my pups don't enjoy eating it as much as they did raw, I will say that they're definitely healthy & they're doing really well. Good stools, shiny coats, happy puppies :) Plus, with years of research and nutrionists on staff, I do feel confident that Royal Canin will give my growing puppy what she needs during her critical developmental phase.

Anyway, I hope that answers some of your questions. Personally, I prefer PMR over pre-made because I know exactly where my pup's food is coming from, I have more control over what they eat & they get a lot more variety in their diet. I think pre-made is good in a pinch, or if you're too busy to commit to PMR.

Good luck with whatever you decide! I think you're doing a great thing for your pups.

Hi - I've been feeding pre-made raw for about 5 years now and I really love it for the kiddos. It's much less processed than, say, kibble or canned (though dogs can do wonderful on both of those as well) -- so I do like it for that reason, as well as that many of the enzymes are still present in the meat. Raw also results in very small/dry poops, which is a side benefit, but a nice one nonetheless. Many raw feeders see improvements in coats and teeth as well.

I favor Primal, but I also use Natures Variety and Bravo occasionally to mix it up, or Stella and Chewys.

I also give non-consumable RMBs (raw meaty bones) for their teeth/jaws. PMR feeders won't usually support this, but I fully believe in it. I won't feed consumable RMBs due to choking hazard - Marcel almost died in my arms from choking, and I won't risk it. Some will say it's a concern to give non-consumables bc they'll 'break their teeth' - but I've been giving them for years and never had a problem. Mainly, I use Bison Back/Rib bones and have them cut down in half for Wylie or in thirds for the 2 smaller furbutts. I get them at Whole Foods.

As far as freeze dried raw - I only use that for travel. Another option for freeze dried is that some people will start their dogs on raw using freeze dried for a couple weeks, then switch to raw frozen...but it's not necessary, just an option.

Good luck with your decision!

I feed PMR... LOVE IT! Before going PMR I tried to feed my cat (before I had any of the pups) pre-made but he refused it. So I don't have any experience...many members here feed pre-made and will pipe in soon. :)

If you have any questions on PMR when you're ready, just let me know.

BTW, if your pup has runny poo and throws up on PMR...it's the owner who is doing something wrong...i.e, not feeding enough bone.

My problem with raw is yorkies have long hair and there are always juices so they get in the beard of the dog and then whatever there beard touches is then contaminated with bacteria and germs.

:thumbup: This is true. It's a pain washing multiple faces everyday. But I think that's a small price to pay for the benefit of a raw diet. If you go PMR, it can also be difficult getting used to watching your little baby in a top knot gnawing on a chicken back. But you get over it when you see how much they enjoy it. Heather helped me a TON when I made the switch to raw. We're so lucky to have such knowledgable people on YT! I never could have done it without her help. I would def recommend reaching out to her if you decide to make the switch. Good luck!!

Lucky for me I keep my kiddos faces and hair short...but this would be a problem to keep in mind if you keep it longer, for sure.

Nothing a little soap & water won't clean up ;)

These are perfect at keeping the face hair out of the food. Dog Snoods, Dog Snoods for Healing Purposes, Pet Snoods, Cavalier Snoods, Cocker Spaniel Snoods, Irish Water Spaniel Snoods, Springer Spaniel Snoods, Basset Hound Snoods

Even if it is short there is still hair there to catch those germs

When I was feeding premade raw, we didn't have issues w/their mouth getting wet or dirty from the raw food @ all. If anything, they get messier stinkier mouth from eating moistened kibble & canned food.

I don't feed raw, but honestly this would be the least of my worries. I mean, really, dogs are going to get just as many 'germs' when eating kibble (which seems to be infected with salmonella left and right lately). When Jackson briefly ate pre-made raw, I never remember having any on his face afterward. It just wasn't an issue.

I think that there's more of an issue with a grubby face when you feed PMR...especially from raw meaty bones. Pre-made raw is different. They don't need to rip their meal apart to eat it. It's already minced or ground up with the bone & organ. It's just like eating canned food. Although, the consistency of pre-made raw isn't as thick, saucy, or as "gummy" as canned food. So it's actually less prone to stick on the beard/mustache.

I have only ever feed PMR.I have two very healthy babies... Never had an issue. As far as stinky faces....I hand feed to avoid that!:rolleyes:

Thank you everyone for your opinion. My baby is very picky. I went through multiple different kibble before he settled on orijen for now. I am just keeping my options opened in the case that he ends up not liking it anymore. After doing a lot of research I feel that a PMR diet would be best for him eventually. I just wanted to start out with premade raw to transition him over. I also believe that if he is doing well on the food, then I wouldn't be switching. Yorkies sure are in a class of their own:) I have never had a dog who is picky about food, he sure is one spoiled dog...but aren't they all:)

Just so you know, pretty much all kibble contains salmonella, so they too get germs on their faces when eating.

I don't know why, but my babies faces/beards never have anything on them after they eat in terms of wet/moist mouth areas. Sure, they'll still pick up some germs when eating, but that's life, and so do I. Germs are everywhere...there is e-coli all over our money :eek:.

My two eat Natures Variety and they devour it in about 20 seconds. You can buy a trail bag if you wanted to try it out before investing in a big bag. I bet your picky eater will LOVE the raw. Good luck with your decision.

I think I will start trying premade raw. I did research and Primal, Natures Variety and Stella and chewy all look good. He's been on the orijen for 1 1/2 week now and he still eating it but not as excited when he first started. Mi do see such a difference in his fur and no more tear stains. I have read that it is best to wait until he is a year old to start Raw, what do you guys think????

I don't buy it. It's a matter of opinion though. Dogs have only been on people-made (dry and wet) food for just over a hundred years.

I think Zoey was around 4 mos old when I started her on raw. She wasn't liking any of the kibble I gave her.

Thank you everyone, I think I will start out with the freeze dried raw and then advance from there. I know he will love raw because I gave him some pieces of raw beef the other day and he pretty much inhaled it. So far no diarrhea with any of the foods that I have tried him on, so that is a good thing.

I started Lacey on Nature's Variety at 5 months because she just refused to eat kibble. After spending a small fortune on over a dozen different types of premium kibble, I decided to give it a try. I started with the Beef Medallions. She inhaled them in seconds. After about six weeks, she started turning her nose up at the beef. Switched to chicken and she is still gobbling that up. Tried a new bag of the beef and she still turns her nose up. Go figure. She also absolutely loves the Primal Freeze Dried nuggets, but I find them a little messy.

I think I have the only dog in the world that REFUSES to eat fresh raw meat! Neo will eat some dehydrated or freeze dried raw like Stella and Chewys or Nature's Variety, but not frozen or fresh!:confused: Connor will eat fresh raw, but only tiny little bits, like for a treat. Strange boys, lol!:p

Agree
 

I agree 100% and the funny thing is My Riley is so picky he wont touch anything with juices, gravy etc. He eats kibble from Merrick and Fresh Pet chick roll and chicken with sweat potato meatballs for dog from Fresh Pet
:thumbup:

I actually found YT while desperately searching for something to feed my anorexic puppy. She refused all kibble no matter what I did to it.

I cooked for her at first, then switched to raw freeze dried Stella & Chewy's. Although Gracie loved the freeze dried it was kind of expensive to feed her that all the time so I switched to the frozen. She loves that, too.

There are so many options and opinions about feeding pets these days that it can get confusing. I truly feel that the more natural a food is the more nutritious it is and more easily digested. That is if it hasn't been genetically changed like so many of our foods are these days.

Dog's bodies are designed to digest raw foods unlike humans. You do need to handle raw foods properly. Washing hands and prep areas and disinfecting. We have never had a problem.

Feed what works best for you and your furrbutt!

My 15 year old cat decided one day she would no longer eat dry food. Period end of subject. She has always loved wet food but Tallulah can't eat it gives her GI issues. Mika was trying to steal raw chicken, bacon, ham, beef, etc. So I just went with it. She eats Primal Primal Pet Foods: Wholesome Raw Food for Dogs and Cats She should be eating 4-6 nuggets daily. But she eats 8 and somedays is looking for more which at 15 she can have. She is still trim.

She will also get fresh raw chicken or fish if I am making it otherwise she is a pain in the butt.

I honestly think there's something wrong with Primal's feeding guide. I know that mine would starve on the recommended 2 nuggets per day. I've heard that a lot of people feed more than the suggested amount on the bag/online.

I have always fed the animal not the bag. Is she starts to gain too much weight I will cut her back.

I think about switching my porkies over to raw but then chicken out literally and figuratively.