hi, i have 4 danes. 3 of which do really well on complete with a few additives like fish, eggs, veg etc..
the 4th one which is the youngest at 21 months is massively underweight. ive tried all different completes, finally on royal canin giant.
she is a really high energy dog, never sits down. i do feed them raw bones occasionally but she has a weak stomach with them and tends to be sick after them.
is raw better and has anyone had one with a dicky tummy can it be changed to accomodate raw?
she has no issues with food she loves her food. just quite a lot under weight. this is the last option before expensive tests at the vets.

I used to feed complete but a few months ago I changed to raw and the dogs are doing great on it.  I feed the raw meaty bones diet and get most info from Tom Lonsdale's website.  I don't feed veg in the diet as some veg can be detrimental by stopping the absorption of some vitamins and mineral.

I found mine were sick a couple times while switching over but I think this was due to them getting used to the bones in their diet. 

My Akita was a very picky eater and very slim but since being on raw she has put alot of weight on and is looking better for it.

Hi mahonc

I've known many dogs which were poor doers on complete benefit greatly from going onto raw diets.  One of my own didn't seem able to body up as a youngster and was switched onto raw overnight and never looked back - in fact eventually had to have food rationed which was something I would never have foreseen!

The fact yours is so young the chances are growth spurts, hormones and excess energy are the causes of the leaner look but coupled with a sensitive tummy I'd be inclined to treat cautiously as it may be a medical reason behind this which can't be addressd by diet alone.

Providing the dog is otherwise in good health, I'd first try adding a little tripe to each meal - very gradually in case of upsets.  If this doesn't upset her system then I'd add a couple of large chicken thighs as an early snack in the morning.

Keep a close eye on things - if any doubts at all better that she's assessed by a vet of course.

HTH, Teri

I too am about to switch over to Barf, got my freezer ready but haven't a clue where to start. If i buy in bulk what should i order to start me off. i know not to introduce too many new foods at once?? Anyone care to help me please!
Thanks Aly x

Hi Aly

prior to filling a freezer with doggy goodies I'd establish what your dog(s) like to eat first :)  Tripe and fish for example are regular ingredients of most raw/home prepared diets but I have had three dogs which wont touch anything with tripe and two which wont eat any kind of fish (one being of the anti-tripe number at that LOL).  Another wont eat any type of veg but gets supplemented with easy green for example.

IOW I'd advise don't bulk buy until you've got to grips with their likes and dislikes :)  Personally I'd give it a couple of months of gradually introducing different meats, poultry, game, offals, eggs, veg, fish, fruit etc

HTH, Teri

Hi, My boy is of a large breed and he was a picky eater and i couldn't get him to body up. I changed to the raw meaty bones diet and now he is doing very well. I have to admit i was very intrigued with Orijen and now have a bag. He gets some of the complete, but he loves the raw, providing he doesn't get the same day in day out.

I know what he likes and doesn't like as well.
We move between in meat variety or chicken wings and tripe.
He doesn't like lamb or beef.
He will only eat liver if cooked up.

But now i have found his likes and dislikes i am now able to buy in bulk.
Bones all, come from butchers.

So do i give bones for one meal, like chicken wings, necks, etc.. and meat for the other meal?? does it matter if the meat had ground bone in it as well? If i give Chicken bones do i give another flavour meat for a few weeks or can it be chicken as well? oh and what about the chunks of meat? When do you give those? instead of the mince or shall i not bother with those foe the moment??
Lol, that sounds MAD!!!! Do you think i should just buy a book??
Aly xx

Join the yahoo group BritBarf - there are plenty of files on starting out, basic diets etc. They are a very helpful bunch of knowledgable people.

Hi Aly,

with Pedlee here - join Britbarf for oodles of info in the archives and anything troubling you then use the list to get specific responses at the time :)  I don't ever recommend that anyone starts out on a raw or home prepared diet without thoroughly investigating the subject, not only from a nutritional POV but also breed specific as some breeds require different approaches and ingredients to others.  Over and above that you may find that from a practical perspective it is not something you can keep up so, again, Britbarf have lots of members who feed partially raw only and can advise how they work around things.

best wishes, Teri :)

We have 3 Danes also, 2 we have on diets, and one who burns everything she puts into her mouth, we feed 2lbs minced Tripe daily, plus a quality kibble, they also have chicken drumsticks for supper, or turkey necks, or lamb flank, there feed twice a day, and fed later in the evening so, they dont burn the weight off.
I would probably consider feeding a raw diet to help your Dane, also depending on what lines, some take longer to mature than ours, my bitch is 22months and still maturing!
But tripe does help with weight, lamb is a fatty meat, which helps to put on weight also.

Good luck!!

Hi,

Britbarf is good as was previously mentioned. I also found Dr Ian Billinghurst's books invaluable when I started. I did months of research, spoke to friends that were raw feeding and introduced foods gradually. Eventually I got the right balance and tailored the diet to suit each individual dog. What works with one dog won't necessarily suit another and time is of the essence. Improvement doesn't happen immediately.

HTH

> two which wont eat any kind of fish

have you tried canned pilchards in tomato sauce teri? tio won't eat any fish except salmon kibble and these.

for the op, you can buy individual frozen blocks of meats/tripe in PAH and other places so you can try them out at meals and see what they like. for example tio loves tripe, chicken, heart and beef but hates lamb! so there is not oint stocking up on it if it won't get used.

or... you could buy them for yourself (not the frozen packs obviously!) and try the dogs on a bit of it.

> have you tried canned pilchards in tomato sauce teri?

Yes Kim, I've offered fish and seafood every which way - she just doesn't want to know!  Thanks for the suggestion though :)

don't know if it might be to sugary (probably!) but if you wanted to try and get fish oils in them cod liver oil and malt might be an idea? (they'd be bouncing though)

She gets FO in capsules - straight down the throat though, fingers duly chewed in the process :-D  Her diet content is absolutely fine, just a bit fiddly compared to the others :)

> She gets FO in capsules - straight down the throat though,

I once had a Toy Poodle that would sell his soul for these.  You could actually see him hold one between his teeth, and pierce it, with a look of ecstasy on his face!  Teri - what is easy green?

LOL - my pup loves any kind of pills, capsules, medicine etc (quite handy at times and dangerous at others!).

EASY GREEN from Dorwest, great help for faddy ones re green veg :)  Quite strong smell and I'd imagine taste, so I give with pulped carrots, cooked offal and juices.  In just minced meat for eg the 'precious one' would be having none of it :-p