Can we talk raw feeding puppies?

[luvypitbulls]

Ok I am a newbe with my puppy ..and right now he is under my armpit giving me direction on how and what to ask you ..I have always had dogs come into my life at at least 7 months or older and have used a mostly raw diet with great success on all my dogs...I am not a purist however and really like using one meal of Wellness kibble in the morning ...we give veggies as snacks and treats during the day ..they have all become great at harvesting vegetables right from the garden ..and now the peas are in it is a riot to watch them pick off the low parts while I pick the high ones for us... I have a perpetual garden so they can have fresh veggies all year ..(although as much as they love things like collard greens ...the gas can knock you across the room!) ..anyway I digress

I have a 3 month old bully puppy now...and he is really a chowhound ..I have been feeding him about 2/3 cup of kibble for breakfast...vegetables when I pick them ..and two small hunks of raw something a day (usually a small drumstick ..or some kind of beef ...goat ..whatever we have on hand) he loves it frozen solid because he is teething like crazy ...in fact my dogs all like the meat frozen especially this itme of year...

my vet says I am on the right track here ..but being really new with this little guy..I am wanting as much advice as you can give me!

he looks kind of skinny to me ...but is gaining fine according to my daughter he will be plump then skinny plump then skinny ...over and over until he is grown (she is a puppy guru since she has done rescue for years)


his coat is beautiful ..he smells wonderful just like a little teddy bear...breath good ..no gas..poops fine ...

anyone want to talk about puppy feeding ...do things sound ok here ? any ideas on what I can do better (my friend who is a BARF purist says loose the kibble but that is not going to happen) ...tell me what variety of meats/veggies ect..you would use...perhaps any links on the subject?
I have googled the hell out of this subject and while there is tons of info on raw feeding I could not find much on puppies ...

thanks in advance for any and all advice

[katiek0417]

We start all of our puppies on raw at 8 weeks of age...for puppies I like the pre-made raw so that i'm sure they're getting all the vitamins, etc that they need...and it takes some guess work out of what I'm doing...with 10 dogs, I don't have a ton of time to spend on any 1 dog.

Oh, and your daughter is right about gaining weight....

[cheekymunkee]

ACK! What an ADORABLE picture!! I've not fed raw to puppies so I have no advice for you. It does sound like you are on the right track though, especially if you dont want to forgo the kibble right now. You can feed him anything you want to, chicken, turkey, fish, beef.....whatever you can find. I would avoid lamb like the plague though because the farts WILL kill you.

[amazincc]

OMG!!! That pic is too cute!!!

[luvypitbulls]

thank you so much!!! that is my grandbaby and LIster my puppy (the little monster I am asking about) ...they are cute aren't they? .(insert "you are WAAAAYYYYY too young to be a grandmother" here)

I gave Lister a really long goat shank today before I read about lamb giving farts!!! whoops!!! I imagine goat would do that as well I will just blame it on my husband if he farts up the house! it was so fun to watch him drag the piece off to a good spot in the yard and figure it out!

is he too young for organ meat I wonder?

.. found 4H'ers are awesome resources for organic hormone free meat ...I think it is hysterical that we are pretty much into eating a veg diet ourselves ..(not ethics we just like eating that way) and then chuck raw meat at our dogs

[cheekymunkee]

No, he isn't too young for organs, just give in minimal amounts because they can give the squirts. My dogs have cast iron stomachs & organs dont bother their tummies at all. And YES you are too young to be a gramma!

[luvypitbulls]

Thanks Debbie!

my older puppy Phoebe has a cast iron stomach as well ..and so does my adult JuJube (the one with cancer in the avatar ) ...LIster is doing better I am not sure still what he was fed previously but he was a stinky/filthy little puppy dog..with diarrhea when he came to us ..now he is starting to smell like a Teddy bear poop normally and his coat is just soft and wonderful looking ..as it should be...Phoebe was well cared for by the foster when she came to us ..prior to his sweet self she was almost dead ..she the most beautiful glossy red coat ..but is not just sweet and wonderful ..unless she rolls in something (she is half Lab half pit .Lister and JuJube are all pit)

(off topic) I just want to say I love this forum! I can not get enough of reading it..I never thought to look for a forum on pit bulls so this is the first one I have ever been on! ....I am working my way though all the threads one at a time ..what an amazing amt of info!

I am very lucky all my friends love bully breeds..and also feel good I have and have had wonderful dogs! once in a while when I am on a walk people will cross the street and I think it is hysterical

they are a fantastic breed that is for sure...

(on topic) no farts from the goat leg

I am sold on a raw diet and constantly being nagged to give up the kibble and just dive in ..but I feel better not having to worry if I am getting all the right things in their diet and they are doing so well with this one meal a day that why fix it if it ain't broke?

I dont thaw the meat before I give it ..it takes them longer to eat ..and for Lister especially it is like a teething biscuit to grind away at the food

I love to watch their eyes rool back in heads (orgasmic look about them) when they eat raw meat ...it must be right if it feels so good to them ...I am nuts or what???

[cheekymunkee]

No nuttier than the rest of us!

I believe that you should feed what you are comfortable with. If 1/2 & 1/2 is what you want to do & works for your dogs...GO for it! Don't let people make you feel guilty. The only thing I worry about is people who feed low quality kibble but as long as they are getting good kibble then they have the best of both worlds.

And I am GLAD you like it here.

[airwalk]

I'm straight kibble and they haven't beat me up yet

[luvypitbulls]

thanks! up until this whole raw feeding trend came I fed straight kibble too ...

and I think Wellness is great for these dogs ..because there is no doggy smell..I like the good warm doggy smell but I dont like that stanky kennely smell that sticks to your clothing wierd greasy dirty coat smell ...and some foods do that ..that is for sure ..I used to think it was hygeine until I realized when I was broke one time and had to try a really cheap dog food that it was the food ..yes some dogs like some humans could use better hygeine ..another perk to the bullies ..they are very clean very easy to keep dogs!!!

but feed them the wrong thing and you then are living with a butt trumpet!!!!

[Jenn]

living with a butt trumpet

[amazincc]

but feed them the wrong thing and you then are living with a butt trumpet!!!!

OMG... how I agree w/that statement!

[LMM]

I think people might nag for you to go full raw mainly because kibble and raw process completely different in the body. But if you are comfy with what you are doing, rock on! I've not had to start a puppy on raw but I would! I would also go with the pre-processed initially and slowly work the pieces into their diet.


CA UTE picture!!!!

[luvypitbulls]

I think people might nag for you to go full raw mainly because kibble and raw process completely different in the body. But if you are comfy with what you are doing, rock on! I've not had to start a puppy on raw but I would! I would also go with the pre-processed initially and slowly work the pieces into their diet.


CA UTE picture!!!!

thanks so much for your response..I have been feeding the kibble really early in the am and then waiting until late in the day to feed the raw meat and veggies (although they do go harvesting on their own in the garden for peas, pull carrots and radishes it is amazing they do not trash it just get what they want!) I am hoping the space between allows for the kibble to digest well before the meat ...they are all doing so well I just do not want to mess with what i feel is perfection now ...but also am open to suggestions that is for sure!!!

Today I would like to ask about the last gulp ? Jeezus it is huge for them and I worry that something awful is going to happen on the things way down...you see I have noticed that both Lister and my 8 month old Phoebe swallow a HUGE last bite of whatever meaty bone they get whole ..they will gnaw, grind and chew and work it down to the size of a big golfball maybe ..and then gulp it down..they are not puking ...and pooping fine ..but this can NOT be good for them? I feed everyone alone to slow them down ..they get along find but do not chew food at all if another dog is around..no food aggression ..I just wanted some imput on this and if it is pretty much expected.they eat like this? it makes me want to and any other tips on slowing them down aside from serving them frozen and keeping them apart? .my older dog JuJube (in the avatar) is such a sweet eater ...these guys are hyenas!!!

..I have read a lot of other forums posts on raw feeding and it reminds me of when I was reading threads on an Atkins diet board (to try to shed a little extra fluff myself) ..well what I found was exactly the same kind of discussions that I find on feeding your dog the raw diet!! how funny! there are zealots...there are moderates and there are the I dont give a crap folks who just want to know how many carbs are in Oreo's!
...I want my dogs to be healthy ..and my sister is a very precise raw feeder to all her dogs .and is so vocal about how she thinks I am doing wrong by my dogs by giving a kibble breakfast...she grinds mixes and makes patties that look so good I want to toss on the grill and eat them myself!!! ...and I adore cooking ..but really I dont want to do all that! I am tired from work and all the playing I do with my dogs (insert whiney voice here) ...I do not want to be one of those people that just tosses food at them either.. the kibble I use seems to be one of the best formulated...everyone looks so good and their GI tracts seem to function just like they should be ...I just hope I am doing the best I can for them ...
and I dont like this last gulp thing at all it makes me sick! if it is ok they swallow meaty bones like this reassure me please..if not then tell me what to do to slow it down

thanks so much for your help!

[pitbullmamaliz]

Carnivores don't have teeth made for chewing/grinding food, so they generally just rip off chunks and swallow. Wait till they start to swallow, yack it back up, and then eat it again. That's when the fun really starts. *wink*

[luvypitbulls]

that is awesome thanks well should I serve it thawed then and let the pups rip it off? I thought the gnawing was good for the teeth? they seem so happy with the eyes rolled back in the heads

oh here this is Phoebe my beautiful red baby pit-ador

[LMM]

Carnivores don't have teeth made for chewing/grinding food, so they generally just rip off chunks and swallow. Wait till they start to swallow, yack it back up, and then eat it again. That's when the fun really starts. *wink*

Yea that's always a rockin' good time!

[LMM]

that is awesome thanks well should I serve it thawed then and let the pups rip it off? I thought the gnawing was good for the teeth? they seem so happy with the eyes rolled back in the heads

oh here this is Phoebe my beautiful red baby pit-ador

Awwwww she is SO pretty!

[TinaMartin]

Gator gets fed raw and will swallow chunks. Some times he brings it up for a rechew. I just stay close by while he is eating just to feel safe.

[luvypitbulls]

how about chicken feet for a 6 month old? I just scored a huge bag of them! love the way they look hanging out of the dogs mouth like they swallowed a chicken all but the foot!

I have not given Lister one yet...I worry about those claws .but why? when I see what he can scarf down am I worried about anything I wonder?

do they suck in thier stomach intentionally to make us want to feed them more you think?

I am feedng this almost 30lb skinny lanky six month old 1 cup of kibble and a drumstick or thigh or 1/2 turkey neck a day ..along with a few fruits and veggies and sometimes for training heart jerkey I made ..

I was also thinking about adding an egg here and there ..if I do do I just give it to him and skip the meat at the end of the day ..

JuJube my older dog get a raw egg two to three times a week in the afternoon for a snack ..before she got sick I had her food down to an art she had not moved on the scales in four years just solid and fit as can be ...now she eats whatever

anyway tell me how this sound guys? He goes to the vet for his check up in about three weeks and they always approved of how I fed JuJu but she was not a puppy and came to us at almost 2 years old ..Phoebe and Lister are growing like weeds and I want to make sure they get what they need ...and stay healthy..it is fun to feed a variety of things ...Lister adores bananas, peas, carrots, and my compost bucket



also I am not supplementing ..but I have this huge bottle of glucosamine and chondroitin sitting in my cabinet that I was supposed to take and never did ..should I toss it on the puppies food? would it help? I know it would do no harm...they play so hard I wonder if it would do them any good to lube those joints as they grow..and really does it work you think? it did nothing for the arthritis in my hands ...

please feel free to toss advice, criticism, praise ..whatever you can my way....

Lister and Phoebe both want me to think they are starving!!!

thanks so much!

Heidi