I have been a dog owner before for years, and have known that kibble is an allergen,but never dreamed of feeding raw meat to dogs until this week. I recently acquired a 9 lb schnoodle pup, about 5 months old, and she has had loose logs for the whole time I have had her, about 2 weeks. I found the Leersburg site and am switched to raw meaty bones in 1 day. a couple of questions,
1. what about the smelly fur around their mouths when they gnaw on bones all day? My dog stinks!
2. What should the stool look like after the first day or so?

I am feeding raw pig tails, beef kidney, chicken liver, and gizzards, along with ground hamburger and canned salmon. I have hog jowls, beef liver , and chicken necks in the fridge, just haven't gotten to them in 1 day. She has not finished a pig tail, about 7 inches long and 1 inch thick, after 1 day. She loves it, but chews and chews on it out in the yard. Her jowls are full of stinky mess when she comes in. I have just been wiping her off with a wet rag. any other suggestions?

Welcome Aleta! Slowwww down. Slow down. It is important to introduce only one thing at a time and beginning with chicken backs would be ideal. Stop the liver and kidney for now.

Did you say your dog currently weighs 9 lbs? How much are you feeding her a day?

Did you start feeding raw one day ago?

There are some very experienced raw feeders on this forum who will chime in.

Have you read any of the free, online info on this site on feeding raw?

Again, welcome!

Thank you Barbara, I am feeding her according to the puppy diet menu on thissite. about 1/4 pund of RNB, that was the pig tail. Also, 2 oz of meat in the noon meal, and 2 oz of liver and other organs at the supper meal.

I did not realize that I needed to only have one thing at a time. I do have chicken necks on the fridge,so I will feed one to her this morning. What about the other meals?

Also, her bowels were really in an uproar last night and this morning. Diarrheain the middle of the night,she cried for me to let her out of her kennel at 5 am, and mucus and blood in her stool this morning. Bummer! I guess I really did move too fast.

I know she'll love hicken bones, she has loved everything else up until now.

What about her stinky face and breath,this will be the thing that makes the family not this diet.

Aleta

RMB are bone-in items that can be totally consumed within a few minutes. What that is, exactly, is entirely dependent upon the size of the dog. A pig tail is an RMB for an adult Rotweiller, but not for a 9 pound puppy. For your pup, this is a messy toy, not food. You should be thinking chicken (or perhaps quail, duck, rabbit, squirrel--small beasts with soft bones.

Start with only one thing. Only one. I would recommend chicken backs. Feed nothing--nothing but chicken backs for at least a week, or until you have several days of normal poop. Then add only one additional item (say, ground beef). Organ meats of any kind must be introduced in tiny amounts. It is not a good idea to offer too much variety right now. Variety is important, but that will come later.

 Quote: tracy collins

... Start with only one thing. Only one. I would recommend chicken backs. Feed nothing--nothing but chicken backs for at least a week, or unroll you have several days of normal poop. Then add only one additional item (say, ground beef). Organ meats of any kind must be introduced in tiny amounts. It is not a good idea to offer too much variety right now. Variety is important, but that will come later.

Giant ditto to everyone.

And nothing should make her face or breath stinky (once you dump the pig tail) with the possible (but unlikely) exception of kidneys, which you can eliminate if need be.

I'd fast this girl for today with nothing but lots of water. "Bowels in an uproar" need a rest and to become uninflamed.

Then tomorrow I would give part of a skinned chicken back, maybe 2-3 ounces, in the morning. Nothing else. Then I would see that poop before the next meal. Tell us about it. I'm working at the computer this weekend so will be around more than usual (weekends are often the quietest forum days). We can guide you through the steps depending on poop results.

Trust me: In a couple of weeks you will wonder what you ever worried about. Diarrhea and inflamed gut is easier to avoid than fix, but you can soothe it now, quickly, with a rest break.

 Quote: Aleta Mueller

1. what about the smelly fur around their mouths when they gnaw on bones all day? My dog stinks!

Does your schnoodle look like a poodle or a schnauzer? Depending on how it's groomed there are a couple things you can do to cut down on beard gorp.

 Quote: Aleta Mueller

Thank you Barbara, I am feeding her according to the puppy diet menu on thissite. about 1/4 pund of RNB, that was the pig tail. Also, 2 oz of meat in the noon meal, and 2 oz of liver and other organs at the supper meal.

I understand how that could have been confusing! Seeing all those suggestions but just not realizing how to go about getting started. Connie is right - after a fast and then a nice, slow start, you and your lucky pup will be right back on track.

Bump. Aleta, I'm wondering how your pup is doing. Did his tummy calm down?

Thank you ladies for so much concern and help. this morning my schnoodle,who looks like a schnauzer in the face, with beard, had more uncontrolled bowels.
I am normally a very attentive and available dog owner, but this weekend has been hectic.
I fed her only egg and yogurt before I posted to you on Saturday and then fed her white rice only on Saturday night because when I arrived home in the early evening Saturday, she had squirted the whole inside of her kennel and I thought I could bind her up for the night with the rice.

I had not any time to read your lovely and informative posts until now, 24 hours later.

I got up early and let her out where she had lots of bm's and some in the house too this morning. Then we went to church for a few hours. I gave her rice and yogurt before we left. When we arrived home, she had a little spot in the kennel, and she went outside and had non-mucusy rice-y bm's and plenty of them.
I gave her 3 of rice and an egg and a T of yogurt. She ate all of this with relish.

I had to go out to run a few errands, getting my daughters ready for church camp tomorrow, and I went to Southern Agriculture becuse they sell quite a few of the all natural kibble brands that are recommended on this site. I thought maybe i would get her acclimated to something without grain and then in a few weeks after her bowels settled down and we came home from vacation, I would get her on a raw diet again.

the woman I spoke to at Southern Ag also raw feeds her 2 huskies and really discouraged me from kibble and directed me to some frozen raw food that included chicken and veggies only.

I bought one pound of it and gave my puppy 1 oz of it with about 2 Tbls of rice. She gobbled it up, that was at about 3 pm today. tonIght I gave her the same thing, but included 1 T of yogurt.


tomorrow I am driving a total of about 10 hours picking up and driving kids to church camp. I wanted her to be able to have something to eat and not be in diarrhea straits while I was gone. My husband will be here and let her out of her kennel and feed and exercise her, but only per my direction, he will not be able to feed her a chicken bone or anything like that.

Do you think I should fast her tomorrow? and what would that look like, the fast I mean?

So far this afternoon she hasn't had any bm's at all.


Thank you each and all so much, i truly appreciate this.
Aleta

1. No eggs at this time.

2. When was the last poop? What did it look like?

3. The commercial raw will be fine, but not yet. She needs a soothed gut first, with perfect poops, before a bunch of mixed ingredients.

4. I would put on a pot of white rice now to overcook to death (and I mean really overcooked, like gruel, far more like a thick gravy than a grain). How much (and even whether) to give it tomorrow will depend on the answers to question 2.

5. I would start a pot of baited water. Regardless of whether she has a complete fast or just a rice fast tomorrow, you will want to be certain she remains hydrated. Be sure to skim off the fat (after it hardens in the fridge) if you use any meat in the water besides skinless white poultry.

None of this stuff will be wasted. It will freeze perfectly if there are leftovers.