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Author Topic: Barf Diet  (Read 23979 times)

fifixx

  • Joined Mar 2010
  • Shillingstone, Dorset
    • Bere Marsh Farm
Re: Barf Diet
« Reply #30 on: October 08, 2011, 03:40:51 pm »
Although I never buy supermarket meat for us, if I am there I will always pick up some of their chicken wings as the dogs love them - treat for lunchtimes sometimes if i think they are a bit hungry

Otherwise old veg from the garden chopped up in the food processor with a bit of olive oil, mostly raw meat bought in 3kg packs from pet shop

Mel

  • Guest
Re: Barf Diet
« Reply #31 on: October 14, 2011, 09:07:13 pm »
I have 2 dogs, a GSD and a Border Terrier. I started feeding them raw meat on the bone this week. I fed them the bones in the morning and their previous dry feed mix at night. They have taken to eating the bones well. The bones I feed at the moment are raw bones left over from our pork cuts. I also can get other sources of carcass bones as well as whole rabbits.

What I would really like to know is the quantities for feeding? I have seen on a number or websites that blended vegetables and fruit are added to the raw meat diet. I don't think my dogs would eat this by itself it would have to be mixed with minced meat.

There is some debate on the net advising pork is no good for your dogs,never heard of it myself but I am giving Bun the same.

SallyintNorth

  • Joined Feb 2011
  • Cornwall
  • Rarely short of an opinion but I mean well
    • Trelay Cohousing Community
Re: Barf Diet
« Reply #32 on: October 15, 2011, 09:09:56 am »
There is some debate on the net advising pork is no good for your dogs,never heard of it myself but I am giving Bun the same.

There used to be a strain of salmonella (S. choleraesuis) that was specific to pigs and was fatal to any animal that ingested it.  It was very rare, but because it was always fatal, no-one my age feels comfortable feeding raw pork. 

I'm afraid I don't know if the bug is still about - but I can't see how it would have been eradicated so I guess it must be. 

I expect there are better antibiotics now, but the onset and progress of the infection are so swift there would not always be time to get a diagnosis and treatment.

So I for one, would only feed raw pork from my own pigs and never ever feed pork raw that I'd bought at a butcher or in a supermarket.  Simply not worth the risk.

Other salmonellas are very common in pork, chicken and fish.  Although thay can infect dogs and cats (and humans), a healthy animal should be able to shake the infection off.  Priobiotic yoghurt is a good remedy, I've always found!

HTH
Don't listen to the money men - they know the price of everything and the value of nothing

Live in a cohousing community with small farm for our own use.  Dairy cows (rearing their own calves for beef), pigs, sheep for meat and fleece, ducks and hens for eggs, veg and fruit growing

Mel

  • Guest
Re: Barf Diet
« Reply #33 on: October 15, 2011, 10:34:07 am »
There is some debate on the net advising pork is no good for your dogs,never heard of it myself but I am giving Bun the same.

There used to be a strain of salmonella (S. choleraesuis) that was specific to pigs and was fatal to any animal that ingested it.  It was very rare, but because it was always fatal, no-one my age feels comfortable feeding raw pork. 

I'm afraid I don't know if the bug is still about - but I can't see how it would have been eradicated so I guess it must be. 

I expect there are better antibiotics now, but the onset and progress of the infection are so swift there would not always be time to get a diagnosis and treatment.

So I for one, would only feed raw pork from my own pigs and never ever feed pork raw that I'd bought at a butcher or in a supermarket.  Simply not worth the risk.

Other salmonellas are very common in pork, chicken and fish.  Although thay can infect dogs and cats (and humans), a healthy animal should be able to shake the infection off.  Priobiotic yoghurt is a good remedy, I've always found!

HTH

Sally,
Thank you so much for this information,I am only feeding bun on the bones and such from my own pigs,other than that she has beef and such. I put bun on the Barf diet around 10 days ago,however,I don't know why but she does seem bloated,she has plenty of exercise as well.early this morning she did sick up some tiny pieces of bone and I am wondering if her system does not like the bones. I am not giving any bones until she looks ok,just plain meat.

I do worry about her,she can be a bit of a piggy and has been on a diet for a while now as has to have an operation to remove a fat lump shortly.she lost lots of weight which was good,but like I said,since starting the Barf diet,she actually looks like she is putting on weight again?

Mel x

SallyintNorth

  • Joined Feb 2011
  • Cornwall
  • Rarely short of an opinion but I mean well
    • Trelay Cohousing Community
Re: Barf Diet
« Reply #34 on: October 15, 2011, 01:38:21 pm »
Watch the quantities, Mel - you have to feed way less raw meat than you think can possibly be enough, as it loses so much in the cooking.

My standard daily ration for a 25kg well-exercised pet dog is 4-6oz raw meat, 2 cupfuls of wholebake biscuits, cupful of raw veg. 1 egg every other day.  Marrow bones & rib bones several times a week.  Mind, I keep my dogs lean (ribs easy to feel but not sticking out) so they can run to their hearts content.
Don't listen to the money men - they know the price of everything and the value of nothing

Live in a cohousing community with small farm for our own use.  Dairy cows (rearing their own calves for beef), pigs, sheep for meat and fleece, ducks and hens for eggs, veg and fruit growing

fifixx

  • Joined Mar 2010
  • Shillingstone, Dorset
    • Bere Marsh Farm
Re: Barf Diet
« Reply #35 on: October 15, 2011, 05:43:45 pm »
It might be worth whizzing up some raw veg and mixing it in with the meat - apples, greens, courgettes, carrots - I add a drop of olive oil, some water and then stir it all in together.

some Barf info says more veg than meat, some says no veg - so trial and error I'm afraid!!

colliewoman

  • Joined Jul 2011
  • Pilton
  • Caution! May spontaneously talk rabbits!
Re: Barf Diet
« Reply #36 on: October 16, 2011, 08:06:01 pm »
early this morning she did sick up some tiny pieces of bone and I am wondering if her system does not like the bones.


this is her system doing what it should. as she isnt used to eating bones it'll take her a lil while for the ol juices to get going enough to break down all the bone. what hangs around in the stomach not getting digested yet,will get ejected rather than left to hang around to cause problems. to me it is just a sign that she is adapting slowly ;)
We'll turn the dust to soil,
Turn the rust of hate back into passion.
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But it's here, and it's happening.
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but passive.


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happygolucky

  • Joined Jan 2012
Re: Barf Diet AGAIN!!!
« Reply #37 on: December 04, 2013, 11:58:46 am »
Hi, just looked back at this topic as I find it interesting, its easier for me to feed a dry dog food to our 4 dogs but they are a bit fat at the moment and I often wonder if I would be better off giving them raw food.....I still am unsure if to mix in veg and what sort of raw? I see stuff in the pet shop for sale but its quite expensive, I often see reduced meat in the supermarket too, so anyone there to suggest proportions for Labradors that are medium sized and also, types or raw, can you give a chicken? for instance, or what about fish?  confused.com

doganjo

  • Joined Aug 2012
  • Clackmannanshire
  • Qui? Moi?
    • ABERDON GUNDOGS for work and show
    • Facebook
Re: Barf Diet
« Reply #38 on: December 04, 2013, 12:35:07 pm »
They are only fat if you can't feel their ribs. All Labs can look fat because of their build.  Look at that one winning Crufts this year - i went over him and he hadn't an ounce of fat - it was all muscle, but scores of people went on  facebook and slated him saying he was fat - total rubbish.  I suspect yours are quite muscled as you are out every day with them, like me.

I would reduce their dried food, no need to change to raw.  Won't make any difference anyway if you feed them too much.  I wouldn't have a clue how much raw to feed mine and their weight would vary till I got it right.  It can be more expensive too. 

Check what the levels are on the bag and feed the lower end of that.  If they get too thin increase it till you get them at the right weight.  My dogs are all weighed at the vet every time i go with one of them so i can keep an accurate check.  But mine run weight off very easily, Labs don't run like Brittanys do  :innocent: so you need to be more careful with amounts fed.
Always have been, always will be, a WYSIWYG - black is black, white is white - no grey in my life! But I'm mellowing in my old age

happygolucky

  • Joined Jan 2012
Re: Barf Diet
« Reply #39 on: December 04, 2013, 01:01:23 pm »
I loved that winner at crufts, I suppose as dogs that live and work in cold conditions they need their extra layer of muscle etc but I know our dogs, they are like me   fat   ::) , even Steve has put on some wieight.  Its since having the pups, not the usual long walks as steve works every day, was weekends up until last week, so they do not go the miles they used to and still get the same amount of feed, for a while, when the pups were around, they often got a bit extra when the pups had finished.....I have just reduced their food now....(not mine) and have begun to get them out on longer walks, not forgetting the pup needs less of a walk so I realy could do with giving the oldies and extra walk or putting the pup back in the car, there I am sure she would cry!!  Rohan was never fat before but she looks a little chunk just now and she is so agile, the very funny thing is, Rhum, the mum of the pup, runs as far away from her pup as possible, then comes back and plays chase me with her...its so unusual as Rhum used to stay buy my side on walks and it was Rohan who was miles away with her mum...Islay is fat too, she needs a very small amount of food, think I will mix in some cabbage, I have loads of that...saying all of that, I am still tempted to go to raw!!!  A man who is interested in the house, a farmer always gave his dogs raw, even from young pups, he bred French bulldogs! Going out on another shoot I noticed how slim the other labs were....and the other people! :innocent:

doganjo

  • Joined Aug 2012
  • Clackmannanshire
  • Qui? Moi?
    • ABERDON GUNDOGS for work and show
    • Facebook
Re: Barf Diet
« Reply #40 on: December 04, 2013, 01:35:50 pm »
Don't forget shoot dogs are purely working strain - your dogs have some show strain in them.  And Working people often keep their dogs very thin - too thin in my opinion.
Always have been, always will be, a WYSIWYG - black is black, white is white - no grey in my life! But I'm mellowing in my old age

Old Shep

  • Joined Feb 2011
  • North Yorkshire
Re: Barf Diet
« Reply #41 on: December 04, 2013, 03:49:11 pm »
According to my vet slim is only too thin if you can see more than the back 2 ribs, too fat is if you can't feel them (as you say Doganjo).  I like to keep my dogs slim, especially the ones who do agility.  Exercise is SO much harder if you are carrying extra weight ( I can vouch for that personally!)  and its not fair on the dogs.  I feed raw and find that they don't put on weight as easily with it, if I need them to put any on I add mixer biscuits for carbs.  You could give raw a go HGL - you can add whatever veggies you are eating yourself - just blanched or cooked, they can't absorb raw veg it comes out the same as it goes in!
Helen - (used to be just Shep).  Gordon Setters, Border Collies and chief lambing assistant to BigBennyShep.

happygolucky

  • Joined Jan 2012
Re: Barf Diet
« Reply #42 on: December 04, 2013, 04:00:33 pm »
 :thumbsup: ....I may give it a go in the summer.....hate to think of a cold winter with them hungry...

sokel

  • Joined Jun 2012
  • S W northumberland
Re: Barf Diet
« Reply #43 on: December 04, 2013, 07:06:48 pm »
We don't feed the full barf diet but we do feed a home prepared food. Jades breeder who breeds the pups for the police started us off on it.
They get Rice with mince and veg cooked into it then they also get either raw meat with bones or raw whole fish (guts,heads etc inc) on top of it.
All of ours are doing well on it and the condition of the coat is fantastic
We have also just found a source of full skins of Green tripe so from Friday they will also be having this added
« Last Edit: December 04, 2013, 07:11:17 pm by sokel »
Graham

happygolucky

  • Joined Jan 2012
Re: Barf Diet
« Reply #44 on: December 04, 2013, 07:45:57 pm »
A dog breeder friend was asking about the Barf diet and I wondered if some dogs eg Labs, would not fully chew the bones etc as they eat so fast, I think if I fed ours they would not crunch up the bones well enough and could get blocked up..I did wonder about the fish as we have some raw Mackerel and its very bony......I normally cook and de bone it and its messy and smelly so is that OK just to give them raw?   The other thing that puts me, and I suppose some others off is the less convenient storage, I  have big bins with the pup and the adult food in and its clean, any raw meat would need better storage!! I did used to give my first Lab raw offal  but gave up as the smell made me heave!!!

 

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