* WARNING…this post contains photos that some people might find graphic or gross. If you are a vegetarian, vegan or do not want to see dogs eating a chicken (store bought) DO NOT SCROLL DOWN TO THE PHOTOS AT THE END OF THIS POST. *
The trend these days seems to be to feed your dog raw food instead of commercially processed kibble. As I looked into canine nutrition certificate programs I noticed that they all included at least a few classes on feeding raw.
I know a lot of people who feed their dogs raw food. Honestly though, I don’t know much about it beyond the fact that it is supposed to better mimic the historic, wild diets of dogs. I DO know enough to determine that it is not for us….at least right now. I am still intrigued by it though.
There are a couple different methods for feeding raw. Some of the people I know create their own raw dog food mix of meats, fruits and vegetables. Others buy pre-packaged raw meals. There is another method that involves feeding your dog “whole prey” such as a whole, raw chicken. In one of the methods, BARF (links to a specific company but I am not endorsing them. They just have a good explanation of what it is), the meat is supplemented with veggies and fruits . The other way is called the whole prey model and omits the fruits and veggies.
My friend switched her dogs to this diet last summer. The “whole prey” she feds them has includes salmon and chicken.
Recently, my friend’s dogs came to stay with us. She brought their raw chicken and asked if I was comfortable feeding it to them. I was very curious to watch them eat the whole chicken pieces so I eagerly agreed.
Below are some photos I snapped while they were eating.
Kolchak, Felix & Jodi says
We feed a mix of BARF model and “franken-prey” style at our house, both with and without veggies and other supplements at Casa de Kolchak, ’cause I like the best of both worlds. Kolchak and Felix adore those days when I plop a chicken thigh with the back attached down n front of them and the days when they get ox tail or lambs neck are really, really popular too. Not going to lie, it totally grossed me out at first and I was *super* worried about all those food bourne illness risks people used to try to scare me off raw feeding, but with a little common sense, we’e gone a year as raw fed dogs with no food related illness and no issues. In fact, we’ve gone to the vet 9 times LESS this year than last year.
(Just a quick question though – she deep freezes the salmon first…right?? There’s actually a fluke that is toxic to dogs and you can only get rid of it through cooking or freezing. I had NO IDEA until last year!)
AdventureJess says
Yes, she froze the salmon first. She knows more about that stuff than me but I know she put it in the freezer for a certain amount of time first.
Crystal says
I feed prey model raw as well. I find it to be the healthiest food to feed my dogs. I don’t supplement them with anything regularly, they just get meat, organs, and bone (with a heavy emphasis on MEAT). I do give them other stuff as treats, especially when training, just to make life a little easier, but it is not a major part of their diet.
AdventureJess says
I bet training with a whole chicken leg would be hard 🙂
Jen says
That’s interesting, I have never seen a dog eat raw, but I have heard lots of people feed it!
AdventureJess says
There is raw and then there is the whole prey model as in these photos. Going the whole prey route instead of just raw does take extra steps and a strong stomach 🙂 I think Leroy would need a whole turkey! Ha, ha.
Bella Entlebucher says
I eat raw food! It’s YUMMY YUMMY. And I don’t smell as much now. It comes in frozen sausages and they get defrosted every day. Then I get raw chicken wings as a treat every now and then and even my puppy teeth can get through the bones just fine 🙂
AdventureJess says
If I went to raw that is what I would do – premade frozen raw and supplement with whole prey. I bet your Mom is glad you aren’t so stinky anymore 🙂
Anna the GSD says
We’ve been on raw for about 3 years now…it’s not that hard once you get the hang of it (according to mom, I just go NOM NOM NOM so it’s easy for me!) Here’s another great website with all kinda of info and even a spreadsheet to show you how much you should feed your pupper based on weight. Nom away! rawdogranch.com
AdventureJess says
Thanks for the website! I will check it out for sure. The reason it is not for us right now is because I don’t want the extra steps it requires. I know it is not much but we travel so much that it would be a real hassle to try and keep things frozen and remember to thaw them. We currently feed grain free and are experimenting with supplements (like pumpkin and yogurt when we are home) and freeze-dried raw.
Flacatlady says
I thought dogs weren’t supposed to have chicken bones?? I realize in nature they would eat them, but I’d be scared to death for my doxies to get anything but a round bone from beef. Thanks for your great posts. I keep a lot of this in mind as I make decisions regarding what is best for my dogs.
AdventureJess says
Dogs should not have COOLED bones of any type. Cooked bones can shatter and cannot be digested. Raw bones, as in here, are a different story. Dogs actually need to eat some bone (Kibble contains “ash” which is made of bone). Raw bones can help keep their teeth clean. Raw bone can also be digested by their strong stomach acids. That being said, I tried to feed Gretel a raw chicken bone once without much meat. She scarfs food so she broke it in half (hello jagged edge) and tried to swallow the whole thing pointy side first. It was pretty traumatic for me so I am leery to try it again. If the “bone” had been the whole leg I suspect she wouldn’t have been able to snap it in half though. It takes more work, and more chewing, with a lot more meat on it.
Alfie |Alfie's Blog says
I eat raw food too! I get really cool meat sausages from a raw food company and they are stuffed with meat, bones, veggies and yummy herbs! then I also get chicken wings and whatever bones we can get from the butchers. Everyone always compliments me on my shiny coat and white teeth *blushing*. I just love the taste of it!
Dachshund Nola and her mom says
I looked into raw feeding for my pack before I decided homemade would be better. My 5 reasons against it were:
1. I didn’t have enough freezer space
2. I wouldn’t be comfortable feeding them store bought
3. I still have trouble getting past the ick factor
4. Auggie scarfs down his food, so I’d be worried about him not chewing bones enough
5. I feel Boston would have trouble keeping her weight up.
I’m always interested in reading about it, and it can be quite the hot topic in the dog world.
I will be giving the dogs some raw bones when we slaughter the pig, and would consider feeding some raw if we ever got a cow.
Amanda
Ps. B&W Sunday has been added to the callender and I’ll be writing a post for the newsletter later today
AdventureJess says
It certainly sounds like you did your research, thought about it a lot and came up with some very compelling reasons why it is not for you. I know you make them really high quality food anyway though 🙂
jet says
Hey Chester, Hey Gretel, Jet here.
One of Mom’s BFFs feeds her K9 raw… he’s a something cotiller… he looks like a bijon and has human hair quality for allergy sufferers! He’s a healthy boy and we think the diet has merit for those who wish to pursue this route! The ultimate in natural!
AdventureJess says
I don’t think I know of any people who feed this way that have unhealthy pets 🙂 I think there are many routes to health though. I am sure it is not for some dogs. I am glad it works well for your friend.
Flea says
I haven’t even read the post yet, but the disclaimer made me want to scroll down and see the gross chicken photos. 🙂 Heh. Back up to read …
Flea says
Ah. I’ve seen this before, the whole raw thing. At one point we thought our dogs might be allergic to grain, since we got chickens last year and the dogs clean up their poo (it’s very gross and I have to monitor their time in the back yard – dogs will eat anything). Turns out the Frontline we use for fleas stopped working for them and it’s a flea allergy. Between cost and freezer space, and my Babies being ten and on kibble their entire lives, it’s not worth it. Maybe with our next babies, though.
AdventureJess says
Yeah. I seems if their systems have been used to eating one thing for so long it might do more harm that good to switch. I am glad you were able to figure out what they were reacting to. We had a cat when I was a kid that had severe flea allergies.
cyndiann says
I had older dogs when I switched to raw and I’m so glad I did. Raw is just so much more nutritionally complete as compared to kibble and once you realize that how can you stick with a diet that causes dogs so many problems? Kibble frequently causes diabetes, kidney problems, gum disease, allows worse infestations of fleas and other pests. As I posted elsewhere, the cost isn’t any more than feeding a high grade kibble but it’s so much healthier because it’s species appropriate.
Please don’t wait!
Pamela says
I also watch raw feeding with interest. Thank you for sharing about your experience feeding whole prey food to your visitors.
BTW, I used to cook for my dogs using recipes from Dr. Pitcairn’s natural health care. Each recipe called for bone meal so I know the bone is important.
After paying for $3000 of abdominal surgery, I’m a little cautious about feeding whole bones–even raw.
AdventureJess says
After Gretel’s ordeal where they make her vomit, I DO know that thinner bone pieces DO really break down…..provided they don’t move into the intestines before hand. The bone chunks she had eaten were while rubbery chunks by the next day. If I knew that it already ended bad with my dog I would not try it again either though.
Roxy the traveling dog says
Hmmmm, I think I’ll stick to kibble. I barely have room in our tiny fridge for our food, let alone for the dogs too.
AdventureJess says
Yeah…Imagine trying to cram a couple of whole chickens in there! Yours is a real extreme case of just not having the space.
Marquie (& Lassie & Ella & Petal) says
I’ve thought about feeding my dogs this diet, but just the idea of giving them bones makes me nervous. I don’t think they would chew them enough. Plus I don’t feel that my stomach would be strong enough. With chicken legs I would be fine, but the more… exotic? Extreme? Whole? things would just be too much for me, haha.
My dogs do eat raw meat though + fruits, veggies, grains and a few supplements.
Thank you for sharing! It is an intriguing subject.
AdventureJess says
I don’t feel like Gretel and Chester would chew the bones enough either. It sounds like your dogs already eat really healthy though 🙂
cyndiann says
If you are feeding them meat and not bones you are setting them up for disaster. It isn’t balanced. They should be getting 80% meat, 10% bone and 10% organ meats. No bone will give them the runs. Dogs do not have the stomach acids needed to digest fruits and vegetables so it’s a waste of time and space to feed them, and grains are never needed at all. Feeding a varied diet of meats, bones and organ meats means you don’t have to supplement at all. Dogs are carnivores, not omnivores like we are.
AdventureJess says
What you are seeing here is a feeding on the whole prey model….which inherently includes bone. I am not sure what people who make their own raw food mixture do.
cyndiann says
All diets for dogs much contain bone or (less effective) some source of calcium. Feeding raw is all about balancing calcium and phosphorus and it’s easy to do. Too much calcium results in constipation while too little means the runs. It’s just a matter of watching what comes out the back end.
By mixture do you mean ground up food? Research shows that the actual act of chewing is what satisfies dogs (and people) and feeding ground or kibble doesn’t do that which brings on that gulping of food we don’t want to see.
A typical dinner for my crew may consist of some ground or chunk beef (heart is cheap and very nutritious), pork chunks (some w bone), a couple of raw eggs, some chicken necks for calcium, some tripe and then some sort of organ meat like liver. I mix a large bowl up and put it down on a few plates which my 3 dogs and 3 cats share. Other nights it’s chicken leg quarters for the dogs and bone in breasts for the cats. That one is easy, just handing out chicken parts.
Dogs do not get any nutrition from fruits or vegetables because their digestive acids are lacking in what it takes to break them down. This means adding anything veggie or fruit related is a waste of time and money. Dogs have no requirement for carbs either. They don’t need them at all. They get energy from fat. That is the difference between carnivores and omnivores. Yet marketing for kibble is always showing an omnivore’s diet.
Spoiled Doxie says
Blech. I’m with Nola.
2 brwon dawgs says
I really don’t think I would like the raw food laying around my house. It is not for us either.
AdventureJess says
It would be expensive to feed a couple of Chessies to I am sure 🙂
cyndiann says
Raw food doesn’t lay around the house. Dogs eat it up fast. Not that it hurts anything being there. Also once you stop paying for all those vet bills (mine haven’t needed to see one in many years) you actually save money. I’d be much more concerned about having kibble in the house with all the e coli outbreaks going on.
AdventureJess says
It doesn’t lay around the house but some people just simply don’t have the freezer or storage space. For example, we know several people who live in RVs.
I have been feeding Chester kibble for 10 years…and not always the best quality stuff. He has hardly been to the vet and is super healthy. I understand that kibble can cause problems but not in all dogs and some dogs who eat raw still develop heath problems. Sometimes it’s not what you feed them or how you take care of them – it’s just bad genes. I respect the right of any pet owner to choose what is best for them and their dog.
cyndiann says
I live in a very small one bedroom mobile home. I put a freezer on my patio right against the house. A very few people won’t be able to fit a tiny chest freezer anywhere but that’s not going to be true for most. As for your dog being healthy, I guarantee that if you were to take the 3 day raw challenge you’d find there is a remarkable difference in what’s considered healthy, even in that short amount of time. About 2/3 of dogs have gum problems and that is totally due to kibble. Yes, a raw fed dog is not immune to getting ill but removing the largest source of illness naturally drops the rate quite a bit. I don’t have to use pesticides on my dogs like Frontline. Being in better health they are better able to fight off fleas naturally and I can use less lethal methods like diatomaceous earth. This is why you don’t see wild canids dropping like flies because of fleas and heart worms. Using less chemicals on pets means less cancer and other nasty things.
I respect the rights of owners to feed what is best but conditionally. If you really haven’t researched why raw is fed then you can’t make an informed decision. I would never trade the health of my dogs and cats for a bag of kibble ever again and many raw feeders are just as determined, and we are that way because we’ve seen the huge difference in health. Kibble does not meet the needs of dogs over a lifetime, it’s plain and simple. It can’t.
AdventureJess says
I have researched raw feeding very thoroughly. As I said, I also have friends that feed raw as well as friends that are pet nutritionists. I am very aware of the benefits, risk and effort involved. I am very positive that I am making the right decision for our current situation.
I am glad that you are sharing your passion for raw feeding here but please to not use my blog as a platform to shove your opinion, and an apparent marketing scheme (three day challenge) here. If you would like to get the word out, please consider starting your own blog. I would read it 🙂
cyndiann says
RE: Your comment that I should start a blog. I believe my time is better spent feeding my dogs properly than writing a blog. I actually have one, just never post there. You said that one of the reasons you don’t feed raw is because of time restraints yet you spend a lot of time on here. It’s all in what you feel is more important to you.
Also you said that your dog is very healthy but since you are a kibble feeder your standards are low. Not your fault, you don’t know the difference yet but you will. Not having to fight off fleas as much, stools that are tiny and don’t stink because they aren’t pooping out lots of fillers, no cleaning teeth, no diabetes, no body odor, no hot spots, such a difference!
cyndiann says
Re: Shoving an opinion here. I hit the same button to post everyone else did. I didn’t see one that said “SHOVE”, it says “submit”. I think that from your perspective you feel I’m shoving something at you when that’s not the case. Just keep being glad, ok?
My passion comes from the huge difference I see in my pets by feeding them food they are biologically supposed to be eating, as compared to something made from leftover human foods and roadkill. You cannot be a pet nutritionalist while feeding a food dogs were never meant to eat. A little reading up on the science behind all this will tell you that. How can a dog get complete nutrition from a food that can’t be digested because of a lack of enzymes that would allow digestion? Why feed carbs to animals that can’t utilize them? Why are vitamins, minerals and taste enhancers added back into kibble? Why feed an animal that would naturally eat raw meat something that is cooked so long that it lacks basic nutrition? Has a person ever been able to produce a food that is better than what Mother Nature gives?
Humans do poorly on highly processed foods and so do all other animals. That is exactly why illnesses are on the rise in humans and dogs. Besides eating wrong, we over vaccinate, put pesticides on our pets and wonder why they get cancer. Do you know that heartworm “preventatives” don’t prevent anything? That you are poisoning your dog every time you give it? Did you know that vaccines cause autoimmune diseases? And cancer too? What we used to think was giving our pets the best care is turning out to be exactly the opposite. Duped by the artificial dog food companies and the vaccine companies into hurting our pets with their products. They certainly don’t care so we have to.
houndstooth says
I think raw is a bit too expensive for us to feed right now, but I’ve considered it. With Kuster needing to be able to take food along with him if he goes to an emergency call, kibble is a much more practical plan for us. However, our dogs do get occasional raw bones and meat from time to time.
AdventureJess says
Well, it sounds like they get the best of both worlds. The important thing is finding something that works for THEM and YOU 🙂
Beth & 4Doxies says
Very interesting! Raw chicken is gross any way you look at it, haha. But I do think it has to be a very natural, healthy way to feed (if you have the time). When I asked my vet about the grain free diet she discussed the raw diet that ancient dogs ate (and pointed out that dogs ingested some grain from eating a raw animal’s intestines, yuk!). I remember that my dad would buy beef bones at the butcher shop for our little dog when I was growing up, too. I think I would be leary of the raw bones, my pack wouldn’t chew them enough. Thanks for sharing this!
AdventureJess says
In whole prey feeding (which can be different that just raw) the dogs also consume their organs and sometimes stomachs which would give them some grain. Many people who feed RAW also supplement with vegetables and grains. Even grain-free kibble contains some kind of starches like potato or tapioca. I DO agree that some grains are good for them but not as much as are found in most commercial kibbles.
cyndiann says
Wild dogs don’t eat the intestines or stomachs or stomach contents from most their kills. Usually they killed large creatures like elk. On rare occasions when they did eat something small they may eat it all but that didn’t happen often.
And it’s really easy to stop a dog from gulping down bones. You give them really large pieces, like at least a leg quarter if not half a chicken. Once they figure out that the raw diet isn’t going away they will act normally and eat slower. Kibble teaches them to gulp down food fast because it’s so small.
AdventureJess says
I suspected in my little experiment with Gretel that she would have not been able to bite the drumstick leg in half if it had more meat on it or was attached to a quarter. First experiment failed 🙂 I haven’t necessarily given up but for me, raw chicken or the like would always alternated with Grain-free kibble. When we travel or they stay at another person’s house I need the flexibility of feeding them kibble.
cyndiann says
Even knowing you are giving them something not nearly as healthy? It only takes three days on raw to see a huge difference in your pet. They will have more energy, a shinier coat even in that short amount of time. I think most who haven’t tried it don’t realize how easy it is and most of all don’t realize the huge difference in their health.
Grain free kibble is not what dogs should be eating. They weren’t meant to eat something dried out like that which is why so many have kidney problems later on in life. GF kibble is very expensive yet isn’t what dogs were meant to eat.
Would you be willing to give it a 3 day trial? That goes for anyone on here who isn’t already feeding raw. Three days as an experiment….
Elizabeth says
No wonder Swift and Kool are so… swift and cool! 🙂
I wonder what the cost difference is in feeding raw vs kibble per month. That would interested me.
AdventureJess says
Well, of course it all depends on what kind of kibble you feed (and what that cost). I think my dog store friend said she feeds her two chihuahuas pre-made frozen raw food and it $1.60 per day for the both of them. I think it would be in that range if she fed them actually chicken pieces too. You can get good deals at Costco. Luna is about chihuahuas worth though so……….. 🙂
Mollie and Alfie says
I don’t get raw meat…a bit of ham sometimes. I have dried food, so I don’t smell 🙂 I’d be fightened I’d choke on dat sharp bone but I’d give it me best shot 🙂
Fank yoo for givin us the information..wee’s never knew so many doggies got raw meat.
Big Hugs
Mollie xx
AdventureJess says
My friends who feed this way say their dogs actually smell LESS. I am with you though…I would be afraid they would swallow a piece of bone that we too big.
Kristine says
It’s still so incredible to me just how many options there are now for feeding dogs. I think it’s great people are thinking a lot more about canine nutrition. When I was a kid it seemed like there was one option: kibble, and grocery store brand at that. What a wonderful world we live in today.
AdventureJess says
I don’t know if you went to BlogPaws but one of the speakers mentioned that – in the 70’s you only had one type of dog food. There were a few different brands but basically one type for dogs….no puppy, grain-free, special diet. etc. Now there are so many choices it can be really confusing.
cyndiann says
There is no “marketing scheme”, I’m not selling anything. I’m guessing there is no reply allowed when you flamed me for a purpose. As for “shoving” my opinion, about every post on here does that. Actually it’s way more than opinion, I’m basing my words on facts.
The facts are that kibble is not what dogs should be eating, ever. If you look up what the government requires to call a dog food dog food you will know why big corporations are allowed to make stuff they say meets our pet’s nutritional needs when it doesn’t even come close. Commercial dog foods are made from the trash left over from human foods. Some of the most expensive ones have better ingredients but kibble is kibble. It is cooked so long that it has no vitamins and minerals left in it so they have to be added back in. Then they have to add flavor enhancers in too or else your dog won’t even eat it. Processed foods are bad for people and bad for dogs. Many of the dog foods sold in supermarkets contain road kill and worse (dead pets), and it comes from a rendering plant. If your pet food’s ingredients have the words “meat byproducts” on it you are feeding rendered food.
http://www.naturalnews.com/012647.html
http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/dog-food-industry-exposed/euthanized-pets-dog-food/
At least I know exactly what my dogs eat. Can you say the same? Have you ever researched exactly what went into the food you use?
Rosemary says
Cyndiann,
Everything you’ve said here is fact, as raw feeders we know this. And I don’t mean to be rude, but being aggressive is not going to convince anyone to change over to raw.
I researched a raw diet for 6 months before I made the change. I asked a lot of questions and read hundreds of sites and threads. I sat at my computer with my calculator working out ratios, called around to price meats and, and, and. I joined several Facebook pages. And I even argued a little with raw feeders because I wanted to get to the heart of the matter.
If someone has been feeding kibble all their lives it can be difficult for them to take such a huge leap, especially with all the disinformation out there.
If it wasn’t for the patience and openness of the people already feeding raw I might have given up and not made the change. I mean why would I want to pick the brains of a bunch of aggressive, impatient people? But the people I came in contact with were always happy to answer my questions and didn’t mind my arguments because they went through the same thing also before they made the change.
I always think of changing dogs to a raw diet like converting to a new religion. Raw feeding is diametrically opposed what most people do now and saw while growing up. Heck, my parents still feed kibble.
The point is, it’s better to share your opinion and experience in a nice way. That way the ‘raw-feeding-seed’ that’s been planted has the opportunity to grow.
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Rosemary says
Hi Jessica,
This is my first visit.
I’m a raw feeder too so love the pics for them digging in!
I feed a BARF diet because mine just would not dig the whole raw food. I prep all my own food. I’ve got the grinders and all! In terms of ratios – which is something Prey and BARF feeders always quarrel about, I actually follow the 80:10:10 rule. But I do ad supplements – natural ones only. Seasonal fruit and veggies, herbs, eggs and shells, virgin coconut oil, flax seeds, a tiny amount of garlic and chilies (yes, chilies) etc, etc.
Keeping teeth clean is another sticking point between Raw’s and BARF’S, but that’s easily fixed with 2 meals a week of raw bones with plenty of meat. Mine also get raw cow heels (not hooves) they love to chew the skin, little hairs off the sides and spend hours licking the marrow out of the middle.
I really don’t think it matter all that much what model we feed. It’s all good in the end!
My dogs look and smell fantastic and I’ve forgotten what my vet’s face looks like because we haven’t been there in longer than I can remember.
Sorry for the ramble, I’m just a raw feeding evangelist!
Regards,
Rosemary
Jessica Rhae says
Hi Rosemary. Welcome.
I’ll have to look into the raw cow’s heels. I feed my own dogs raw now but it’s pre-made raw and, as you know, that is ground so they don’t get the teeth cleaning action. I’ve tried giving them chicken necks but that proved to be dangerous. One of my pups scarfs her food… no matter what food it is or what method I use to deter her. She literally tries to swallow the chicken neck like a snake swallows a mouse – whole with no chewing. After he almost choking twice, I swore off chicken necks. I tired raw meaty bones but they don’t actually chew on the bone and there was very little meat still on them. Perhaps the cow heels are somewhere in between the two.
Thanks.
Caitlin says
I have never put a proper thought into a raw food diet for my dog so i decided to do a bit of research, as it is such a hot topic there are lots of opinions on this as well as lots of positives and negatives. From my research I have found that dog coats can help improve a dogs coat, promote healthier skin and keep their teeth cleaner. I have never tried it as my dog has always been on kibble but this is due to her needing her medicine mixed in with it. My dog has always enjoyed it and but it seems like a potential good option if she ever sent off her food, what do you think? A good back up plan?
Jessica Rhae says
Hi Catlin. I love feeding my dogs raw food. The benefits are many, including the ones that you list. There are a lot of pre-made formulas out there that are the consistency of canned dog food so it wouldn’t be an issue mixing any medication with it. If your dog needs medication though, I would check with your vet that your dog’s immune system is not compromised (which COULD make feeding raw dog food a risk because of the bacteria it inherently contains).