I have a two Year old GSD, how I can start feeding Raw or the Honest Kitchen food?,I want her out of Kibbles.Is boiled chicken Ok? is any book available about Raw diet?.Any info will be helpful
Thank you.

This board has a wealth of information about a raw diet...use the search, all forums, type in "raw" and you have yourself more information than even you can digest...Leerburg also sells a book called Natural Nutrition for Dogs and Cats and a host of other books.

I have read and continue to read, have talked to many and have made the switch with my pup. It is going amazingly well. I will admit, the first few crunches on those wing bones eeeked me a bit, but that pup is so happy and he was designed to do just that (and more)!!!

From what I've read on this site it's not hard to get started.
1. You may have a few runny BM's at first, takes a little time for the dog to adjust.
2. THK is a good starter food. I use it for my GSD puppy. He loves it. I suppliment with chicken, chicken livers, beef ribs, eggs so far.
2. Start out with the same food for a while, THK for a few days, add a chicken meal (with bones, avoid legs and wings) once a day for a few days to see how your dog handles it. I also removed all skin and fat, as that it harder to digest and can cause the runs. After you feel he's fine on chicken, maybe try some beef for a few days. The idea is some dogs are sensitive to a particular food, so make sure he's good with one type before trying another.
3. This site has a lot of info on feeding raw. Also a google search will bring a host of information.

Marcelo,
The problem about cooked foods is that it destroys many of the life enhancing factors found in only raw foods.These include enzymes and many anti-oxidants and other anti-degeneration factors.kibbles are over processed and overcooked,the meat in those kibbles bears very little relationship to the healthy raw meat.Beside the long list of what kibbles is not doing for our pets matches the long list of all the things it does wrong for the future of our pets.If you are going to go raw go raw don't cook.Cooked meat is good for HUMANS and that is it, our pets really don't benefit from cooked meats at all,when it comes to the proper nutrients they need for their well being.You have to remember that the calcium that comes form the bones ,is far more beneficial than the calcium that is added to kibbles or the ones you WOULD have to add to the cooked meat.Raw can be very simple if you take the time to educate yourself and take advise from people who have done their homework and have fed for a while.Wild canid never have a balanced meal on a day to day basis but what they have is a huge varieties of meats and bones and organs ect.. and that is far more important than a balanced meal on a day to day basis.Eventually when your offer a nice variety of foods(RMB"S<ORGANS) it balances itself out.I never feed my dogs the same way everyday nor the same things, or the time.The more you read about it the more it really is simple and not expensive.Just a bit of time consuming ,that's it..

 Quote: Marcelo Gonzalez

I have a two Year old GSD, how I can start feeding Raw or the Honest Kitchen food?,I want her out of Kibbles.Is boiled chicken Ok? is any book available about Raw diet?.Any info will be helpful
Thank you.

Also, here are some jump-right-in articles, from books to Q&A to actual sample menus:

http://www.leerburg.com/feedingdogs.htm (Scroll halfway down to a list of books)

http://leerburg.com/feedingarawdiet.htm

http://www.leerburg.com/diet2.htm

Thanks to all for the replies,I am going to order the book and start the diet progressively.I was reading the articles but I wanted to make sure I don't make any serious mistake when I feed her. Thanks again.

I forgot couple of more questions,When you feed a dog once a day, what is a better time to feed?
Humans absorb more nutrients in the morning,will this be the case with dogs?
Is it better to split the meal in two rations to avoid chances of bloat?

 Quote: Marcelo Gonzalez

Thanks to all for the replies,I am going to order the book and start the diet progressively.I was reading the articles but I wanted to make sure I don't make any serious mistake when I feed her. Thanks again.

The Q&A and the books are terrific.

I can assure you too that even if you just start right in with the sample meals, *especially* if you begin with an easy-to-digest item like backs and necks with the skin off (for the first week or so) and maybe a little ground chicken breast, my experience is that even dogs with sensitive systems will do very well.

Most dogs will do well right away anyway....... ...... but the soft bones in backs and necks plus the texture of ground-up poultry meat seem to be very easy starter foods for dogs who have been used to kibble. Even while their systems are readjusting to producing the enzymes that digest bones, they seem to have no problems with those bland, low-fat, soft-bone ingredients.

As many othes have said here, slow and gradual additions of other ingredients can prevent the rare (but troublesome) reactions that a few dogs have to a whole new way of eating.

Marcelo,
I feed raw and honest kitchen to my GSD. I feed 2x a day out of habit after switching from kibble with my previous dogs. I am not sure about the bloat question with raw feeding.

I also consider my dogs potty schedule when feeding so that I know I will be around when they really need to go out. I try and feed them before 5 pm and that helps avoid "late night" outings. Just something to consider.

Check out Cindy's question and answer page on her Kaiserhaus link from the Leerburg site. It's got great info. It wasn't hard to get started and once you have read up on the diet, you'll become a great bargain shopper as well!
Lisa

I am starting with the Honest Kitchen food and adding raw to it.
Anyone knows this Kibble called Nature's variety (Raw Instinct)
They claim it is organic coated with enzymes on every kibble.
Just to have as an emergency food.