Diet, what does your chi eat?

[ozi-chichi's]

We used to feed them science diet and it was fine, now we have been feeding our chi's the BARF (bones and raw food) diet for a few months now and its going very well.

What is everyone else feeding their chi's ??

[Jemma's Mom]

Loppi has been on the BARF diet for almost a year now, I believe. She's doing really well on it. It's called Mountain Dog Food.

[mamaalfa73]

Faline has been on Innova for quite some time and seems to like it. But I spoil her. She gets the wet mixed with the dry and some hot spring water to make in warm. Hey, it's cold in the morning! Am I a slave to my dog?

Tell me more about this BARF diet.

[Amaze]

Heuser and Tally have a revolving combination of three dry kibbles (Innova, Wellness, Solid Gold, Canidae, and BilJac as their junk-food) and get wet food from Wellness mixed with cottage cheese for protein and vegetables. I'm interested in the BARF diet but am hearing some negative things about the actual health benefits of the pre-made (patties) food made by manufactures versus an actual diet consisting of bones and raw meat.

[Jemma's Mom]

www.mountaindogfood.com

That's the link to the food that Loppi eats. They offer different varieties of meat- chicken, turkey, beef, and even tripe (for once a week). With each type of meat, you can choose between just Ground (type of meat) with bone in OR Ground (type of meat) with bone, veggie, and fruit. However, I'm not sure if this particular barf diet is offered in the US.

Loppi's favorite is Chicken :)

[ozi-chichi's]

I cant get any pre-made BARF products where I live so I make up my own.
The chi's get a few different types of things depending on the day (they get fed twice a day):
chicken necks, chicken carcuses, beef mince, chicken and bones minced together, lamb riblets, soups, etc.
The butcher and supermarket sell all the ingredients in bulk for very reaonable prices and I just separate them into daily helpings, its so cheap that it costs about $10 per week to feed 4 chi's, the chi's love eating it, only draw back is my freezer is always full!

[Amaze]

That sounds really neat Terri! Do you get in from an organic butcher? My concern with that would be all the antibiotics and growth hormones that go into most meat animals specifically beef...its one of the things, you know? Darned if you don't, darned if you do! We'll keep researching all this!

[Romans Mom]

Do you get in from an organic butcher? My concern with that would be all the antibiotics and growth hormones that go into most meat animals specifically beef...its one of the things, you know? Darned if you don't, darned if you do! We'll keep researching all this!

Lys, In the states anyway, you are right here with the darned if you do, don't...go to only places that say they are "custom cutting shops" (which is what we owned), where people bring their own beef in to insure no hormones, etc. Then the natural health food stores are your next best bet, but still then, injection sites can be located on the hips for meds, hormones, etc. Then after that, it CAN be a crap shoot...or a lie.

Check with natural health food stores. Good ones now have inspectors on location to check all the meat and veggies as they are delivered. If, not, again...crap shoot. You can ask if this inspector is there.

One more thing...if you Only want hormone free, NEVER buy from ANY shop that sells BOTH organic and otherwise(ie hormone injections) These places can't survive on organic alone. :)

[Romans Mom]

Sheba, Roman and Elle all still eat Science Diet, do great with it, and love it. :D

[mamaalfa73]

Now that I think about it, Faline eats really well when I add boiled hamburger and rice to her food. Is this ok for them?

[jennifer]

Mickey eats Wysong. We use to feed him Old Mother Hubbard.

[ozi-chichi's]

That sounds really neat Terri! Do you get in from an organic butcher? My concern with that would be all the antibiotics and growth hormones that go into most meat animals specifically beef...its one of the things, you know? Darned if you don't, darned if you do! We'll keep researching all this! Good question Lys, Where I live: by law meat must be antibiotic and hormone growth promotant free, there is also no BSE (mad cow disease) here. Australian meat is in high demand for export because of the quality. Its quite safe here for red and white meat. The administration of oestrogen to chickens was banned in the early 1960's and the use of antibiotics in livestock industries has been phased out since the early 1970's. Test are carried out by the government on livestock and chickens for hormonal growth promotants and the results are available to the public - no residues have ever been detected.
I always buy free range and do not buy from companies that support live animal trade.
Only the best for my chi's;-)

[Amaze]

Now that I think about it, Faline eats really well when I add boiled hamburger and rice to her food. Is this ok for them?

As an additive (not replacement), boiled hamburger and rice are fine but a leaner, healthier cut of meat like chicken or turkey would be better for her. Also, beef is harder to digest and many dogs get gas bubbles, upset stomachs, or runny poops from it. Just like in humans, white rice has little to no nutritional value so be sure to use brown rice instead.
Lys

PS-a great food flavor inhancer is liver juice. Either beef or chicken, it usually comes in 1/2-1 pound pre-cut containers with the blood/juice. It is high in iron, protein, and dogs love it! (make sure you only use a little bit, it is very rich and will cause diarrhea if too much is used.

[Luckys Mom]

:-| Lucky eats boiled chicken with rice and veggies....seeing that my picky chihuahua refuses to eat dog food....i have tried every food out there for him and he will sniff it and walk away....what can i say my baby is spoiled

[Hercules Momma]

:-| Lucky eats boiled chicken with rice and veggies....seeing that my picky chihuahua refuses to eat dog food....i have tried every food out there for him and he will sniff it and walk away....what can i say my baby is spoiled


Sounds like Hercules and Hummer need to come dine with Lucky.. They are extremely picky eaters too.. They eat hamburger meat with rice, or chicken with rice and veggies. I wish I could just have them eat dry dog food, but they are super picky and I hate to see them miss a meal.

[aliciatobytaco]

My pups eat Science Diet small bite Kibble. Taco is quite sensitive with food. It took me forever to find something that wouldn't upset his stomach. So far so good, with this.

[Luckys Mom]

Lucky no longer eats human food...he is now on dog food...


i feed him

Nutro Natural Choice Light...Rice and Lamb

and he has been doing pretty good on it...