Looking for a different kibble.

[Osagedogman2015]

What I do is similar to what EWO is doing.

I buy a local feed that is 24/20 that has no corn or soy, and it is right at $23/50#. I rotate feeding chicken quarters, liver (deer,beef,chicken),deer heart, scraps every other day or so. The kibble is used as a base feed. I've tried/fed raw for periods of time, but I can never seem to hold it together consistently for long periods of time.

I fill the freezers every year with wild game, so any scraps or internal organs are always saved and processed so that I can add some to their feed throughout the year. A little bit goes a long ways, no need to over do it with that stuff. They are used as supplements. When I run out of the wild game scraps, I buy those kind of things at the supermarket.

I also feed lots of eggs to my dogs. I raise a lot of chickens so there are always plenty to go around. I try to give them one egg every other day.

[EWO]

Agreed, We must be drinking from the same vein of water.

Our plan is almost identical. This past deer season was my weakest ever. I have been out of deer meat since very early in the spring. So it has been all about grabbing things when they are on sale.


I too have tried going all raw but it always came down to the amount of time it takes to prep the meals. I once rented a house from a butcher who also ran a small processing business at home. I got a five gallon bucket of any and everything just about every day. I walked by the dogs and whatever came out of the bucket is what they got, no rhyme nor reason.

I use the bag food as a staple and then use the raw food as a supplement. Like today, I walked by and dropped leg quarters in each dog bowl. That is all they got today. Tomorrow they will get the dog food and I too have a lot of chickens, and the dogs will get a couple of eggs dropped in the bowl too.

If it is a dog that is about to do hard work I start lessening the amount of the dry food and upping the raw content, especially the fat. I do that about 8-10 weeks prior to starting hard work to give the dog time to acclimate to the upgrade in food.

I basically feed cheap dry dog food and supplement it to make it a healthier version. I trade a little bit of quality for a lot of convenience.

EWO

[BLADE]

I've heard it said and read many times that for a dog to digest raw vs kibble, they digest at different rates. Now common sense tells me that it apparently doesn't make much difference because many conditioners have fed a raw /kibble blend with great accomplishments. My question would be.. does it shock a dogs digestive system to flip flop whole meals like all kibble one day and all raw the next?

[Osagedogman2015]

My observation is this, and it doesn't mean that I am not missing something. It is what I believe to be true based on direct observation and hands on experience.

As long as the dogs are familiar with being fed kibble and raw food, and are being fed different things within this feeding method, then going from kibble one day and then to raw chicken the next day shouldn't/doesn't shock their system at all. The same goes for mixing the two together daily. Of course, i would not vary the diet from day to day on a dog that I was working for obvious reasons, but for a dog that was simply being maintained or kept healthy, I don't see any issues at all. I think anytime that you can give them raw chicken, beef, liver, fat, etc....that it is a good thing.

Dogs can eat some of the nastiest stuff and thrive on it. Their system is very strong. And to me, Bulldogs are some of the best animals to see results and feedback on what you are doing to them, whether it is exercise and/or feeding methods.

[BLADE]

My observation is this, and it doesn't mean that I am not missing something. It is what I believe to be true based on direct observation and hands on experience.

As long as the dogs are familiar with being fed kibble and raw food, and are being fed different things within this feeding method, then going from kibble one day and then to raw chicken the next day shouldn't/doesn't shock their system at all. The same goes for mixing the two together daily. Of course, i would not vary the diet from day to day on a dog that I was working for obvious reasons, but for a dog that was simply being maintained or kept healthy, I don't see any issues at all. I think anytime that you can give them raw chicken, beef, liver, fat, etc....that it is a good thing.

Dogs can eat some of the nastiest stuff and thrive on it. Their system is very strong. And to me, Bulldogs are some of the best animals to see results and feedback on what you are doing to them, whether it is exercise and/or feeding methods.

You make a lot of good points that I can personally attest to seeing with my two eyes as well. I've fed many ways.. raw, kibble, raw with kibble while working etc. I haven't ever tried the one day raw next day kibble approach as far as maintenance feeding goes but glad you gave some feedback on the subject. I have a couple other friends that feed like that and prefer it over just feeding kibble everyday.

[EWO]

The kicker is everything a dog eats digests at different rates. Even different dry foods, based on their composition, will digest at different rates. The very first few times a dog is fed raw one day and dry the next there will be some loose stool, not every dog but a lot of them.

Complete changes should be done gradually but I have not seen it as being the end of the world when I do it. I feed mostly kibble but supplement with raw parts regularly. And some days it is a bowl fool of raw with no kibble. I have not seen any negative effects from the switching/combinations.

Like was posted before, the feed plan gets a lot more detailed when the hard work starts.

EWO

[ceasar]

like the extreme athlete in the winter or working but not as a maintenance feed. All pups started on taste of the wild then switched over to valu pak at a year old with whatever meat on sale. Here I get the valu pak 50lbs for $25. Dogs look good, stools are solid and manageable without the awful mell with diamond.

[EWO]

Good post.

I agree. The maintenance plan for me is just good enough to keep them within striking distance of a keep feed.

When the weather breaks there is an upgrade and when the work is ready to start there is an upgrade.

Then back.

EWO

[Coach]

Value Pak is a great kibble for the price and quality.
As good or better than Victor and cheaper

[brokeback]

I'm with Coach. I feed Valu Pak now and am happy with it. Black bag. 50lbs for 25.95 plus tax. I fed Victor for years but their constant price hikes got old. It was no longer worth what they were charging to feed a decent size yard. Valu Pak black bag has no corn and has the dogs looking good with minimal waste to clean up.