# Raw food



## chili (May 27, 2011)

How hard is a raw diet to feed if you take the dog on trips alot, Car and Plane trips? Does it have to be frozen or refrigarated? And is there any danger of the dogs getting clogged up because of the bone or food posion because of the raw meat, also what vegies do you feed aswell?


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## Brodysmom (Jan 8, 2009)

When we travel, I use a dehydrated raw such as ZiwiPeak or Stella and Chewys. No, those don't have to be refrigerated.

Dogs can get constipated from too much bone. You learn your dog and it's system and adjust bone content up or down as needed, trying to stay within the 10% recommendation for the diet.

No, I don't worry about food poisoning. Dogs aren't sterile, and neither is kibble. Salmonella has been cultured from kibble, there are numerous recalls. Dogs don't wear shoes, they lick their butts, they will eat rotten food they find outside or bugs or poop. Their systems are strong and their digestive acids will take care of bacteria.

I don't feed any veggies usually. If I am using a pre-made where veggies are included, then it is what it is. I prefer a prey model diet which is 80% meat, 10% bone and 10% organ with 5% being liver. That is all that is needed and/or required. Dogs GI systems don't have any use for vegetables or fruits, although many dogs like the taste of them and will eat them. They just pass on through.


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## Deerboy's Momma (May 23, 2011)

It needs to be frozen and preferably thawed, but I've fed Chip things that were pretty much frozen without issue. If you're going on a trip, you can just pre-cut the food, bag it, and put it in a cooler with ice.

The first few times you feed raw, I'd recommend watching your dog eat so that you can monitor how the bone is eaten- Chip crunches through his pretty well so I do not expect issues. It's cooked bones that are so dangerous- dogs' stomachs are MEANT to handle raw bones and meat. I do not worry about poisoning (I suppose you mean salmonella?) from meat because a dog's GI tract is too short for any damage to be done...did you know that the risk for salmonella is also there for regular kibble? 

I re-read what you wrote about food poisoning...if you freeze your food, you can feed years-old meat without issue. If you leave it out and let it spoil, then I personally wouldn't feed it...but you'd have to leave it out for a WHILE.

The beauty of a raw diet is that NO fruits/vegetables are needed. Carnivores need only meat, not grains! It's the BARF diet, not the raw diet, that requires all that extra stuff like vegetables. A raw diet consists of raw meaty bones, and organs. The ratio on a raw diet is 80/10/10: 80% meat, 10% bone, and 10% organ. Simple!


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## chili (May 27, 2011)

Thank you for the reply both were helpful. What suppliments do I need to use when feeding raw. Do dogs need vit c? can you recommend a place I can look for a nutritional brake down of the raw diet (vitamins, minerals etc..)


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## Deerboy's Momma (May 23, 2011)

chili said:


> Thank you for the reply both were helpful. What suppliments do I need to use when feeding raw. Do dogs need vit c? can you recommend a place I can look for a nutritional brake down of the raw diet (vitamins, minerals etc..)


No supplements are NEEDED, but lots of people do give their dogs fish oil capsules (they make these just for dogs, like they make them for humans) because, unfortunately, canned fish isn't great in frequent amounts because of the amount of salt and raw fish is very expensive (mainly because cod and tilapia, the only truly cheap raw fish fillets, don't provide the same sort of nutrients that salmon, etc. provides). 

http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/search/

^ That is a site that gives nutritional breakdowns.

Dedicated to proper carnivore nutrition - Prey Model Raw Feeding for Dogs & Cats

^ That is a site that I use/d when I was first starting out, but also when I have simple questions or want to reassure myself.

*EDIT:* I wanted to add that the nutrient breakdown site does NOT include the nutrients from the bones, since it was made for humans and we don't eat bones. A great deal of the nutrients come from the bones! Same with the fat, which is also likely not included since humans tend to not eat the fat. Cooking also destroys enzymes, which we don't need so much when we eat it, but dogs do as it aids their digestive system.


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