Incorporating some raw in with Charcoal and Bandit's diet

[CrissAngelLover12345]

I fabricate chickens on a regular basis (cut whole chickens into their individual components). There are some parts that we don't eat, and I also tend to occasionally have some scrap meat attached to the bones that I didn't get off when cutting the parts off (I use most of the bones to make chicken stock). I've decided to give the parts we don't eat/use (the giblets and the wings, as well as the scraps) to Charcoal and Bandit (raw of course). I was wondering, are the stomachs ok to give to them? I plan on giving them some part a couple times a week with their regular meals. The wings will still have their bones, so they'll also have the bones from the wings to chew on, as well as the necks when they are included in the giblets. biggrin I gave Bandit some of the scrap as treats while I was working on them, and he loves it! biggrin My dad seems to think I'm crazy for giving them raw, but isn't gonna question my decision for my animals much, as he is respecting my decision for how I care for them. I took a piece in to Charcoal for her to try, but she sniffed it and then walked off, wanting no part of it. I'm gonna put some in with her food tonight and see if she'll eat it. biggrin At some point, I want to get them completely on raw diets when I can better afford it, but for now, at least it's better than absolutely no raw. biggrin I'm also gonna price other raw products (like chicken livers, chicken hearts, meaty bones, etc.) and see what I can afford to include in their diets, even if it is only a few meals/a little bit included with their meals a few times a week. I'm thinking about making these Bandit's daily treats instead of the Wellness treats (since the treats do have some grains in them and I would like him to be completely grain-free, and I can't find any grainless treats, though I'll wait to do that until after his current bag is emptied...) biggrin  

[Gabrielle_AnimalLuver]

Wellness does make grainless treats. I think they're called purebites.

YES stomachs are good. Gizzards, necks, all good stuff. And a few times a week is still enough to give a benefit.

A few things to watch for though. Try not to mix with cooked food. They digest at different rates. To transition should be okay but just avoid it when possible. You could to transition. Cook boneless pieces just a little bit. The smell more than anything should encourage him. But they also generally like food to be warm.

Try to feed raw veggies too, if you exceed more than say 3 meals a week. Just to balance it out a bit.  

[CrissAngelLover12345]

Gabrielle_AnimalLuver

Wellness does make grainless treats. I think they're called purebites.

YES stomachs are good. Gizzards, necks, all good stuff. And a few times a week is still enough to give a benefit.

A few things to watch for though. Try not to mix with cooked food. They digest at different rates. To transition should be okay but just avoid it when possible. You could to transition. Cook boneless pieces just a little bit. The smell more than anything should encourage him. But they also generally like food to be warm.

Try to feed raw veggies too, if you exceed more than say 3 meals a week. Just to balance it out a bit.

Ok, I'll look for the Purebites. I haven't seen them in Petco for a while, so I have a feeling they stopped selling them in the store. I haven't even seen a tag for them. sad I just looked on Petco's website, and they are called Pure Rewards. At least I know of somewhere I can find them if I can't locate them in stores. biggrin Though it looks like they have variety of different flavors offered on the website. I might go with buying them online. They're probably cheaper there too.

Thanks for letting me know about mixing it with cooked food. I'll feed raw and the processed food separate. biggrin I'll give them a few meals a week of raw, probably 2-3 meals a week, depending on what I can afford, and eventually get them completely on raw when I can afford to. I'll try cooking the boneless pieces a tiny bit to see if that will get Charcoal (my cat) to take to it since she's the one not really sure about the raw chicken. Bandit (my dog) LOVES the raw chicken, completely uncooked, so getting him to eat it won't be an issue. He enjoyed the wing I gave him this evening (before I knew not to feed the kibble and raw food in one meal). In fact, he wanted that more than he did his kibble (and he also LOVES the Wellness Core). biggrin As for raw veggies, unfortunately, there's not many raw veggies Bandit will eat. >.< I'll try various different ones and see if I can get him to eat some.

Also, are kidneys good?

Also, how much should I feed them per meal?

Charcoal is at her ideal weight of 8 lbs. Bandit is still overweight. I still want to get him down to 45 lbs and see how he looks.

Edit: They got raw for their breakfast this morning. Bandit gobbled it down completely raw (though of course, taking a little longer with the wings since they had their bones in, he seemed to enjoy chewing on the bones. biggrin ), but Charcoal wouldn't touch it, even after cooking the boneless pieces a bit... I'll keep trying. I'm sure she'll eventually accept it, it'll just take time and patience. smile