I think everyone knows what an absolute believer I am in raw diets. An enthusiastic, absolute believer. Unfortunately, we have hit a financial wall with the flood damage we received and with the prices of meat where we live (I can't find even lousy chicken wings under a $1.79 a pound!!!) I can't afford to feed my big boys the quantities they need right now. It really hit home tonight when I made a casserole for me, my husband and my son and used ONE chicken thigh for meat when the dogs are eating whole leg quarters.

I hate this, but I've got a couple of thousand dollars staring me in the face and I have to find a way to budget. Perhaps in the future I can go back to fully raw, but in the meantime, I have to economise. I hit 3 grocery stores over the weekend and couldn't find ANY chicken (even scrany little fryers) under $1.59/lb. Beef is even higher:

I know I can't MIX kibble and raw in the same meal, but would it be dangerous to give a premium kibble (like Wellness) at one meal, and raw at the other? And would it be better to feed the kibble meal at night so they have longer to digest it? Does anyone have any experience with a part raw/part kibble diet they can share with me?

I'm really, really unhappy about this :(

So much for my guilt :rolleyes:

Just went out and got some Wellness, and as I was pouring it into the bin, finicky Drum stabbed his pointy head in and grabbed a huge mouthful. Then Grip licked the floor in a 3' radius around the site. Now they're both standing in the kitchen staring at the bin. Wonder if they're going to stand there till dinner time.

*Sigh* When am I going to stop hyperanalysing my dogs?

Hopefully the boys will continue with their enthusiam when you give them dinner tonight. Good luck and let us know how it goes.

It's a sickness sister! :D When I went to the holisitic store near me she handed me some kibble that was raw food (but kibble). Maybe you could try that? Don't know if it's more expensive than wellness, but I could check. I don't remember the name of course, but I could find it. It just might take me a few days.

Sorry to hear about your run of events and I know it is out of deep concern that you are changing and will come back to raw when you are able.
It is very costly when you rely on your meat sources from the meat dept. We get ours from a processing plant and that is why it is so reasonalbe 40 lbs. for $12. I am not sure what state you are in but this is a contact list it is Canadian but there are some links to some US sites. You could also ask from the butcher where they get their chicken and then locate the plant it might not be to far away.
http://www.lepus.reach.net/NRS.html

Believe me, I called every poultry farm within 50 miles, and they all seem to either not sell direct to the public, or to be on a Co-op system, with memberships SOLD OUT for the next two years!!! I have failed to find a butcher or anyone that even knows of a butcher. Beef you can't get under $4/lb (and I have just been advised by a reliable source that greyhounds do not do well on chicken as a primary souce of protein; they need beef, pork and lots of beef tripe). Dh will definitely need a big raise before we could afford to feed Drum enough to keep his ribs below the surface.

I do believe wholeheartedly in the rightness of natural and raw diets, and I will return to it when we can afford it.

In the meantime, they showed rather remarkable enthusiasm for their Wellness kibble tonight. I'm bracing myself for what their bowels will have to say about the transition, though :rolleyes:

My girls have always been fed a mixture of premium kibble and raw.....they love it all! Never had any problems with it

:)

How do you do it, Lab Addict? Last night they had the kibble, with some NuPro gravy and they obviously LOVED it (that gave me some comfort). This morning they got chicken necks, with a little yogurt and Prozyme in it to help with any digestive challenges they may have with reintroducing kibble.

What raw food do you feed? Do you feed 1 meal raw, 1 kibble?

Thanks for any advice! I can find virtually nothing about a combination diet except not to feed them at the same meal.

Even if you have to go back to kibble for a while (much like myself who was forced to due to chicken allergies)... at least your boys are showing enthusiasm. It would be very hard on you guilt-wise if they turned their noses up at it! Our shepherd is so darned fussy -- I have to put egg or cat food on hers to get her to eat. :rolleyes: Like Drum -- she's very thin so I can't afford to let her skip a meal.

Shoot!

Sometimes we have to compromise and try our best, thank goodness our dogs are forgiving and understanding.

Don't loose hope, Lisa!