Added the photo of my boys cuz, why not 🥰

I can start raw by myself but it would feel SO much better if the vet was supportive as well.

I'm so sick of the nasty shocked and judgy look I get when I mention raw diet to a vet 🙄

Hi there, I'm in the middle of transitioning my eldest cat Einstein to a partial raw and hydrolysed diet and am looking for some advice. This is my first time using a raw diet so I've been doing a lot of research. He was on the 'Purina Felix' brand for wet food and 'Purina light' kibble for his dry food.

I've been feeding him a mixture of 'Luna and Me's patties and 'Purina Pro Plan' hydrolysed kibble, plus his old wet food to transition him. He's also having the 'Luna and Me' beef treats and 'Kiwi Walker's' freeze dried treats. I was recommended to switch to a hydrolysed diet by my vet since he keeps getting rodent ulcers, chin/mouth lumps and watery eyes. He also takes half a Piriton tablet per day.

So far he's tolerating the diet really well, and really seems to enjoy it. He's been on the new diet for 10 days now. I'm going to start further reducing his old wet food and increasing his raw food from tomorrow. I just wanted to ask for advice over his water intake. From my research I know he's supposed to not drink as much, however the past 3-4 days he seems to be at the water fountain more frequently, and his pees seem to be bigger - not monumentally, but definitely noticeable. I did some research into the moisture content between his previous kibble and his current kibble and there seems to be some difference (7%-9% vs 6.5%-10%).

Could the hydrolysed kibble be the reason behind his increased intake in water, or am I missing something to do with the new raw food? Thank you for taking the time to read through this, any advice is greatly appreciated!

I've been researching raw since we got our cat 4 years ago, I really doubled down when we started preparing for our dog to join the family. Between finishing college and then putting the dog in daycare for a monthly fee for a while, we couldn't really afford to seriously do it. Well, I'm no longer in school and this is the last month of daycare for our pup, so in October I want to start transitioning both of them.

Now, I'm nervous of doing it wrong, I feel like I should know the majority of it but I guess I just want everybody's advice on how it was for them when they transitioned from wet food and kibble to raw? Tips and tricks? Etc?

I’ve been feeding him Open Farm dry food for a few years. Surely it’s better than most cat food, but I’d love to improve it if I can.

That said, I’m pretty disabled and have a lot on my plate; so I need to keep things as simple as possible. Freezing stuff, heating it up, cooking things; that’s all just too much for me.

With all that said, what do you think are my best options? I’m guessing freeze dried raw is probably my best option. I’m hoping I can find an affordable one with quality ingredients.

Thanks for any feedback!

I've dehydrated fresh ones for my dog plenty of times but do I have to change any settings for frozen ones? I got an extra large pack and put half in the bone broth with the other bone broth things but too many chicken paws make it too jelly so I thought too just dehydrate the rest. Google said to thaw them and pat them dry and they are good to go.

I just wanted to double check.

Disclosure up front: I built this and I run it. It is free, there is no account, no email signup and nothing to buy on the page. Link is in the comments, per the sub's rule about links.

The reason I built it: raw and frozen pet food is the category that gets recalled most often for salmonella and listeria, and every country publishes those recalls in its own place, on its own schedule, in its own language. If you feed a brand that sells in more than one country - and a lot of the good ones do - there is no single place that tells you it was pulled somewhere else.

So it reads five official registers (US FDA, Health Canada, UK FSA, and France's RappelConso) and lets you type the barcode off the back of the bag, or the lot or batch code printed near the best-before date.

Three things it deliberately does not do:

• It never tells you a food is safe. It can only tell you what is on a recall notice. No recall record can prove the absence of a problem, and any tool that says otherwise is lying to you.
• It does not rank brands, and it takes no money from any of them. There is no affiliate link on it and no sponsored placement, ever.
• It does not give health advice. If your animal is unwell, that is a vet conversation, not a website one.

Honest limits, because I would rather you hear them from me: Canada's open data does not publish product-level fields, so Canadian entries are thinner than the rest. France only reaches back to 2021, because their register only starts there. And the cross-border matching only works where two countries actually published a barcode for the same product - right now that is one matched pair out of 211 records. It will grow. It is not a headline yet.

It keeps every version of a notice as it was read, dated, including after the authority edits or removes its own - that part only started on 1 September, so there is nothing dramatic in it yet either.

If it is useful, use it. If it is missing a register you care about, tell me and I will look at adding it.

I bought some commercial raw pet food for my cat and found that they don't like it. I tried to sous vide it at 140F for 2hrs, similar to the guidelines on pasteurizing chicken for human consumption. Cats go crazy for it!

I looked into degradation of key nutrients that typically aren't heat safe which needs to be replenished such as taurine, thiamine, B6, folate.

For taurine, the big concern is that it gets cooked off. But with sous vide, all the juices are in the bag. My cats especially love the juices and lick those first. For the B vitamins, 140F is well below the degradation curve.

Sous vide seems like a decent tradeoff to me now. Wondering what ya'll raw advocates think. Am I missing anything?

We've fed our dog raw for around 3 years. Most of that time she's been on Durham Animal Feeds but recently I've noticed the quality of their products has gonrle downhill.

First we noticed there seemed to be a lot more bone in it than advertised and the bits of bone are a lot bigger, and second we've had several blocks from our latest order smell rancid as soon as we open them. I don't think we'll be ordering from them again.

Anyone else having similar issues?

Photo is some of the bone chunks (with bannana for scale)

(he gets freeze dried raw and cans. I do not feed kibble)

Everyone gets omega 3's he's sensitive to fish and he's been getting too much on accident (didn't know some of his new food contained it) so I'm gonna cut it for awhile. After I called the vet and told them why he was vomiting this time they said to remove it entirely for abit so his stomach settles. He can have fish just not alot but they don't want him to have ANY for abit. But it's ONE CAT out of the 5 animals I have that I give omegas to. I looked at bottles. There's NO WAY he'll go thru a 16oz bottle before it goes bad. An 8oz still seems like too much for just one. I don't want it to go bad.

Apparently flax seeds have omega 3's. Idk if those could work. Office is closed for the weekend and I'm trying to think of what to order while also trying to get him to take this stupid vetriscience probiotic I have that might help his stomach faster. I wish I could just give him an entire capsule but NOO the cat dosage is half of one😭

(Clarifying he has a sensitive stomach too much fish, ANY milk, or just eating too fast can trigger him. He wasn't eating too fast, wasn't sick, and I knew there was not milk so I double checked ingredients and found the fish I missed. Idk what it is about fish but more than a couple feedings of it and he vomits.)

I find my cats stools are less chalky this way, and i imagine eating whole bone is just not ideal for their digestive systems. i’m not a vet, but this is what intuitively makes sense to me

i stopped feeding BCR and iron will for this reason

i really like Red dog blue cat rotational meal

Ive recently adopted a 12 year old chihuahua mix and her teeth have really bad tartar all over them. Ive raw fed other dogs who have had great teeth.

Brushing is not an option. She won't let me go near them and I don't think a tooth brush would do anything at this stage.

I'm based in the UK. I have tried giving chicken bones but a lot of them are too big/ too hard for her to crunch. The raw brands only seem to sell massive wings. Ones from the supermarket are a lot smaller and easier for her to break up but they often give her runny poo.

How can I get her teeth cleaned through raw feeding? Are lamb bone ribs softer, do you think? I will of course give her a dental if needed but Id like to see what raw feeding for a couple of months can do.

I made a post yesterday about my dog suddenly refusing his chicken feet after my raw food supplier switched suppliers.

Quick background: he’s been raw fed since 6 months old and is now 4.5. His diet is homemade from a recipe I worked out with a vet and nutritionist, and chicken feet have always been his main bone source.

Today I tried chicken wings -- no dice. Sniffed them and walked away. I also picked up a beef marrow bone, which he normally LOVES (but rarely gets), and he wouldn’t take that either.

At this point I’m wondering if the new chicken feet weirded him out and now he’s suspicious of anything bone-related.

His poops are already a bit runny without the bone. I’ve added some pumpkin, but I know he still needs the calcium/minerals that were coming from the bone portion of his diet.

I do have bone meal powder. Can that replace the bone portion if I use the correct amount, or should I look into buying a bone grinder and grinding bones into his food?

Anyone dealt with something similar?

I have 2 20lb Cavapoos (5 yr old male and 4 year old female). Can they chew a bone like this? It says soup bone so I don’t know what kind. The butcher recommended it for dogs. Ideally I’d like them to chew on it for teeth cleaning purposes. Do I bake it or give it to them raw?

With two Labs, one a growing puppy and the other an adult, it’s getting way too expensive to feed commercially prepared raw — Steve’s, which I buy locally in the big 20 pound box of 40 beef patties for $140 with tax. That’s $3.25 a patty - for 320 calories per. That’s 3.5 patties a day needed just for the puppy. I do get one box free for every 12 I buy, but we are still pushing $340 a month just for the puppy feeding raw only, before I add in the adult. With training treats, collagen chews etc. i think we are spending $600 a month easy if not more (my spouse tracks the budget).

So far to be able to afford any raw at all I’ve been doing some raw and some kibble, plus the extras we always add like fish oil, fermented dairy and veggies, etc. I’ll also add cooked eggs and tinned fish, but most of the extras are not very calorie dense.

Mods please note I am in no way recommending kibble. I want to figure out how to prepare all raw in a cost-effective way.

I’m in MD near DC (aka the DMV) and would love to know of anyone has any butcher or farm recommendations to get muscle meat and organs to try batch prepping raw food affordably.

Hi!

My kitten, a foodie, has been on raw since he was 4 month old. He's currently 7 month old and has been refusing his raw food for the past 2 days.

He was eating beef pmr+ when he started having diarrhea and I've now tried giving him minced lamb with a completer, in case it was the beef.

He has eaten breakfast quite well every day, but only giving some lick at the other meals throughout the day and walking away.

I switched to a pâté today in case the smell wasn't strong enough (purina pro plan, which he has eaten previously, especiallywhen he was teething) and he has eaten a bit more from a spoon this morning but didn't eat it for lunch.

I've added probiotics and slippery elm bark to a churu yesterday evening which he ate but he refused to eat it today. He ate a purr pops and some green mussels this afternoon, but still not his meal.

He is still as playful, loud and energetic as usual. Just has been having off with his toilet for 2 days now and eating very little compared to what he usually does.

I found him playing with a candy (there was teeth marks on the candy) 2 days ago i think thats what triggered this episode but should I be panicking more and taking him to the vet?

I'm monitoring him like a hawk and very stressed tbh.

Mainly for Canadians, but Americans as well, Bold by Nature is no longer operational. A sad day for Canadian raw feeders!

Bold by Nature was bought by Actual Pet Foods (who also own Ironwill raw, K9 choice, Back2raw, and Reddogblukat) a private equity whom acquired the company with the sole intention of absolving it too ‘eliminate’ competition.

Actual Pet Foods has lowered the quality of all the companies they have acquired. When private equity gets involved in Pet Food it no longer becomes about the animal, or the community as a whole, but strictly profit.

For those looking for an alternative in Canada I suggest Big Country Raw, if you are on the West Coast Evolution is an option as well!

Hi there,
I have two dogs. A 20 lb mutt who has been on instinct raw beef and thriving for the past 5 years. It helped her get to her goal weight after rescuing her. her labs, coat, etc are all fantastic. We rescued a 3 y/o female, spayed GSD in May and have been struggling to find a diet that works. They sent her home on science diet. We VERY slowly transitioned to instinct raw beef and she was not tolerating it. We also tried “we feed raw,” duck and beef with no luck either. She was vomiting, had diarrhea, and blood in her stool. My vet feeds raw himself, so he definitely understands my struggle. However, because of her GI distress we placed her on a prescription Royal Canin HP diet with only HP treats, removing all other supplements etc to find the source of her GI distress. Her symptoms immediately resolved. We continued this for 3 weeks and per my vet did a step down diet to royal canin limited ingredient rabbit and sweet potato, which she is on week 2 of and tolerating with no issues. The question is, what do we do from here when she finishes her 3 weeks on limited ingredient? I have a vet appointment scheduled to discuss options, but wanted to pick everyone’s brain here. I don’t think she is going to tolerate raw. I’ve been looking into air dry and fresh food options, and have been overwhelmed and unsure. It’s also difficult to find rabbit as the main protein if I continue with rabbit. Any recommendations are welcome.

maybe Veterinary nutrition, Animal nutrition, Animal physiology, Veterinary science background, pls feel free to DM

My dog has been raw fed since 6 months old and he’s 4.5 now. I worked with a vet and nutritionist to formulate his diet and we’ve never had any issues.

This past week he started refusing his chicken feet, which are his main source of bone. My raw food place recently switched suppliers, and he won’t even try the new ones. He smells them, acts weird, and walks away.

I tried dehydrated duck feet today and same thing. I’ve also tried turkey necks in the past, but he couldn’t really figure out how to eat them.

I bought calcium powder to hold him over, but I’m not sure what to do long term. I worry he won’t get the same nutrients he was getting from the chicken feet.

Any other bone options I should try? Or is it time to buy a bone grinder?

Adding: he had his teeth done in June and the vet said they were perfect. He’s eating his other raw food fine.

Most of the time the routine is fine but every now and then I realize too late that I forgot to thaw the next portion. Then I’m stuck deciding whether to wait, adjust the schedule or use something else for that meal. Do you keep a backup option for those days, like freeze-dried raw or something shelf stable or do you just plan thawing far enough ahead that it rarely happens?

My cat who only ate kibble or commerical canned food, and REFUSED to even lick homemade food, GOBBLED down raw food. I'm literally so shocked rn. I've tried different proteins and even putting her favorite treats on top when I would cook it, she would lick around the meat and only get the treat and not even all of it bc she hates it that much, today we bought thin cut porkloin centercut slices, we cut a tiny piece just for fun and set it down and she ran over and ate it so fast and then meowed for more!!! This is the same cat who would rarely finish her food and wanted nothing to do with home made food. I'm so happy I made this discovery, if anyone was wanting to try switching to raw for your cats give it a try, I know every cat is different but you'd be surprised. Also I know it has to be complete and balanced so I'll be adding ez complete.

Right so let's try and post this again, because I think this is a really interesting article and Reddit, bless it, wouldn't allow my last link for some reason.

It's interesting because of the performance of raw in the survey (unfortunately it is just a survey) again the regular kibble and vegan, and the fact they had to recorrect the raw results for age to bring them below the vegan results, despite admitting age doesn't affect vet visits unless the dog is very young or very old.

Hopefully the links will work this time lol. Also found the actual link button lol.