[sharon b]

I have one 80 pound husky and a 80 pound Newfoundland puppy that I am considering switching to raw food. I have been adding raw to their dry food mostly as we have been training and this makes the puppy eat his food and makes his bowel movements predictable and training now finally is established. They both seem to love the commercial raw I have been buying but I just can’t seem to find a good food for a decent price that suits them both. Grain free products gave the puppy diarrhea, and I refuse to give him anything with rice that has arsenic in it. I read several other post’s, one that there was a NH dealer that deliver’s a good raw for a $10 fee, need to research that further, also one that said that feeding raw requires less overall food and even better less overall waste (poops). Let me tell you this puppy is going to be about 165 pounds, and right now eats about 8-9 cups of dry and poops are giant. So any info on what is best to give them, neither is huge on activity, although the puppy will do some swimming but typically Newf’s are laid back, and the husky is 8, and her activity is fighting back the puppy. I am disabled with neck and shoulder issues so mixing this stuff myself is not what I want to do, but I can handle a little of that if needed. Any info is great.

[sharon b]

I want to add I like the idea of them eating food that helps clean their teeth and obviously the ground raw patties I am giving is not doing that. So does it need to contain crushed bone? Totally new to this. Also the puppy has had a sinus infection pretty much since he was 13 weeks and been on antibiotics but not really affected his behavior greatly. Two weeks initially on antibiotics that we thought cleared it, then once pollen came out it re-appeared and is now on his 6th week of two antibiotics that are quite expensive and he does not seem much better. Every morning (mostly) blows brown snots especially when he sneezes so he may have an allergy even though he tested positive for 3 bacteria’s at the vet. It may just be the mucus keeps getting infected. I also want to make sure he has the appropriate nutrients like glucosamine sulfate & chondroitin for a large breed etc.

[Pitlove]

Hi Sharon- While I can’t give you a ton of advice on raw (others here can and Im sure will chim in) I do know that raw meaty bones help clean their teeth really well and are quite healthy for them.

I’ve also heard from a few people that they don’t feel that puppies in general should eat grain free however that is probably more towards dry food and not raw since raw is the ideal diet and contains no grains or carbs. Dr. Karen Becker interviewed a doctor who breeds Newfies and has all the pups on a raw diet. One of his Dam’s lived to 17 years old on raw.

Perhaps check out Darwins Pet Foods, they do raw and its already complete and balanced. Hare Today is grinds so you have to add your own vitamins etc. I’m sure others who do feed raw can give you some other sites or suppliers to look into. If your Newfie pup is still under 8 months you will need to make sure he’s getting proper calcium and phosphorus levels and make sure hes not being overfed. That will also aid in preventing skeletal disorders and overgrowth.

[ed s]

Switching to raw food and raw bones in most beneficial for a dog, also you can cook the meat and give him but bones always raw. Also include organ meat any type you can get cooked or raw. I have been dealing with huge amount of sick dogs from store bought food one reason it that it is almost 40-60% fillers. While feeding raw always include raw bones. Also try to get raw pupmkin and sunflower seed not salted, and grind em up and do a 1- 3 tablespooons or more just not like a cup a day. By feeding raw you are building up immune in your puppy so you can look for altearnatives as hearthworm and tick prevention. A dog needs a balance fat and proteins since glucogen dogs get from fat ( we get from carbs very important for brain development) so feeding some raw green beans or a tablespoon of honey a day will be enough.

[Cheryl F]

Hi Sharon,

I replied to you on the other thread about most reputable raw food supplier. One other thing to consider. Dont get yourself too worked up about mixing in kale, garlic, this that or the other. Easiest thing for you to do would be to source a good supplier for Salmon Oil, multivitamins and DE (diatomaceous earth). The raw food suppliers will have the ground mixes available for purchase. In my house we buy the grounds (such as ground up chicken with organ meat with vegetables mixed in, beef with organ mix, trachea/gullet mix as well as green tripe. the green tripe is a very excellent source for dogs as it can help them with kidney problems. When dogs are on a raw diet their BUN/Creatinine numbers will different than if they they were on a kibble diet. I dealt with a saint that had symptoms of renal failure when I had her on kibble – and when i had her on raw the green tripe helped to level out those numbers. We feed whole chicken necks, chicken paws, cut up pieces of chicken (back, thigh/leg, breast and gibblets) as well as turkey necks, duck necks, ground mixes and the three x/ week raw meaty bones such as marrow bones, knuckle bones, etc…

We give our dogs a good multivitamin that is tasty to them, salmon oil and DE mixed in with their food daily. My 14 yr old basset had horrible plaque build up on her teeth and now they are all sparkly white. My ‘western medicine’ vet is now finally convinced that the raw diet is so much better than the kibble could hope to be.

Hope this helps you.

[sharon b]

This is all very helpful. I am still overwhelmed when I look at the way it is sold. I know I want the chicken necks for their teeth, and all different sources of meat. It seems one post seemed to suggest that possibly chicken might be the reason for her particular dogs allergies. My puppy has had this sinus infection for what seems like forever and the antibiotics are not making it better. They have been getting a taste of raw in their food, and love it, now won’t eat it without. I just am not sure how much to give them in comparison to kibble, especially the puppy, who eats sometimes up to 4 to 5 cups twice daily. Other days not as much. My vet said, just let him eat for about 15 minutes, but
he tends to eat till he is full, and we then pick it up, not letting him pick all day. I went to Darwin’s and it calculates based on dog’s weight, but I can’t use that for him, he eats more at this stage. Cost is also a factor, especially shipping, so was looking into perfectly raw. Does anyone have experience with them? How do most people order for their larger dogs? I don’t have a giant freezer.

[Pitlove]

Sharon- One thing that most can tell you is that with raw because of how nutrient dense it is you feed less. When I went to Darwin’s to calculate for my 9 mo kitten it gave me options for ages. Not sure if it does the same for dogs. If it does it might have actually calculated it correctly for your pup. Hopefully someone who uses Darwin’s for their dogs can weigh in on this.

Raw seems very overwhelming to me as well, however most things are like that for me when it comes to my animals. I worry and over think everything. Another suggestion I have is to call Darwin’s directly. I’ve heard they have excellent customer service and I’m sure they could give you an idea of how much a LBP would eat on raw.

[sharon b]

For the second day now, my Newf puppy has thrown up. Seems to be a lot of mucus, most likely this infection or allergy. Not going to wait, switching to raw, even if it/s from a pet store, and grocery store now. Since I am not even sure it’s an allergy, and I have some chicken patties, I will start with that tonight. Tomorrow get more, or possibly just go straight chicken and add as I go. Waiting for vet to call back but puppies can’t afford not to be eating or loosing their meals. He is acting fine, but very congested in the throat and still sneezing with crap coming out. I may prefer organic but more than that, I prefer that my dog get the nutrition he needs first and foremost. This is not a typical allergy, It came back positive for 3 different bacteria’s, but the infection may be secondary to something underlying, IDK. Either way, going Raw cannot hurt, it can only help.

[Cheryl F]

Hi Sharon,

You said for the 2nd day your Newf pup has thrown up. Is it immediately after he finishes eating, or some time later (say 1 hour post feeding). If it’s immediately – thats regurgitation and oftentimes dogs on RAW will do that and then re-eat the food. Nothing to be worried about unless its an every day occurrence for a ‘period’ of time. Hardest part is to keep the other dogs from “clean up on aisle 12” participation! You also mentioned a couple other things – but didn’t fully qualify them. He came back positive for 3 bacterias….what bacterias. What is the infection he was diagnosed with and what is he being treated with? Not that that has any bearing on the BARF diet, but I’m curious. I would advise you to call your local butchers/food stores and ask them what they have in the back that they haven’t put out yet, ground up etc…. If you get on their good side and ask them for help in the processing of your meat requests, they may do the chopping for you. i dont recommend feeding your dogs ground up food all the time. The chewing action is what they need to clean teeth, expend energy (in the case of your newf pup – chewing a good big knuckle bone for an hour or so will tire him out and give you a break). Plus it’s good for the dogs to learn how to ‘hold’ the bones properly in their paws so they can get at the good stuff. It’s quite amazing to watch them learn what they need to do. I wont forget the day that my one puppy learned how to use his paws as tools and then his raw meaty bone handling skills went over the top for him. 🙂 You can feed large dogs full chicken necks without worrying about having to cut them up. I only cut up now because I have ‘smaller’ dogs than i used to. NEVER feed a turkey neck without it being cut up. I have had to fish my hand into my Saints mouths in the past to retrieve a full neck that was getting stuck because i didn’t cut it up….so word of caution on that.

Sounds like you have done a ton of research on this topic and while the whole process of feeding raw is foreign to some and maybe a little scarey or cost prohibitive up front – it’s far better for them, costs less $ in the long run due to smaller portions, less vet bills, less $ for meds due to allergies, etc…

Id love to hear back from you on what the specific issues are with your newf pup by the way. Have a great day.

Cheryl

[sharon b]

Thanks Cheryl, I did hear back from the vet. He got a sample of the “snot” and tested positive for 3 bacteria, I am not sure which exactly. I am a pharmacist, so I know med’s, based on them, He has been on Augmentin and Metronidazole for a month now, they must have been some gram positive staph type, and possibly an anerobic maybe? He is being switched to cephalexin now, another broad spectrum. The infection is mostly in his nose/sinus’s, but he is congested in the throat too. Lungs are clear as of last exam and no sign’s of difficult breathing. Vet didn’t seem to think it was allergies, said he was too young, although my boyfriend thought that comment was in regards to me saying I was going to switch to a raw diet. Seems sometimes they need to be educated, especially when they don’t see a particular breed often. As far as the vomiting, it is hours later, and the other dog is outside much of the day (old habits). Curious on why no turkey necks? are they bigger? I am not sure if my freezer is going to be big enough for this, and my home is small and not enough room for an additional freezer unless I get the porch I am hoping for added on. I would just look for one on Craig’s list and put it on the deck put have heard the winter weather if on or off ruins them. Obviously if below freezing wouldn’t need to run it. I will do small batches of food for the time being.
My guy is pretty good with his paws, he eats bully sticks and hangs on to them, and we have given them both beef bones before, mostly rib from pet stores, not raw.

[sharon b]

switched thread to advice on my raw diet

[Author]

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