Need help

[sdma]

Hi,

I have been looking at BARF diets on the net and would like to start my boxer (15mths) on it. I discussed it with my vet and she said it was inadvisable to feed him raw chicken wings, or chicken bones for that matter due to the chance of them breaking and splintering.
Is this the case?
My dog normally gets fed raw pet mince, mixed with brown rice, small amount of rolled oats, canola oil and dry kibble.
Can someone please give me a simple starting out recipe for him to gradually intorduce him to this new diet. There are so many different diets out there, I just need something simple to start him off on.
Any help appreciated.
Thanks.

 

[Sam S]

Hi

When we first started our 2 on BARF we started simple then added things we felt ours needed.

Firstly, can I ask if you soak the dry food before you feed it? I was advised to soak it first as the dry food expands outside the dogs stomach which decreases the chance of bloat. If you do a search on "soak" or "soaking" you will find more info about it.

Secondly, why do you want to swap to BARF? Is your dog having problems with current diet, ie coat not good etc?

Your vet is incorrect about the bones splintering, "uncooked" chicken is fine (cooked chicken is bad ... the bones can splinter in cooked bones) . Chicken wings & necks are so soft that your dog will chew straight through them.

If you are unsure just hand feed your dog 1 wing or neck to see how they go, you will be amazed at how well they do!

The main mistake we made when changing over to BARF was to try to mix dry food & BARF ... we were over loading our dogs on certain nutrients which are found in both foods. This resulted in loose stools for a while.

there are a couple of sample diets in this link -
http://www.marimat.com/diet.html
http://www.marimat.com/diet_2.html

good luck

 

[Debbie Magon]

If you want to continue to feed dry foods I would feed a small amount of dry at one meal.
Whatever is 1/2 of the recommended daily allowance for your breed.
I would keep the raw foods for an entirely seperate meal.
Most find evening the easiest time to prepare raw foods.

You can start off with things like ground beef or lamb with the bone in or out.
To this you can add lightly cooked or raw veggies.
Bananas and apples are often enjoyed by Boxers.
When feeding raw veggies put them through a blender or whizz to pulp them.
Do not feed raw potatoes and never feed onions.
Raw eggs every second day are also good ,as well as natural yoghurt and cottage cheese.
You may also add multi vitamins, cold pressed flax seed or safflower oil and things like dried kelp and nutritional yeast.
If you continue to feed dry you may not need too many added vitamins and minerals, as good quality dry foods should already contain these in adeqauate amounts.
If you or your vets have concerns about bactaria on raw meats, simply freeze all meats for 10 days, defrosting before using. Store all raw foods covered in the refridgerator and throw out portions that are left in feed bowls.
As you and your dog progress you can add raw meaty bones chicken wings and necks and all sorts of other wonderful foods. Dogs adapt very well to raw foods as long as they have a variety and it is integrated into their uausl diet.
Some dogs do experience bowel problems and scouring.
If this happens it helps to add very well cooked white rice to all raw foods for a while.
This acts as a buffer for the bowels and assits the dogs digestive system to change over to the new diet.
Natural foods are excellent for everyone and the dog is no different.
As you learn more about raw foods and dietry needs you will experiment a lot more with fruits, veggies and meats.

 

[sdma]

Thank you both for your help,

I did not realise that about the dry food.(expanding)

The main reason I want to change him over to BARF, is that he has had a few health problems lately (a cough and his coat could be better)

I will slowly introduce him onto the BARF program, and see how he goes.

Cheers.