To fed your dog a raw diet it should consist of RAW meat, bones, organs, eggs, vegetables, and fruit… sounds simple enough but is it good for our pets?

Well, just like with everything else there are some who are pro and some who are against. The best answer I can give: read, research and make your own mind about the raw diet… I can only speak for myself and share my own experience about it.

For years we struggled with Bunk’s allergies, we have spent literally 1000s of pounds on the best dog foods we could find, only to find out that a few month later his skin rashes have returned. Gluten free, grain free, hypoallergenic, holistic… we tried them all with no real success stories. I’ve considered starting a raw diet some time ago but I was a bit sceptic so we kind of took a half measure – raw mixed with kibbles… well, this didn’t really change anything as Bunk was still suffering from his allergies, that is until now… because for the last 6 months both Bunk and Lilly have been on a pure raw diet and they are golden!

I am not trying to convince you to go raw, all I want is to share with you my own observations after this diet change. So what did we observe?

Healthy teeth

Bunk didn’t really have any problems with his teeth but Lilly did. Maybe due to her age or maybe due to an earlier diet but her teeth were full of plague and tart and we were planning a professional teeth cleaning session for her but it’s no longer needed. Her teeth got better! The plague and tart build-up are gone and her breath has finally stopped being so unpleasant.

Good weight

You will know if you are a regular reader of my blog that Lilly has always had a weight problem. For years her weight was like a roller-coaster – up and down and up again… we tried different diets, more exercise and it all worked… until it didn’t… Now, she is lean, her weight doesn’t go up and down and finally, we could put the dog obesity problem to rest.

More energy

Both Lilly and Bunk have much more energy. They are alert, playful and seem happier. I don’t know if this is purely due to the new diet, but I am convinced it had to have a lot to do with it.

Smaller poops

One would think that this one is beneficial to dog owners only as they have to clean up less but actually it has a great benefit for the dogs too – healthy anal glands. No more vet visits with Bunk to empty the glands.

No more allergies

This one is super important especially for us! I am super glad as I no longer have to look after open sores, washing them on an hourly basis, buying and applying antibiotics but most of all Bunk doesn’t suffer. Most shop-bought pet food contains additives, preservatives, grain or other ingredients which cause allergies… a raw diet doesn’t!

So what do we feed our dogs these days?

Well, they get a mixture of raw meat on the bone, fine grated vegetables and fruit with an addition of fish oil, coconut oil and homemade turmeric paste. Once a week they will have fish or organs and some raw eggs. In reality, it looks like this… I pop to my local shop and buy 20+kg of raw dog meat on the bone, some organs and a pile of fresh veggies and fruit (whatever is in season). Meat goes to the freezer and fresh produce goes to the pantry. Every three days I take a pile of carrots, beetroots, leeks, celery or broccoli (or whatever I could buy at the farmers market) and shred it in my food processor, then move it into a large plastic tub and pop into the fridge. In the morning I defrost some meat, so it’s ready come dinner time. The meaty bones get mixed with the shredded veggies, some chopped apples and bananas will be added into the bowl, then oils and turmeric and it’s done! Dinner time! Another highlight for us is the fact that the dogs take their time eating, no more wolfing it down in under a minute, now they can take 10-15 minutes to eat their food making it more of an event for them and they are still licking the floor and bowls half an hour later looking for every last scrap.

Have you ever considered feeding your pets a raw diet?

 

For more information please read: “Top 50 Most Frequently Asked BARF Questions Newcomers Ask”. Hopefully, this will answer all the questions you might have about a raw diet.