Piper's mom
Moderator
Very interesting read RikyR...I switched my dogs cold turkey to raw but I do sometimes give them sweet potato with their food...I'll stop doing that for sure now!
Stay with Wellness Grain Free????
- Thread starter Pam
- Start date
Caro, Yes he is definitely on the high herding/prey drive side--no doubt. And he does behave well to commands. But he is also incredibly hyper. During the warm months he often got up to 4 or more hours of walks/play running a day and is still never tired. I have owned 3 GSDs and two other shelties--none were like my Beau. My sister owns an English Shephard and a Border Collie, she previously owned a Samie--they are/were calmer. He just doesn't often wind down. I love him, and he is great as long as he gets an incredible amount of energy outlet, but he is incredibly exhausting just to keep busy and out of trouble and not reactive. I work with children with ASD and I know that even small changes in diet often can help, no huge change but small adjustments. I am willing to see if maybe his diet is aggravating his hyperness. I don't expect any major change, but I have noticed that on days when I have given him bones filled with cheese he is much calmer, but I don't want the fat content.
I have signed up for lessons 2 times a week, hopefully those will tire him out a bit.
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I don't have anywhere to store case lots of raw meat LOL.
Question: Can I feed dry and/or canned at meals (morning & evening) and give raw bones in between--say mid afternoon? Is that safe?
Margi
Premium Member
First thing I bought was a small cheap chest freezer from walmart! It has paid for itself a million times over. Also now have room for extra for us
When there's a sale on meat you have the room to stock up, case lot or no. I can spot the Woo-Hoo sticker on discounted meat a mile away. Our Fry's often has meat about to expire as low as 50-99 cents lb. I'll buy all they have.
I guess I don't see the benefit of feeding both processed and raw food... but I can't see where it would be harmful. However I am not a digestive expert either LOL
The benefit is in the bones--raw bones are easier on the teeth, etc. Not in the diet. I have on occasion given Beau chicken backs and seen no digestive issues, and no signs of discomfort. I don't really have anywhere to put a freezer right now. I may think about total raw in the future but would need to learn about the necessary supplements, etc as my vet has advised that raw meat alone is not balanced enough. I guess I have been lucky my GSDs all lived very long healthy lives on canned food, the last one was 17 1/2 when she died. My first sheltie was also a very old lady--almost 16. Unfortunately, my Shadow, my heart dog, who was a sheltie and my dog just prior to Beau, contracted bone cancer at the age of 11. It was heartbreaking and hence, my quest for learning about healthy diets.First thing I bought was a small cheap chest freezer from walmart! It has paid for itself a million times over. Also now have room for extra for us
When there's a sale on meat you have the room to stock up, case lot or no. I can spot the Woo-Hoo sticker on discounted meat a mile away. Our Fry's often has meat about to expire as low as 50-99 cents lb. I'll buy all they have.
I guess I don't see the benefit of feeding both processed and raw food... but I can't see where it would be harmful. However I am not a digestive expert either LOL
Ann
Moderator
I do know lots of people who feed kibble or canned and supplement with raw bones for treats in between. I think you'd be fine with that.
Piper's mom
Moderator
I usually do the food a month at a time (I also need to buy a bigger freezer) and freeze in containers with enough for 2 days and it only takes me perhaps an hour to get everything prepped. I usually buy my meat as I catch the sales (like Margi I too can see the reduced stickers from far away but here in Canada we don't have as good prices as you do) and freeze. If your looking for good prices on chicken backs check out your local chicken producers and see if they sell to the public and a good local butcher may be willing to sell to you for much less. I would think if your feeding the bones at least a couple hours after the kibble (they have a pretty fast digestive system) you should be ok. I also follow Rodney Habib (Planet Paws) on Facebook...he has great tips and recipes on feeding raw.
Thanks for the info. I will keep trying the chicken backs a few times a week mid-day and see how that goes. In the meantime I am supplementing his food with cooked chicken or other meat (whatever we are eating cooked without spices, etc) to increase the protein/carb ratio, my vet helped me on that idea.
Haha--chicken producers. I live in the NYC metro area, in a town 1 sq mile with 14,000 residents. Farms are a couple of hours drive away. My hope is to move in a couple years to a BIG sheltie friendly backyard and near where things are grown
I've had enough of the metro area.