[SallyintNorth]

Also very interesting is what you say about sheepdogs and high protein levels. I've heard before about them getting hyper on too much protein.  When I was a kid on the farm they all got fed WInalot mixer biscuit and that was it - seemed to do ok and put a full days work in.  Can I ask what you feed your collies please?

I feed my collies a mix of three main ingredients.

• Autarky to meet the main nutritional requirements, I feed exactly half of the recommended daily amount for dogs of this size.  The other half of their ration is made up of :
• Tinned Chappie to appetite and managed to maintain the correct weight.  For Dot this is up to one small tin a day, for fatty-boy Skip it's less than half that
• As plain a proper whole-grain biscuit (with as low a protein content) as I can get.  In order of preference:

• Natural Choice Wholebake (can't get it up here, sadly)
• Waitrose Wholewheat Mixer for Adult Dogs
• Laughing Dog
• Pointer Terrier blend (I'd like it better but for all the ridiculous artificial colours)

If they are doing a lot of work (and I mean hours and hours of collecting and driving sheep in hundreds of hectares of moorland) they get an extra half-portion of Wag Worker the day before, the day itself and the day after.

I'd prefer to feed raw meat but they are almost unmanageable on it.  The exception is the extras they find at lambing time - they seem to be able to eat any amount of afterbirth and it does them nothing but good.  But of course they are doing quite a bit of work at that time of year!

BH feeds his working collie Sneyd's Wonderdog.  My two like it but are noticeably more, shall we say 'lively', on it!

I have no experience of feeding maize but have been starting to feel that collies would probably do best with maize for breakfast, a bit like me having my porridge.  Then they're not working on an empty stomach but are not over-stuffed and heavy-gutted when you want them to work.  They could have their proteinaceous feed at bedtime, then they've all night to quietly digest it.  However, I don't know quite what sort of maize (kibbled?  flaked?) to feed - does anyone on here feed collies maize?

[SallyintNorth]

sally it's odd isn't it, if i feed mine maize or oats, they are so hyper they are a nuisance!
i wonder if different breeding lines or geographical location has any factor in how different dogs deal with different foods.

Aye, that is fascinating.  Are yours working collies from working stock?

I've had two rescue collie cross dogs, both in the South-West (one Bath RSPCA, one Bristol), both of whom really only needed cardboard and polystyrene and couldn't handle much raw meat.  I got one working collie in Devon; he could handle more protein than the pet collie crosses, but would be more aggressive with difficult sheep if he had too much.  Skip and Dot are both of working stock; no idea where Skip originates from though I suspect it is the north west; Dot is a product of local working collies.

[colliewoman]

yep, red dog (go on guess what colour she is  ) is from a shepherd near crickhowell in wales, though she isnt keen, read nervy of sheep.  pilot is from an old time cowman in glastonbury, passed on now so i dont know if his line will continue.
neither registered, neither particularly trained for stock work but handy enough with my basic knowledge to be useful for me

as for feeding maize, why not try cheap cornflakes?

[lunanlife]

Our Border Terrier also laps up all the overspill that comes out of our bruiser which bruises barley and wheat. The GSD also has some of this as well but isn't quite as keen. I was a bit concerned about them eating this at first but the little one especially loves it and it doesn't seem to have any ill effect on him.

[Old Shep]

Some local gundogs and collies are fed on a muesli style food such as Cobbydog which has maize as an ingredient.  You can get it at local farm supply shops.  The poo is awful though 

I think what's coming out of this interesting thread is that if you know your dog(s) by trial and error you can come up with a diet that best suits them as individuals 

edited to add - Sally  -Durham Animal Feeds will deliver Natural Choice Wholebake biscuit if that's any help.  You need to order a couple of bags though to get free delivery.

[SallyintNorth]

edited to add - Sally  -Durham Animal Feeds will deliver Natural Choice Wholebake biscuit if that's any help.  You need to order a couple of bags though to get free delivery.

Thanks for the tip, Shep.  We're more than 70 miles from them - but I will ask our local supplier again, and tell them DAF have it in case they can tie in with deliveries or something.

[colliewoman]

I think what's coming out of this interesting thread is that if you know your dog(s) by trial and error you can come up with a diet that best suits them as individuals 

yup, and that, i believe, is what is best for any animal
 

[lunanlife]

Just gave them both a couple of cull chickens skinned. Not interested in eating it at all! They are nervously looking at it wondering if they are going to get into trouble if the dig in. Have put it in the oven for a wee minute and will try again.

[colliewoman]

also try cutting into the chicky a little, first timers sometimes don't realise its actually food!

[Mel]

Hello 

I came on here today to find out more to help my Lab,I have given her raw bones and she is much more content with this rather than the dried food.Is there anything I cannot give her?

`

[colliewoman]

my 'rules' are;

no cooked bones.

 

[SallyintNorth]

I don't know whether it's still true, but in my younger days Labs fed fresh meat could be prone to getting 'sweaty pads' - basically the pads crack and are painful.  Ours got it, the vet said to give him a maximum of 3oz fresh meat a day, plus bones and make up the difference with raw crunchy vegetables - he was fine after this.  This was a well-exercised family pet, not a working dog.

[Mel]

Ok Sally,I have rabbit,duck and venison in the freezer,she has had venison-just a weeny amount though as I believe it may be too strong a meat? and the rabbit and duck? just to confirm,where you said try 3oz plus bones per day,so would you cut them up into little pieces-like in quarters and give her just once piece?
Mel

[SallyintNorth]

We used to chop the meat into chunks a bit smaller than 1" cubes.  But I think you can give it in bigger chunks - it's good for their teeth for them to have to chew.

You may be okay feeding more than 3oz per day with your lab - but it wasn't with ours, and in fact I fed at that sort of rate up until I started getting the working collies and always had very healthy dogs.

Back in the sixties we were feeding raw meat with wholebake biscuits + raw crunchy veg + bones.  Oh, and the occasional raw egg.  If you aren't feeding any cereal / bread / biscuit / rice I'm not sure what you would need to make up that part of the ration.

[colliewoman]

although many like it and do well on it, dogs don't actually have any nutritional carbohydrate requirement, strange but true. but please if you choose not to feed biscuits etc, make sure you provide EDIBLE raw bones (not just hooge marrowbones) otherwise you will have icky sticky tarry bums all round
mmmmmmm niiiiice