thinking of going to the raw side!

Hi any advice and info on raw would be appreciated. Wece been having feet and ear probs and loads of people have said try raw.
Im a freak wen it comes to raw meat n food poisonibg lol so i would prob go nature menu nuggets and the bone treats as its less prep.
Thoughts n advice would be great

Check out the Raw Feeding section - https://staffy-bull-terrier.niceboard.com/f125-staffordshire-bull-terrier-raw-food-diets

I also got a lot of information from http://dogsdinner2.webs.com which has great info about how much to feed, what to feed as well things like the detox info when I first switched our boy.

Probably one of the best things we did for our Marquez. It can seem daunting in the beginning but after a while it gets easier especially when you see the benefits.

We've never had an issue with poisoning and I don't think I've ever heard anyone have a problem with it either.

Since you're dog has feet and ears problems, sounds like he has allergy issues already which you need to eliminate. Hopefully it will resolve once you switch and it was caused by grain or the other ingredients in the dry food. If you find that it doesn't resolve after a couple of months (many dogs do go through detox where they do get itchier, smellier, etc but this is normal) you might find that it could have sensitivities already to chicken like Marquez does so may have to look at alternative meat sources and make changes accordingly but I wouldn't worry too much about meat sensitivities just yet until you eliminate the other usual culprits first

go for it, it will be the best thing you have ever done for your staffy.
gets some books on raw feeding or this forum has lots of good info and there is a facebook page dedicated to raw feeding with lots of info and advice.
I have never had any problem with food poisoning from raw dog food you just need to clean the same as if you had prepared raw meat for yourself.

Thanks all. Defo going to give it a go. Were wasting so much on dry food and pouches. Have noticed the beef pouches make her tummy upset so il try all but beef to begin with.
Will read those links too n keep u posted :-D hopefully it will help her and stop the itchy feet etc

A couple on links for you to read   

http://staffy-bull-terrier.com/barf_and_raw_diets

http://staffy-bull-terrier.com/raw_faq

Thanks all.
Got a few packs of nuggets today so she had her first raw meal.
Was totally confused by it and ate most of it. Slightly creeps me out but il get used to it if it helps my wee baby!

Good luck   xx

Good luck. Any questions give us a shout!

Welcome to the raw side I hope she does well on it
We too switched when Bane started to get itchy. Unfortunately it didn't stop the itching and we have since found out he has environmental allergies but we are never switching back He is doing fantastically on it and we always get compliments about his fur and how healthy he looks!

Thanks everyone. Calis really enjoying it and thts been a couple of days.
Been reading all the links and everything and online. The more i read the more freaked out i get lol.....all this bacteria grossness, my staffy book was saying about those against
It say the bacteria is one thing and harmfull to dog and human but also the bones are of concern and can damage the stomach and also raw encourages parasites and infection.

Its really a fascinating subject, im good friends with someone who has 2 big wiry coated dogs and both of them are on it and they slobber everywhere and no one has had any issues. They dont even do the nuggets lol its the real raw chicken carcasses and beef hearts etc etc.

Quick question too, we have a small house and a wee garden so is it best to give the raw bones outside? Id read you can use diluted vinegar to wash paws and face after bones but i think tht may irritate her feet.

Sorry bout this lol i am a total raw freak hahaha, im sure al get used to it!!!!

Thanks again for everythin :-D

Don't apologise Hun that's what we're here for I give carcass's and bones on a large towel, we have beige carpets lol' I just trained Darcy that's the place to eat them and she's very good, but the kitchen floor is always a good one! Just bleach and mop afterwards.

Aww thanks.
Great idea!! Lol weve got a stone kitchen floor, its tiny tho so could just clean it after. Iv got duck wings and a knuckle bone for her :-D

Ledger has a towel to eat frozen bones and salmon chunks off, when he has heart I tend to cut it into bite size chunks as he made a lot of mess with the bigger pieces. Now the weather is good he sometimes gets them in the yard but he is very good at not leaving anything

Salmonella etc will always be a risk and from a hooman pov cleaning of hands, work tops/chopping boards should be the same as if we were preparing raw meat for ourselves. Tbh I'm not overly strict but believe in building a little bit of natural defense tho I understand why you would be very careful.

When I started feeding raw my mum even said 'WHEN HE DIES FROM SALMONELLA I WILL SAY I TOLD YOU SO' but I showed her the research how dogs ere efficient processors when digesting a raw diet hence the small poops and lack of gas. That the food doesn't sit in the gut 'fermenting bacteria' like it will will kibble that has all the fillers that they can't process. Of course this is in a healthy dog and any with a poor immune system may be more likely to pick up infection. But I did read one article where it said more dogs get salmonella from cheap kibble due to poor factory controls but I guess nothing is truely without risk.

My mum quickly saw the benefits of raw, she was freaked a bit by serving but I only take the chicken or turkey mince there (wouldn't inflict tripe on them) sometimes stuffed in a hoof but it's more pleasant than the tinned food their dog has (15yrs and it's all she will eat now) she comments at how Ledger is calmer and mostly that he doesn't fart! His dog walker and flyball trainer also comment at how he looks leaner (tho hasn't lost weight)

Thanks :-D i dont know why im so freaked by it.

I got loads of nature menu frozen nuggets varieties and im still grossed.....dont have to chop anythin up or have it near the work top. Think its just the thougt of raw food that gets me but id be selfish to cali if i stopped cos shes never been so into eating before! She loves it and always finishes the meals...with dry and pouches she always left loads and was very picky.

Suppose one way to look at it is iv more interaction with eggs and mince when cooking for myself than putting cubes in her bowl to defrost.
Her bowl gets washed in hot water with anti bac liquid aftr each meal and her place mat sprayed and wiped with antibac like dettol spray.
Im an overeactor hahaha!

What could i use on her paws and face when shes eatin big bones?

You won't need to use anything on her face and paws she'll clean them herself, any products may cause a reaction to her skin xx

Awryt cool thought maybe the big bones would get her feet manky lol!

Well thats a week weve been doin the raw diet.
I think theres a slight change in her build already she seems to be chunking out a little. Also shes not whinging for biscuits every 5 min shes pretty happy with her meals.......never on kibble or wet has she seemed satisfied! She even belched really loud twice after her dinner last night, if thats not a seal of approval i dnt know what is haha!!!

 glad it's going well   

rico24 wrote:Hi any advice and info on raw would be appreciated. Wece been having feet and ear probs and loads of people have said try raw.
Im a freak wen it comes to raw meat n food poisonibg lol so i would prob go nature menu nuggets and the bone treats as its less prep.
Thoughts n advice would be great

You won't regret going down the raw route. Mine has pure beef from our local pet shop who gets it straight from the slaughter house. I just defrost it and feed it to him.

There's that much rubbish in tinned and processed foods it's unreal.

I remember reading somewhere that a raw meal has more goodness than 3 tins of processed food.