My dogs are fed on a diet of approx 70% raw 30% fish for dogs dry food.The raw is lamb bones, chicken carcass , tripe , whole sardines, liver , heart, minced lamb ect.
Do you think that feeding raw gives the dogs better muscle tone than feeding dry, im not convinced i could get the total  raw diet correct even after reading the books.
The dogs are exercised well,just wondered what seasond raw feeders thought,
Thanks

interesting and I feed similar ratios but use CSJ Xtra as a mixer instead. 

All I can say is that since going on to this about 6 months ago the difference in the dogs has been amazing.  I do agility and my current competing dog was doing ok but pretty average and it maybe pure conicidence but we have had 2 wins and a couple of people saying what a huge improvement in his speed and stamina there is.

i was interested in your post as ive always had a sneaking fancy to try a natural raw diet,but have always been put off  by feeding bones.i know raw ones arent supposed to splinter,but ive heard even raw can cause blockages.Ive  also known  a dog die from complications of a perofated intestine,although that was a cooked bone,so much as id like to,i darent feed them.i was thinking of trying  some raw mince with their complete food,.Was encouraged by your post,thanks!

I started with chicken carcass and wings as the bones are quite soft and can be chewed easily then gradually got onto lamb bones and knuckle, my oldest girl is very greedy and will eat all the lamb bone not just chew, i know they are ment to eat the bone but she eats very quick, occasionally we have had to give her lactulos but she has never had a bit stuck,i have noticed a difference in there muscle tone and stamina but then i have upped there exercise so just wondered if the raw feeding had helped this.
Thanks for your replies

I only feed wings as bones at the moment as I am struggling to find somewhere to get a supply of lamb ribs, chicken carcusses etc.  the butchers down here just dont seem to want to give them out or have very little to give out in the first place.

I get my bones ect from Durham pet foods, i think there is another thread about them, there stuff is really good quality and price, the lamb ribs have a good amount of meat on them as do the chicken carcasses,

I have fed raw for 4 years now but the majority of the bones my dogs get are those that are minced in with the various meats I buy from Landywoods. Mine do very well on having their bones in that form and have beautiful teeth as well. I do give the odd chicken wing to them but probably only four or five times a year.

> ive heard even raw can cause blockages

That's true. I wouldn't give more than 25% bones because constipation can be quite nasty if it sets in. We give oil daily too, also liquidised spinach & pear or similar. You really have to keep up the exercise too. Despite all that, I believe it is a very healthy regime for the dogs, their muscle tone is great and I think they enjoy the variety.

Misty, if you gave your dogs a bone in a day would you not give meat minced with the bone the same day, my girl devoures a bone quickly

I feed all raw now to my gang and find that they are doing great on mainly minced meat. They do get lamb ribs (Often my butcher gives me lots of lamb breast all together with the ribs. I did feed wings but my large breed swallow them whole sometimes so now get chicken necks and they are better. they get one or occasionally two neck meals and one rib meal a week along with tripe, fish, rabbit, beef, beef and tripe, tuna (raw or tinned in oil) eggs, veg in the form of the frozen cubes from PAH, any veg we have left over from dinner, liver once a week and heart once a week, yoghart, and they will enjoy a raw plucked pheasant in season and sometimes catch thier own rabbits!!! So all in all a prety varied diet. but I don't like too much bone as it can cause constipation. I think the nack is to feed softer more easily digested bone like necks and soft cartlidge type bone. I have a friend who breeds her own beef and she has promised me some beef brisket bones from the next kill so we shall see how they cope with it.
Aileen

> Misty, if you gave your dogs a bone in a day would you not give meat minced with the bone the same day, my girl devoures a bone quickly

I would draw a distinction between recreational bones and those fed as part of a meal. I think turkey necks, lamb ribs etc are part or all of a meal. My dogs eat the lot including the bone content. I would only mince leftovers for weaning puppies after they had used them to gnaw and play with (typically chicken wings).

Other than that we don't give much minced meat, our dogs eat chunks (tripe, beef, heart etc). That includes youngsters from about 8-10 weeks old.

I do think constipation can be an issue if the overall bone content exceeds about a quarter. It may be OK for some dogs but if you get one who doesn't cope well then believe me, it's a problem :-(

I have fed raw for about 10 years. With my breed I dont feed bones unless they are minced in with the meat as they tend to bite off large pieces and swallow them. Chicken wings are swallowed whole so I dont feed them either.
Mine thrive on tripe, chicken, lamb and beef. I also add salmon oil, veg and fruit here and there.
Their muscle tone is well developed and they all look fit..................... I put this down to their raw diet and plenty of exercise!

honestly i think it does help with better body tone and weight.
i noice it a lot.i think raw is best anyway.

I have been feeding my DDB Raw for about 1 1/2 years now. He has food allergies so that is what encouraged our switch. I wouldn't feed anything else now. Even for future dogs. He is very toned and looks great. Eating uncooked muscle/protein allows the amino acids to be used for body building processes within the dog. The meat is of high biological value, therefore is used up where its needed. I found his poo's to be small and compact. Not the cow splats it use to be on kibble.

He gets 1050 grams of Raw meaty bones per day, 500 g of muscle meat per day as well as organ tissue. If his poo's get a bit hard I decrease the RMB's. I love feeding raw, you can change it for the dog on a daily basis.

He mainly gets turkey neck for RMB's, and crunches through them like butter.