Transitioning to raw

ClantyreSheltie said:
You can transition cold turkey. It might be a day or two of cannon butt, but if you stick to one protein source (like bone-in chicken) they adjust very quickly.

I don't feed wings at all because they tend to gulp those without chewing. The bigger the food the better, because they can't swallow it whole. Drumsticks are a good starter bony meat item. Thighs are good too.
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Okay! I'm going to try it tonight... Supervise each dog, of course. I'll report how it goes. I'm going to try drumsticks or the thighs like you suggested.
 
Well, I did! I gave them drumsticks... and they loved it! The puppies were a bit apprehensive at first, but once one of them went for it the other did. Hadley knew what to do right away, and looked like a pro at it! I admit I was a bit nervous when they started eating the bone... but they knew what to do and how much to bite off. I bought a pack so we will continue this for a week or so and see how it goes. It's been about 3 1/2 hours and no one has had Diarrhea... been outside a few times and they've pooped but nothing bad yet. I guess it does take longer to digest, though. I'm happy so far... I think over time that we will transition to mostly raw. I still don't see the harm in veggies/fruits... even if they don't need them-- it can't hurt and they enjoy them.
 
The first day is fun and a bit worrysome at the same time, no? On the first day I started raw I took the bone out of the meat, which was unnecessary but I was nervous, and didn't feed bone until the next day.
Good to hear it's going well for you so far!:smile2:

I don't feed veggies as part of the main diet, but my dogs do get them as snacks/treats if they like them.
 
marymrumfelt said:
Okay! I'm going to try it tonight... Supervise each dog, of course. I'll report how it goes. I'm going to try drumsticks or the thighs like you suggested.
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I'm glad that the puppies are doing good on thier first raw meal. I know it would be something I would consider,but I have no freezer,and with 4 dogs,I think it would be difficult.

I had toyed with the idea of just giving Earnhardt raw,and may still do that.After his ordeal with the rabbit hunt late in summer,and eating that whole bunny,he was quite proud of himself,and showed no signs of tummy issues.

I do feed chicken legs & Earnhardt gets two,I do it only once weekly.Mainly for teeth cleaning etc. Even Mia does well.

I know what you mean by being nervous about the bone,but they knew exactly what to do.
 
marymrumfelt said:
Well, I did! I gave them drumsticks... and though. I'm happy so far... I think over time that we will transition to mostly raw. I still don't see the harm in veggies/fruits... even if they don't need them-- it can't hurt and they enjoy them.
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during my massage seminar we discussed that after massage muscles release all toxic build up and need plenty of water to flush it out. Some people were saying that their dogs are not good water drinkers even after agility trial runs i.e. heavy activity. Other people shared tidbits that they bring fruits like watermelons and melons and let dogs enjoy them- plenty of water and helps electrolyte balance. Our trainer heartily agreed that giving dogs fruits is something that would only benefit. While discussions are going whether they "NEED" them I am happy to give to mine all fruits and veggies they want.
 
That's really good advice on there. I am going to bookmark these sites. I was having some difficulty finding good info:smile2:

I'm glad Hadley and the pups seem to have enjoyed their first raw meal without issues. Just wondering do older dogs adapt as well? I'm just thinking they might have become too stuck in their ways by the time they get to 7(Yogi) to suddenly start munching on a drumstick?

Also, the more I hear about raw the more I would like to feed my future shelties this way. I am hoping to be getting a new pup in the next year and was wondering how soon you could make the transition with a very young puppy. If for example it is used to eating dry from the breeder would you change gradually / suddenly and how soon after bringing home would changing diet be appropriate. I know ordinarily puppies shouldn't have their diets changed within the first week or so of coming home but is changing to raw different?
 
proteins in natural form just as Mother nature intended is simplest and easiest to transition IMHO. I went straight to transition both of my pups to raw right after I got them, I started with chicken necks, there were no issues. When my BIL got Sammy from rescue I just gave her raw along with my boys and she def knew what to do with it.
 
seashel said:
That's really good advice on there. I am going to bookmark these sites. I was having some difficulty finding good info:smile2:

I'm glad Hadley and the pups seem to have enjoyed their first raw meal without issues. Just wondering do older dogs adapt as well? I'm just thinking they might have become too stuck in their ways by the time they get to 7(Yogi) to suddenly start munching on a drumstick?

Also, the more I hear about raw the more I would like to feed my future shelties this way. I am hoping to be getting a new pup in the next year and was wondering how soon you could make the transition with a very young puppy. If for example it is used to eating dry from the breeder would you change gradually / suddenly and how soon after bringing home would changing diet be appropriate. I know ordinarily puppies shouldn't have their diets changed within the first week or so of coming home but is changing to raw different?
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You know, I don't know how old Hadley is, probably around three, and she took it like she had been doing it all her life. The pups were a bit more reluctant and licked it for a good while... then once they saw Hadley doing her thing they decided to try to tear it apart. It's kind of a pain w/so many dogs b/c I feel like I can only do one puppy at a time as I'm just not totally comfortable yet and like to be right there with them... I'm sure over time that will lessen (maybe!) I do think they know what they're doing, though.

Based on what I've read, changing them over as soon as you get them is just fine. I still haven't had any stomach issues and they just had their breakfast (a drum stick a piece) so hopefully it keeps up that way, but if not, I'm prepared for a few days of not so pleasant poops!

I've read about a lot of breeders who feed raw from the start, and ideally I'd like to find one like that next time I buy a pup. I wish I had done this more so when Hadley was nursing, but it's one of those things that takes a lot of researching(at least for me) I mainly got interested in it b/c Hadley's teeth aren't very clean and I saw a lot of pics of before/after and it seemed to really work. I can see why as all that gnawing really works the teeth. The only drawback to me is the blood they get in their face fur, lol esp my mixes who are fluffy and white in the face! Hadley even had blood on her blaze lol
 
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seashel said:
That's really good advice on there. I am going to bookmark these sites. I was having some difficulty finding good info:smile2:

I'm glad Hadley and the pups seem to have enjoyed their first raw meal without issues. Just wondering do older dogs adapt as well? I'm just thinking they might have become too stuck in their ways by the time they get to 7(Yogi) to suddenly start munching on a drumstick?

Also, the more I hear about raw the more I would like to feed my future shelties this way. I am hoping to be getting a new pup in the next year and was wondering how soon you could make the transition with a very young puppy. If for example it is used to eating dry from the breeder would you change gradually / suddenly and how soon after bringing home would changing diet be appropriate. I know ordinarily puppies shouldn't have their diets changed within the first week or so of coming home but is changing to raw different?
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I always think that one should choose their own path and what they are comfortable with but here is my story and why I switched.BTW I change to raw last year in Feb. Justice was 7yrs same as Yogi. He took to it like he had been eating it all his life with no issues what so ever.

Justice had ulcerative stomatitis,http://veterinarymedicine.dvm360.com/vetmed/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=141738&sk=&date=&pageID=3, it cause horrible bad breath and sores along his gum line. I had been fighting it for 3 yrs. Luckily he had lost no teeth from it but it was a struggle. It even affect his willingness to pick up his metal article in obedience. I was doing dental cleaning every 6 months, hand scaling every 3 months, brushing his teeth 2x daily and applying chlorhexadine solution 2x daily, doing pulse therapy with antibiotics every 3 months. Sometimes I need pred. to get the inflammation under control. I was very worried about long term effects and health. Then a friend of a friend told me about raw diet and I did some research and decided to try it. .

Justice was in need of a dental when I changed to raw. Within 2 weeks of starting all the tarter had been knocked off and his stomatis had improved by 50%. Even my mom who didn't know I changed his diet noticed immediately when she came to visit that the foul odor to his mouth was gone and asked me what I did. Now one year later, he still hasn't had a dental(it's been 1yr 9mons since the last one), I no longer hand scale, no longer do pulse antibiotics therapy, have not had to use pred, only brush and apply chlohexdine sol 1x daily and the stomatits is under control about 99%. That alone was enough to sell me on raw.

I started all my dogs on it cold turkey. No problems. I started with bone in chicken for 2 weeks and then added a new protein sources and then liver every couple weeks. Bock started grounded chicken with grounded bone and heart when he was weaned and now eats every thing the big dogs do. I think he got his first whole bone in piece of chicken when he was 7wks old and was crunching up the chicken bones by 9 wks. We did ground whole chicken until we were sure they could eat whole bone. He alo gets some kibble for training or an occasional meal.

If I got a new pup that was eating kibble, I would give them a week to get use to my home and then change them over. We changed Shiraz and Sangria over to kibble cold turkey the week before they went home when the new owners wanted to feed that. They handled it fine with no diarrhea or vomiting.

I use this for getting start as well as the already mention links. I also got Lew Olson book and that was very informative.
http://www.snovali.com/other/rawfoodprimer.pdf
 
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