Thinking on switching Moose to raw and was told would prob cost me about a hundred a month to feed her twice
a day which I think is pretty good- think I pay more then that in kibble.
Was told to fast her for 24hrs before I put her onto raw feeding, but if I wish I can give her some fruits and veggies.
The food comes already mixed- good to go so to speak.

During this transition is there anything I should watch for with her? Just want to no all the pro's and con's before
I switch her. I no this is a lot more healthier for her then the kibble.

I no sad as it is but my boston's will be staying on kibble being 11 1/2 & 12 1/2 yrs old don't want to move them around
to much and upset their tummy. See how she does and maybe I might switch them as well and also depends on what all
will cost in the long run.

If we were to go on vacation would putting her on kibble for the time being mess her up at all? Do i have to worry
once I do spay her that she will put on the weight. I have no idea how much to feed ect. 11 months prob 80 pounds. Do
I need to buy a scale?

Any info helps and greatly appreciated. Do have to talk it all over with my husband before I do anything lol

Thank you :-)

I have recently switched my dogs to raw.  I didn't fast them (they would never forgive me!).  I think dogs can go through a bit of a detox during the first month or so, mine have dropped their coats (but that was due anyway) and one of them has had gunky ears. 

If I were to go on holiday, I would probably use the best wet food I could buy possibly with some orijen or similar added.  It's not ideal, but it isn't practical to take raw food for 3 large dogs!  I don't think I will ever feed them totally dry kibble again, I'd worry that could upset things quite a lot, but I wouldn't worry about soaked kibble/wet dog food for a short period of time.

I think spayed bitches can be prone to putting on weight, regardless of diet - you should watch her weight and reduce portions accordingly.  I've been very roughly feeding my two boys 2% of their body weight daily (with my fatty bitch having closer to 1%). Here's a calculator
http://www.raw4dogs.com/calculate.htm

If you're feeding a pre-prepared raw diet, I expect they'll give you some guidelines :-)

Good luck!  My dogs are very, very happy with their new diet!

Ive been feeding raw for about 3 years,would never go back to feeding just kibble,im just sure its the right thing to do,(for once in my life i have a conviction!)When I started,I had an old girl,and I was told by someone that its never too late to change to raw,she d been on arden grange up till then,I think she was about12 or 13.I found she could tolerate some raw food,but with age she d got a very sensitive stomach,and would get diarrhoea a lot,so I had to be really wary of what I gave her.The 3 young ones Ive got now never have any problems,I do wish you well.I didnt fast anybody,either,I just swapped straight over,though I know a lot of people wouldnt agree with doing that.
I also give them orijen now and again,in kongs for instance,so if we go away,and someone else has to look after them,they can feed the orijen,as they are used to it.Good luck!

Having talked about it for years have in the last few months changed to raw feeding & like others didn't starve either.
The two boys weight about 30 kilos each,  and I'm not spending anything like £100 a month.
The only problem that I've had - & it's been my fault - is to over feed one of them so that he is now on reduced rations.
It hasn't as yet had an effect on their skin problems - I live in hope - but certainly Lucas has a bounce he hasn't had for years.
Good luck, your dog with thank you for it.

> The two boys weight about 30 kilos each, and I'm not spending anything like £100 a month.

The OP is in Canada, so I don't know if she meant Canadian dollars or how that compares to US dollars and UK pounds.

I have gathered from some forums that raw feeding CAN be expensive in some areas of the USA, perhaps also Canada, as they have tighter rules about meat for animal feeding and/or abattoirs. But that may be regional. Being larger countries, I'm also not sure if they have the same coverage by raw wholesalers that we do.

Dollface, have you been able to source any raw meat pet-food suppliers in your area? Human-grade isn't always best for dogs as it will be much less fatty, and dogs can/do need more fat than us. Do your butchers have laws preventing them from selling or giving you any scraps and bones?

> It hasn't as yet had an effect on their skin problems - I live in hope -

Are you including blitzed veg? Just wondering as when I do, my younger dog scratches a lot less. I cut out the veg for a while recently as I wanted to tighten up his condition a little (they can process carbs and sugars from raw veg and he was already on minimal meat) but have seen an increase in the scratching again. Seems it makes all the difference in some dogs - possibly down to micronutrients, vitamin C or even plant sterols. I'll start back with the veg this week as he's also scratching due to shedding - it's like he's losing a full winter coat at the moment, not the usual summer/autumn moult at all! Maybe the wet summer generated more undercoat than usual, for waterproofing!

Yes do include veg, either raw & blitzed or left over cooked from us but have reduced the amount as it tended to make their output too soft. Interesting you mention that human grade isn't always best for dogs, a friend who is a butcher has kindly been able to source off cuts for us & OH has been making comments about the amount of fat but the dogs love it.

MsTemeraire - Are you including blitzed veg? Just wondering as when I do, my younger dog scratches a lot less

I don't feed raw but I do like to add veg, and picked up on this statement as a couple of my dogs have had a very heavy moult, plus one who looks like a cruelty case after pups :-O Do you always blitz veg for the dogs? My understanding is the veg has to be cooked longer, but I've never blitzed. What I guess I want to know is ... what's the best way to prepare veg for dogs to enable them to get all the nutrients from them? :-D

Ive always understood the veg has to be in as small pieces as poss(food processor)to mimic what wild dogs would find,partially digested in the preys stomach.However,I also give mine leftover cooked veg,and I suppose it must get digested as I never see any obvious bits in the poo.Id be interested if anyone has any more info,too.

So far I have these places to shop from if I wish- I do buy my kibble already from Metro:
http://metropetmarket.ca/?page_id=804   http://metropetmarket.ca/?page_id=486
http://www.fidoandfelixfoods.com/

Think I am now down to half a bag of kibble which I usual buy every 3 weeks with my crew- I figure put Moose on the raw.
I do buy a different kind of kibble for them each time so their tummy isn't as sensitive .
My biggest thing is just trying to figure out the cost ect for one dog- really can't afford to pay more then what I am paying now
on food. If buying both raw and kibble need to pay no more then what I pay now... Think my bags are from $70-85 each time- they do have more expensive food.
The dehydrated ones I buy are like $50 a bag but those last me awhile since I only give them about 2 table spoons or so in with their kibble.

Do I have to worry about her choking on bones (hubby really questions the chicken bones ect) The food I look at comes as patties or nuggets.

Think next week going to see if Hubby will let me buy some raw and try Moose (about 80 pounds) on it for awhile. According to the calculator with 25% of her body weight I
should feed 1 pound twice a day. Then if this goes as planned I will check into butchers and see what they can offer me and start making my own food
and grinding everything up and freeze a bunch.

Yes I am from Canada- 1st time looking into this. I talked to the lady from the Fido & Felix and now think I will talk to the people from PetMetro and see
what they say it would cost me.

Do any of you make your own raw food and freeze it, if so how do you go about it all?

The OP is in Canada, so I don't know if she meant Canadian dollars or how that compares to US dollars and UK pounds.
Latest Exchange Rates: 1 British Pound Sterling = 1.56847 Canadian Dollar http://fx-rate.net/GBP/CAD/  Holy what a difference!

Have pmd you please tell hubby not to worry about bones as long as they are raw she needs them if feeding raw :)