Food recommendations please - help needed

I have a 9 month old staff named Bow, initially bow was on a dried diet which she became bored of and then refused to eat. After lots of reading up we decided to put bow on a raw food diet, she has been on this for about 2 months and she literally goes happy crazy when she sees her food. For the last week though she has been struggling to pass stools. Not only that she is vomiting a thick goo and seems to be choking, she will then shake for a few mins. Bow is fine in herself and is still very much running around with the kids and being her mischievous self. We have taken bow to the vets and the vet said that bow should not be on a raw diet and she needs to go onto dog food ASAP! I'm at a loss here as I obviously want what's best for my girl however there is so much conflicting info that I am not sure any more what advice to follow

did the vet say why she shouldn't be on raw ????
and the passing of stools sounds like you may be feeding to much bone in the diet

The vet said that she is a dog and therefore needs dog food :-s I done lots of research and bow is much happier on raw food but it's the vomiting of thick mucas I'm concerned about as it happens more frequently

My ex Vet was also disgusted with me for having Steff on a Raw diet and insisted I put her on "dogfood" straight away.. When I pressed as to why the reply boggled me He said "It will make her aggressive, she will get the taste for blood" What??? I promptly laughed in his face and I now have a new Vet..

If she is blocked up maybe you are feeding too many bones and not enough meat and offal? I'm all new to this myself but what raw diet have you been feeding??

Rabbit, chicken, turkey, beef, triPe, liver mainly

She has a variety of things, she is a lot less aggressive on raw food, I'm guessing that has something to do with the fact she is actually eating now! How long av u been giving urs raw food? How much do u tend to give?

iv only been feeding a few months now but the difference in calmness and the toilet area is unbelievable my boy is around 21/22kg and i feed 2 chicken wings morning or small piece lamb rib and then 450/500gr evening of meat and bone
be it chicken lamb beef or raw fish

Bow has 400g each evening, her weight is about 2 1/2 stone, she has raw eggs, tho not daily and sardines, the kids insist on sharing their porridge with her :-s or weetabix, but then she has chicken at lunch time. We r much happier on raw diet so it looks like I best start looking for a new vet!! Did u av any problems to start (apart from the vet)? It's alot of conflicting info!

Raw eggs can bind dogs up.
It's not easily digested in humans nor in certain dogs.
Maybe try cutting these back/out?
Wondering if raw egg could be the source of vomited thick goo, too?

Hey I never thought of that! She has raw egg every third day mayb I'll cut that down to once a week a see if there is an improvement! Thanks :-) can't believe I missed it!!

Honey_moors wrote:The vet said that she is a dog and therefore needs dog food :-s I done lots of research and bow is much happier on raw food but it's the vomiting of thick mucas I'm concerned about as it happens more frequently

I wonder what people did for food, then, before there was commercial dog food?

She could be constipated from too much bone. What colour is her poo?

Honey_moors wrote:Hey I never thought of that! She has raw egg every third day mayb I'll cut that down to once a week a see if there is an improvement! Thanks :-) can't believe I missed it!!

Raw egg contains avidin, which binds biotin and can cause digestion issues. Cooking it denatures the avidin and removes the issue.
Raw egg also inhibits trypsin, which is needed to digest high protein foods. Raw eggs on top of high protein foods such as meat can certainly bind various mammals.

Her poo is quite dark and my other half says it's like malteasers - I don't think I'll ever enjoy them quite as much in future!!
Shud I cut out the egg completely? Or beat it up and put in microwave and try that? I'm jus worried as I want what is best for a happy healthy dog.

Personally I would introduce just one food at a time. So you could feed chicken and chicken bones then after a while introduce lamb and lamb bones. This way it is easier to see when a certain meat/food like an egg doesn't agree with the dog.

I'm starting to lean towards a trip to Vet who isn't going to discriminate against raw.. Perhaps she has a digestion problem. If it was too many bones causing constipation her poo would be light in colour or even white.. It isn't normal for them to look like maltezers Unless she is part rabbit

I read this on a feeding raw site, maybe it might help

If your dog or cat is having the occasional case of constipation or diarrhea, one of the things that might help is canned pumpkin. Canned pumpkin in its pureed form (not pumpkin pie filling) is a wonderful stool softener which makes it a good natural remedy for constipation. Finely shredded or pureed vegetables and/or fruit or canned pumpkin can be added to every meal if necessary. The amount can range from as little as 1/4 tsp for a small dog to 1 tbsp or more for a large dog, depending upon results. Keep in mind too much fiber in a pet's diet can adversely affect nutrient availability. Also, over-feeding certain vegetables and fruit can cause the opposite effect - diarrhea.