Ok, so I've made the choice to go raw! I've been out this morning to buy things, and I've come back with a bag full off meaty bones from my butchers who gives them for free wow I was so pleased and a selection of prize choice natural meat blocks to go in the freezer.  I,ve decided to do the change slowly substituting my dogs evening meal for a meat meal to start with.  I've always fed complete with small amouts of cooked meat as a treat so how do I ensure my two, a three year old bulldog bitch and a 5 month old stafford are getting everything they need whilst feeding naturally? They are both in lean condition they self feed normally and are quite slim, in fact i'd like to see them with a little more weight on.
Also how often should I give them bones? I have to say my staff was horrified when presented with a raw bone so I stuck in the the oven for 20 mins to warm it up and he loved it! How may times a week should I be giving bones and when should i remove them from the garden and from the dogs? I'm quite excited about this change and I can't wait to see the results!
Sue x

Rewording...I meant how often should I be giving my dogs recreational bones.

I always strongly recommend that people thoroughly research this subject before embarking on raw feeding. Not because it is "difficult" but to ensure they are happy with the concept, the commitment and fully understand how to provide the nutrients needed for optimum nutrition.  In order of my personal preference and ease of reading:

Natural Nutrition for Dogs and Cats by Kymythy Schulze (US) available UK
Switching to Raw by Sue Johnson (US) not available in the UK
The Barf diet by Dr Ian Billingshurst (Aus) available everywhere
Give your Dog a Bone by Dr Ian Billingshurst (Aus) available everywhere
Grow you Pups with Bones as above
Raw Meaty Bones by Tom Lonsdale (Aus) available everywhere

I would also recommend that you join a group such as Britbarf on the net or K9nutrition (US) both yahoo sites and very informative.

Also if you do a search on BARF or raw feeding you should get some info.

Basically you need to be feeding adult dogs between 2 - 3% of their bodyweight per day.  Preferably two meals, one consisting of RMBs this means chicken wings, carcases, legs, drumsticks, and the other muscle meat, or raw/tinned fish, or eggs and pulped veggies, or offal.  If you feed all these ingredients from as many animal sources as possible your dog will get all the nutrients it needs.  I would recommend the addition of Fish Body Oil (as cereal fed meat is low in Omega 3s) and Vitamin E (natural) eh voila!

Recreational bones such as knuckle or shin bones can be given every day, and removed once the marrow/cartilage etc is removed otherwise they may start trying to consume the bone which can crack teeth. 

NO!  dont put the bones in the oven!!  COOKED bones are very dangerous, cooking makes them hard and brittle, aways give them RAW! 
you need to get some books and do lots of research before switching to raw, you need to undestand the basics of how to create a balanced diet.  this involves giving raw meaty bones, (chicken wings, necks, thighs, quarters or whole birds) along with extra muscle meat to balance the bone, a lot of people dont understand the bones should be really meaty, not boney with a few scraps of meat on.  it is also important to give offal like liver, kidney, tripe, hearts, fish, eggs etc.  and fruit and veg and most important to give lots of variety to ensure they are getting a good mix of nutrients and all their vitamins and minerals.  i give my lot large marrow bones or cow ribcages to chew on  a couple of times a week.  i normally take them away after a day or 2, depending on how much the dogs chew them and how rotten they the bones are looking :) !
if you want any help i can e mail you a sample diet of what i feed mine and suggest links and book,
kelly

Warming cold bones in the microwave for a minute or two is fine, however.

Stacey

I always warm my dogs bones up in a plastic baggie in a bowl of hot water.

christine

sorry would disagree with the microwave thing.  i would warm up any very cold food by standing it in a bowl and then  inside a bowl of warm water for a minute or 2. 

Scratchy, I've pm'd you.

Michelle.

I wouldnt do that!

I think microwaves cook from the middle out, so even though the outside of the bone would be raw, the inside may well be cooked!

I think the ONLY safe way, would be to run under a hot tap for a few minutes/put in a bag in a bowl of hot water.

Em

Microwaves are not a good idea for bones at all.  I don't always bother to warm mine up, especially if it is hot!

Me either,
I use my microwave only as somewhere 'cat proof' to defrost meat in over night, by feeding time its room temp anyway.

That said, i took the chill of some chicken wings this evening under the hot tap, to feed Abby, since she is new to raw food....... after 15 minutes gentle persuasion she decided chicken wings grrrrrrrrrrreat! and this is a 9 year old dog thats eaten Vitalin crud all her life!!!!!

Em