Every time I meet someone new and start talking about the raw food diet, the first question is always the same.
What do you feed them?
The list is long. People get bored.
I’ve posted a list of what they eat (see To Feed or Not to Feed?)
I’ve posted a list of what they do not eat (see #WNTF)
But I think the root of the question lies in not just the what, but the how.
Considerations:
My dogs each weigh about 25 lbs.
They sleep in their crates during the day. One is 3 the other is 8, and their activity level is moderate.
For each meal, they get 6-8oz total in their respective bowls.
I have a kitchen scale to measure it.
6-8oz of food twice a day is sustaining their weight, and they are healthy. They beg less.
Morning feeding:
4-oz of plain organic yogurt
1-oz of whole, rolled oats uncooked
1 Tbsp raw, local honey
3-oz fruit (strawberries, blueberries, bananas, apples, pears, plums, kiwi, peaches, melon of all types)
Sprinkle of dehydrated organic coconut flakes
I mix the yogurt, oats & honey together. I add different combinations of fruit that they love so that they get a variety of things they like. If I’m out of yogurt, I’ll beat a raw egg for each of them, which they LOVE. They get that first, followed by the fruit.
Evening feeding:
4-6 oz of raw meat (beef, poultry, fish, game. No pork. No ground meat).
2-4 oz of vegetables. (tomatoes, broccoli, bell peppers, squash, zucchini, cucumber, carrots, pumpkin, potatoes)
I make different combinations of things that seem to go together. Some vegetables have to be cooked. So if I have potatoes, I bake them thoroughly in advance. If I have broccoli, it gets steamed lightly while I’m cutting meat into smaller bits. If I have pumpkin or other winter squashes, they’re baked or roasted. But carrots, tomatoes, bell peppers, cucumbers, etc., are served raw.
Supplements:
1 Tbsp raw, local honey (twice/day. Seems to help with allergies)
1/8 tsp digestive enzyme (whenever I offer something cooked)
1/4 tsp Earth Animal Flea & Tick Program herbal supplement (at night with the savory dishes just bc it smells like garlic & I find it off-putting to mix it with yogurt & bananas).
Pinch of unbleached sea salt (for the trace minerals it contains. Not bc I think it brings out the flavor)
1 Tbsp raw apple cider vinegar (as occasional digestive aid, esp when they’ve got a case of the toots).
Because they’re getting the nutrients they need from fresh, unprocessed, wHOLe foods, they don’t have a need, at this point in their lives, for additional, synthetic vitamin supplements.
Think about the explosion in the vitamin industry as an equal but opposite reaction to the explosion of the fast food/ pre-packaged food industry. People aren’t getting the vitamins & minerals from their food sources, because it’s been stripped away in the processing. So they have to supplement. Same with dogs.
In Part II, I give options for meal combinations. It really is very simple. I eat what they’re eating many times (except for the raw meat).
It requires thought, organization, and a little bit of time. But Pearl & Truman are worth it to me. They depend on me to make good decisions for them and to care for their well-being. With that in mind, it’s an easy thing to do.
pugs & kisses!
The HOL Dog 