torn between processed and BARF for dog and cat

suki1964

ali-t wrote: »

OMG, a 15 kg bag of food has lasted my rottie pup a month.:eek:

Some difference in size between a pug and a rottie

Also different foods have different feeding amounts. The 15kg sack of food I buy my cocker will last around 3 months, another would only last a month.

Be led by your pups breeder, the type of food you feed and your own eye, not how much someone else feeds their dog

KellyWelly

I feed my dogs on BARF and I have never ever paid for any of it. I go to the local butcher and fill a black bag with waste.

For the odd day I haven't got anything left in the freezer and don't have time to get anything in I feed them on Wagg Worker dried food.

Have you looked at Landywood? I think that's the name of them anyway but I remember they were really really cheap when I looked at them.

scheming_gypsy

problem with landywood is you need a minimum order which is difficult if you don't have a spare freezer.

what i've found with BARF is that the fresher the meat the worse the farts.

borderlakland

I am seriously looking at changing my mutt over to a barf diet,I have provisionally sourced suppliers etc but the one thing i am struggling to find out is actual amounts to feed. i have read loads about % of meat,veg etc but v little about how much depending on body weight of the dog.
Has anyone got any ideas on this

suki1964

borderlakland wrote: »

I am seriously looking at changing my mutt over to a barf diet,I have provisionally sourced suppliers etc but the one thing i am struggling to find out is actual amounts to feed. i have read loads about % of meat,veg etc but v little about how much depending on body weight of the dog.
Has anyone got any ideas on this

Its not an exact science as it all depends on your dog. It can be anything between 1 and 10% of total body weight but you need to start feeding and keep an eye on your dog - waistline and energy levels.

Id start mid way - and work up or down from there. I have friends who just add a bit extra now and then,no measuring or weighing, once they have got an idea themselves how much a chicken carcass is for example

ali-t

suki1964 wrote: »

Some difference in size between a pug and a rottie

Also different foods have different feeding amounts. The 15kg sack of food I buy my cocker will last around 3 months, another would only last a month.

Be led by your pups breeder, the type of food you feed and your own eye, not how much someone else feeds their dog

I mentioned it to highlight the huge cost as well as volume difference. I pay £40 a month for kibble for the rottie pup. £40 lasts 2 months of a different kind of kibble for my adult staffy.

for those costs I could easily feed raw but due to not knowing how to ensure a large breed pup doesn't grow to quickly on raw, I haven't done it.:cool:

Hawthorn

I dunno - my girl LOVED barf, but we lost our free supplier, and I have to say, because it's a high protein diet, she was bouncing off the walls.

We put her on ASDA Hero for a while. Her coat became dull, she pooped loads, her breath smelled, she had really strong body odour, and she got all stressy....plus, she was always hungry.

We then changed her diet to burns pet food. She has a beautifully glossy coat, is alert, much calmer and happier, not pooping anywhere near as much, and is in general very well balanced. Course, she's a bull terrier LOL, so is as well balanced as these crazy dogs get, but out of all of these, the Burns has been the best...and meal for meal, the cheapest (apart from the free Barf stuff).
I wouldn't put her back on Barf now.

firesidemaid

after reading several threads on this forum we have researched and looked at different foods for our dogs - trying to meet lower costs with better foods (less artificial stuff).

try having a look online - working dog food will be cheaper as you do not have to pay vat.

we now use a company called CSJ - google them, from less than £10 for a good 15kg bag. one of ours has natural champ and one has sooper dooper champ! it's cheaper on delivery to get 2 bags at once. we add a little water to it to make a gravy.

it also depends on whether your dog needs any kind of special diet, low cal, higher protein etc.

we also use anything we have left over, spare, is dead cheap in shops (they love the stuff that most of us humans would turn our noses up at!) or that we need to use up.

helzbelz_57

thank you all so much for your helpful replies. i feel a lot happier now about feeding the likes of wagg ( which dog has had in the past) i will also visit local butchers and see what i can get that way. going now to google csj. thanks again all.

firesidemaid

i posted re. csj on another thread and a very helpful poster said to me to also click on the link for local stockists on the csj website as the food might be a little cheaper plus you would save on delivery too!