When should I start raw feeding my dog
How To Start Feeding Your Dog Raw Food (Raw Dog Food For Beginners)
Thinking of feeding your dog a raw diet? Our raw dog food for beginners guide will help you navigate the tricky terrain of what, why and how to feed your dog on a raw diet.
Deciding to change your dogs food isnt a quick decision and its not always an easy one, but sometimes its necessary to find a balanced diet that will give them everything they need to be happy and healthy on the inside and out.
In this article, we are looking at raw dog food - specifically raw dog food for beginners and with the help of Stef from leading raw food brand Nutriment, well be answering some of the most common questions about raw including what to look for when choosing a raw dog food, how much to feed and average daily costs to get you started.
Raw dog food for beginners
If you are new to feeding raw and trying to work out if its right for your dog, heres a beginner's guide to raw dog food and five things you should know.
- The concept of feeding raw has been around for over 100 years and its known as the BARF diet (also referred to as the 'Biologically Appropriate Raw Food' and 'Bones and Raw Food' diet)
- At its core, its about feeding a more natural diet which involves getting the right balance of meat with bones, vegetables and superfoods so dogs get the right nutrients (and variety is key)
- Dog owners who feed raw report health benefits, including better skin and coat health, more consistent energy levels as well as improved digestion resulting in stools that are smaller, firmer and easier to deal with, according to Nutriment
- Storage space is key for planning ahead. If you buy raw dog food meals, these are usually delivered frozen
- Feeding your dog a balanced raw dog food diet can cost as little as 1.14 per day (based on feeding a complete diet to a 20kg adult dog)
Now, with the help and nutritional expertise of Stef, lets delve into each of these areas and explore a little more.
Raw dog food for beginners - a top tip: Feeding a raw diet that includes raw, meaty bones can provide your dog with a natural outlet for their chewing tendencies and may help with some anxiety issues.
What is raw dog food?
If you are new to raw dog food, its important to know the origins of the diet to understand if or how it could benefit your dog.
Stef shares the history of the BARF and how it transitioned into convenience food, explaining its rise in popularity in recent years.
Dogs have always been fed fresh real food until 1860 when an entrepreneur, James Spratt decided convenient pet food could appeal to the market. Spratt then developed the first commercial dry food for dogs."
Since then, in the same way, that convenience food has become popular for human diets, convenience food has also become popular for our pets.
In the last 10 years, raw pet food manufacturers have started creating nutritional meals, conveniently prepared and packaged, appealing to the modern pet owner from both a usability point of view, but more importantly to offer the very best nutrition for their pets.
Starting out with raw dog food: know the difference:
Just as with cooked food, there are also different types of raw food diets.
a) Commercial raw diets
These raw diets, which may be fresh or frozen, supply all of the dogs requirements and are typically in a meat patty form.
For the benefit of clarity, buying raw uncooked meats such as chicken, liver, turkey etc. direct from a butcher or other meat retailer would be classed as a commercial raw dog food diet.
b) Home-prepared raw diets
These types of raw diets usually consist of raw meat and bones, with some additional veggies, fruits, supplements, and added grains. These diets may not be balanced each day but, if designed properly, should meet the dogs requirements over the long term.
A beginner's question about raw dog food - is it safe & healthy?
In the past, the raw / BARF diet has sometimes been referred to as controversial. We asked Stef why this might be.
She explained that the BARF diet isnt controversial as such when you look at the biology of a dog and what they are able to digest efficiently, but DIY raw meal plans may be considered so in certain quarters (the veterinary world).
Feeding a raw diet seems different to other forms of feeding as we simply arent used to storing our pets food in the freezer, but ultimately this is the best way to preserve the freshness and integrity of the product without the need to include any artificial preservatives.
There is some controversy within veterinary professionals when it comes to those creating DIY raw meal plans that are deficient in essential nutrients. By sourcing reputable, complete and high-quality raw food you can be assured your pet is getting everything they nutritionally require for a healthy life.
As always we challenge pet owners to read the ingredients list on the packaging of what they feed and question ingredients they dont know or understand. With real food, there are no hiding ingredients and quality.
BARF is inspiring a new collection of pet owners who want better for their family members and who will research what is going into their pets diet.
5 benefits of the raw dog food diet
There is a long list of benefits that come from raw feeding and dogs of all breeds, ages and lifestyles can benefit from a raw diet.
A lot of dog owners report their dogs to have better skin and coat health, more consistent energy levels for their lifestyle, and improved digestion which results in stools that are smaller, firmer and easier to deal with, to name just a few.
Stef explains how dogs young and old can benefit from a raw diet.
If you start feeding raw food to puppies they will get the full benefit from the diet before the common issues associated with feeding kibble have a chance to occur, but of course you can start feeding a raw diet later in life too.
As always we suggest consulting with your vet, especially if there are any underlying health concerns, and our team of nutritionists are happy to talk through options for your dog or cat if you are interested.
A beginners guide to choosing raw dog food
It is incredibly important to make sure the nutritional balance of the food you are feeding is correct, and the best way to ensure your pet is getting everything they need is to source your products from reputable raw manufacturers - particularly those who are members of the PFMA.
Vitally important: Beginners must read this:
Feeding your dog stripped bones from the butcher (and nothing else) is NOT a raw diet. Whilst bones make up part of a raw diet they shouldnt be what you solely feed. Dogs require meat and organs too in order to balance a variety of vitamins and minerals required for healthy living.
In addition to this, they need carefully selected vegetables and superfoods to enhance those nutritional levels and meet the FEDIAF standards.
When feeding an unbalanced diet with nutritional deficiencies for a long period of time you run the risk of illness or disease occurring, so make sure youre feeding a complete food or supplementing accordingly.
The best place to start is to visit your local pet shop or get in touch directly with a brand that is a member of the PFMA (Pet Food Manufacturers Association).
We always advise you to start with a complete meal that is formulated to FEDIAF standards before looking at introducing raw meaty bones.
There is a lot of information available on websites of the leading brands in the UK and pet shops are extremely knowledgeable with the latest advice and information.
A complete and balanced raw diet will contain fresh vegetables and superfoods (natural supplements).
Stef suggested avoiding fillers such as rice, grains and potato or legumes such as peas, or foods with any more than a 15 per cent carbohydrate content.
If you cannot identify or pronounce one of the ingredients then investigate this before deciding to feed. It is also important to research the manufacturer, as the quality is extremely important with a raw diet too.
Raw dog food calculator: how much does raw dog food cost?
A lot of factors dictate how much it costs to feed a raw diet. We asked Stef to share the cost per day to feed a raw diet to a two-year-old Labrador to give us a guide.
Based on our high quality, premium products, feeding a 20kg adult dog a complete, balanced diet, could cost you as little as 1.14 per day.
Adult dogs generally need 2-3 per cent of their ideal body weight per day (e.g. 20kg dog = 400-600g per day) and growing puppies can require anything from 4-10 per cent depending on breed and activity level (e.g. 5kg puppy = 200-500g per day).
How to begin feeding your dog raw
To begin feeding your dog a raw diet, the most important thing to do is to find a complete, balanced ground raw meal.
Stef shares this advice.
Start off with bland, easily digested proteins such as chicken or turkey. Once your dog is eating these and you can see a better and consistent output, introduce one new protein at a time to their overall diet.
Variety is essential in a dog's diet to offer a wider profile of nutrients as well as give the dog a variety of flavours and textures. This will also keep mealtimes interesting.
We suggest an absolute minimum of three different proteins on the menu (balance comes over time so think of this spread across a week to ten days) but the more variety the better.
Do be mindful that some dogs with allergies, intolerances or underlying health concerns may need a more tailored diet, in which our qualified team can advise further.
Beginners questions on raw dog food
Q) Can switching to a raw diet help my dogs sensitive stomach?
Many dog owners have reported that switching their dogs to a raw diet has helped with food sensitivity and allergies. Any initial change of your dog's diet can cause some temporary problems, so knowing how and when to switch dog food is something to discuss with your vet.
It's important to recognise that simply switching a dog from one particular diet to another is not a magic solution for curing underlying health issues such as allergies.
Q) Is raw food better than dry kibble or cooked canned food?
A raw diet is just a different way of feeding dogs. Dogs in the wild eat raw. Domestic dogs have done well for many centuries on various commercially prepared foods.
Ultimately it comes down to finding the diet that works best for your dog and your circumstances.
It is true that thousands of raw dog food advocates speak in glowing terms about the benefits of raw dog food.
It's also true that millions of people also feed their dogs on a wide range of commercial, kibble-based food or canned/wet dog food and they are perfectly happy with the results.
The key here is to learn what works best for your dog.
Q) Arent bones dangerous to feed to my dog?
Cooked bones are dangerous and should never be given to dogs. They can splinter and they can be fatal.
Raw bones are soft, chewy and easy to digest. They're an essential part of a raw diet as they provide your dog with essential fatty acids and minerals as well as help to stimulate the production of saliva to prevent plaque buildup.
Q) How about the risk of Salmonella infection?
Ideally, your dog's gut can handle the bacteria as they are built to prevent harmful bacteria from invading the body. Their stomachs are highly acidic and contain natural digestive enzymes to process and help break bacteria down without getting ill.
We know for certain that dogs in the wild eat and consume raw, uncooked meat.
Salmonella and other nasty, unwanted health problems are not exclusive to raw meat. Many commercial pet foods have been recalled due to Salmonella risk.
Commercial grade kibble and wet food are nearly always based on a meat foundation so completely eliminating the risk of Salmonella or e-Coli are not enhanced or decreased when meat is the main source of the product.
Use high-quality, reputable suppliers. Always clean your own hands and uphold high hygiene standards when working with meat.
Did you know: Probiotics help to restore the normal healthy gut flora in the dogs digestive system and help to increase the number of so-called friendly bacteria in the gut? Find out why you should consider probiotics for your dogs..
