# Raw diet for LGD



## Steph

Does anyone feed their LGD a raw diet? I am planning to switch my Great Pyrenees from commercial food to a raw diet. Deer, chicken, goat, rabbit will be their main meat source. Hard boiled eggs will be given with each meal. Carrots, peas, butternut squash, sweet potatoes and rice will be used too. Any other suggestions for what to feed and how to feed it would be appreciated. I am also unsure of how much to feed them. All of our girls are just under 100 lbs.

One of our LGD's has an allergy to wheat. That is what made me start looking into a raw doggie diet.


----------



## Mandara Farm

I've done this. When my black lab was failing, I switched her diet and it really helped her. She did die (of old age) but I believe changing her diet extended her life by at least a year. I followed the recommendations of someone I found on the internet -- shoot -- this is going back several years now, so I can't think of her name off the top of my head, but I'll check and see if I kept the formulas I downloaded. It was totally worth it and I'm so glad I did it, and if I ever get another dog, I'll start on this raw diet right away...


----------



## yellowstone

don't have LGDs (yet!) but here is what we feed our pet dogs: 

cooked oats, rice, or quinoa
goat milk
raw egg
raw meat (often organ meats)
any veggies they'll eat (shredded carrot, leftover cooked greens etc)
fish oil or cod liver oil
kelp
nutritional yeast

they are so shiny and not ITCHY like when they were getting the wheat-based dry food!

Alyssa


----------



## Mandara Farm

Yellowstone, that looks like a great recipe!

This is the one we used:

http://animalhomeopathy.org.tripod.com/ ... /id19.html


----------



## Steph

Thank you for the replies and information!
Mandara Farm that link was very helpful.
Yellowstone it's good to hear that dogs do good with it. I am hoping to make the meals and freeze them. 

We have 3 dogs that are close to 100lbs. How much meat should I expect to feed each day per dog? In doing my research I'm not finding information on how much to feed.


----------



## Willow

:greengrin: I want to be your LGD. :slapfloor:


----------



## luvmyherd

Mandara Farm said:


> I believe changing her diet extended her life by at least a year


We did this with our Tiffany (who just died at 13+). I am convinced it gave her 3 extra years and a better quality of life. They need the whole animal. Organ meats, fur, feathers, bone to prevent calcium and other deficiencies.
I hope to never feed another dog commercial dog food.


----------



## Mandara Farm

>>>I hope to never feed another dog commercial dog food.

I agree! 

I'm still working to put together a homemade goat feed recipe that works well for my ND girls. I tried the Fir Meadow thing, but after a few months, my girls looked really ratty so I stopped and now they're getting Purina Goat Chow. I'd rather make the food myself so I know exactly what they're eating... There are a few recipes I've seen on this forum. So far nothing's jumped out at me, but maybe it's time to take another look-see


----------



## Goat Song

This is a really good book for feeding cats and dogs a raw diet: http://www.amazon.com/Complete-Herbal-H ... 470&sr=1-1

I have it and love it! If I ever get my LGD, she will be on a raw foods only diet.


----------



## use2bwilson

I also changed my old lab's diet from dry kibble to homemade "doggie stew" and also believe it kept him going for another 3 and half years. He lived to be nearly 16 which is pretty darn old for a purebreed lab.
We didn't do a raw diet for him since he was so old (12 at the time). Our vet suggested to give him cooked instead. Our dogs currently eat a raw diet and sometimes the cooked stew to mix things up.
Check out www.wellvet.com
That's my vet's webpage. He told me that he cures 1/3 of his patients' chronic illnesses by taking them off of commercial food. He provides information on feeding on his website and does phone consultations as well. He was the national holistic vet of the year in 2000 (or something like that) and is such a wonderful vet!!
My "doggie stew" is very similar to the other recipe posted ... but I typically also add sweet potatoes as well. when I feed my dogs raw, i give them meat and bones and steamed veggies and yogurt and flax seed.


----------



## milk and honey

Great thread everyone! I have a doggy with grain issues... he itches!!! so I feed a dry "no grain" kibble (dont hate me..) In the past I tried making dogfood like the one on Fiasco Farm's website, but he didn't do well on that (it had grain) Now I'm going to look up all these referals .. and try, try again!


----------



## use2bwilson

that's the great thing about making your dog's food (whether it's raw or cooked) you can totally control what goes in the food and remove anything they are allergic to. also, i am able to find chicken leg quarters for 69-79 cents per pound. you can't compare that price per pound to any high-quality kibble. i find raw diet or cooking my own dog food to be cheaper than buying just about any kibble ... it's just a bit of time.


----------



## awshucksgoatfarmvt

Steph said:


> Does anyone feed their LGD a raw diet? I am planning to switch my Great Pyrenees from commercial food to a raw diet. Deer, chicken, goat, rabbit will be their main meat source. Hard boiled eggs will be given with each meal. Carrots, peas, butternut squash, sweet potatoes and rice will be used too. Any other suggestions for what to feed and how to feed it would be appreciated. I am also unsure of how much to feed them. All of our girls are just under 100 lbs.
> 
> One of our LGD's has an allergy to wheat. That is what made me start looking into a raw doggie diet.


White Rice has too much arsenic in it to give too much to a dog I believe I read that on the


----------



## awshucksgoatfarmvt

Steph said:


> Does anyone feed their LGD a raw diet? I am planning to switch my Great Pyrenees from commercial food to a raw diet. Deer, chicken, goat, rabbit will be their main meat source. Hard boiled eggs will be given with each meal. Carrots, peas, butternut squash, sweet potatoes and rice will be used too. Any other suggestions for what to feed and how to feed it would be appreciated. I am also unsure of how much to feed them. All of our girls are just under 100 lbs.
> 
> One of our LGD's has an allergy to wheat. That is what made me start looking into a raw doggie diet.


White Rice has too much arsenic in it to give too much to a dog I believe I read that on the WHOLE DOG SOME WHERE


----------



## fishin816

Mandara Farm said:


> Yellowstone, that looks like a great recipe!
> 
> This is the one we used:
> 
> http://animalhomeopathy.org.tripod.com/ ... /id19.html


It is. Minus the oats, oats are a grain and they cant digest grain well. Before dogs were domesticated, they ate mostly meat, no grains. It's a GREAT mix! Just, grains aren't good for the dog. They don't digest them well.


----------



## Scottyhorse

This is an old thread. :wink:


----------



## fishin816

Scottyhorse said:


> This is an old thread. :wink:


Smacks head. I just assumed that it was in bold letters it was new. So. Replied. I feel silly now.. :slapfloor:


----------



## Scottyhorse

there's an icon for that, you know  :doh: :lol:


----------



## awshucksgoatfarmvt

*Brrrrrrr -5*

Love this thread, so many great ideas. There are several cookbooks out on raw feeding. And relating to where you live, the desert, or snow and cooooold like here today.
I have found an awesome meat processor ( slaughter house:hammer::2cents: ) Tongue, liver, heart all $1.00 lb. MIsty Knoll Farms is where I get chicken backs 50# for $20.00. This is all food grade FDA which is sold to grocery stores, restaurants and hotels.
The tongues come individually wrapped, hearts are also but the live is huge so they usually cut it in half for me while frozen. 
Molly gets a chick back in the morning only after she eats 3 cups of call of the wild , am weaning her off this to only raw. She loves carrots but these must be cooks to get any benefit from them. I cut up the meats with cooked eggs etc just let your imagine run. 
Am making all of my friends dogs and pups liver cookies, with carob. Carrot cupcakes with beef heart that is mashed .........I is fun to experiment,
What is so wonderful:snowlaugh: about this is I can cook and do not eeat it no matter how wonderful it smells


----------

