Dachshunds and BARF

[MarkR]

Question: I am considering getting a dachshund in the next couple of months, and I am wondering if anyone uses BARF with their dachshund? The bones possibly getting stuck in their throats kind of concerns me. Do most of you grind them up first or mix ground-up bones with small, whole bones? Also, how much do you generally feed in a day? I have been researching BARF for some time and I am just curious as to how you incorporate the BARF Diet into your dachshund's life. Thanks for the help! Any additional help or concerns would be appreciated.

[Mark]

Hi Mark,

I'm sure Amy (Owen's Mom) uses and swears by BARF. There may even be a few others. I'm sure they will post and advise. I hear good things about it.

Mark

[Owen's Mom]

So very true!! I feed and swear by BARF. I primarily feed Steve's Real Food, as it's simply convenient, though it's not available in all areas of the country. Here's the site http://www.realdogfood.com/ And I stretch it with chicken and turkey backs and necks along with meaty beef and lamb bones here and there. I've not had one single problem with the bones getting stuck, and I'm a pretty vigilant momma. There have been times he's tried to swallow too big of a piece at once, but trust me, he easily brings it back up and re-chews.

Here are a couple of great BARF info sites
http://www.willowglen.com/barf.htm http://members.home.net/mstraus/barfref.html

I took some pictures of him eating some bones last week, I'll post them when I get them developed. He LOVES to work them!! Hope that helps a little.



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~~Amy & Owen~~
22.8 lbs of Black and Tan Standard Muscle!!
www.dachshundrescue.org

[DavidJ]

I recently started BARF with Bogey, my nearly 5 month old mini. Since we're just starting out I can't offer a lot of solid advice yet but all is going very well. I have not had any problems with bones. I feed ground meat and bones. So far I have fed chicken bones (which I smashed with a cooking hammer), chicken cartilage (which I ground up a bit) and some large pork bones which I gave to Bogey straight. Someone said the pork bones were shoulder bones but I'm not sure. They had large joints on the end. He really liked them so I'm thinking of giving these to him twice a week.

I usually make a mixture of vegetables and ground meat and bone material which I feed three times a day. I am not sure how to explain the amount. I don't really measure anything except the proportion of meat to bone in the mixture which I try to keep at 50/50 (He gets more bone from the pork bones I give him twice a week) and the proportion of meat/bone to the veggies in the mix which I try to keep at about 70% to 30%. I give him what I'm guessing is about a third of a cup of this mixture for each meal. He then gets snacks like canned or raw fish, yogurt, or figs depending on how thin/heavy he seems to be.

He is very healthy with all the usual BARF side effects, ie, beautiful coat, high energy, sparkling teeth, no smell, etc.

Hope that helps a bit.

David

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David, Saori and Bogey
Tsukuba, Japan
http://bogey.sa-da.com

[Susan'sFreddie98]

Mark,

Glad Amy saw your post, she's our "official" BARF gal!http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/biggrin.gif She's used it with Owen for a good year now and has had NO problems. So she's the expert on the subject and can help ya a lot!

Susan

[pkmiddler]

The BARF Dr. from England is going to do 3 semenars is the U.S. check the infodog site for where maybe 1 is near you.

[Timber]

What's BARF?

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Tiffany
Timberland Kennels
Miniature Smooth Dachshunds

[Krista]

Its a philosophy of feeding pets raw foods that would be comparable to what their species might eat in the wild.

Biologically Appropriate Raw Foods
or Bones And Raw Foods.

If I had a chest freezer, a good butcher, and a little more time, I'd be doing it too.

I feed the RR boys a raw diet on Sundays, for now that's all I can manage.

[Mandy]

Can anyone who feeds BARF give an estimate on about how much it costs to feed a dachsie using this method? I know this might be a consideration for anyone considering this diet.

[Krista]

I only feed raw one day a week, so I really can't say....

I do know that it can vary dramatically though, since the prices on the food items vary so much and there are other issues to consider that affect price as well.

It seems to me that people that have freezer chests and the like can do it cheaply because buying 10-40lbs of bones,chicken backs/necks/wings, organ meats..etc is from wholesalers is much cheaper than buying 2 pounds at your grocer or butcher.

Then there is the question of feeding organic meats, vegetables, and dairy products which cost more than others.

Also the prices on items in season or produced near by will be cheaper than other items, so it depends on where you live too.

Then you also have to think about whether you will be feeding grains or not, as grains are cheaper (though not as nutritious or digestible -and some dogs don't tolerate them) than meats/veggies/fruits/dairy.

Also some areas just have better resources. I hear of people that get veggie and fruit pulp from places that make healthy smoothies and juice drinks. Some people get venison from local hunters.

Then there's the question of supplements, which also affect price.

You also need books and such to help you learn how to do it right, and perhaps a visit with a nutritionist too...but then there's the liklihood of savings in vet bills and dental care among other things.

I'd say prices can vary as widely as the prices on kibbles do, if not more so.

While I'm sure that was not the answer you are looking for, these are things to think about and they are things I'm considering as I learn about it.