Raw/barf daily amount

tk123

Firstly I'm not sure if I'm feeding raw of barf?! My TK's Best recipe is skinned chicken legs, veg and spuds - 75:15:10

If I want to cut back my dog's portion for weight loss do I cut down the whole portion or change the mix? The mix seems to suit him perfectly so I'm not sure if I should/want to change it?

The weight gain (about 2kg) was down to him being restricted... and pitied lol::pac: At the moment he looks great imo - he was skin and bones before the op but he's built muscle from hydro now. He's still got a slight waist, no flab hanging down or anything but his ribs have a little bit of fat on them that I'd like to shift. He's back to normal exercise from today so will probably shift it with exercise alone but I'd like to cut the food back a little to be safe.

TooManyDogs

If the balance of food is working and he's well on it then I'd try cutting back. I feed mine by % body weight, do I'd cut by 0.25% for a couple of weeks and see, you can cut it again if he's not really loosing much

tk123

TooManyDogs wrote: »

If the balance of food is working and he's well on it then I'd try cutting back. I feed mine by % body weight, do I'd cut by 0.25% for a couple of weeks and see, you can cut it again if he's not really loosing much

Thanks!!

I've actually got 16 days of meals left in the freezer so I'll up our exercise while we finish this batch then cut the next one back a bit if we need to. 0.25% seems like nothing but it works out at another 6 days of food - Thats a months food for less than €20!:eek:

I'm SO glad I just took the plunge and switched him - his coat, poos, tummy - everything is better lol! He looks so much healthier too and his coat is definitely growing because he's got a little mohawk coming in on his back! There's no fine balance now where if he ate say bread in the park it could upset his tummy - he seems to be getting an iron constitution.. with the exception of a skin off a sliothar which made him sick 1 week after he ate it! :rolleyes:

TooManyDogs

It really is a pain when you have to adjust the weight of the meals, drives me nuts too cos I have to re-organise the freezer!

I'll never go back on dry food now, but I am investigating options for when we're away with the dogs for the weekend so I'm not hauling raw food with me, doesn't make you the most popular guest when you're arriving with 6 dogs and several carcasses in bags

You'll find your boy's muscle tone will build up at a ferocious rate when on raw, everyone always remarks to me about the muscles on my terriers and they get a normal amount of exercise. Poo patrol is nearly a pleasure now ....... nearly!

ppink

Can I ask you both about Wind and bad breath?:)

I bit the bullet and switched 2 of mine to raw a few weeks back but the wind is gone to almost gas mask extremes and their breath stinks too. Did you find that with your dogs?
do you find with raw that you can give them anything? mine get chicken mainly but I gave them lamb bones the other day and it gave them both diareah.

I forgot to say our guys have bulked up hugely over the last few weeks also!

TooManyDogs

Mine generally don't have a wind problem. I add a little bit of natural yogurt which is meant to stop wind. Mind had foul wind after eating beef bones last week, I thought I was going to have to move house

The breath issue isn't bad unless they insist on smiling at me just after having dinner, other than that there's the occasional 'death breath' but nothing terrible. What do you feed?

Not all dogs will be tolerant to all meats, believe it or not but quite a few dogs are intolerant to chicken

tk123

My guy NEVER really farts unless he has an upset tummy - he burps like a pig though lol!! He was farting a good bit on JWB but the spoon of yoghurt did the trick! I've only given him raw chicken and some scraps of lambs liver - our butchers never have bones so haven't tried him with a proper bone yet.

ppink

I will try the natural yogurt. I am kind of scared to try things as any change at all = diareahh for both dogs.
TMD they get mainly chicken. I did give them raw egg which may have given them more wind? they had turkey this am and one of them threw up after it.
Any veg or rice or potatoes or anything else really gives them diareahh. At this stage to be honest I am driven to distraction with them and have vowed several times I will never have a dog again after all the hassle with food, it has become a nightmare:(.