Saturday, January 23, 2010

The Raw Diet

Most everyone knows I feed raw to my Greyhounds. Actually, I feed half kibble and half raw. For kibble, it's Innova Evo which is the next best thing to feeding raw, in my humble opinion. It's grain-free and is high protein and high fat. This is their morning meal. For their evening meal, I usually feed raw chicken backs which typically have some organ meat still attached so they are getting those nutrients as well. I mix up the chicken backs with turkey necks (once a week), beef heart, mackeral, beef liver, ground beef, ground chicken, ground rabbit, chicken livers, stew meat, etc. It's all raw - not cooked.

One day I'm going to get my courage up to get some chicken feet. I know, it's disgusting, but they are suppose to be great for their teeth and they usually love 'em! Oh, and they also get fruit regularly and frozen veggie glop which has a mixture of veggies, cottage cheese, and raw eggs!! When I'm baking and have egg shells left over, they get those, too!! Yep, it's okay to feed all these things and typically your dog will flourish. They love all of it and if kibble weren't around, this is what they would eat! And they have the whitest teeth and freshest breath!!

So, yesterday it was time to stock back up on chicken backs. I get these at a place in Marietta called Tip Top Foods. They charge $14 or so for 40 pounds. I purchased two 40 pound cases and the total was $32. And for the first time, I purchased a 40 pound case of turkey necks for $21. All of this will last 2-3 months for four Greyhounds, again, just feeding the evening meal. How long all that will last depends on how much of the other I slide in on a weekly basis! And that depends on what I can get and at what price!

Once I got home from Tip Top, I carried the cases (one by one) into the kitchen and began the tedious task of separating and bagging up the chicken backs and then the turkey necks. Then I tossed everything into the small deep freezer in the garage. Done!

It's not fun, that's for sure, but I know that what I'm doing benefits the girls so much. Their health is my most primary concern so whatever it takes to keep them healthy AND happy, well, that is what I do!

Remember, it's all about the dogs, isn't it?!
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2 comments:

Those Brindle Kids said...

Clean teeth and fresh breath? OMG! This is what the Brindle Kids need! My biggest concern is choking. These guys gobble so fast I've had to add lots of liquid and yogurt. Do your girls chew or do they swallow the backs and necks whole?

Patti said...

Ah, they chew. I think they realize they MUST chew! Just a turkey neck a week will help with the teeth and breath. These can usually be found at the grocery store in the freezer with the other turkey products.