If you would look at the Leerburg sample menu, you would see (again) that the basis of the meal is RMBs, such as poultry backs or quarters, for example.... that is, meat with the bones in.

Please read the sample menu and see the way the meals are combined.

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

Here's the 2nd dog's Monday (the whole day, so half at each meal):
One pound of chicken necks or backs or leg quaters
12 oz. Ground turkey, hamburger, beef heart or chicken hearts / gizzards
One egg w/shell
2 Mega Omega-3
1 tsp. Super C powder
400 units of Vitmain E

You see how much more RMB (the first item) there are compared to your Tuesday, for example?

You have for the day:
total 9 oz ground (lamb, pork, beef, rabbit, or poultry)
total 7 oz chicken backs necks or quarters

I'd reverse that amount.

Also, if your dog weighs 65 pounds, then 2 to 3% is more like 1.5 pounds, as opposed to the one pound you have above.

You would probably do well to follow the examples on the link exactly for a few days and then one at a time make substitutions, seeing how each one goes.

I'd probably work up to fish oil at about 1.3 teaspoons/day for that size dog.... much more than a one-gram gelcap.

i still really dont understand pounds or ozs, i go many by grams.

so does my dog weigh roung about 65 pounds then? if so i will definalty go with your menu. alot easyer hehe.

so is the amount i put to small? i understand i didnt put so much chicken pieces in there but could there be a sustitute for chicken?

Toni, your menu has very nice variety

Connie didn't mean that you had to use chicken, she was pointing out the fact that your dog's diet could use more bones.

Instead of giving two big serving of meat with a bone tossed in during the day, it's better to give meaty bones as the bulk of the meal.

A chicken leg is a meaty bone; you can also use ribs, necks, backs, shoulders and so on (it doesn't matter what animal it's from; it can be chicken, rabbit, beef, turkey, pork, lamb, mutton, duck, deer, moose, beaver, whatever you can find!).

The whole carcass is probably the best thing you could feed.
Think of it this way, the "ideal" diet is a whole carcass.

When you feed meats and bones, the goal is to try and approximate what a dog would get from eating the whole carcass.

So to make it short, more bones, less meat for your dog.

As far as portion size, don't worry too much about weighing everything - it's not necessary.

Once you start feeding, keep a close watch on your dog's physical condition. You should be able to easily feel the dog's ribs. If he gets fat and you can no longer see his ribs, cut back on the food.
If he gets too skinny and his ribs start sticking out, increase his portions.

 Quote: Toni Bradley

i still really dont understand pounds or ozs, i go many by grams.

so does my dog weigh roung about 65 pounds then? if so i will definalty go with your menu. alot easyer hehe.

What does your dog weigh? YOU have to get a weight on the dog and figure out how much food to give him/her.

 Quote: Toni Bradley

so is the amount i put to small? i understand i didnt put so much chicken pieces in there but could there be a sustitute for chicken?

If your dog weighs 65 pounds, then yes the amounts your feeding are not enough and your dog will not be getting enough food.

If you are going to do this, stick with adding more chicken for now until you see how your dog does with it.

I would recommend that you stay on kibble until you get everything figured out. I hate to give that advice, but if you do not do this correctly your dog will not benefit.

lol thanks x he is perfect the way he is at the moment so if it changes i will bear this in mind. the bones i feed are huge and he will site and eat the lot. and i dont want him to find it dull so i thought add some other things.
i no exactly what evryone means about bones making most of the diet up. instead of just chicken can i try duck and guinea fowl and turkey legs. turkey legs have plenty of muscle meat. i dont want to try carcasses too soon orr he wont eat it. so once he is going strong i will try it. if so the more the better lol x

he weighs 34kg so i measure all the food to his weight. its on the menu in fact its just over. the average ratio of food in ounces is 16.o ounce but i put it to 17 because i reckon he eats just slightly more then your average guideline on every food i gave him. so i will work out how many ounces just with your menu first.

and i am just putting him on raw chicken pieces and ground chicken etc in morning so he gets used to it and it give me time to do my research which is what im doing now xxx he is on kibble in afternoon.

he ate 200g/just over 7 ounces of it today and carried it all around my bedroom before eating it???

how can i stop him from doing that???

 Quote:

he ate 200g/just over 7 ounces of it today and carried it all around my bedroom before eating it???

how can i stop him from doing that???

I am sure you will get a few answers on that. Some feed in a crate, some teach the dog they can only eat on a specific mat/place.... As I am lazy and don't like to clean, I feed outside 365 days a year, no matter what the weather.

It is normal for dogs to move their food around when eating raw. Most won't pic up a chicken leg and eat it carefully over the bowl. My dog is always freakin starving and bolts everything, but I have heard of dogs hiding leftover turkey necks under their owner's pillows for later

Have fun!

Feed him in the yard. Feed him in a crate or kennel. Put a leash on him and tie it to the door or a tree or a post while he eats.

Any of these methods will make him eat where you want him to.

Ok, think of the bones this way. A dog NEEDS the minerals from the bones in his diet.

If you only feed VERY large and VERY hard bones (like marrow bones, or beef leg bones), the dog will chew on them, but will have trouble breaking and eating enough of it for his body to use.

It can also damage his teeth.

RMBs = Raw Meaty Bones

Chicken legs have softer bones than beef legs so it's easier for a dog to eat. Beef or pork ribs (or riblets) are softer than beef or pork legs so it's easier for the dog to eat and doesn't damage his teeth.

Chicken backs, necks, beef/pork necks are also good choices for "edible" bones.

It's best to avoid the really hard bones and to stick to something that's a little softer so that the dog can eat it.

The ideal meal for a dog is meaty bones. Not just bones, and not just meat.

They need to eat both meats and bones to get the nutrition they need.

Again, try not to worry too much about weighing the food. Just look at your dog and you will know if you should be feeding more or feeding less.

Toni, if you are confused about the meat/bone ratios, try this.

Can you get whole chicken or whole rabbit carcasses?

If so, cut the whole chicken into 2 or 3 parts and feed him one part per meal. Same with a rabbit; depending on how big it is, cut the whole rabbit in half and give him half the rabbit for a meal.

Then you will see how much meat and how much bone he's supposed to eat every day.

Things like tripe, liver, kidney, veggies can be added in of course, but only in small amounts. Maybe a few spoonfuls of veggie mush a day, or maybe a small piece of liver or tripe every day.

Think of it this way: meaty bones are MEALS and pieces of liver/tripe/veggies are SNACKS.

Good luck.

Oh and I'm with Jennifer. I have no wish to clean and disinfect my floor after each feeding so my dogs always eat outside.

No matter the weather...

They don't seem to care anyway as far as freezing cold or sweltering heat. The only thing that bothers them is the rain, but their desire to eat always overcomes their reluctance to get "moist"

Ditto with eating outside. The only thing I feed inside is ground up meats. Anything whole with bone attached gets eaten outside. In fact, I've switched to paper plates to put the whole foods on for outside since he takes it off the plate anyway (and less washing YEAH!), and feed the ground stuff in his dog bowl.