Is a complete raw diet, the best for my 2 year old dog? Is it better then kibble?

I want to start him on a complete raw food diet after finding out he has allergies. The vet recommends Science Diet, but I notice that his allergies only get worse , he throws up after his morning feeding, he bites at his paws and he has been gaining weight. Has anyone tried the raw food diet? Does it really work, any good recipe ideas and guidelines?Is a complete raw diet, the best for my 2 year old dog? Is it better then kibble?
Science Diet is terrible. Vets know NOTHING about nutrition, they're not taught about it. BUT, I have met a few vets that recommend raw, but the majority of them think that it's a terrible idea, and want you to buy the food that they're paid to advertise (Science Diet usually).



Anywho, I have been feeding my APBT %26amp; BC BARF for a few months now, and the changes are amazing!



They shed pretty much NOTHING!

They have a beautiful, glossy coat.

My BC used to have allergies, he had a horrible red belly because of his allergies. When he was switched to BARF, his red belly %26amp; allergies disappeared in a couple of days!

Their stool is very small and firm. And they don't poop anywhere near as much as they used to.

My APBT has become sooo much calmer in temperament. Everyone who knows her notices the difference!

Although she is calm, when she's running on the field she gets tired much less quicker, so she's much more fit and healthy!

Better teeth. Very shiny. Their teeth used to be yellow when they were on kibble. Now they're gleaming!



I can't think of anymore at the moment. Except that I am confident their lives are going to be much happier and healthier now they're on this diet.



Now, this is what I feed my dogs:

60% RBMs (raw meaty bones, like chicken wings and lamb ribs), 40% meat (including muscle meat like necks and heart), and 10 % offal (Liver, Kidney, Lungs, Brain).



This is my weekly menu for my two Mutts, their diet consists mainly of chicken:





Monday-

AM- minced chicken

PM- chicken RMBs (Carcasses, wings, legs, necks)



Tuesday-

AM- minced chicken with bone

PM- Minced Turkey



Wednesday-

AM- minced lamb with pureed veg %26amp; fruit (but veg %26amp; fruit is NOT essential)

PM- chicken RMBs



Thursday-

AM- minced green tripe

PM- chicken RMBs



Friday-

AM- turkey necks

PM- offal



Saturday-

AM- minced green tripe with one whole egg**

PM- fish



Sunday-

AM- Minced Turkey

PM- Meaty Rib bones



**I let them crack the egg themselves and lick out the yolk, once they're done I ground up the shell because it has no nutritional value unless it is ground, and I sprinkle it over their food.



Everyday I add Cod Liver oil to their food, along with Seaweed powder, Vitamin C, Garlic, Glucosamine %26amp; Chondroitin and once a week a teaspoon of dessicated coconut to help keep the worms at bay. This is NOT essential, a dog does NOT need any supplements in a raw diet as they already have everything they need in the meat. I just feel that it benefits their health and their coat.



A dogs digestive system was not built to digest grains, which you can find in most, if not every, bag of kibble. Raw is a grain free diet! There is NOTHING bad in raw, you know exactly what you're feeding your dog.



I order my meat from a company called http://landywoods.co.uk , if you live in the UK, I reccomend using them. Their meat is very cheap, but also excellent quality.



Look at these websites. There is lots of good info.

http://www.dogguide.net/raw-diet-basics.鈥?/a>

http://www.rawlearning.com/rawfaq.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raw_feeding

http://www.landywoods.co.uk/barf_diets.h鈥?/a>

http://www.petfriendlyworld.com/chatforu鈥?/a>

http://www.petfriendlyworld.com/chatforu鈥?/a>

http://www.njboxers.com/faqs.htm

http://www.ukbarfclub.co.uk/

http://www.raw4dogs.com/calculate.htm



I wish you good luck!Is a complete raw diet, the best for my 2 year old dog? Is it better then kibble?
Allergies are very serious but they are not all dietary. I have such problems with my terrier's skin itching, chewing, gnawing... We've done Science Diet, California Natural, etc. Hers is a seasonal allergy, though, the vet says its grass allergy and I notice that very hot weather makes it worse.

Anyway, your dog's allergies might be external/ inhaled etc. Don't try to cure it thru diet - he might be reacting to your perfume or fabric softener! Cut the chemicals out of his environment, be sure it's not heat rash, then analyze diet.
I saw a huge difference after switching for my poodle who had severe allergies to dog food. It takes a lot of research and there is no "recipe" per say to go by. There is a Raw Feeding site in Yahoo Groups I recommend you join and read through. You will learn tons and it will help you learn the ins and outs of raw feeding and then you will find out if its right for you. They will also be able to answer all the questions you will have along the way. Good Luck.Is a complete raw diet, the best for my 2 year old dog? Is it better then kibble?
If you decide raw is too much trouble for you or decide not to do it, I would try California Naturals dog food as it is likely your dog is having issues with Science Diet because it has corn wheat and soy and a lot of dogs can have issues with these grains. I used to feed Science Diet thinking it was the best food I could get but learned about food allergies and dogs thru reading and changed foods.



California Naturals is good food for dogs prone to allergies - here is a link:



http://www.naturapet.com/brands/californ鈥?/a>
Personally I think "Science Diet" is crap. Raw food would work, because its closest to what dogs (wolves) would eat in the wild. But you might consider Solid Gold dog food. I recently switched to that after reading good reviews of it, and my dogs are doing a lot better overall. Solid Gold is different than most dog foods, because it does not contain corn or gluten. Its mostly real protein and high quality protein (aka meat) instead of the crap that is put in most dog food. I buy the bison variety.



David

http://myfivedogs.blogspot.com/Is a complete raw diet, the best for my 2 year old dog? Is it better then kibble?
I feed a raw diet and have seen a big difference in my little guys. I have a holistic vet that recommended it and I am also a big fan of the book "Dr. Pitcairns Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs and Cats". It has lots of simple recipes and also some herbal and homeopathic remedies to try at home to help with allergies.



Good Luck!
http://www.gomestic.com/Pets/What-is-in-鈥?/a>



read this link.. raw food is okay if you have the time - but lacks some minerals that GOOD food companies add..



NOTE: HILLS SCIENCE DIET - is NOT a "good" food company...



your vet probably is PAID to recommend this food - they probably sell it right?? vets get tons of promotional freebees from this terrible food.. which is also grossly over priced for its quality - there are other BETTER foods priced equally or even less!



read the link - and compare to SD and other foods in better stores - I buy my pet food at a livestock feed store - its cheaper.

the link will explain how SD is making the dog itchy (sign of allergies)
If you are going to feed raw, get a good mentor. Here's one I used and recommend:

http://www.rawdogranch.com

Balance is very important.

If you find a raw diet is hard to keep up on, then partial raw is better. We now feed our dogs one day raw (chicken backs with excess fat removed) plus two times a week a raw egg. Add a few tablespoons of Activia.

Next day: Quality kibble.

A better kibble, way better than Science Diet and for allergy prone dogs:

Wellness Core

http://www.wellnesspetfood.com/dog_welln鈥?/a>

I had all my dogs on a raw diet for nearly a year and they did great. They are fairly large dogs, so when I moved I didn't have the space I needed in the kitchen for keeping up with my raw feeding regimen.

So I went partial raw.

We get the chicken backs, special order, from the butcher dept. of a local grocery store.
Here are some excellent sites on Raw:



http://www.rawfed.com/

http://www.rawlearning.com/

http://rawfed.com/myths/

http://www.dogaware.com/wdjhomemade2.htm鈥?/a>

http://www.4loveofdog.com/benefits.htm

http://www.rawfeddogs.net/

http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/rawfe鈥?/a>

http://countrypetsitters.com/rawvskibble鈥?/a>

http://www.charmedwons.com/Raw%20diet.ht鈥?/a>

http://www.dogster.com/answers/question/鈥?/a>








The raw diet has done wonders for my dogs.



My lab Max is 5 or 6 years old, no one believes me, he looks and acts 2. His body is solid lean muscle, and if his coat gets any shinier you'll be able to see yourself in it. He's is the most beuatiful lab I've seen in a long time and I'm not being biased. Im used to dull, greasy coats, and flabby labs. That's the norm here.



Bindi is my 2 year old belgian malinois. I got her from a breeder when she was 14 weeks old. From day one I struggled to get this dog to eat. I'm a firm believer in tough love and that a healthy dog won't starve itself. But when no one can find anything wrong with your dog and she's eating barely enough to live, you try everything. This dog literally looked like a walking skeleton and it wasn't because she wasn't fed, she wasn't sick either. She was simply put anorexic.



I did finally find a kibble that she would eat more of, but she still looked like crap and wouldn't put on much needed weight. And at 2 years old her teeth looked horrible, I've never seen a dog at 2 years old with BROWN teeth.



I took her to a new vet, time for a new opinion. Again she was found healthy yet underweight. I was told at that visit that yearly dentals would be needed to keep her teeth healthy. That would mean putting her under every year. To risky.



So the next day I started her on raw. It took a little tweaking, I've learned that she can't have enhanced meats, and she needs a little bone with every meal. But this dog will never go back to kibble again. A week into the diet her teeth looked 10 times better.



Now more than 3 months later, its like I have a new dog. Her teeth are as white as this page. She's put on weight. She looks healthy now and is no longer the walking skeleton. She's gaining more muscle tone as well. Her previously dull brittle coat is now soft and shiny. And she fully enjoys every meal.



There really is no recipe. I feed a variety of meats and organs. You want to shoot for an 80:10:10 ratio. 80 percent meat, 10 percent bone and 10 perent organ. Of course this isn't met perfectly every meal, but we're going for balance over time.



You want to feed 2-3% of your dog's ideal adult weight. A good starter is chicken, feed this for a couple weeks while your dogs system adjusts and then slowly add in other protein sources.



If your dog is allergic to a certain protein, for example chicken, in kibble, chances are that your dog will be fine with raw chicken. The cooking process changes the meat.



I would suggest joining this group http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/rawfe鈥?/a> they are very helpful and informative.



Dogster also has a raw feeding forum which is a good source as well.



Some books on the subject are Raw Meaty Bones, and Works Wonders both by Tom Lonsdale an Australian vet.



ETA: I forgot about another perk of a raw diet. Less frequent and smaller poos, and much less odor too. Bindi is around 50 pounds and her poos are smaller than my aunts kibble fed pomeranian. Max's poos are small too, especially for an 85 pound lab. And clean up, since the poos dries up in a day or two either the lawn mower gets it, or I just step on it and spread the dust with my shoe. The grass looks much greener with raw fed dogs.
KIBBLE MY FRIENDS DOG DIED FROM RAWS DIET IT IS NOT GOOD FOR THEM