Primal pet chatter =) page 17

[sidewinder]

I was too lazy to look up the EVO bag weights before, but just checked and it's the 15lb bag that will last me 2 months with my girls. So grain free is totally doable. If anything I would say it's cheaper than the previous "premium" conventional dry food we were feeding before because they seem to eat much less, litter box is more manageable, etc.

Neither of these 2 furballs have ever had weight issues, but the kitty my ex kept has always been a little on the chunky side. EVO did a great job improving his coat and trimming him out. I think raw would really make him svelt but time/expense is an issue for right now. And, well, he's with my ex so I have no control over that anyway.

[namelesswonder]

That is excellent! Well my mom said she'd cover my cat's vaccination costs so I'm just waiting to find out who can take her, hopefully next week as that's exactly 1 yr from her last vaccines. She won't be in contact with other cats when she's at my apartment so I'm going to try to just get rabies (required by law, I believe) instead of rabies & feline leukemia, to keep costs down. Then I just need a litter box, litter (Boyfriend said, "Uh...we can just use sand" so we may be raiding a playground at night haha), and some regular cat food along with some EVO dry to start with. I'm sure my parents have some dishes we can swipe to feed her from too

It will be nice to have a cat-buddy around again. I will post "before" pictures for her, here's hoping she can trim up a bit with a better diet! I wonder how long it would take.

BTW I know sand isn't great for a litter box because it doesn't deal with liquids well, so we'd need to change it out a lot to account for pee, but it's just until another paycheck comes in

[meeshar]

When I went Primal (and thus my family to a degree) I started thinking about how cats are obligate carnivores, and searched around for better food. Both have been on dry food for years and aside from tuna or chicken (given as treats) won't eat traditional wet food. My cranky black kitty is 14 now, and the little calico is 5. I tried EVO to start with, but they hated it. They LOVE Halo now, and I love it because they have coupons on their website and it's pretty well priced if you find sales. The only stores that sell it here are Earth Fare and Petco. They recently came out with grain-free, but the original formula is still way better than most cat foods so I buy it if I'm in a pinch. Their poop smells a lot better, and their fur is much softer now. They don't gorge themselves on the food anymore either, so it lasts longer. I do think that the younger kitty would like raw food--she hovers when I'm cutting up raw chicken--but I haven't gotten to that point yet. The oldest doesn't seem to care much about raw meat, so I'm not pushing it.

[Pony500]

OK I have just started reading this thread, but it could take me a while, so ill ask my questions first.
Cats - someone mentioned sardines, but is tuna OK too? Also red meat, what else should I give her? She is currently eating Felidae dry food. I imagine transitioning her would be hard.
My dogs eat Candidae (both these are grain free), and would happily eat meat, but they need veg too yes? Would coconut oil or raw egg be good for them as well?

I've been raw feeding my dogs for 6 years now. I started out with a commercial raw diet, like Oma's, Bravo or Primal and I often suggest this to newbies--depending on how many dogs you have and what size they are because that's pretty much the most expensive way to go. I feed a variety of meats and some ground whole pieces, like ground chicken leg quarters or ground duck backs and things like that. I feed about 50% meat with bone and then I'll add in plain meat, like lamb, beef, chicken, canned fish or raw eggs. I also do give my dogs coconut oil and krill oil or fish oil. The other thing I feed is Honest Kitchen dehydrated food--just a little bit and of course raw organs. I give mine an organ blend of liver, heart and kidney. I do also give them whole duck necks to chew on. It does take some time to figure it all out and it takes some time to figure out just how much boney food to feed. If I feed too much meat with bone (like necks or backs), my dogs poops will end up being too hard. I have a 45lb Aussie mix and a 48lb mix and sometimes even a whole duck neck will cause poops that are too hard and dry. Honest Kitchen is another way to go and you can include some raw meats, canned fish and eggs with it to start, so that's another option to try and it's a bit of a bridge to full raw.

I agree that dogs don't really need veggies, but I still feed them, but I put them through my Vitamix. I even put Honest Kitchen through my Vitamix. Dogs really don't digest veggies unless they are totally pulverized, so I often think I probably don't need to feed them, but I like Honest Kitchen and I feed a couple different varieties. My dogs look absolutely fantastic with stunning coats, bright eyes, beautiful teeth and they have nice musculature. It's funny though that my research into raw feeding my dogs has led me down this same path for myself. So, my dogs and I are pretty much eating the same way (except I do eat more veggies) and the things I avoid in my diet are the same things that I keep out of theirs!!

[smilingjustalittlebit]

The raw diet for my dog is interesting me, but it sounds expensive, can anyone confirm the costs compared to feeding dry food?

[DinoHunter]

It cost me aprox £25-30 a week to feed 2 large dogs (85 lb German Shepherd & 170lb Mastiff)
It was costing me more than that to feed a good quality dog food.
Plus. I havent had a Vet bill for health related issues ever (Mastiffs 8years and the breed is prone to health issues due to size)

[Pony500]

The raw diet for my dog is interesting me, but it sounds expensive, can anyone confirm the costs compared to feeding dry food?

It can be expensive, but I guess, it depends on how much you love your dogs. For me, there was no question. It's the same with my food. Absolutely, buying quality food is more expensive, but I'm still going to do it. My dogs are worth it and they're stunningly beautiful and healthy and that makes it worth even more. To me, feeding crap in a bag would be like feeding your kids Total cereal every meal, every day, every year of their life. Would they survive? Maybe, but would you ever do that?? I don't have kids, but I wouldn't feed them that way if I did. There are ways to do it where it's less expensive, like finding a co-op or a butcher where you can get meats or maybe have some things shipped. I just can't image ever feeding my dogs bagged or processed food ever, but I love them a lot. I treat them the same way I treat myself.

I know I didn't answer your question about cost and mostly that's because I only bought two bags of dog food for my one dog when he was a pup, before I heard of the raw diet. Once I did, there was no question that's how I would feed him and I never looked back. Honestly, it might be more expensive, but I don't really know. And again, you may be able to seek out places where it costs less. I have a supplier; I don't buy meats at the grocery store.

The changes in the dogs that I've rescued have been astonishing--including color changes--reds becoming more brilliant and blacks becoming more black, eyes becoming very clear and the color stunning and ears clearing up as well. And, all my dogs smell like "stuffed animals," meaning, no doggie odor at all. And the gusto with which my dogs eat is spectacular and my smart one goes crazy when he knows he's getting a raw meaty bone--so I wouldn't dream of taking that enjoyment away from him. I also think that because my one dog was essentially raised with raw and raw meaty bones, he never ever chewed on anything like furniture or whatever. He hardly chews up his toys. I think that's because he's always gotten chewing satisfaction from chewing on raw meaty bones.

[namelesswonder]

Picked up some Orijen dry food to mix with whatever $5 bag of crap my mom has been feeding my cat. She gets her check-up on Tuesday (so I'll find out if he is heavier than last year's 13 lbs, which she certainly looks to be) and I should be able to bring her home to my apartment next weekend if I'm not dead after driving back from Maryland!

[Ayla2010]

My cat has been loving the salmon/sardines/raw meat bones ive been giving her. Just been giving her one meal of this a day and leaving out the dry food as I did before (felidae grain free), but I will not be buying anymore, so hopefully she has less as we go along.
Do cats need more than one meal a day? Or would they naturally just eat once from hunting?

[abbyful]

The raw diet for my dog is interesting me, but it sounds expensive, can anyone confirm the costs compared to feeding dry food?

I get a lot of my dogs' food for free. I make it known to friends/family/co-workers, and sometimes advertise on the internal bulletin board at work, that I'll take any expired or freezer-burned meat off their hands. (You would not believe how many people won't eat meat that's been in the freezer even for 3-6 months! But even if it's been frozen for 10 years, it's still fine for dogs.)