Raw Food

Dogs, in my opinion, should eat, as far as possible, a raw diet: raw meat, liquidised raw fruit and vegetables, and raw bones. It’s simple to feed, and, as your own common sense will tell you, it’s what dogs are designed to eat. Here’s how a raw diet works:

The Rules

Dogs should be fed on a variety of raw meat and bones. Just sticking to one meat source will deprive the dog of nutrients. Do not feed pork. If your dog has a skin or bowel problem, do not initially feed beef; wait until you’re sure that it won’t cause hypersensitivitaminy, and then introduce gradually. Raw chicken wings can also be fed as a meat source two or three times a week and are ideal for small dogs and puppies. Never give cooked bones; they are prone to splinter and can cause internal problems for your pet. Raw bones are easily chewed and digested, and provide much-needed minerals.

Daily Quantities of Raw Meat

For every 10kg of body weight, a dog should eat 100–150g of meat. This is only a guideline to start: if your dog is gaining weight, reduce the quantity; if it is losing weight, increase it. Chicken wings should be counted as meat, but meaty bones should be fed, in addition to meat, at least twice weekly for teeth cleaning and to supply calcium. Ensure your dog is getting sufficient bones each week in the mince fed or as bones outside mealtimes. Minces with ground bone content are an excellent source of calcium.

For every handful of meat, feed two handfuls of liquidised raw fruit and vegetables * – a bit like ‘meat-and-two-vegetables’! Freshly ground-up nuts, ground-up seeds, herbs and cooked beans should be added to the ‘vegetables’ portion. If you don’t think you can feed an ample variety of foods use a supplement such as Missing Link (from pet shops).

Feed fresh viscera once a week instead of meaty bones (heart, kidney, lung or liver). Remember, wild animals as a food source come with viscera as well as meat and bones; it’s a necessary part of a balanced diet, however distasteful it may appear. Vary the organ meat weekly. Treats can include baked liver cubes, fruit and vegetables portions or dried fruit (not raisins).

Do not feed cereals or rice (mixer biscuits or treats). Do not feed raisins. Other dried fruit are fine. Buckwheat/cous cous and quinoa are good fillers as they are not cereals.

* Take any vegetables, especially green-leaved ones, fruit and salad items and place in the liquidiser. You can use just one or two ingredients at any one liquidising, but make sure you have variety from week to week. Blend to a rough broth. If necessary, add some water. Pour the liquidised mix onto the meat until you have a meat-to-veg ratio of 1:2 by volume. If your dog is ill or old, you should take a few days to slowly and gradually switch to the new rÉgime. You can feed once or twice daily.

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