Feeding a Raw Diet
Question & Answers
written by Cindy Rhodes
DISCLAIMER: I am not a vet or a health care professional. Feeding a raw species appropriate diet can be a controversial topic, and like any feeding regimen can have health risks associated with incorrect feeding and preparation. DO NOT FEED COOKED BONES, ever! Cooking bones changes the molecular structure; they become brittle and may splinter and injure or kill your dog!! NO COOKED BONES.
Do your own research FIRST before diving into a new method of feeding your dog. Read as many books and articles as you can, talk to successful raw feeders and find a mentor, and use your own judgment and gut instinct. If you aren’t comfortable with it, DON’T do it. Remember there are many ways to feed your dogs, with many variations. Just because I don’t cover it here, doesn’t mean it’s wrong.
The ideas and opinions in this section of the website are my own, and come from feeding my dogs this way since 1994. I am constantly evolving, tweaking and changing my ideas as my knowledge and experience increases. Take any ideas I present here at your own risk and discretion.
I hope you and your dogs enjoy many healthy years together. Congratulations on making the first step towards one of the most important things you can do for your dog.
General Questions on Feeding Dogs a Raw Diet
1. I am interested in feeding the BARF diet, what do I do first?
2. My vet told me my dog would get sick or DIE from feeding a raw diet? I am having second thoughts about switching.
3. Why should I switch my dog to a raw diet?
4. Is kibble actually bad for my dog? He seems really healthy.
5. I want to breed my female. Is it ok to feed a raw diet to pregnant dogs?
6. What about my new puppy? He was fed kibble at the breeder’s place. How do I switch him? I don’t want him to get sick.
7. What is a RMB?
8. What is a recreational bone?
9. I have heard that you should NEVER feed your dog chicken bones! One of the foundations of your feeding program is chicken! Aren’t you afraid your dogs will choke or the bones will splinter?
10. I was told that if you feed dogs raw meat, they will become vicious and kill animals. Is this true?
11. How Do I Make The Switch?
12. What Should I Expect At First?
13. I have heard that raw is much more expensive than kibble, how much will it cost me to feed my dog this way?
14. I read somewhere on the internet that feeding a raw diet reduces vet bills? How does that work?
15. It seems too complicated to feed a raw diet; I don’t have any free time to spend on this. How much time does it take each day to prepare the food?
16. What Do You Feed Your Dogs? Can You Send Me Some Menu Plans?
17. How Do I Know Each Meal Is Balanced?
18. How Much Do I feed?
19. I’m Not Sure I Am Ready To Switch to Raw, But I Don’t Want To Feed Kibble. Do you have any
suggestions?
20. I have small kids and I am worried about Salmonella and E-Coli!
21. What about Grains? I read that you don’t feed them to your dogs. Why not?
22. What supplements do I need to use?
23. How often do you use supplements? The label says to give it every day.
24. What is ACV?
25. What are probiotics?
26. What are digestive enzymes?
27. What about vegetables?
28. What kinds of meat can I feed my dogs?
29. Are there parasites in raw meat?
30. I want to feed a raw diet but whole bones scare me! Can I grind them up before feeding?
31. What kind of equipment do I need to grind RMBs?
32. I see that some places sell preground raw pet food. Are these ok to feed? They seem very expensive though!
33. Can I buy RMBs at the grocery store? If not, where do I find them?
34. What about feeding Raw and Kibble together, is that OK?
35. I forgot to thaw out my dog’s next meal, can I feed it frozen?
36. I left my dog’s raw food out of the fridge too long and it smells bad! Is it safe to feed it or
should I throw it away?
37. Wendy Vollhard and her husband have written a number of articles or books on feeding a raw diet. Some of your information is different that what they recommend. There seems to be a conflict among experts here. What are your thoughts?