We switched our 2 boys to raw from kibble about 6 months ago. The switch came because we were simply exhausted from walking them 3 times a day because they had loose stool (we don't have fenced in yard, so we need to walk them to go to the bathroom). Our vet recommended more fiber in their diet to help with loose stool. This intuitively just didn't resonate with us. Basenji are one of the most ancient breeds of dog… why on earth would more fiber be a solution to their problem (I know the theoretical why, but logically it was counter-intuitive)? We read many sources or literature on the raw diet and thought this would be a good switch for them. Again, they are an ancient breed so moving toward raw foods seemed appropriate and logical. It took that about a month for them to get really accustomed to eating raw chicken quarters, rabbit halves or pork shoulders but now they have no problem gulping their meal right down, bone and all (for those of you who don't feed raw, gulping is a normal behavior and bone is an essential part of the diet). Their digestion issues have vanished and we've even seen marked improvement in their destructive behavior. Two super happy boys now, two super happy Basenji owners!!
Raw bones
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I went to the butcher today and got some rib bones for Gizmo.
The butcher told me to boil the bones for 1 hour before giving them to dogs, she had a dog herself.
I told her I had heard you should always give them raw, or else they will splinter. Which she replied; that does not happen with rib bones when you boil. I would expect a butcher to know what they are talking about…So what is the general rule when giving raw bones? Should you boil them? Or give raw? Do these rules change according to what type of bone?
Anyone know?
EDIT: I should of Googled before I asked...ah well.
Pretty much found the answer: http://www.sojos.com/giveyourdogabone.html -
I have never fed bones cooked and never would. Mine have rib bones regularly (just the right size for the pugs and Maya!) and they love them raw, preferably with plenty of meat still on them
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never cook the bones!!! I feed my dogs raw every day, and cooking bones is simply not done for the reason you allready mentioned
please keep in mind that a lot of people still do not know that raw feeding is an excellent way of feeding, a butcher is not a dog food expert -
please keep in mind that a lot of people still do not know that raw feeding is an excellent way of feeding
So very true. I had a lot of issues clear up when I introduced raw food to Kananga. Even though he only gets raw 1 out of the 2 meals every day, it still made a big difference with his stools and overall digestion. His teeth are looking nice too.
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there is also this prejudice on feeding raw that I hear a lot, and that is that people think dogs get worms because of eating raw meat, but in fact when you feed raw the intestinal flora and the gastric juices become way stronger and healthier > the body resistance gets higher. which makes that the chance of getting worms is actually smaller.
since I feed my dogs raw food, they never had diarhea , kennel cough, or infected eyes anymore and befor that they sometimes did have it. I feed raw now for 3 years and have fed other food for 6 years so I have a comperance to say this. It also helps preventing dental plaque and they enjoy it so much ! another good thing about it is that I never got the proper weight on my Ibizans, but with the raw food diet sometimes they are even a bit fatty! -
I give my 2 b's a raw small marrow bone every day. Don't cook them, and the butcher can cut them to the size you wish. I freeze them, and let the dogs lick the frozen marrow out…doggie ice cream! at least at my house.
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there is also this prejudice on feeding raw that I hear a lot, and that is that people think dogs get worms because of eating raw meat, but in fact when you feed raw the intestinal flora and the gastric juices become way stronger and healthier > the body resistance gets higher. which makes that the chance of getting worms is actually smaller.
since I feed my dogs raw food, they never had diarhea , kennel cough, or infected eyes anymore and befor that they sometimes did have it. I feed raw now for 3 years and have fed other food for 6 years so I have a comperance to say this. It also helps preventing dental plaque and they enjoy it so much ! another good thing about it is that I never got the proper weight on my Ibizans, but with the raw food diet sometimes they are even a bit fatty!Indeed.
Kananga used to have issues with loose stools. Mostly from general anxiety. I haven't seen loose stools from him ever since I switch him to raw for 50% of the time, ever.
I actually noticed Kananga getting a bit more lean on the raw food. Before he was a 1lbs or 2 overweight, didn't take long to shed that weight once he was on the raw food.
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I agree, no cooked bones for my dogs, they get theirs raw and love'em. Lamb pelvis bones are favorites as well as beef marrows. When I give them the lamb, all of the bones gets eaten up, the marrows get chewed, gnawed and licked to death, but much of the bones remain.
PS, I love Sojos by the way, it is what I supplement with if needed. -
My 2 b's dont' seem to react well to Lamb..at least the canned, kibble stuff.
So I avoid it for them. -
Sharron, lamb is really rich, so I only give mine the boney, not so much meat on parts, like pelvic bones, but yes, some dogs have issues with the richness.
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Just a question about bones, is there not a danger the Dog could break it's teeth ?
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Just a question about bones, is there not a danger the Dog could break it's teeth ?
yes there is, so therefor you have to feed them the so called "soft bones"
chicken , duck , fowl , rabbits , hares , calf ribs, goatribs, lambribs, cow cartilage etc not the big cow bones like legs or knees
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yes there is, so therefor you have to feed them the so called "soft bones"
chicken , duck , fowl , rabbits , hares , calf ribs, goatribs, lambribs, cow cartilage etc not the big cow bones like legs or knees
It depends on your dog too and their chew style. If you feed weight bearing bones (marrow, knuckles etc) you just need to keep a close eye on them.
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Every day I'm getting more and more tempted to try raw… The main thing that held me back before was the messiness and management issues. We don't crate the dogs while we feed them, just separate them in different rooms. I've offered Bowdu raw a long, long time ago and he wouldn't touch it. It may be a different story now...
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What about freezing bones? In that article I found (link in the first post) she mentioned putting them in the freezer, so I did with the other 3 rib bones.
Today I took one out and gave to Gizmo, and I was surprised how easily he could chew this on compared to the first one I gave him that was directly from the butchers.
Should I be worried about splinters after freezing them?
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It depends on your dog too and their chew style. If you feed weight bearing bones (marrow, knuckles etc) you just need to keep a close eye on them.
well they get knees/knuckles here too but we call those the "recreation bones" they are just for chewing not as dinner
I have heard a lot of stories about dogs that try to eat them and loose their teeth with it, so be carefull with it anyway! -
Every day I'm getting more and more tempted to try raw… The main thing that held me back before was the messiness and management issues. We don't crate the dogs while we feed them, just separate them in different rooms. I've offered Bowdu raw a long, long time ago and he wouldn't touch it. It may be a different story now...
a lot of dogs just need to get used to it, and they also will have their preferences, I also have these complete meat mixes in my freezer ( salmon mix / bird mix / meat mix etc ) those are allready grinded and complete, comes in handy in winter when I can not let my dogs outside for a long time to eat and in my house I do not want them to have raw chicken and fresh tripes etc haha
my dogs needed to get used to some food like liver, I cooked it slightly at first and then started to give it raw after they were used to the slightly cooked version, same with heart.here is a list of my dogs and their preferences so you can see how different it can be:
Jenson & Kalusha eat everything but Kalusha does not fancy fish only the salmon mix.
Solar, Smitthy and Cy eat everything but NO duck and they do not fancy goat meat also, goatribs are ok after they have been lying in the garden for a day or two…. ( the ribs not the dogs ofcourse haha ) they do not fancy fish, only the salmon mix.
when I give fish they try to burry it in my couch or roll in it.....no good idea...Barry only eats tripe, cartilage , lambribs, horse meat, cowmeat, fish and salmon heads he does not want to eat chicken or other birds!! when it is in a mix he eats it but not with pleasure haha, raw liver and raw heart neither.
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What about freezing bones? In that article I found (link in the first post) she mentioned putting them in the freezer, so I did with the other 3 rib bones.
Today I took one out and gave to Gizmo, and I was surprised how easily he could chew this on compared to the first one I gave him that was directly from the butchers.
Should I be worried about splinters after freezing them?
I do not know to be honoust….
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Ah, I see you mentioned ribs are "soft bones"…lol, I guess I was overreacting.
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Every day I'm getting more and more tempted to try raw… The main thing that held me back before was the messiness and management issues. We don't crate the dogs while we feed them, just separate them in different rooms. I've offered Bowdu raw a long, long time ago and he wouldn't touch it. It may be a different story now...
That's why I opted for the pre-made raw foods. I know it's cheaper to source things from butchers, but I don't want to deal with the mess. Kananga has a tendency to drag things around, i can't keep him on a towel or anything.
This is the manufacturer I use for his raw food:
http://www.primalpetfoods.com/
They are actually quite local for you since you're in Northern CA. My local pet store carries this stuff and Kananga absolutely loves it. It was about $16-17 for a 4lbs bag of 1oz nuggets (chicken based). 1 bag lasts me about 15-16 days when I feed him raw 1 meal per day (4oz per meal), so it's not terrible expensive.
I actually feed him the raw nuggets frozen because he eats it too quickly when thawed (does a nice job cleaning his teeth :)). It's really easy when you don't even have to thaw it out.
