# Don't know where to start!



## Buildthemskywards (Jun 16, 2012)

Hi. I have a lot of questions as this is my very first pet of my own, so please be patient with me and thanks in advance!

I went to buy puppy food today. I wanted to feed half dry and half wet food as this is what was recommended by Chihuahuas for dummies. I like the idea of raw feeding but I find it all overwhelmingly confusing, I don't really like handling raw meet and I don't trust myself to get the balance right or be consistent enough. 

My first question is... I got bakers complete dry food for puppies as Chihuahas for dummies said a complete meal had better nutrients and I got pedigree puppy pouches for the wet food. The breeder had some of this at her house but said that they don't stick to just one food. Are these foods ok? I can post the ingredients if needed. 

My second question is how much should I feed him? I don't know how much he weighs, but he is an average size 8 week old Chi puppy. His mum and dad looked a normal size, I'd say around 6lbs ish. Thr dry food said to feed between 30 and 120g to a dog between 6 and 12 weeks for an expected weight of up to 5kg and the wet food says 2 pouches per day for an 8 week old puppy with an expected adult weight of 5k, split into 4 meals per day. Each pouch is 150g. 

My third and final question is can I supplement with raw for the odd meal or do I have to be consistent with it? Also, someone said they fed their dog canned fish (I think it was herring or something) ...Is this ok? Could I substitute s pouch for a can of oily fish? 

Sorry if I sound a bit clueless! Thanks in advance for any help xox


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## IeshaNicky (Jan 21, 2012)

To be honest Bakers and Pedigree are one of the worst foods dogs can have, sorry to be the bearer of bad news. Nature diet food is good normally available at most places as well as James Wellbeloved. Although ZP or Ziwipeak or Orijens are the best ones but they have to be order online and might not arrive in time. 

Also what the breeder said about changing the food is kind of true, some Chihuahua's can be extremely picky. However I found with ZP even my two picky devils, chew it down no problems. 

With regards to how much to feed 3 to 4 meals will be good, however you will have to weight the pup when you get him to be sure exactly the amount to give. But your calculations of what to feed seem on the right route. 

The only thing I cant help with is the raw diet as I have no experience, but I am sure someone will help you out. 

Hope this helps.


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## pupluv168 (Mar 7, 2012)

As Iesha said, those food are not very good. I'd recommend Ziwipeak, Acana, Orijen, and Blue Buffalo Wilderness. James Wellbeloved is a recommended brand in the UK- I don't live there, but it gets good reviews. A good website to consult for food reviews is Dog Food Analysis - Reviews of kibble. Good luck finding a good food.

You need to get him weighed. Chihuahua puppies can greatly vary in weight. The breeder didn't tell you how much he weighs? Once you know, follow the serving directions. If you are feeding wet and dry food you need to give less of each so he doesn't gain weight. 

Yes. You can supplement with raw. Many people feed kibble and supplement with raw meaty bones for dental care and additional nutrition.


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## Wicked Pixie (Oct 14, 2011)

Firstly, don't panic, a good breeder should send the pup home with a diet sheet of exactly what he has been fed. You don't want to overload his system with new foods as well as a new home, so most people feed exactly what the breeder has, at least to begin with. Then any changes are made very gradually.
Personally I wouldn't feed Bakers to anything, especially not a growing puppy! It has a great marketing campaign, but nutritionally it is possibly the worst food out there.
You want to find a food with high quality meat-based protein, no artificial additives (Bakers has loads) and free from fillers such as wheat and soya. Dogs don't actually need grain at all, it just bulks out the food and makes it cheaper to produce
With this tiny breed every bite counts.
If you want to feed a complete dry food (AKA kibble) I would recommend James Wellbeloved grain free formula, as the best British made complete food. 
There are also lots of excellent imported complete foods, but you may have to order these online.
If you want to do raw, there is a lot of help and support available through this forum. Or you can use pre-made raw, either in dried form like Ziwi Peak or Stella & Chewy's (again, imported, a lot of members on here feed these complete dried raw diets) or pre-made frozen, such as Natural Instinct. 
This is easy to feed, and is nutritionally balanced. You just defrost a tub overnight in the fridge, then serve the appropriate amount. It is an excellent way in to raw feeding. They have a very good website Natural Instinct - Home and the customer service is excellent; they will happily answer your feeding questions. 
As will we, so don't feel bad about asking. The pet food industry is worth millions, so doesn't necessarily put your dogs well-being first, making it hard to know who to believe/trust.


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## carrieandcricket (Dec 6, 2011)

You can go to dogfoodadvisor.com, and find a really good quality food. Pedigree, and Bakers aren't that good. I feed blue buffalo wilderness canned, but they have that in dry food too.


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## Buildthemskywards (Jun 16, 2012)

That's where I'm confused. I've read so many different things. I've read a lot of good stuff about raw, but there's raw and then barf and Chihuahuas for dummies didn't seem to like raw and said to never feed eggs but others say eggs are great. Some say listen to your vet, others say vet recommended are the worst because they're paid to recommend it. So many different opinions! I only got a small amount of these as that's what the breeder had been feeding, so I'll have a look online for some of the suggested ones as I've not seen them about. Thanks for the link. And thanks to everyone for the advice =)


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## Bentley J (Jun 26, 2012)

you can get James wellbeloved at a good price Pet Supplies Store: Pet Planet, the UK's #1 Pet Store and a good variety of different flavors in James wellbeloved dry food at a reasonable price ChemistDirect.co.uk hope this helps its where i ordered mine from after getting advice from forum


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## Chi Nation (Mar 7, 2012)

Before i switched to raw i fed Innova EVO Small bites. Its a 6 star rated feed and the also have canned foods as well. Another good one is Solid Gold- Justa Wee Bit. Its all natural and holistic with no grain, wheat, or corn and they use fresh bison as the meat source. Solid Gold is also much more affordable them most of the others.


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## Buildthemskywards (Jun 16, 2012)

I've been looking into ziwipeak. Is it ok to feed a puppy given that it's not specifically for a puppy. How much aprox. Should I be feeding? (so I can figure out how much I need/how long it will last). Also, I read on here that raw is digested at different rates to kibble so to serve them seperately. So, if I'm feeding ziwipeak instead of kibble is it ok to give raw at the same time? 

Thanks.


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## susan davis (Mar 25, 2011)

You can mix kibble and raw together. It's done all the time. Where they get this idea that you can't mix 'em together because of digestion issues I don't know. Sue


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## Wicked Pixie (Oct 14, 2011)

Ziwi Peak is raw, just dehydrated. It is expensive, but Chihuahuas only eat a tiny amount, so if you can afford the initial outlay it would be an excellent choice.


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## LBChi (Mar 12, 2012)

Just my opinion raw is best, but if you feed kibble Acana or Origen are the best. 
I feed mine part if a chicken wing a couple days a week, then chica gets Origen and Guillermo gets acana only because he can't take the protein content in the Origen. I would like to do 100% raw though.


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## Buildthemskywards (Jun 16, 2012)

I can get Ziwipeak delivered from Amazon and worked out, based on him being 2.2lbs (which I don't think he is) that it would cost 23p per day to feed so I think that's a bargain for a happy, healthy dog. I'd just be feeding the dried stuff rather than the canned, is that ok? I can afford to get it as I'll only have to pay for it once every 2 months or so. Then I'll supplement with raw chicken and bones and stuff when they're available. What is everyone's opinions on giving eggs?


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## carrieandcricket (Dec 6, 2011)

Some people give raw eggs in the shell so the dog can crack them open, and some give cooked. I think it just depends on the person. I do both. I don't let Cricket crack open the shell though I pour a raw egg onto a plate and she licks it right up.


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## Wicked Pixie (Oct 14, 2011)

That sounds perfect. Is it really only 23p a day? That really is a bargain. I feed eggs occasionally, usually when I have been making scrambled eggs. They get about a quarter of an egg each, raw, mixed in with their meat.


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## Buildthemskywards (Jun 16, 2012)

Wicked Pixie said:


> That sounds perfect. Is it really only 23p a day? That really is a bargain. I feed eggs occasionally, usually when I have been making scrambled eggs. They get about a quarter of an egg each, raw, mixed in with their meat.


It's 14.99 on amazon for the lamb one and the chart said for a 2.2lb (1kg) dog they should be fed a third of a measuring cup a day and that there are 53 servings in the pack which works out at 28p per day. I think the venison one worked out at 33p per day. I'll definitely be ordering some of that! Free delivery too. Think I'll get some of their treats while I'm at it. It's been a bit of a heavy month spending wise so I'll have to wait till next month but I don't want to change his food while he's changing home too anyway. After that it will be Ziwipeak all the way. Thanks for all the info and recommendations.


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## Wicked Pixie (Oct 14, 2011)

Just had a quick look, and if you spend over £39 you qualify for free delivery from Pet Planet, and they are a couple of pounds cheaper than Amazon for Ziwi Peak. (£67.99 for 5kg instead of £69.99) They stock the cans and treats as well.
ZiwiPeak Dog Food for Sale


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