Started Raw Diet.

[Woofie]

If original poster is still around, I too started my big guy on raw ground beef 3.5yrs ago for the first 6wks, then quickly moved onto adding other proteins with bone ground in it. After 10wks I believe, I slowly started adding small amounts of organ meats & we've never looked back.

All of my guys/gals eat a prey model diet varied between beef, ground beef, pork, turkey, chicken & mutton - they eat almost all proteins every week, rotating between what we have. They also get a lot of salmon & cod fish.

I can't imagine one cup of beef being sufficient for a 70lb young lab; raw meat has a TON of moisture - that pup will lose weight FAST, so be careful OR if the dog suddenly seems to not have enough energy, UP the meat amount asap. Makes a huge difference!!

Rivers is 58lbs, 8yrs old & extremely active, he easily eats 24-30oz of meat a day; my younger 3yr old 50lb girl eats 16-20oz a day depending, sometimes a tad more. These 2 have extremely fast metabolisms, mind you & are running non-stop on our property.

But, raw meat is nearly 100% digestible, so the dog will use everything it's being fed.

After a trial period of the dog getting used to raw, however, you will need to incorporate more variety, a calcium source (this is VERY important) and rotation. Without calcium, the dog's system will suck calcium out of the bones & cause a host of problems.

If you are not comfortable feeding raw bones, you can add powdered calcium to the diet - check with your vet for proper amounts.

I myself do feed chicken backs; but in regards to the mutton, pork & beef, I purchase those proteins from a website called "my pet carnivore" - their quality is 2nd to none & mixed in rotation with ground beef, chicken backs & thighs, I'm able to keep costs very affordable considering I'm feeding 3 dogs.

[JenC]

Bones and organs will be a must unless you decide to go with a raw premix, which are pretty readily available these days.