SWITCHING TO RAW DOG FOOD

TIPS & TRICKS

OK, let's be realistic about this. Dogs can be quite stubborn when it comes to changing their food. Some are more than happy, some turn up their nose and give you "the look"- you know the look I mean?

Just before I start on the tips, I'll tell you a quick story.

Our daughter, Michelle, moved in with us some 6 months ago, along with her Russian Blue cat named Beautiful. I, of course, couldn't help but voice my opinion on the dried biscuits and vacuum sealed rubbish that she was feeding Beautiful. I was told (in no uncertain terms) that Beautiful was extremely fussy and would only eat one particular brand and flavour of dried food and one brand and two flavours of the vacuum sealed garbage. It was decided that Beautiful would be fed on top of a cuboard (which meant that Miss Jak couldn't raid her food dish). I don't know about your dog, but Maltese by nature, are little hunters and scavengers and out little Miss Jak is quite adept at catching a bit of her own food (moths, bugs etc) and I am sure she would try to help beautiful eat her rubbishy food as well.

A month or so went by and we noticed that Beautiful was helping herself to Jak's food. Not much, just a little nibble on the way past now and again. I mentioned this to Michelle and she laughed, saying that she would only be smelling it - not eating.

Well, to cut a long story short - Beautiful now raids Jaks dish constantly. At first she only ate the mince, then she started on the strips of meat, now she eats the chicken necks and even the wings!

So, this "very fussy cat" switched herself to RAW food. Her other food wasn't withdrawn - it was always available. She CHOSE to eat RAW FOOD. There was also a nice side-effects, her coat smoother and more shiny and she doesn't leave so much of it lying around the furniture either (hurray!). She has also lost weight and seems to be a totally different cat. I like to think her disposition has improved also - but maybe that's just my imagination.

OK, I have digressed .......

Now I will tell you the main reason why people fail to switch their dogs (or cats) to RAW.

It's YOU!!!!

You will be the one who feels guilty (you will give in to those pleading eyes that say please give me the junk that I've always eaten).

You will be the one who worries about their dog "starving to death" (no animal will starve to death when there is food available - they are not as silly as we humans. It just makes YOU feel better to tell yourself you are saving them from starvation by feeding them junk.)

You will be the one who is weak and gives in (you will be so stressed out that your dog hasn't eaten that you will weaken and feed it more junk food).

You will be the one who makes the excuses eg. "Oh, I've tried everything, but Tootsie just refuses to eat raw food" (yeah, blame the dog, when it's your fault for not being strong enough).

You will be the one who lies to themselves, eg. "I cook Tootsie nice fresh chicken and vegetables, so thats good for her" (lying to yourself might make you feel better - but it's no good for your dog). You get the picture?

Dogs eat to live. Sure, even in the wild they may have their preferences, one may prefer rabbit, one may prefer chicken, but essentially they eat to live. We humans have asserted our will (once again) and fed our animals with totally inappropriate food from the time they are old enough to eat. They don't know any different. It is our responsibility to rectify this.

Dogs that have never eaten raw meat and bones will probably not know what to make of this new healthy food that you have placed before them. They may react in various ways. Some may eat it and lick their lips with pleasure. Some may try to hide it. Others may sit and guard it. A few may pick it up and put it down again, unsure of what to do with it. Others may just walk away in disgust.

The best way to approach the switch is to make sure your dog is really hungry before starting.

At this point, it would be appropriate to advise that dogs in the wild do not eat every day. Not only because they may not find food, but because they don't need it. They have an internal system that enables them to eat a huge amount of food at one time and they don't go out to hunt for food again until their stomach is empty. We humans are the ones who have "conditioned" the dog into a daily (or twice daily) feeding regime.

Having pointed out this fact, you should feel a little better about making sure your dog is hungry before starting to switch.

A good general rule, particularly when first starting to feed raw, is to feed sparingly for the first few days. This is very important when switching one of the larger dog breeds, or an individual that will eat and gorge on anything. In such cases, feed no more than two-thirds of what is required, which should be divided into several small meals, spread throughout the day.

For very fussy eaters we have found the best way to switch them to raw food is by lightly cooking the raw food to tempt them, then gradually decrease the amount of cooking until they are accepting the food totally raw.

Please refrain from feeding half raw food and half of the old food (ie, kibble or tinned food) as the foods are so drastically different and will more than likely cause gastrointestinal upsets when in the stomach at the same time.

During the switch process, some dogs may experience diarrhea and/or occasional vomiting (which is usually over and done with in a day or so).

Detox

In effect, switching your dog to RAW food is in fact detoxing his/her body. This means the shedding of toxins in the body as the RAW diet works it's magic. Fortunately most dogs do not exhibit any outward signs of detox but for those who do, the symptoms can be coat shedding, weight loss, gunky ears, eye discharge, itchy skin and other annoying symptoms. Simple remedies such as brushing coat and frequent bathing for coat shedding, a mixture of boric acid and vodka for gunky ears, cool water and apple cider vinnegar rinse for itchy skin. These symptoms do not generally last more than a few weeks. If any symptom lasts more than 4 weeks, it may mean that your dog has an allergy to a particular type of meat. To isolate the type of meat, use a method of elimination in the diet, eg. feed only chicken and see if the allergy clears up, etc.

Special Note for Pets with Medical Conditions

Some medical conditions, eg pancreatitis, diabets and irritable bowel syndrome may need special care when switching to a RAW diet. I suggest you work with a Veterinarian experienced in RAW Feeding to determine the correct approach. It may be as simple as adding some pulped vegetables or reducing the amount of fat.

What Happens Next

Well, nothing really ..... except you have a happy and healthy dog who will thank you because he/she feels so much better.