Making the jump to BARF

[Augie Dog]

They are loving it!

We are doing a lot of chicken and apples. Including carrots, cheese and eggs.

I went to the site that Mandy posted and they suggested whole eggs, shell and all. What a riot. They know what an egg is and could not wait to get at it. But we always cracked it open for them. They could not figure out to crack it. I started it out for them and that was it, GONE!

We are just figuring out how much is enough. They love veggies more than I thought they would.

Barfing is fun, every day we try something else besides the chicken. Yesterday was tomato soup! 4 cups of crushed tomatoes, a bottle of V8 and a bit of cream. We all had that for dinner!

[Augie Dog]

it's about 3 weeks now of 100% Barf. Neither one of them went nutz over dinner like they do now!

Differences:
1, the look of love in their eyes.
2, their coats, big time on buddy. it is like velvet.
3, teeth, whiter and whiter.

[Owen's Mom]

I know that when Owen was eating kibble, he'd nose his bowl around the apt. until he had sucessfully pushed it under the couch. I'd take it out later and he'd have a couple of bites, then replace it under the couch. For the past 2 or so years he's been eating raw he hasn't once pushed his food under the couch :D

[Mom of Freddie and FG]

Wow! That's great David. May I ask what website is it that Mandy suggested?

So, what is the exact recipe you feed? How did you learn how to make sure it was a balanced diet?
How long does each batch last? Would you say the BARF diet is cheaper overall? This just amazes me, however I am still skeptical. Heck, I never buy meat for myself, cause I don't cook, cause I don't have enough counter space to work with. But I love watching Emeril Live and the others on the Food Channel. <img border="0" alt="[facelick]" title="" src="graemlins/facelick.gif" />

Susan

[Augie Dog]

Mandy posted <a href="http://www.barfers.com" target="_blank">www.barfers.com</a>

That site gave me a lot of ideas. We have not been pre-making food. But, this is an idea.

Raw chicken thighs, they are cheap at SAMS. Aug loves to crunch the bones down. Bud did not know what to do at first but looked at Aug and cruched right in. Chicken necks, and backs too. Sardines, yup bones and all. Open up a can and they howl with delight! Beef and venison too. They do not like lamb though or liver.

Peas, green beans, carrots any veggie at all! Apples are big too.

We have cut out grains. I think that was most of their problems!

We are dealing with the portions now, starting to cut back.

[Owen's Mom]

Hey Augie Daddy...
As a BARF feeder for a couple of years now, and just from what I've learned over time... I Do not suggest feeding thighs or any weight baring bone for that matter. Especially to a small breed dog. They are a bit hard to digest and have been known to cause blockages and intestinal perforations. I strongly suggest sticking with necks and backs. If you're feeding beef muscle meat, be sure you're giving a bone meal supplement to balance the bone:meat ratio.

:) I just split a 40 lbs case of necks with two other dachsie BARF feeders... They're still frozen solid in block that started as a huge block of necks, then cut into 8 blocks by the butcher. Isn't it amazing how much joy the doggies take in chomping up a chicken piece? Cracks me up

[Mandy]

Thighs will also be off in the meat to bone ratio.

Wings are also good, as the actual meat:bone ratio is right at 50:50. I know chicken wings can be expensive in stores, but we have found a place about an hour away from us where we can get turkey backs and wings for really cheap (we have to chop them up though - turkeys are big) :) We also keep an eye out for good deals on any other types of RMBs that we feed.

Grains are notorious for causing problems in dogs - especially allergies. Their bodies aren't built to digest grains.

[Augie Dog]

Ok, here's a ratio question then (i guess)

If I fed chicken wings, how many wings would I give for a Jakey sized dog? Will you mix up green beans and carrots too?

[Owen's Mom]

Well... I'm not exactly sure what a Jakey size dog is... but Owen is about 26 lbs and and the basic BARF rule is to feed 2% of your dog's body weight in food. What does this mean exactly? Well 2% of 26 lbs is about half of a pound. I'll bet I feed just about that. I don't follow a weight measure so much as an "Owen Measure"... as long as he stays at 26 lbs I just keep feeding him the same amount of food. If he goes over, I cut back a bit and he's never gone under since he's filled out to his adult body.

I feed Steve's Real Food as the base, and if I feed it alone I feed 25-26 cubes a day. IF I throw him a couple of chicken necks then I reduce it by 10 or 15 cubes, depending on the size of the necks. As for the veggies, I assume you're pulping them in a blender or food processor and adding the proper supplements (Flax seed oil, Vit E etc)... You can feed the veggie glop at the same time as you feed the meat portions.

<img src="http://imagem.webphotos.iwon.com/1000010668/211781.jpg" alt="" />

[Mandy]

For comparison, Jakey is about 13.5 to 14 pounds, and Henry is closer to 16.5 or so pounds. However, Jake has a faster metabolism than Henry and is also more active.

1/3 pound happens to work well for both of our guys. This is in between 2 and 3 % of Jake's body weight and just under 2 % for Henry. 2-3% is the target area to start with, and then tweak for each dog as necessary.

We don't weigh out their meals. We have an idea of how much they are getting and base whether it is correct or not by how they are doing - staying at the same weight, putting on a little, getting a little slimmer, etc.

We buy RMBs in bulk. Most of the chicken wings we get are bigger wings and average around 1/3 pound. So, if we buy 10 pounds, and we count and find 30 wings of approximately the same size...10/30 = 1/3 pound each. We do this with whatever RMBs we buy. When we get home, we split up the RMBs into enough for a day (for both boys or for three when we have had a foster). We throw the bags in the freezer and pull out as needed. It's easier for us this way as we don't end up with a big block of RMBs in the freezer.

We don't try to feed everything (RMBs, veggies, offal, etc.) at every meal, either. The key is balance over time (say a 2-3 week period or even a week if you feel better with that). So, they get mainly RMB meals, with some veggie meals, etc. Although offal meals didn't go over well, so organ meats are mixed in with veggie meals at our house. They also get rec bones, usually on the weekends.

We are more in the Basic BARF category, so we don't do a lot of supplementing. If you are using a good variety and getting balance over time, the diet is complete. We do add some salmon oil to some meals though. Some dogs do fine with flax seed oil, but quite a few don't (back to the whole grain issue), so generally it's better to use a form of fish oil (both are used for goodies such as omegas).

So, to find the amount of food to start with (and then tweak as needed for the individual dog), multiply the IDEAL adult weight by .02 and .03. Start in that range. Remember this is based on the ideal weight - if you were working with an overweight dog, you obviously wouldn't want to be feeding them 2-3% of the current weight since they would be eating more than they need to. And vice versa, you wouldn't want to feed an underweight dog based on their current weight because they wouldn't be gaining.

oh, and those amounts are for the entire day. So, if you feed twice a day, don't feed 2% at each meal...split the entire amount up.