...I got Pumpkin from the local animal shelter when she was 9 weeks old.....but she looked like she was 6 weeks old.........she was in a special room because they had found her abandoned outside the shelter......one of the workers was having lunch and noticed something moving in the bushes.........she was a complete skeleton w fur.......I never saw or felt anything like it ..... dehydrated and emmaciated ... I couldn't wait to get her started on the raw diet.........she went on it the day I brought her home.......she was so ill she had what looked like "pink peptobismo" coming out of her for three weeks but then suddenly did the turnaround.....it was so wonderful to watch her thrive on the raw diet..........she is 4 now and has an amazing soft coat and is the picture of health.....but you will only see her in pictures because she disappears whenever we have company....

Well, how did I miss this thread!? CONGRATS, and WELCOME to RAW! :mademyday I LOVE IT!!Yes, my Mozart was a very sick guy, and I am convinced he would be dead if we hadn't switched to RAW. If you search my posts, I've gone into it a few times. ...and, AGAIN: Nothing is risk-free. Anything is certainly possible; but I'd be more likely to suspect something else in his environment, since dogs' digestive tract is designed specifically to handle raw meat.ughhh, indeed! No, we don't want raw meat all over the house. Most gross, and unsanitary! I was rather strict on Mozart when he started. I feed on towels in the kitchen, and when he moved the meat or RMB off the towel, I made him pick it up and put it back. He's pretty smart, so he knew what was expected of him. If he left the kitchen with meat/RMB, I took it up and he did not eat until the next scheduled feeding time. It didn't take too many missed meals for him to realize that mommy meant business: there is ONE designated eating area. You really must make this stick to be successful. Then, when Abigail came along, I guess she just took his lead, as she didn't even try to bring it out of the kitchen.Glad you made that distinction; because (honestly) I haven't noticed any of us RAW feeders "pushing" it. We answer questions when asked, or start our own threads to report good news/results. It's just so darned exciting that recently there have been so many asking! :D As lara pointed out, the diet can be custom-fit to suit your pooch. However, if I might suggest(?) put breakfast out earlier, like when you first get up, so Teddy has more time to work on it. I think you will see an increase in his weight as he progresses w/the RAW diet. Remember, his body is getting more nutrition than it did on kibble/wet dog stuff (sorry, I just can't call it dog 'food' anymore :rolleyes: ). He will be building muscle, and muscle weighs more than fat. I also foresee that as his body is satisfied, he will need fewer feedings. Being so small, he will probably always need two feedings, though. Another great thing is that food not immediately consumed can be refrozen for the dogs. Therefore, it's not nearly as expensive as some might expect.

These photos are so GREAT! I AM LOVING IT!!

How old is Teddy? I always feed 3 times until they are 6 months. Yes its fine to feed a little more often to let him gain more weight, its all about knowing your dogs. Give him plenty of time to eat his meals as well, I remember when mine started it took them up to 2 hours to finish an rmb.

Any age, as long as you have done lots of research. Mine start as soon as they come home. I know breeders who wean their pups straight onto raw.

Thanks Lara and Abbys mom

Teddy is just over 4 months and is becoming a much better eater since switching to raw, I just want to make sure he gets enough and the right balance. I know he can't afford to lose any weight so I would feel better if he ate at least 3 times a day to get some weight on him then go down to two a day. I love how helpful the people on here are and the great advice and encouragement I have gotten from you all.

I am thinking about starting Reese on a raw diet..although I must admit I am a little afraid..How do you figure the portion size for what you feed?? I just wouldn't want to over or under feed Reese. And how many times a day do you feed?

Well the general guideline is 2-4% of an adult dogs weight and 5-10% of a puppies weight. However I have always simply fed to condition, you get to know how much they will need, if they loose weight feed more and if they put it on feed less.

You might find this site useful, http://www.raw4dogs.com/calculate.htm

This is an amazing thread ! But I got totally confused. Piccolo will be 2 years old in December and he is doing great on Canidae and Missing Link Plus. His weight is 4lbs. Now when I am reading about the raw diet I'm tempted to try it but I couldn't finf the link how to start the diet. Do I stop feeding him Canidae at all or give him both ?
Can anybody help me, please, to find a schedule or a link how to switch to this diet ? And what meat to feed ?

Thank you very much in advance.

If you switched to raw then you would need to stop giving canidae altogether as feeding raw and kibble can cause digestive problems.

There isn't really any meat that you cannot feed, although you may find that some meats do not suit him.

When starting it can be beneficial to start with only one meat, feed all the different products from that meat (i.e muscle meat, rmb's and organ meat) and after about a week if you are sure they are fine with that meat then you can introduce another one. This is also good as if suddenly they have a bad reaction then you can pin point it to the latest food you added. Also its often a good idea to feed live natural yogurt a few times a week at the start as it acts as a digestive support to them.

Some useful links about switching,

http://www.rawdogranch.com/gettingstarted.htm
http://www.rawmeatybones.com/diet/exp-diet-guide.pdf
http://www.njboxers.com/faqs.htm
http://www.ruffkutz.co.uk/page4.htm

Yes, stop the Canidae. Switching to real food doesn't require transition. Actually, if you feed both, there may be tummy upset as the commercial dog stuff and RAW digest at different rates. RAW will digest completely. Most people start with chicken. It seems well tolerated and the bones are soft. Here are a few links:

- Feeding Your Dog

- Jane Anderson's Raw Learning Site

- RAW Feeding

- RAW Fed

Looks like we were posting at the same time!

Thank you both ever so much. The links are great. I Will try the diet and pray
he'll be fine. I am a little nervous, though, because he never was sick and I don't want to make him so.
Everything I read about it sounded great so please, wish me luck.

Its great that you want to start him on raw, i would however urge you to do lots of research before making the switch. So that you can get it right and make the switch easier for him. Read websites and also have a look on amazon, there are alot of great books available on it to read.

You are most welcome! Prayers from Abbie and I for a smooth transition, and success! Like with anything, there may be a few bumps in the road; but, please don't get discouraged. We're here to support you any way we can.

Thank you very much both of you again.
For a few hours I was reading infos about this diet. I know it's better than Canidae but I'm a little bit scared. I don't mind preparing the meals and take an extra time to do it. I just want to be sure I'm doing it correctly.
Yorkies are so small and delicate that I am afraid to over do it.
If it's not too much to ask for, can somedy give me an example of a daily portion for a 4lbs Piccolo ?

I'd like to see a poll how many of us here feed our babies the raw diet.
And maybe we can have a thread with some meals.

I looove this site and learnt soooo much here ! People here are amazing and very helpful. It's like my second family.