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Looks like we're going to start feeding Keymo raw this weekend !

What was your first week feeding raw like?
What did you and your dog experience?
What should I look out for?
I read to feed him something larger than his head the first meal. Really? That would be whole chicken !What size of meal did you start with?

The first weekwas \"interesting\" to say the least. It was kind of fun watching Duke figure out how to eat. I fed him chicken leg quarters at first. A whole chicken is fine but can be a bit pricey. Just stay with the chicken for a week or so to let his body get used to the raw food, before adding variety. Just watch to make sure he doesn\'t choke, though I really doubt that will happen. Dogs have been known to choke on kibble too though.
Now for the good stuff.
You won\'t see the benefits of the smaller, hard poops right away. For a few days it will be kind of gross and sort of slimey. But that too shall pass.
I just checked and see you\'re here in Ontario. I would stock up on Chicken legs and thighs at the IGA for a dollar a pound this week.

Abby's been on raw since I got her at 3 months, so for her it wasn't that difficult (being half lab ... food is always fun!) But, she was being fed kibble ... so the poop transition was gross! It went from solid poops to liquid to semi liquid to liquid (discovered too much tripe gives her the runs!) and then after about 2-3 weeks she was having normal stools.

Funny enough though, she ended up catching giardia at the Conroy Pit, and had the major runs for about 3 weeks until we finally found an antibiotic that would cure it! My homeopathic vet wasn't available for the first vet appointment so the vet I saw told me that she had diarreha b/c of the raw food! LOL ... i demanded they take the stool sample I had so thoughtfully scraped off the sidewalk (that was a horrible three weeks let me tell you!) ... and when the results came back, the vet apologized to me! My vet was just smiling, and shaking his head!

My first week... She didn't react. I attribute it to the fact the we used to give her lots of table scraps. Her system was already strong so I saw no change in her stools. Anyways, I gave her 2 chicken leg quarters as a meal, everyday for about a week to 2wks.

Like others had said, her stools are a little softer when she eats pork.

I watched her closely at first to make sure she knew how to chew bones and that she's wasn't gulping.

Thanks! I'll have to make a trip to the IGA then! In my area, I've noticed that their meat is often cheaper than the Superstore's and they have more of a variety.
I get a kick out of watching them eat Raw. My parents are visiting this week, it'll be interesting to see their reaction. lol

Dukesdad - thanks, I'll check out to see where there is an IGA. I know that A & P has 2 whole chickens for $9 this week.

Abbysmom - what vet do you go to? I live west Ottawa, past Kanata
What is giardia?
Keymo's has (we call them) muddy poos for 2.5 weeks and has only stopped since we stopped giving him raw shank bones for the last 4 days. I think we were giving them too frequently & the marrow was a little too rich.

I go to Dr. Darren Auger - he just opened his own clinic in Cumberland ... will be going there this month for the first time for Abby\'s shots ...

The homeopathic vet I used has since retired (about 6 months ago) ... but Dr. Auger supports the raw diet and is able to help me should I need it.

I got this from wikipedia .... Giardia infection can occur through ingestion of dormant cysts in contaminated water, or by the fecal-oral route (through poor hygiene practices). The Giardia cyst can survive for weeks to months in cold water[3], and therefore can be present in contaminated wells and water systems, and even clean-looking mountain streams, as well as city reservoirs, as the Giardia cysts are resistant to conventional water treatment methods, such as chlorination and ozonolysis.[3] Zoonotic transmission is also possible, and therefore Giardia infection is a concern for people camping in the wilderness or swimming in contaminated streams or lakes, especially the artificial lakes formed by beaver dams (hence the popular name for giardiasis, \"Beaver Fever\".

I fed chicken the first week too..we had a turkey so I gave them the wings and other parts- every time I open the fridge or freezer door they are expecting to eat!! Apollo poops were always runny as he has always reacted to kibble no matter what type I gave him..not any more, they are smaller and firm as well as darker...almost like a babies first poop. Their fur is amazing! They are barely even shedding and it used to be like a small furry animal was running around. They are guarding their food a bit more now but I think that will change. Good luck Keymofrisby!!

We switched all of our 3 dogs over to raw food a week and a bit ago.
We now are feeding our two labs and our yorkie only raw chicken.
We will start introducing other raw meats towards the end of this week.

I am not sure if I have noticed a difference or if it's just my mind playing tricks on me....
One thing that is forsure is their poo... It is much smaller and turns white after a day and crumbles away.
Prior to the raw meat.. my dogs were pooing up to 3 times per day.(With two labs and a yorkie... you can imagaine that's ALOT of poop!)
My female lab (7) is eating 1.5lbs per day and my male (2) is eatting 2 lbs per day. My little yorkie is eatting a chicken thigh in the morning and the evening.... its bigger then his head...and it takes him almost 20min to get through..... being 7lbs it's a full work out.

My Male suffers from chronic yeast ear infections, I am told as a result of corn or wheat in kibble.
They have cleared up for the first time in 2 years.

Now the debatable part.... I notice that my dogs, while still full of energy, are not has hyper or rambuncious.
They have nice breath now... (days 1-5 was not that nice) and they are sleeping much better over night.
They seem to very happy with their "Alpha Dog" for making the switch.

I will be introducting beef sometime this week... and will keep you posted.
Good Luck!

Looks like everyone has been having great success in switching to raw! Heheh sometimes i almost feel like bragging about Bayley's poops, especially at the dog park. The only thing is I really have to watch where she goes cause they're so small I have a hard time finding them if I'm not right there when she goes, then I feel guilty if I can't find them.

She's been on raw for a year now and she has done really well on it. She's had a few loose days but that seems to be pretty much past as I'm giving her more variety in her meats and her system is handling everything really well. She's still not overly fussy on raw chicken, I don't think she likes chicken skin. That I make concessions on and she gets mountain dog food but I also vary that with real chunks of meat. I got her some pigs feet yesterday and will give her them tonght. She's going to the park today so she'll be good and hungry by the time she gets her dinner.

Do you all pretty much feed like the "guidelines" suggested - 2-3% of the body weight per day feeding?