Everyone I have ever spoken to has been terrified when making the journey from kibble or canned food to raw. Don’t worry; you’re not alone!
Here are five essential tips to help you on your way to a happier, healthier pet.
Support
Find a support network online, locally, or from someone who has been feeding raw for a while. Having some personal contact with one or two people is better than having the opinion from twenty in a Facebook forum.
Ensure your raw food supplier is happy to help, either your local raw store or the manufacturer of the frozen raw food you’ve bought. If they won’t, don’t use them. Find someone who will supply and support you.
Read
There are some fantastic books out there to help you transition. Here’s a list of resources we like:
Dr Conor Brady’s book – Feeding Dogs – The Science Behind the Dry vs Raw Debate?
Very comprehensive and scientific. It may be a little too technical for novice raw feeders, but Conor Brady is the man for you if you want detail. Lovely writing style.
Honey’s Natural Feeding Handbook for Dogs by Jonathan Self.
An excellent small, easy-to-read book outlining why raw feeding makes sense.
Real Food for Dogs and Cats: A Practical Guide to Feeding Your Pet a Balanced, Natural Diet by Clare Middle
Another small, easy-to-read, matter-of-fact guide to raw feeding, including many good tips for cats.
Hygiene
Read articles/blogs on the safety of handling raw meat. RawSAFE has excellent information.
Use the same hygiene rules for human raw meat preparation; wash hands after handling meat. Wash surfaces and utensils in hot soapy water. Easy!
Be Guided by Your Pet
If you feed something and your pet doesn’t like it, don’t push them to eat. Put the food down for ten minutes, take up again, cover it in cling film, and try again in two hours. If they’re still not interested, try another flavour.
Transitioning dogs is pretty straightforward – usually. You can go for the cold-turkey approach or take four days – adding a ¼ meal of raw each day until complete transition on the last day.
Veterinary Support
Most Vets don’t know much about raw feeding and are consequently suspicious of it.
Try to find a Vet or Veterinary practice locally that will support you.
Ask your friends who feed raw, who they use, and the Vet’s response when they have a raw conversation.
Go to the Raw Feeding Veterinary Society website Find A Vet Page to find your nearest raw feeding Vet.
