Raw feeding shepherds. - Page 2

Hello,
I feed raw to 7 GSDs. My local small grocer orders chicken leg quarters for me by the case at his cost which ranges from about 48 - 69 cents a pound. They usually get 2 quarters at night. I also get the "trimmings" box from the same grocer for free. The box can contain anything from truly just trimmings that I have to trim the fat away from to out of date today roasts, pork, steaks, ground beef, pork or turkey anything they carry. I also buy sliced beef hearts and organ meats. Their morning meals are a mixture of whatever was in the last box, beef heart and a bit of some organ. I proces the boxes and put the portions in zip loc bags and freeze them. I throw in an egg a few times a week. Also do process carrots, peas and celery for them sometimes.

For me feeding raw is much less expensive and I love the way the dogs look and feel. 

I have fed RAW to my shepherds for the past 17 yrs, they get whole rabbit, lamb breast, stewring stake, pork, offal mix green tripe,meaty bones, duck, mixed fruit and veg blitzed in a blender, salmon, herrings and mackrel,eggs whole, and yoghrut on occasion,  i have no hard fast rule of feeding as the diet does balance out over the weeks. would i switch to complete again never in a million years, the health of my dogs have been out standing, coats are good breath is sweet, eyes sparkle, and the energy level is excellent, with smaller poos that don't hum, even the cat is partuial to raw

Im with yu there Nellie.I too would never ever go back to feeding my dogs complete(kibble)food.As long as yu feed a good variety of minced or whole chunks of different meats,organ meats,offal,fish,raw meaty bones,such as lamb/pork ribs,breast lamb,chicken wings,necks,carcassess,turkey also,ox tails ,eggs,cottage cheese,probiotic yoghurt.As long as the diet is varied yu should have no trouble with the balance of nutrients.my girls are getting on now(10 and 8)so i add a glucosomine supplement to their minced morning meal.I buy frozen minced nuggets with veg and herbs added.Treats are 1 charcoal bonio biscuit each,and Fish4dog fish ones and tripe stick.I dont weigh their food now,i just look at my girls and know whether they look fat or not.its just experience.yu should be able to feel the rib cage but not see it.Carole S.

Hello Scarlet.  I feed raw and kibble.  I like to mix things up and never have a schedule for when I feed which.  Kibble is easier when we travel. I try to use different meat sources.  Walmart regularly sells 10 pound bags of chicken quarters for $6. I use to raise rabbits for dog food and it worked out great.Plenty of organ meat which can be hard to come by.  As far a veggies, I just blend up all table scraps in a blender and mix it with kibble. Another great source is egg farms always having chickens that are no longer productive.  When I was in North Carolina I had a guy selling me these chickens for a buck a piece.  Good luck.  Just don't feed COOKED bones.

I love this thread. I feed my 12 month old female leg quarters also from wal-mart. (Had 10 lbs. bags on sale for 2.52). And I also feed kibble and have been considering going 100% raw. I really need help to determine the best method to feed 100% raw. I currently feed kibble in the morning so she gets balanced nutrition then the leg quarter at nite. I have feed chicken hearts also. But what I dont know what all I should feed if going 100% raw to confirm getting complete nutrition. I would like to avoid buying some raw pre-made meal. I live in Texas and don't expect getting raw will be a problem. I am a big bar-b-quer so always hunting for meat. (at the stores that is lol )\

Reggie

 I've been raw feeding since January.  I asked several questions here and looked into a raw feeding group on Yahoo.  I was nervous at first, but all is well.  I switched mine cold turkey from kibble to raw and must have done it right because we didn't have any issues.  I try and stick to the 80/10/10 but it's pretty much just a guess.  Mine get chicken quarters/and a boneless skinless breast (every other day) on the days in between, they get either: canned salmon, pork steaks, cornish game hens, beef ribs/rump roast.  I also throw in a chunk of either kidney, brains or liver with each meal.  My female gets about 1.5lbs and my male 2.5lbs.  I feed them once a day.  Both of them are very lean and muscular, nice coats, and high energy.  I do all my shopping at Walmart, so it's a little pricey, but if you buy in bulk it shouldn't cost you any more than a premium kibble.  I don't train with treats or give them treats, so don't have any ideas on that.  I don't give any type of supplement or any veggies.
Shauna

Scarlet with regards to training treats.  It seems shame that now you dog(s) are used to nice succulent food that you now bake that out of their treats.

I poach chicken, liver, heart, just enough for it not to be raw then chop it into treat size peices and put it in the freezer.  I take out what I need, it will lastg several days in the fridge.  I will add cheese and hot dog sausages to this pot.  This variety also helps when training for treats because the dog dosen't know what treat he can expect.

Don't over worry about anything like the hot dog sausages. You have made a great decission to feed raw and the odd hot dog wont do any harm. I think of it being like letting a child have the occasional Mcdonalds.

Jess

I am thinking of reverting back to feeding raw. We have had three GSD's over the past 30 yrs. Back in the 80's I fed our first GSD raw. Meat muscle, chicken, beef bones green tripe with a bit of mixer, raw chopped veg plus some supplements, Vit C and fish oils. Raw egg etc and gave him lactose free milk as a bedtime treat.. Would top up his bowl with leftovers, table scraps from time to time. He never suffered a days illness in his life, great energy and magnificent coat. Lived to be 14 yrs.

Fed our last 2 with proprietary dried food. Always top brands but had to experiment a bit until we discovered the one each dog preferred. I can't say that the food was bad,,,,they both developed into super dogs as they should without any problems.
 
However we lost our last boy at 3yrs due to Canine Bloat and although I have scoured the web about the condition and learned much about the various causes and the do's and don'ts I am convinced that dry food is also a contributory factor. Any thing that swells in the stomach after ingestion can't be good I am sure and yes we used to moisten it beforehand.

Bloat is a terrible thing....I posted earlier about it.....and I am going to do all that it takes to make a sure as I can that I never lose another dog that way.

I notice that you give your dogs chicken wings and thighs. Do you let them eat the bones? It may seem a silly and naive question but I have never given my dogs any kind of chicken bones as I thought they could splinter and cause problems even when raw. Please advise.

We are hopefully about to get a new puppy and I will discuss this topic with the breeder and ask for advice.