No Sushi Tonight Doggy!

My dogs almost never eat the same food two days running. There are a couple of reasons for this.

• “Variety is the spice of life”, for dogs too! Rotating foods provides an array of different nutrients (amino acids, vitamins, minerals etc.) at varying levels.

• Conversely, feeding one food day after day could potentially lead to deficiencies or excesses of certain food substrates that can negatively impact the health of your dog.

Some of the Foods My Dogs Eat

• Chicken Back
• Chicken Neck
• Chicken Quarters
• Turkey Back
• Turkey Neck
• Turkey Wing
• Ground Buffalo Tripe
• Beef Liver, Kidney, Heart (2-3X per week)
• Whole Eggs (2-3X per week)
• Whole Herring (once-ish per week)

With the exception of the buffalo tripe and the eggs, the common theme to the above foods is that they all contain meat and bone.

Many people feed meats without bone which could lead to a calcium deficiency unless, they’re feeding a ground meat and vegetable combination, where the veggies contain sufficient calcium.

Ideally though calcium should come from bone sources, as dogs eating a raw meat diet devoid of whole, crunchy, raw bone, will not benefit from the teeth cleaning action imparted by bone.

“Whole eggs” means without the shell. The shell can be a good source of calcium if your dog will eat it. My dogs won’t eat the shell but my Dalmatian used to.

Dogs tend to gulp first and ask questions later, so chicken wings and necks should not be given to large dogs. They may try and swallow them whole, putting them at risk of choking.

Herring in excess can cause a drop in thiamine (Vitamin B1), so I feed it once a week or so. Unless you’re on the west coast you probably won’t be able to find Herring anyway.

Also, if you live on the west coast of North America, you should avoid feeding your dog raw fish. Actually, one source I found said to avoid fresh water fish and a second source suggested that fish swimming upstream to breed (Salmon) should be avoided.

The problem is a microbe called Neorickettsia helminthocea, that lives in parasites that live in the fish. If dogs eat these microbe infected fish, they can develop the potentially fatal “Salmon Poisoning“. Better to be safe than sorry.

What Else Can I Feed My Dogs?

• Duck (whole)
• Rabbit (whole)
• Lamb
• Pork
• Ox Tail

You’re really only limited by your imagination and availability. Some Aussie’s feed kangaroo to their dogs.

Tasty Treats

There are only a few treats I give my dogs which I’ve mentioned in other posts and they are;

• PetKind Tripe Treats (my dogs’ favourite, paws down!)
• PureBites Freeze Dried Beef Liver
• Merrick Flossies (great for teeth cleaning)
• Bully Sticks (occasionally)

Disclaimer: The above information is not meant to be used to treat animals for medical problems nor should it take the place of proper veterinary medicine. For more information on raw canine diets, please contact a veterinarian who has experience with the diet and recommends it in their practice.

1. 9 Low Cost Foods You Can Buy to Start Your Dog on a Raw Diet
2. Veggies: A Place in the Raw Meaty Bones Diet For Dogs?
3. Are Chicken Bones Bad for Dogs? Yes and No.

Tagged as: flossies, merrick flossies, petkind, purebites, raw dog food, raw feeding, raw feeding for dogs, raw meaty bones, tripe treats